Formulas.

My car was looking pretty dirty the other day, so I took a trip to the local do-it-yourself car wash.

I had a couple dollars in quarters and figured I could get the car pretty clean for about $2.50. I put the quarters in the machine, turned the knob to "Super Soap Soak" and let 'er rip.

Throughout the process of washing the car, I assumed the power washer would produce the water pressure and suds I needed to get my car moderately clean (mainly just less bug-encrusted). I put the money in and got results.

Here's where I tie in the real-life example and the new found spiritual truth you're expecting (get ready): God is not a coin-operated power washer. (Surprise!)

I definitely don't buy into the prosperity gospel that has wormed its way into the Christian subculture. The view that we believers have a right to blessings of health and wealth from God isn't one that fits within the context of the Bible.

But just because I don't buy in to the sham doesn't mean my bed skirt isn't a little ruffled. I have tendencies that result in treating God like a cosmic ATM (relevant mag's words, not mine).

And it's the little lies that we believe, or half-truths that we let slide, that can be the most devastating.

I like equations. Math is always the same. Two plus two always equals four and I take comfort in that. The funny thing is, there are those equations in the realm of Christianity that are always true. God will always love me, no matter what I do (or don't do). I will find Him when I seek Him with all my heart. He will provide what I truly need - and if I don't receive it, maybe I don't really need it. It's funny how easy it is to doubt these things even though they are as true as two plus two. I hate these cliche type of sayings I just listed, but they really are true. Of all the times I complain about not being about to find God, I must admit I wasn't seeking Him that hard. Of all the times I complain about not getting what I want, I really do have what I need.

I suppose instead of asking God to bless the things I do, I should try doing things I know He will bless. I love to make all kinds of plans, especially in the realm of MPD, but things rarely seem to work out the way I want them to.

I expect results when I step out in faith. Sometimes I see exactly what I expect, while other times I don't see any immediate result. Regardless, it's my job to step out in faith. If you're truly living your life to glorify God, regardless of your occupation, you will have to take steps of faith, leaving the results up to God (helloooo witnessing in the power of the Holy Spirit). Hm. I guess there's one formula that always works!

How To Sell Jesus

Do you act differently around non-christians than you do around your closest friends? I know there are times that I do. For a short period of time in college, I would say I probably put on a good face for unbelievers more than I'm actually honest with them. Then I got to a work environment where people were very real with me, and that made me want to be very real in return. And surprisingly, they appreciate this real-ness and I think they could tell that my life was actually different, and actually better, as a Christian.

I know there is a line between these two extremes: always acting like a good-little-Christian, versus living just like everyone else -- I just don't really know where it is. A recent article had this to say about it:

"The solution is for us to live like us … whoever we are. Here’s my strategy: whoever I am when I am alone or with my closest friends, is the person I’m going to be when I’m with non-Christians, too. That means I talk about my faith sometimes and sometimes I cuss, too. And in my experience non-Christians appreciate that kind of authenticity. They already know we’re not perfect. They just get annoyed when we pretend like we are."

It's a good article, check it out if you're at all interested in how we can best sell Jesus to other people (trick question--He sells Himself! Just don't get in his way).

Your turn.

I could share my thoughts on evangelism as a reflection of our walk with God.. but I'd like your thoughts on the subject.



I read this quote somewhere the other day: "Telling other people about Jesus boldly is a necessary and (in fact) loving expression of a healthy relationship with Jesus."

What do you think of this statement?
Do you think that someone who never talks about Jesus, has an unhealthy relationship with God?

the fast track.

Jesus was not born on December 25th. Huh. I never considered the idea that Jesus was not actually born on that date in history. How could we really know the date on which he was born? Does the date matter? Can we figure it out? Why do people say "Dec 25 is Jesus' birthday?" Would it not be more accurate to say, December 25 is the date on which we celebrate Jesus' birth. (Note- I did not end that sentence in a preposition).

I've been hung up on this thought for a good three weeks. I can't help but question the opinions and views about God, Christianity and the Church that I grew up with. (couldn't avoid that preposition).

And not only there, but here. I'm guilty of putting my current church on a huge pedestal. Hillside has made a huge positive influence on me and my relationship with God throughout the last five years. But no church is totally on mark, no Pastor is perfect, no church body is unconditionally unselfish. Hillside is no exception.

I feel like I've been on the fast track to a mature walk with the Lord. Lately I've felt the need to take a step back and ask How in the world did I get here? On the outside, my life up until college was on a great track for corporate, financial and career success. On the inside, I was a mess. I'm so thankful for the following things that God has used in my life over the last 4-5 years to bring me as far as I have come.

Discipleship
I met with Wendy, the Campus Crusade staff member who led me to Christ, once a week for almost four years straight- informally and formally over 100 times. In these times we laughed a lot, and she recited many, many, many lyrics from various 80s hits. But aside from rock'n'roll knowledge, I learned how to walk with God every day, what a relationship with Him means and how to be assured of my salvation and His love and forgiveness. I also learned a lot about Campus Crusade and the strategy behind the organization. While I could see the big differences in my life that God made my freshman year, I didn't really have a for going out of my comfort zone to share the Gospel. Wendy, a big fan of personal evangelism and a prayer warrior, helped me take steps of faith over several years, in both of these areas and many others.

Church Worship
Hillside Church was the first non-Lutheran church I'd ever been to for more than one service. To attend the same church every single week and consistently see people who love the Lord and were serious about their beliefs had a huge impact on me. I learned about a relationship with God through Campus Crusade, and met many college students who were walking with Him. But at Hillside I met people in various stages of life who had strong relationships with each other and with God. I met the Heckathorns, and various other people, who would show me things that I could not learn by being a part of campus ministry. Hillside was the first time I ever saw a guitar in a church- let along drums!- and I loved it. Various friendships built with worship band members helped me grow in my knowledge and skill of playing music.

