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Of the world’s 6 billion people, one
third are Christians. In Malaysia, it is estimated that
one out of every ten persons is a Christian. Yet, why
are we not seeing the influence that Christians should
have in our society? Why is it that Christians today do
not have the ability to turn the world right side up?
(Acts 17:6).
I believe that the main reason is that
many Christians suffer somewhat from "spiritual
schizophrenia".
When I was in my fourth year of
Pharmacy, some of my coursemates and I were assigned to
visit a psychiatric ward to observe patients of various
mental illnesses and their medical treatments. My group
interviewed a lady patient. When we first approached
her, she told us that she was a princess, and her father
a general in China. Then she related to us the glorious
story of her father. Halfway through the story, she
suddenly claimed that she was a famous nightclub singer.
Soon, she climbed on a table and belted out an old
Chinese pop song. Such an illness is called
schizophrenia.
Today, many Christians suffer somewhat
from "spiritual schizophrenia". Our lives have
become compartmentalized--our work separated from our
faith, and our Sundays detached from other days.
On Sundays, we sing, "Jesus is
Lord, He is the King"; on other days, "I am
the king".
On Sundays, we sing, "I will live
for Jesus’; on other days, "I will live for
television".
On Sundays, we sing, "Jesus, I
love You, I’ll do anything for You"; on other
days, "Money, I love you, I’ll do anything for
you".
On Sundays, "Peace be with
you"; on other days, "War with our
spouses".
On Sundays, "I want to be a
witness for God"; on other days, we are afraid to
admit that we are Christians.
On Sundays, "I want to change the
world"; on other days, "The world has changed
me".
May I introduce you to a prescription-–WWJD
(What Would Jesus Do). Please take it as and when the
need arises!
We should ask ourselves every day,
"What would Jesus do in this situation? What would
Jesus want me to do?" When we remind ourselves with
such questions, we are indeed learning to let Christ
be our Lord and through the power of the Holy
Spirit, obey Jesus in what He wants us to do.
Having applied the WWJD, we would know
the changes necessary on our part when:
we have done something unrighteous
for selfish gain,
we have hurt our spouses,
we have neglected our children,
we have relationship problems,
we have been self-centred,
we are greedy and want to gain the
whole world,
we are being judgmental,
we are lazy,
we have spent too much time
watching TV,
we are in the midst of trials,
we are being tempted,
we are self-righteous, or
our colleagues are in need.
Let’s learn to walk with God moment
by moment, to pray without ceasing (communicate with
God), to be sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit,
to die to self and be alive to God. As a result, we will
be more and more like Christ. And the people around us
will praise our Father in heaven as they see our good
works and our light shine before men (Matt. 5:16).
While on a flight from Lawas to
Limbang, Sarawak, a fellow passenger told me that he
believed in Christ because of the influence of a group
of natives. Wearing a thick beard, Mr. Wong looked
serious. Initially, I hesitated if I should share the
gospel with him. Then I decided to get to know him.
Mr. Wong grew up in a family that
believes in folk religion. However, he himself did not
believe in any religion. In 1997, a native pastor came
to his hardware shop in Lawas. He needed about RM 30,000
worth of building materials to expand his church. But
the church could only pay him back by installments—a
down payment of RM1,000, and monthly payments of RM500
to RM1,000. Mr. Wong said, "Normally if a company
wants to owe us RM 5,000, we would have to check their
account first. But it was different that time; I felt at
ease to sell them the materials." The church kept
its promise. Knowing that he could trust the church and
the pastor, whenever Mr. Wong faced with a problem, he
took the initiative to share it with the pastor. Mr.
Wong accepted Jesus over time.
At that moment, I thought, how
risky! If that pastor had not kept his promise, Mr. Wong
would not have received Christ. When the church and
the pastor applied their faith into their lives, they
became light and salt. As a result, others not only heard
the gospel, they also saw the gospel.
Influencers for Christ integrate their
faith into their lives. Let us take WWJD every moment!
What does Jesus want you to do in your situation now?
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