The Rewards of Integrity

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This is not an 0:00:27.320 --> 0:00:29.080 offer to buy your self securities or is it investment, 0:00:29.160 --> 0:00:30.080 legal or tax advice. 0:00:30.760 --> 0:00:33.960 You're ready for a comeback, and with Purdue Global you 0:00:34.000 --> 0:00:37.200 can do more than take classes. You can take charge 0:00:37.520 --> 0:00:41.520 of your story, of your career, of your life, Earn 0:00:41.560 --> 0:00:43.559 a degree you can be proud of, and get an 0:00:43.680 --> 0:00:48.559 education employer's respect. 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The unit stap 0:01:11.840 --> 0:01:14.360 makes it easy for grandparents and family friends to give 0:01:14.440 --> 0:01:17.160 funds to a child's investment account for a limited time. 0:01:17.280 --> 0:01:19.440 Download the uns stap and use the code I heeart 0:01:19.440 --> 0:01:21.720 fifty at sign up to receive a fifty dollars bonus 0:01:21.720 --> 0:01:24.280 when you fund your account. That's code iHeart fifty when 0:01:24.319 --> 0:01:27.280 you sign up at unest dot co for a fifty 0:01:27.319 --> 0:01:30.120 dollars bonus. See terms and conditions at UNEs dot co. 0:01:30.920 --> 0:01:34.280 Hi, this is Joel. Thanks so much for downloading the podcast. 0:01:34.520 --> 0:01:37.200 I believe you'll be inspired and challenged. I hope you 0:01:37.319 --> 0:01:50.400 enjoy the message. 0:01:50.760 --> 0:01:51.720 Well, God bless you. 0:01:52.160 --> 0:01:54.640 It's a joy to come into your homes. And if 0:01:54.680 --> 0:01:57.360 you're ever in our area, please stop by and be 0:01:57.440 --> 0:01:59.960 a part of one of our services. I promise you 0:02:00.240 --> 0:02:02.760 we'll make you feel right at home. I like to 0:02:02.760 --> 0:02:05.240 start with something funny, and I heard about this groom 0:02:05.800 --> 0:02:09.119 during the wedding rehearsal. He said to the minister. I'll 0:02:09.120 --> 0:02:12.200 make a deal with you during the vows. If you'll 0:02:12.240 --> 0:02:16.560 leave out all that honor, obey, love stuff, I'll give 0:02:16.560 --> 0:02:19.360 you one hundred dollars. He slipped one hundred dollars bill 0:02:19.440 --> 0:02:22.920 into the minister's hand walked away with a smile. The 0:02:22.960 --> 0:02:26.200 next day, during the ceremony, the minister said to him, 0:02:26.520 --> 0:02:29.959 do you promise to bow down before your wife, take 0:02:30.000 --> 0:02:34.000 her breakfast in bed, fulfill her every desire. He gulped 0:02:34.040 --> 0:02:37.600 in astonishment, said, in a weak voice, I do. He 0:02:37.680 --> 0:02:39.840 then whispered in the minister's ear hand, thought we had 0:02:39.880 --> 0:02:43.200 a deal. The minister handed him his money back and said, 0:02:43.520 --> 0:02:47.440 your wife made me a much better offer. Say it 0:02:47.520 --> 0:02:50.519 like you mean it. This is my Bible. I am 0:02:50.600 --> 0:02:53.080 what it says I am. I have what it says 0:02:53.120 --> 0:02:55.680 I have. I can do what it says I can do. 0:02:56.080 --> 0:02:58.919 Today I will be taught the word of God. I 0:02:59.080 --> 0:03:03.200 boldly confess. My mind is alert, my heart is receptive. 0:03:03.520 --> 0:03:07.160 I will never be the same. In Jesus' name, God 0:03:07.240 --> 0:03:10.840 bless you. I want to talk to you today about 0:03:10.960 --> 0:03:15.360 the rewards of integrity. There's a lot of compromise in 0:03:15.360 --> 0:03:20.080 our society. People that think nothing about being dishonest, making 0:03:20.200 --> 0:03:24.440 underhanded deals, not keeping their word. They wonder why they 0:03:24.480 --> 0:03:28.920 can't get ahead. It's because they don't have integrity. 0:03:29.040 --> 0:03:31.880 Integrity is the foundation that a. 0:03:31.800 --> 0:03:37.760 Successful life is built on. You can have talent, vision, determination, 0:03:38.440 --> 0:03:43.120 but without integrity, you won't reach your highest potential. Now, 0:03:43.120 --> 0:03:46.760 a person of integrity does the right thing when no 0:03:46.840 --> 0:03:50.000 one is watching. They don't play it on the computer 0:03:50.280 --> 0:03:53.720 because the ball stepped away. They don't leave someone out 0:03:53.720 --> 0:03:56.360 of a commission because they didn't know about the sell. 0:03:57.080 --> 0:03:58.360 They don't cut corners at the. 0:03:58.400 --> 0:04:01.760 Job site because nobody will find out about it. They 0:04:01.840 --> 0:04:04.840 give it their best, whether anyone is there or not. 0:04:05.680 --> 0:04:08.840 When you have integrity, you don't take supplies from the 0:04:08.920 --> 0:04:12.840 office to bring home to youse. You don't show up 0:04:12.920 --> 0:04:15.600 late to work and have somebody clock in. 0:04:15.560 --> 0:04:17.000 Earlier for you. 0:04:17.000 --> 0:04:20.040 You don't spend half the day making personal phone calls 0:04:20.080 --> 0:04:20.920 at the office. 