W4D6: Think About What Is Of Good Repute

"Finally, brethren, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is of good repute, if there is any excellence and if anything worthy of praise, dwell on these things.” Philippians 4:8 NASB

The term repute means what is believed, what is considered about someone or something. In other words, repute is another way of saying “reputation.” Therefore, good repute is someone or something that is favorably known, spoken well of or admired. Good repute is something that is generally said or believed about a person or a thing. It also refers to particular characteristics of a person, place or thing.

As Christ followers, it's desirable to have a good reputation, but that is not our goal. To be highly thought of by others will probably be a by-product of our walk with Christ, but it's not our purpose in life. We must realize that Jesus was the most perfect and loving person to walk on the face of this earth. Yes, He was famous, deeply loved and highly regarded by many. But He was also hated to the point of persecution by many others. No one will ever reach the height of fame or the depths of pain and betrayal that Jesus reached.

Paul is not telling us to seek to have a good reputation, we let God take care of that. Paul is telling us to think about the good things that are known about a person, thing or a situation. Good things can be hard to find, but they are there. Someone once jokingly said you can say something nice about everyone, even the devil is a hard worker.

It is hard to think with good repute toward others and our circumstances when they are painful and more than we can bear. But we can when we choose our thoughts and don't allow our pain to choose thoughts for us. We can do this when we remember that God created each person and He loves them deeply, even when they behave badly.

We remember that we are not perfect and that we sin. We will hurt others along our way, either intentionally or unintentionally. When we realize the pain we cause, we want to be loved and forgiven. We know there are consequences for our bad choices, but we want grace and mercy. We want forgiveness when we don’t deserve it so we must forgive others, even when they don’t deserve it. You see, the more fully we grasp the depth of our own depravity, the more fully we can grasp the depth of His love, grace and mercy He has given to us. When we realize how much mercy we have been given, the easier it is for us to give mercy to others. Mercy becomes a natural outflow out of our healing. When we own up to our sinful thoughts and nature, we will gladly extend grace and mercy to others.

Jesus looked at the heart of people, reaching out to the most undeserving in society. If we want to walk to Jesus, we must lean on His Spirit and choose to do the same.

Do you struggle with realizing the forgiveness you have received? List thoughts and actions that are contrary to God’s nature and cause us to fall short. List thoughts that draw us closer to Him.

Meditate on "whatever is of good repute" today.