Imagine a beautiful, perfectly sweet, handcrafted cupcake. A lot of time and effort had been put into making this dessert so intensely delectable, and it shows. But then, you drop the cupcake on the floor, mushing the icing down into a flat bob, and splitting the cake apart into a million crumbs. Now, technically, that cupcake would still taste exactly the same. It would still have the same sweet delicate blend of flavors. But the difference? No one would know how delicious that cupcake was because it was no longer projecting that idea. In the same way, we can love Jesus with our whole heart, but if we aren’t projecting that onto others, then how are they to know the magic and wonder of God in our lives?

Walking with the Lord is a personal journey in a lot of ways. It has so much to do with personal growth, learning to listen, and filling your heart with a new kind of love and light. That being said, if you are truly walking with Jesus, then you’ll want others to know as well. They won’t know just because you’re walking around with bible verse stickers on your laptop and a fish decal on the back of your car, or because you have a bible verse in your Instagram bio. They’ll know that you really, truly, love Jesus, when you spend your days living like Him. They’ll see it in the way that you treat people, and in the way that you hold your self. They’ll hear it in the way that you talk and in the way that you speak of the others. If you are honest-to-goodness, really truly, 100 percent chasing after the Lord with your whole heart, then the image that you present to the world should be an image of Jesus.

Back to the cupcake example. If I showed you two different cupcakes, one lovely and in-tact, and the other the messy one I picked up off the floor, which would you be more likely to reach for first? Likewise, people will be more open and willing to listen to all of the good news of Jesus that you have to share if you hold yourself in a way that projects Him. For example, if every other word out of your mouth is gossip, and then you start preaching the gospel, your teachings, while maybe completely heartfelt, are a lot less likely to be heard. Now, in no way do I mean that Christ followers are expected to be perfect because we all know that there is no possible way for that to work. But, as Christians, it is our call and our privilege to be disciples of Christ, and to show everyone we come in contact with the difference that the Lord has made in our lives. Living in a way that best projects Him will only make others more receptive of that message.

In short, we are the hands and feet of God. We get to represent Him as Christians. So let each thing we do be done in His image. Pray before you act, think before you speak, and love others with your entire heart.