Live It

How you live says more about God’s love than the words you speak.

Tim knew all about fires. He knew how not to start them, he knew how to put them out, and what to do if he were on fire (stop, drop, and roll). His mom taught him wildfire statistics and talked about the fires that ravaged the countryside. She even bought fire safety stickers for him to share with his friends. And most of all, she stressed that he should never play with matches. Out of all the boys and girls at Tim’s school, he had the most knowledge about fire safety.

But deep down, Tim wanted to play with fire. On the outside he looked obedient and cooperative, but on the inside he was waiting for an opportunity—any moment when his mom might be distracted—to grab a wad of matches and slip them into his pocket. And sure enough, that day came.

Tim patted the bulge in his pocket on his way to school and thought about what he would do with the forbidden treasure. “I’ll find a safe spot to strike one,” he planned.

On his walk home from school, Tim passed a large field with a small barn beside the road. No one lived across the street, and when Tim sank down in the grass, he was invisible to any passersby. Eagerly he pushed the grasses aside and lit a match. The flame flickered in the breeze. Tim’s eyes were aglow with fascination as the flame traveled down to the end of the matchstick. “Ow!” he exclaimed. Without thinking, he dropped the burning match into a grassy hole, where, try as he might, he could not snuff out the flame. The fire licked up the dry grasses, then escaped into the field.

You have one life: Live it for Jesus!

Tim soon realized that there was nothing that he could do to stop the fire. With an empty pit in his stomach he walked the rest of the way home and silently entered the house.

“Hi, honey,” Mom said from the kitchen. Suddenly she gasped. “I see smoke coming from the field down the road. I need to call the fire department!”

Tim ran back to the field with his mom, where perspiring men fought to stop an out-of-control blaze. The beautiful field became charred, and the barn burned to the ground. When the fire was out, Tim wasn’t relieved: He realized his disobedience had cost the town a lot of money and risked people’s lives. For Tim, fire safety knowledge was good, but not enough. He needed to act on what he knew.

What about you? Maybe you have a lot of knowledge about the Bible, but you’re not obeying what it teaches. If, like Tim, you know what’s right, but you’re not living it, ask God for help! He is calling you to do more than just talk about His goodness or look obedient to His commands on the outside—He’s calling you to be His witness. Being a witness doesn’t mean that you are perfect, but it means that you ask God to help you give your best. You have one life: Live it for Jesus!