What Am I Communicating?
What good is it, dear brothers and sisters, if you say you have faith but don’t show it by your actions? Can that kind of faith save anyone? Suppose you see a brother or sister who has no food or clothing, and you say, “Good-bye and have a good day; stay warm and eat well” – but then you don’t give that person any food or clothing. What good does that do? So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless. Now someone may argue, “Some people have faith; others have good deeds.” But I say, “How can you show me your faith if you don’t have good deeds? I will show you my faith by my good deeds”.1
The Lord calls us to share His truth with others, but sometimes our actions and attitudes can contradict the words that come out of our mouths.
Every day, most of us communicate something to someone. We send a message with what we say, with what we do and with what we don't do. For example, if as parents we choose not to tithe or be generous, we are sending a message to our children that we do not believe that God is faithful to provide, even if we say nothing. What our behavior transmits, especially to our children, speaks much louder than the words we use.
The apostle Paul understood that our actions teach powerful lessons. For this reason, he made sure to model the right behavior and values for his spiritual children to observe and imitate (2 Thessalonians 3:7-9).
It is not a question of whether we will communicate a message or not. Rather, the question is: What kind of message am I communicating? Examine yourself for any incongruities between what you say and what you do, and choose to share a complete and coherent message of hope with the world.
Suggested Prayer: Dear Heavenly Father, help me to communicate Your love and goodness, not only in words, but in my actions. Help me to be a person congruent with what I say and what I do. Help me to be a person of integrity in public and in private and that everything I do and say be to glorify You alone. I pray in Jesus' name, Amen.
1. James 2:14-18 (NLT).
Today's Encounter was written by: Rosina N.
All articles on this website are written by
Richard (Dick) Innes unless otherwise stated.