TEACHING INTEGRITY
The school year has begun and so many of us are thinking
about how the school our children or grandchildren attend will be educating the
citizens of the future. Learning happens in so many parts of life; at school,
in the home, in the wide world, at the sports club and sometimes in the church.
Perhaps you are thrilled with your child’s new teacher and have high hopes for
the year ahead. It is important to remember that the greatest teachers a child
has are its parents and grandparents and other significant adults who share
their life.
One of the things we can teach our children is the value of
personal integrity. Integrity is the product of our beliefs, words and actions
as they intersect and develop in the human mind/soul/heart. A person of
integrity is one whose words and actions are governed by what we might call
their moral compass. Such a person is able to make decisions based on their
beliefs and stand firm in the face of peer pressure, opposition, and even
vilification.
Integrity is at work when we do the right thing even when no
one is watching (C.S. Lewis) Integrity is at work when we choose our thoughts,
words and actions based on what’s right rather than what might make us popular.
There is a correlation between wisdom and integrity. Respect for the Lord is the beginning of wisdom;
all those who practice it have a good understanding. (Psalm 111:10)
Wisdom
is knowing the right path to take. Integrity is taking it.
Teach your children well; you who are on the road must have
a code that you can live by and so become yourself… (Crosby Stills Nash Young1970)
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