Earning Trust (Part 2)

There are four more characteristics that Isaiah shares with us on the subject of "earning trust."

Each of these characteristics, if mastered, will enable us to survive the fires of crisis in our life. 

If I've learned anything about leadership it's this:  God will take each of us through a purification process through His fire.  That fire will either burn us up or purify us.

Isaiah 33:14-16 The sinners in Zion are afraid; trembling seizes the godless ones. [They cry] Who among us can dwell with that devouring fire? Who among us can dwell with those everlasting burnings? 15He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly, who despises gain from fraud and from oppression, who shakes his hand free from the taking of bribes, who stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed and shuts his eyes to avoid looking upon evil. 16[Such a man] will dwell on the heights; his place of defense will be the fortresses of rocks; his bread will be given him; water for him will be sure. (amplified)

#1 INTEGRITY "He that walks righteously and speaks uprightly" (see previous blog)

#2 JUSTICE "despises gain from fraud and from oppression"

• Solomon says "...but he that hateth covetousness shall prolong his days." (Proverbs 28:16)
• A leader rejects dishonest gain.

#3 CONVICTIONS "that shaketh his hands from holding of bribes"

• The leader's values won't allow him to accept bribes.
• What is a conviction? = A firmly held belief
• A leader today has to have conviction!
• Leaders are to love and care for everyone.
• This however, doesn't mean they disregard their convictions.
• They respond with grace, but never drift from their convictions.
• They speak gently, but with focus.
• With conviction we cling to the course we are to travel.
• Leaders always act from their principles; empowering others even when it is hard.
• Leaders of conviction work out of grace.

#4 POSITIVE FOCUS "that stoppeth his ears from hearing of blood"

• The leader refuses to dwell on destructive issues.
• A positive focus does not mean that you live with your head in the clouds.
• It doesn't mean you do not recognize the problems.
• you may have to accept some that you cannot change.
• You can even have a bad day and vent to the proper channels.
• In the end, maintaining a positive focus means that you don't dwell on destructive issues.
• A positive focus will alllow you to see solutions to problems.

#5 PURITY "shutteth his eyes from seeing evil"

• The leader disciplines his or her mind to remain clean and pure.
• A true believer watches against all occasions of sin.

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The blessing of possessing these characteristics of INTEGRITY, JUSTICE, CONVICTIONS, POSITIVE FOCUS and PURITY is SECURITY!

(v.16) He shall dwell on high: his place of defense shall be the munitions of rocks: bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure.

• God will take you UP!
• God will DEFEND you!
• God will FEED you!
• God will REFRESH you!

Characteristics like these earn the trust of others. When leaders possess them, they feel secure enough to develop others, rather than destroy them. Remember, only secure leaders empower others.


Food For Thought:

• If a person really knows the Lord, Righteousness is going to be their lifestyle, which will be obvious; in other words, when a person comes to Christ, they are gloriously changed; otherwise, they haven't really come to Christ!

Earning Trust (Part 1)

Who can stand under the purification process of God?

Who can remain unchanged through the fire of God?

Isaiah asked these questions and then answered them with a list of TRAITS for the kind of people who can STAND in a crisis.

Isaiah 33:14-16 The sinners in Zion are afraid; trembling seizes the godless ones. [They cry] Who among us can dwell with that devouring fire? Who among us can dwell with those everlasting burnings? 15He who walks righteously and speaks uprightly, who despises gain from fraud and from oppression, who shakes his hand free from the taking of bribes, who stops his ears from hearing of bloodshed and shuts his eyes to avoid looking upon evil. 16[Such a man] will dwell on the heights; his place of defense will be the fortresses of rocks; his bread will be given him; water for him will be sure. (amplified)

INTEGRITY - the Leader's LIFE and WORDS must match.

• "He that walketh righteously and speakth uprightly."

What is integrity?

• Steadfast adherence to a strict moral or ethical code.
• Moral soundness.
• Honestly.
• Freedom from corrupting influence or motive.
• Uprightness.
• Rectitude.
• The quality or condition of being whole or undivided.
• Completeness.

A sitcom included an interesting statement "I learned about integrity from my father.  He had five wives but never missed an alimony payment."

When integrity is present in a leader - it's great. 
If it's missing it's terrible.

Five Steps to Strengthening your Leadership Integrity

1. Determine to never do anything privately that wouldn't pass public scrutiny.

• Movies, TV programs, computer, etc.
• It's amazing what people will do when they are 100 miles from home.  Always remember, even if people can't see...God can see.
• Watch your "P's" & "Q's" - keep your testimony in tact.

2. Determine to never do anything the Scriptures frown upon.

• Copy the lifestyle of many Bible heroes.
• Even though the Scriptures may be silent on a certain subject, the Holy Spirit will direct you in your "knower" (innermost being) on what is acceptable. 
• You cannot teach the "10 Commandments" to others if you yourself are not keeping them.

3. Determine to never do anything that will bring shame to the Kingdom.

• We are children of God and citizens of the Kingdom.
• We have reputations to uphold.
• Even the world knows what a believer is supposed to look and act like.
• At the end of the day, if your behavior causes others to stumble, both believer and non-believer, you'll not only shoot yourself in the foot with an impossibility to lead but you'll end up causing the work of God to lose credibility in the eyes of present day skeptics.

4. Determine to never do anything that will rob you of your self-worth.

• God made you.
• You are His creation.
• If we make choices that cloud our Godly reflection we will lose our self-worth.
• We are the watchman.

5. Determine to never do anything that will make you vulnerable to Satan.

• Don't be a casualty in ministry.
• Watch for landmines.
• Steer clear of areas you may have struggled with before coming to Christ. (i.e., alcohol, cigarettes, drugs, partying, immoral relations, etc.)
• Even if you feel "confident" that you're "past the ability to be tempted" - the Bible teaches us to not put any confidence in the flesh.
• We aren't helping our situation if we put our flesh in a "familiar" area of previous struggle.

Integrity is a MAKE or BREAK characteristic.  Once it's lost...it's extremely difficult to earn trust again.  It is possible to earn it again in the process of TIME...because time is the GREAT LEVELER.  However,  to do so, one must remain humble, teachable and willing to accept full responsibility of their actions.   The process of restoration (Galatians 6:1) can be a beautiful example of GRACE and a pattern from which to follow in the future.