by Ann Nurse

Created on: July 30, 2008   Last Updated: March 24, 2009

Integrity has increasingly become a characteristic that is hard to detect in our society. Wall Street has infamously shown that integrity is not as valuable as the money they stole. Men in "white collar" jobs on Wall Street have been robbing the unsuspecting public blind. They have not even pretended to be repentant for crime. Since this story has been in the forefront of our news for weeks, it is apparent that we need to teach our children that integrity is one of the greatest assets to our character. Integrity is a cornerstone in the foundation of moral development. We can use this horrendous example of what not to become to teach a valuable lesson of integrity building.

Parents, grandparents, teachers and other adults interested in sowing good character into children can help to encourage integrity at an early age. We should reward and acknowledge this trait when children exhibit it. Why? Children, when encouraged will want to model a lifestyle of honesty, dignity, truthfulness and caring about community. Our youth will hold this characteristics as valuable part of their lifestyle, when they see it is commonplace in our lifestyle. There is scripture in The Word of God found in the book of James that reads like this.

"Be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves." James 1:22. If we want to sow seeds of integrity, we must find the source of those seeds within our own personal integrity.

The first observation about sowing seeds of integrity is to note that a person of integrity conducts himself with integrity whether there is someone looking to observe his commitment to it or not. Integrity should be a part of our character. Children should be able to observe by our deeds, our interaction with others, and our deliberate avoidance of deleterious activities. They should observe and know, we have integrity.

It is vital that children see integrity demonstrated in the lifestyles of adults directly involved in their development. A standard of moral discipline should be sown in our children beginning with their first learning experiences in the home and continued by precept and example given by parents. Parents have a moral obligation to set the standard by showing the importance of integrity in their lifestyle. Children appreciate what they see in their parents. Children reflect what they see at home.

Our integrity must come from practicing the lifestyle outlined in The Word of God. If we practice living a life of integrity, we will appear

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