by Justin Morton
A smile to a visitor, a distracted attitude during worship or a calm response during a stressful situation may seem small, but these moments often leave lasting impressions. Every day, whether in worship or in daily life, we communicate something to the people around us. Our words, choices, behaviors, and decisions either point people toward God or away from Him. We know the saying, “You never get a second chance to make a first impression.” This is true not only when it comes to strangers we meet for the first time, but also in our daily relationships.
From the moment of our first encounter with someone, we form an opinion simply based on our experience. Perhaps this is not entirely fair, but this is what happens. And for a lot of us, we will never forget that first impression. That one interaction can leave a lasting impact.
The question we must consider is, “What do people see when they see me? What kind of impression am I making on others?” People are watching what our lives communicate about God. In worship, do they see someone engaged in the study of God’s Word or someone apathetic? In daily living, do they see someone who takes God and His Word seriously or someone who lives as if he doesn’t really care about God? Paul told Titus that there were people who, “Profess to know God, but they deny him by their works” (Titus 1:16). We certainly don’t want this to be said about us.
We may be tempted to say, “I don’t care what people think when they look at my life,” but we should care. Scripture calls us to care about what our lives lead others to conclude about God. Jesus said we are to live in such a way that it causes others to glorify God (Matthew 5:16). The apostle Paul told the Corinthians, “You yourselves are our letter of recommendation, written on our hearts, to be known and read by all” (2 Corinthians 3:1-3). The Bible teaches us the power of impressions.
Friends, every day we have an opportunity to make impressions on the people around us. Those impressions can be positive and godly or negative and worldly. This week, choose one deliberate step to make your faith more visible: come to worship prepared and engaged, speak words that build others up, and make one daily decision that puts obedience to God ahead of convenience for self. Then at the close of each day, ask yourself, “What kind of impression did I make today?”