Character traits of Jesus

Clearly the most effective way to present Jesus to the world around us is to be more like Him. Its not something we can do in our own strength but as we spend time with Him the Holy Spirit guides us and brings transformation into our lives and behaviours.
You probably already have a number of Christ-like attributes so be confident that God is already using you to reflect Him to others.

Here's some of Jesus' character traits that we can aspire to and grow into:

• Compassion (Matt 9:36) - Whenever people were around him, Jesus understood what their real needs were and sought to address them. He never looked away from people. He always looked upon them
• Servant (Mark 10:45) - Jesus was the ultimate servant. Although He was praised as a great teacher and even had a decent following, He made sure to teach them to be servants by actually doing it himself.
• Loving (John 3:16) - Obviously, Jesus had a love for others. If He didn’t, He wouldn’t be compassionate nor a servant. Jesus claimed that there is no greater love than to die for one of your friends—and He did just that. 
• Forgiving (Luke 23:34) - Even while bleeding and experiencing pain, Jesus had His heart set on forgiveness—even forgiving those who put Him there in the first place!
• Committed - Jesus was fully in the moment and fully committed to His goals. There were certainly many obstacles during His ministry, but He stayed on track and finished strong.
• Prayerful - No matter how busy His ministry got, Jesus found time to be alone and pray
• Gentleness - There were certainly times where Jesus used stern words, but He knew when gentleness was appropriate. Children seemed to love coming to him, and He made sure the disciples knew not to hinder them when they did so
• Patience - Jesus was surrounded by disciples who constantly doubted him, Pharisees and Sadducees who continually attacked Him, and large crowds who wouldn’t leave Him alone. Despite all of that, He kept His composure and responded appropriately to every individual.
• Self-control - Before His ministry was launched, Jesus spent time being tempted by the Devil in the wilderness. Although He was offered food, power, and many other things, Jesus controlled His desires and submitted them all to the will of the Father.
• Humble - Jesus had every opportunity and right to demand praise and accolades for His miracles and teachings, but He never did. Rather, He wanted to seek and save the lost and offer forgiveness for sinful people.       (source)

The more time we spend with Jesus, the more we will become like Him. You become the company you keep. We don't need to be completely like Jesus to have an impact for the Kingdom, but its a brilliant goal to work towards! 

In the meantime let's take every opportunity to present the love and character of Jesus and allow the Holy Spirit to move on people's hearts.

Grace and power for the cause!

Screen Isolation

Okay, so we're all doing it these days. Spending a lot of time looking at those little devices we call Smartphones. Are they really that smart? Well yes, I guess they are pretty smart....in fact I am blown away by what I can do on my Smartphone these days, but that's not really the point of this blog article. Let me rephrase the question - "am I smart in the way I am using my phone?"

Quick story for some context.
So I'm dropping my kids off at school the other day and a bunch of teenagers caught my attention as I drove away. But is wasn't because they were 'up to something'. They weren't doing something bad. In fact they didn't appear to be doing anything at all! There was a line of about 12 teens all dressed in their school uniform leaning against the fence waiting for the bus, not moving.....like they had been frozen in time. Then I looked again and realised that every one of them had their head bowed and eyes gazing into a little screen that sat in the palm of their hand. I wish I had stopped to take a photo cos it was quite a thought-provoking image that still sticks in my head. It is just one portrayal of how we are becoming more and more distracted by our devices.
The other day I saw a disturbing video on Facebook of a lady in an Asian country crossing the road while looking at her phone. Her actions resulted in a tragic outcome after she encountered a large vehicle while crossing that road.  Sorry to be so graphic, but seriously what is happening in our world? Is our technology really that important that we can't stop to acknowledge our friends or gauge an apparent danger?

Now, I am just as guilty as the next person at getting distracted by my phone. My love of sport sometimes becomes a little obsessive purely to keep track of a score or how my team is going. But in recent times I am really trying to keep myself more accountable when I am around people. If there is someone in front of me, I have a choice - to engage with them in some way or to rudely ignore them while I get distracted by something else.

That person right in front of me has the opportunity to experience the love and power of God through a simple act of kindness, courtesy, a smile, acknowledgement, a show of appreciation. And these smaller acts often translate to something more significant - a deeper conversation or even an opportunity to pray for someone. These seeds sown may ultimately lead to a life transformed through relationship with Jesus. I simply don't want to miss those opportunities just because I felt there is something more important I need to respond to on my phone.

I am concerned that our obsessions with screens are increasingly isolating us from each other.
I spend a lot less time on Facebook these days, cos I just get more fulfilment out of Face to Face!
Now please don't stone me just yet, I'm not a Social Media hater, but I do believe that we can pursue a healthy balance in how we use it.

As it says in Romans 12, let's make a commitment to "not be conformed to this world, but to be transformed by the renewing of our minds". And with this in mind our goal is to become more Christ-like in our thinking and attitudes.

