Wednesday, March 5, 2014

What to they see in you?

ChristFace

Last post, I talked about what we see when we look at others. This time, I am still talking about what people see, only this time it's what people see in us.

Tonight, I had the privilege of starting the Lenten season with my church's Ash Wednesday service. At this service, the Imposition of Ashes is performed. Our associate pastor looked into the choir loft, seeing everyone with the Sign on their foreheads, and said how special it was to see all the Signs and how she would love a picture. 

Part of me thought, that it would be nice to be able to see a sign for a fellow believer. Later, I realized that we are marked and we should be able to see that in others. Like the old hymn, "They will know we are Christians by our love." Would they?

Imagine someone breaking into your home while you were gone. They look through your home, rummaging about, not looking for what you think they are looking for. They are looking for signs you are a Christian. Do they find any? Is there evidence that your home follows the teachings of Christ? What about if they searched your Facebook page, your phone, or your computer? 

We all fall down. We all fall short. Luckily, we serve a God who is big enough for all of us. A God that does something we struggle with. A God that forgives and shares His love again and again through His grace.

Do we reflect that in our lives? I John 13:18 states,
Dear Children, Let us not love with words or speech, but with action and in truth.
How are you living with action and truth? There are opportunities all around us. The key is that we have to be open to seeing them. Sometimes our life is so busy, we don't take the time to look around us for opportunities to share the love of Christ...and that is a shame. Our partner with Project Honduras put it an interesting way. He described our lives as being so fast that we out-run God. That we are moving so fast that God is behind us. We need to slow down and let God work in front of us and actually follow Him.

During one of the nightly devotionals, we sang 'Population Me' by Matthew West. It's a song that talks about seeing a greater purpose and stepping out of what is your own little world. It was a great fit in Honduras, but the message is just as important here and now as it was then.




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