28 Jan “Use Your Core!”

I’m currently revisiting a series of talks released a year ago by Andy Stanley entitled “Your Integrity, Our World”. I’m a big fan of content about personal character development. Character development is of paramount importance because it impacts every area of our lives. However, as is true of many aspects of our culture, the importance of this topic is under-emphasized and widely overlooked.

While I consider this 6-part series free, life-changing game and a must-watch, I think Andy could have added one part to this series. This blog post is a synopsis of the “missing part” of the series, as written by me. For context, I’d place this talk between parts two and three of the series, which is why I’ve titled it “Part 2.5: Use Your Core”.

This writing is also a forced collaboration with someone I consider my number one “distant mentor”. I mean no disrespect by amending his series. In fact, I heard Andy do a talk about 10 years ago that gets at the essence of what I’ll attempt to add to this series.

The central scripture verse of this series is Proverbs 11:3, “The integrity of the upright guides them, but the unfaithful are destroyed by their duplicity.” Andy keys in on the word “upright” in this verse. Throughout the series, Andy directs his audience to literally pay attention to their current physical posture and sit up straight. He used this postural change to illustrate what the concept of uprightness affords people: the ability to see ahead in life.

Andy’s analogy made me think about what it takes to sit upright. As I’ve pursued a deeper relationship with my physical health throughout the years, I’ve learned the importance of core strength to our posture and overall stability. Our core muscles are what enable physical uprightness. The stronger your core, the easier it will be for you to remain upright.

Beyond uprightness, which is important enough on its own, core strength is an important building block of our entire physical fitness. Our core functions much like character—our core in everything we do physically just as character influences everything we choose to do in life. 

This principle is why a good trainer will always incorporate exercises that help to build your core muscles. I believe this is why the Master Life Trainer, Jesus, was so concerned about our character. He came not only to teach us the values, or to be an example of core-value-based living, but to empower us to live out the core values that will allow us to be the best versions of ourselves—the versions of us that God intended.

In Andy’s talk from 10 years ago I referenced earlier, he asked the question “Who do you want to be?” His assertion was that it is always a mistake to decide what you want to do in life before you decide who you want to be. 

This talk inspired me to develop a clear list of core values that I call my “BE Words”. These words, which I developed over the course of several months, describe the type of character I want to have and inspire me to practice living a certain way. Core values benefit me in that they give me a clear list of virtues to which I want to have integrity. They also serve as my personal definition of success. I would tell you what mine are but, as Andy says in his talk, I think you should develop your own list without being biased by mine. 

The main point of “Your Integrity, Our World — Part 2.5: Use Your Core” would be this: Just as our physical core enables our bodies to walk upright, the core of our character determines whether we will live upright lives.” 

It’s our core that gives us the ability to straighten up.

Could you imagine what our world would be like if everyone had clear, intentionally-defined virtues that governed their decision making? Proverbs 11:3 lays out a clear dichotomy: either integrity or duplicity will guide you. The better choice is obvious.

Whether they are virtuous or not, if someone had to guess your top 3 core values what do you think they would say? What would you like them to be able to say truthfully?

Watch me expound upon this idea on my YouTube channel and be sure to subscribe while you’re there…