My Faith Is Not Your Project
I sleep in one day a week.
Saturday.
It's glorious!
I don't usually leave my bed until at least 8:00am (sometimes even 8:30!). And that's a full three hours later than any other day of the week.
Then, I put on comfy clothes, toss my hair into a messy ponytail, and enjoy a morning with my toddler having breakfast, watching cartoons, and doing laundry.
But last Saturday, shortly after 8:30, my doorbell rang.
"Do you know our Lord Jesus Christ?"
"Have you read this pamphlet?"
"Could I come back for bible study with you?"
"Let me show you how you should be studying the bible."
Who thought this was a good way to spread the news of something so life-altering? Who in their right mind thought that interrupting someone at their home at 8:30 in the morning on a SATURDAY was the best way to open someone's mind and heart to anything?
To clarify, I do know Jesus, study my bible, and love my church where my faith is restrengthened each week.
But if I didn't, I can assure you that showing up unannounced, and taking away precious moments from the one morning each week I have with Jace, is not going to make me want to listen to anything you have to say.
Yet, I have to believe that this woman was doing what she thought was right. She believes in sharing the gospel, which is a good thing in itself, but her method is unlikely to work. People don't like to be told what they have to do, they don't like to be told that they're wrong, and they really don't like hearing these things from a stranger.
It's an issue I've always had with the idea of evangelizing.
Truth be told, the word evangelizing makes me cringe a little.
So, when I stumbled upon an article titled "Your Interfaith Friends Aren't Projects," it resonated with me.
Here's a brief quote that really sums up the article:
The main idea here is to be aware that in conversations with people—regardless of what they believe—the things we should prioritize the most are loving them and trusting God, not trying to force an agenda. This is where not leaning on our own understanding is truly fleshed out. It's where we have to believe that the One who put us in these situations knows them better and has something specific to that moment to share through us.
That's it.
Stop looking at people as someone that could become a Christian if you just show them why they're wrong for believing anything else. Stop looking at them with a plan of how to make them change. Stop thinking of them in terms other than human being and, hopefully, friend.
Saturday.
It's glorious!
I don't usually leave my bed until at least 8:00am (sometimes even 8:30!). And that's a full three hours later than any other day of the week.
Then, I put on comfy clothes, toss my hair into a messy ponytail, and enjoy a morning with my toddler having breakfast, watching cartoons, and doing laundry.
But last Saturday, shortly after 8:30, my doorbell rang.
"Do you know our Lord Jesus Christ?"
"Have you read this pamphlet?"
"Could I come back for bible study with you?"
"Let me show you how you should be studying the bible."
Who thought this was a good way to spread the news of something so life-altering? Who in their right mind thought that interrupting someone at their home at 8:30 in the morning on a SATURDAY was the best way to open someone's mind and heart to anything?
To clarify, I do know Jesus, study my bible, and love my church where my faith is restrengthened each week.
But if I didn't, I can assure you that showing up unannounced, and taking away precious moments from the one morning each week I have with Jace, is not going to make me want to listen to anything you have to say.
Yet, I have to believe that this woman was doing what she thought was right. She believes in sharing the gospel, which is a good thing in itself, but her method is unlikely to work. People don't like to be told what they have to do, they don't like to be told that they're wrong, and they really don't like hearing these things from a stranger.
It's an issue I've always had with the idea of evangelizing.
Truth be told, the word evangelizing makes me cringe a little.
So, when I stumbled upon an article titled "Your Interfaith Friends Aren't Projects," it resonated with me.
Here's a brief quote that really sums up the article:
The main idea here is to be aware that in conversations with people—regardless of what they believe—the things we should prioritize the most are loving them and trusting God, not trying to force an agenda. This is where not leaning on our own understanding is truly fleshed out. It's where we have to believe that the One who put us in these situations knows them better and has something specific to that moment to share through us.
That's it.
Stop looking at people as someone that could become a Christian if you just show them why they're wrong for believing anything else. Stop looking at them with a plan of how to make them change. Stop thinking of them in terms other than human being and, hopefully, friend.
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