Daily Reflections on Ps. 101 (Ethics)

It was my 1^st “real” job out of college. I had concluded my 1^st ministry and was heading back to school to work on my Master’s Degree. I wasn’t looking for a responsible position, just a job to pay my way through school. When the mangers found out I was college educated, they promoted me to head over four departments.

I had no retail or business experience prior. I had always taken grunt jobs so that I could concentrate on my schooling and bigger ambitions. And I was green. At 22 you don’t have a lot of life experience. What an education!

All four of my departments were a mess when I took them over. Not only were the books messed up and things in shambles, every department had been operating in the red for a long time. I set out to get our house in order.

I had discovered we had tons of damaged and unsellable merchandise just sitting in our stock rooms. We had a line of inexpensive guitars in our inventory that hadn’t moved from day one. I found a store in our chain that were moving them like hotcakes and were desperate to get their hands on more. I sent them about 15 guitars only to get one of them back as damaged merchandise. Only problem, it was a different brand than what I sent. They had unloaded their damaged merchandise on me. I quickly discovered that my ethics were not their ethics.

Integrity, ethics, and morality stem from the individual. Companies, governments, and organizations, even religious ones, become corrupt when the people become corrupt. It’s easy to be squeezed into the world’s mold, to fall into the “worldly” norm. I have to make a concerted effort to maintain my godly ethics, morality and purity. In order to do that, it begins with who I am, especially at home. My day to day practices in the little things of life become the conforming factors of my character. That’s why Jesus said, if you’re faithful with a few things, He’ll put you in charge of greater things.

God, help me root out the inconsistencies in my life. Help me to daily put into practice the upright principles of your Word. I want to model your ways at home, at work, in public, on the golf course, wherever I am. Give me wisdom in dispelling practices, habits, attitudes, behavior that are not above reproach, both for me and those I lead.