Don't act foolishly

So be careful how you live. Don’t live like fools, but like those who are wise. Make the most of every opportunity in these evil days. Don’t act thoughtlessly, but understand what the Lord wants you to do. (Ephesians 5:15-17)

How can we 'be careful' in our living? The most important thing is to not live like the fools do. What exactly makes for 'foolish behavior'? Any behavior that reveals a total lack of sense, especially when we compare that behavior and its outcome with the scripture. Perhaps this is why God reminds us to put some thought into our behavior. We need to consider our actions - ill-considered actions usually result in poorer results. What we use to 'consider' our actions is important, though. We need the wisdom that comes from the scriptures and the guidance of God's Spirit within us - without that we are flying solo!

To understand what God wants us to do, there are some key things we must incorporate in our daily living:

1. Pray about it - don't just launch it out there and ask God to bless it, then walk away. We need to take time to consider the wisdom of the actions we are about to take and the words we are about to speak. As we pray, we need to listen. The conversation is two-way. When we cut God off, we are living like the fool.

2. Explore what the Word of God has to say - learn from the examples given to us. It is not wise to repeat mistakes others have already made! We can see so many lessons from the life stories that have been recorded for us in scripture. We need to take in God's Word, letting it roll around in our brains a while until it actually begins to assure us of the right actions to take. 

3. Use wise counsel - this is why we need close friends who are also listening intently to the voice of God. We probably don't want to take the counsel of others who are not following Christ because their wisdom is not put through the test of God's Word. We need to be cautious about the voices we listen to for our 'advice' in life - the wrong advice can have us spiraling out of control pretty quickly.

Last, but not least, we need to be sure we remain current with God. That means we need to recognize when we haven't made right choices, repent, and get back on the right track as quickly as possible. The fool will overlook the importance of allowing God to convict him. The power of conviction is often what gets us to consider our course, make the necessary corrections, and get going in the right direction once again. Just sayin! 

What is your impact?

You are bigger than your job, that bank account, or the followers you have amassed on social media. The people you impact are much more powerful than the things you accomplish in this lifetime. View others as more important than yourselves and you might just see just how big your impact can be. There is nothing wrong with having a good career, or a solid bank account. The issue comes when we make these the goal and not just one of the 'means' by which we allow God to accomplish great things in and through our lives!

Even the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom. Even the weakness of God is stronger than human strength. Brothers and sisters, God chose you to be his. Think about that! Not many of you were wise in the way the world judges wisdom. Not many of you had great influence, and not many of you came from important families. But God chose the foolish things of the world to shame the wise. He chose the weak things of the world to shame the strong. (I Corinthians 1:25-27)

God chooses differently than we do, doesn't he? We want a good chance of winning the game, so we choose those skilled in running the ball, executing the plays, and challenging the opponent. We want to grow our investments, so we choose to align our capital in places where it will have the greatest growth opportunity, not always knowing what is behind the companies we are backing by those investments. God chooses the weak - not the strong. Why? Maybe it is because the 'strong' are relying on the wrong thing in life to make it through tough stuff. That makes sense, but why does God choose the foolish to confound the wise?

That doesn't make sense, does it? If we take the literal meaning of foolish, then we wonder why God would take those who show a lack of good sense, judgment, and discretion and do anything good at all through their lives! What is being said here is that God takes what others view as 'insignificant' and uses it to bring glory to his name. We are each 'insignificant' in one way or another and God choose to use us exactly where we are and as we are for his glory. This is what God does - he uses the weak to defeat the strong and the insignificant to tear down the proud.

The impact we have on people begins with the impact God has in our lives. The more we take his grace in, the more we will find our impact in this world. Our impact isn't in what we accomplish, but in what God accomplishes first IN us and then THROUGH us. Just sayin!