CREATING YOUR OWN COAT OF ARMS Part II
.....continued from last week's Part I.....
The Motto on my Coat of Arms has gotten my attention this week. I've narrowed it to three words. I decided to use their Latin translations because it sounds regal, fuller, ancient, and more appropriate for a coat of arms.
My motto (unless I decide otherwise before it is completed) is:
"Consistere, Fidelis, Veritas"
Translated it reads, "Consistent. Faithful. True"
Consistent, because God is consistent. He has constancy. The Sun rises and sets. Seasons come and go. Time is part of life. There is cycle, order, and regiment in all of creation. Inconsistency yields chaos. Imagine a world without consistency--chaos. Just, for a start, imagine the keys on your keyboard rearranging themselves every day--chaos. Consistency is essential.
Faithful, because God is faithful. Faithfulness is not the same as consistency. Where consistency has to do with regiment or regularity of habit and behavior based on the inner person, faithfulness has to do with relationships based on the inner person. Faithfulness is commitment to the value of others. Faithfulness expresses esteem and placing self second to another--first to God and then to neighbor. Consistency without faithfulness is empty religion. Faithfulness without consistency is hypocrisy. Combined they are love that is always there.
True, because God is true. Truth is the compass setting for consistency and faithfulness. Consistency in a lie is a dead end. Faithfulness to fraud is lunacy. Truth handled faithlessly or inconsistently is like feeding pearls to pigs-- a shame and incalculable loss. However, Consistency and faithfulness to what is true is victory, power, and life!
Because truth is foundational to the others, I place is at the foot of my coat of arms. On it everything else rests.
At the top of my coat I’ve added two branches. These are the fruit of the other elements of the coat: Hope is represented by the Olive Branch (ie. Noah’s Ark), and Peace is represented by the Palm Branch. At the intersection of Hope and Peace is “Chayim”…the Hebrew word for LIFE!
What is your motto and why? Ponder these until next week when we'll take a look at the center shield element of the coat of arms.
PS. Pray for Joplin, MO this week as they grieve and begin recovery.
All material copyrighted by Stephen Meeks
