My Ranting!
Would you believe it?! In the last issue I wrote about how bad our
driving has become as Christians. I wrote it as a commentary on how our
lives are not matching up with our talk. Often-times we say we are
Christians, but if we were taken to court for our convictions and we
stood trial and if found to be a Christian, convicted guilty, sadly,
many of us would be let free on the grounds insufficient evidence to
convict.
I am simply meaning that we need to leave no doubt in any person’s mind
whether we are or are not a believer. I’m not saying that we need to
TELL more people about our beliefs, I think it needs to be a little
more covert than that. We need to SHOW our beliefs. The best sermon I
EVER preach is a life well lived.
My Granny Hass told me that my Great Grandpa said, “the world is full
of Sunday Christians and every day devils.” It’s time to change that
concept.
I mean, the whole thing was simply an attempt to simply try to wake us up to a few facts:<p></p>
1. Only about 4% of the nation’s young people are in church!
2. This year sexuality doubled on TV!
3. We are growing older everyday.
4. How our kids see us treat the elderly is how they will treat us.
5. How our kids see us treat them is how they will treat their kids.
6. Most of development is done in the first six years of a child’s life.
7. Toddlers repeat EVERYTHING!!!!
8. No one I have ever talked to on a death bed ever said they wished they had more time in the office.
9. Overall, the happiest people I have ever met are in third-world countries.
10. We have portfolios with stocks, bonds and cd’s, but no Heavenly
Portfolios of missions, humanitarian aid, activist, art, history or
nature conservation support.
11. And lastly, what will everyone say at our eulogy?
I want to write my eulogy right now. I want to put the words in their
mouths with a life lived well. Where, there’s nothing much to say, the
life said it all.
It’s time!
It’s time for me to change. I want to grow up before I grow old. I want
to start giving back to the world, the world community, my neighbor and
give glory back to God. I want to live for someone other than myself.
It’s time for the old Dustin to fade away, a new Dustin to be born.
It’s time for Jesus to get another chance to walk and talk on the
earth. It’s time for Jesus to get to walk around covertly changing
lives in a Dustin costume. It’s time to find myself as I abide in Him
and He in me. Is this mind in us? The mind that considers us a servant
and others above ourselves with the Father above all?
It’s easy to find something to die for, but, I want to do something
daring, Something bold. I want to LIVE and give my life for something
worth living for! The Kingdom of God!
What do you think?
Oh, and by the way, the thing that started me on this topic is the
other day AFTER I wrote the newsletter and sent and one person even
requested to be removed from the mailing list, I had a phone call from
an angry person in the community. Someone with a Tapestry Church bumper
sticker cursed them out at a red light for cutting them off in traffic!
I had t simply apologize and ask for their forgiveness. IRONY, right?!
Now, that is God ending your sentence with an exclamation point!
Oh, and by the way, it turned out well. I apologized and he ended up
checking out the website and saying that he wanted to see the article
later.
So, this time, let’s truly get it. We are giving God a really rotten name and we aren’t doing much for ourselves either.
Blessings!
pd
Original post by Dustin and software by Elliott Back