“For I am the least of the apostles, unworthy to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain.” -1 Corinthians 15:9-10

            There are certain events in your life that bring to you a lot of pride, there are some that bring a lot of pain, and there are some that you just don’t know how to react to. The same thing can happen for people in your lives. There will be some that make you proud, some that bring you pain, and some you just don’t know what to do with. In high school my friend group had an acquaintance that we weren’t sure what to do with. We were all pretty average high school kids who were involved in sports, music, or clubs and this person was one of the outsiders. He ran with the tough crowd and never seemed to care too much about anything.

            If I am honest with you I’m still not sure to this day how we got connected up with him. The first time I remember interacting with him was when one of the other guys had taken the time to say hi and not just walk by him. Over the course of a couple of months that led to regular conversations. Six months later the same friend started asking him if he wanted to come to church with us, and six months after the first invitation he finally agreed to come. That didn’t start regular attendance for him but it did get him in the door, and once that happened we saw the spirit work on him and move him from denial to acceptance of Christ.

So what was my role in this whole situation? I was the guy who was very skeptical. I didn’t care to much either way. I was content enough with what I had going on that I really didn’t make any effort to go outside my comfort zone to do anything. The most I cared to do was acknowledge him so that I wasn’t on his radar much at all. But is that what we are called to do for people? Paul in 1 Corinthians thinks otherwise. He says in chapter 9 that we are called to be “all things to all people” so that we can “save some.” Now maybe you think that God can’t use you or that isn’t your spiritual gift, which may be true, but if anyone had a reason not to share Christ it was Paul. Paul reminds us in chapter 15 that he is the most “unworthy to be called an apostle” because he “persecuted the church of God.” He was causing all sorts of pain and trials for Christians until God got ahold of him and turned his life around.

Every time that I wonder about whether I can be a messenger of God to others, or how uncomfortable that will make me feel, I think about how little things like saying hi and acknowledging someone can lead to them learning and knowing Christ. I have to know myself and get out of my own way, put aside my pride, and ignore how uncomfortable I might feel because the gifts that I have are not mine to hide away and keep to myself. It is a gift that can be life changing to someone and all they need is an in. We get to be that pathway to Christ for others in this world. So boast in the work that Christ does through you and be that “in” for someone to Christ today.

Question of the day: Who in your life could use an “in” to Christ today?

“The knowledge of yourself will preserve you from vanity.” –Miguel De Cervantes