What Are You Doing?

 “So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking.  They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts.”    -Ephesians 4:16-18

I sit, today, ashamed.  Not for something I have done.  I am ashamed for what I HAVEN’T done.  I look around almost everywhere I go and I see that people are lost.  I hear that people don’t have a clue.  I feel that people are in need of help.  Yet……I move on.  I have heard it stated that there are over 100,000 “unchurched” individuals just in my community alone.  And I can’t help but wonder how many of the “churched” folks are just going through the motions?  As a Christ follower, should that be ok with me? Is it enough that we invite someone to church, read a few scriptures during the week, put a 5 in the plate, maybe thank God for our food?  How often do we see someone, a perfect stranger, obviously having a bad day and we either groan about their attitude or conduct ourselves in such a way as to contribute to their bad day?  Wouldn’t a smile and a prayer for them be more appropriate?  Ever known a coworker having struggles at home?  Do you let them know you are there and praying for them, or do you “stay out of their business”?  Or what about in your own home?  What’s going on there?  Do your children know you as a different person outside of the church walls?  You see, I can’t help but look around our world…..correction….our OWN NATION, and see that evil is prevailing.  That’s not pessimism, it is reality.  And as a Christ follower, I cannot be ok with that.  I cannot accept that.  I cannot ignore that.  God has given each of us, that know Him, an assignment;  “Go into all the world and preach the gospel” (Mark 16:15).  He didn’t say that to the pagans.  He didn’t say that to the “unchurched”.  He didn’t say that to the guy across the street who has never even said a prayer.  He said it you and me.  “Christ Followers”.  And preaching the gospel doesn’t necessarily mean from behind a podium on a stage.  It also means in the way we live out our lives;  in our cubicles, at our barber shops, on the ball fields and in our homes.  I sit, today, ashamed.  There is a lost nation right in front of me.  A nation of good people who will miss the Kingdom of Heaven because we Christians didn’t want to get in their business.  We didn’t want to offend.  We didn’t want to be thought of as a “Jesus Freak”.  Our hearts have been hardened and we have become darkened in our understanding.  The hour is upon us.  We must decide that the eternal destination of those around us matters.  So, what are you doing about it?

A Clear Path

“Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles. And let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.”         -Hebrews 12:1

There is a local park just down the street from my home that has a great 4 mile running trail.  It is a rather technical trail with a lot of rocks, tree roots, mud and about 650 ft. of elevation gain.  A few mornings ago I went out to hit the trail about 6 a.m.  and enjoyed having the woods all to myself.  Problem was that no one had gone in front of me to knock down all of the spider webs that had been spun throughout the night.  As I set out on my run on this day of about 80% humidity, spider webs began to collect in my mouth, around my ears, across my eyes and on both arms.  At first I was getting annoyed but laughed it off.  Within a short period of time I began to get frustrated, especially as the sweat began to build up which made it even more difficult to shed them.  I even got so focused on the dumb things that at one point I realized I had stepped off the marked trail and had to figure out where I was!  Eventually I had to stop all together and take time to get rid of all of these pesky, entangling silky strings.  And then I began to laugh out loud because one of my favorite Bible verses fell from a tree limb and hit me in the head.  And as I continued on my run…….I began to pray.  As Christ followers we are not immune to problems.  There is no vaccine to keep difficulties away.  And as we go out and follow the path that Christ has laid out for us, those spider webs can latch on quickly.  Anger, bitterness, resentment.  Worry, fear, doubt.  Conceit, discontentment, self-righteousness.  Before too long we find that we are losing our momentum.  We have slowed down and messed up our pace. We may have even lost focus to the point that we find ourselves on a different path and are lost.  So if you are on the trail today but feel like those spider webs are entangling you and they are causing you to slow down or keep you from running the race that God has marked out for you, stop, take a breath, call on your Heavenly Father,  and let Him start removing all of those things that are hindering you.  Then you can see that the path is marked clearly, and you can, again, run with perseverance!

God Bless The United States of America!!!  Happy Independence Day my friends!