Copyright 2012: singeronthesand
Make every effort to add to your faith goodness...
2 Peter 1:5 [NIV]
goodness n. 1the state or quality of being good
a) virtue, excellence ~ Webster's Dictionary
Peter has written a laundry list of attributes, characteristics, and attitudes that work together in the life to produce a mature Christian - qualities that are important as we interface with the world around us. First on the list - the bedrock of the character - is faith. Peter has already indicated that God has given to all of us a measure of faith. Now we are admonished "...complement your basic faith with good character..."
When I was a kid, goodness was not a particularly sought-after description for your life. Among other things, it resulted in less-than-flattering nicknames such as "goodie two-shoes" or "teacher's pet" that no child wanted to be tagged with. Being a bad boy or a rebel was far preferable to being "good." Good was for sissies.
A quick glance at the morning headlines makes one wonder if there is any goodness left in this world: ordinary kids shooting/killing other kids, adoptive parents "lending" out their children for prostitution, a wealthy family enslaving their servants... the list goes on and on. When someone actually does a good or heroic deed, it is trumpeted in the headlines as a miraculous event, worthy of our astonishment and praise.
Peter admonishes us to be the everyday people of the world who make goodness an integral part of their lives - always looking for a way to be helpful to someone in need, ready and willing to assist when a situation calls for it, always choosing the right instead of the easy or convenient. On this beautiful Friday, look for someone who needs a helping hand, and let the goodness in your heart lead the way.
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