Take A Stand

Yesterday my mom and my cousin Scott put my mom's lighted Christmas tree and deer out in the yard. I think my mom was trying to make it seem more Christmasy despite the fact that it's 80 degrees here in NC. Anyway, they took the deer out, set them up, got out the extension cords and put everything where it looked neat.
The entire time our dog Chocamo (don't ask, there were arguments about whether to name him Chocolate or Mocha, so we ended up with the mix), anyway, Chocamo just stood by and watched. He had no problem with the deer in the yard. That is until my mom plugged them in. Then Chocamo went crazy barking at the "invaders" in the yard. See, the deer move their heads back and forth. I suppose that as long as the deer weren't moving, they were fine, but when they made a move, it made Chocamo very uncomfortable. To the point that it took him quite a while to come back into the front yard. I believe by this morning he had made his peace with the deer.
I said all that to say this. I think we are sometimes like those deer, and the unsaved people around us are like Chocamo. The unsaved have no problem with us as long as we don't make a move. If we just say we're Christians and pretty much leave it at that, they have no problem with us. It doesn't make them uncomfortable.
But when we start acting out our faith, putting works behind our words, then it puts them out of their comfort zone. And some of them will yell and scream and make big fusses about how we shouldn't be so vocal about our faith. Others will avoid us all together. And then some will finally make their peace with us and realize that there is something to what we have to say.
And it's for those who realize that there is something behind our words, that we must continue to stand. See, my mom wasn't going to unplug her deer simply because the Chocamo didn't like them. She knew he'd get used to them eventually. And this morning he was laying beside them, so I guess she was right. We can't stop taking a stand when someone calls us a crazy fanatic. We can't stop taking a stand when people choose not to be around us. We must stand no matter what. Check out this verse from I Corinthians 15:58, "Therefore, my beloved brethren, be ye stedfast, unmoveable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, forasmuch as ye know that your labour is not in vain in the Lord."
I guess what I'm trying to say is that sometimes your Christian walk may make those around you uncomfortable. But your work is not in vain, and you just never know when your stand might convince someone around you that they should come to Christ as well. So stand strong no matter what!