0:04:21.360 --> 0:04:22.159 Well they don't. 0:04:21.960 --> 0:04:26.200 Pay me enough anyway. Maybe not, but that's not integrity. 0:04:26.279 --> 0:04:29.000 If you'll do the right thing, God will make it 0:04:29.120 --> 0:04:29.520 up to you. 0:04:29.880 --> 0:04:31.160 He's keeping the records. 0:04:31.920 --> 0:04:36.080 Many things we face are simply test God is seeing. 0:04:36.320 --> 0:04:39.839 Are we ready to go higher? Maybe the bank teller 0:04:40.000 --> 0:04:42.800 gives you too much money in return? Are you going 0:04:42.839 --> 0:04:46.360 to have integrity, go back and make things right? Or 0:04:46.400 --> 0:04:47.679 are you going to say thank. 0:04:47.520 --> 0:04:51.039 You Jesus, you did it again? That is not the 0:04:51.120 --> 0:04:52.200 answer to your prayer. 0:04:53.279 --> 0:04:57.479 Do you call in sick to work, coughing, sniffling so 0:04:57.600 --> 0:05:00.440 you can take the day off and go shopping. You 0:05:00.480 --> 0:05:03.920 could win an Academy award with that performance, but that's 0:05:03.960 --> 0:05:08.040 not integrity. Don't be surprised if you can't find anything 0:05:08.040 --> 0:05:10.960 at the store. They don't have your size. Nobody will 0:05:11.000 --> 0:05:11.520 wait on you. 0:05:11.720 --> 0:05:12.800 Traffic's backed up. 0:05:13.480 --> 0:05:17.520 Maybe it's because there's no blessing on it. We can't 0:05:17.560 --> 0:05:22.040 deceive people and expect to have his favor. When somebody 0:05:22.120 --> 0:05:24.520 knocks on your door at home and you don't feel 0:05:24.560 --> 0:05:27.880 like visiting, do you tell your child go answer, tell 0:05:27.920 --> 0:05:31.800 them I'm not here. That works, but it's not integrity. 0:05:32.360 --> 0:05:36.400 Don't complain when your child doesn't tell the truth. We're 0:05:36.480 --> 0:05:39.919 leading by example. We can tell our children do the 0:05:40.000 --> 0:05:43.000 right thing, stay on the high road, but if they 0:05:43.040 --> 0:05:46.080 see us compromising, they're going to do the same thing. 0:05:46.839 --> 0:05:50.479 When you have integrity, you pay your bills, You don't 0:05:50.520 --> 0:05:54.839 sweep things under the rug. You keep your commitments. Don't 0:05:54.920 --> 0:05:59.280 buy things that you know you can't pay for. When Joel, 0:05:59.320 --> 0:06:03.520 I'm stretching my faith, I'm believing for increase. Stretch your 0:06:03.560 --> 0:06:07.200 faith before you sign on the dotted line. Let God 0:06:07.240 --> 0:06:10.560 bless you first. Once you have the funds, then you 0:06:10.600 --> 0:06:14.960 can purchase it. But it's not integrity to make commitments 0:06:15.160 --> 0:06:17.560 that you know you're not going to be able to keep. 0:06:18.279 --> 0:06:21.320 Don't promise people the moon when you know you can't 0:06:21.360 --> 0:06:24.560 get to the clouds. Don't write a check and then 0:06:24.600 --> 0:06:26.760 pray for three days hoping it'll clear. 0:06:27.520 --> 0:06:28.760 Check your balance first. 0:06:29.360 --> 0:06:33.480 Be honest, be trustworthy, Be a person of your word. 0:06:34.480 --> 0:06:38.120 Your reputation is one of the most valuable things you have. 0:06:39.080 --> 0:06:42.840 Proverbs says a good name is worth more than great riches. 0:06:43.520 --> 0:06:46.560 You can have great wealth and be looked down on, 0:06:47.279 --> 0:06:50.840 seen as shady. But when you're a person of integrity, 0:06:51.480 --> 0:06:54.560 when people look at you and think I can trust them, 0:06:55.000 --> 0:06:58.880 they always do the right thing. They're honest, they're fair. 0:06:59.480 --> 0:07:02.239 They don't talk to me one way and then talked 0:07:02.240 --> 0:07:04.560 to my friends behind my back another way. 0:07:04.680 --> 0:07:05.520 They're consistent. 0:07:06.480 --> 0:07:11.240 Your reputation is too important to let it become tarnished 0:07:11.480 --> 0:07:15.040 by not having integrity. When you do the right thing, 0:07:15.560 --> 0:07:18.280 when you stay on the high road, that will take 0:07:18.320 --> 0:07:23.400 you much further than being dishonest, manipulating, trying to gain 0:07:23.480 --> 0:07:28.160 an unfair advantage, We can't turn in an exaggerated expense 0:07:28.200 --> 0:07:32.080 account and expect to be blessed. We can't be deceitful 0:07:32.120 --> 0:07:36.080 on taxes and expect to have God's favor. I knew 0:07:36.120 --> 0:07:39.440 a man he tapped into the cable line behind his 0:07:39.600 --> 0:07:43.440 house and brought cable into his home without paying for it. 0:07:43.840 --> 0:07:46.440 He was so proud of it, he bragged to us 0:07:46.480 --> 0:07:49.480 for years how he was saving forty dollars a month. 