Dale Carnegie once said, “We have only four contacts with the world, you and I. We are evaluated and classified by four things: 1) by what we do; 2) by how we look; 3) by what we say; and 4) by how we say it.”
If that be true, and I think it is, then we must all give careful attention to these areas of our life, for through them we either become stepping stones or stumbling blocks for other people.
Being a good example should always be of the greatest concern to Christian people. When William Culbertson died, his lifelong friend Edward Bustard said of him, “He never caused the enemies of the Lord to blaspheme because of misconduct.” May that ever be said of you and me.
The psalmist once wrote, “Let not those who hope in you be put to shame through me, O Lord God of hosts; let not those who seek you be brought to dishonor through me, O God of Israel” (Psalm 69:6). Sometimes we are woefully careless in matters of example. We must see to it that the enemies of God do not blaspheme and that the friends of God do not stumble because of our lives.
By our four contacts with the world—what we do, how we look, what we say, and how we say it—may we ever be a good example to all people.