Recently, I was on a plane with a group of friends.
We were about halfway through the flight, fully engrossed in our movies and books when I heard the sound of panic behind me. Screaming, commotion, you know all the things you DON’T want to hear at 30,000 feet. I jumped up to see behind me a man collapsed, unconscious and lying face down on the floor. People were in a full-on panic, yelling for doctors.
That’s when my friend, who happens to be a police officer and EMT, sprung into action. He literally leaped from the middle seat hurdling his wife like a track star and ran towards the collapsed man without a moment of hesitation. Within seconds he was down on the ground, checking for a pulse, and beginning the process of resuscitation. Minutes later the poor guy who collapsed was sitting up, drinking water, and talking. All thanks to my friend.
This, of course, led to a standing ovation (which I started). Pretty impressive to say the least.
Why did this situation turn out so well?
My friend was trained for this. He spent years learning how to help people when chaos arises. All the time he invested learning and training gave him the ability to bring peace to an otherwise out of control situation.
This got me thinking a lot about things. Each one of us has a level of knowledge, and training that is just waiting to be unleashed to this world. As Christians, we’ll spend a lifetime reading our Bibles, going to church, listening to Christian music and podcasts.
And each time we open the word, and each time we listen to that podcast, each time we walk through the doors of the church, we are learning more about the heart of God.
If we are going to do something significant with our faith, we need to take what we’re learning and use it to impact the world around us.
Matthew 5:14-16
“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. 15 Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.
We are called to be a light, to be that humble, loving servant who can bring life to those who are collapsing around us. To take our training and apply it to our lives so we can bring peace and hope, to the tormented and discouraged.
What would it look like to bring your knowledge, your training, your passion and use it to do something significant with your faith? Here are 3 practical ways to give you momentum.
1. Learn
Your ability to learn and be teachable is crucial if you’re going to do anything of value in this life. As Christians on this side of the cross, we’ve been blessed with the New Testament, when we read it, we understand God’s ways. We learn His heart and it transforms our beliefs and mindsets which, in turn, changes our behaviors.
On top of that, we have something extra spiritual, Youtube! Youtube affords us the ability to learn just about anything in a matter of minutes. You can learn how to apply eyeshadow, how to perfect your short game and how to hang wallpaper. And that’s just the stuff our house has Youtubed this week. Here’s proof about the wallpaper:
It’s from Walls Need Love and it looks fantastic. Here’s something similar.
All that to say, We really don’t have an excuse to not learn new things. Not in a day and age when learning is more accessible than it’s ever been. We can learn how to study the Bible, how to talk to people about God, how to help hurting people find hope. Learning is essential if we are going to do anything of significance in this world.
2. Do
At some point, we have to take all of that knowledge, all that learning and actually, do something with it. In the Bible, Jesus taught His disciples so many things. He taught in parables. He taught crowds. He poured in wisdom and knowledge everywhere He went. Then one day, Jesus said… It’s your turn. And He sent out the disciples to do the things they only saw Him do up until that point.
All of our training, all of our knowledge, all of our learning is only good if we do something with it.
But here’s the great news: You have the Spirit of the living God inside of you. You have God’s word hidden in your heart. You can have the answers to those tough questions through the word and the power of the Holy Spirit. You have the ability to bring peace into the storms of life. You have the ability to change the world because you have Christ in you!
God has poured himself into you so you can walk out Matthew 5 and shine His light, His glory, His peace, and His strength to a world that desperately needs it.
What does that look like for you? It could be as simple as taking a step towards that thing God placed in your heart for a long time. You know that thing right? We all have one.
Maybe God has given you an idea for a blog, a podcast or a youtube channel. Maybe God has given you an idea for a ministry, a non-profit or a business. Maybe God has put it on your heart to give a financial gift to someone in need. Maybe God has put a person on your heart to pray for, to minister to, to mentor. Maybe God is just nudging you to take that next leap of faith.
Fear and doubt keep us from believing God is behind these promptings. But fear and doubt’s goal is to keep you living small.
Take the risk. Take that step of faith today and see what God will do through it.
My hunch is it will be significant.
3. Teach
Once you learn and begin to do, it is time to teach others what you have been doing. That’s what true discipleship and mentorship are all about. Can you imagine if Jesus didn’t teach anyone how to do what he was doing?
Would Christianity be what it is today?
Would there be a church on every corner?
Would people still be transformed by the powerful message of the Cross?
I’ve found I don’t have to know everything to teach others. Isn’t’ that a relief?
I simply need to teach them what I know, what I’ve learned and what I have done. You don’t want me to teach you how to change the oil in your car. That’s someone else’s job. I don’t know how to do that. But, I can teach people God’s word. And I can teach people how to have stronger relationships. Why? Because I have both studied and practiced and taught those things.
How do you do something significant with your faith?
You learn you do, and you teach. It’s really that simple. If you are willing to learn, work hard to apply what you have learned, and teach people what you have learned… You can and will change the world for God’s glory.
What have you learned? What have you done? What can you teach?
Don’t discount that thing! This world needs you, remember? Your life is not small friend. Get out there and do something significant with your faith. Start today.
Until next time,
Chris
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