Beautiful Signs

And I show you a more excellent way I Corinthians 12:31.....There are three things that will endure-faith, hope, and love-and the greatest of these is love. I Corinthians 13:13...."The church must keep people from dying and show them how to live." Mark Buchanan In one of his great devotionals, Chris Tiegreen writes, "When people look at us, they are to see faith, hope, love, joy, and all the other beautiful signs of a beautiful Kingdom. They are to see the things their hearts deeply long for." So, when they look at we who profess to be citizens of that Kingdom, what are they seeing? Buchanan's statement is true. True believers are the church. If that's you, you're the church, or more correctly, a piece of it. We are here to glorify God, lift up the name of Jesus, and be those that offer life to a dead world and all those who are trapped in that death. We do that with words for sure. We are commanded to proclaim His Truth, but we also are to do so with our lives. With our witness. We are to not just tell them the truth, but by our very lives and ways, show them how to live that life out. As someone said, give the witness of a resurrected life in a world where death gets all the attention. In my prayer journal today I came across an entry I made some years ago. It's a quote from Henry Blackaby. He said, "If the world is becoming darker, the problem isn't with the darkness, but with the light." His church is to be His light to this fallen world. If we are seeing the increase of darkness in it, it's because we haven't been functioning as His light. We who are the church need to cease complaining about the darkness and truly live as His ambassadors of Light. Someone once asked, "Has anyone ever said to you that you show forth a beautiful presence of God?" Have people said that to you and I? I want to tell you that the world will be drawn to such a presence. The Holy Spirit first planted His seeds of life in me through just such a person. I knew they "had" something I didn't. Something my heart longed for. I want to be such a person. Do you? More, have you determined that, by His grace and power, you will be. May it be that all who take His name be "beautiful signs" to a lost world of His lovely and eternal Kingdom. May we be signs of the "more excellent way." Of the One who is the Way. Blessings, Pastor O