What does your wake look like?

We all leave wakes, just as a boat creates a wake as it makes it way through the water, as we proceed through each day of our life on this Earth. Our actions, our deeds, our decisions, even our thoughts create wakes in the fabric of life that touches other people – whether we see it or not! These surges of 'waves of water' that emanate from what we do, say and think are the indicators of who we are and what we truly believe in our heart. And these wakes that we create can either bring glory to God or they can bring vainglory to ourselves.

Our example of what a perfect wake looks like is found in Jesus Christ and His walk upon this Earth. Abounding in grace and truth to all those that were around Him – this is what was revealed in His wake. Sometimes His wake was large and powerful and hit people firmly and directly with His truth other times it was small ripples that gently enveloped people with His unconditional love. All of His wakes were for the purpose of bringing people to a place where they had to make a decision regarding the issues of life and eternity, truth and falsehood, sin and righteousness, heaven and hell – a wake of unconditional love that brought the truth of God into the lives of mankind.

I don’t know that the church (each person that is a part of the body of Christ) today really thinks about the wakes that we are creating. Our words say that we want to leave 'Jesus filled' wakes in our daily lives but our actions seem to indicate that we are satisfied with leaving wakes of our own making – wakes that reflect conditional love, self centered focus, material desires.

I know in my life one of my wake struggles is with our call to be ready to encourage, exhort and rebuke – for I am all to ready to rebuke before I am ready to encourage and exhort. This became apparent to me as I was attempting to coach Benjamin at football practice the other night. I have spent more time rebuking him than I have encouraging and exhorting him and I saw that the wake that I was creating (a wake of my own making) directly affected his life in a non-edifying way.

So, are the wakes that we are creating each day Jesus filled? Are we using the gifts that He gave us to create wakes that ripple with eternity in mind? Do our wakes minister unto Him or are they just like the world’s - wakes that wreak confusion and havoc, wakes that are filled with vainglory and selfishness and wakes that do not edify and glorify the Lord Jesus Christ?