21 Mar False Advertisement
I Samuel 2:3 (ESV) “Talk no more so very proudly, let no arrogance come from your mouth; for the LORD is a God of knowledge, and by him actions are weighed.”
“Watch out for Killer!” Her owner called to me as I rounded the corner on my run. I slowly came to a walk and instinctively balled my fists, ready to punch or kick the short but serious looking dog that was making its way towards me. She was part Collie and part something else very short. As she walked towards me, I realized she was just curious. She was quiet as she approached and then just turned and left as though she had lost all interest. It has become our joke now as I run by the house. If they are outside, the owner calls out the same thing, “watch out for Killer!” and we laugh as I keep running. I understand now that there is much sarcasm in this statement, as “Killer” is only a serious looking dog, but actually rather skittish.
Skittish, that is, until she is behind her fence. Then it sounds like she will rip my leg off if she gets out. I began thinking about how much we can tend to be like “Killer”. We depend on certain things for our security. We can say things about politics or religion or our feelings, behind social media, our locked car door, or by text. But would we say the same thing face to face? Would people see our actions different than our words if they could actually see the way we live? Or our security depends on what people think of us, or how our lifestyles fit the world’s standard of success.
What would happen to “Killer” if suddenly in her outburst of barking, her fence should collapse? Would her actions follow the way she sounded? Would she charge at me, or would she bolt for cover, looking for a place to hide? What about us? If our audience was to suddenly be face to face with us, would our actions and words coincide? If the walls of our heart disappeared and everyone could see what was inside, would they see the same person they hear? Lately we hear a lot of talk, and we are quick to criticize. Yet all too often we forget that, while our lives are not displayed on national television, we still have people watching us. Are we representing Christ the way our words claim we are? Are we truly set apart or are we a false advertisement because it feels safer?
Marlene wright
Posted at 08:18h, 24 MarchI think there’s a little bit of “Killer” in all of us. Whether it’s good or bad depends how we use it. So often people tell me they couldn’t do what I do while I’m thinking ‘what do I do?’ But when I think of the first time I was called on to pray in public (outside our church), I had to pull a little bit of ‘Killer’ out to get myself moving and open my mouth. Once up there, I realized I didn’t need ‘Killer’ at all – I had God!