On Being a Christian

Today I have the honor of hosting David Walker for another Life List Club guest post! I'll be over at Jenny Hanson's blog so be sure to stop by there when you're done here. Take it away David!

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Some Christians seem to think that being a Christian demands that you orally witness to or evangelize everyone you come in contact with. I don’t mean to denigrate the Billy Grahams or James Robisons that God has called to major public ministries or the myriad street preachers He has called to preach to the homeless or just to people they happen to come across on busy sidewalks.

These people need to respond to the call God has placed on their lives. If that’s it, then they need to go for it. But that doesn’t mean we should make pests of ourselves grabbing and twisting the arms of all we come in contact with.

Our lives speak much louder than our words. A wise man once told me that no one cares what you know until he knows that you care.

If I comport myself in such a way that Jesus shows through in my behavior and my conversation, that speaks far louder to most people I come in contact with than any argument I could put forth as to why they need Jesus. If I hug a waitress I frequently patronize (and tip generously) or have a kind word of encouragement for a Wal-Mart employee, the recipient of that kindness can see Jesus much more clearly than through any words I could say.

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My 95 year-old mother lives in an assisted living home. One of the other ladies who is much younger and more able than Mother approached me the other day and told me she was flying to Austin to visit relatives and asked me to pray for her safety. We’d never spoken about God, but apparently she sensed something about me that led her to make the request. If you’ve never had someone like that—or a waitress or store clerk or other such person—come to you with an unsolicited prayer request, you can’t imagine how it makes you feel.



Have I ever witnessed openly to another person? Have I ever led anyone in a prayer of salvation? Yes, when God specifically put it on my heart to do so, and both are very meaningful and memorable experiences. But unless God tugs at my heart to let me know this person is ready, I refrain. I don’t know anyone who appreciates being preached to unless it’s at a service where it’s expected.

I don’t have to wait for Him to tell me that this is the time to be nice to someone—that this is the time to hug someone or pat someone on the back or say a kind word. I can’t think of anyone who doesn’t appreciate proper positive attention, and it’s the desire of my heart to give it.

None of this is to say that I’m some big holy person. I’m not. I’m a sinner saved by grace, but God is at work in me making me a little bit more like His Son. That’s His purpose in the life of any Christian. The more I stay out of His way and let Him do His work in me, the more His Son shows through me and touches the lives of others.

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A graduate of Duke University, David spent 42 years as a health insurance agent. Most of his career was spent in Texas, but for a few years he traveled to many other states. He started writing about 20 years ago, and has six unpublished novels to use as primers on how NOT to write fiction. Since his retirement from insurance a few years ago, he has devoted his time to helping Kristen Lamb start Warrior Writers’ Boot Camp and trying to learn to write a successful novel himself.

David N. Walker is a Christian father
and grandfather and a grounded pilot. He co-founded Warrior Writers Boot Camp with Kristen Lamb. You can read more of his posts at http://davwalk.wordpress.com or tweet him at @davidnwalkertx.