Recently I was talking to a friend about the blog and he made a comment that hit me in the gut. Not because it was mean or anything, but because it was too true. He said the guy that I am at work is not the same as the guy who writes the blogs. I thought to myself, "Ya know, dude is right. I really need to be a better person where others can see me. Not just a good person where people only read what I write and can't see me do whatever it is I choose to do."
All too often I blend in with those I am around, partly because I don't want to stand out, be different and thus get noticed. But also because the hate that is thrown the Christian way is not something I really want to step into. This attitude hurts more than almost anything that I can do. Think about it. People say all the time that they don't have to talk about Christ because people will be able to tell by their life. Sorry to say, that is a line of bull you are spouting and only fool yourself. Jesus is not shown in being nice to people, He will only be shown if you are beyond what the world considers nice. If you are negative and swear like I do, then Jesus will never be seen. If you are happy and fun, but still not filled with love for everyone Jesus will not be seen. Maybe you are friendly to everyone that walks in, but until you are loving even to those you really dislike, for me it's the stupid diesel guys around here or the overly chromed look-at-my-truck-it's-shiney people.
You have to find ways to love those people. I don't know how, because I am terrible at that, but we all have to try and find it. One idea I think can help, is if we are in worship at all times. Worship is not a Sunday morning thing, nor is it an after I get off of work thing. Worship is an all the time, sing praises when you are hurt, shout for joy when the world is crumbling, thing. How do you sing praises in pain? By remembering that the pain is worth it for what comes next. You shout for joy when the world is crumbling because you have to break ground to build something even better.
My friend pointed out how people have forgot how to worship. "People think they can be a Crack head all week, beat their wives, and go to church Sunday and everything's good. People are definitely out of touch." If you call yourself a Christian, you should not and cannot do this every week and think it will be fine. Sorry to break it to you, but you might want to think twice about calling yourself a Christian. Being a Christian should be worship always and share with everyone out there the greatness that is Jesus. Even if you accepted Jesus as your savior you are not done yet. That is step one in an ongoing, multi-step plan you are invited into. Jesus didn't say, "Believe in me and go about your life like normal doing whatever you want," He said "Go and make disciples of all man..." To this extent, I have been trying to get more Christian music around me, with lyrics that encourage me, at every chance I get. So that there is something of God around me as much as possible. I do not what God to become an out of site out of mind thing.
I am not saying I have any of this down. Heck I can't even go an afternoon without being a jerk. I will be honest, there have been plenty of times I pull out of the church parking lot get driving down the road and begin to yell unkind things at the drivers on the road. I will be singing a song, deep in praise of the Lord, feeling moved and better than I had been, then someone cuts me off and I drop the praise like it was on fire, and curse and flick them off. Hello my name is Brian I am an angry Ohioian when it comes to cars and being in my way. (If you wonder what I mean by Ohioian, other than the obvious of living in this gloomy state, Ohio uses the F-word(A word I rather enjoy more than I should) more than any other state in the union. At least we are good at something.)
This is a day to day, hour to hour struggle. I want to get better, but I constantly fail at it. "I tried to be a better man, but I'm still learning how." These are lyrics from the new Showbread album. I am fighting day to day to be a better me and sometimes I even surprise myself that I had love when I expected something closer to hate to be there. God does work in me, even if I push him out. We all need to keep pushing for love, for worship at all times, praise in all things. It is a goal that we should all share and support each other in. Why I feel small groups of like people should get together to support and hold people accountable for what they do, so that we can stop sinning and share Jesus with a world that really needs him.
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