0:07:50.120 --> 0:07:51.560 That man never. 0:07:51.400 --> 0:07:56.080 Did rise out of mediocrity, constantly struggled, barely got by. 0:07:56.920 --> 0:07:59.800 He thought he was gaining an advantage. 0:08:00.080 --> 0:08:01.200 The truth is he. 0:08:01.240 --> 0:08:05.680 Was putting himself at a disadvantage. You may gain with people, 0:08:06.120 --> 0:08:09.680 gain some material things, but what if you lose with God. 0:08:10.320 --> 0:08:13.840 He controls the universe. He's the one that can open 0:08:13.880 --> 0:08:17.200 the windows of heaven and pour out blessings that you 0:08:17.240 --> 0:08:17.960 can't contain. 0:08:18.680 --> 0:08:19.840 I would rather have. 0:08:19.720 --> 0:08:24.320 Favor with God than favor with people. That man would 0:08:24.320 --> 0:08:28.120 have been better off to pay the forty dollars so 0:08:28.200 --> 0:08:31.200 he could have God's blessing. And there's a lot we 0:08:31.240 --> 0:08:36.600 can get by with hide exaggerate, but anything we gain 0:08:36.960 --> 0:08:40.760 without integrity won't be as good as it could have been. 0:08:41.600 --> 0:08:45.760 It's better to be truthful and have less than God's 0:08:45.800 --> 0:08:49.520 favor will take you further. But too often we're letting 0:08:49.640 --> 0:08:53.600 little compromises keep us from the big things God has 0:08:53.640 --> 0:08:58.360 in store. Instead of trying to cross the line, thinking 0:08:58.440 --> 0:09:01.000 how much can I get away with and still get by, 0:09:01.640 --> 0:09:04.640 why don't you try a different approach and see how 0:09:04.679 --> 0:09:06.840 far behind the line you can stay? 0:09:07.679 --> 0:09:09.760 Ask yourself, what is the. 0:09:09.679 --> 0:09:13.079 Right thing to do? If I was standing before God? 0:09:13.240 --> 0:09:14.640 What decision would I make? 0:09:15.400 --> 0:09:18.720 The more integrity you have, the more God can bless you. 0:09:19.640 --> 0:09:23.559 John Chapter one, Jesus saw a man named Nathaniel coming 0:09:23.600 --> 0:09:28.720 toward him. Verse forty seven says Jesus knew Nathaniel's thoughts. 0:09:29.240 --> 0:09:33.120 He honored him, saying, here comes a man in whom 0:09:33.120 --> 0:09:37.720 there is no deceit, an upright, honest man that is 0:09:37.760 --> 0:09:42.920 free from hypocrisy and double standards. That should be our goal. God, 0:09:42.960 --> 0:09:46.360 I want to be so above Lord, so full of integrity, 0:09:46.640 --> 0:09:50.920 that you'll describe me like you describe Nathaniel, that there 0:09:50.960 --> 0:09:54.000 is no deceit in me. Well, Joel, that's not me, 0:09:54.480 --> 0:09:58.200 maybe not yet, but it can be. You can become 0:09:58.360 --> 0:10:02.160 a Nathaniel, make decisions that honor God. 0:10:03.280 --> 0:10:04.480 When you have integrity. 0:10:04.640 --> 0:10:07.720 You're the same in private as you are in public. 0:10:08.600 --> 0:10:11.920 You don't treat people at work nice and kind and 0:10:11.960 --> 0:10:15.079 then come home and be rude and harsh to your family. 0:10:15.760 --> 0:10:20.200 That's not integrity, that's hypocrisy. You should treat your family 0:10:20.679 --> 0:10:24.520 better than you treat anyone else. Don't be kinder to 0:10:24.600 --> 0:10:28.520 strangers than you are to your own spouse. Don't be 0:10:28.640 --> 0:10:31.520 more considerate to co workers than you are to the 0:10:31.559 --> 0:10:35.600 people that live in your own house. Be consistent. Some 0:10:35.640 --> 0:10:39.440 people on Sundays it's God bless you, great to see you. 0:10:39.480 --> 0:10:43.719 They'll wave real big, real friendly. But on Mondays, if 0:10:43.760 --> 0:10:46.760 you cut them off in traffic, they'll wave with one 0:10:46.800 --> 0:10:52.359 finger in the air. That's being two faced. That's a pretender. 0:10:53.080 --> 0:10:56.559 You have to get honest with yourself. I'm not asking 0:10:56.600 --> 0:10:59.240 you to be perfect, I'm asking you to be real. 0:11:00.160 --> 0:11:03.560 You'll never change if you don't first acknowledge that there's 0:11:03.600 --> 0:11:07.200 some pretending going on. And the next time you're tempted 0:11:07.240 --> 0:11:11.120 to switch over to the pretend you, the compromising you, 0:11:11.200 --> 0:11:14.400 the dishonest. You put your foot down, say no, I'm 0:11:14.400 --> 0:11:16.880 not going there. That is not who I am. That's 0:11:16.920 --> 0:11:23.320 an invitation. I am kind, loving, honest, trustworthy, calm, consistent. 