Action Step #5: Filter your comments as an “ambassador” rather than an “activist”
As noted above, followers of Christ can be passionate citizens of an earthly country. But we are first and foremost to live as citizens of heaven.
In this excellent piece from Randy Alcorn on Patheos, we are reminded that outrage is not a core value of Christianity. When we allow it to be, it’s time to ask ourselves a question: What kind of ambassador am I being for Christ? Does the wording of this social media comment reflect the character of Jesus? The fruit of the Spirit? Is it more likely to draw people to Jesus than push them away? If the answer to any of those questions is “no,” we may need to grapple with our job description that we are first and foremost His ambassadors (2 Corinthians 5:20).
I echo Randy’s suggestion that if we walked away from outrage and online disputes and poured that energy instead into building each other up (I Thessalonians 5:11), washing feet, serving those in need, spreading hope, and worshipping God, the result would undoubtedly be a more attractive portrayal of Christlikeness to the world (not to mention the good we would actually do in the world).
This is also so true in our homes. When we look for the most generous explanation possible of our spouse’s actions, when we season our family conversations with grace, and when we remember to treat our family members with the same grace we’d like to receive, we demonstrate the very power of the gospel to those closest to us.
Some of this is literally about being kind, no matter what. Most longtime blog readers will be familiar with The Kindness Challenge, and how our empirically-tested 30-Day Kindness Challenge wakes us up to the ways we haven’t been as kind as we thought and improves our outlook and our relationships. Our election-season version, called Kindness 2024, will be just as helpful now that election day is behind us—and may really come in clutch for some of our post-election holiday get-togethers.
Hope rises when we embrace the possibility that we are not as divided as it looks. When we lean toward grace rather than outrage. When we act like devoted citizens who know where our primary citizenship rests. I pray all of us will carry that hope with us and share it with others, as we try to walk through this season well.
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