Thursday; February 4

One of the things I have seen over the past several decades is how our approach to noticeability has changed. When I was younger, I believe that more of us did our best not to be noticed. Sure, we wanted to get good grades in school or earn the raise at work, but when it came to our personality, we tended to be comfortable not standing out in the crowd. Yet, things began to change and more and more people started making a concerted effort to stand out; many of them did it by acting in ways that defied social norms. Sometimes, it was done in the name of bringing justice, but many other times it was in pursuit of a personal agenda. Again, in and of itself, this may not necessarily be bad, but before long standing out from the crowd required more and more outrageous behavior. Now, often the easiest way to promote ourselves is by doing something morally egregious. While this may get us noticed, not all the notoriety is good. When we do things designed to call attention to ourselves, we run the risk of bringing shame on the name of God. If we call ourselves Christians; yet, act in a way that violates His principles, we risk tarnishing His name. As we spotlight our reputation, we dim His influence.
King David challenges everyone, especially believers, “All nations whom You have made shall come and worship before You, O Lord, and they shall glorify Your name.” (Psalm 86:9). Let’s take a stand where one needs to be taken, but let’s make sure that everything we do brings praise and glory to our Lord.
Think About It!

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