1 00:00:01,680 --> 00:00:05,560 Speaker 1: So he fed them according to the integrity of his 2 00:00:05,760 --> 00:00:11,840 Speaker 1: heart and guided them by skillfulness of his hands Psalm 3 00:00:11,880 --> 00:00:18,120 Speaker 1: seventy eight seventy two. Dear Lord, I know that there 4 00:00:18,239 --> 00:00:24,920 Speaker 1: is no replacement for integrity, No false humility or manufactured 5 00:00:25,040 --> 00:00:30,800 Speaker 1: words could ever replace pure intentions. I pray that you 6 00:00:31,160 --> 00:00:35,560 Speaker 1: would give me a pure heart, O Lord, and set 7 00:00:35,680 --> 00:00:40,640 Speaker 1: my gaze upward toward you. I want to be a 8 00:00:40,720 --> 00:00:46,479 Speaker 1: person of honor, always matching my actions with my convictions. 9 00:00:47,560 --> 00:00:53,240 Speaker 1: I know this is truly impossible without your guidance, power, 10 00:00:53,880 --> 00:01:00,160 Speaker 1: and comfort. So I pray your spirit would give me 11 00:01:00,160 --> 00:01:05,320 Speaker 1: me all these things and more for your name's sake, 12 00:01:06,600 --> 00:01:13,280 Speaker 1: make me more like you every day, Lord and Jesus' name. Amen. 13 00:01:14,800 --> 00:01:17,440 Speaker 1: Thank you for joining me in prayer. Stay tuned for 14 00:01:17,480 --> 00:01:22,080 Speaker 1: today's free podcast Meditative Prayers with Zach Clinton, where you 15 00:01:22,120 --> 00:01:25,240 Speaker 1: can draw close to God and find strength in him. 16 00:01:26,560 --> 00:01:29,480 Speaker 2: My friends, welcome to your meditative prayer on Stoic Leadership. 17 00:01:29,920 --> 00:01:31,760 Speaker 2: To get the most out of your spiritual journey, use 18 00:01:31,800 --> 00:01:34,920 Speaker 2: pray dot com every day and make prayer a priority 19 00:01:34,920 --> 00:01:37,880 Speaker 2: in your life. Again. Our goal for today's meditative prayer 20 00:01:37,920 --> 00:01:41,120 Speaker 2: is all about stoic leadership. So right now, let's just 21 00:01:41,200 --> 00:01:44,080 Speaker 2: take a moment to hide away in your secret place, 22 00:01:45,560 --> 00:01:48,480 Speaker 2: maybe a place where you can be by yourself and 23 00:01:48,560 --> 00:01:52,480 Speaker 2: be at ease, place where you can turn off all distraction. 24 00:01:54,440 --> 00:01:58,640 Speaker 2: And right now, breathing deep through your nose and excel 25 00:01:58,680 --> 00:02:03,200 Speaker 2: out through your mouth and reach out to God, preparing 26 00:02:03,240 --> 00:02:06,960 Speaker 2: to let his words fill your heart. Today we'll be 27 00:02:07,000 --> 00:02:10,359 Speaker 2: meditating on Psalms seventy eight seventy two from the King 28 00:02:10,440 --> 00:02:14,920 Speaker 2: James version. It says, so he fed them according to 29 00:02:14,960 --> 00:02:18,240 Speaker 2: the integrity of his heart and guided them by the 30 00:02:18,280 --> 00:02:22,640 Speaker 2: skillfulness of his hands. Right now, let's just take a 31 00:02:22,680 --> 00:02:26,760 Speaker 2: moment to pour out your adoration to God. Lord. I 32 00:02:26,800 --> 00:02:30,760 Speaker 2: praise you for your word is upright and eternal. Your 33 00:02:30,760 --> 00:02:33,680 Speaker 2: ways are perfect, and all your works are done in faithfulness. 34 00:02:34,800 --> 00:02:37,560 Speaker 2: I extol you, for you are a God of fidelity 35 00:02:38,000 --> 00:02:44,040 Speaker 2: and consistency. You are without iniquity, just and righteous in 36 00:02:44,080 --> 00:02:50,960 Speaker 2: all your ways. Leadership requires integrity, and integrity comes from within. 37 00:02:52,200 --> 00:02:55,360 Speaker 2: It is conceived in the heart through righteous choices and 38 00:02:55,440 --> 00:02:59,520 Speaker 2: nurtured by godly actions. That is why strong leadership is 39 00:02:59,560 --> 00:03:03,639 Speaker 2: born out of integrity of the heart. This can seem discouraging, 40 00:03:03,680 --> 00:03:06,519 Speaker 2: as no one is perfect, nor do we act perfectly. 