0:11:24.040 --> 0:11:25.600 You talk to yourself that. 0:11:25.520 --> 0:11:29.760 Way long enough, and you'll have integrity with yourself. You'll 0:11:29.800 --> 0:11:33.640 become consistent, the same on Monday as you are on Sunday, 0:11:34.120 --> 0:11:35.640 the same at work as. 0:11:35.480 --> 0:11:38.240 You are at home. This is what I saw growing 0:11:38.320 --> 0:11:39.400 up with my parents. 0:11:39.720 --> 0:11:42.400 They were the same in the pulpit as they were 0:11:42.480 --> 0:11:46.680 at home. They weren't loving in public and then hateful 0:11:46.760 --> 0:11:49.960 in private. Now I believe this is one reason that 0:11:50.400 --> 0:11:53.280 all of us kids, with the exception of my brother. 0:11:53.120 --> 0:11:54.120 Paul, turned out. 0:11:54.160 --> 0:11:59.160 Okay, you can fool a lot of people, but you 0:11:59.200 --> 0:12:03.120 can't fool your children. They know when there's a double standard, 0:12:03.320 --> 0:12:07.320 they know when there's not integrity. Our son Jonathan gave 0:12:07.360 --> 0:12:10.800 me a compliment a while back on my birthday. He wrote, 0:12:10.800 --> 0:12:13.360 my dad is one of the kindest people I know. 0:12:13.920 --> 0:12:18.240 He treats everyone he meets with respect. I didn't know 0:12:18.280 --> 0:12:22.760 that he really noticed. But people are watching parents. We 0:12:22.800 --> 0:12:26.079 are leading by example, and this is not to make 0:12:26.160 --> 0:12:29.400 us feel pressured, but to make us strive to excel, 0:12:30.080 --> 0:12:33.920 to be honorable, trustworthy, kind people that stay on the 0:12:33.960 --> 0:12:38.880 high road. When you have integrity, you're not making underhanded 0:12:38.920 --> 0:12:42.840 deals hoping that nobody sees you. If you have to 0:12:42.960 --> 0:12:47.120 hide what you're doing, it's probably not integrity. I've heard 0:12:47.160 --> 0:12:50.320 it said, don't do anything you wouldn't want to read 0:12:50.360 --> 0:12:52.600 about the next day in the newspaper. 0:12:53.480 --> 0:12:55.319 I was at a restaurant. 0:12:54.920 --> 0:12:58.560 Years ago in another city. We were traveling to an event. 0:12:59.200 --> 0:13:01.960 I had brought some lemons in the car that I 0:13:02.000 --> 0:13:05.160 wanted to cut and squeeze into an energy drink before 0:13:05.200 --> 0:13:08.640 I spoke, but I forgot the knife. We were going 0:13:08.640 --> 0:13:11.559 straight to the meeting, didn't have much time, so I thought, 0:13:11.679 --> 0:13:14.960 maybe at this restaurant, I can take one of their knives. 0:13:15.559 --> 0:13:18.200 After all, I'm paying a lot for this meal, just 0:13:18.240 --> 0:13:20.440 a three dollar knife. They're not gonna miss it. They're 0:13:20.440 --> 0:13:24.440 not gonna care. Started reasoning it out, trying to justify 0:13:24.640 --> 0:13:27.520 take in a knife. I thought, how am I going 0:13:27.600 --> 0:13:30.000 to get it out of here? The only way is 0:13:30.080 --> 0:13:33.319 to hide it. I thought, I can't do that. I'll 0:13:33.360 --> 0:13:37.800 get Victoria to do it for me, my partner in crime. 0:13:39.400 --> 0:13:41.840 I finally came to my senses, Yo, you're a pastor. 0:13:42.000 --> 0:13:44.560 You are not going to go out of here hiding 0:13:44.640 --> 0:13:48.679 a piece of silverware. I called the waiter over, said, sir, 0:13:48.720 --> 0:13:51.680 I need a favor. Can I buy this knife? He 0:13:51.720 --> 0:13:54.240 went and talked to the manager, came back, brought me 0:13:54.280 --> 0:13:55.960 a set of silverware in a bag. 0:13:56.240 --> 0:13:56.480 Said. 0:13:56.480 --> 0:13:59.280 The manager said, you can have it. I thought, Lord, 0:13:59.320 --> 0:14:03.439 thank you me out of prison. But here's my point, 0:14:03.840 --> 0:14:08.280 it's much better to be open and honest. I probably 0:14:08.400 --> 0:14:11.880 could have walked out of there with some silver were hidden. 0:14:12.320 --> 0:14:15.160 They might not have seen it. But here's the problem. 0:14:15.280 --> 0:14:18.480 God would have seen it. The scripture says, it's the 0:14:18.600 --> 0:14:22.840 little foxes that spoil the vines. I doubt many of 0:14:22.880 --> 0:14:27.120 you have big areas where you're lacking integrity, but maybe 0:14:27.200 --> 0:14:30.000 there's some small things. And the good news is it's 0:14:30.040 --> 0:14:33.600 not hard to correct. Just takes a little effort, digging 0:14:33.640 --> 0:14:37.680 down deeper to do the right thing. It means getting 0:14:37.720 --> 0:14:41.920 out of ruts where we've gotten comfortable compromising and doing 0:14:41.960 --> 0:14:45.440 things that are less than our best. David said in 0:14:45.520 --> 0:14:48.720 Saw one hundred and one, I will lead a life 0:14:48.800 --> 0:14:53.280 of integrity in my own home. He was saying, where 0:14:53.320 --> 0:14:56.360 nobody can see me, I'm going to do the right thing. 