this was written over 3 years ago, but was brought back to me this morning. BETTER Are people better off for knowing you? In the grand scheme of things are their lives improved or lessened by having you in it? This is one of the gold standards by which all Christians should measure their lives. The Bible says people will know your are a Christian (one of mine ) by your love. Do those that know you best see the evidence of that? Do those that have only met you once see that? Did the person you interacted with 5 minutes ago walk away feeling that their lives were better for having spent that time with you? I am not talking about a good touchy feely moment that we pat ourselves on the back for later. I am talking about a genuine improvement to the people you come in contact with. When we look at our example, Christ, not everyone walked away happier and upbeat from an encounter with Him, but their lives were made better. The woman at the well had her life and sins laid out before her. She was convicted of the wrong she had done, but walked away with a future that touched the lives of the whole town she lived in. Does your daily routine begin as an agenda to please yourself or as a goal to use the talents God has bestowed upon you for their true purpose - to help others? The rich farmer had the talent of making prosperous crops and was a success and yet God required of him his life because all he could think of was enriching his own life from it. What talents has God given you and what have you done with them? Today? If you are good with numbers, have you offered to help someone with their income tax return or even balance their checkbook. If you are mechanically inclined how many cars of needy people have you repaired free of charge? Instead of going straight to a parking place, when entering a parking lot, do you see if anyone has their hood up or a flat tire and needs help? Do you actually carry jumper cables in your vehicles, for people who need a jump? You are the best cook your family knows, but does your neighbor with 5 kids know it? Do you volunteer when the church asks for meals? Have you surprised the preacher (youth director, SS teacher, stranger, etc.) with a fully cooked meal delivered to their house? What are you doing with what God has given you to enhance the lives of those He puts in your path? Can you imagine God on His throne and a request comes in from a soul that needs comforting. God checks the roster and sees that you are have been given the gift of compassion. So with pride, He sends that person’s path on an intercept course with you and when your appointment with destiny arrives, you really blow it. You are too busy to listen, or your really don’t know that person that well. So much for your gift, huh? Every person you meet should have a life changing experience from their encounter with a Christian. Let me even use what you might call a bad example. Most of us know the story of the rich man who came to Jesus and went away disappointed because Jesus told him to sell all he had and give to the poor and follow Him. We are not told any more, but I like to believe that it is all the young man thought about. That he could not sleep thinking about it. That, in the end, he became the largest philanthropist his village had ever known. Why? Because Jesus changed his life by sharing the truth of God. Not necessarily what the man wanted to hear, but the truth in love. I went to a funeral last Wednesday and was impressed by the number of people whose lives had been effected by a single person. There was no moving mission to Africa or a historic rise to fame, just a Christian man doing Christ-like things in a Godly manner, changing the lives of those who contacted him. It was a nice funeral. Hope all of us can be remembered the same way. Make the world better for having been in it, not because you are of this world, but because you are not.
Posted on: Thu, 05 Sep 2013 10:29:03 +0000
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