Applying Godly Sunscreen By Samantha W.

Applying Godly Sunscreen

By Samantha W.

Anyone who listens to the word but does not do what it says is like a man who looks at his face in a mirror and, after looking at himself, goes away and immediately forgets what he looks like. James 1:23-24 NIV

I have a question for you. If I went out and bought a bottle of sunscreen, read its label word for word, and stuck it on a shelf, would it do me a lick of good? Or maybe I could carry the bottle around with me, sort of a lucky charm to ward off the sun’s rays, what do you think?

Um. . . no. In order for the sunscreen’s protection, I need to apply it; soak it in.

The same can be said for the blessings given us in the Bible. Unless we apply its principles in our lives, all the reading, all the Bible-totin’ and all the Christian material lining our shelves, don’t cut the mustard.

So how do you apply the Bible, you ask. (If you didn’t ask, humor me anyway.)

The straightest answer I can give you is James 1:22. Do not merely listen to the word, and so deceive yourselves. Do what it says. NIV

Yikes. This isn’t as easy as applying sunscreen. After all the only directions for that is use liberally. Don’t eat it. Avoid contacting the eyes. On the other hand, there’s all this stuff about loving my enemies, sowing peace, being joyful, seeking godly wisdom; putting others before myself.

Did I mention it isn’t easy?

It’s also necessary, ‘cause otherwise, we’re just pretenders. We see Christ’s example, but we go our own way and choose to forget all He showed us. Maybe we try to be good for a little while—Sundays or around certain people—but we lose all we’ve learned when it gets hard. Kind of like applying sunscreen during the summer, yet leaving ourselves exposed the rest of the year.

We deceive ourselves into thinking we love God because we go to church and read the Bible. Yet if we truly love him, then we want to be obedient. We want to please him. Of course, we’re not perfect and blunder up our best intentions.

It’s then we have to reaffirm the fact that we are born-again Christians. We don’t have to stay in sin. We don’t have to dwell on past mistakes. We can do everything through Christ who strengthens us. Applying the Bible in our lives isn’t a journey we make alone. God is always right there.

What’s the hardest part of the Bible for you to apply in your life?

Do you have a favorite verse that helps you do the right thing? Care to share?