I pray that the sharing of your faith may become effective for the full knowledge of every good thing that is in us for the sake of Christ. Philemon 1:6
I find it easy to tell others about my family, my vacations, and my job, as long as it’s not too personal. We post on social media about our supper, our workouts, and all other things we are passionate about, but it gets a little weird when we talk about our faith. God is supposedly the most important thing in our lives, but we don’t want anyone to know that.
It is clear however, that Jesus did not mean for our faith to be hidden (Matthew 5:14,15). Our faith is to be intensely personal, yes, but not private. Why am I uneasy about that which is allegedly the most important thing about me? It is of course my focus on self that keeps me quiet. My concern about my reputation, my pride, and my image, makes me fearful that I’ll be seen as a religious nut if I’m too open about God.
In my addiction, I of course realized that it was my focus on self that caused so much misery. I remember thinking that I wanted to live clean, but I did not want to be known as a Jesus freak or anything… I think God maybe laughed a little when I told him I was concerned about my reputation. I had not done the best job at keeping it so shiny.
So, now, I write and I share with others what God means to me. This does not mean I go out and hit people over the head with my bible, but I do daily, try to be purposeful in sharing my faith. God saved me from myself. I need to be willing to share that with others. As in all things, I need to keep focused on God’s will and not on my will.