By Erin Elizabeth Austin

“You’re one of the few Christians I like and respect. Although I admire your relationship with God, I’m afraid if I become a Christian, I will turn into someone who is harsh and judgmental.” These are the disheartening words said by a friend of mine on why she won’t become a Christian, and they are words that even a month later, I can’t forget.

I have to admit I understand her viewpoint. More than once lately, I’ve hesitated to say I’m a Christian, not because I’m ashamed of my faith, but because I don’t want to be associated with the other Christians who misrepresent what a follower of Christ is supposed to be. More and more, I find myself saying I’m a believer or follower of Jesus rather than use the word Christian. The reason for this is simple. We live in a day and age where rudeness and disrespect are a way of life. If someone disagrees with our opinion, then we believe it is okay to argue and prove why our view is right and the other person is wrong. People argue, badger, undermine, and are often downright rude. All one needs to do is spend a little time on social media to see what I’m talking about. 

As I’ve cried out to God about what I’m supposed to do, He’s challenged me to take back the name of Christianity and show others how a Christian is supposed to act. In a culture where political, moral, and ethical debates are a part of everyday life, it is of utmost importance that believers show the rest of the world what it truly means to be a Christian. Below are some guidelines that come straight from God’s Word. We are called to be different!

1. Not everything that comes to mind needs to be said. We are all entitled to our opinions, and there are times we need to speak up. However, we need to pray before opening our mouths. Saying the right thing at the right time is just as important as knowing what to say. (Psa. 39:1; John 8:1-11)                                                                                                                            
2. When we do speak, we must make sure we are respectful to those we are addressing. The tone of voice and attitude of the heart is important. How we say something matters just as much as the words we speak. (Prov. 15:1; Col. 4:5-6)                                                                     
3. Never react in anger. It is healthy to become angry at something we see or hear occasionally. Let’s be honest. As wonderful as life can be, there are still a lot of problems in society, and it should bother us. However, more times than not, we sin in our anger when we open our mouths. Take a minute to step back and cool off. If we still feel something needs to be said once our temper has cooled down, then we will at least be more likely to say what we need to say with the proper tone of voice, rather than saying something in the heat of the moment we’ll later regret. One of my biggest frustrations the past couple of months amidst all the political debates has been seeing people use Scripture to attack those who disagree with them. God’s Word should never be used to tear people down and belittle them. Yes, we need to know God’s Word and stand on the authority of His truth. But once again, we must look at the attitude of our heart. Are we speaking because we believe we’re right and others are wrong and need to come around to our way of thinking, or are we trying to point people back to God? See the difference? When our thoughts revolve around I, me, and my, it’s usually a sign we need to be quiet and take a step back. (Prov. 14:17; Eccl. 5:6; Eph. 4:26)                        
4. We are called to love all people, whether or not we agree with them and their beliefs. It is my personal opinion that the body of Christ fails more at this than anything else. Jesus gave us two commandments. Love God with all our heart, soul, mind, and strength. The second is love our neighbor as ourselves. That should be our daily prayer. Imagine how a group of Christians could change the world if they did these two things! (Matt. 22:36-40; 1 Cor. 13:1)       
5. Honor God in all we say and do. When we claim to be a Christian, everything we do is a representation of Christ. Most people will never step foot in a church. For many of those with whom we interact, we are the closest thing to Jesus they will ever know. Always keep that in mind, so we don’t say or do something we will later regret. (1 Cor. 11:1-3)

We live in a time where it is becoming increasingly difficult to be a Christian. As more people turn away from God, the more they need to see His love. It doesn’t matter where we stand in politics – Democrat, Republican, or something in between. Instead of debating about who should be the next president, we need to be pointing others to Jesus. That is where we should make our stand!

Honor God in all you say and do. People are watching! The question is, what do they see when they look at you?

By Erin Elizabeth Austin

I have a weird relationship with seashells. Living less than three hours from the beach, I manage to travel to the ocean at least once a year. Even as a little girl, I remember my family loading up the car early in the morning, complete with a cooler packed with our meals for the day, and we would spend our day at the beach, arriving back home just in time for bed. Because of that, I’ve always enjoyed searching the beach for the best and most unique seashells. It’s my version of a treasure hunt. For as long as I can remember, God has used seashells to teach me lessons on topics I struggle to understand without His little object lessons.
​
Imagine my surprise when I recently made my yearly trek to the ocean, and there were no seashells to be found. The only seashells around were jagged, broken things bearing little resemblance to a seashell. Ironically, my oldest nephew asked me before we reached the beach what it would mean if there were no seashells. I jokingly replied, “That wouldn’t happen. It would mean we made a wrong turn and ended up at the lake instead of the ocean.”

When we got to the beach, it was as beautiful as always. However, it was also different. Rather than seashells, there was seaweed as far as the eye could see. Lining the shore was miles of the brown, slimy plant. My family was baffled. None of us could remember a time when we’d ever seen so much seaweed. What could cause it? Thirty-six hours later, we had our answer – Tropical Storm Alberto.