0:14:57.200 --> 0:15:03.360 When I could slack off, compromise, give into temptation, be dishonest. Instead, 0:15:03.840 --> 0:15:06.240 I'm going to take the high road. I'm going to 0:15:06.320 --> 0:15:09.120 be a person of excellence. I'm going to show God 0:15:09.400 --> 0:15:12.840 he can trust me. He went on to say, I 0:15:12.920 --> 0:15:17.000 will not look at anything impure, not gonna watch things 0:15:17.000 --> 0:15:20.360 that poison me. Verse three says I will not have 0:15:20.440 --> 0:15:23.880 crooked dealings, not gonna get involved in things that are 0:15:23.960 --> 0:15:29.720 shady and underhanded, unethical. David wasn't perfect, but he made 0:15:29.800 --> 0:15:32.720 up his mind he was going to walk in integrity, 0:15:33.080 --> 0:15:37.720 starting in his own home, starting in his private life. 0:15:37.920 --> 0:15:40.600 We can fool a lot of people in public, but 0:15:40.720 --> 0:15:44.360 what God is concerned with is what goes on behind 0:15:44.440 --> 0:15:48.400 closed doors. The scripture talks about the hidden man of 0:15:48.440 --> 0:15:52.080 our heart, that's our motives. What we do in secret, 0:15:52.880 --> 0:15:56.480 how you live in private will determine how high you 0:15:56.600 --> 0:16:00.680 go in public. People may not be watching, but God 0:16:00.880 --> 0:16:04.280 is watching. And don't take that as something negative, like 0:16:04.360 --> 0:16:06.240 oh man, I'm gonna get called I'm in trouble. 0:16:06.560 --> 0:16:07.800 Take it as a challenge. 0:16:08.160 --> 0:16:11.000 God is watching to see when he can promote you. 0:16:11.640 --> 0:16:14.760 He's waiting to see when you pass these tests so 0:16:14.920 --> 0:16:17.760 he can take you to new levels. Now, I wonder 0:16:18.520 --> 0:16:21.560 how much higher we would go, how much more favor 0:16:21.640 --> 0:16:24.920 and promotion we'd see if we would deal with the 0:16:25.040 --> 0:16:29.040 areas that we know are holding us back. Start making 0:16:29.080 --> 0:16:34.080 things right. Have an integrity in your finances, in your relationships, 0:16:34.120 --> 0:16:37.080 in how you treat people. Jold. I didn't want to 0:16:37.080 --> 0:16:40.720 hear about integrity today. I wanted to hear about prosperity. 0:16:41.160 --> 0:16:44.880 You will never have prosperity if you don't first have integrity. 0:16:45.240 --> 0:16:46.840 The two go hand in hand. 0:16:48.480 --> 0:16:51.120 I was at a music store with Jonathan when he 0:16:51.200 --> 0:16:54.440 was ten years old, buying some equipment for his guitar, 0:16:54.560 --> 0:16:57.320 and when I went to pay, the man told me 0:16:57.360 --> 0:17:00.200 that Lakewood had an account there and we could put 0:17:00.240 --> 0:17:01.160 it on that account. 0:17:01.520 --> 0:17:01.640 Now. 0:17:01.680 --> 0:17:03.840 I told him that this was personal and I didn't 0:17:03.840 --> 0:17:06.800 want to do that. He gave me the bill and 0:17:06.840 --> 0:17:09.640 the tax on it was twenty dollars. He said, at 0:17:09.720 --> 0:17:13.400 least let me put this under Lakewood's name. That way, 0:17:13.560 --> 0:17:16.080 you want to have to pay the tax. Lakewood is 0:17:16.119 --> 0:17:19.240 a church and churches are tax exempt. I said, thanks 0:17:19.240 --> 0:17:21.520 so much, but now I want to pay the tax 0:17:21.560 --> 0:17:23.120 to This is totally personal. 0:17:23.640 --> 0:17:25.879 He looked at me so strange. 0:17:25.880 --> 0:17:29.280 Kind of shook his head like, man, you are way overboard. 0:17:29.920 --> 0:17:33.280 Nobody would know you didn't pay the tax. My company 0:17:33.320 --> 0:17:36.320 wouldn't know. The church wouldn't know, the irs wouldn't know. 0:17:37.000 --> 0:17:41.440 What he didn't realize is someone was watching more important 0:17:41.480 --> 0:17:46.159 than all those that he mentioned. The most high God sees. 0:17:45.960 --> 0:17:46.840 Everything we do. 0:17:48.240 --> 0:17:53.120 These are opportunities for us to pass the test. If 0:17:53.160 --> 0:17:56.680 God can trust me to be honest with twenty dollars, 0:17:57.440 --> 0:18:00.679 maybe he can trust me to handle twenty thousand, or 0:18:00.720 --> 0:18:04.159 twenty million or two hundred million. I would hate to 0:18:04.240 --> 0:18:07.360 think I didn't reach my destiny because. 0:18:07.040 --> 0:18:08.120 Of small things. 