Sunday, December 23, 2007

What Would Jesus Do?

Have you ever read the book "In His Steps"? I have read it many times. It tells the story of a small group of people who are going to ask "What would Jesus do?" before they do anything. It changed their lives and the lives in their community. There is a verse in the Bible that says,

"For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him. 2 Chron 16:9"

One person can be the vessel for change for a large area or group if they are willing to be used by God.

Thinking about the above, I have been pondering some things. I have been to a couple baby christenings. This is not something we practice, but we went to one about 25 years ago and another a few years ago. I really don't remember much about the one a long time ago. I was asked to be the godmother, but I told the Mom, I wasn't sure what that even meant, so she just asked me to stand with them. The one I went to a few years ago has left some questions in my mind. I heard the parents of the child and both godparents make a vow before the church, us and God that they would do everything in their power to make sure this little one was raised to love, serve and fear God. That is an awesome responsibility. I do believe it is always the responsibility of the parents to do this, but to vow that for a child not your own is a huge responsibility. Now fast forward through the recent years. We have seen the lives of those who made those vows. Have they even thought about their lifestyle or their words or the movies they watch while these children are present? Do they think, "What would Jesus do?" Do they wonder if the Lord is pleased with their choices?

I also hear people who claim they are Christians openly, go to church, etc. yet live with someone outside of marriage. Honestly when I see this situation, my heart goes out to the girl. I want to pull them to me and say, "Do you not realize that you are throwing yourself away?" The boy/man is reaping all the benefits with no responsibility or commitment. Why should they ever choose marriage? God gave you a precious gift in yourself. It is to be saved for marriage. Do these people ever wonder "What would Jesus do?"

Is it outdated to be concerned what sort of witness you are? Where do you go?, what do you wear?, what do you say?, what do you watch?, what do you listen to?. I heard a message one time that says modesty was to be properly dressed for who you were. For instance if you were working on street repair with a jackhammer, to be dressed in a tuxedo would not be modest. That made a lot of sense to me. I am not telling anyone how to dress, what to say or where they are allowed to go. What I am saying is do you ever ask yourself, "What would Jesus do in this instance?" Are all of those areas pointing people to Him? We worked with the college age youth for awhile. We had many discussions about these areas. At the time, there was a popular brand of jeans for women. They fly on the jeans was tapestry or had embroidery on it. Why do you think it was there? To draw men's eyes to areas they should not be looking at.

There is a lot more I could say, but I am not trying to be on a tangent. I just wondered, does anybody out there ever ask themselves if Jesus would be please with them in the different areas. Do they ever make choices that would not be their first choice if Jesus was not inside of them. Maybe it is a gift we can give to Him this CHRISTmas season. I would love to hear what you all think!!!

6 comments:

Sondra said...

What a great post. The past few months I have pondered this question. I have had some tough issues with some coworkers and instead of being 'ugly' I have tried to think 'what WOULD Jesus do' in this situation. It is very hard sometimes. I do agree with you that how you dress and places you go is a huge testimony to others. It does make a difference. People DO pay attention to everything Christians do. They notice.

Frazzled Farm Wife said...

WWJD....both my kids and a lot of other kids in our high school have bracelets, necklaces, keyrings etc. with the letters representing What Would Jesus Do!

Perri said...

We should all strive as Christians to set the example that God would have us do.

As the saying goes, "Sometimes YOU are the only Bible some people will read."

What do they "read" when they see me? What do they read when they see how I talk to my kids at Wal-Mart? What are they reading when I'm cut off in traffic?

Accountability - not only in this life, but on judgement day. I already have enough explaining to do -- so I try not to add to it by making poor choices now.

Perri said...

And.......have a wonderful Christmas with your family.

Patricia said...

Words of wisdom to ponder on Marci. We are like minded as I too am constantly nudged by Him in this area. Should we not be pleasing Him instead of the world? Thank you for sharing and affirming what so many others believe! May we always ask the question are we trying to please Christ or the world?
Patricia

VoiceInTheWilderness said...

Marci,
Thanks for posting this. All things come down to this: Are we pleasing the Lord or are we pleasing the world? The world may think we're crazy, but it would be crazy to choose this world over eternity.