Salt and Light

What does it mean to be the salt of the earth and light of the world?

“In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven” - Matthew 5:16

As a university student involved with campus ministry, my circle of friends are mostly Christians, with a handful of them being non-believers. It has been difficult to evangelise to my non-believing friends as we might only share one class for that particular semester, and thereafter I would see them less regularly. Usually, I spend that few months investing in striking up a solid friendship and modelling the Christian life by my actions. But I have come to realise that simply having good work ethic and wearing a campus ministry shirt does not automatically bring up questions about Christianity from non-believers. If anything, the campus ministry shirt often attracts the company of other Christian students! (Personal reflections - Mae-Ann Soh) 

In the workplace, interacting with non-believers might very well happen on a daily basis and are good grounds for evangelism, but for some reason or other, we still shy away from intentionally starting a gospel conversation.

Jessica Schaeffer’s article on the Institute for Faith, Work & Economics reminds us of the importance of befriending and building relationships with non-believers.

“How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?…So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ” - Romans 10:14, 17

There are two things we can learn from Paul:

1) Belief comes from hearing through the word of Christ

2) The word of Christ goes out by preaching

As those who do believe, we are equipped to share the saving power of the gospel, so let us not limit our witness to Christ by our actions but to speak the Word boldly as well.

Prayer points:

·        Giving thanks to God for many opportunities to build friendships with non-believers at work

·        Asking God for courage and perseverance to start talking about Jesus with them

·        Praying for these friends to not harden their hearts but to be open to exploring Christianity

The Why and How of Spiritual Discipline

The student needs to study. The worker needs to work. The parent needs to mind the kids. A common struggle is cultivating the discipline to pray and read the Bible amidst our busy schedules.

But when we finally find the time to engage in these spiritual disciplines, are we satisfied because we can check it off the list and move on to the next ‘to-do’ item? Or when we get a good habit going, are we equating the amount of quiet time with the amount of favour and love showered by God?

These motivations are tricky to pinpoint because only God and we ourselves know what lies in our hearts. Steve Childers helps us to see the importance of understanding the affections of our hearts:

Prayer Points

·         To encourage others with the question ‘Why do you try to read the Bible and pray on a daily basis/regularly?’

·         Ask God to reveal and change any ungodly or misguided motivations

·       To delight in quiet time as a time of appreciating the restored relationship we have with God through Christ