10,000.

what do you think of when you think of 10,000? i think thats a big stinkin number. i think i would like a $10,000 bill in my hand. i think of all the thousands of people in this world. i think of all the mistakes i've made and how i could use 10,000 redos! 10,000 is a big number
10,000. thats the amount of steps an average person takes in one day. thats a lot of steps! if you think thats a lot then get this..the average person walks 115,000 miles in a lifetime. 115,000 miles is more than 4 times around this big blue planet of ours! now that is a lot of steps! this made me wonder how im using my steps. am i using them wisely?
to get across an average room it takes about ten steps-thats 1/1000 of your daily average. What if taking those ten steps could impact eternity? what if your walk across a room could help point someone elses steps in the right direction. ten steps is all it takes to change a life..are you willing to take those steps?
witnessing can sometimes be scary and nerveracking. you dont know what to say nor do you know what the other person's response is going to be. will they be mad and tell you to shut the beepedy beep beep beep beep up? Or will they quietly listen to what you have to say? But what if we didnt say anything? theres more to witnessing than just talking, we must use our steps wisely and step out of our comfort zone. we need to get out of the 'christian bubble' and spend time with people who need to see the love of jesus christ. what if people only had your life as an example to look at and the were asked the question 'does that person love jesus? is christianity even worth it?' how would they answer?
in bible times your name wasm ore than just a word. your name reflected and told who you were. what do you think people think when they hear your name? are you using your steps in a good influential way?
so many people have a bad view on christianity because so many 'christians' are not taking their steps wisely. they say one thing and do the other. romans 12:2 says, 'do not conform any longer to the patterns of this world but be transformd by the renewing of your mind.' we need to understand that we are the gospel. we are the only good news some people will see. we must be a living testimony for those around. people. watch you. and people will remember what they see. may be be shining lights.
i recently took a step out of my 'christian bubble' and got a job where i work with several non-christians who think its weird that i dont swear, or party, or drink, or have sex before marriage. i have had several opportunities to be a shining light. and my co-workers remember that. i stand out at my work place by what i do and dont do. ( yes i mess up all the time and am no where near to perfect but thats a whole different blog post:))
in luke 19:10, jesus says, ' i came to seek and save the lost.' in mark 1:17 he commands us to be fishers of men. jesus spent most of his time with the sick and needy people, we need to do the same. we need to stop investing in ourselves and start investing our life and our steps in others. we need to be willing to let go of our wordly passions in order to put god's people at top priority.
i want to end with this: romans 5:8 says, 'but god demonstrates his own love for us in this, while we were still sinners christ died for us.' christ's redemptive steps..christ stepped out of the ultimate comfort zone-heaven itself-to rescue us. jesus embraced the worst this planet had to offer (us) with open arms of acceptance, forgiveness, and love. may we follow christ's steps and not waste our lives. you have 115,000 miles-what are you going to do with them?

i hope this made sense, i just read two really good books and this is a short summary of both of them. i highly recommend them. Dont Waste Your Life by John Piper and Just Walk Across the Room by Bill Hybels.