Christianity: A Spectator Sport?

   Today I found myself walking down an old dirt road through the heart of the Rwandan city of Gesinyi seldom used by tourists or foreigners and while walking I heard a sound that has become all too familiar, the laughter of children at play. School had just let out and off to the right of the road stood an old rock wall about four feet high and beyond that stood the public school where, in the yard, around 50 kids kicked a soccer ball squealing in delight each time it arrived at someone new. As I stood there watching the event unfold I decided to backtrack my steps a little ways and get a closer look at the school and the soccer game
that was unfolding. Passing an old church and what I took to be the school I found myself not in the yard of the school but at the city basketball courts and soccer fields where not one but multiple games where taking place, some well under way while others just starting.
I sat there on the sidelines being content to just watch and observe, especially since I had my bag with my laptop on my back and was afraid of it being jacked once I laid it down. Sitting there watching I finally decided to put my bag down and join in the game. It became a two on two game and needless to say My guy and me dominated (probably because I was a foot taller than everybody lol). The game took about 20 minutes and the whole time I kept a close eye on my bag sitting under the post making sure it wasn't going to be stolen and needless to say it wasn't.
    So you are probably sitting there thinking "okay so what does this have to do with Christianity and it being a spectator sport?" Well I am glad you asked. Like my initial reaction I wonder how many of us as Christians are content with just sitting on the sidelines? In life and in missions many times we look at the worship, or we look at the missionaries and say "man they have an awesome story" or "geez I wish I could have faith like that" and my reply is why can't we? We as Christians seem to be okay with allowing somebody else to reach the world, allowing somebody else to do what God may be calling us to do. Like the bag on my back the hesitancy and willingness to be on the sidelines may stem from a fear of our baggage being revealed to the world around us. We must realize that for us to reach our full potential and achieve what God has for us then we must be willing to trust Him with our baggage and take the chance of it getting revealed. We must lay it down at the foot of the cross taking off what very well could be a hindrance to our calling. Many times when we take off the baggage and get in the game we find that we are more fulfilled and will very rarely regret it. SO my thought and challenge for today is this: Get in the game and cease to be a spectator. God called us to be players in His game plan and we will never be fully fulfilled until we start playing the way He desires us too.