Influence

Lately there’s been a lot of attention on people/items/media of influence in our world.

Sadly, many influences are not good ones and they effect our hearts and minds in some negative ways. There are a few that have recently struck me to the core and I suppose I will not be popular with some of my thoughts, but I just can’t sit by… not any longer.

Now, I guess everyone is not going to agree with me, and I REALLY HOPE you hear my heart,  but I have just have to say this… and you will have to forgive my apparent nerdy-ness here, but the Magic Mike movie? The Fifty Shades of Grey  book? HOW have we as Christians embraced this? How have we allowed this to be acceptable in our lives when we know that God’s Word clearly states that our lives to be set apart? Is it just me?!?

I just struggle with the idea of Christians spending our money to support things that we KNOWINGLY  buy or pay for and they are labeled as “soft porn”.  I am SURE that as we are in God’s Word and as we see His people turn from Him and the wrath and judgment that He brings on them that the same judgment (or worse) is headed our way!! Why do we choose to go there?!

Perhaps because these media venues are so popular right now my attention to it is piqued. So does this mean that on a REGULAR BASIS people who claim to follow Christ are choosing this type of media? Or have lots of us just decided that “this one time” it’s really ok?

1 John 2:16 says, “For everything in the world- the cravings of sinful man, the lust of his eyes and the boasting of what he has and does- comes not from the Father, but from the world.”

I KNOW we ALL sin. It’s the entire reason that Jesus came and died, but once we accept Him and His forgiveness He calls us out. We are to be different from the world. RIGHT!?

Oh, I hope I’m not sounding mean. I hope I am not sounding like I am casting my own judgment. I think I am just so taken back. I must be living in the dark ages.

I am just so sad.

Well, fortunately there are also some amazing influences around. This precious lady…

was a founding member of our church and she recently went to be with Jesus. There was not ONE person who came into contact with her that did not experience the love that this lady had in her heart. She served at our church with the BEST attitude and influenced hundreds of kids to follow Christ. She was a Sunday school teacher, a choir member and a food server on Wednesday nights for more years than I have been alive!!

At her funeral the entire left side of the bulletin was filled with Proverbs 31. As I read through it I could identify her with every attribute of the Proverbs 31 woman!! NO LIE!

As I sat there listening to the pastor speak it challenged me. I had to ask myself if I had that kind of love. I needed to think about how I greet EVERYONE I meet. I needed to ask if I am willing to serve all the days of my life. This sweet lady’s influence stretches far and wide, and I wondered if I could do that?

I don’t know. I guess we all have to decide what kind of influences we want to sit under and what kind of influence we want to be. To me.. sitting in this sweet lady’s funeral service helped me make up my mind! If I can point someone to Christ and His saving grace then THAT’s what I want to do. If my choices cause others to stumble or think differently of me and the Jesus I follow then I want to stay FAAAAR away from them. I know I will mess up. I am so human!

What kind of influence will you have?