41 00:03:06,560 --> 00:03:12,119 Speaker 2: All the time. However, God does not have need of perfection. Instead, 42 00:03:12,639 --> 00:03:17,080 Speaker 2: he asks for honesty, honesty in your thoughts, decisions, and 43 00:03:17,080 --> 00:03:20,960 Speaker 2: behavior you see. To achieve this, you must rely on 44 00:03:21,000 --> 00:03:25,800 Speaker 2: the Holy Spirit and heed his guidance. You must also 45 00:03:25,880 --> 00:03:30,600 Speaker 2: be honest above all, with yourself and with God. Godly 46 00:03:30,760 --> 00:03:34,480 Speaker 2: leaders recognize points of correction not only in others, but 47 00:03:34,560 --> 00:03:38,600 Speaker 2: within the self as well. They do not apply partiality 48 00:03:38,600 --> 00:03:44,000 Speaker 2: to themselves nor make excuses for bad behavior. King David, 49 00:03:44,480 --> 00:03:47,160 Speaker 2: attributed with being a man after God's own heart, is 50 00:03:47,200 --> 00:03:51,160 Speaker 2: an amazing example of this. He definitely was not perfect, 51 00:03:51,760 --> 00:03:55,920 Speaker 2: and he committed grievous errors, but he also acknowledged his 52 00:03:56,000 --> 00:04:01,560 Speaker 2: sins and made amends for his mistakes. Hard but you 53 00:04:01,640 --> 00:04:08,440 Speaker 2: must remember integrity requires continuous effort. God knows and he 54 00:04:08,560 --> 00:04:12,880 Speaker 2: understands this. My friends, So take this time to cleanse 55 00:04:12,880 --> 00:04:20,080 Speaker 2: your soul and confess your lack of honesty to God. Now, 56 00:04:20,080 --> 00:04:22,359 Speaker 2: as we transition, let's just think for a minute on 57 00:04:22,440 --> 00:04:26,479 Speaker 2: all the blessings God bestows through honesty. Think of the 58 00:04:26,520 --> 00:04:30,600 Speaker 2: outcomes Jesus has promised to those who act justly, all 59 00:04:30,640 --> 00:04:36,320 Speaker 2: the blessings, the joy and prosperity that righteousness brings. Think 60 00:04:36,320 --> 00:04:38,960 Speaker 2: of past situations where honesty was a challenge for you, 61 00:04:39,480 --> 00:04:43,720 Speaker 2: but you persevered. Thank God for the growth and learning 62 00:04:43,760 --> 00:04:48,120 Speaker 2: that came from those experiences, and thank Jesus for all 63 00:04:48,160 --> 00:04:53,719 Speaker 2: his glory manifested in your life through righteousness. My friends, 64 00:04:53,720 --> 00:04:57,720 Speaker 2: God is present and he is listening to you. So 65 00:04:57,760 --> 00:05:01,120 Speaker 2: be mindful that integrity is a necessity and a blessing. 66 00:05:02,320 --> 00:05:05,680 Speaker 2: God never said honesty would come easily, but he promised 67 00:05:05,680 --> 00:05:08,640 Speaker 2: to help you every step of the way. He sent 68 00:05:08,680 --> 00:05:12,200 Speaker 2: the Holy Spirit to enable you to succeed. So ask 69 00:05:12,240 --> 00:05:16,120 Speaker 2: the Holy Spirit to increase your love for righteousness. Ask 70 00:05:16,200 --> 00:05:19,640 Speaker 2: him to make you more like Jesus. Ask him to 71 00:05:19,680 --> 00:05:25,400 Speaker 2: empower you to live an honest life the way Jesus did. Remember, 72 00:05:25,920 --> 00:05:28,039 Speaker 2: God has called you to lead with a pure heart, 73 00:05:29,040 --> 00:05:32,440 Speaker 2: to cultivate and nurture integrity as a part of who 74 00:05:32,480 --> 00:05:36,720 Speaker 2: you are. God has great tasks for you to accomplish, 75 00:05:36,880 --> 00:05:38,920 Speaker 2: and he expects that you will do so with an 76 00:05:38,960 --> 00:05:44,159 Speaker 2: honest heart. So be confident in the Lord's righteousness, love 77 00:05:44,200 --> 00:05:48,400 Speaker 2: others through just actions and in truth, and do this 78 00:05:49,120 --> 00:05:52,760 Speaker 2: and you will see God's grace manifested in and throughout 79 00:05:52,800 --> 00:05:56,560 Speaker 2: your life. My friends, thank you for completing today's meditative 80 00:05:56,560 --> 00:05:59,680 Speaker 2: prayer on pray dot com. By incorporating this healthy habit 81 00:05:59,720 --> 00:06:02,680 Speaker 2: as a day daily practice, you're making prayer priority and 82 00:06:02,720 --> 00:06:06,000 Speaker 2: I believe you're strengthening your walk with God. As always, 83 00:06:06,000 --> 00:06:08,359 Speaker 2: my name is Zach Clinton, Vice President of the American 84 00:06:08,400 --> 00:06:11,640 Speaker 2: Association of Christian Counselors, and we love being a part 85 00:06:11,680 --> 00:06:15,120 Speaker 2: of your life. Hey to find further information, inspiration, help, 86 00:06:15,160 --> 00:06:18,040 Speaker 2: hope and encouragement. I'd also encourage you to visit our 87 00:06:18,040 --> 00:06:23,640 Speaker 2: website at AACC dot net. Again, that is AACC dot net.