In the early 1990’s Aaron Tippin sang a song called “You’ve Got To Stand for Something or You’ll Fall for Anything” that climbed all the way to #1 on the country music charts. The main idea of the song (found in the title) is a principle that I was taught from a very early age. There are some things in life that should be non-negotiable. Unfortunately, a plague of our current society is the decline and decay of moral values. This crisis can be seen in many area such as politics (that one is kind of a no-brainer), business (Enron anyone), and entertainment (another no-brainer). Unfortunately you can also add education and religion to the list as well.
As a husband, a father, a church leader, and even more importantly, as a Christian there are certain values that I must live by that are non-negotiable. Recently I shared with my church the twelve core values that we hold to as a church. (You can listen to that message by clicking here.)I realize that twelve is a large number for core values but I believe each of them to be very important.
I have been wrestling with the challenge to narrow down a list of top three core values for my personal life. I will admit, it is difficult to come up with a top three but here they are …
At the top of my personal core values would have to be” Jesus and my personal relationship with Him.” It’s all about Jesus! I understand this is a broad statement but my greatest goal in life is to hear when it is all over “Well done, my good and faithful servant.” I must work hard to stay focused on this with all the distractions the world has to offer.
Next in my list of top core values would be my “family.” When it’s all said and done, my family is my number one ministry. I live with the reality that there are a countless number of people that could replace me at most everything I do with the exception of being a husband and a father. No one could ever be a better husband to Stacy and no one could ever be a better dad to Ryan, Emma and Drew than me. God gave that responsibility solely to me.
Third in my list of top three core values would be “excellence.” Excellence does not mean perfection, it simply means to do my best with what I have been given. I must commit myself to working hard, not taking the shortcuts, and doing my absolute best. Does God deserve any less? He gave me His best!
Obviously, these aren’t the only things that are of importance and value but I would list them as my top three. So what about you? Have you ever attempted to articulate what are the most important things in your life? It might not be as easy as you think. The challenge is to make sure that our thoughts and actions are in alignment with one another.
Take a few minutes to share your top three or four core values. Post them below or email them to me directly at pastor@solidrockbc.com.
Randy Harp 