Thoughts at the Airport
Standing at the airport in Houston...okay. Okay, maybe I wasn't standing. I was...dancing. Yep. To "Caramelltanzen" (:P), "Just Haven't Met You Yet" by Michael Buble, then to "Sing, Sing, Sing," "Our God" and "No Chains on Me" by Chris Tomlin.
By the third time round of Chris Tomlin, I was very much aware of God's presence around me, to the point of looking around and wondering why no one else could sense it.
I noticed a couple of people watching me after a while. I suppose a young woman in two long, loose dresses and a t-shirt with long hair and no make-up dancing publicly was a bit noticeable. :P I used to care, but I try not to any more. Have you ever noticed how restricting caring about people watching you is? You try to blend in. Or else, stand out in a way that fits the mold. Make up. Clothes that aren't too extreme. Moving in the approved way - walking, not skipping, or dancing.
As I watched the people around me, I realised that so many people try to fit into the normal mold in their own way - or who subconsciously subscribe to it - that very few people stand out.
I remember one passenger clearly. An older lady, American, talkative, with big glasses, an open, friendly face, grey hair in a plait with a big dark red rose stuck in the middle of it, wearing trousers and pulling a big carry on. She came over and spoke to me twice, and gave me a bit of her history.
Her open friendliness, her hairstyle and her talkativeness were the things that made her stand out to me.
Another passenger I remember. A foreigner, a man in his twenties, that sat in the chairs next to me. I asked him if he was aware of an internet spot as I had to email Mom. He replied, "I not speak any English," and pointed at another person. Then a few minutes later, he moved seats to further away. I saw him glancing back a few times, so I don't know if I scared him off. :D
His language barrier (and his apparent fear of me :P) made him stand out to me.
A girl who was using the other plug socket. She was your average teen, pretty, with those horrible clingy leggings and the insecure air.
Two boys who dragged their feet in their trainers along the ground, so much so that they nearly tripped over my computer wire. Their apparent apathy in life stood out strongly.
Most of those people were instantly forgettable, because they did not stand out very strongly from everyone else.
Those that I noticed were mostly only because I spent time looking around and observing them.
We as Christians are pilgrims through life. Missionaries sitting in a departure lounge waiting to take the 'plane to Heaven. When we're walking through the airport, how do we stand out?
Is our open friendliness blazingly bright for Christ?
Is our language so different to that of the world, that, like Christian and Faithful in Vanity Fair, they cannot understand us?
Is our clothing so radically different that we are visibly Christ's? Visibly clothed in His radiant blood?
Are we so confident in Christ that we are no longer insecure in ourselves because we are aware we represent a Higher Power, and are possessed by a Higher Power?
Are we full of eagerness and vitality for life and reaching for the adventure in God, or is our apathy in life and our limp "hoping for life to start at some point soon" draining any energy or spirit?
I'm not necessarily recommending standing in an airport dancing to invisible music while wearing three layers of clothing. :P
I'm just wondering, in our efforts to make the world feel comfortable with us being around so we can witness to them and be user friendly (James 4:4) (which by the way, never works) is there any way that the world can tell we are Christ's apart from when they ask our religion or what we do on Sundays?
Is our language that of the latest pop idol or programme on TV, or speaking of Christ and lost in His radiant beauty?
Does our clothing advertise the most popular fashion label, or direct attention to our human form, or are we obsessed with standing out (uncomfortably so) in our dress for Christ? Clothing reflects the inside.
Music (which is becoming a high conviction point for me)...does it subconsciously or blatantly share the ideals of the world, or even just good morals, without proclaiming the Name of Christ?
The film Time Changer, I believe, expresses more potently what teaching morals without the Name of Christ did to the last and present generation.
To be perfectly honest, there are only two points. You can go all out for Christ and accept the scorn of the world, but be visibly recognised for His, or you can hide your Christianity in an attempt to blend in with the world. Sure, you can probably subtly hint Christ more, but the person who stands out for Christ to the limit will go on the wildest adventure with God.
One of my favourite verses happens to be Acts 4:13. It talks about Peter and John, brought before the council for the radical act of healing a man in the Name of Jesus. "Now as they observed the confidence of Peter and John and understood that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed, and began to recognize them as having been with Jesus."
Peter, a man who had denied Christ in fear of the opinion of men. John, who had followed Christ faithfully, although even he did not believe the resurrection at first. Fishermen. Unlearned.
They took a radical step of faith in God when His Spirit gave them the power and the message. They stood out from the crowd to risk all for Christ.
And the person that follows Christ to the limit in every area of life, even if it means no compromise, no blending in?
The world will recognise that person, that "they have been with Jesus."
I want to be that person. Are you with me?
