The Plumbline

Cling to your faith in Christ, and keep your conscience clear. For some people have deliberately violated their consciences; as a result, their faith has been shipwrecked. (I Timothy 1:19) The conscience is made up of what we refer to as morals and principles - amassed while growing up. They act to define the actions we will allow in our lives and those we will reject because they don't align with this learned set of morals and principles. Whenever we are asked to violate our conscience, we might just feel a little anxious, fearful, or even guilty. In the strictest sense, the conscience has a "prohibiting" effect - if the conscience becomes a little "dulled" with the wrong set of morals or principles being applied, it may guide us into some pretty awkward circumstances. This is why we don't trust our conscience alone - it is only ONE tool used in the myriad of tools God gives us for our spiritual, emotional, and physical safety. Keep your conscience clear...

A ship without a rudder is kind of 'dead in the water' - it can propel in some direction, but without the rudder, the direction is haphazard and subject to drift by the most powerful current it faces. A "principled" life can stand up to the worst life throws at it. Principles acts as our "rudder" - giving us the guidance for right conduct. They give us the fundamental truths by which we make our decisions. A life that is governed by the right principles will withstand the toughest of life's conflicts and all those disappointments we can face in our lifetime. Moral character and integrity act as marching companions of "principles" - each bringing the balance we need to "stay the course" when the worst is upon us. The integrity of the honest keeps them on track; the deviousness of crooks brings them to ruin. A thick bankroll is no help when life falls apart, but a principled life can stand up to the worst. Moral character makes for smoo...

The integrity of the honest keeps them on track;   the deviousness of crooks brings them to ruin.  (Proverbs 11:3) We can so easily get off course - caught up in all the things that vie for our attention each and every day.  According to scripture, the integrity of an honest man or woman keeps them on track. Though we may veer off course, we are soon able to recognize, through the help of the Holy Spirit within, that we have drifted and then correct our course so that we are 'back on track'.  The soundness of our character (words, actions, and thoughts) and the intensity of our desire for an undivided heart are what God has in mind when he "pulls" us back a little. It isn't always that we 'want' to get back on course - it is that we somehow know it is really for our well-being that we do 'attend to the course'. A thick bankroll is no help when life falls apart, but a principled life can stand up to the worst. (Proverbs 11:4) The habitual d...

A people that values its privileges above its principles soon loses both. (Dwight D. Eisenhower)  Have you seen the Facebook post of a nice log cabin in the woods, surrounded by stately, lush trees and a rather picturesque view of the surroundings, with the little caption that asks: "You have to stay in this cabin for one month, with no access to internet, cell phones, or TV. On the last day, you received $100,000. Would you do it?" Most of us would have to consider that one very, very carefully because we are kind of "connected" via our cells, internet, and media outlets! We almost freak out just thinking about being "disconnected"! I wonder if God asked us a similar question, like if we'd want to gain all the treasures of heaven and his kingdom, would we "disconnect" from where we have put our treasure on this earth, would we do it? Corrupt people walk a thorny, treacherous road; whoever values life will avoid it. (Proverbs 22:5 NLT) ...

" Action is the foundational key to all success ." (Pablo Picasso)  If this statement is true, then it stands to reason that the exact opposite of this hypothesis is also true: "Inaction is the foundational key to all lack of success." Would this be true?  No.  There are times when "inaction" is the best "action" - yielding a good result (which is one way we label "success" in our lives).  There are also times when action can be totally in the wrong direction, yielding something less than "successful" which we spend a great deal of time "undoing" in life.  So, I have to disagree with Picasso a little here - action in and of itself is not the foundation to success - it is taking the right action which makes the results more certain! So, my son, follow your father’s direction,  and don’t forget what your mother taught you—k eep their teachings close to your heart;  engrave them on a pendant, and hang it around your...

Years ago, my mother was one of those "faithful" Publisher's Clearing House devotees.  Every week, she'd receive mailings touting the possibilities of her numbers being the winning numbers which could yield her a landfall of millions of dollars.  Her response is what makes the Publisher's Clearing House so successful - she bought and bought stuff just because she felt it increased her chances of winning!  Stuff we didn't even need - poor quality, cheaply made.  I will admit, there were a few "trinkets" she'd get which actually made a good gadget around the house, but in general, it was stuff we could have purchased for much less at the local dollar store!  After several years of this, we received a mailing indicating she would no longer be receiving these notices.  Why?  It seems the State Attorney Generals of multiple states had taken action against the Clearing House to stop their "marketing" to the elderly as they were "preying...

3  The integrity of the honest keeps them on track; the deviousness of crooks brings them to ruin.   4  A thick bankroll is no help when life falls apart,    but a principled life can stand up to the worst.   5  Moral character makes for smooth traveling; an evil life is a hard life.   6  Good character is the best insurance; crooks get trapped in their sinful lust.  (Proverbs 11:3-6) A "principled" life can stand up to the worst life throws at it.  Principles acts as our "rudder" - giving us the guidance for right conduct.  They give us the fundamental truths by which we make our decisions.  Solomon tells us that a life that is governed by the right principles will withstand the toughest conflicts and disappointments in life.  To that he offers moral character and integrity as companions of "principles" - each bringing the balance we need to "stay the course" when the worst is upo...