Day 20 – Shine

“Dear friends, you always followed my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away, it is even more important. Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. For God is working in you, giving you the desire and the power to do what pleases him. Do everything without complaining and arguing, so that no one can criticize you. Live clean, innocent lives as children of God, shining like bright lights in a world full of crooked and perverse people.”
Philippians 2:12-15

Yesterday we started a story about a Hindu student named Chethan who came to faith in Jesus Christ. If you didn’t read yesterday’s story, then go back real quick and at least read Chethan’s story. I’ll wait here for you.

Okay, so here’s the rest of the story. After coming to faith in Christ, Chethan began to devour the Bible. He memorized Scripture like no one I ever saw. He also became extremely consistent in his prayer life and in his involvement with our college ministry. He wanted to serve in any way that we needed and demonstrated time and time again that God had made a tremendous difference in his life. Every once and a while, Chethan and I would go grab lunch or coffee and he would confide in me that he couldn’t understand why the other Christians around him, including those who contributed to his coming to faith, didn’t live out their faith consistently. Over time, this began to gnaw on him; he became frustrated that faith is something that is supposed to consume you, not just an add-on for the rest of your life. In the end, Chethan walked away from Christianity due to the fact that he couldn’t find anyone who was truly living it out in their lives. He assumed it must not be true. Chethan formally renounced his Christian faith and ultimately became a devout Hindu again.

It was one of the saddest days in my life.

That’s why Paul’s exhortation to the Philippian church is so crucial for the church in our day and age. It is so easy for us who have been believers in Christ for a while to forget that a relationship with Jesus is supposed to change everything about our lives. The world needs to see that Jesus makes a difference in the way we drive, the way we work, what kind of students we are, the things we value and the way we love without labels. For a long time, the world looked on to see if the church is relevant for life, to see if God really does change people. They’re not looking on any more because they assume that it doesn’t.

But we can change that.

We can be the people who demonstrate that faith is real and that God has changed us. We can work out our faith out of love and devotion to God. We get to shine and show the world that their labels don’t stick to us. Call us weird, call us weak, call us helpless...it doesn’t stick. We are the children of God. Everything we have is a gift. Every breath we take is a miracle. We will not complain about petty little inconveniences in life when we have a God who endured a cross for us. We won’t be caught up with minor squabbles when there is a world to be loved and shown that a God become man to redeem His creation. Let us be people who not only talk about faith, but who also live out faith in every area of our lives. This way when the people around us are faced with the choice of following Christ, they will be able to see at least one example of what that decision means.

Be the one.

As you pray today, allow the following ideas to foster your conversation with God.

• Thank God that He has come to make a difference in our lives and to make us into the people He created us to be.
• Thank God that Jesus Christ provides us with everything we need to live a fully devoted life, setting us free from the sin that once enslaved us.
• Ask God to keep you sensitive to the way you live your life, keeping you focused on the Kingdom and not just on getting through this life.
• Ask God to help you to be sensitive to those around you and to help you make sure that you are being a faithful witness to the awesome power of God to change people’s lives.
• Ask God to fill you with His Spirit and to help you to become a student of His Word.
• Ask God to give you the opportunity to tell someone in your life about the difference God has made in you.