My youth pastor is leaving soon to plant a church in Tampa, FL. I am so excited to see what God is going to do through them down there! He and his wife have been a blessing in my life, and I'm just... ecstatic about their ministry there.

In thinking back over all I've learned from him over the past year, the concept of Godly character stands out to me. In a message he once preached, he said that there is no substitute for Godly character. What does that really mean?

Wikipedia says about character that it is, "an evaluation of a particular individual's moral qualities. The concept of character can imply a variety of attributes including the existence or lack of virtues such as integrity, courage, fortitude, honesty, and loyalty, or of good behaviors or habits."

What does character look like in our lives as Christians? Does how we behave reflect Christ? Not just our beliefs and our theology, but our attitude toward others, toward life, and toward God?

Are we men and women of integrity, who are consistent and adhere to what we say? Do we live out what we claim to believe in?

Are we courageous? Do we even posses courage of any sort? Courage to surrender our being to Christ? Courage to spread his Gospel to those around us and in the world?

Are we people of fortitude, who, in difficult or trying situations, bear a soundness and strength of mind by the power of the Spirit? Are we able to endure with courage and faith in God? Or when trials come our way, do we break down emotionally and beging to lose hope?

Are we really honest? Is our yes truly our yes? How about our no? Do we shy away from the truth out of fear or shame? Are we even honest with ourselves before God?

Are we a loyal people? Are we loyal to our family and friends? Are we so loyal that we work through difficult situations together? Are we loyal enough to forgive and work our relational problems? Or do we allow unforgiveness or bitterness to govern the relationships we have? Are we loyal enough to be servants of one another, just as Christ came to serve us? Above all, are we, as Christians, loyal to our God and Savior? Are we faithful to worship and to glory in Him? Are we faithful to spend time in fellowship with Him, or do we forget about Him first chance we have?

And how our are habits? Do the patterns in our lives show that we are free in Christ Jesus? Are we enslaved by sin or by anything that destroys us? Do we have habits of love for others and for God?

The truth is, you can have it all together and still not have your walk with Christ all together. You can have proper theology, you can know your Bible backwards and forwards, you can pray meaningfully, and you can worship passionately. You can be the good Christian who "knows" what you're talking about. But if you aren't honest and loyal, faithful and true, full of integrity and courage--if your attitude is one of bitterness, anger, dishonesty, selfishness, or immaturity, you are not living as a new creation. Unless you have the Godly character, which enables you to live out your beliefs, you become a poor reflection of Christ Jesus.

The beauty of the New Covenant is that it changes who we are. Because of the cross, the Holy Spirit changes our hearts.

So... how's your heart? How's your character?

---