Many thanks to JJ for his sermon on "character".  Actually, as he spoke, one of the things that ran through my mind was this: "Now he's stopped preaching and gone to meddling."  Was I the only one who found it hard to keep from squirming in my seat as he preached?  It's difficult to sit and listen to a sermon on character without reviewing in your mind all the ways in which your character isn't everything God wants it to be.

Which doesn't make any sense.  I've been a disciple of Christ since my youth.  I have allowed The Holy Spirit to live inside of me for nearly half a century.  I have been "the light of the world" since long before some of you were born.  I graduated from a Christian University.  I know lots of scripture, and I can, in fact, "rightly divide the word of truth" - at least most of the time.  I was "raised right".  And, I could go on.

So why, with all the education, training and experience outlined above, do I have any flaws in my character?  How is this even possible?

Sharp readers can probably spot the problem: "Just look at how many times he used the pronoun "I"; look at the way he loves to talk about himself.  No wonder he has character flaws."  Yeah, character flaws pretty much boil down to thinking too much about self.       

I actually take some comfort from The Apostle Paul who took some time to list for his readers a portion of his education, training and experience in Philippians Chapter 3.  But, in Romans Chapter 7, Paul admits that, despite all of his advantages, he calls himself a "wretched" man because he finds himself doing what he knows he shouldn't do, and not doing what he knows he should do.  Does that sound familiar to anybody?  If Paul struggled with this, it shouldn't surprise us that we might too.

Many people have attempted to describe for us what character is all about, to help us understand the importance of character.  "Our character is what we do when we think no one is looking." - H. Jackson Brown, Jr.  Or, how about this one - "You can easily judge the character of a man by the way he treats those who can do nothing for him." - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.    

But, perhaps the quote that is reverberating the most with me right now is this: "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character." - Martin Luther King, Jr.  Yes, he is right; and I pray we are moving closer and closer to seeing his dream become a complete reality.

Being judged by our character - an amazing, but scary concept for anyone whose character, like mine, is less than saint-like.  Do you really think you are ready for that?  How in the world can I, or anyone, escape condemnation under this kind of scrutiny?  

Once again, The Apostle Paul points us to the only real answer: "Who will rescue me from this body of death?  Thanks be to God - through Jesus Christ our Lord!  ...there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus." - Romans 7:24-25; 8:1.

No person's character is flawless, but I am so thankful for the people in my life, the people in my church, the people in my family whose characters are solid, and beautiful, and close to the character of Jesus.  Thank you for your example.  God is working, through you, to help me become what He wants me to be. 

~Shepherd Ambrose Ramsey