In Christ,
Jane
By the third time round of Chris Tomlin, I was very much aware of God's presence around me, to the point of looking around and wondering why no one else could sense it.
I noticed a couple of people watching me after a while. I suppose a young woman in two long, loose dresses and a t-shirt with long hair and no make-up dancing publicly was a bit noticeable. :P I used to care, but I try not to any more. Have you ever noticed how restricting caring about people watching you is? You try to blend in. Or else, stand out in a way that fits the mold. Make up. Clothes that aren't too extreme. Moving in the approved way - walking, not skipping, or dancing.
As I watched the people around me, I realised that so many people try to fit into the normal mold in their own way - or who subconsciously subscribe to it - that very few people stand out.
I remember one passenger clearly. An older lady, American, talkative, with big glasses, an open, friendly face, grey hair in a plait with a big dark red rose stuck in the middle of it, wearing trousers and pulling a big carry on. She came over and spoke to me twice, and gave me a bit of her history.
Her open friendliness, her hairstyle and her talkativeness were the things that made her stand out to me.
Another passenger I remember. A foreigner, a man in his twenties, that sat in the chairs next to me. I asked him if he was aware of an internet spot as I had to email Mom. He replied, "I not speak any English," and pointed at another person. Then a few minutes later, he moved seats to further away. I saw him glancing back a few times, so I don't know if I scared him off. :D
His language barrier (and his apparent fear of me :P) made him stand out to me.
A girl who was using the other plug socket. She was your average teen, pretty, with those horrible clingy leggings and the insecure air.
Two boys who dragged their feet in their trainers along the ground, so much so that they nearly tripped over my computer wire. Their apparent apathy in life stood out strongly.
Most of those people were instantly forgettable, because they did not stand out very strongly from everyone else.
Those that I noticed were mostly only because I spent time looking around and observing them.
We as Christians are pilgrims through life. Missionaries sitting in a departure lounge waiting to take the 'plane to Heaven. When we're walking through the airport, how do we stand out?
Is our open friendliness blazingly bright for Christ?
Is our language so different to that of the world, that, like Christian and Faithful in Vanity Fair, they cannot understand us?
Is our clothing so radically different that we are visibly Christ's? Visibly clothed in His radiant blood?
Are we so confident in Christ that we are no longer insecure in ourselves because we are aware we represent a Higher Power, and are possessed by a Higher Power?
Are we full of eagerness and vitality for life and reaching for the adventure in God, or is our apathy in life and our limp "hoping for life to start at some point soon" draining any energy or spirit?
I'm not necessarily recommending standing in an airport dancing to invisible music while wearing three layers of clothing. :P
I'm just wondering, in our efforts to make the world feel comfortable with us being around so we can witness to them and be user friendly (James 4:4) (which by the way, never works) is there any way that the world can tell we are Christ's apart from when they ask our religion or what we do on Sundays?
Is our language that of the latest pop idol or programme on TV, or speaking of Christ and lost in His radiant beauty?
Does our clothing advertise the most popular fashion label, or direct attention to our human form, or are we obsessed with standing out (uncomfortably so) in our dress for Christ? Clothing reflects the inside.
Music (which is becoming a high conviction point for me)...does it subconsciously or blatantly share the ideals of the world, or even just good morals, without proclaiming the Name of Christ?
The film Time Changer, I believe, expresses more potently what teaching morals without the Name of Christ did to the last and present generation.
To be perfectly honest, there are only two points. You can go all out for Christ and accept the scorn of the world, but be visibly recognised for His, or you can hide your Christianity in an attempt to blend in with the world. Sure, you can probably subtly hint Christ more, but the person who stands out for Christ to the limit will go on the wildest adventure with God.
One of my favourite verses happens to be Acts 4:13. It talks about Peter and John, brought before the council for the radical act of healing a man in the Name of Jesus. "Now as they observed the confidence of Peter and John and understood that they were uneducated and untrained men, they were amazed, and began to recognize them as having been with Jesus."
Peter, a man who had denied Christ in fear of the opinion of men. John, who had followed Christ faithfully, although even he did not believe the resurrection at first. Fishermen. Unlearned.
They took a radical step of faith in God when His Spirit gave them the power and the message. They stood out from the crowd to risk all for Christ.
And the person that follows Christ to the limit in every area of life, even if it means no compromise, no blending in?
The world will recognise that person, that "they have been with Jesus."
I want to be that person. Are you with me?
In Christ,
Jane
Sianie... I'm so proud of you. :) Not just for this post, but for all the posts you've been writing here... God is doing a tremendous work in your life. :)
ReplyDeleteOh, and I'm with you. ;)
You FPW and big sister,
C'rissie