A friend once described a preacher this way: he had more charisma than a hundred other men. Having met him, I knew what she meant. Which is better to have: charisma or character? Ideally, we would like to have both. But if you could only have one, which would you choose?
Saul walked straight out of central casting into his role as King of Israel. He looked the part. He was a strong leader who inspired courage in his followers. However, in crucial moments, he made rash decisions that cost him and his people dearly. To defeat the Philistines, he required the men to abstain from food. If anyone ate before the battle was over, they would be killed.
Saul’s flawed leadership strategy seemed to be: “The beatings will continue until the morale improves.” Without food, his men ran out of steam. But his son Jonathan, a valiant warrior, did not know about his father’s prohibition of food. So, when he found honey, he ate it. Later Saul would threaten to kill his own son for eating the honey. But the army would not allow the king to carry out his plan.
Our character may be formed in the challenging moments of our lives, but it is so often revealed not in the big decisions of life, but in our day-to-day interactions with others. Our unguarded words reveal something about our souls. What are our thoughts and actions in private? One fallen pastor said at a conference, “Integrity is who we are when nobody is looking.” Later his secret sins were shouted from the rooftop by the media. He had so much charisma; and so little character.
I don’t know how to develop charisma. But I believe we can grow in character by walking with the Lord, keeping in step with the Spirit, day by day. In the end, charisma may fail us, but character, forged in the furnace of faith, will never let us down. Choose character today.
