i'll be watching you

a few days ago, i was sitting in culver's minding my own business when this guy walked up to me and just randomly asked if i had marched boonville's color guard. it was a really strange experience, but at the same time it's really nice that people actually remember me enough to say something to me when they see me. it always leads to interesting conversations and i also get to learn a little bit more about their shows that i didn't know before, and anyone who knows me knows that i love hearing about different show themes and ideas.

even though it's really cool when people do that, it's also an incredibly humbling experience because i realize that there are people watching me even when i don't know it, and just because i don't realize the effect i have on people doesn't mean that i'm not affecting them in some way. for example, the other day someone that i swear hated me a few years ago that i hadn't seen in a while told me that they missed me. i seriously thought this person would be happy to never see me again, and then that happened and i was just absolutely floored. it caught me completely off guard. but those things could happen to any of us at any moment, because i promise you that there are people around you that you affect every time you say something or do something, and there is probably someone out there who thinks, "i wonder what you would do in this situation" before they do something. i know i've done it before--when i'm about to do something, i wonder how someone i know would handle the situation, and they're usually not people that i've told "hey, you made a HUGE impact in my life and i want you to know that." they made an impact and sure, maybe they are aware of that, but there are very few people in this world that know they made an impact in my life because i've told them that they did.

this is really important to think about when we think about how we're emulating God in our lives. when i was out sharing with one of the guys from cru, we met this guy who had this completely skewed idea of Christianity simply because that was what he saw. he saw a bunch of hypocrites who preached this infinite love and this really grand view of morality, but the people who talked about it lived lives of hatred and immorality. so now he doesn't trust that there even is a God because of the example those people set for him and said "this is Christianity." and it was seriously one of the most heartbreaking conversations i've ever experienced because he was completely closed off from everything we said because of his past.

we're always being watched in some way, and whether we realize it or not, someone is following the example that we set. what kind of example do you set for the people who are watching you?

i, for one, know that i have a lot to work on...