The Measuring Stick

What is right? What is wrong? What changes the two over time?

“The right to do something does not mean that doing it is right.” ~William Safire

I’m not sure what your personal measuring stick is as it relates to what’s “right” and what’s “wrong”, but I often wonder how that measuring stick varies from issue to issue. We have the tendency to allow what’s going on in our lives or how we’re feeling at a particular time, to change our standard of what’s right and wrong. I’ve often heard the axiom, “there’s a right way to do things and a wrong way to do things.” I know that saying refers to procedures and not to the complexity of an act, but regardless, the complexity of what you do is either right or wrong—no matter what way it’s measured.

Member of the U.S. House of Representatives, former Oklahoma quarterback and Baptist minister J.C. Watts is quoted as saying “Character is doing the right thing when nobody's looking. There are too many people who think that the only thing that's right is to get by, and the only thing that's wrong is to get caught.” Which kind of person are you? And be REAL with yourself. In the journey for self-improvement, we have to understand what needs to be improved. Do we REALLY want to do the right thing? Once again, one’s perception of what’s right and wrong is relative, but TRUTHFULLY we ALL know what’s wrong. And usually if you have to think twice about it, it’s probably wrong. RIGHT!?

I try to pattern myself after Jesus, who (through my beliefs) did NO wrong. So when thinking of what your particular measuring stick is, who will you pattern your right-to-wrong meter after? Let’s just try to get better.

More right, less wrong.

“The only correct actions are those that demand no explanation and no apology.” ~Red Auerbach

††Live Better, Be Better††

~M.A.~