Have you ever tried to fool teenagers? Impossible! They spot inconsistency and hypocrisy like an eagle spots a mouse for prey.
In life, we quickly learn that our actions can speak much louder than our words (Cardona p. 32); they can even contradict them. As we grow, we talk with one another about Christian witness, noting that people are always watching and listening; therefore, we should do our best to represent Christ accurately as a God who loves in truth and grace.
Likewise, we observe others while searching for seekers of truth (Nguyen p. 22), and we look to our neighbors to see how we can bless them, assessing who they are and what their needs might be. Reaching the unreached takes persistence, patience and faith as we cooperate with the Holy Spirit. The Patrocinios discovered their property presented a parable of this effort, for through these same traits, they cultivated their yard from a dry, hard and barren land to an oasis of fruit-bearing greenery (p. 09).
Conversely, each day, others observe us. Imitating Jesus, we create godly influences as we feed those who are hungry (White p. 10), paint a local public school (Murphy p. 08), rally others to join us as we help a neighbor (Theunissen p. 19) or react joyfully to a kind gift inspiring others to also give (Patino p. 12). It was through observing the selfless actions of a neighbor, a Muslim convert to Christianity, that Hasan’s interest was piqued, leading to the sowing of gospel seeds (Lincoln p. 44).
As we await the harvest, let us live lives worthy of our calling so that those who see us will glorify our Father in heaven.
