Salt and Light

I love fall. The changes that take place like the chill in the air and the leaves turning colors make me so excited. There’s nothing better than curling up with a good book and a blanket, maybe with some cocoa, and just enjoying life, you know? The other day I was talking to my roommate and we agreed that it was definitely time to turn off the air conditioning and start stopping at Starbucks before class in the morning.

I like my roommate a lot. For the sake of her privacy, I’ll call her Jane. We get along really well and have lots of similar qualities. At first I was surprised that we hit it off because she is not a Christian, but after a while I realized that I had to start reshaping the way I view people who don’t have the same faith as myself. I’m pretty sure you know exactly what I mean. When we (Christians) tend to think of atheists or people of other religions, we sort of shift them to a lesser level than us, incapable of having the same morals or standards or lifestyles. However, I’ve learned that this idea is the exact thing that makes Christianity so unappealing to other people—we come off as stuck-up, rude, and hypocritical. How can we show the love of Christ when we are so condescending? It’s something God has definitely been showing me as I’ve been here at Carolina, where almost everyone has a different worldview and probably some sort of liberal background. It’s important that we, as disciples of Christ, make ourselves approachable. What were the two greatest commandments? To love God, and to love our neighbor as ourselves.

Truthfully, the majority of my friends here do not know the Father. They are all “good people”, nice and friendly, who think they are living their life as best they can and that’s all there is to it. What they don’t realize is that they are living it for themselves, and that sort of lifestyle leads ultimately to destruction. While Jesus doesn’t call us to judge them or think lesser of them, He does call us to share Him with them. That alone is a life-changing event, and one that is a necessity in our walk. How can we claim to love Him if we are ashamed to speak His Name? And if you don’t like asking yourself that question, how can you claim to love your friends, and yet let them lead lives that are far, far below the Father’s standard? Maybe, if I may be so bold as to say, there is a heart issue going on here— I know there was for me. God has been breaking the pride in me, and showing me that all peoples are worthy of the Gospel; I am no more important to Him than the homeless man on Franklin Street, using dog tricks to beg for money. Once I realize who I am in relation to who He is, it is so much easier to share Him with my unsaved friends, who need a Savior just as much as me.

The Father calls us to be holy. In Hebrew, the word for “holy” is qadosh; it means, “to be set apart.” It’s interesting— so many times I think we struggle to find a way to evangelize or talk about God, when really, it is very simple. Set yourself apart. You don’t have to run screaming from people who don’t believe; you don’t have to wither underneath someone’s stare if they ask you to explain God to them. The best way, I’ve found, to share Jesus with people is to let them see Him in my life. Believe it or not, others do notice. This requires being intimate with Jesus, which may be far harder than simply telling your friend a Bible story. As you walk with Him, you’ll find Him challenging you to be more and more qadosh every day.
-Kristina

Being Refined

There was a group of women in a Bible study of the book of Malachi. As they were studying chapter three, they came across verse three (3) which says: "He will sit as a refiner and purifier of silver."
This verse puzzled the women and they wondered what this statement meant about the character and nature of God. One of the women offered to find out about the process of refining silver and get back to the group at their next Bible study.
That week this woman called up a silver smith and made an appointment to watch him at work. She didn't mention anything about the reason for her interest in silver beyond her curiosity about the process of refining silver.
As she watched the silver smith, he held a piece of silver over the fire and let it heat up. He explained that in refining silver, one needed to hold the silver in the middle of the fire where the flames were hottest as to burn away all the impurities.
The woman thought about God holding us in such a hot spot - then she thought again about the verse, that he sits as a refiner and purifier of silver.
She asked the silver smith if it was true that he had to sit there in front of the fire the whole time the silver was being refined. The man answered that yes, he not only had to sit there holding the silver, but he had to keep his eyes on the silver the entire time it was in the fire. If the silver was left even a moment too long in the flames, it would be destroyed.
The woman was silent for a moment. Then she asked the silver smith, "How do you know when the silver is fully refined?"
He smiled at her and answered, "Oh, that's easy - It's finished when I can see my image in it."