What kind of bridge are you building?

As a Christ follower, I am called to build a bridge for those who don't know Christ. The bridge that I build for them will show them the way to Christ. I've recently been asking myself the question, "What kind of bridge am I building for them?" Maybe the bridge is for friends? Maybe the bridge is for family? Maybe the bridge is for co-workers?  

Often we attempt to construct these bridges out of our words. We talk to our family, friends and co-workers about Christ and repeatedly invite them to church only to have our words fall on deaf ears.

Here's a newsflash: people don't want a bridge built out of words, they want a bridge built by your actions. People want a bridge of proof!  

It says in the Bible that in the first century church their numbers grew daily.  How in the world did they do that?  Think about what that means.  Their numbers actually grew daily and they didn't have the things that we have now: no church buildings, no full time staff pastors, no lights, no sound systems, no small group studies, they had nothing that we now find so indispensable. 

All they had was the love of Christ. They built their bridges with nothing more than the love of Christ.  They took care of the sick, they fed the hungry, they clothed the naked, not so people would say, “Oh, look at what they have done.”  But so people would say, “Look at what God is doing.”  The people in the 1^st century church were different than those around them.  They didn't act like everybody else.  That's what we're missing today.  We don’t act any different than anybody else.  We say we're different, but we don’t act any different. 

How do you treat people at work?

What do you talk about at school?

What do you watch when you're home alone?

How do you treat your parents?

How do you treat your kids?

Who are you when no one is looking?

Our actions speak louder than our words. I love the words of Brennan Manning who said...

"The single greatest cause of atheism in the world today is Christians who acknowledge Jesus with their lips, then walk out the door and deny Him by their lifestyles. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable."

How's your bridge?