What Do People See?

"Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God's will, than for doing evil." (I Peter 3:14b-17)

Have you ever gone to a public place and done some "people watching?" This is one of my favorite past times... and present times. I used to do a lot of acting and in preparation for some roles I would go to the mall, or the boardwalk, and watch people. I would observe their mannerisms and their little ticks, hoping that I could use something for a character role that I would play in the future. In the course of this activity, it was always interesting to see what you learned about people and their lives. You can usually tell if a person is depressed, or looking a little shady, or someone who is joyful. As I would do these observations I would often wonder to myself... what do people see when they see me? Have you ever asked that question?

Reading through my devotions this morning I came upon the above verse and its challenge, "always be prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you." This, of course, assumes that people see a hope within us. So I have been doing a heart check this morning. Do people see hope in me? Do people see the life that comes only from Jesus in me? And even if it is there... can people see it through my actions?

The truth is, I fear, that many of us go to church and put on the happy Christian face... but as soon as we go home that "joy" has dissappeared. We think that our Christian life is like a job that we punch in and out of. This is simply not true. As followers of Jesus we should be overflowing with the joy that comes only from Christ and the Gospel. If Jesus has truly transformed our lives... where is the change? Where is the hope? Are we engaging in, as author Jerry Bridges puts it, Gospel-Driven Sanctification where we are letting the truth of the Gospel transform our lives every single day?

The challenge that I offer to myself today is that when people see me, all people not just some people, they would wonder why it looks like I have hope and joy. And when they ask that I would be able, with a clean, clear conscience, to proclaim the story of Jesus.