Don’t you just love those lyrics? As Christians, we can be the light in the darkness! The roadside welcome sign for someone who’s lost! The cool breeze in a hot summer month! A river in a drought! A garden in the middle of a concrete jungle! Here are a few practical applications of ways you can be a “thing” in a place where that “thing” is perhaps desperately needed:

• I’ll bring hope where people feel hopeless.
• I’ll be a peacemaker in places of conflict.
• I’ll love people even when others reject them.
• I’ll spread joy in the midst of despair.
• I’ll be kind when others are being rude.
• I’ll be a model of self control in a world where self indulgence is often celebrated.
• I’ll prioritize Jesus even though I’m surrounded by other people/things that crave my time and attention.
• I’ll express gratitude when others showcase entitlement.
• I’ll tell people about Jesus’ gift of everlasting life when they only know sin and death.

We can be Jesus to the world around us, and we are called to do just that. And whatever that requires of us in any given moment, we can pray that the Holy Spirit will keep and make us ready, eager, adaptable and determined to be whatever the people around us need us to be. Obviously there are logical limits to set into place, but Paul didn’t seem to have limits on his mind when he wrote about this very topic in 1 Corinthians.

Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings. -1 Corinthians 9:19-23

Paul was ready to do whatever it took to win people to Christ. If it meant becoming like a slave, he did it. If it meant becoming like a Jew, he did it. He said he became all things to all people so that by any method possible, he could save some. And notice the last line of this passage… Paul knew that by laboring for the sake of the gospel, he would be blessed, and the same is true for us today.

One other little section of the song is important to point out, I think. 

I’ll be a garden … A Garden in Manhattan … A Garden in Manhattan … A flower in the concrete … If that’s where you want me

That last line is so crucial to remember! Don’t forget to listen for the voice of God, the prompting of the Holy Spirit, to make sure you are right where God wants you to be. If He’s calling you to be a garden in Manhattan, great! If He’s calling you to be a flower in the concrete, then by all means be that flower in the concrete. But remember, if He’s not in it with you, then your efforts will be futile.

Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain. -Psalm 127:1 

Be careful not to force yourself into places and situations where God is not calling you to be. When you labor in your own flesh, without the wind of the Holy Spirit behind you, there ends up being too much focus on YOU and not enough focus on JESUS. Let the Spirit lead and guide you. Spend time in prayer and in the Word so you can recognize and discern God’s voice, and then tune into Him as He impresses His will on your heart. He might want you to be a garden, but He might want you to be a road sign, a cool breeze, a light or a flower. 

Bottom line, try praying a prayer that resembles these first few lines from the song:

On the crowded streets … All the people that I see … Want them to know the Jesus that I know

God, fill me with a desperate desire to help people know you! Show me where to go and what to be for the sake of the gospel. Amen.