Lately I have been religiously watching the show White Collar. It's about a former con man turned FBI consultant named Neil Caffrey. In season 2, there is a scene where Neil is contemplating his old lifestyle when one of his friends says, "You can either be a con or a man, but you can't be both." It was a simple sentence but it completely changed the thought process. He was given a choice: either to fall back into his old habits; lying and stealing for his own benefit or continue in the lifestyle that gave him new meaning to his life, one that was filled with honesty and responsibility for his actions.
The same is true with Christianity. There are many people who claim to be Christ followers yet their lifestyle rejects Him. The choice is extremely simple: either keep living in sin with guilt and the 'not good enough' falsehood, going back to momentary pleasures that never satisfy or surrender your life to Christ; depending on Him for grace, love, and guidance. I say the choice is simple because it is. We often get caught up in the 'things' you must give up or the so called 'rules' that you think you have to live by, but the choice is still simple. You see, when you understand the cross and what Jesus did for you, love begins to make sense. You realize that you can't earn your salvation and your heart begins to soften. Then God begins to change your wants and desires to match up with His. The Bible isn't a rulebook, it's the guidebook to life and life to the fullest. You either are going to make the choice to reject Christ or accept Him, but the choice must be made. The choice is simple, the process will be difficult, but the reward is eternal. You can either be for God or against Him, but you can't be both!
When you live a life above reproach with full integrity, people notice. One of the greatest defensemen of all time is current Detroit Red Wing captain Nick Lidstrom. In fact, not only is he great at what he does but he has the entire leagues respect. Coach Mike Babcock is quoted saying this about him, "I think the number one most impressive thing about Nick Lidstrom is the kind of man he is and when you see him around his family, around his teammates, and in the community, how can anyone that good be that humble."
What type of person are you?
What type of person are you?
