Good Advertising

"In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father in heaven." ~ Matthew 5:16

    One of my pet peeves is people driving crazy on the highway. Their bad decisions could potentially put me in danger and prevent me from getting where I need to go. Most of the time, I don't know who they are and probably never will know. There have been times, however, where I may not know who the person is, but I know where they work because it's advertised on the side of their vehicle. Seeing the name of a business on the side or back of a vehicle driving dangerously or acting rudely towards other drivers makes me less likely to want to become a customer. 

    Recently this got me thinking about how I would act if I advertised that I am a Christian. Now, most of my friends and family already know I am a Christian, and most of them are as well. I do sometimes interact with those who aren't Christians, and during those times I need to be more aware of how I'm acting. When people who aren't Christians know that I am one, they are looking at me to see if I'm acting the way they perceive a Christian should act.

    Now, it's not always easy to determine who isn't a Christian. It's pretty obvious when a woman is wearing a hijab that she is a Muslim, but that is about the only outward symbol of a non-Christian religion I have seen. That means that I need to be acting Christ-like in every situation because I never know who might be watching me. 

    Admittedly, I don't always do this. When I'm not consciously considering my actions, it can be too easy to slip into some bad habits. This is especially true on social media. When someone says something that makes me mad, I feel obligated to respond, but my first response at that moment is often not what I should be saying, and has led to a few heated back-and-forth exchanges. I've found that it's much better for my sanity, and the preservation of my Christian witness, to just keep scrolling. I think we'd all be better off if we did that more often.

    Jesus has sent us out to be His light in our dark and hurting world. We need to let His light shine bright through us so that others know the truth of what a Christian should look like. We need to live every day as if our Christianity is on full display, because to Christ, it always is.