0:18:08.240 --> 0:18:11.840 I wasn't honest in small areas that I didn't pass 0:18:11.880 --> 0:18:15.479 the test. Sure I could have saved twenty dollars, but 0:18:15.600 --> 0:18:19.400 what is that in comparison to having the blessing and 0:18:19.480 --> 0:18:23.560 favor of the creator of the universe. When God can 0:18:23.640 --> 0:18:27.040 trust you, when you prove to him that you're a 0:18:27.040 --> 0:18:30.879 person of integrity, there is no limit to hahi, He 0:18:30.960 --> 0:18:34.640 will take you. I saw this with my father. He 0:18:34.720 --> 0:18:37.639 was a man of great integrity. If there was the 0:18:37.720 --> 0:18:42.359 smallest question of something not being above board, perfectly ethical, 0:18:42.520 --> 0:18:43.720 he wouldn't have anything to. 0:18:43.680 --> 0:18:44.199 Do with it. 0:18:44.760 --> 0:18:47.920 And through the years people would bring deals by, Hey, 0:18:47.960 --> 0:18:51.360 you got that big church, all those people, You can 0:18:51.359 --> 0:18:54.280 take advantage of it, make some extra funds. But my 0:18:54.440 --> 0:18:58.639 father valued God's blessing on his life more than what 0:18:58.720 --> 0:19:01.320 any person could come up with. He taught me to 0:19:01.359 --> 0:19:04.520 have a high standard, and if you don't feel good 0:19:04.560 --> 0:19:07.520 about something, you have to talk to yourself into it, 0:19:07.960 --> 0:19:10.920 make excuses as to why it's okay, it's. 0:19:10.760 --> 0:19:11.480 Not worth it. 0:19:12.160 --> 0:19:15.320 You will never go wrong by taking the high road. 0:19:16.160 --> 0:19:20.120 Short term, I could have saved twenty bucks. Long term, 0:19:20.520 --> 0:19:24.240 I may not be where I am. Prove to God 0:19:24.320 --> 0:19:27.320 that he can trust you, that you'll go the extra 0:19:27.440 --> 0:19:30.760 mile to do what's right. You may have to say 0:19:30.840 --> 0:19:33.240 no to some things that people don't understand. 0:19:34.000 --> 0:19:35.760 Not do what all your coworkers do. 0:19:36.520 --> 0:19:40.160 Maybe they're fine with slacking off, they're okay with spending 0:19:40.200 --> 0:19:44.679 company money on personal things. Don't judge them, that's not 0:19:44.800 --> 0:19:49.679 our business. But don't become like them. Don't lower your standards. 0:19:49.840 --> 0:19:53.480 They're not going where you're going. You may not be 0:19:53.560 --> 0:19:56.240 able to do everything your family members do. 0:19:56.800 --> 0:19:57.800 Watch what they want. 0:19:58.440 --> 0:20:02.040 Do business like they do business. There's a price to 0:20:02.200 --> 0:20:04.560 pay to become all you were. 0:20:04.440 --> 0:20:05.119 Created to be. 0:20:05.880 --> 0:20:09.440 If it was easy, anybody would do it. This takes 0:20:09.480 --> 0:20:11.920 people that have a made up mind. I'm going to 0:20:12.040 --> 0:20:17.200 honor God, not going to compromise take shortcuts, do things 0:20:17.200 --> 0:20:20.120 that are not ethical. Not going to push people down 0:20:20.200 --> 0:20:22.840 to get an advantage, not going to be sloppy in 0:20:22.920 --> 0:20:28.600 my business dealings. I'm going to be a person of integrity, trustworthy, honorable. 0:20:28.800 --> 0:20:33.320 That's the kind of people God's rewards. But sometimes when 0:20:33.400 --> 0:20:36.920 we compromise and do things that are questionable, we think 0:20:37.080 --> 0:20:40.840 we're gaining an advantage with people, we're getting the upper hand. 0:20:41.560 --> 0:20:45.280 But when you walk in integrity, you're gaining an advantage 0:20:45.280 --> 0:20:49.119 with God. His fevor on your life will take you 0:20:49.280 --> 0:20:53.480 further than any advantage with people. And you may have 0:20:53.560 --> 0:20:57.679 made mistakes in the past, not had integrity in certain areas. 0:20:57.680 --> 0:21:01.600 That's okay, we all have. My challenge is start making 0:21:01.680 --> 0:21:05.520 things right. Let today be a new day. Don't go 0:21:05.640 --> 0:21:08.920 the next thirty years letting the same things hold you back. 0:21:09.880 --> 0:21:12.680 When my father was in his twenties, back in the 0:21:12.760 --> 0:21:16.879 nineteen forties, he bought two suits on credit from a 0:21:16.920 --> 0:21:20.679 store in Fort Worth. He had good intentions. He was 0:21:20.720 --> 0:21:23.119 planning on paying them back, but he got busy and 0:21:23.240 --> 0:21:26.679 things came up. He never did. Years went by and 0:21:26.720 --> 0:21:29.880 he'd forgotten about it. One day he was driving through 0:21:29.920 --> 0:21:33.679 fort Worth and suddenly he remembered. It bothered him that 0:21:33.760 --> 0:21:36.600 he had never paid that debt. He got in the 0:21:36.600 --> 0:21:39.480 phone book but couldn't find the name of the company, 0:21:39.840 --> 0:21:43.080 so he drove to the location, but they were closed down. 0:21:43.680 --> 0:21:45.960 The people next door said they had been out of 0:21:46.000 --> 0:21:49.040 business for many years. He could have thought, I did 0:21:49.119 --> 0:21:49.600 my best. 0:21:49.680 --> 0:21:50.159 I tried. 