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are you a hypocrite
Team Huddle
1 min.Read

Does Your Christian Lifestyle Fit the Label?

Lamica A. Burnett
By Lamica A. Burnett

Last week, I was serving my husband dinner after a long, stress-filled day.  It was a 90-degree afternoon during rush hour traffic when his work truck experienced a massive blow out. Traffic was especially heavy, as the city’s commuters were frantically exiting downtown Washington, D.C. for Memorial Day weekend.

Knowing first hand the overwhelm of the gridlock, coupled with the agitation of being stranded, I did my best to ensure that he was well taken care of when he finally arrived home.

He smiled with appreciation as I prepared his second helping.

“Why thank you my gracious lady!” he said.

Huh, gracious lady?

He was reading the wording on my newest bling tee. Even though I was wearing the t-shirt, for some reason the term “gracious lady” took me by surprise.

What’s the Condition of Your Heart?

I immediately felt a check in my spirit.  I had to stop and ask myself “Am I a gracious lady every day?”

By definition the word gracious means “marked by kindness and courtesy; characterized by charm and generosity of spirit.”

I had to pause and consider the attitude of my heart on a daily basis.  Fortunately, on this day I was empathetic and gentle.

On other days, however, my acts of service seem more like tedious, exhausting chores rather than gestures of love.

What label are YOU wearing?

As followers of Jesus Christ, with t-shirts, hats, and bumper stickers proclaiming our faith, we must be mindful to avoid the appearance of being a fraud or a hypocrite.

Are your feet and your words in alignment?  Does your walk match your talk?

Are you living up to what your t-shirt promotes, or are you laying down your religion when pushed to your limit?

Does the declaration on your bumper sticker reflect the real you, or are you using ‘red letter edition’ words for the difficult people who cut you off in traffic?

So, what is the play call?

Take a few minutes to pause and do a heart check.  Look at the logos and slogans that mark your life and the ones you call yourself:

Christian
Child of the Most High God
Saint
Jesus is Lord
TEAM JESUS

Are you living up to the labels you wear?  Be sure your life brings God glory.

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They Changed Their Minds about Slavery and Left a Bible Record

0
Two businessmen’s unusual conversion in 1700s South Carolina led them to liberate the people they put in bondage. At first glance, William Turpin and his business partner, Thomas Wadsworth, appeared to be like most other prestigious and powerful white men in late 18th-century South Carolina. They were successful Charleston merchants, had business interests across the state, got involved in state politics, and enslaved numerous human beings. Nothing about them seemed out of the ordinary. But, quietly, these two men changed their minds about slavery. They became committed abolitionists and worked to free dozens of enslaved people across South Carolina. When most wealthy, white Carolinians were increasingly committed to slavery and defending it as a Christian institution, Turpin and Wadsworth were compelled by their convictions to break the shackles they had placed on dozens of men and women. In an era when the Bible was edited so that enslaved people wouldn’t get the idea that God cared about their freedom, Turpin left a secret record of emancipation in a copy of the Scriptures, which is now in the South Carolina State Museum. Perhaps it’s not surprising that this story of faith and freedom is mostly unknown. The two men were, after all, working not to attract attention. Neither had deep roots in Charleston or close familial ties to its storied white “planter” dynasties. Turpin’s family was originally from Rhode Island, and Wadsworth was a native of Massachusetts who moved to South Carolina only shortly after the American Revolution. Both had public careers and served in the South Carolina Legislature, but their political profiles were not particularly high. Neither of them appeared to give any of their legislative colleagues the sense that they were developing strong, countercultural opinions on one of the most ...Continue reading...

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