Bumper Stickers
I was at a red light the other day, behind a SUV whose back side was completely covered with bumper stickers that represented the many travels that I suppose their family had made. The stickers were carefully situated and stuck on in a very intentional manner. I guess they must serve as sort of a daily family memory of adventure and experience.
I wasn’t quite ready for the light to turn red, because I hadn’t finished reading them all… but nevertheless, the image made an impact for I am still thinking about it.
Bumper stickers give you a small window that tell you a little bit about the passion of the driver, or maybe not passion but their personal interests coming from inside their hearts brought to the outside for the world to see.
Everyday desires, motivations and interests that we have accumulated within our hearts and minds are what drive us. There are those who are quiet and shy natured who keep those thoughts tucked away, either not wanting to share or maybe not thinking there is any value to others if they are released. And then there are those whose bumper stickers in the heart are put out there for the world to see, not knowing how they will be received, and really not needing a response. And then there are those in the middle…share some keep some.
But wherever you and I land, I have found that one thing is certain, when the spirit of our Holy God is living within you, His word is a light to those who are living in darkness, or hurting or need encouragement or just need a friend to be walking beside them on their journey. Each of us can be an intended bumper sticker of God’s truth, grace and love sometimes just by the way we respond to a situation, personally or from afar. Just like the driver of that SUV, he/she has no clue what others have noticed on their car, they just go about their driving and probably don’t even pay much attention to what is on the back until they have to get something out of the back.
So it is with us, when we start with deliberate intentions, and fill our hearts with what our passions/interests are, we then go about our business...and we lose focus. But if we consciously choose the Lord as our passion, and each morning recommitting our desire to honor HIM, then we are leaving our actions for the world to see, not knowing how those who are watching will respond. That is God’s business and oversight. But knowing too that God can use what is in our hearts and expressed outside of our hearts to make a difference in someone else’s. A heart that is full of God’s grace, humility, and kindness is a bumper sticker on the body that we drive. And, so too, are the fruits of our spirit, a reflection of what abides on the inside of our hearts.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
Next time you are at a red light, be reminded that the bumper sticker that you see in front of you, be it of your liking or not, reflects the interests of the driver, and let the bumper sticker in your heart, this day and everyday be a reflection of your intended passion in loving God and sharing it quietly or otherwise. For when you let your outside be a reflection of your inside, you never know how God will use You to be an influencer to others. For you never know who is watching, and you will probably never be aware of how a simple bump of kindness or a word of loving encouragement can stick, and light up a life unknown.
Oh Lord, let your Spirit that dwells inside of us be reflected in what others see outside of us! Amen
Praise God wherever you are or whatever situation he has allowed you to be in...for his Glory will shine through!
