July 30, 2004

[Rev. Doc]

Integrity

"The man of integrity walks securely, but he who takes crooked paths will be found out."
Proverbs 10:9

As the world watches on it views just what type of individual we are. Our witness is at stake and by the way we live and conduct ourselves others will see if we truly are a people of integrity.

In the 1975 Masters Tennis Tournament in Stockholm, Sweden, tennis star Arthur Ashe ahead 4-1 in the third and decisive set of their round-robin match with Romanian-born Ilie Nastase, sometimes dubbed "Nasty" Nastase for his flamboyant on-court antics.

Behind in the match, Nastase went into his act again, stalling and arguing, cursing, taunting, and acting like a madman. Finally, Arthur Ashe put down his racket and walked off the court, saying, "I've had enough. I'm at the point where I'm afraid I'll lose control."

"But Arthur," cried the umpire, "You'll default the match."

"I don't care," replied Ashe, "I'd rather lose that than my self-respect."

Agreeing that Nastase's unruly behavior had unfairly interrupted the match and driven Ashe to the sidelines, referee Horst Klosterkemper came up with a solution to the fiasco. He announced that Nastase was disqualified. He refused to condone Nastase's bullying tactics and he insisted that Nastase default the match for his unsportsman-like conduct. Arthur Ashe won both in the game of tennis--and in the game of life.

Prayer: Ask the Lord to help you to hold to your convictions and the standards which He has set, to be a man or woman of integrity.

"Try not to become a man of success. Rather, become a man of value." ~Albert Einstein