Proverbs 22:1: “A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches, / Loving favor rather than silver and gold.”

I love the bumper sticker that reads: “He who dies with the most toys . . . dies.” Whether or not a person has acquired riches in their lifetime is a poor measuring stick of success and significance. The best measure, after salvation, is whether or not the person has, as this verse says literally, godly credibility or a good name. Did they practice integrity, were they honorable in their personal relationships? A person should value these characteristics above all material possessions.

Wilbur and Orville Wright are well known for carrying out the first successful air flight at Kittyhawk in 1903. They came from a close family, even though their father, a Bishop in United Brethren Church, was initially skeptical about their venture. When Wilbur died at the age of 45, his father left a record of the tragic event in his diary. It reads:

May 30, 1912
This morning at 3:15, Wilbur passed away, aged 45 years, 1 month, and 14 days. A short life, full of consequences. An unfailing intellect, imperturbable temper, great self-reliance and as great modesty, seeing the right clearly, pursuing it steadfastly, he lived and died.

For Wilbur’s godly father, it was not making the first successful air flight that made Wilbur great, but his godly character.

“LORD, help us to walk in the path of integrity in our words and actions this day.”