Sending Mixed Signals

Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi's visit to Syria has drawn the ire of many in Washington. President Bush rightly suggested that her meeting with President Assad is "sending mixed signals" to the Syrian government and called the meeting "counterproductive."

Upon hearing this news, I immediately lashed out in the flesh against the Democrats who are proving to be polar opposites to everything and anything that could be "productive" in the Bush administration. I believe the Dems are right to press some of President Bush's policies. That is why our Constitution is one of the greatest governmental documents ever written. It allows for checks and balances. However, this freedom is often abused by leaders on both sides of the aisle. They often react by swinging the pendulum too far in an attempt to provide balance.

As I pondered this debacle on the part of Pelosi I began to think of the Christian's walk in this world. I wonder how often professing believers "send mixed signals" to an unbelieving world by giving the appearance of identifying with people and things that prove to be "counterproductive" to the cause of Christ and the gospel. It is a difficult thing for the believer to be in the world but not of the world. But that is why God leaves us here. Jesus prayer to the Father in John 17 was that the Father leave us in the world to sanctify it in truth as He is truth. We must guard our hearts and minds in this regard. While people's perceptions are often incorrect, they are perceptions nonetheless that frame their opinion not only of us but of Christ as well. We must take great care in all of our relations to reflect Christ and His holy name.