Paranoia

"You'd be paranoid too, if everyone was watching you!"

Do you ever feel like you are being watched? Believe it or not, that's really not a bad thing. You are being watched, and by more people than you could imagine. Everyone is scrutinized, but scrutiny is multiplied to the nth degree when by word or deed you proclaim yourself a Christian. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hid....

Yesterday, my wife and I got into the car to go to work like every other morning, but the car would not start! It had already been a rough morning: the coffee spilled all over my freshly ironed pants, the cat scratched my shin, my hair curler stopped working (ok, that was a joke), and worse than all that, we were late. I HATE being late. In fact, my wife was late, not me. But even that made me mad. I started Baptist swearing, hitting random inanimate objects (my wife suddenly became animate at that point), and generally acting like a fool. Right then, my Indian neighbor (who I had never talked to or invited to church, but that is a different post) came out and offered to jump my battery. After that failed, he gave me a ride to work. While we were in the car, he said "I see you guys every Sunday get up early and go to church all dressed up. That is really great, young people usually don't care about things like that." That was about the time the Holy Spirit hit me with the sledge-hammer in the ribs. PEOPLE ARE WATCHING YOU!

If I had been living every moment in the realization that there is a huge neon flashing sign over my head that says "CHRISTIAN! THIS IS WHAT CHRIST IS LIKE!!!", I doubt I would have behaved that way. That is only one of many examples in my life, and I am sure you can relate as well. You cannot be hid. Don't even try, just accept it and let Christ make your life a billboard for His mercy and grace and glory!

Paranoia isn't so bad, really.....