Difference Maker
The world around us is changing. The world is changing rapidly. Are the changes good? Bad? One thing that is mostly true is that we desire to be change agents. I started reading a book this week, “One at a Time” by Kyle Idleman, and Baker Publishing. In the introduction Kyle writes this: “We don’t want to spend our lives being time-wasters, or space-takers, or binge-watchers, or game-players, or even book-readers. We want to be difference-makers.” I thought about this statement after I read it, I said “yeah, that’s what I want to be”.
I thought back over my life, especially the more recent years. I realized I do want to be a “difference-maker”, but do I live it out? I realize while that is what is inside of me, I don’t always live it. I mean I don’t wake every morning and ask, how am I going to make a difference today? I should though. When my eyes open that should be my first question or statement to God, how do you want me to make a difference today? Maybe I fear the answer or opportunity God gives me.
My heart breaks when I see stories of people leaving their faith. For the most part it is a relational issue with people. They too desire to make a difference but feel like the church is not where that can happen. At Restoration Ministries we want to focus on restoring relationships one to another and to God. God is that perfect balance of grace, mercy, and justice. We are imperfect in that balance. We generally lean toward one of the three. I tend to find myself leaning toward grace. There are others who lean toward justice. We need all three. Those relationships are restored when we come back into balance. When you get mad because someone is shown more grace than you would and not enough justice we begin to fall into the trap of the world.
If we are followers of Christ and we are listening to His voice, why do we hear different answers? I believe we are hearing the same answer, however we filter it through our own bias of grace, mercy, or justice. I have sat on boards in church and non-profit world in which we have to deal with questions where we have to have a balance. You can quickly hear who sits in which corner. Everyone says “I show grace” until the question is put before you.
There is a price to pay for our sins. The eternal price is separation form the Father. That price has been paid for by Jesus if you accept the gift. The earthly price is generally in relationships. When we sin, it creates strains in our relationships with one another. We didn’t “punish” the sinner enough or the “punishment” was too harsh. We as followers of Christ must do a better job of balancing grace, mercy, and justice if we desire to be truly difference-makers. This can be accomplished when we open our eyes each morning and ask God. "How can I make a difference today?"
I thought back over my life, especially the more recent years. I realized I do want to be a “difference-maker”, but do I live it out? I realize while that is what is inside of me, I don’t always live it. I mean I don’t wake every morning and ask, how am I going to make a difference today? I should though. When my eyes open that should be my first question or statement to God, how do you want me to make a difference today? Maybe I fear the answer or opportunity God gives me.
My heart breaks when I see stories of people leaving their faith. For the most part it is a relational issue with people. They too desire to make a difference but feel like the church is not where that can happen. At Restoration Ministries we want to focus on restoring relationships one to another and to God. God is that perfect balance of grace, mercy, and justice. We are imperfect in that balance. We generally lean toward one of the three. I tend to find myself leaning toward grace. There are others who lean toward justice. We need all three. Those relationships are restored when we come back into balance. When you get mad because someone is shown more grace than you would and not enough justice we begin to fall into the trap of the world.
If we are followers of Christ and we are listening to His voice, why do we hear different answers? I believe we are hearing the same answer, however we filter it through our own bias of grace, mercy, or justice. I have sat on boards in church and non-profit world in which we have to deal with questions where we have to have a balance. You can quickly hear who sits in which corner. Everyone says “I show grace” until the question is put before you.
There is a price to pay for our sins. The eternal price is separation form the Father. That price has been paid for by Jesus if you accept the gift. The earthly price is generally in relationships. When we sin, it creates strains in our relationships with one another. We didn’t “punish” the sinner enough or the “punishment” was too harsh. We as followers of Christ must do a better job of balancing grace, mercy, and justice if we desire to be truly difference-makers. This can be accomplished when we open our eyes each morning and ask God. "How can I make a difference today?"
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