I REFUSE to Be Silent

For the past four weeks, my pastor has been preaching a series called, Silenced.  He has been talking about how, as followers of Jesus, we cannot be silent in our prayers, our lives, or our beliefs.  I have been praying about how exactly God wants me to go about not being silent.  And He simply answered, "Just don't."  It's that simple.  Just don't be silent.

Today I read Mark 5:1-20.  This is the passage where Jesus heals a man who is possessed by a legion of demons.  Jesus casts the demons into a herd of pigs, and the man is healed.  The man wanted to go with Jesus, but instead, Jesus responded, "Go home to your family and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you" (v. 19).  Once again, Jesus is reminding me of His command.  Go tell my family.  Go tell my friends.  Go tell people I have never before met. 

The following verse says, "So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis (which means 'Ten Cities') how much Jesus had done for him.  And all the people were amazed."  The man who had been healed did as Jesus commanded him.  We have already been healed by the pouring out of His blood on the cross.  So go tell someone.  If you're worried what people will say, don't.  For this man, "all the people were amazed."  "Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight" (Prov. 3:5-6).  Don't consider yourself; consider Him.  Trust Him.  In ALL your ways, acknowledge Him.  Tell others about His love and about what He has done for you.  If you do this, He is faithful and just and will keep His promises (Psalm 117:7). 

I ask you these three questions.  What true works of God have you seen in your own life or in others' lives?  Who are your "family" to whom you can be a witness?  How do you overcomplicate the simple act of sharing what God has done for you?  These are the same questions I was humbled by today.  I overcomplicate my daily life in order to somehow "escape" God.  That's impossible.  Just like being silent is impossible.  So go tell someone!