Christian Living

Our lives as testimonies

by jay supetran
08/28/17
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And to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: you should mind your own business and work with your hands, just as we told you, so that your daily life may win the respect of outsiders and so that you will not be dependent on anybody. - 1Thessalonians 4:11-12

Ambition is a lofty dream. It is a vision of something big in the future, and one that is associated with the young. In school, describing one’s ambition is a recurring practice in English classes and we were required either to write an essay or recite in front of the class one’s ambition.  Stories of role models were also shared highlighting the virtues the teachers wanted us to emulate.  As a young boy, my dreams were shaped partly as a result of these exercises.

It is nice to know that deep inside each of us is a spring of  ‘dreams’ and we only need to be inspired for these dreams to come out.  Proverbs 20:5 states, ‘The purposes of a person’s heart are deep waters, but one who has insight draws them out.’ People have to be coached, inspired, encouraged to let their inner self be released. Sometimes, it takes a ‘facilitator’ to let these dreams gush out of one’s heart.

But dreams usually end up differently. The people of God who are aligned with His purposes are ushered into a direction which at times may be different from what we have envisioned. Paul’s letter to the Thessalonians instructed Christians to lead a quiet life, but how do we live a quiet life?

First, we need to have an honest source of income.  The text emphasized the reason is for us not to be dependent on others. Second, we have to ‘mind our own business’ which means focusing our efforts to provide the best service or deliver the best product to our clients.  Whether we are working as an employee or managing our own businesses, we have to be good at it. We have to avoid coveting the position of co-workers or destroying our competitors with all the means at our disposal.   

The same passion and enthusiasm is expected of us in our homes. We can raise a family where each member ‘mind their own business,’ each one contributing to make our homes a harmonious place to live.

Without even preaching, the quiet life we live is our testimony. This is the image that will be seen by people around us, the life they would want to emulate.  The ‘outsiders’ will be attracted to the peace they will see in our quiet life. They will try to understand why the people of God do not crave like other people do, or fight to get their wants.  The popular saying, ‘Live simply so that others may simply live’ summarizes the message of  a quiet life.

And so the choice is ours, we can crave and exert all our energies to attain the ambitions of our youth, or we can let God lead us to a quiet life.