adminI pray that l find you well, we must never take God’s grace for granted. Even though things do not go according to plan sometimes, it is by the grace of God that you are alive. l take this opportunity to thank all those who have found time to give us feedback, it is very much appreciated. God is in control so keep believing, stay true to your vocation as a believer. Today’s topic focuses on character.
Character is very important, particularly for young people. It will determine how far you go in life. Character determines the doors that are open or shut in your life, in other words, it determines the level of access you get.
Some people have landed job contracts, not because of qualifications (others were more qualified), but simply because of character. Some will never get the opportunities they seek because of their character.
Character is the quality or characteristic property that defines that apparent individual nature of something. My favourite definition says character is who you are when you think that no one is watching you. Based upon the second definition, what is your character? Consider who you are when you think no one is observing you, consider the hidden intents and thoughts of your heart.
There are reasons why one has a particular character and my hope is that you are going to be honest with yourself and improve your character because I guarantee you that your future depends on it. I came across a book written by Dr T Makoni. He said in principle, character is formed by four things.
First, the choices that you have made in life; second, the values that you embrace; third, the crisis that you have experienced and finally, the mentor that you have chosen.
If you can identify those four facets, you will have an idea of the character that you have and why. In this day and age, many are looking for financial opportunities in one way or the other. While this makes sense, there are some things that are better than money. A good character is one of such things.
Scripture is littered with examples of character, both good and bad. Our key scripture, Luke 2 v 52 says, “And Jesus increased in wisdom and stature, and in favour with God and man”.
From this verse, we get an idea of Jesus’ character. He seemed like a pretty decent guy. This verse was written when Jesus Christ was just 12 years old. When he grows into a 30-year-old man, he has these defined qualities and characteristics that ultimately leds to His success in life.
Three key elements are in the verse above. Jesus grew in wisdom, stature and favour.
A good character is synonymous with growing in wisdom, stature and favour. Therefore you have to deliberately apply yourself to grow in these areas as you work on your character.
Proverbs 4 v 7 says, “Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding”.
Wisdom is accumulated knowledge, it is the ability to apply knowledge and experience with common sense and insight. Unfortunately, wisdom is one of those qualities that generally tends to come with experience and as a young person, this can be a disadvantage to you.
However, listen to what Apostle James says in James 1 v 5, “If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him”.
As a young person, pray for wisdom daily and ask God to give it to you.
Solomon was a young man when he was made king of Israel. He had no experience to handle the numerous complex issues that came with that position. He prayed, God answered and he received great wisdom.
ln order grow in wisdom, you also need to have the right mentors in life.
Life is too short for you to make all of the mistakes by yourself. You cannot hope to learn and experience everything by yourself. Learn from other people’s mistakes.
Heed sound advice given to you, observe the experiences of those around you and learn from that.
Read books and autobiographies of great men and women, pick up valuable principles from them, learn how to make decisions and how to be able to evaluate situations.
Through these simple techniques, you will have great wisdom.
Till next week, God bless.
Tinashe Zinyemba is a pastor with New Life Covenant Church. Email feedback to [email protected]
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