Character, Confidence, and Consistency

From a forecast of ten things, which can be counted on this one sentence we take from the ten: “Reputations will continue to be made by many acts, and to be lost by one.”

This calls to mind a quote from an eminent American: “Confidence is a subtle thing. It is built slowly and can be easily and quickly shaken.”

We are living in a time of many complexities, many laws, many technicalities, with men to many places ascribing to motives to other men, and with some seemingly seeking to destroy confidence. It is a time when reputations (and character and confidence) survive with some considerable difficulty. And it all argues an earnest urgency for “getting back to first principles”—back to those simple basic principles that we need always to tie to, simply said in some simple sentences called commandments.

There are commandments against taking what belongs to others. There are commandments concerning the care of the widow, the orphan, the poor, and distressed, and neighbors in need. There are commandments against material unfaithfulness and personal impurity. There are commandments against bearing false witness, and many other matters. And if we would honestly commit ourselves to the consistent keeping of these simple commandments, much that is now long argued and considered would be solved.

Both character and reputation call for consistency. Occasional dependability isn’t a dependable dependability and reputations made by many worthy acts are often lost by single unworthy one.

We need re-commitment to the simple keeping of the commandments, and the confidence that comes with faithful consistency. We man who can be trusted with uncounted money, with unaudited accounts. We need more of the quiet consistency that comes with the honest intent of keeping the commandments, so that reputation (and character and confidence) may not be lost by a single irresponsible act of utterance.