Daily Devotional

Character

by Jon Hathorn on January 06, 2023

“...we know that suffering produces perseverance, perseverance character and character, hope."  Romans 5:3b-4

Character and hope are a slow processes, but their depth is meaningful because they are each long lasting and a stronghold. There are no shortcuts to character, it comes from perseverance, and it stands because of not wavering.  

Truthfully, I have a great deal of admiration for those who have lived a fuller life than myself and have endured and thrived because of their trust in Jesus.

I read the following in a note from a mentor I had in college - Bob Lehman

Billy Graham said many profound things, but among them was this statement, “When wealth is lost, nothing is lost; when health is lost, something is lost; when character is lost, all is lost.”   Why is it that character plays such a huge part in leadership? Character is fundamental to effective leadership because good character builds trust, and without trust, people will not follow you. When you know there is consistency in a person’s life, it builds trust.”

My wife and I believed in raising our daughters intentionally. In fact, if you ask our girls about being raised in our family you would most likely hear about always having the desire to please and honor God, spontaneous fun memories, as well as intentional issues of working on the importance of character, hard work and follow through. 

As I think about character and the development of character, I am reminded that it is a daily process and a daily choice. This means I need to choose wisely who I allow to influence me, who I choose to be around, and what influences I have around. 

When I was growing up, I loved cartoons and cartoon characters. Some of those characters had character and some were quite the character. I could see there was a difference between simply funny and foolish, being irresponsible and slightly forgetful. It was the over exaggerating nature of each show that gave insights to being responsible, reasonable, thoughtful, careful, and kind. And it was the hyper results that showed what carelessness and irresponsibility are about. 

I love "The Andy Griffith Show" and I think one of the reasons why is Andy’s portrayal of having character and Deputy Barney being a character. The humor is great, but there is so much truth about having character and the impulsiveness of Barney often displays his being a character and not always having it.

May we trust the foundations of Scripture and be people of faith and trust in the Word of God given to us.

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