• Object Lesson: Your Reputation

  Contributed by Sherm Nichols on Apr 27, 2009 (message contributor)

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  Scripture:  None

  Tags:  Character

  Denomination: Christian/Church Of Christ

OBJECT LESSON: YOUR REPUTATION

(Light a candle on stage.) It’s easy to keep a fire going. What do you do to it? Not much. You work to get it started, and then it pretty much burns on its own. You may have to protect it, maybe do a little maintenance on it. But the fire is automatic. But if it gets snuffed out, (blow it out) you have a problem. If you needed that flame, you’re suddenly looking around for a lighter, a match, something to get it going again.

A good name is that way. Once it’s earned, it’s easy to preserve. But if it’s blown out, it’s a lot of work to restart it again. In other words, if you want to have a good name, you have to stay away from the landmines that snuff out a good name: dishonesty, talking too much; being two-faced; being unreliable; a lack of discipline - Those things that people do that erode a good reputation. They’re all like landmines to a good name.