Ferdinand "Fred" DeMara – Imposter

I receive a daily Bible Devotional by email. The other day this one caught my attention. Some of the opening words stated…

~ Quote ~
Ferdinand "Fred" DeMara, also known as "The Great Imposter," was infamous for pretending to be something other than he really was. After graduating from high school, DeMara passed himself off at one time or another as a military man, a civil engineer, a doctor of applied psychology, an attorney, a child-care expert, a Catholic monk, an evangelical Bible college professor, an editor, a cancer researcher and an expert in numerous other jobs. He was finally exposed during the Korean War, while doing surgery on wounded soldiers as a Canadian naval doctor whose identity he had stolen.

Fred DeMara grossly lacked the virtue of integrity. But he is not alone in this world!

Integrity includes the quality of being whole. A bridge without integrity may collapse; a database that contains corrupted information is said to lack integrity. You have integrity when you are who and what you say you are. It means you are "transparent," readily understood, honest and free from pretense or deceit. But let's see what God says about integrity.
~ Quote ~

Searching the Internet for facts and even for business is the most evident one where Integrity today is a challenge. You don’t know who or what is writing to you.

I received an email from a company telling me that I could make big money by paying only $39.95. I tried it and found that I had to do so much that I didn’t have time to do…that I couldn’t make any money doing it. They promised me that I could do virtually nothing. And most importantly it was a company that stated there was a guarantee of money back. Oh yah – I was scammed….but it sounded so good!

Integrity comes from consistent everyday hard work. After days performing that way a man can state clearly – “I am a man of my word.” He can state that because people have watched what he does. They see him for who he is.

It is hard to do that on the Internet.

In most of our churches with the program that is presented each week there is little to connect people – in that service. It is largely entertaining. Good worship leader (used to be called song leader), good announcements, good sermon(expected to be), and a small amount of interaction(handshaking and greeting).

In our spread out world we have no idea who the people are that worship with us on Sunday. We know nothing of Integrity…the truth of the person that has just shaken our hand. How can we? We are too busy moving too quickly to our next encounter with life.

Integrity issues are there and people like Fred DeMara get away with unbelievable stuff when we are the way that we are… too busy… stressed out… and not paying attention close enough.

One man I met in church was not the man that was at home with his wife. He looked spiritual – but at home he was a joke.

Looking good comes with days, months, years of life time consistency. Looking good is integrity with a good life worn before others.

Oh that today I would be a man of Integrity. Oh that at the end that would be said of me. What he said and what he did were the same – that is Integrity!

Now I have to prepare a good resume. No – that should read a true resume…one of Integrity.

~ Murray Lincoln ~