August 8, 2011
Christ United Methodist Ministry Center
“Christ in the Heart of San Diego”
3295 Meade Avenue
San Diego, CA 92116
(619) 284-9205
Pastorgraphs: “The Good Name”
The pundits will have plenty of material to work with over the United States losing its AAA credit rating. Like everyone else, I watched in disbelief as our Congress played football with the “good faith and credit” of the United States. (There is plenty of blame to go around. No political agenda here.)
Proverbs 22:1 says, “A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and a caring reputation is worth more than gold or silver.” [Jenkins translation]
Whether as individuals or as a nation, our good name is one of our most precious possessions. It must be guarded at all costs.
The events of the past few weeks reminded me of something my father told me when I was a teenager. Pop didn’t have a lot of formal education, but he had plenty of common sense. “I have given you my good name.” (Yes, I’m “Junior” Jenkins.) “Now it is yours; and if you ever lose your good name, you will never be able to easily or completely get it back!”
What is most tragic is that the loss of our good name is always self-inflicted.
No one can take our good name from us; only we as individuals can “give it away”. And once it’s gone, it can never be fully recovered.
That is not to say that individuals who have made grievous mistakes are beyond redemption. If that were true, we would all be eternally lost. There are commendable examples of some whose sins became headline news who spent the rest of their lives doing good. It humbles me to know that God is a God of love and grace. He offers forgiveness for our foolishness. Only He can redeem (buy back) our good names. That should make our good name more precious than ever.
Call me an incurable patriotic American, but I believe the same America that came out of the Great Depression, that won the war over tyranny, that is the epitome of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness will once again emerge victorious. It will be difficult. But for heaven’s sake, let’s quit stomping on our good name in the process.
Guard your good name well.
Devotedly,
Parson Bill
From the Quote Garden
"The first and greatest victory is to conquer yourself; to be conquered by yourself is of all things most shameful and vile.”
~ Plato
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