Out of the Christian ghetto
These last few days seem to be full of renewed realizations.
We've been hanging out with various different friends that don't go to church and don't necessarily care about God or the church. Maybe they've been "religious" in the past but at this point they couldn't be bothered. Which brings me to my realization.
God is in control, not me. When we're with them we have tons of things in common (like our obsession with UFC and camping). But at the core we are living two separate lives heading in two different destinations. So what do we do?
I've come to realize that I could sit there and talk to them about God and church (which I've done) and have them totally not want to go any further than that...then what?
This sounds so cliche but the answer is pray. Yes I know...that sounds lame. We want to have a better answer than that, especially one where we are the hero and we and we introduce them to Christ and we emerge victorious! But it's not that way and it never has been.
I can get up on Sunday morning and preach the most amazing message that moves people to tears but the Bible says that it's God who changes lives, not us. It's God that draws people to himself. It's God that opens people's hearts and minds so that He makes sense. As cool as we think we are...it just doesn't work that way. And that creates a challenge but it's also relieving at the same time when it comes to relationships with people that don't follow Jesus.
The challenge is that people don't see their need for him. No matter how much I say they need Him, if they don't see that need, then I'm wasting my time. I had someone say that to me the other night that is investigating the claims of Jesus. They said that if they weren't in a relationship with someone that is seeking God as well they probably wouldn't come to church because they don't see the need for it. I'm starting to see that my job is to pray for them but make sure I'm praying for the right things. Pray that God would help them to see their need of him. Maybe that comes from seeing my life and seeing that they are missing something. I don't know. Pray that God would prove Himself to them.
The relieving part is that it's not my job to get them saved. It's my job to make sure that I'm pointing them towards Jesus but when it comes to the actual act of salvation, that's God's job. So I can rest at night. It doesn't take the tension away but it makes me see that I'm not the star of this show and when I elevate myself to that position, usually I end up on my butt with a messed up relationship in my wake.
As a parting note, the best decision that Bek and I have made when it comes to our faith is to intentionally invest in relationships that aren't "faith based". It allows us to make sure that we are living up to what we say we believe. It keeps us on our toes with the questions that get asked (especially the ones we don't have answers to). It helps us stay in touch with what the world that we are trying to reach is thinking and values. Many times their values are far different than what we think they are as a church.
If you don't have friends that don't follow Jesus then I'd really encourage you to make some. It's not easy and a lot of times it takes you to change your mindset of getting "contaminated" by the world. Let put it this way, if you actually live out what you say you believe, you'll be fine. Most times it's the people that are unsure of what they believe that are scared of people that don't follow Jesus. Figure out what you believe, start living it and make some friends with some cool people that don't follow Jesus!
We've been hanging out with various different friends that don't go to church and don't necessarily care about God or the church. Maybe they've been "religious" in the past but at this point they couldn't be bothered. Which brings me to my realization.
God is in control, not me. When we're with them we have tons of things in common (like our obsession with UFC and camping). But at the core we are living two separate lives heading in two different destinations. So what do we do?
I've come to realize that I could sit there and talk to them about God and church (which I've done) and have them totally not want to go any further than that...then what?
This sounds so cliche but the answer is pray. Yes I know...that sounds lame. We want to have a better answer than that, especially one where we are the hero and we and we introduce them to Christ and we emerge victorious! But it's not that way and it never has been.
I can get up on Sunday morning and preach the most amazing message that moves people to tears but the Bible says that it's God who changes lives, not us. It's God that draws people to himself. It's God that opens people's hearts and minds so that He makes sense. As cool as we think we are...it just doesn't work that way. And that creates a challenge but it's also relieving at the same time when it comes to relationships with people that don't follow Jesus.
The challenge is that people don't see their need for him. No matter how much I say they need Him, if they don't see that need, then I'm wasting my time. I had someone say that to me the other night that is investigating the claims of Jesus. They said that if they weren't in a relationship with someone that is seeking God as well they probably wouldn't come to church because they don't see the need for it. I'm starting to see that my job is to pray for them but make sure I'm praying for the right things. Pray that God would help them to see their need of him. Maybe that comes from seeing my life and seeing that they are missing something. I don't know. Pray that God would prove Himself to them.
The relieving part is that it's not my job to get them saved. It's my job to make sure that I'm pointing them towards Jesus but when it comes to the actual act of salvation, that's God's job. So I can rest at night. It doesn't take the tension away but it makes me see that I'm not the star of this show and when I elevate myself to that position, usually I end up on my butt with a messed up relationship in my wake.
As a parting note, the best decision that Bek and I have made when it comes to our faith is to intentionally invest in relationships that aren't "faith based". It allows us to make sure that we are living up to what we say we believe. It keeps us on our toes with the questions that get asked (especially the ones we don't have answers to). It helps us stay in touch with what the world that we are trying to reach is thinking and values. Many times their values are far different than what we think they are as a church.
If you don't have friends that don't follow Jesus then I'd really encourage you to make some. It's not easy and a lot of times it takes you to change your mindset of getting "contaminated" by the world. Let put it this way, if you actually live out what you say you believe, you'll be fine. Most times it's the people that are unsure of what they believe that are scared of people that don't follow Jesus. Figure out what you believe, start living it and make some friends with some cool people that don't follow Jesus!
