Proverbs 22.29
“Do you see a man skillful in his work? He will stand before kings; he will not stand before obscure men.”
As we do our daily work we have the opportunity and responsibility to deal with people and situations affected by the brokenness of the world. We are called to respond to these people and situations in a way that reflects the presence and power of Christ. We are called to respond to these people and situations as ambassadors of the truth and grace of the Kingdom. We are called to respond as agents of redemption and restoration. We are called to respond with truth, love, and the fruit of the Spirit.
When you experience difficult people or challenging situations, you shouldn’t be surprised. You should be prepared. This is why building skill is so important. Build the skill you need to respond effectively to people and situations you experience.
It’s why E+R=O is such a helpful framework.
Unfortunately, when many Christians encounter the brokenness of the world, they tend to respond with impatience and irritation. They fail to recognize the situation for what it really is: a calling and a mission. It’s is an opportunity to touch a person or a situation with the presence and power of Christ.
The challenge is that we often want the Christian life to be comfortable and convenient. We want the experience of full restoration right now. But we must continually recognize that complete redemption lies in the future, and embrace the reality that we are called to live out the faith in a still-fallen world. And quite often, that is very uncomfortable and inconvenient.
It is certainly good news that we are saved for a purpose, and that purpose is not our comfort and convenience. We are saved so that we can serve God’s purposes, not our own. The source of true peace in this world is to live every day as an agent of God’s Kingdom.
I would like to encourage you to adopt a true Kingdom mindset. Each day when you wake up recognize that you are an agent of the Kingdom of God in a broken world. Thank God for calling you to be his ambassador, and ask him to equip and empower you to deal with the brokenness you will encounter that day, so that the people and situations you deal with might be transformed (even in very small ways) through your actions. At the end of the day, thank God for giving you the privilege of co-laboring with him to bring redemption and restoration to the brokenness of a fallen world, and giving the world a foretaste of what Christ will bring fully at his return.
Trust God and do the work.
