Do my actions reflect my beliefs?
This was one of the many challenges given by Darlene Cunningham, co founder of Youth with A Mission, here in Tauranga (NZ) last week, but this is the one that captured my attention the most.
Darlene shared how she was living in a country where it wasn’t the custom to do recycling so she didn’t do it. She was asked by someone “don’t you believe in recycling?” and she said “Yes I do”. But her response really convicted and challenged her because if she did actually believe in recycling it would be reflected in her actions.
It caused me to question how many things do I really believe are right but they aren’t part of my lifestyle. If I really believe in God’s Word and His commands does that necessarily mean I am actively doing them and if not why not? If Jesus is Lord of my life surely doing the right thing and obeying His commands is not an option but imperative if my desire is to be pleasing to my Master and to be in the centre of His will. Am I a believing believer in all God says in the Bible? Am I acting out my beliefs faithfully, regularly?
After some soul searching I realized I still have a long way to go to be like Jesus.
We are all on a journey in our faith walk with Jesus and thankfully God doesn’t condemn us when we fail, in fact it’s quite the opposite. As any loving earthly father picks up his toddler when he stumbles and falls while learning to walk, so too our Heavenly Father is right there with us when we stumble or are weak in our faith, encouraging us on and forgiving our shortcomings . Our part is to desire with all our hearts to be pleasing to our Saviour and to check in daily to make sure we’re on the right track and if not be quick to repent and receive forgiveness for our failures. We need to live with a humble, teachable heart, always seeking to please our Lord.
Living a life of faith is the only way for us to grow so that means we don’t just do what we’ve always done or we will get what we’ve always got. We cannot please God this way. When was the last time you did something for the first time? The faith life is one of risk and challenge, stepping out of our comfort zone, being as sheep in the midst of wolves, trusting God when the situation looks impossible, but obeying because we know God has told us to do it. God never said it would be easy but that He would always be with us. The life of faith is a life of living on the edge and extending our borders often into the unknown. Isn’t it wonderful we weren’t created for the ordinary! Life is meant to be an adventure, with God partnering with us to achieve His purposes.
It’s great for my soul, and essential, to have regular spiritual checkups and may God continue to challenge us all by asking “do your actions reflect your beliefs?”