The Word is INTEGRITY | Eastern North Carolina Now

    The Word is INTEGRITY

    I heard a story from the Korean War days when I was a teenager. It had to do with a Colonel who had been shot down and now stood convicted by the Chinese as a War Criminal with a death sentence. He was to be killed by a firing squad. The night before his execution the head guard entered his room with a sheet of paper, ink pen, and envelope. "You may write a last letter to whomever you please as a courtesy from the Chinese government." He said.

    This morning early as I awoke, the moon is shining bright and full. That story popped in my head from long ago. That man had the most important letter of his life to write. He could see into the chilly night as I could. Deep in his mind he was thinking of his son and what he might give him as a thought to guide him along life's path.

    What would you write???

    His young son back home was small. He knew he would never see him grow up. At sunrise, his life would be ended by bullets slamming into his heart and head. He had only through the sleepless night to think of what to write. Put yourself in his place, knowing a few hours were left on this earth for you.

    What would you write???

    Some terminally ill people are thinking about this right now. There is a prisoner on death row somewhere who knows his life is about to be executed. He did terrible things to others and took lives with his hands. Now he must pay the price under law of "eye for eye, tooth for tooth, life for life." This prisoner of war had only obeyed his orders and put his life on the line for his country. The Geneva Convention has rules protecting such men, but he was going to die at cruel hands of a country which did not care about what they signed during WWII. More currently ISIS terrorists have beheaded several prisoners. They had the same dilemma, knowing "tomorrow I die."

    What would you write??? Pause and think about it before reading on right now. What would you write???

    The young pilot sat down and wrote a simple letter to his young son:

    "I love you, my son. Soon my life will be ended. The word is INTEGRITY."

    I am age 68 right now. By the grace of God I have lived a long time. I hope to have another 20 years, but any heartbeat could be the last. Skip Waters is gone from us with a sudden heart attack. Someone you know has died way before his time. I have wiped back tears and said the last words over a grave: "Into thy hands we commend this spirit." We are born and the only way out of this life is death. What is the one thing you would wish to leave your spouse and children? A military funeral is hard and I have presented the flag: "On behalf of the President and a grateful Nation, we thank you for your son's sacrifice for his country."

    The word is INTEGRITY. That soldier could have run and hidden, but he died to save his comrades. His medal was earned in blood and not greed or conniving. He could have lived, had he surrendered or hidden. The pilot who wrote those lines could have turned back claiming engine problems, but he forged ahead to dive bomb a bridge in N. Korea and got shot down. He completed his mission in a jail cell and a firing squad. His letter to his son said it all.

    I divide that word into 2 parts:

    An INTEGER is a counting number. It stands alone. Add it with others and you get a sum. You can subtract, divide or multiply it. When that number enters the equation of life, it makes a difference. Without it you have a different answer to the equation. It is crucial to any measure or sum. Take an inch off a measure and you must cut another board. Add an inch and you must cut again. A single INTEGER makes a difference.

    GRIT is the second word that comes to mind. Rooster Cogburn had "True Grit." Only John Wayne could have played the part. He always played the part of a brave character. We would not expect anything but guts from him. He was the embodiment of a Conservative. His characters made a difference because they might die, but he was going to be true to his cause. Some died with teeth clenched. Others lived to fight another day. No matter what, their grit inspired us as we watched each story on film.

    "Son, the word is INTEGRITY."

    What would you have written if it were your last letter before leaving this earth???? If you left so fast there was no time to write

    what should I say about you in your memorial service?

    I need your help right now. We seem to be short on people of INTEGRITY. The hate speech, one against another, only says we have little good to say right now. You preach your own funeral as you live. Don't make the Preacher only read scripture for comfort to those left

    because the life did not inspire those left behind.

    Here is a story from today's news relative to this: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/11/06/sarah-bloom-raskin-student-loans_n_6117960.html?ncid=fcbklnkushpmg00000013