Proverbs 10:9 (NIV)
Whoever walks in integrity walks securely,
but whoever
takes crooked paths will be found out.
He was 11 years old and went fishing every chance he got
from a dock at his family's cabin on an island in the middle of a New Hampshire
lake.
On the day before the bass season opened, he and his
father were fishing early in the evening, catching some fish and perch with
worms. Then he tied on a small silver lure and practiced casting. The lure
struck the water and caused colored ripples in the sunset, thin silver ripples
as the moon rose over the lake.
When his pole doubled over, he knew something huge was on
the other end. His father watched with admiration as the boy skillfully worked
the fish along side the dock.
Finally, he very gingerly lifted the exhausted fish from
the water. It was the largest one he had ever seen, but it was a bass.
The boy and his father looked at the handsome fish, gills
playing back and forth in the moonlight. The father lit a match and looked at
his watch. It was 10 p.m. -- two hours before the season opened. He looked at
the fish, then at the boy.
"You'll have to put it back, Son," he said.
"Dad!" cried the boy.
"There will be another fish," said his father.
"Not as big as this one," cried the boy.
He looked around the lake. No other fishermen or boats
were around in the moonlight. He looked again at his father.
Even though no one had seen them, nor could anyone ever
know what time he caught the fish, the boy could tell by the clarity of his father’s
voice that the decision was not negotiable. He slowly worked the hook out of
the lip of the huge bass and lowered it into the black water.
The creature swished it's powerful body and disappeared.
The boy suspected that never again would he see such a great fish.
That was 34 years. Today, the boy is a successful
architect in New York City. His father's cabin is still there on the island in
the middle of the lake. He takes his own son and daughters fishing from the
same dock. He was right. He has never again caught such a magnificent fish as
the one he landed that night long ago. But he does see that same fish -- again
and again
- - every time he comes up against a question of ethics.
For, as his father taught him, ethics are simple matters
of right and wrong. It is only the practice of ethics that is difficult. Do we
do right when no one is looking? Do we refuse to cut corners to get the design
in on time? Or refuse to trade stocks based on information that we aren't
supposed to have? We would if we were taught to put the fish back when we were
young. For we would have learned the truth.
The decision to do right lives fresh and fragrant in our
memory. It is a story we will proudly tell our friends and our grandchildren.
Not about how we had a chance to beat the system and took
it, but about how we did the right thing and were forever strengthened.
Dear Lord, we pray for strength today to do what is
right. Help us when nobody is looking to
do the right thing. Help us to be people of integrity. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.
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