I Am Not Ashamed

As I was typing this, I realized many would think it came to be as a result of the Charlie Kirk murder and the resulting conversations. While perhaps the timing was exactly what God planned all along, the truth is that God has been asking me to be more vocal in sharing His Word online for well over a year now. I have just pushed it off repeatedly due to numerous reasons, with the main two being fear and feeling unprepared. We live in a society where one wrong sentence will get you cancelled, and with me owning a company and working with clients and interacting with many of ALL different backgrounds and beliefs, one source of that fear should be obvious. However, I have been learning more about and developing my own healthy fear of God recently, and in the words of William Gurnall, "We fear men so much, because we fear God so little. One fear cures another.”

As for feeling ill-prepared, I like to have a plan in place and details sorted before I take on something new. So, I naturally thought God would give me exact clarity on what this was to look like first. Does he want me to start a podcast, write a blog, create a YouTube channel, or the like? I truthfully don’t want to do any of these things nor am I confident I need to, at least currently. Still, after delaying for many months, I felt so clearly within my spirit today that God told me the method is not important, but the obedience of doing it is. It was as if he was gently calling out my procrastination and telling me to stop thinking and just start talking. So, here I am…

I feel that I owe you all an apology. I have already confessed my sin before the One I have most offended, and now I come to those of you who follow me on social media or even just occasionally read a post or scroll over a photo posted by me. I have been sharing small snapshots of my life online since it became possible (that’s quite a long time), but by and large, most of what I have shared has had an underlying motive of validation. There are exceptions, but I often only share the things that I know others will like or approve of…exciting trips around the world, insta-worthy meals, and personal/professional achievements. None of these things is inherently bad, nor wrong to post about; I probably will continue to do so, to some extent, as social media has become a virtual scrapbook of sorts for me. 

The posting of these things is not what I owe you an apology for, but for my desire for your approval over God’s, as well as my lack of posting about what matters the most in this world and in my life: God the Father, Jesus Christ the Son, and the Holy Spirit. 

Like many, I want to be seen as successful, intelligent, capable, attractive, and important, so I often post to either convince you of this or reinforce that image. In short, I want the proverbial “you” to like me and accept me. While this remains true, I’m grateful to say, with full authenticity, that I now care more about being accepted by and pleasing to God. That begins with confession and repentance.

God has been changing my heart for quite some time now, but I have experienced significantly more spiritual growth over the past 2 years as I have dedicated more daily time to studying His Word and learning more of the truth of who He says He is and what He wants us to know about Him, rather than what the world says or focuses on. In short, I’m learning to abide in God (see John 15:1-8). I am no longer relying simply on outside sources, even fellow Christians and pastors, to teach me about God (though they certainly do and I welcome and am grateful for it), but I am learning to personally seek Him more earnestly and experience the promise in James 4:8: “ Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you.” 

I have a lot of mixed feelings about social media and while I do not spend much time on it these days (other than posting content for my business), I realize I may have been viewing and handling it incorrectly before. Previously, I just saw most social media channels as a place where largely unhappy and unhealthy people come to rant, brag, lie, manipulate, slander, and envy. While I can’t say these things are not true, it is also not the complete picture. There are also those bringing attention to important causes and injustices, resources for those in need, education on a plethora of topics, uplifting stories, connections made, and more. As with most things in this world, the benefit or harm behind the tool lies with the individuals and collective groups who utilize it. 

I think many, including myself, get discouraged as we see the hate-filled, selfish, and idolatrous posts coming from both unbelievers and believers alike. It is tempting to feel the best solution is to remove ourselves entirely, or in my case, at least be silent on these inflammatory topics so as not to be viewed as “one of them” or associated with those who use God’s name but do not display His heart or behavior. However, how are we as true Christ followers, and not simply believers, going to both show and share the good news of Jesus Christ with unbelievers and also disciple immature Christians if we remain silent and removed? If those of us who love and proclaim Christ are not standing up against false witnesses or those dishonoring God’s name in all arenas (including online), we leave the preaching of God’s Word to misled Christians who have embraced the world’s doctrine, immature believers who are not firmly rooted in the knowledge and fear of God, those hurt by individuals within the church who are projecting that onto God, and false prophets who are misrepresenting themselves to hurt the church, to name a few. 

While I have prided myself on staying out of the noise online, I now see that I don’t have to devote any time or energy to consuming what is being said in order to contribute my own voice and share God’s message.  While we as Christians often shake our heads and fingers at social media (and for good reason), the fact is that this is where the world is spending its time and receiving the bulk of its information. So, those of us who follow Christ and revere God need to use our voices, especially in this outlet, to stand up for our King and the truth of His Word and authority. God alone has the power to save and to heal this broken world. Let us stop trying to condemn and argue with a fallen world full of sinners (ourselves included) and instead let’s preach the true Word of God while modeling Jesus’ example with Matthew 22 in mind:

And one of them, an expert in the law, asked a question to test him: “Teacher, which command in the law is the greatest?” He said to him, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind. This is the greatest and most important command. The second is like it: Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets depend on these two commands.”

So, I am committing to no longer shying away from defending my Savior and the truth He died for us to take hold of. I have no desire to promote myself as an authority figure, act like I have it all figured out, nor argue with others about differing beliefs. I simply want to love God and others more fully, and to do so, I know that demands obedience in sharing His Word and correcting false doctrine. 

Many young people today are being raised as syncretists, often without realizing it, melding beliefs from different religions or philosophies rather than following one fully. Romans 10:17 states, “So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.” It is the responsibility of all Christ followers today to share God’s story (as well as our story) with the next generation. We see many times in the Old Testament where the newer generation of Israelites kept forgetting about God when their leaders and elders passed away. They would repeatedly fall back into idolatry and then God’s judgment, and eventually cry out for God to save them amidst their defeat and suffering (which he amazingly did). Let us not be a generation that allows the younger ones to forget, that dooms them to repeat the same cycles.

I plan on tackling some hard topics in the coming weeks and months, all through the lens of God’s word and with the singular purpose of obeying God and sharing His heart, message, and commands with those He so dearly loves. I desire and welcome respectful conversations from anyone about God and the Bible, and how these things apply to current struggles and concerns. My cell is 803-417-4523. 

I also want to encourage my fellow brothers and sisters in Christ to join me and start sharing more authentically and boldly the word of God, from a place of love and obedience, NOT anger or self-righteousness, "for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.” James 1:20