Jesus modelled for us how to connect with people. he was so genuinely interested in people and seemed to be able to really focus his attention and love 'one person at a time'. He made good eye contact, shared words of wisdom, healed people, listened to them intently and cared for them.
The more I learn about how Jesus connected with people, the more I want to be like Him.

So today I want to leave you with a simple challenge. Next time you are in a public space and you have your phone with you, prioritise the person 'right in front of you' instead of the phone in your pocket and let God use you to love that person intentionally 'in the moment'. When you do this it acts like a step of faith that releases something through the power of the Holy Spirit. Its just an act of obedience but it can mean so much.

Lets make a stand in this screen age that we live in to 'engage with people' more intentionally, allowing the Holy Spirit to flow through us and into people's lives, representing Jesus to the world.

Kindness

On Sunday, we heard a great talk at my church about Kindness from Pastor Glen Davies.
I would encourage you to have a listen to Glen's talk here

I believe kindness is one of the most effective ways we can re-present Jesus to the world around us.
Jesus intentionally searched for the weary, sick, poor and lonely and showed them kindness.
Combined with the supernatural power of God in our lives we can replicate this same kindness to the people in our sphere of influence.

Based on Romans 12:9-21, Glen highlighted five keys to helping us demonstrate kindness:

1. Remember the Kindness of a Saviour - our love and kindness towards others is an overflow from what Christ has done for us; it is a part of our identity in Christ
2. Fuel up - we need to constantly go back to the Source and get refilled with more of the Holy Spirit on a daily basis; we can only give out of what we have received
3. Embrace Opposition - we need to bless our enemies, bringing the 'opposite spirit' to people that seem to be hard to get along with; they may in fact be the people that need our kindness the most and they may end up becoming 'people of peace' in your life.
4. Let God do the judging - as Glen said, "Judging distracts us from finding Kingdom solutions. It distances us from personal responsibility." Time is too short for us to be trying to do God's job. Lets just do what he has called US to do - love others.
5. Not so random acts of kindness - its not just about when or what we "feel like" doing; its about being intentional and asking God to show us who we can be kind to. There is nothing more powerful in relational evangelism that those moments when we get on board with what God is doing and let the Holy Spirit flow through us in that moment.

A big thanks again to Glen for his insightful thoughts.

We literally have opportunities every day to share the love and kindness of Jesus with people in our world. Here are some helpful tips to get you started, but be intentional and ask God 'who', 'when' and 'how' to have the greatest impact. Partner with the Holy Spirit and enjoy the moment.

So, who is God impressing on your now that you could demonstrate kindness to?

I'll leave you with a quote from Saint Basil:

"A tree is known by its fruit; a man by his deeds. A good deed is never lost; 

he who sows courtesy reaps friendship; and he who plants kindness gathers love"

Saying thank you

On Saturday night I partnered with a few young guys from another church to participate in an outreach on the streets of Northbridge. Every few months we join the HOPE WA crew to worship and pray and then a few of us head out to share God's love with people in creative ways.
On this particular Saturday it was the National Day of Thanksgiving so we decided a simple way of connecting with people was to thank them for who they are and what they do. We went into cafes and restaurants, spoke to bouncers, security guards and police officers. At each point we simply thanked them for their service to the community. As you can imagine the response was positive and in most cases it caught people by surprise. We gave out chocolates and cards that said 'thank you'. We thanked people "on behalf of the church in Perth" which was a nice way to express a simple authentic representation of the 'Church' to people on the street. There was no agenda other than to acknowledge, appreciate and love people.

It was a real revelation for me to see what an impact a simple word of thanks can have for people. We seem to live in a society where many of the things we do go unappreciated. While for some people this is no big deal, for others a simple acknowledgement means the world to them. I found this with a couple of groups of police offices that we met. They perform a very thankless role in society and really valued us taking the time to thank them for what they do.

Jesus was always around people. He acknowledged the people around around him, like Zacchaeus in the tree (Luke 19:1-10), the woman who touch His robe (Luke 8:43-48) and the sick man who was lowered through the roof (Luke 5:17-20). He noticed people, valued their presence and who they were and loved them through His words, actions and power.

Who are the people that we can 'thank' in our everyday lives.
Our awareness of these people followed by a simple act of love and appreciation can make a world of difference to a person.

In a society where we are increasingly distracted by our own 'devices' (e.g., smartphone) maybe we need to take our eyes off the distractions and begin observing more intentionally the people around us. They are all loved by God and they can all experience the love of Jesus through us.

People of peace

I have recently come across some excellent terminology which has helped me to understand how I can better identify the people God has placed in my sphere of influence. If you're anything like me and you have tried to reach out and share Jesus with someone, it can be met in a variety of ways. Sometimes they are completely open, but other times its not so positive. This is pretty normal.

