Product of the Community

The Bible teaches us that we belong to Christ and that we are not of this world; so even though we are placed here, our allegiance is to the Kingdom of God, to a higher authority, and we are called and empowered to live in Him. 1st Peter 2 states:
11 Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul,
12 having your conduct honorable among the Gentiles, that when they speak against you as evildoers, they may, by your good works which they observe, glorify God in the day of visitation.

The question becomes, "who or what am I allowing to influence my life?"  We can surround ourselves with Biblical teaching and seek God consistently or we can choose to allow the world to have an impact on us.  If we allow worldliness into our consciousness and place a greater emphasis on pleasing this world than pleasing God, we run the risk of our spiritual life running aground and not bearing fruit. We have to choose our influences carefully - people and information - so that we can be built up in our faith.

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How and with whom we spend our time can have a profound influence on our growth in Christ. In speaking of the hope of the resurrection, Paul wrote in 1st Corinthians 15:
31 I affirm, by the boasting in you which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.
32 If, in the manner of men, I have fought with beasts at Ephesus, what advantage is it to me? If the dead do not rise, "Let us eat and drink, for tomorrow we die!"
33 Do not be deceived: "Evil company corrupts good habits."
34 Awake to righteousness, and do not sin; for some do not have the knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame.

Your life today is reflective of the influences that you have had throughout your past.  Some of those influences are good, others are bad; some have been accepted, others rejected.  But, we are where we are in part because of the people whom we've met.  And, it can be a stark reminder for each of us to make sure that we are being positive influences on others, especially those who are young.

A young man grew up not too far from where I grew up - Cartersville, GA, up I-75 from Atlanta.  And, a recent Baptist Press article explored how his influences impacted him.

He was active in his local church growing up. His middle school and high school pastor testified to his fairly regular church attendance. The article contains a picture of him being baptized when he was around ten years old. His high school football coach was well-known as a Christian leader in the community. His position coach was also a "strong Christian," according to one of the deacons at the church. The deacon was a local parks and recreation coach, his son was a friend, and the boys traveled on sports trips, and, of course, youth group trips. He says: "Sports helped us form bonds with his family and others..."

But, his spiritual life took a downward trajectory during his latter years of high school and first year of college. He told Sports Illustrated that enrolling early in college may not have been the best thing for him to do and added, "I made some decisions … first year being on my own, got this freedom now. … I made some decisions, not good decisions..."  He connected with an associate pastor in the area where he was in college, attended a Christian retreat, and his life, as the BP article notes, "shifted." As his high school coach said, "As you grow in your faith, there is a defining moment where you’re mature in it. That’s what happened..."  

Oh, and about this young man from Cartersville, Georgia - he has become more outspoken in his faith and has taken a huge step in his athletic career - he will likely be the starting quarterback this year for the NFL's Jacksonville Jaguars; you see, Trevor Lawrence was this year's #1 draft pick after a stellar career at Clemson, playing for a coach who is likewise outspoken in his faith, Dabo Sweeney.  

The afore-mentioned pastor is quoted in the SI article as saying: "Faith for him brings peace and context into his life. It bleeds into every part of his life." The article relates:

Lawrence is not shy about discussing his faith. In fact, he wears it. On his wrists are a half-dozen personalized rubber bracelets, each a different color with its own message. There is one representing a church band, two more portraying Bible verses and another recognizing Clemson’s 2018 national championship. This is where faith and football merge.

Baptist Press also points out Trevor's charitable work, stating, "Early in the COVID shutdown, Lawrence and his then-fiancé Marissa Mowry (also a Cartersville native) received permission from the NCAA to begin a relief fund for those affected by the coronavirus pandemic in their hometown and upstate South Carolina."  Last month, he and now-wife Marissa "announced they would donate $20,000 to Jacksonville-area charities after Jaguars fans bought items off the registry for their future quarterback."

Trevor has been blessed by God and is using what he has been given in order to serve others. The Baptist Press article quotes his high school coach, Jody King, who now coaches at Cedartown High School in Georgia: 

"To whom much is given, much is required,” King told the Cartersville Daily Tribune Tuesday (April 27) in paraphrasing Luke 12:48. “[Lawrence] understands that and is grateful for that. That’s one of the things I always preached to my teams [in Cartersville] and to my new team. One of our core values here is gratitude.”

We can ask the question, what have I been given?  We have been created by God and, if we are born again, brought into the Kingdom of God for a purpose.  We have certain gifts to use and opportunities to respond to.  We can consider how we are glorifying God through what we choose to do. 

There's also a matter of influence - who has influenced us and who we are influencing. As that Baptist Press article related, Lawrence is a product of the community in which he grew up, and it is clear that people poured into his life. Granted, not all of our childhood influences or even influences later in life are good. We have to choose what and whom we follow and be sure to live a life that reflects Christ so that we can impact those with whom God brings into our lives.