Lights! Camera! Action

The stage is set.,the rehearsals are over, actors are in place . The director is in place, and the countdown has begun. 3…2…1….action. From start to finish, the actors play their roles flawlessly.  At the final scene, lights fade, and the director yells “Cut. That’s a wrap. Great job people.” Everyone leaves and returns to their regular lives. The role they just played was simply for that appointed time and space. The actors portrayed something different than who they truly are.  The actors can even portray the character so well, we no longer see them as who they are, but rather who they are called to portray.  How often do we too, go through life, as a full-time actor, always ready for stage, portraying to be someone we are not, or portraying who others think we are?

Too often in life, we go through the motions of doing. We can get so caught up in the busyness of what we are doing that we lose focus and sight of the why behind what we are doing. 

I was on a recent prayer call, and the facilitator asked a question: are you a believing believer? Now, this may seem like a question with an obvious answer. Of course we are believers. We were on a prayer call together, praying together, and believing in the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus. That makes us a believer.  But do we move beyond just “believing?”  You see, believing means we acknowledge something is true. We have accepted it as fact.  However, do we move beyond the state of “belief” to a place that we believe in?  When we believe in something, we put our complete faith and trust, not just in the existence, but that it will do exactly what it is supposed to do.  When we believe that something or someone will do exactly what they are supposed to do, our response is different.  We move in a stronger flow. We are more confident. We trust, and we do not worry about if or when something will happen, we know without a doubt that it will.  

I wonder, how often do we do this to God? Yes, we believe, but are we really believing in Him? Are we trusting Him completely, and not just giving “lip service”?  Are we regularly showing up to church, prayer meetings, Bible studies, and all, because it is what we “trained” and “practiced” doing?   Are we putting on a show for others, or even ourselves? Have we totally and fully put our faith and trust in God?
When we truly get to the place of not just belief, but really believing and believing in, our actions change. We move from just doing, but remember the why behind what we are doing. We do not worry about who or what is around us, we simply just move, trusting God’s process. After all, He is the best author, director, and producer around.  The stage is set for us, not to pretend but to truly be who we are created to be, and declare we are.  How we show up matters.  How we respond to various tests and trials matters.  Others are watching our actions, because of who we say we are.   Matthew 5:14 reminds us that we are the light of the world. It goes on to say in Matthew 5:16:  “let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”  The stage is set,and the spotlight is on us. Let’s make sure we show them, not just who we are, but who we represent.  Light! Camera! Actions! Let’s show our belief!