"Whatever you do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks through Him to God the Father." (Colossians 3:17 (NASV))
In his book What It Means to Be Real, Stuart Briscoe states that his motivation to join the Marines was "Their magnificent dress uniforms". He thought that once he joined that he would get one of those uniforms immediately. But they didn't give him one. When he asked about it they told him, "You are a Marine. The moment you walked through the gates, you became a Marine. You are a Marine to stay."
Briscoe said, "Give me another uniform".
They replied, "You are not fit to wear one yet. We will have to do something about your back, about your chest, and about your shoulders. We will have to teach you how to march, how to walk, how to look like a Marine. Then you can wear the uniform."
Briscoe observed, "I was a Marine the moment I was sworn into that position, but it took me a long, long time to wear the uniform".
For many of us we were washed and inducted into God's Army. But we are still learning how to behave in a Christian way. Let's take Paul's advice and live our lives as soldiers of God.
