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Sunday, October 21, 2012

The greatest compliment I have ever received

The other day someone paid me one of the highest compliments that I have ever received. 

It wasn't anything to tout vanity. It wasn't about my hair or my figure or my clothing..You see, the compliment I received had absolutely nothing to do with me.

It is the second time this has happened to me throughout the course of my life.   sometimes I can feel Christ walking with me..there are days when I can feel His loving light radiating from within,
It's a light that shouldn't be hidden.

Well, the other day I was purchasing something from the store. An Indian man was at the cash register. He told me very sincerely that there was something different about me..

A while back ago, I was in Jamaica. I was in an atmosphere of clutter and noise. There was a lot going on around me, but I could feel Christ with me and I remember having a calmness and peace about me that could only be supernatually given..  An older, respectful gentleman and native of the country approached me and said, "there is something different about you. You are not like the others."

I don't know if I told the man in Jamaica that Jesus lived within me...but I aim to write a letter to the man in the convenient store and tell him that what he sees is the light of my Heavenly Father that shines through me..

Please don't mistake me..I am not bragging or boasting.  I fail. I mess up. I am human, but there are days..when I hope and pray that others can see that the spirit of Christ truly lives within. I pray that I can be a living testimony to His goodness, His power, and most of all, His love.

There are days when I walk and maybe others can't see Christ. They are days when I walk in haste. There are days when I walk in selfishness...but then, there are those days..( and I pray they become more and more regular) when I walk with Jesus and He shines through me in such a way that total strangers can see it and recognize it for what it is.... It is something rare and beautiful..
and it is not me... only the Spirit of the living God who transforms those who seek diligently seek Him..

I think of the fruits of the Spirit..when we walk with Christ..we begin to see more of these fruits in our lives.. "But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,  gentleness and self-control" ..

When we walk with Christ, we become those things..because those are His qualities.. HE had all of those things..  He gives them to us as He carves Himself into each of us..



The other day I read a blog by my favorite writer, Stephanie Cherry.. It taked about our spiritual footprint.. IT asks the question..are we showing the true Christ?
Here is the text from www.stephaniecherry.com

About five years ago there was an unsung film made. The premise was simple. What would happen if all of the Hispanic people disappeared from the state of California? The point was to show how needed the Hispanic people were. I am not sure if it was meant to be comical, but it turned out to be. All the Hispanic people disappeared and the white people had no idea how to function. (I know this is controversial. Stick with me.) There were no nannies to raise their kids or migrant workers to grow their crops. No one even wanted the jobs made available because the pay was too low. I am not sure if it got the impact the film makers desired.
I only know that it made me think.

What if all the Christians disappeared? Are we genuinely providing a service that would be missed by those around us? Would the people on your street be effected? I thought about all the nice programs we have at church. If we only serve punch and encourage the people around us, would the people outside the walls of our church notice our departure? Perhaps, we don't act very Christian and some people would be thankful we were gone. What do you think would happen if everyone in your church disappeared? Have you left enough of a spiritual footprint to be missed? What could be done to enlarge that footprint?
What is God calling you to? You know He's calling when you realize the task is not safe.

What if all those "radical" Christians disappeared? The ones who are always challenging people to think about how they are living? The George Müllers? The Francis Chans? The lost people might notice. Would you? Would you be happier that they were not upsetting your nice little life? Would life be easier if the people whose lives call out a different standard for you to live simply vanished?

We have become accustomed to hearing a sermon and not reacting. Are you giving God lip service? What if God told you to sell your house, or your mini van, or your jewelry and give to the poor? Would you do it? Or will you turn to your husband and say, "that was a really great message" and never live it out? - stephanie cherry



"You show that you are a letter sent from Christ . . . written not with ink but with the Spirit of the Living God, not on tablets of stone, but on tablets of human hearts." 2 Corinthians 3:1-3

 

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