Friday, December 1st. Yup. Christmas is just 24 days away! And in spite of the somewhat balmy weather we have been enjoying this week, a glance at the long range forecast this morning shows colder weather is just around the corner (I even spotted the "s" word! Ugh! But this should NOT surprise us. Today is the first day of meteorological winter!). So even if you don't enjoy a hot cup of coffee normally, you may want to take up the habit soon just to warm up!  😉  Thanks for joining me today for a couple of thoughts which I hope will help you grow in your faith journey with Jesus Christ. 

1. Wednesday morning brought a startling revelation on NBC's Today Show. Visibly shaken co-hosts Savannah Guthrie and Hoda Kotb broke the news as the much watched program came on the air. Matt Lauer, a popular co-host on the show for over twenty years had been terminated over night for "inappropriate sexual behavior in the workplace." The memo from the chairman of NBC also stated "we were also presented with reason to believe this may not have been an isolated incident." 

As I reflected on this sorry state of affairs (and so many similar ones which have surfaced in recent weeks), the word "integrity" popped into my head. One of the dictionary definitions of the word reads, "the state of being whole and undivided." So what does that "state" look like in our day-to-day living? Simply that one's walk will match one's talk. So if you are a man or woman of integrity, you will keep your word. You won't back out of commitments. You won't renege on a promise. You will respect others. And what you are behind closed doors matches who you are in the workplace, neighborhood, school, church, etc. because your life is "whole and undivided." You are not two-faced. And when people look at you, what they see is who you are! 

Now being a man or woman of integrity does NOT mean being perfect. If that were the case, none of us could ever possess integrity. For we all are broken, fallen, sinful people (Romans 3:23). So if integrity does not mean perfection ... then what does it mean? In one word, "consistent." So are you a consistent person when it comes to living honestly before others? If you have a skeleton in your closet ... it may be time to come clean. First before God and then before others. Matt Lauer had a secret. And now that secret has ruined his career and perhaps his family relationships. Sin has a way of catching up to us (Numbers 32:23) - in this life as well as the next (the latter being far more concerning!). If you have never made a faith commitment to Jesus Christ, asking him to forgive you of your sins, I urge you to check out: Two Ways to Live: The Choice We All Face. 

Consider these words of wisdom from the Old Testament's book of wisdom, the book of Proverbs: "Better a poor person who lives with integrity, than the rich one who distorts right and wrong" (28:6). 

2. On Sunday, one of our two year old grandsons spent time in our church nursery. His first several stays in the nursery were a bit on the rough side. But he is now settling in to the routine. This past Sunday when I asked his mom about him and the nursery, she told me that he refers to the nursery as the "Church Y." When I asked her what he meant by that she informed me that she sometimes takes him with her when she goes to work out at the local YMCA. The Y has childcare available for members. In Logan's mind, our church nursery is the "church" version of the Y's childcare. Therefore ... our nursery is the "church Y!" Ha! Gotta love the little ones! Jesus did ... and so must we (Mark 10:13-16). What are YOU doing to help children to find Jesus? 

Thanks for stopping by . . . 
pj