be influential
I bought another book "the inner voice of love" by Henri Nouwen. He is becoming one of my favorite Christian authors. I love Nouwen for his openness and honesty about his own brokenness which I can relate to mine.
Last week I finished "life of the beloved". It was not the book I expected, because he wasn't successful in speaking to the secular world as he intended to. But it is a good book. Here is one of the paragraphes I like. It's not anything new, but it's something I need to remind myself of again and again.
"Spiritually you do not belong to the world. And this is precisely why you are sent into the world. Your family and your friends, your colleagues and your competitiors, and all the people you may meet on your journey through life are all searching for more than survival. Your presence among them as the one who is sent will allow them to catch a glimpse of the real life."
No matter how many times I have been disappointed by the reality, I still think of myself as an idealist from this world's point of view. I still believe that any small action or gesture from me would have some influence on people around me. And by doing that, I believe that I put God before myself and sometimes it helps me get rid of my self-pity or resentment toward others.
For example, I invited my colleagues to church last week. Only one was interested, yet ended up not going, but I don't regret doing that. I don't know how this tiny invitation would influence their lives, or not. I only know that I have seen God use chances like that to do amazing things.
One of my best friends told me that she went to a local church last Friday. I am not sure if I have been of any influence on her about this topic, but she knows everything about me and I have been encouraging her to seek God. At least what I have been saying and doing did not put a negative effect on her path, which is something I worry about when I talk to non-religious people.
All in all, I don't understand why and how God does things. Yet I do what I do if I could.
Last week I finished "life of the beloved". It was not the book I expected, because he wasn't successful in speaking to the secular world as he intended to. But it is a good book. Here is one of the paragraphes I like. It's not anything new, but it's something I need to remind myself of again and again.
"Spiritually you do not belong to the world. And this is precisely why you are sent into the world. Your family and your friends, your colleagues and your competitiors, and all the people you may meet on your journey through life are all searching for more than survival. Your presence among them as the one who is sent will allow them to catch a glimpse of the real life."
No matter how many times I have been disappointed by the reality, I still think of myself as an idealist from this world's point of view. I still believe that any small action or gesture from me would have some influence on people around me. And by doing that, I believe that I put God before myself and sometimes it helps me get rid of my self-pity or resentment toward others.
For example, I invited my colleagues to church last week. Only one was interested, yet ended up not going, but I don't regret doing that. I don't know how this tiny invitation would influence their lives, or not. I only know that I have seen God use chances like that to do amazing things.
One of my best friends told me that she went to a local church last Friday. I am not sure if I have been of any influence on her about this topic, but she knows everything about me and I have been encouraging her to seek God. At least what I have been saying and doing did not put a negative effect on her path, which is something I worry about when I talk to non-religious people.
All in all, I don't understand why and how God does things. Yet I do what I do if I could.
posted by beneathwing at 12:38 PM
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