Spiritual Integrity

How would the world be different if we each "walked our talk?" What if our everyday actions were more aligned with our closest-held values and spiritual beliefs?

While waiting at a left-turn red light the other day, I heard a car blow its horn as it passed on my right. I looked in my mirror to find that a Jeep was blocking the through lane next to me, as its driver apparently decided to turn left too late to get in the turn lane properly. There was still an open lane on her right, but it created a traffic hazard as people didn't expect a stopped car in the through lane and had to change lanes to get around her.

The next car to move around her was a man in an SUV, who gave her a middle-finger salute as he passed. I was amused to notice the only bumper sticker on his car, which was actually placed higher than the bumper, perhaps for greater visibility. I couldn't read it because he was speeding away and the print was too small. But I did recognize the symbol on it to be the familiar logo of a popular brand of Christianity (name omitted because it's irrelevant).

Obviously this driver momentarily forgot not only that he was advertising his religion on his car, but also that his spiritual beliefs don't include impatience, selfishness, and rude gestures. (I recognize that I am making an assumption that the driver's beliefs match those professed by the religion his car advertised. Who knows--maybe it was his wife's car.)

Scenes like this happen in all of our lives. Sometimes we're driving the SUV, and sometimes the Jeep. When they do happen, we can give them no more thought once the incident ends. Or, we can reflect on them with honesty. What did I do, say, and think during that scene, and did my actions, words, and thoughts reflect what I profess to be my values and spiritual beliefs?

Such awareness gives us an opportunity not only to measure our spiritual integrity but also to choose greater alignment in the future. Blessed be!