On Not Judging A Book By Its Cover

I was really blessed by Jasmine Baucham's latest post-


Judging A Book By Its Cover

I have often been convicted of the same thing- I am ashamed to say that I am often inclined to prejudice, and quick to judge people based on outward appearance or brief acquaintance. By God's grace, I believe I am changing my habits. Jasmine's post is an excellent reminder!

I remember distinctly several times where someone new has come to our church, or been introduced to our family, and I didn't exactly like them at first- maybe they looked a little rough aroung the edges, or dressed a little unseemly, but when you talk to them, their love for the Lord is the first thing you know- it glows from their eyes as they tell you about how they became a Christian, or share pieces of their life with you, and almost immediately, they don't look so bad at all . . . in fact, you don't even care any more.
You begin to see the person underneath, the person God sees.

It makes me wonder . . . how do we appear to the world? Do I always speak with the graciousness that a Christian should exude, or do I snap at people when I'm having a bad day, or things aren't going my way?

Yeah, I may be dressed like a Christian. I may be carrying a Bible.
But am I dressed in Christ Himself? How am I making Him look by my attitudes and actions?

 I think I would rather be the hobo on the corner- sharing the gospel with a passion and a zeal,
than be a perfect little Christian young lady, in my perfect little denim skirt ; D, walking aroung with my Christian friends, talking about how we should be changing the world. As I've said before - it's about getting out of your little zone, and being willing to sacrifice your personal comfort to live like Christ.

I will tell you - I am a pretty shy person. You may or may not believe that, reading my blog, but I find it far easier to talk to a bunch of invisible internet people than face to face or even on the phone! ; D
Therefore, I find it hard to be very open with people about my faith - unless I know they're Christians.

So, I preach to myself when I say this - shyness can be a form of selfishness, or even of pride- ('how is this going to make me look?'). When we have so many gifts and ways we could be ministering to people, is it not selfish to hold them back? This is killing me with conviction, but it's like when my Dad has to preach (he's an associate pastor) - often, the sermon ends up being about something the Lord is dealing with him about. It's how the Lord has worked in us a lot.

So - as Christians we need to be marked by our actions - so if people do judge us by our covers, most likely, it's going to be accurate. I do not mean go out and buy a wardrobe full of Christian t-shirts (of which I own a few : D ) and wear them everywhere you go - I mean that we should be sure we are wearing Christ - when we go to the grocery store, when we're at our friend's house, from the time we wake up until we go to bed.

The best way I know how to do this is to pray for God to fill you with His Holy Spirit, at the start of every day, and all through the day - if you are tempted to snap at someone, or you're just having a bad moment - ask Him to fill you up. And what are the fruits of the Spirit?

Galatians 5:22-23 "The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such there is no law."

Hope this is somewhat uniform- my train of thought got derailed several times. ; D