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Here lately I have been so consumed by grief. Not because of things, motherhood or past events. I have been in grieving for the living. Those who have decided to turn their backs on their Biblical training and all the principles that they were taught when they were younger. I have been in grieving for those who refuse to acknowledge God’s truths that are all around them and I am grieving for those who have decided to be part of the world and not part of the Word.
Worldly people are everywhere we turn. They are in our supermarkets, in our neighborhoods, in our families and even in our Churches. They are easy to spot. They are the ones who we see time and time again choosing to follow worldly ideas of what is acceptable and not standing up for what we know to be true once we dig into God’s Word. They are consuming their very hearts with sinful ideas and tendencies. If that is not enough they are also consuming those around them into the depths of destruction. These worldly people are not only consuming the unsaved they also are devouring those who are weak in their faith.
I questioned a lot this week on how the world has become so cold, dark and utterly lost. Then it hit me like a ton of bricks this week. We as Christians have allowed it to happen. In my very own town I seen this happen with the removal of our Christian flag and praying soldier from our local park because we allowed fear to consume us. In my own personal family I seen this happen because we are too afraid to speak out, after all it just may make the person mad and then that next family function would just be terrible. In Churches we have those who are in leadership roles who mainly got those positions because they were a familiar face.
“If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother. Matthew 18:15
We have allowed fear to be our god and ruler. We have simply decided it is much better to only focus on ourselves instead of trying to reach out to others. After all aren’t we only suppose to worry about ourselves? That is what the rest of the word does so this method certainly has to be the right way to live? We are so scared that people will throw up in our faces our own flaws that we don’t want to step out in faith. Not that I am not say that we all do not have flaws because I know that I have way more than one or two. In fact I have many.
fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for I am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10
The truth of the matter is living in fear is doing us no go and it is certainly not doing anyone else any good either. I know my toes have been stepped on more than once when I have been doing things wrong in my personal walk with Christ. To those who pointed those flaws about myself out to me I am appreciative to. It means they cared. It means that they cared enough for my soul to not sit by and watch me throw my life away. And to this day I respect those who care enough to point out my flaws in a loving manner. I appreciate being told areas that just may need to be examined closely.
So how can we cause change within ourselves to allow us to gain the courage that we need to approach those around us?
- Before ever approaching anyone we need to pray.Speaking out of conviction and just speaking out of anger or judgement are two totally different things. When we are speaking out because we are doing so to be pleasing to God there is a sweetness about it. Often times it still feels a bit uncomfortable but praying about it allows us to not approach that person with a judgemental undertone. It is not our place to just walk around calling everyone sinners. It is however our place to lovingly shine a bit of grace and to offer Biblical words of wisdom. We can only do this with God’s help so we need to take the time to seek His guidance.
- Seek Biblical wisdom from the source…God’s Word. Most of the time when you are going to approach a peer they will become a bit defensive. This is when we really need wisdom to back up what we are saying. How else are we going to do so if we do not first seek God’s wisdom and instruction. Have scriptures written down if you need to. Recite the scripture in your head.
- Remind the person that just because you do not agree with their choices that you still love them and only want the best for them. We can not simply force people to conform to our ways of thinking. If we could my how the world would be a lot different. What we can do however is relay the message that God has laid on our hearts and then remind them that we are only speaking out because we love them and that God loves them as well. A lot of times this really will cause people to think about what you said because you have done so in a nonaggressive manner and you are doing so because you care for them.
- Continue to pray for the person. We can not just wash our hands of those who are lost around us. God has put them in our path for a reason therefore we need to continue to pray for them and their hearts. We also need to pray for ourselves that our actions will be a mirror of His love.
Friends, we have a chance to shake up the world if we would conquer our fears and allow God to use us for His glory to reach out to others. The first step however is to stop being idle while those around us continue in acts of the world simply because we are just to worried about what others will think of us because we speak out. I invite you to join me as I continue grieving for the living and as I start stepping out of my own comfort zone to reach out to them.
Until Next Time Just Keep Soaring 4 Him,
I would like to invite you to my Facebook group Christian Homemakers in Training where we dive into homemaking, motherhood, marriage and group devotions. After all, we all need a safe place to grow together, right?