0:21:50.440 --> 0:21:53.720 He didn't stop there. He found out who the owners were. 0:21:54.400 --> 0:21:57.160 They had passed away, but he was able to track 0:21:57.200 --> 0:22:00.520 down one of their children. He called this man he 0:22:00.600 --> 0:22:04.840 was my father's age, and explained that he owed them 0:22:05.000 --> 0:22:07.480 for two suits he didn't pay for back in the 0:22:07.600 --> 0:22:10.840 nineteen forties. The man says, sir, don't worry about it. 0:22:11.160 --> 0:22:13.560 We've been out of business. We're all doing fine. My 0:22:13.680 --> 0:22:16.359 dad thanked him for being so gracious, but said, no, 0:22:16.560 --> 0:22:17.360 I still want. 0:22:17.160 --> 0:22:17.640 To pay you. 0:22:18.200 --> 0:22:20.840 He drove to his house and gave him a check 0:22:21.200 --> 0:22:26.399 with interest. Forty years later. No wonder, God bless my father. 0:22:26.880 --> 0:22:30.320 No wonder he took him higher and hire. It wasn't 0:22:30.480 --> 0:22:34.440 that he just had great talent. He had great integrity. 0:22:34.560 --> 0:22:38.800 He was determined to make things right. In Genesis chapter twenty, 0:22:39.040 --> 0:22:42.000 Abraham and Sarah had just moved to a new city. 0:22:42.640 --> 0:22:47.040 Sarah was very beautiful, very striking. Abraham knew when the 0:22:47.119 --> 0:22:49.760 king saw her beauty, he would want to take her 0:22:49.800 --> 0:22:53.600 into his harem. He told Sarah, tell the king that 0:22:53.760 --> 0:22:57.119 you're my sister. That way, he won't kill me just 0:22:57.160 --> 0:23:00.000 to get to you. Like he thought. The king said, 0:23:00.240 --> 0:23:04.120 word for Sarah had her come to the palace. One night, 0:23:04.160 --> 0:23:07.600 the king had a dream. God said to him, why 0:23:07.640 --> 0:23:11.520 have you taken a married woman into your family? The 0:23:11.640 --> 0:23:14.560 king said, God, what do you mean? Abraham said she 0:23:14.720 --> 0:23:17.960 was his sister. She told me Abraham was her brother. 0:23:18.520 --> 0:23:21.480 In the integrity of my heart, I have done this. 0:23:22.320 --> 0:23:25.960 God said in verse six, Yes, I know you are innocent. 0:23:26.680 --> 0:23:30.720 Because of your integrity, I have kept you from touching her. 0:23:31.200 --> 0:23:35.280 Now return her to Abraham. This king was about to 0:23:35.320 --> 0:23:39.040 make a mistake, get off course, step out of God's favor, 0:23:39.640 --> 0:23:44.639 But because of his integrity, because he was trustworthy, honorable, 0:23:45.200 --> 0:23:48.600 God kept him from what he couldn't see on his own. 0:23:49.440 --> 0:23:52.960 Proverbs Too, says God is a shield to those who 0:23:53.000 --> 0:23:57.080 walk in integrity. He guards their path, watches after them. 0:23:58.119 --> 0:24:01.680 Like this king, they're a mistake. You could have made 0:24:01.920 --> 0:24:07.520 wrong terms compromise, But because of your integrity, God stepped 0:24:07.520 --> 0:24:10.920 in and closed the door. He kept you from the trouble, 0:24:11.119 --> 0:24:12.000 from the heart ache. 0:24:12.040 --> 0:24:13.359 He's guarding your path. 0:24:14.240 --> 0:24:18.000 Some of the temptation that you resisted, It wasn't that 0:24:18.040 --> 0:24:21.480 you were so strong. Wasn't you just decided to say no? 0:24:22.080 --> 0:24:24.200 That was God holding you back. 0:24:24.880 --> 0:24:26.280 There is a blessing on. 0:24:26.240 --> 0:24:30.639 Your life that protects you, guards you when you honor God. 0:24:31.480 --> 0:24:32.600 David talked about it. 0:24:32.800 --> 0:24:36.280 God keeps my foot from dashing against a stone. God 0:24:36.320 --> 0:24:39.560 will not let my enemies triumph over me. When you 0:24:39.680 --> 0:24:43.560 walk in integrity, God has a shield around you. He's 0:24:43.680 --> 0:24:47.680 keeping fiery darts from hitting you. He's pushing back darkness. 0:24:47.920 --> 0:24:52.160 He's not letting the temptation overtake you. He's closing doors 0:24:52.200 --> 0:24:55.000 that would be harmful. If you want to keep that 0:24:55.040 --> 0:25:00.399 shield up, keep your integrity, be trustworthy, be honorable, person 0:25:00.440 --> 0:25:03.520 of your word, be somebody that can be counted on. 0:25:04.440 --> 0:25:07.119 There was a very wealthy man that had a friend 0:25:07.160 --> 0:25:09.879 that was a builder. This builder had been down on 0:25:09.960 --> 0:25:12.879 his luck and not had much business. The man felt 0:25:12.880 --> 0:25:15.800 sorry for him and decided to help him out. He 0:25:15.840 --> 0:25:18.520 gave him a set of plans with a check for 0:25:18.640 --> 0:25:21.480 two hundred thousand dollars. He said, I want you to 0:25:21.600 --> 0:25:25.399 use these funds to build me a new house. You 0:25:25.520 --> 0:25:29.040 handle all the details. Just call me when you're done. 0:25:29.119 --> 0:25:31.719 He assured him he would pay him very well if 0:25:31.760 --> 0:25:34.280 he would do a good job. This builder was so 0:25:34.400 --> 0:25:37.400 excited that he finally had some work. But he got 0:25:37.440 --> 0:25:40.720 to thinking, if he would cut a few corners, save 0:25:40.760 --> 0:25:43.720 a little here, save a little there, he could pocket 0:25:43.840 --> 0:25:47.600 some of that money without anybody knowing about it. So 0:25:47.680 --> 0:25:50.960 he went out and found the cheapest concrete he could find. 0:25:51.400 --> 0:25:53.280 Had the workers water it down so. 0:25:53.320 --> 0:25:54.240 It could go further. 