I confess, I no longer listen to commercial (advertising) radio. For all of my life I did listen to the commercial airwaves, but those days are fewer and farther between these days. My time spent in the car traveling to work in the morning and evenings needs to be a time of enjoyment and relaxation not ten commercials and one song. Then repeat the same cycle.
When I purchased my new vehicle last August it came with a six month free trial of Sirrus Satellite Radio. I had never really heard of it and when the sales person told me about this great feature I commented that I did not care about that feature and I would probably never listen to it any way. Boy was I wrong! And these people know what they are doing because I am hooked! I am able to listen and enjoy all types of music including my favorite, contemporary christian music. There is only an occasional comment from a DJ and the rest is song, after song to help me make my daily commute to and from the office.
Well the last few days I have heard a little "advertisement" you might say, but it really is not that at all. It is more of a "Golden Nugget" spoken across the airwaves in between song after song. And this is the statement:
"Character is Who you are when no one else is looking."
Well let me tell you that I agree with this statement 110%! If we knew how important character is we would teach our children at an early age about how important it is. That the character that is developed in a person begins at a very early age. A bully on the playground may grow up to be a bully in real (adult) life! A person who is Abusive to their spouse and children. Oh maybe not physically but both verbally and emotionally.
The definition of Character as shown on www.dictionary.com
A general set of terms associated with good character would be honesty, integrity, self discipline, interpersonal abilities, and a strong reputation. These skills are consciously developed over time by overcoming difficult situations with poise and intelligence. The keyword is consciously, because these skills won't happen accidentally. You must work at it."
Have you ever met someone and it seemed like you could really be friends with this person. You hit it off right away and you both seemed to have so much in common. But the more you got to know them the less you liked them? It did not happen all at once or overnight. I think that this could happen because the longer you know someone, the more you can see their true character. Maybe it was that the first impression that you got was the part that they wanted you to see. After we get comfortable with someone we begin to "let our guard down" as they say. We become less "Let me do or say something to make you like me" and more me, me, me. It's all about me!
Character is not something that you can turn on and off. We all have character. But not all of us have the same character. What our character is would be as different as our finger print. My husband always taught our children, that your character and reputation are so important. "It takes a lifetime to build a good reputation and character, and only one minute or one mistake to throw it all away.
I try hard to live my life to the glory of God. A person of good reputation and solid character. A person who will offer encouragement, kindness, trust, and goodwill to others. Have you checked your character lately? On My Journey To A New Me I see more opportunities to allow my character (which I pray is a reflection of Christ) to shine through as I encourage others to start their own journey. Maybe you don't need to lose weight like I do, maybe you need to stop smoking, or drinking, or doing other things that are harmful to your body. We all need to remember that our body is not our own, but is the temple for the Holy Spirit to dwell in. I personally like to take my character pulse on a regular basis. Do you?
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