When I consider this question my response is absolutely yes because I know that everyday my character is being tested. Each day has me in a position where I have a decision to make, and that decision determines much within the larger picture of my life. Truthfully, it is not just my life that is influenced by my decisions, but all those who are caught up in the moment with me. They may be people I know well, mere acquaintances, or those that we just happen to brush elbows.
We will remember these individuals even if it is a nano second encounter, and now they will remember us. However briefly, we have given them a picture to remember us by with the words that we spoke and the attitude that we displayed.
The other day, traveling through a busy airport, had the potential to be the perfect storm. Security lines were long, people traveling with children and pets were being challenged, and tempers appeared to be barely undercover. It was the perfect scenario for disaster as eyebrows were up, and people looked to illicit agreement from a stranger who they saw was aware of the same situation. This agreement was silent, but deadly. These were exchanges that they may have thought were private, and yet they were not.
Judgement does indeed know how to fly, and it always hits hard.
As we were dropping elevation to land in Atlanta I was siting by the window and I could see the ground below. We were still probably at 10,000 feet, but I was amazed at how I could make out the moving cars on the interstate.
As I was reflecting on this experience from the airplane window I was thinking how we often do not understand how far and wide our voices can carry, how a glance tells a story, and how even our body language speaks volumes. In other words, we see more than we might ever have assumed we would, and we draw conclusions that have the potential to hurt others.
Oswald Chambers once said, “Crises reveal character. When we are put to the test the hidden resources of our character are revealed exactly.” To me this is a statement that packs a powerful message to us all.
Luke 8:17 CBS “ For nothing is concealed that won’t be revealed, and nothing hidden that won’t be made known and brought to light.”