So That

For my Thirty Day Experiment, I felt like I needed a token, an outward reminder to myself for these 30 days...a reminder to watch my thoughts, my actions, my heart. To become more like Jesus over the next 30 days.

I decided to start wearing my 'So That' wristband from church consistently, which is no easy feat, considering how dirty it can get at work. But I like that I can look down at my hand and get an immediate reminder of who and what I am living to serve, what kingdom I live to advance.

In a nutshell, the point of the wristband is that some day, we will give an account of our lives to God. We will tell Him how we spent our time, talents, and treasures here on earth. Did we seek our own personal gain and glory, or serve His kingdom, and reach the least and the lost? He will either say, "So what?" or He will see that we lived "So That" His kingdom, His purposes were advanced and glorified.

It has been pretty cool to see the way a little blue wristband can start some conversations on faith in a non-confrontational way. When asked, I've shared parts of my faith journey with patients and their families, coworkers, and my own family. I've told stories about crazy home improvement efforts in Pittsburgh, sharing a hotel room with 9th grade girls, serving homeless men dinner at Hoskins Park, and how much I love both the adult and student services at Forest Hill. (By the way, some people have told me taking students to the beach for a week is an automatic 'in' to heaven.... teehee).

And the super cool part (and this is definitely God, since He's sooooo awesome), is that the message this weekend was about reaching others and evangelism. If we are truly passionate about Christ (and desire to be more like Him), we should passionately desire to know Him and make Him known with our lives and our lips.

For me, that was world rocking.

I guess I assumed that being more like Jesus would be enough. That if I lived like Him, served like Him, loved like Him, people would just magically know why my life is the way it is. But I realize that's me being fearful of standing up for my faith, fearful to openly share the amazing power and saving grace Jesus has given me, fearful of persecution.

And that is lame and wimpy on my part. If Jesus can die on a cross for me, surely I can share how He's changed my life with others, even if it makes me a little uncomfortable?

I think, like my experiment, like my life, becoming an evangelist is a process. I know at ten months ago, most of my coworkers didn't know I went to church, or where. They didn't know I was beginning to serve with the student ministry at my church. Now they've seen tons of Facebook pictures of the Pittsburgh Project and BigStuf Camps. When they ask what I did over the weekend, I tell them I went to church, or what the students did at Advance that weekend. I know that until very recently, hanging out with students and sharing my faith journey was really uncomfortable, but something I knew I was called to do. Even this blog is a big step for me in sharing my faith journey.

Recently I looked back over some 'life goals' to contribute to the cause of Christ I had written a few months back. One of the things I wrote was to "learn to speak up for Christ." I love how God reminds me of my own observations in a timely way.

Because, what is the point of my Thirty Day Experiment, if no one knows who I am imitating or who am I serving?

I don't want to be another 'so what;' I want to be a powerful 'so that' the world is changed for Christ.