In my last post I discussed who the people are in our 'backyard'. But while our relationship or association with a particular person is ONE significant factor which influences their receptivity, there is another thought worth considering - is that person a person of peace?

A person of peace is simply someone who likes you. Someone who has invited you into their world without reservations. They know who you are and they have no problem with it. They like you and they are open to what you have to say.

I think sometimes we overthink how we might come across to people if we begin sharing some of ourself and our faith with others. Let's face it, we live in a very private world these days and people DO tend to keep to themselves. The difference for us however is that we have a life and story that is worth sharing.........in fact Jesus commanded us to go out and share it in the Great Commission. The Good News is certainly not something to keep to ourselves!

So, for me, the penny dropped the other day that I have people of peace in my neighbourhood, right on my doorstep, right in my backyard! I started to think about my neighbours. They all seem to like me. They know I work at a church. Our kids hang out together. I barrack for the same footy team. God's setting me up for success here.

So let me tell you about my back neighbour.......literally in my backyard. Our boys chat to each other over the fence and swap toys and occasionally I have a chat with the guy (we'll call him Jack). Over the last few years, we've shared tools, donated timber and talked about stuff. But the other day he invited us over for a couple of drinks on a Friday night. My wife and I discussed the implications for our kids being in bed at that time and decided....yeah, lets do it! So we put a baby monitor next to our baby's room, said goodnight to our other two boys and here's the fun part.......we put ladders on either side of our back fence and climbed over the fence and joined them! Nice entrance. We spent a couple of hours getting to know Jack and his wife, interrupted by the occasional murmur from our 10 month old, and we had a great time........in their home.

As it alludes to in Luke 10:5, a 'person of peace' is someone who invites you into their home. Once you've been invited into someone's home you can bless that family with the very presence of God that you carry as a Christian. I believe that as we have the power and love of Jesus within us that we change atmospheres wherever we go as we are aware of what the Holy Spirit is doing. You can just let it flow out. People pick up on the fact that there is something different and it makes them feel good.

We've actually got nothing to lose, cos as it reminds us in verse 6 of Luke 10, "If those who live there are peaceful, the blessing will stand; if they are not, the blessing will return to you".

So who are the people of peace that God has placed in your neighbourhood or sphere of influence?
Invite them into your home. Or better still, maybe God will set you up and they will invite you into their home.

Take a risk and get to know the people around you at another level.

Being Relational

So who are the people God has placed in your backyard? Who do you have relationship with?

We all have a particular sphere of influence which can include one or a number of the following:

• family - primary and extended family members
• where we live - people in our neighborhood
• where we work - colleagues
• where we study - school, university, online
• where we shop - shopping centres, supermarkets
• where we exercise - sport/fitness clubs
• where we take our kids - sport, daycare, school, parties
• where we socialise - social media, BBQs, parties, etc
• where we worship - church (do we assume that everyone at church is a Christian.....hmmm)

In every one of these environments we have relationship with people. Obviously we are more relational with some than others but every one of those people needs Jesus......if they haven't already found him. 

'Relational' evangelism is about sharing Jesus with these people in our spheres of influence. We don't have to go and find people to share Jesus with........they are already there! God has already put people in our lives for such a time as this.......to see a reflection of Jesus in normal everyday Christians like you and me.

In fact, instead of sharing Jesus, let's just tone it back a bit.........and just 'be Jesus' to the world. 

"Now hang on a minute Paul you can't be Jesus". 

Well, yeah of course, but WE are ambassadors of Christ (2 Cor 5:20), we are the people who re-present the character (attitudes, words and actions) of Jesus to the world around us. Opportunities to share will flow out of consistent expressions of God's love towards others. No need to rush.

All we need to do is to be aware of the power and love of Jesus that lives INSIDE of us and let the Holy Spirit flow out of us onto others in crazy amazing ways. But here's the key......more often than not this happens through our obedience....our step of faith.....our courage. 

In coming months I will unpack some more specific aspects of how we can be authentic representations of Christ to others......so stay tuned. The gospels are full of brilliant illustrations of how Jesus connected with people with whom he had some form of relationship and also those with whom he had just met!

He's the model........so let's allow more of Jesus to flow out of us onto others in our sphere.

My backyard

Hi. My name is Paul.

There's a number of things in life that I love - my wife, my kids, my church, my friends, my footy team, my music, my guitar. More than any of these I love God.
He's cleaned up my backyard and given me freedom, life and hope through Jesus.

The reason I love God so much is that He loved me first.
His love is so unconditional and so profound that I feel compelled to share it with others. I want people around me to know this same peace, joy, kindness, goodness and love.

So I guess there's one more thing that I'm learning to love................people.  And I want to do this well. I want to be an authentic representation of Jesus to the people God has placed in my life, in my sphere of influence...........in my backyard.

Join me as I share some of my experiences, thoughts and practical tips on how to love the people in our backyards.