Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven (Matthew 5:16).
Back in the fall, my husband and I, along with our youngest son, attended a local football game, and we decided to stop at a fast-food place on the way. I was pretty sure I knew where it was, but just in case I was mistaken, I used the map on my phone to get us to the correct street. When we were close to the restaurant, I clicked out of the map and started looking for the neon sign.
None of us saw it.
We drove past the restaurant because the sign on top of the building was not lit up. We soon realized we had gone too far and turned around, and we almost missed it again! The restaurant itself was barely visible from the interior lights, and I almost thought it was closed! I told the attendant at the counter that the sign was off, but he just shrugged his shoulders.
I wonder … do people look at my life and wonder about the “signs” – or lack thereof – that are supposed to be visible in me because I claim to be a Christ-follower?
When I am not at work, I often wear a Christian T-shirt. I do that because I may or may not have a conversation with the people I pass in the aisle at the grocery store, but I could still deliver a message to them if they take three seconds to read my shirt. You might be surprised at how often people comment. Here are a few examples:
Do more of what makes you happy holy
A couple of years ago, I was in a big-box store working as a greeting card merchandiser when a young man entered the aisle. He started to walk past me, but then he stopped and said, “Wait! What does your shirt say?” I turned toward him so he could read it clearly. He responded with a huge smile and said, “The Lord is in this place!” I smiled back and said, “Yes, He is!”
Normal isn’t coming back – Jesus is
This one usually elicits at least one hearty “Amen!”
There Is Another in the Fire
When I wore this shirt for the first time, I received a bit of a different reaction. The wording displayed is the title of a worship song, and it also includes the Scripture reference Daniel 3:25, which refers to the time when King Nebuchadnezzar had three young men thrown into the fiery furnace. These Hebrew captives refused to bow before the idol the king had erected, so he sought to destroy them. However, when the king looked in the furnace, he declared, “But I see four men unbound, walking in the midst of the fire, and they are not hurt; and the appearance of the fourth is like a son of the gods.”
On the July day when I wore that shirt, Northeast Mississippi felt like a furnace! The temperature was hovering around 100 degrees as I crossed a parking lot and approached the entrance to a store. I was still about thirty feet away when a man near the door called out to me, “I bet you’re really about to die in this heat!”
I looked at him with what I am sure was a very puzzled expression and said, “Well, no … not really.” After another similar exchange, he pointed to my shirt, and I suddenly realized that he had totally missed the Scripture reference and the connection to the three Hebrews in the fiery furnace. He apparently thought it was referring to “another one in the oven, Unfortunately, I was so bothered that he thought I looked pregnant that I did not share the true meaning of the shirt … a missed opportunity.
There are other ways we deliver messages in the fleeting encounters of life.
One time many years ago, when I still had several small children at home, I found myself needing to get groceries one evening, which was when I usually did my shopping anyway … alone. It was my escape. But on this particular night, for some reason, I had my four youngest with me; their approximate ages were 8, 7, 3, and 1.
When we finished shopping and approached the exit, it was pouring down rain! It was also beginning to get late, so I could not just stand there waiting for the rain to let up. At that moment, I determined to leave my children and buggy there with the 8-year-old in charge while I made a mad dash to get the car.
Understanding that the world is filled with evil, I was completely distressed about leaving my children there for even two minutes. I stressed to them, particularly the 7-year-old brother, that they were not to move an inch! I was not worried that the two little sisters would climb out of the shopping cart, but the 7-year-old might decide to explore, so I insisted that they must stay right there while I got the car, and I would be right back!
As I prepared to make my run and delivered one last, anxious plea to my children to stay put, an elderly woman sitting on a bench in the entryway asked if she could give me something. She held out her hand, and I thanked her and took the item. As I cranked the car, I looked at what she had given me – a gospel tract entitled, “How to Have Peace with God.”
Let me reiterate what I said earlier: I wonder … do people look at my life and wonder about the “signs” – or lack thereof – that are supposed to be visible in me because I claim to be a Christ-follower?
I began working at American Family Association in August 2023. Sometime during my first few weeks of traveling my new commute, I came to a detour that had not been there the previous day. A bridge had been declared unsafe and was going to be repaired, so my route would have to change for about 15 months. Soon after starting my revised trek, I noticed a church spire barely visible in the distance, rising just above the treetops. Since then, that spire pointing to the heavens has become a visible reminder of the One I serve.
It also encourages me to be a visible reminder to those I encounter – a reminder that there is still kindness in the world, despite the horrors of war and the inhumane treatment of people in every corner of the globe … that there is still honesty, in spite of all the deception that abounds from the boardroom to the newsroom to the courthouse to the White House … that life is a gift to be treasured, regardless of the culture of death that seeks to invade every nook and cranny in the world.
But mainly, I am reminded that my life must be a visible, consistent reminder that Jesus Christ is alive and well and that He desires to radically transform the lives of every human being. His chosen vehicle for delivering His message of hope and deliverance and love is through His people – every person who has been born again through His life-changing power.
“So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31). And whether your T-shirt speaks Jesus or you share Him through your smile – whatever you do, try to make sure your actions, attitudes, and words reflect the One you serve. I will try to do the same … even if people sometimes misunderstand the message I am delivering.
