“When you tackle your character, though, things get uncomfortable. The blaming stops. The excuses get pushed to the side. And honest — painful honesty — is required. You finally have to deal with you. Which explains why it’s so much easier to keep focusing on your complaining and keep compromising your character.”- Carey Nieuwhof
Carey Nieuwhof concludes Chapter 3 of Didn’t See It Coming as he talks about the remaining telltale signs you’re drifting.
2. You’re hiding things. The growing gap between your real self and the false self you project causes you to hide the truth about yourself. As a result, such compromise eventually leads to cover-up. Shame leads us to mislead and misinform others.
3. You fail to follow through on what you’ve said. Here, you commit to things that you never wind up doing. In addition, this tendency intensifies as you compromise more and more. Hence, Pastor Nieuwhof cautions:
“No big deal, you say? If you think your lack of follow-through involves only little things not worthy of a second thought, just know that this is exactly how compromise begins.”
4. You justify your bad actions and decisions. At some point, when you compromise on a regular basis, you decide to stop apologizing and start justifying. You begin to believe your condition is inevitable. And you shift blame to circumstances “beyond your control.”
5. Your life has become all about you. Sooner or later, you craft an almost-entirely self-centered life. However, any value system worth having focuses on others, not self. But that takes time, attention, and love. At this point, you no longer possess the energy for that.
In conclusion, Carey observes that while most people push you to develop your competency, very few push you to proactively work on your character. Yet, you can develop your character the same way you develop a muscle. You exercise it through practical disciplines, habits, and patterns.
Today’s question: What Bible verses encourage you to tackle your character? Please share.
Tomorrow’s blog: “Character development in the grind of everyday life”
