PEOPLE WHO LIE, CHEAT OR STEAL…SERVE A PURPOSE

THEY SHOW US WHAT HONESTY IS WORTH

Wrongdoing can appear…

To work.

That’s why people are tempted by it.

But the real bill…

Doesn’t always arrive…

At the time of purchase.

PEOPLE WHO LIE, CHEAT OR STEAL…
SERVE A PURPOSE

THEY SHOW US WHAT HONESTY IS WORTH

All of us come into this world…

Unspoiled.

Innocent.

Full of wonder and awe.

Then…

Something happens.

We begin learning the ways of others…

And the ways of the world.

We develop beliefs.

Habits.

Values.

And eventually…

A character.

Some wander left.

Some wander right.

Most of us get tempted somewhere along the way.

The question isn’t whether temptation appears.

The question is…

What do we become…

When we answer it?

THE UNCOMFORTABLE TRUTH

Lying can work.

Cheating can work.

Stealing can work.

At least…

For a while.

Think about it.

People wouldn’t keep doing these things…

If there wasn’t some apparent payoff.

The lie avoids consequences.

The cheating produces an advantage.

The stealing obtains something…

Without earning or paying for it.

But there is something…

The transaction doesn’t show you.

THE INVISIBLE PRICE

You may get…

What you wanted.

But something…

May have gotten you.

Peace.

Integrity.

Trust.

Reputation.

Self-respect.

The ability to look…

At yourself…

Without explaining yourself…

To yourself.

Those things don’t appear…

On a receipt.

But lose enough of them…

And suddenly…

That cheap shortcut…

Was terribly expensive.

WORTHY NOTE

There are things…

Money can replace.

Character…

Isn’t one of them.

I HAVE BEEN ROBBED…
BUT HOW?

Suppose…

You cheated someone…

And got away with it.

Who was really robbed?

The other person…

May have lost money.

But you…

May have surrendered…

Something considerably more valuable.

Your honesty.

Your character…

Has now been introduced…

To dishonesty.

And once we become comfortable…

With something…

Repeating it…

Gets easier.

That’s the danger.

I HAVE EVERYTHING…
AND THEN I HAVE NOTHING

We have all heard…

“There is no rest for the wicked.”

There is wisdom…

Hidden in those words.

I have watched people…

Acquire tremendous material things…

The wrong way.

Money.

Cars.

Homes.

Parties.

Possessions.

Yet somehow…

Enough…

Never arrived.

Why?

Because material possessions…

Cannot purchase back…

Inner peace.

Imagine having…

Everything outside…

While starving…

Inside.

That’s poverty…

Wearing expensive clothes.

EARN YOUR WAY…
THE RIGHT WAY

Now…

Reverse the picture.

I put in…

A full day’s work.

I handled…

What came my way.

I tried…

To be fair.

Right.

True.

Just.

And good.

Then…

I sat down…

To eat.

It could have been…

Rice and beans.

Or roast turkey.

Didn’t matter.

It tasted wonderful.

Why?

Because I wasn’t eating…

Just food.

I was eating…

The reward…

Of an honest day’s work.

That satisfaction…

Went deeper…

Than my stomach.

It reached…

The inner parts.

Then…

A good night’s sleep.

And tomorrow…

We begin again.

THERE IS A DIFFERENCE…
AND YOU CAN SEE IT

I used to notice families…

At restaurants…

Or Disneyland…

Who obviously…

Saved for weeks…

Maybe months…

To be there.

They appreciated…

Everything.

Maybe they didn’t order…

The most expensive meal.

Maybe souvenirs…

Were not in the budget.

Maybe there weren’t…

Extra treats and perks.

But look…

At their faces.

They made it.

They earned…

That day.

And because…

They worked for it…

The experience…

Had meaning.

WORTHY NOTE

Sometimes…

The person with less…

Enjoys more…

Because gratitude…

Came along.

HONESTY IS STILL…
THE BEST POLICY

Shortcuts exist.

But remember…

Sometimes…

When you take…

A shortcut through life…

YOU…

Are what turns up short.

The “little white lie”…

May look harmless.

Until another lie…

Is needed…

To protect it.

Then another.

And another.

Eventually…

We aren’t managing…

The lie anymore.

The lie…

Is managing us.

Same with taking…

What doesn’t belong to us.

A pen.

Loose change.

Something small.

Something large.

The monetary value…

Isn’t the deepest issue.

What did you teach…

Yourself…

When you took it?

Cheating works…

The same way.

You may fool…

The other person.

But you cannot fool…

The character…

Being formed…

Inside you.

THE RICHIE REVERSE

Want to understand…

The value of honesty?

Observe…

Dishonesty.

Want to understand…

Trust?

Watch…

What betrayal destroys.

Want to understand…

Good character?

Look at…

What happens…

When character disappears.

Even wrongdoing…

Can teach…

If we’re wise enough…

To learn from it.

Perhaps that…

Is one purpose…

The liar…

The cheat…

And the thief…

Can unintentionally serve.

They remind the rest of us…

What we never…

Want to become.

WHAT THEN?

Ten cents…

Or ten million dollars…

Eventually…

We leave…

Every material possession…

Behind.

Nobody takes…

The bank account.

Nobody takes…

The house.

Nobody takes…

The automobile.

Nobody takes…

The jewelry.

But during this life…

We build…

Something else.

Character.

And unlike possessions…

Character becomes…

Part of the person.

So prosper…

By all means.

Work.

Build.

Create.

Earn.

Enjoy.

Give.

But acquire…

Something greater…

Along the way.

Become…

Rich within.

FINAL THOUGHT

The liar…

May teach you…

The value of truth.

The cheat…

May teach you…

The value of fairness.

The thief…

May teach you…

The value of integrity.

But you don’t have…

To become any of them…

To learn the lesson.

Earn your way.

Tell the truth.

Keep your character.

And when this journey…

Finally asks you…

What you acquired…

May your greatest riches…

Be found…

Within.

— Richie
Pearls for the Soul
when you feed the soul, you feed everything.
https://pearlsforthesoul.com