The Praise God Tattoo

I was in Hardee's recently and noticed a young man waiting at the counter with his friend.
He was very tall (why is it that almost every guy is taller than me now?) and well-built (why is it that almost every guy is better built than me?) and wearing a sleeveless shirt.
As I looked I noticed that right on his shoulder was a tattoo. Nothing unusual in itself, but this one said, "I Thessalonians 5:16-18" with a big cross beside it.
Tattooed.
On his shoulder.
I was so fascinated I immediately asked him, "What is I Thessalonians 5:16-18?" I could have looked it up, but I wanted to hear it from him.
He was a little surprised (he didn't even know if I was a Christian).  Then he quoted it right away. "Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus." He quoted it without a stumble, immediately.
I was so impressed that all I could say was, "Praise God!"
He didn't quite know what to say to that!
Now think about this. I know the Lord speaks against tattoos (Leviticus 19:20), but this guy loved Jesus so much that he had this verse tattooed right on his shoulder! No matter who loved it. No matter who hated it. In front of Christians, athiests, church haters, Buddists, smug intellectuals, Moslems, or whoever else might come along. No hiding, No blending in.
And then I think about the rest of us. We're pretty brave in church. We know the right answers to give in Sunday school. But out in the "world," we often hesitate. "If I mention Jesus, what will they think? What will they say? Will they get mad right away? What if I lose a friend? Maybe I should just be discreet. Maybe if I'm really nice they'll ask me about my faith." Doesn't happen very often.
What would it be like if we all lived like that young man? Not meaning we should all get tattoos (I hear they hurt)! But that we would boldly live for Jesus wherever we go, no matter who we're with, and bring up Jesus' name whenever we can. It seems to be a lot easier for Christians to say, "You ought to stop smoking," than to say, "Jesus Christ loves you." But the only real power is in Jesus' name.
In Isaiah 40:4-6 God said,
"Listen! It's the voice of someone shouting,
"Clear the way through the wilderness for the Lord!
Make a straight highway through the wasteland for our God!
Fill in the valleys, and level the mountains and hills.
Straighten the curves, and smooth out the rough places.
Then the glory of the Lord will be revealed, and all the people will see it together.
The Lord has spoken!"
This was not written just for John the Baptist; it was written for us.
Let's get to it.