The debate about words versus deeds and vice versa has been around for a long time. Sadly, the debate misses the point. Alignment of both is where integrity is accomplished. The latest book from NavPress brings this topic into clearer focus.

Words and Deeds: Becoming A Man of Courageous Integrity by Charles Causey, Army chaplain and recipient of a Bronze Star, highlights a subject needed by any and all men. Too often a focus on deeds is common for men without discerning the importance of   words and how they align and intersect in the context of their relationships, stress, teamwork, and leadership. Words and deeds are both important and most important of all is that they match.

In the author’s words:

“Words and Deeds was written to help men identify whether there is integrity between their words and actions, and – if not – to give them tools for alignment.”

Luke 24:19 states that Jesus was a man mighty in both words and deeds. It is a model not easy for anyone to accomplish without the Lord’s help and accountability with a few others.

For too many, there is a gap between who men are (or think they are) and who they want to be. This book looks at this problem and how to bridge that gap. It starts with an honest look at self. The book includes a straightforward assessment that provides a snapshot for the man who takes it for where he is today. It gives him an opportunity to look at his perception of himself and see whether there is a discrepancy in what he sees or thinks he sees and what the mirror shows. To get a more precise view, the reader is asked to ask several others close to him to take the assessment on him, which then allows him to see if there is also a perception gap, and to give the most accurate view of who he is.

The book includes stories and quotes that round out the message of the book and make it easy for a man to recognize the author’s points. All along the way the author makes clear what should be obvious and yet does not often appear in the lives of too many of us. Listen to a small part what the author says to clarify integrity:

“Integrity means continuity. The word itself comes from the Latin word integer, meaning ‘entire,’ or ‘whole.’ It means coherence, unity, soundness. With integrity, things are not ambiguous. There is clarity, morally or otherwise. To have integrity means to have an absence of duplicity. In ethics, it means to have consistency of character or uncorrupted virtue. A man of integrity has his words and deeds integrated, with no sunlight in between the two.”

No one is perfect and if we are brutally honest we can acknowledge that sunlight and gaps appear here and there. The author lays out a path toward growth and improvement in those areas and then at the end of 140 pages, offers a one session discussion guide for a small group or a six week Bible study guide for a small group. (Both are good, but the one session questions will likely result in the participants wanting more time than one session.)

This book appeals on many fronts and as a woman, I gained from the challenges on the subject as well, even though the book is targeted and designed for men. It is an excellent resource that I believe every man will appreciate.

To comply with new regulations introduced by the Federal Trade Commission, Tyndale House Publishers provided me with a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for my review.