Integrity Matters

You're listening to my Morning devotional podcast, episode 1524. And today's Devo is called Integrity Matters. Hey there. We're the Alessies, a ministry family working together in our church in Miami, Florida. And if you're like us, when days get busy and to do lists get longer, it can be hard to find devotional time. That's why we've partnered with our friend Allison to produce a five minute daily dose of heaven. This is the My Morning Devotional Podcast. I'm Mary Alessi, and welcome again to this beautiful morning where we are sharing our faith, we're learning God's word, and we're just taking a few moments to do it. And it is the right decision. Can I just tell you again, good for you. You're making the right choice this morning to take the first five moments of your day. Maybe, maybe it's five minutes throughout your day that you're able to take this time. But congratulations, because with every few moments that you spend with the Lord, you're growing closer to him because you're learning more about him and His Word. And today our devo is called Integrity Matters. And this is kind of an interesting one. So I might go over five minutes because this one gets a little deep. This is not a fluff, devo. I mean, they're not, none of them are fluff. But this is a little bit deeper because it, it is in regards to our integrity as believers. And the scripture verses that we're going to tackle are Acts 5 and 3. We're going to do two every day, which I think is, is a great blessing. Instead of just one verse, we're doing two every day. And Acts 5:3 says this, Ananias, how is it that Satan has filled your heart, that you have lied to the Holy Spirit? Wow. Boom. That's a tough one. Okay, how about Acts 5? 11. Great fear seized the whole church. Now, this is from the same chapter, Acts 5. And we see in verse 3, Ananias and Sapphira. The Bible tells us their story. If you get a chance, read the whole chapter. Because what we see is that their dishonesty, their lack of integrity, affected the entire body. And they had been caught holding back and taking things for themselves that they did not need to take. And what it really showed was they didn't trust in God for provision. They had to take matters into their own hands. And then they lied. They didn't tell the truth. And the scripture verse shows us how God sees this. You know, we've been talking about unity. This week and the importance of that. So when we're not in unity and we don't have integrity, bad things happen. God does not take this lightly. And in this particular story, what we see is how deeply God cares about the condition of our hearts. You know, I used to tell my kids all the time, you don't lie on God and get away with it. You might lie to me or your dad and we don't know that you're lying. We don't know the condition of your heart, but God does. And this is where we find this story. God knew he was in that tent when Anisen, Ananias and Sapphira held back and took for themselves. God saw it. So for them to lie to man was an abomination to God. So they didn't just make a mistake. This wasn't just, I'm sorry, let me give it back. They tried to appear more spiritual than they were. They wanted the image without the integrity. And this is where we can find ourselves if we're not careful living a double minded way in our faith. We can't. God deals with that very seriously. Why? Because healthy Christians, healthy churches, healthy people are built on two things, truth and authenticity. You can't even worship God unless you come to him in spirit and in truth. You can't come to God and be dishonest. If you're going to worship God, you have to be honest. You have to be a truth teller, you have to repent. You have to say, I'm the man, I'm guilty, I did it. That's what God responds to, not performance. I think it's interesting, and I can only speak for myself that the times I've tried to get by with a lack of honesty in God's presence, it really has created in, not only in my own heart but in my relationships conflict that I didn't expect because I'm not being authentic. And God is going to hold me accountable. He's going to hold you and I accountable to that. Because he's not asking for perfection. Thank God. As we've said on this podcast many times, thank God. He doesn't ask for perfection, but he does ask for something. He does. He asks for us to be honest and he asks for us to be real. We have to be real with God. We can't fake on Him. We can't pretend. We don't get to create the narrative. If we want power released in our lives, if we really want to know who he is and what pleases Him. It's when we are honest, when we can be the quickest to repent when we are aware of ourselves. It's called self awareness. No one else has to call me out when I call myself out. And see, it gets God's attention because he loves honesty. God loves authenticity. That's how he designed you. So just take a moment today in this practical application and ask yourself, am I being honest with God? If you're mad at him, if you're disappointed in him, if he's taking too long to come through, if you don't understand him, whatever that area is, don't fake. Don't say that you aren't mad. Don't say that you aren't disappointed. Don't be one of those Christians that believe if I say the truth, I'm going to get struck by lightning. No, you won't get struck by lightning. I promise you. God loves the truth. He loves it because he knows now what, where to start dealing with you and I in the area that we're honest. So be honest. Don't be a fake Christian. Don't go to church and put a mask on. Listen, you're wasting a lot of energy and time because the only thing God really responds to is when we're open, when we're honest. So ask him, am I being honest with you, Lord? Is there any area that I am keeping hidden from you? Am I trying to maintain an image that instead of walking in truth, that is exhausting. Give yourself a break. Remove the image and walk in truth. Invite God into all those hidden places that you've held for yourself, those places that you feel like they're walled up in shame, that if I were to be honest about this, I would be falsely judged. Listen, God wants to heal every single area of your heart and of your life. But he can't do it. And he won't do it you if you block him just through the simple fact that you don't want to be honest with yourself or with Him. Let him have it all. Today is your day to live in complete freedom and not in a place of denial, not in a place of being hidden from him, but authentic, real, out in the open, how he created you to be. Let's pray, Father. Search our hearts. And like King David prayed, he prayed a tough prayer. He said, lord, convict me of the sins that are hidden from me, the areas that I don't even know I have sinned, and remove anything in me that isn't aligned with you. I don't want to be fake. I want to be authentic. I want to be real in your presence. I want to be an integrous believer because I know that is where you'll bless me. I want to live my life with integrity both in private also in publicly and I choose truth over image. It might cost me something but it'll be worth the cost. Make me whole from the inside out. I want to be healed even in the areas that only you see. Father and I thank you for that. I thank you for this word today. In Jesus name I pray. Amen and Amen. I hope this has helped you today. God Bless. So there you have it your 5 minute daily dose of heaven. Thank you so much for tuning in today. We pray these devotionals empower you to take on your day. If you found value in this devotional, share it with a friend, leave a comment or review for us on the app you're using right now. Until tomorrow. We pray that your latte is strong but your love for Jesus is stronger.