Character, The Magic Word

Read this TIME magazine article just now, "Does Experience Matter in a President?". And this passage caught my eye:

"Wouldn't it be nice if time on the job and tickets punched translated neatly into superior performance? Then finding great Presidents would be a simple matter of weighing résumés. Take a Democrat like Bill Richardson — experienced in Congress, in the Cabinet, as a diplomat and governor — and have him run against Republican Tom Ridge, a former soldier, governor and Director of Homeland Security, with the winner chosen by a blue-ribbon commission of all-purpose elders. The Danforth-Mitchell commission, perhaps, or O'Connor-Albright. But it has never worked that way, which is why Lincoln's statue occupies a marble temple on the Mall in Washington, while his far more experienced rival William Seward has a little seat on a pedestal in New York City. "Experience never exists in isolation; it is always a factor that coexists with temperament, training, background, spiritual outlook and a host of other factors," says presidential historian Richard Norton Smith. "Character is your magic word, it seems to me — not just what they've done but how they've done it and what they've learned from doing it."

...

Was it Franklin Roosevelt's experience as governor of New York that gave him the power to inspire in some of the nation's darkest hours? Or was that gift a distillate of his dauntless battle with polio? To a keen student of human nature, all of life offers lessons in how to lead, inspire and endure. Lincoln's ability to apply useful lessons from his motley experiences was among his most striking traits. When Ulysses Grant explained his grand strategy to defeat Lee by attacking on multiple fronts, Lincoln immediately thought of a lesson in joint operations learned years earlier on the farm. "Those not skinning can hold a leg," he said approvingly. For other temperaments, no amount of schooling, no matter how specific, will do. Richard Nixon served as a Congressman, Senator and Vice President; he watched from the front row as Eisenhower assembled one of the best-organized administrations in history. When Nixon's turn came, though, his core character — insecure, insincere, conspiratorial — led him to create a White House doomed by its own dysfunction.

Experience, in other words, gets its value from the person who has it. In certain lives, a little goes a long way. Some people grow and ripen through years of government service; others spoil on the vine. At the same time, the value that voters place on résumé is constantly shifting. James A. Baker III is an authority on this. In 1980, he managed the campaign of his well-credentialed friend George H.W. Bush, under the slogan "A President we won't have to train." But the public mood was sour on Washington, and victory went to an outsider, Ronald Reagan, who had never served in Washington. Eight years later, the mood was stay the course, and Bush's experience as Vice President was his ticket to victory. Then the atmosphere turned again, and in 1992 the public demanded someone new. Baker, a former Secretary of State, still believes that a candidate with credentials should certainly tout them, but in the end, "there's no such thing as presidential experience outside of the office itself." The quality we ought to seek "is leadership."

Wow. Thank God. It's very very timely. I was talking with HQ today, and something that he said struck me. It's not about a popularity contest, but one of character, of maturity.

Character is integral to influencing people - especially some people who don't believe in words. They are only influenced when they see action. To be consistent with what you say. Whether I walk the talk.

Ah. Hong Teck told me before - children don't listen to what you say. But they will listen to what you do.

Ah! There's this brother, whom I'm thinking of building a closer friendship with. I find him a brother who holds firmly to his principles and convictions, which I find very noble and admirable - strong words, yes, and it's true. And his shepherd has also confirmed that while we were talking about him. Think I do want to get to know this brother better - I find him a humble bro as well, and feel very blessed to have him as a friend too. =) Hope and pray I can get to learn more from this brother's life... and that God'll bring the two of us together as close friends in Christ. =)

I must confess: The road to building character really feels very very long - and it's upwards some more. To be honest, if you see me at home, you'll know that I can be very impatient and selfish, constantly struggling to help my parents with chores or errands... especially when my parents ask me for help with IT stuff. I struggle with giving up my personal space and own time, especially if they call upon me when I'm blogging (like now).

So many things to think about. I don't want to live an empty, hollow, tombish life - looking good on the outside, but rotten on the inside.

I like how the apostle Paul puts it in Philippians 3:12-14 this way: "I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus."

A prize! A goal! ... do I realise that in the quest to be like Christ, even in the humble and noble attitude of self-surrender and sacrifice for others' sake... there is a goal at the finishing end, a wonderful prize, an eternal crown of glory waiting for me? For you? For you and me? :D

Hmm. I was thinking too. To be honest, I thought before, if I'm making the decision to do something good even though I damned well don't feel like doing it, am I being hypocritical? Is this about being real in sharing my emotions or being good?

Or, can the two be reconciled?

Actually, it's two different things. One can feel emotionally hurt, but make a decision to obey the Bible, the truth, anyway and to bend the knee of one's will to the truth. "Father, if it is possible, take this cup [of suffering] away from me. Yet not My will, but Yours be done." To show others what it means to live by the truth. And the motives behind the deed. God looks at my inside. It's whether when nobody sees, am I still living out what I proclaim?

And that's why the Lord values genuineness of heart so much. And why His harshest rebukes were reserved for people who focus on forms, but not the heart. "You should have practiced the latter without neglecting the former." Outside and inside. Body and spirit. Both matters equally to Him, but He looks especially at the inside.

Let my walk speak loud
And my words be true
Let my life be whole
With my eyes set upon You

Lord I'm stepping out
Of my comfort zone
Letting go of me
Holding on to You...