Solparvus
Puritan Board Senior
Advice I've received for my professional field, which applies to Christian godliness in general, and most certainly to office-bearers:
Work out ethical crises before they become a crisis. You don't want to work out right and wrong in the heat of the moment. As much as possible, prepare beforehand so that doing the right thing in the heat of battle is instinctive.
Back in 2009, Captain Sullenberger landed his plane in the Hudson River. The plane flew into a flock of birds, two of the engines failed, and landing back at the airport was no option. It was either the ocean or the Hudson River. The better option was the Hudson, although still dangerous. Sullenberger had to land the plane perfectly on its belly, or the plane would be destroyed. he did so, with only a handful of injuries to the people on board, and every life saved.
Why was he able to do this?
Sullenberger had been routinely training for years on crisis situations before this point. He would think of every possible thing that could go wrong in a flight situation, and he would think through and train on how to handle those crises. No event in itself may have been likely, but any one crisis could still happen. Finally, the emergency did come in 2009 which tested his skill and judgment as a pilot. All those years paid off. Sullenberger landed the plane safely as could be done. Not a life lost.
Don't wait until a moral crisis occurs to know what to do. I heard somewhere long ago that the devil tempts to sin by putting men in a crisis, and then applying immense pressure to make an immediate decision. Many business professionals in the heat of the moment end up doing things they thought they would never do. The same happens with Christians. Train yourself in godliness well ahead of that time.
Work out ethical crises before they become a crisis. You don't want to work out right and wrong in the heat of the moment. As much as possible, prepare beforehand so that doing the right thing in the heat of battle is instinctive.
Back in 2009, Captain Sullenberger landed his plane in the Hudson River. The plane flew into a flock of birds, two of the engines failed, and landing back at the airport was no option. It was either the ocean or the Hudson River. The better option was the Hudson, although still dangerous. Sullenberger had to land the plane perfectly on its belly, or the plane would be destroyed. he did so, with only a handful of injuries to the people on board, and every life saved.
Why was he able to do this?
Sullenberger had been routinely training for years on crisis situations before this point. He would think of every possible thing that could go wrong in a flight situation, and he would think through and train on how to handle those crises. No event in itself may have been likely, but any one crisis could still happen. Finally, the emergency did come in 2009 which tested his skill and judgment as a pilot. All those years paid off. Sullenberger landed the plane safely as could be done. Not a life lost.
Don't wait until a moral crisis occurs to know what to do. I heard somewhere long ago that the devil tempts to sin by putting men in a crisis, and then applying immense pressure to make an immediate decision. Many business professionals in the heat of the moment end up doing things they thought they would never do. The same happens with Christians. Train yourself in godliness well ahead of that time.
