Who Are We?

In 1 Corinthians Chapter 5 verse 17 we read,  Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. Even if you're not a Christian read on. Theres a message for everyone.
What does it mean to be 'in' Christ? What does it mean to become a 'new' creature? What does it mean that 'old things are passed away'? And what does it mean 'all things become new'? Lets take a brief look at what it might mean and the implication for each of us.

What does it mean to be 'in' Christ? Christ is Christianity. He epitomizes good. He is the ultimate example of living and dying for others. If we are 'in' Christ we must try and live as best we can by His example. Do we?
What does it mean to become a 'new' creature? None of us can match the daily behavior of the Savior of mankind, Christ, but we can try. We can get up each day and become new in our behavior towards others. The battle in life is not that I might become better than you; the battle in life is that I reach my potential in Gods eyes. What did I do with what I was born with? That is the opportunity we have to become better, to become new.
What does it mean that 'old things are passed away'? As we change our behavior we leave the old behind and we become a new person. We can not move to a new destination without leaving the old. I have a close friend from my Nam sniper days who spent twenty years riding with a bad biker gang. He went through three wives and many bad things but today he has been married for twenty years, is a business owner, raises expensive horses and has put the gang long behind him. How did he do it? He sold everything he had where he lived, moved across the United States and started over. He told me he had to leave his old haunts and old friends behind or he could never change. His 'old things' passed away. Yours can too.
What does it mean 'all things become new'? When we choose to change the way we are and actually implement those changes in our lives, we can become new people. My friend surprised us all by becoming so much more than we would have ever given him credit for had we not seen it with our own eyes. You can become new, in Christ by making the changes in your life that emulate Christ example.

Who are we? In the end ... we are who we choose to be. Whether you believe in Christ or not, you can become new. You can choose to put the old you behind and become new. I believe we should follow Jesus Christ, you are free to believe as you will. Becoming better is open to all of us. Each new day is a new beginning. Each choice is a change for change.
In the end we are as we behave. A saying I love and committed to memory is, "What we do each day is what we believe, all the rest is just talk". What believe shows each day in the choices you make which results in behavior people ultimately interpret as you. You decide.

For a better tomorrow ...

Be the Change You Wish to See in the World

My goal with this post is simple. To share the idea that the reason for the problems in America can be found by looking in the mirror. We are all responsible for the demise of our great country. We will therefore find the solution starts with the person we find in the mirror.

Mahatma Gandhi once said, "We must be the change we wish to see in the world". Never has that statement been more true than it is for us living in America today. As we look around we see an America most of us aren't happy with and don't recognize. And if you're like me, you've spent a lot of time complaining about what 'they' are doing to my country.

Here's the big news ... there are no 'they' only each of us. We say God has been taken from America, He is no longer allowed in our schools and court rooms and public places. We have to look in the mirror and ask ourselves where we were while that was happening? Were we being the change we say we want in our country? Were we protecting that which we say is so important to us? Were we walking our talk or were we just talking the talk?

As we start this journey towards becoming better people we need to know that the only one responsible for our actions is the person looking back at us in the mirror. If we're going to become better people and follow God and help our great nation it begins with each of us, as individuals. It begins with us 'being' the world we wish to see.

Look in the mirror and ask yourself, if you believe in God, are you the change God would want to see? The proof is in our behavior, not our words. Look in the mirror and ask yourself, if you are an American patriot, are you a walking example of patriotism and loyalty to our great country? Remember, the proof is in our behavior.

When we are upset with our Congress, remember we elected them, for years in most cases. When we are upset with our local school board we elected them. If you didn't vote through the years then look in the mirror. If we go to church for the social aspect and say we get nothing out of it, look in the mirror. The late Stephen Covey taught a powerful principle. He said, 'you cannot talk yourself out of a problem you behaved yourself into'. We must behave ourselves out of this problem. As we become better people, living and standing for common values, we will have a better country.

When Gandhi said, "Be the change you wish to see in the world" I think he was talking about behavior. Because anytime you think the problem is out 'there', that very thought is the problem. Gandhi did not say 'they' are causing the problem. He was a man who lived what he said and ended up giving his life for what he believed. He was committed. Our founding fathers and pioneers were committed. If we are going to be the positive change America needs we will have to be committed to 'being' the change we say we want to see in the world. There is no other way.

For a better tomorrow ...