I Go, He Goes

Sicilian mosaic of Jesus.

Brenda was talking with our real estate agent recently when he told her about an encounter he had with a couple who were interested in buying a home. This couple had made it quite clear that they were Christians. They invited him over for dinner, and as they sat around the table for the meal ready to discuss the purchase of the house, they prayed a blessing on the food. After the "Amen", the next words out of their mouths were "OK, how can we screw the seller?"

Begs the question, "What kind of god do they pray to?"

Yesterday, I went to Wal-mart to pick up some medicine for my wife. I didn't see the camouflaged woman behind the pain relievers who was waiting in line for the next cashier, so I approached the pharmacy and paid for the cold and sinus medicine. As I was leaving, this concealed woman gave me an earful and wanted me (and everyone else in earshot) to know what a horrible human being I was. I apologized to her, but that apparently didn't settle the account. As she continued to huff and snort, I felt my tolerance drain from my brain at the same rapid speed the blood was rushing to it. What followed was a string of sarcastic pleasantries that I'm sure entertained no one but me.

Sometimes I wonder what God I pray to.

Thankfully, I wasn't wearing my 12-inch cross necklace or carrying my 30-pound version of the Bible or sporting the latest clever evangelistic t-shirt. And since the encounter took place at Wal-mart instead of Family Christian Stores or Holy Grounds Coffee Shop, I didn't play artificial nicey nice. She probably had no idea I was a Christian. Good for me. Good for her.

Granted, we all get a wasp up our nose and lose our temper from time to time. It's good to know that anger is normal and is a created part of the full range of human emotions. I can be angry, but my anger doesn't give me the right to be cruel. I'm not going to be too hard on myself for being the Great Sarcasmo from time to time, but I do want to recognize those moments when I could be better to those around me.

I am a bit of a mystic when it comes to the Christian faith. I don't believe in disconnecting faith and life. To me, they are one in the same thing. I don't see the point in going to church to be reverent and holy while being a holy terror elsewhere, as though the Christian faith were something to be "put on" and taken off again. I wonder how much of our life we live without being aware that we carry Christ with us wherever we go?

Almost on a daily basis, I speak with someone who has a very negative impression of Jesus because of the actions of those who bear his name. We need to understand that when we [metaphorically] slap someone in the face, it is as though Jesus has slapped them. When we take advantage of someone, it is as though Jesus is taking advantage of them. When we get greedy, people see a greedy Jesus. When we spew hate, they think the hate comes from the Lover of their Souls.

I love the church, and because of my concern for those outside it, I know we can be better than we sometimes are. I'm not very concerned with how people view us, but I am concerned about how people view Christ because of us. For that reason, Christian discipleship (how we grow our people) needs to be more than simply educational. It must be incarnational and relational, teaching and modeling love, service, and mercy in action. It breaks my heart to see people reject Jesus because we have rejected them (or ignored them, for that matter).

How do we deliberately live our lives among our neighbors? It's a good question. Sure, there will be those unintended times when our everyday humanity will be as dim and dark as the next guy, but how we choose to live is a different matter entirely. Will Christ be able to bless those around me today?