So that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody. (1 Thess. 4:12)
EVERY DAY WE GET UP and go through life making decisions that will have some sort of consequences. Some choices are not that significant—deciding what to wear or what to have for breakfast—while other choices can have a lasting impact. Every day we face circumstances where we have to choose how we will respond. Whether it’s the boss who is too demanding, the driver who cuts us off, or the coworker who offends, how we respond will speak volumes to who we are on the inside.
While we cannot control the circumstances that come our way, we can control how we respond. However, those decisions are best made out of a desire to live a life that pleases God. God deeply wants to be part of our daily walk because our relationship with Him affects our choices and thus determines how we live. Jesus came to make us children of God not just so we can go to heaven, but also to enable us to live as light in a dark and sinful world.
By the shed blood of Jesus, God brought us into union with Him through faith. As we make choices that honor Him, He transforms us into the likeness of the Lord Jesus. When His life is lived out in our lives through the Holy Spirit, our spiritual and moral fiber is changed, and we will “win the respect of outsiders” to the glory of God.
Let your inner holiness shine through your outward choices.
Scott Simmons is the author of the youth discipleship series iFollow (WPH).
