By Steve Ellis

If you spend much time online these days you are likely aware of the new trends in building relationships. For that matter some of them are not just online based. It seems the more we develop new ways to communicate with one another, the less we actually see people face to face. However, I think this is having an effect on our real relationships.

With the onset of MySpace, Facebook, Twitter, etc, we have a great way to keep up with what our friends are doing. It doesn’t stop there. Many companies have found ways to use this as a marketing method for their businesses. Also, we should not forget the many social dating sites that we can use to find someone to marry or we can have cyber-dates and never even meet the person.

My question is where does this leave our relationships? Jesus told us that the two greatest commandments where to love God first and to love others next. These came before everything else. However, I don’t think it is possible to do either one of these jobs well without human interaction. We certainly cannot build strong personal relationships with other people unless we can actually meet them. Too much of our communication comes from seeing a person’s expression or hearing the tone in their voice. You just don’t get the full effect from a smiley face in an email. That is where the problem comes into play for me as a Christian.

If I am ever going to live a life that reflects Jesus to others, then there needs to be someone there to see that reflection. I don’t think it is possible to share the full impact of the Christian life on Facebook. It has to be through personal relationships. Evangelism works best when we are sharing our faith with someone who knows us and has seen that faith lived out through our lives. I encourage you to get out there and share your life with someone. Share their pains and joys. Share their hobbies and interests. Work side by side with them. Then they will be a lot more receptive to the faith they have seen at work in you.

By Steve Ellis

I was reading an article that made the point that we are becoming more narcissistic as a nation. My first thought was, Well, duh! Then I had another thought that really has little to do with being narcissistic. I found it interesting that we place such a proper name to such a dirty condition.

Here is the definition I found for narcissism: an inordinate fascination with oneself; excessive self-love; vanity.

Narcissism is a very fancy sounding name for what I would just call being a selfish brat. I know there is more to it than that, but that is what it boils down to. Narcissism is nothing more than placing your desires above the needs of others. I agree that our society is becoming more and more self-centered. However, I also believe this is great time to show the world what it truly means to be a follower of Jesus.

Jesus taught us that we should love our neighbor as ourselves. I take that to mean that we should care as much about what others are going through as we do about what is happening in our own lives. By His example, Jesus placed more emphasis on helping others. He was not concerned with becoming the CEO of his own woodworking shop or driving the nicest donkey, or having the most servants and nicest home. In fact, he was willing to die to prove it.

If we actually were to follow this example, I don’t think there is any way that the people around us could not see that we are somehow different. They might even become curious as to why we act differently, which could open doors for us to explain to them why we are, in fact, different. Romans 12:2 says “Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind”.

I encourage you to continue to change your patterns and to live a life that will show others what it means to be like Jesus. Stop once in a while and look around you. There is someone there who could really use a kind word or thoughtful gesture. You will be surprised how much it will mean to them and to you.

By Steve Ellis

Why Am I Here? This is a question that I feel most people, if not all, ask at some time in their life. Have you? If so, what was your answer? I can sum my answer up in a few words. I am here to serve God.

There is a lot more to this statement than it seems at first glance, but everything else comes down to that. For instance, I also feel called to help others, but this is because of my service to God. This is part of what serving Him means. I am sure most of my fellow Christians out there would agree with this statement, but I thought of another aspect of this a couple of days ago.

I received an email message that was forwarded to me with a “moral to the story.” You may have received this one before as well. I know this was about the third time I had gotten it in recent months. Anyway, this story tells of a group of people gathered together and having coffee. The main character observes to the others that they had all taken the nicest cups for their coffee first and then on down to the plain paper cups. His point was that the coffee was in no way improved by the cup, but everyone wanted the best cup they could get anyway.

I thought about how this applies to life and our purpose in it. My service to God will not be in the same kind of “cup” as yours. My service may go virtually unnoticed by the world around me, but it in no way diminishes my purpose. I tend to forget that point at times. I want to do something impressive. I want to be the knight when in reality I am probably just a pawn. Does that make my purpose any less necessary? No. The knight could not do much without the pawns to protect him.

I guess my point is that we should not be disappointed if we are not called to some position of power. My service to God can be just as important washing floors as it would be if I were the President. It is really more about my being happy with what I have but not letting my happiness be dependent upon what I have.

By Steve Ellis

Recently there was a “tacky day” at my daughter’s high school. I found a great deal of amusement in seeing the other teenagers as I dropped my teenager off. My daughter was dressed in her “finest” tackiness, and believe me, her appearance was pretty striking.

As we drove to school that morning we were talking about proper tacky attire and we had an amusing thought. What if you dressed up this way and no one noticed? I suppose it would be pretty devastating to a teen if they went to all of that trouble and everyone just thought they looked like they always do. As I said, we found this funny.

On my way home, it hit me. What if we go through all the motions in our spiritual lives as followers of Christ, and no one noticed? I don’t think that would be too funny, but I bet it happens quite often. I encourage you today to live a life that makes it clear to those around you who you are and what you believe.