Are you a Christian on Sunday, but AWOL on Mondays?

What follows is an actual excerpt from the book, Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World. Chapter 35

We spend many Sundays going to church, but what do we do on Mondays?

The Trouble with Doing Nothing Is that I

Never Know When I’m Done

In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds

and praise your Father in heaven.

Matthew 5:16

We go to church every Sunday, but are we doing anything about reaching out to people for the Lord on Monday?

When we worship in church, we have our eyes on the Lord and praise Him. We fellowship with other Christians and we feel refreshed.

What about Monday? You have a good attitude while you’re in church, but what is your attitude on Monday.

Let’s look at Paul for a few lines. Paul spent many of his years being beaten, hated, and even put in prison. What do you think his attitude was? Wouldn’t you think he was angry, sad and depressed or at least complained a lot?

There was a time when Paul was in prison, not knowing what the next day might bring. He had already put a plea in to the Roman government to spare his life, but he didn’t know what their decision would be.

Not so fast, my friend! Paul was overflowing with joy! Yes, a man that was on death row was excited to be there. He had a great attitude because he had a “captive” audience. The guards and prisoners had to be there each day and listen to him tell them about Jesus and the salvation He offers. What a golden opportunity for him. The gospel was spread all through the prison! Paul rejoiced for the chance to witness. Plus while he was in prison, he wrote the book of Philippians, where he uses the word “rejoice” over and over. So much for a pity party!

Attitude check here: What is our attitude on Monday when we have a chance to witness to others around us? Remember one very important thing: When we are telling others about Christ, we are not alone! God is with us.

Surprise! As a retired teacher, I still cherish the times when I can have an unannounced quiz. Let’s see how you do:

1. Can people sense you are a Christian?    ____ Yes    ____ No   
2. Can people tell you are Christian by the way you respond to trials, pain and hardships?

____ Yes    ____ No  

1. Do you show the gospel of Christ with your attitude?    ____ Yes    ____ No
2. Would people reach out to you and say, “I want what you have”?    ____ Yes    ____ No   

If you said no, or you are not sure about your answer to any of these questions, you failed the test. You will have to take it over and over again until you get 100%!

Stop sweating blood! I am not really saying that you have to be perfect. I’m not able to get 100% myself most days.

Romans 3:23 tells us we all have come short of the glory of God. I am not perfect. I come short of the glory of God more often than I would like to admit.

But, let me show you some ways each one of us can improve a great deal on our attitude and daily walk with God.

In Philippians 2:14–15, Paul says, “Do everything without complaining or arguing so that you may become blameless and pure, children of God without fault in a crooked and depraved generation.”

In other words, let your attitude reflect the love of Jesus Christ.

It is wonderful to worship God on Sunday, but if you do nothing on Monday, others will never know that you are a Christian. Your attitude is one of the most revealing factors about your personality. If you get angry a lot, or think the world is against you and complain about everything, your attempt at witnessing is falling on deaf ears.

Listen to Paul and try not to complain or walk around with a bad attitude. I have observed many people who just by their actions show the love of Christ for others. I don’t have to ask them if they are a Christian—it just shows.

If we strive to act like that on Monday, we will be doing something. And we’ll know we are done when God no longer brings people into our daily life in need of His touch through us. We’ll feel grateful for what God has done for us and be happy with what we have done for God that day.

To summarize the four quiz questions above: Can people see Christ in you?    Yes or No

If people wanted to know what God was like during Christ’s time, all they had to do was look at Him. If people want to know what Christ is like today, they should be able to look at His followers.

 … Do this with gentleness and respect, keeping a clear conscience, so that those who speak maliciously against your good behavior in Christ may be ashamed of their slander.

1 Peter 3:15–16

Further adventures

Take inventory of your life. What direction are you going? Do you feel you are doing what God has in mind for you? Are you comfortable with where you are now as far as showing God’s love to others? If not, get into the Word. Pray for God’s guidance and take action on whatever He tells you. Doing nothing leaves you stagnant and ineffective for God.

Something to ponder

Isn’t it funny how we feel strong about our belief in God, but weak when it comes to sharing it?

Worry is the Dark Room Where Negatives Develop

 I wrote this chapter in my book,  Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World, and I received many compliments on it. It was a real dream, I just added a little excitement for your enjoyment.

A Dream is What We build our Life on

Blessed I the man who perseveres under trial, because when he has stood the test, he will receive the crown of life that God has promised to those who love him.

James 1:12

I had a real dream the other night, and it was a western. It had me tossing and turning until the outcome unfolded.

The wonderful thing about dreams is that no matter how terrifying they are in the beginning, they almost always turn out for the good in the end. You notice that you never quite get caught by the monster that is chasing you. Isn’t it fun when you are flying and you can see everyone below you? I just flap my arms, and I fly. (OK, I know you’re thinking, This guy is crazy!)

How about the fact that you are the hero and you always save the day? Everything is wonderful. That is how life can be if you follow God. It doesn’t pay to worry, have anxiety and be full of fear. It doesn’t pay to be full of shame. It doesn’t pay one cent to be gossiping all the time. My dream is an example of that.

