Amiable |
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| Has a cold or mean spirit gotten you in trouble? Do you want
to become the kind of person that is amiable? Do you want that
sense of satisfaction that comes with getting along with others who enjoy
being in your company? Good! This page is for you. This is a program which is designed to help you develop this and other Godly character traits. |
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| Here is how it works: | ||
| Do you believe in a Sovereign God? If not, begin here. Most of our character defects come from emphasizing our own "free will." |
First, all good character comes from
becoming holy, which means more like Christ, more obedient to
God's Word. This means three things, which are found on one of our opening pages, which you should read now (if you haven't already):
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| Have you put to death your old man? Here's how. | Second, we have to clean up our lives. Rocks
and sticks must be taken out of the garden. Weeds and bad seeds must be removed before the
good seeds can be planted. Although some people already have Godly character and are here seeking to improve it, many people who come to this web site have had problems. Most of the pages on this site were first written for people in jail, so excuse us if we sound accusatory. The first two steps of the Alcoholics Anonymous program are:
If your life is still manageable, and you don't worry about your own sanity, praise God! Many, many people are not so blessed. But many people who feel that their lives are "basically OK" haven't really come to grips with the holiness of God and His Word.
Israel was so self-righteous that they executed Jesus. He returned in judgment (A.D. 70), saying,
Those who wish to develop good character have heard the call of God:
So we repent, which means "change direction," "repudiate the old ways," or to use another Biblical metaphor, "crucify the old man." |
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Putting to death the "old man" is a difficult task.
If you're seeking to become more amiable, this means more than just saying "I will
stop being distant and rude." The failure to be amiable is a "falling
short" of God's high standards. And when we fall short in one area, it is because we
have fallen short in others.
For example, it might seem that a failure to be amiable is a simple violation of the Sixth Commandment, which, in commanding us not to kill, also requires us to develop concern and compassion for the well-being of others. But being disagreeable may have begun as a rebellion against parents or other authorities, a violation of the Fifth Commandment. Ultimately, an unpleasant personality can be a violation of every single one of the Ten Commandments. |
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| James 1:23-25 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man observing his natural face in a mirror; {24} for he observes himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what kind of man he was. {25} But he who looks into the perfect law of liberty and continues in it, and is not a forgetful hearer but a doer of the work, this one will be blessed in what he does. | We must repudiate our bad habits, and turn to Christ.
Then we seek the refreshment which comes from God's Word To clear out these bad habits, we must make a "searching and fearless moral inventory" of our lives, looking at the mirror of God's Commandments, and cleansing our lives by His Spirit. When we have uncovered our shortcomings, we must make amends. Guilt paralyzes productive action and infects us with still more escapist or aggressive bad habits. |
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When we have cleared the wreckage of our past, we are able to
come to the third step, which is a systematic meditation on God's
Commandments.
Developing good character traits isn't just a trendy option for upscale homeschoolers. It's a requirement for all people. But it is also an invitation to an abundant life. If you believe in God's Power to create a new man, and if you have completed the initial steps to kill your old man, then you are ready to begin meditating on God's Law. (The jump to that step is found at the end of the pages on the second step [killing the old man].) |
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Vine & Fig Tree |
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