Why Smile?

It's sad that we have lost the ability to function in today's world the way God originally intended for us to.
We were left here to be a light of the world.
People should be able to look at us and see that something is different. They should see where our happiness comes from. Not from how we look, the things we have, who we are dating, or anything of this world. They should be able to see that we are different, because of what is on the inside.
Why are you happy?
What determines whether or not you are gonna smile that day?
Our relationships should be testimonies of the love of Christ.
We need to wake up. We have a duty here on earth. In everything we do. We don't have time off from our job.
People outside Christians should be faced with the open arms of Christ by the unity and love they see among believers.
As ambassadors of Christ, believers have the responsibility of living in such a way that others see Christ in us.
Being a Christian is not a pick and choose title.
We are supposed to die everyday. Die to ourselves..for the one who died for us.
Church should not be our duty, it should be our joy. Beginning our day with Him should be a must. Praying to Him should be a privilege. His presence should be our longing. His word should be our most passionate song.
As the body of Christ we are His hands and His feet.
We are His mouth piece.
Think about it..
We are the only Jesus most people will ever know.
Yeah, so we have heard all this before. So when is it going to click with us?
I know that I used to think the life of a follower was impossible for me. I would think that that kind of life just wasn't chosen for me. There was no way that I was anywhere worthy to be a walking billboard for Christ.
Don't get me wrong, I knew God loved me, but I wasn't convinced He liked me all that much.
I had in my mind, if I was supposed to be one of those bold, "I wanna change the world," Christians, God would miraculously fill me with His spirit and living for Him would come easy for me; it would be clear to me that that was the path He had for me.
I would pray and pray and pray for Him to consume me inside out, to overflow me with His Holy Spirit. However, it is when I realized He already had, was when I saw what I had to do.
When God sees us, He sees the Holy Spirit within us. The presence of the spirit inside us is a reminder of God's promise to finish what He has started in us. It is what says we belong to someone else. As long as you belong to the the Father, He will be there.
When He moved in, He moved in to stay.
So knowing and believing that the Holy Spirit dwelled in me only made me wonder why I couldn't feel that consumed feeling.
It was when I stopped just praying for it and living it that I got it.
Everything about the Christian life is active, passive is not in our vocabulary.
In Ephesians 5:18 Paul tells us how to get that consumed feeling.
"Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit."
When we read that, we focus too much on the word "with."
We don't really click with the fact that Paul was telling us the Spirit is the filler.
The term fill is aligned with drunk.
To be drunk means to be under the control of alcohol, to surrender one's body, mind, and spirit to it's influence.
It is the same thing with being filled with the Spirit.
When Paul said to be filled with the spirit, He was not meaning for us to sit around and wait for the Holy Spirit to be poured in to us. He has already been poured in.
You have all of Him you could ever possibly get..but how much of you does He have?
You see..that life..that bold, "I wanna change the world," Christian life, is meant for every single person Christ lives inside.
So wake up and fulfill His purpose for you on this Earth.
If we truly love Him like we claim on our Facebooks, Twitter, or inside the Church, we know that people are His method of reaching people.
So grab onto the way God intended us to live. Everyday. Do something.
Love Him.
Love His People.
Forget about yourself.
Be different because what is on the inside.
He chose you..accept it and reflect it.