The characters:

The good guys: Matthew, Mark, John

Stranger on a white horse

The bad guys: Anxiety, Gossip, Shame, Death

Matthew, Mark, John and the Stranger—the four good guys—were riding on their horses through Sin City towards the Not OK Corral. Hiding from them were Anxiety, Gossip, Shame and Death—the four bad guys. They didn’t want the good guys to find them and stop the harm they were doing. They had control of all the people in the city and they wanted to keep control. Matthew, Mark and John were riding on brown horses because that was what they rode in those days. The Stranger was riding on a white horse.

The good guys were not gunslingers, they were Bible-slingers. The good guys got down off their horses and went searching for Anxiety, Gossip, Shame and Death.

Matthew found Anxiety leering around a corner trying to see where everyone was. Anxiety had a worried look on his face. He kept looking everywhere in fear—in back of him and in front of him. He didn’t know what to do.

Anxiety (aka worry) can be caused by a doctor’s appointment that holds the results of a blood test. It can be wondering if you can pay this month’s bills. It could be from a dispute you had with your wife. Whatever the case, from stage left comes Matthew, who says to Anxiety: “Don’t worry about anything, instead pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank Him for what He has done” (taken from Philippians 4:6).

Anxiety felt like a ton of weight had been taken off his shoulders, and he left the Not OK Corral much happier. Anxiety was gone.

Mark was looking for Gossip. When he found him, Gossip was talking so fast Mark couldn’t understand him. Gossip said, “Did you see Clem at the Horse’s Breath Saloon? He said he would never take another drink, and I just saw him walk in there!”

Gossip can ruin a person’s life. Talking about someone behind their back can only spread hurt and can cause unwanted hardship.

Mark put his hand over Gossip’s mouth and said: “As charcoal to embers and as wood to fire, so is a quarrelsome man for kindling strife. The words of a gossip are like choice morsels; they go down to a man’s inmost parts” (Proverbs 26:21–22).

Gossip was dumbfounded and was unable to speak further. He went away with a swollen tongue and was gone. There was no more gossip.

John found Shame hiding in a closet because he was so ashamed of what he had done all his life. He didn’t want anyone to see him this way.

Shame is often the last fatal nail in the heart of a person who is hurting from something they did in the past. Turn anything you are ashamed of over to God, and He will wipe it out of His books.

John felt pity for him and said, “If you suffer as a Christian, do not be ashamed, but praise God that you bear that name” (1 Peter 4:16).

Shame rose and came out of the closet. He was a different man. He felt self-worth. He felt he was loved. He wanted to learn more about God. After this, Shame was gone. There was no more shame.

Then the Stranger went right to where Death was, for He knew where everyone was, and what they were doing every second of the day.

Death was a hideous creature. He was caring a sword and had a look on his face that would melt anyone who looked into his eyes. He really was the leader of this gang. There was fire coming out of his ears, and he laughed a chilling laugh. (This is the part where I was tossing, and turning!) He said, “You may have calmed the rest of my gang, but you have no power over me. Everyone has to die, and I will wait until they come to me.”

Yes, death will happen to all of us, but if we are under God’s you have a protective wing, we do not have to fear death. It is just a stepping stone to be with our heavenly Father. You can be assured that the angels are waiting for the moment you are ready to be with the Lord. It is like a parent anticipating a newborn. The angels will say, “Cool, here comes another one to be with us in heaven.”

The Stranger took off His cloak, and uncovered his head. It was Jesus. Jesus walked up to Death and said, “Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?” (1 Corinthians 15:55).

Death spun around in pain and, weaker but still standing, turned back toward Jesus.

Jesus said, talking to God: “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me” (from Psalm 23:4).

Death began to wither and fell to the ground. He had no more power over people any longer.

So there was no more anxiety, no more gossip, no more being ashamed, and most importantly, no more death.

God is the final power. He controls all things. We can stop worrying about anything. Worrying and fear does not gain us one more minute in a day—and it saps our strength. Turn your anxiety, gossiping, shame and the fear of death over to Him, and He will send them on their way.

The four horsemen got on their horses and headed to the next town to see what gangs might have settled there. As they rode into the sunset, they all sang praises to God and worshipped Him.

That’s my story and I’m stickin’ to it.

To those who by persistence in doing good seek glory, honor, and immortality, he will give eternal life.

Romans 2:7

Further adventures

Have you had one of those bad guys come into your life? Have you been faced with anxiety? Has someone said something about you to someone else that wasn’t true? Do you live in shame for past sins that you cannot get out of your mind? Have you lost a loved one? Always remember that God is always there. He knows what your anxiety is. He knows about the gossip that has been spread about you. He wants you to throw away your shame, like it was a broken toy.

And remember that death has no power if your loved one was a Christian. God is the final Word. He controls everything. Lean on Him through whatever trial you are going through. You will have some storms come into your life, but God is there to help calm them for you.

Something to ponder

Isn’t it funny how we believe what the newspapers say, but question what the Bible says?

(Excerpt from: Signs of Hope: Ways to Survive in an Unfriendly World) Chapter 12