Character versus reputation

If ever you wondered if there was a difference between the Character of a person and their Reputation, perhaps these words will help you reflect on which is more valuable.

"The circumstances amid which you live determines your reputation; the truth you believe determines your character.

Reputation is what you are supposed to be; character is what you are.
Reputation is the photograph; character is the face.

Reputation comes over one from without; character grows up from within.
Reputation is what you have when you come to a new community; character is what you have when you go away.
Your reputation is learned in an hour; your character does not come to light for a year.
Reputation is made in a moment; character is built in a lifetime.
Reputation grows like a mushroom; character grows like the oak.
A single newspaper report gives you your reputation; a life of toil gives you your character.
Reputation makes you rich or makes you poor; character makes you happy or makes you miserable.
Reputation is what men say about you on your tombstone;
character is what angels say about you before the throne of God. (William Hersey Davis)

Deuteronomy 8:2 - Remember how the Lord your God led you through the wilderness for these forty years, humbling you and testing you to prove your character, and to find out whether or not you would obey his commands

Living in Grace

D3LM3

7 - Reputations, a song and dance, Boomerangs

From the title of this post you may be tempted to think I am writing about the Australian cricketers again, but really I am not! The powerful words of Ecclesiastes 7 have taken on new meaning for me today, especially when I have reflected on them from a modern translation. It was the themes of, Reputation (v.1), Song and Dance (v.5) and the Boomerang effect of anger that really got me thinking.

"A good reputation is better than a fat bank account.
Your death date tells more than your birth date.

^...

³ Crying is better than laughing.
It blotches the face but it scours the heart.

^...

⁵ You’ll get more from the rebuke of a sage
Than from the song and dance of fools.

⁶ The giggles of fools are like the crackling of twigs
Under the cooking pot. And like smoke.

^....

⁸ Endings are better than beginnings.
Sticking to it is better than standing out.

⁹ Don’t be quick to fly off the handle.
Anger boomerangs. You can spot a fool by the lumps on his head.

The 'good reputations' of the Religious leaders in Jesus' day ended up being destroyed by their 'song and dance' behaviour. Their anger at Jesus only ended up 'boomeranging' back to bite them in the end. I am sure there is a lesson for us in all of this. What do you think?

Living in Grace

D3LM3

My faulty Rep

In following on from my last post about Reputation vs Identity, I wanted to add a few things. Isn't it funny how we spend so much time and energy trying to defend, shine up or create our Reputation, and then so little time on discovering WHO WE ARE in the eyes of God.

When we stand before God one day, God is not going to ask our friends or peers to give a glowing report on our Reputation, but rather to ask "Do you know my Son?" God already knows that I have a faulty reputation, because God knows who I am in the darkest shadows on my life. It is because of my sin, that Jesus came to offer me a new identity.

So, here is a challenge for you this Lent period. Try and match your time spent on the internet, with time spent in the Word, prayer or in worship. Allow your identity in Jesus to shape your Reputation, instead of trying to win favour with a worldly Rep.

2 Corinthians 5:17-19 - "Because of this decision we don’t evaluate people by what they have or how they look. We looked at the Messiah that way once and got it all wrong, as you know. We certainly don’t look at him that way anymore. Now we look inside, and what we see is that anyone united with the Messiah gets a fresh start, is created new. The old life is gone; a new life burgeons! Look at it! All this comes from the God who settled the relationship between us and him, and then called us to settle our relationships with each other. God put the world square with himself through the Messiah, giving the world a fresh start by offering forgiveness of sins."

Living in Grace
D3LM3

Reputation versus Identity

As a society we have become obsessed with 'Reputation' and social media has just added to this whole hype. We can 'make or break' our reputation by posting something dodgy onto one of the social platforms or by speaking out of turn. I confess that on some levels Reputation is important, but it isn't everything. The reason I argue for this is because sometimes 'Reputation' is tainted by others who will do all they can to destroy our reputation - and again social media aids in this process.

Scot McKnight offers us an alternative to REPUTATION and that is the word IDENTITY. In sharing about the story of Jesus' earthly father, Joseph, he writes:

"Joseph learns that who he is before God (his identity) is more important than who he is in the circle of his pious friends (his reputation)."

And this is so TRUE. Who I am in the eyes of Jesus is far more important than who I am in the eyes of the world. It is my IDENTITY in Christ that sets me apart from others and ultimately will be the deciding factor in eternity.

Luke 6:35-36 - “I tell you, love your enemies. Help and give without expecting a return. You’ll never—I promise—regret it. Live out this God-created identity the way our Father lives toward us, generously and graciously, even when we’re at our worst. Our Father is kind; you be kind.

Living in Grace
D3LM3