One day I was thinking about the idea that Christians are said to be Christ's ambassadors (II Corinthians 5:20) on earth. I started wondering what it would mean for me to live or act as an ambassador and while there are likely many ways to do this, one example stood out to me.
I realized that missionaries are some of the best at realizing and tactically applying this idea to their daily lives. One way that a missionary might act as an ambassador for Christ is to go into another country with a work visa and get a "cover" job so that they can have a means of connecting with the people in that culture for the sake of Jesus.
I realized that missionaries are some of the best at realizing and tactically applying this idea to their daily lives. One way that a missionary might act as an ambassador for Christ is to go into another country with a work visa and get a "cover" job so that they can have a means of connecting with the people in that culture for the sake of Jesus.
They would use that "cover" job and the neighborhood they live in as platforms to build relationships with their co-workers,
neighbors, customers or anyone else who God puts in their lives. Sure, they have a job and responsibilities but their real purpose for being there is to influence the culture for Christ.
neighbors, customers or anyone else who God puts in their lives. Sure, they have a job and responsibilities but their real purpose for being there is to influence the culture for Christ.
It occurred to me that all Christians are supposed to be doing this kind of thing. We are ambassadors for Christ...we are supposed to remember that this world is not our true home (our true home is in heaven). We are only here for a short time and we have the opportunity to plug into our culture somewhere (and we don't have to go to another country to do it).
We should view our vocation as more than just a way to provide an income. A job may be a good and necessary thing, but why not take on the same mentality of a missionary and see it as our "cover" job? Our real purpose here comes from our identity as believers in Christ, rather than as a member of society. We should get our value, not from what we do, but from who we belong to.
How can you use your job and home as a means to build relationships with people you interact with on a daily basis?
We should be actively looking to make friends and live life along side the people in our world; along with that will come opportunities to pray with them, love them and share our hope in Christ with them. Our jobs are just for cover. We are double agents, but our true loyalty is to Christ.
What is one step you can take this week to start applying this principle? Feel free to share your ideas in a comment.
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