Daily Presenceਨਮੂਨਾ

For you parents out there, have you ever shouted “don’t do anything I wouldn’t do” while your kiddo runs out the door? Maybe for some of you, that’s not a great standard to hold them to! But nonetheless, we’ve all heard the phrase and whether we like it or not, our children inevitably represent us in name and action. When my toddler throws a tantrum in the grocery store lineup it's hard not to sheepishly apologize and leave my cart for the car. The awkward stares and knowing glances from fellow moms don’t help! I know it doesn’t make me a bad mom, but in the moment, I still wish my son was politely sitting in the cart.

As Christians, we represent a family far wider than our earthly one; the Kingdom of God.

Unlike our earthly parents who may not be worthy of emulation, God deserves the honor of our holy actions. What do we constantly hear from worldly naysayers? “Christians are just a bunch of hypocrites.” And to be frank, they’re right! We preach the things of God and then represent something different in our actions. Paul calls us to a higher level of accountability by means of reconciliation. 2 Corinthians 5:20-21 says “Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God. For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.”

We are “ambassadors” of Christ! That is a weighty title and one I’m sure I’ll never live up to but certainly hope to! How can we grow in character and better represent a perfect God? Through Christ whose death and resurrection allows us to be reconciled in relationship with him! When we walk closely with God, He makes His “appeal through us.” What an honor to represent His name in a broken world. And praise God, even though my faults are many and I’ll never live up to His name, He still chooses to call me an ambassador and use me in His glorious plan for reconciliation.