According to my very old and wonderful World Book Encyclopedia dictionary, an Ambassador is a representative sent by their government or highest ruler. Well, God (creator of everything) is the highest Ruler there is. He is Lord of lords and King of kings, and we as His Chosen are His Ambassadors [representatives]!
Until I met the young girls from France, I had never interacted with anyone from France before. So, my first impression of French people and their attitudes was not a good one thanks to them and the people that chaperoned them on their trip. Now thank God I am mature enough to work through that and hopefully not let it interfere with how I perceive someone I might meet one day from France. Because we all know there is good and bad in all nationalities of people, from every country and every walk of life, so we can’t allow it to tarnish us against any particular group. But often that is not the attitude of those who have had a bad experience in a church or with church folks. And why is that? I think because we have forgotten what it means to be an Ambassador for the Kingdom of God.
What does it entail being an Ambassador? Well, for starters we must remember our position at all times. To put it in a nutshell, “We are the visible representation for an invisible God!”
Years ago when I worked in a large teaching hospital in Philadelphia, there was a young man who told the world he was a Christian. But it wasn’t in a good way. Truth be told, if I had not been a Christian there is no way I would have wanted to hear anything he had to say. He came off as being superior and better than others, yet he was not the best worker around. In fact it seemed he spent too much time preaching to folks (that was not his job) then doing the work he was being paid to do. One day in a very crowed elevator a young woman got on from his department and he said loud enough for everyone to hear, “Oh look here comes the devil!” And she turned around and cussed him out in a way that when I was growing up was only reserved for sailors! The truth is…he asked for it. His pompous, puffed up, judgmental and holier than thou attitude alienated him from those who needed to hear the Good News. And he looked nothing like Christ which made him a poor excuse for an Ambassador. And that was a bad reflection on God’s Kingdom.
I recently had a situation where I have not been a good Ambassador myself. The house that is attached to ours is rented out to four guys who attend a local university. They are loud, drink all the time and started off their first week here by throwing wild parties a couple of times a week, making enemies of the neighbors and me. As I look back on how I have handled a couple of the incidents with them, I see where if it were to come up that I am a Christian; they might have doubts about that. I didn’t cuss them out or anything like that, but my attitude toward them has not been right to say the least.
Once when their plastic cups and trash from the latest party had blown over to our property instead of picking it up and putting it in the trash, I threw it back on their side. In fact I threw the same cup back on three different occasions in a 5 day period!! Am I proud of this? Nope! But I’m sharing to show how we can all get caught up in forgetting who we represent. None of us has arrived and it doesn’t matter how old you are or how long you have been walking with the Lord—it can happen!
I want to encourage us to look at what type of Representative or Ambassador we are? How do we look to others? Do we standout because we work in excellence or do we blend in with everyone else? Are we kind and patient while standing in line or grumble and complain like others? How do our neighbors perceive us? Do they think we are kind and hard workers, or do they see us as standoffish and puffed up? If one of your neighbors needed something would they feel comfortable in asking you for help even if they really don’t know you? Same goes for people in your church, how is God represented through you to them?
Being an Ambassador in the Kingdom of God is a 24/7 position. It entails how we act at all times…from pumping gas, to the way we drive, interactions with our coworkers, family, neighbors, bosses, spouses, children, friends, the cashier at the supermarket, the clerk in the department store, the babysitter, the waitress in the restaurant, even the people we pass on the street. Anyone we come in contact with during our day will be subject to the way we are representing our Father.
We need to be diligent in making God and His Kingdom look good to others. It is more likely people (who do not know the Lord) will read us long before they read the Bible. So, ask yourself, “What are they seeing?” Are they intrigued because they see that something is different about you? Do they wonder how it is you are always so joyful and pleasant all the time? Or do they want to run and hide when they see you coming? These are questions we really do need to ask ourselves and if the answers are not the right ones, then it’s time to change things around.
As for my situation I’ve asked God to forgive me for not being as kind as I could have been and to help me remember who I represent in any future dealings I might have with them.
I hope I have encouraged you my dear sisters to take a moment to see if there is any area in your life you are falling short, in how you represent God. People in this world need the Lord, and they should be able to see the Love of Christ through all whose names are in the book of life. Amen!
Look for a blog next week, until then….be blessed!!
Love & Hugs
Ponnie
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