0:25:54.680 --> 0:25:58.359 He saved several thousand dollars On the foundation. He bought 0:25:58.400 --> 0:26:02.320 the cheapest lumber. Some of it was old, crooked, warped. 0:26:02.440 --> 0:26:05.359 He didn't care. He's gonna be behind the walls, nobody 0:26:05.400 --> 0:26:08.840 would see it. He got the cheapest plumber, cheapest electricity, 0:26:08.920 --> 0:26:13.359 on and on right, and left cutting corners, pocketing the money. 0:26:13.920 --> 0:26:17.520 When he finished, he had saved nearly forty thousand dollars. 0:26:17.760 --> 0:26:20.800 He was so happy he called the owner over to 0:26:20.840 --> 0:26:23.880 look at the new house. The owner was very impressed. 0:26:24.280 --> 0:26:27.320 Look beautiful on the outside, you couldn't tell he had 0:26:27.320 --> 0:26:30.760 cut corners. This builder couldn't wait to see how much 0:26:30.800 --> 0:26:33.119 he was going to get paid he knew the owner 0:26:33.240 --> 0:26:36.199 was a very generous man. The owner says, you know, 0:26:36.520 --> 0:26:37.640 I don't really need. 0:26:37.480 --> 0:26:38.199 A new house. 0:26:38.560 --> 0:26:41.240 I have a beautiful one. I just wanted to help 0:26:41.280 --> 0:26:44.520 you out. He handed him the keys and said, here, 0:26:44.880 --> 0:26:49.640 you just built your own house. The builder nearly passed out. 0:26:50.400 --> 0:26:52.960 He thought, if I'd known he's gonna be mine. 0:26:53.280 --> 0:26:54.760 I'd built it a whole lot better. 0:26:55.760 --> 0:26:58.560 We may not realize it, but we are building our 0:26:58.600 --> 0:27:03.680 own house. We can cut corners here, compromise there. It's 0:27:03.720 --> 0:27:09.240 not hurting anyone except ourselves. Everything may look fine on 0:27:09.280 --> 0:27:13.280 the outside. What matters is what's happening on the inside. 0:27:13.800 --> 0:27:18.280 Are we watering down our foundation, not being trustworthy in commitments, 0:27:18.480 --> 0:27:22.040 slacking off at the office? What kind of materials are 0:27:22.080 --> 0:27:25.840 you putting into your house? I'm asking you to be 0:27:25.920 --> 0:27:30.080 a person of integrity, do the right thing when nobody 0:27:30.240 --> 0:27:34.000 is watching. Don't let small things keep you from the 0:27:34.040 --> 0:27:37.760 big destiny God has in store. Start passing these tasks. 0:27:38.119 --> 0:27:42.400 Be honorable, trustworthy, a person of your word. If you'll 0:27:42.400 --> 0:27:47.120 do this, I believe and declare because you walk in integrity, 0:27:47.400 --> 0:27:50.520 God is going to have a shield around you. He's 0:27:50.560 --> 0:27:53.919 going to keep you from making major mistakes. You're not 0:27:54.000 --> 0:27:57.200 only going to be protected, but you're going to see promotion, 0:27:57.960 --> 0:28:02.159 good breaks, new levels, the fullness of your destiny in 0:28:02.320 --> 0:28:05.120 Jesus's name, And if you receive it, can you say 0:28:05.200 --> 0:28:09.600 it been Today? I'd like to give you an opportunity 0:28:09.840 --> 0:28:12.560 to make Jesus the lord of your life. Would you 0:28:12.560 --> 0:28:16.960 pray with me? Just say, Lord, Jesus, I repent of 0:28:17.000 --> 0:28:21.720 my sins. Come into my heart. I make you my 0:28:21.840 --> 0:28:25.879 Lord and savior. If you prayed that simple prayer, we 0:28:26.000 --> 0:28:29.280 believe you got born again. Get in a good Bible 0:28:29.320 --> 0:28:31.719 based church, Keep God first place. 0:28:32.280 --> 0:28:32.720 Victorian. 0:28:32.720 --> 0:28:34.960 I'll be right back to speak a blessing over you. 0:28:37.280 --> 0:28:40.160 Thank you for listening to the joel OUs Deine podcast. 0:28:40.480 --> 0:28:43.120 Help us continue to share the message of hope with 0:28:43.240 --> 0:28:47.200 those all over the world. Visit jolustein dot com slash 0:28:47.280 --> 0:28:49.280 give Hope to give a gift today. 0:28:50.560 --> 0:28:53.480 Thanks so much for listening to today's message. I hope 0:28:53.520 --> 0:28:56.880 you'll subscribe so you can receive the latest podcast to 0:28:56.960 --> 0:28:59.840 keep you inspired all through the week. 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