Where are you pointing?

Are you a healthy eater or a junk food junkie? If I’m honest, I used to eat my fair share of junk food.  I never gave much thought about what went into my body, other than based on taste. That was before I was diagnosed with skin cancer and learned what you put in your body impacts your health.  Certain foods create a breeding ground for cancer. Since I never wanted to hear the “c” word again in relation to me or anyone I knew and loved, I changed my eating habits and cut out a lot of the junk food.

At first, I tried to impose my eating habits on my family. I would refuse to buy certain products and if I saw them eating or drinking something that wasn’t healthy, I would give them an unsolicited monologue about how horrible it was for them. That went over like a lead balloon.  One of my children would see me reading a book on health and nutrition and say,

Great!  What do we have to stop eating now?”

It became obvious while my motives were pure, my approach needed some serious work.  If I forced them to change their eating habits, then they would eat what I gave them at home but the minute they were away from home, they’d gorge on junk food. It had to be their choice. I couldn’t force it.

The same is true when it comes to sharing our faith. We cannot force it upon someone else, even when we have the best of intentions. It just won’t work. They may say the words wewant to hear when they’re in front of us, but once they’re away from us, revert back to their old ways. The best way for us to lead another person to the Lord is by being a living example.

Matthew 5:16 says,

In the same way, let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven.”

Live your life in such a way that observers begin to ask you why you do what you do or better yet, begin imitating you. It’s the whole “lead by example” way of life. By doing so, you are ultimately leading others to the Lord.  I used to tell my FCA leaders,

Lead in such a way that if you stepped out of the way, those following you would be following Jesus.”

It works.  Actions really do speak louder than words.  This weekend we took my son to the store to buy some food items for his dorm room.  For the most part, we pushed the cart and he grabbed what he wanted. Without drawing attention to his selections, I noticed he had wheat bread instead of white.  He chose fruit for snacks instead of gummy worms or chips. He went for the more nutritious cereal instead of the sugary sweet stuff. His shopping cart looked like it would have if I’d been the one making the selections.

My childhood pastor used to say,

Your life may be the only Gospel someone ever reads.  Make it a good read.”

What is one thing you’ll do intentionally today to point others to Christ?