Reuben Gonzales is simply known as “The Legend” in the world of racquetball. Back in 1985, in the early days of Gonzales’ career, he was playing Max Hogan in a best of 5 series. With the series tied at 2 games each and at match point in the deciding game, Gonzales hit a forehand kill shot that the referee called “good” and awarded the serve and momentum to Gonzales. But Gonzales confessed to the referee, saying, “It skipped” and yielded the game and match to Hogan. Afterward, when reporters asked why he had been so honest when the referee’s mistake would likely have made him the winner, Gonzales replied, “Winning is not as important as integrity, having pride in oneself…”

The story was news, of course, because it’s a “man bites dog” story. No one does that. Little league coaches teach their players not to go back if they miss a base and not to admit that they were “out” if the umpire rules them “safe.” Society teaches dishonesty in the name of sports competition without giving much thought to the world that we’re creating.

Stan Edmunds, a home inspector, found $20,000 in a hidden drawer while doing a routine home inspection for a realtor. Edmunds contacted the realtor who found the heirs of the former owner and turned the money over to them. They thanked Edmunds and gave him a $50 reward for his honesty, and Edmunds promptly donated the $50 to charity. Edmunds figured that he didn’t need a reward simply for being honest.

What’s your integrity worth? $50? $20,000? Or how about $2 million?

Glen Garrett owned a bank in Purdy, Missouri, back in 1990. An anonymous complainant sent a letter to the FDIC with a laundry list of false accusations, sparking an 8-year battle between Garrett and the FDIC that cost Garrett over $2 million in legal fees. At one point, the FDIC offered to settle if Garrett paid a $25,000 fine. Garrett refused the settlement, however, because he knew he hadn’t done anything wrong. Garrett spent $2 million to avoid a $25,000 fine because he valued his integrity and reputation more than the money. “It was worth it to me to clear my name,” Garrett said. “I’ve said several times that my father would not have been too proud of me if I said I did something that I didn’t do, and that’s worth more to me than the money I’ve spent … what my father would think of me.”

What does your Heavenly Father think of you?

There’s an old story about an Emperor in the Far East who was growing old, had no heir, and recognized that it was time to arrange for a successor. The Emperor summoned the youths of his kingdom to meet with him. He gave each one a seed to plant, saying, “I’m going to give you a special seed. I want you to plant the seed, water it, and bring the plant here a year from today. I will then judge the plants that you bring and the winner will be the next emperor. One boy, Ling, took his seed home, planted and watered it but, to his dismay, nothing happened. Making matters worse, Ling soon heard the other kids talking about the beautiful plants they were growing. Ling had nothing but a pot of dirt.

When the year was up, Ling didn’t want to go and face the Emperor, but his mother convinced him to just go and be honest about what had happened. The other youths of the kingdom presented the Emperor with beautiful flowers, plants and small trees. The Emperor commented on the beauty and health of the plants, but then he saw Ling’s pot of empty dirt and pulled Ling to the front. Ling feared that he was about to be embarrassed, if not punished, but the Emperor announced: “Behold your new Emperor. His name is Ling. I gave you all boiled seeds that would not grow. All of you brought me trees and plants and flowers. When you found that the seed I gave you wouldn’t grow, you substituted another seed for the one I gave you. But not Ling. Ling was the only one with the courage and honesty to bring me a pot with my seed in it. Therefore, he will be the new Emperor.”

Proverbs 11:3 (NIV) says, “The integrity of the upright guides them, but the unfaithful are destroyed by their duplicity.”

Mark Wilmoth is with Pinehurst Christian Church in Marietta. For more information about Pinehurst Christian Church, visit www.PinehurstChristianChurch.org