To those who live nowhere near the ocean, a tropical storm sounds horrifying. However, it’s just like any big storm. The only difference is it involves the ocean. That’s when it hit me. Even though the weather was beautiful Saturday afternoon and most of Sunday, the ocean was already feeling the effects of the storm. The waves were bigger. The current was stronger. The ocean was responding to the storm, and it was bringing things to the surface that would have remained where they were without the storm.

Life can be like that. We see a storm coming, and we get frustrated. Who wants a tropical storm interrupting their perfectly planned vacation? I certainly didn’t! However, just like Tropical Storm Alberto, sometimes we need life’s storms to stir up and help get rid of the detritus in our lives. That fear we constantly struggle with, the tendency to worry, or the desire to plan and be in control of every event that happens is like pieces of brown seaweed that need to be uprooted from our lives. As it says in James 1:2-4, “Consider it all joy, my brethren, when you encounter various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces endurance. And let endurance have its perfect result, so that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing.”
​
God doesn’t allow the storms of life to come our way because He’s mean. God loves us! And just like any parent who wants the best for his child, God sometimes says no so that we may obtain life’s best.

Storms have a purpose. God has promised us that when we love Him, He can and will turn even the worst things that happen to us for our benefit and His glory. Far too often, we’re so busy fussing about the storm and lamenting the fact we have to deal with the wind and rain, that we miss the transformation God wants for our lives. We should always leave the storms of life different from the person we were going into it.

Are you in the middle of a storm? Ask God to use it to transform you into someone who is whole and complete in Him. Don’t fight the stirring of your soul when God challenges you to let something go. Remember, He wants more for you than you can begin to imagine.

The storm will eventually pass. The question is, will you leave it changed?

“In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials, so that the proof of your faith, being more precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” ~ 1 Peter 1:6-7       ​

By Josie Siler

The last several months I’ve been going through The Forgotten Way study with a small group of ladies. There is one verse, well, two actually, that author Ted Dekker keeps coming back to and they punch me in the gut every time.
 
I’ve read the Book of Luke several times, so I know I’ve read these verses before, yet I don’t remember ever reading them. I love that God works like that! His Word is living and active and no matter how many times we read it, there is always something for us to learn. The Bible is one book we can read over and over again and never tire of. It’s always fresh and full of life and truth!
 
So, these verses. They’re hard ones. Ones we don’t really talk about. Ones we either skim over or rationalize away. We think that God can’t possibly mean those words. There’s no way He would expect us to obey them. I know, it must be the translation! The original Greek must have put it a different way, a less convicting way.
 
Um... not so much. I just studied these verses and they’re even more powerful and challenging in the original language. Ugh! How, God? How can we obey such hard commands?
 
These are the words of God...​

Do you see what I mean? Hard verses. We know we’re supposed to love our enemies, but how many of us really do? There’s a reason the phrase “I love them, but I don’t have to like them” exists. I’ve said it myself. And if that’s what we think love is, we’re so far out in left field that we’re not even on the field anymore. ​

Friends, that is NOT what God meant by love one another. So, what did He mean? I suggest you read the whole chapter to get a feeling for context, but let’s take a closer look at what some of the words in these verses mean.

We’re supposed to love our enemies. Okay, so what kind of love? We’ve heard of agápē, a noun and the type of sacrificial love we are to have for others. The word used for love here is similar. Agapaō, the word used here, is a verb. It’s an action word. Vine's Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words helps us understand this type of love a little better:

Friends, this kind of love is a choice. It’s something we choose to do because God chose to love us that way. Remember, each and every one of us started out as an enemy of God. Romans 5:10 tells us that “...while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son.”
 
We’re not talking about frenemies here - you know, those people who we’re kind of friends with, but who are also kind of mean to us. We’re talking real enemies here. Hostile, hateful, and hated people. People who do terrible things. People we think God can’t possible save because they are too evil. People we believe are beyond hope because of their wickedness.
 
IMPORTANT NOTE: I want to say right now that this does not mean you should stay in a violent or unhealthy situation if you find yourself in one. Abuse - physical, emotional, or any other kind - is NEVER okay. Tell someone, remove yourself from the situation, and ask for help.
 
How can we possibly love our enemies? Honestly, we can’t. Not in our own strength. But when we live our lives united with Christ, His love flows through us. We can choose to love the unlovable because of the love that we ourselves receive from God when we’re unlovable.
 
I think that’s enough to digest for this week. In my next devotion we’ll dig a little deeper into what the rest of these verses mean.
 
Spend some time today thinking about how deeply God loves you. How does He show you His love? How does that love change how you love others?

“Long ago the Lord said to Israel: ‘I have loved you, my people, with an everlasting love. With unfailing love I have drawn you to myself.’” ~Jeremiah 31:3, NLT

[1] https://www.blueletterbible.org/search/Dictionary/viewTopic.cfm?topic=VT0001710​