Campus Ministry Opportunities The movement at USD my freshmen year was pretty small, maybe 10 student leaders and an average of 25 attendees at our weekly large group meetings. We had one men's bible study and one women's bible study. There were about 5 freshmen women who got involved in the movement and were put in leadership positions over the course of our freshmen year. Getting involved right away presented a great opportunity for me to learn about campus ministry, and grow up in it.

Student-Led College Bible Study The a fore mentioned student-led Bible was a great thing to be a part of. I'd never been around people my age, at any age, that knew their Bible and wanted to learn more. This was the first glimpse I had into campus ministry and Campus Crusade.

Bible Character Study at Hillside
Week after week, the Old Testament came alive at a Bible Study at my church. The leader, Chad, was incredibly knowledgeable with the perfect amount of humility. It was here that I learned so much behind the stories I'd heard forever- Noah & the Flood, Moses & the Exodus, Sampson & Delilah, among so many many more. God used this Bible Study to cultivate in me a desire to understand His Word and apply it to my life. Chad was humble and quick to admit when he'd made a mistake. But he was also incredibly serious about knowing the Bible and knowing it well, and knowing why we need to know it well. And he has a heart for helping others understand this, too.

Vespers
An hour of solid worship music every Sunday night, Vespers began my sophomore year of college and through this ministry I was able to enter into God's presence through live music like never before. I loved it! My junior year, Mike and Meghan took over leadership and I was asked to join them in leading a primarily college-student crowd in corporate worship. For ten years I had dreamed of learning to play guitar in a band, and this dream was realized through serving with Vespers. I even had the opportunity to lead the band last year, and grew in many ways. Now when asked to help with worship at various events, I feel incredibly secure in my abilities. I could not and would not have been involved in Vespers if God had not cultivated in me a true heart for worshiping Him.

for all my single ladies

Just friends. Oh, what a great label ((sarcasm)). I don't know any woman who hasn't had at least one friendship in which either she or the guy was hoping for more than just friends. I'll be honest. When this happens to me, I tend to blame it on the guy.

Boundless.org, a ministry of Focus on the Family, has tons of articles on dating, relationships and marriage, among many other topics like college, singleness, time, money and sex. I've been ready a series on biblical dating and happened upon an article about being 'just friends.'

Author Scott Croft has this to say about deep emotional commitments between Christians (or non-Christians) of the opposite sex:

"By offering a taste of the companionship and interactions that make marriage so satisfying, with none of the accompanying commitments or responsibilities entailed in marriage, intimate friendships discourage the pursuit of the grown-up, God-intended outlet for marital desires — marriage."

Just a quick shout-out to my single friends here. Regardless of whose 'fault' it is when two people are too emotionally invested, both sides are called to be responsible for appropriate levels of emotional and physical involvement.

How would your future husband feel if he knew you were emotionally invested in one of your guy friends? Croft goes on to encourage women who want to get married to think about the way their actions might affect their brothers in Christ. Are we single women satisfying the intermediate needs of our guy friends so they see or feel no particular compulsion to pursue marriage?

But that's not to say single Christian men and women can't be friends at all, and Croft makes that very clear in his article. Claiming biblical backing from I Timothy 5, Croft gives a laundry list of appropriate advice. (Finally! Some practical words for the single segment of the Body of Christ!)

Croft says "Single men and women can and should serve in ministry together, study the word together, and hang out together socially. They should go out together, gather around meals, watch movies. In my view, however, these activities should be done, for the most part, in groups rather than one-on-one. Men can initiate group get-togethers, and so can women. In fact, single brothers and sisters in Christ, like the rest of Christ's body, are positively called to care for one another. Men can (and should) give women rides home rather than have them walk alone at night. Men can come over and move couches. Women can cook a meal for a group of guys in danger of developing scurvy from a near total lack of vegetables. Knock yourselves out."

So, all my single ladies, the body of Christ is a natural place to make friends with Christian men and can often result in two people becoming more than friends down the road. It's not uncommon (or a bad thing!) for a guy to express interest in a girl before they spend a significant amount of time alone...and we certainly don't need to create situations that have a high level of intimacy with a Christian man to lead him to that point.

Expression.

The way that Christians express their faith is so interesting to me. I've come to find out that the majority of the Christian population that I've met has a genuine desire to share Christ with other people. While some are much more passionate than others, almost everyone I know who professes to believe in Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord has a desire to express this relationship in someway.


I don't know what to say to the Christians out there who don't have this desire. I understand the reasons behind not wanting to share Christ with others. Fear, selfishness, apathy, pride, the list goes on and on and on. But overcoming these obstacles builds my character and brings me closer to God. Sometimes our motives for sharing are even selfish. I think the level of desirability to share Christ with others really shows a person's maturity level in Christ, and the seriousness of their commitment to Him.


And just in the way we express things inappropriately at times, I don't think we always express our faith in appropriate ways. All too often, because we don't know how to express/share it, we just shy away from reflecting it at all. "Better safe than sorry" is such a bummer. Safety is a legitimate concern for those in the Middle East or China, but that's another story. Even in those situations, God sometimes calls us to give up our safety. I don't know too many situations where He calls us to do this in America- because safety is often never in question.


I love to write, so I write about my faith. I enjoy discussing theological issues, so I bring them up in conversation. I was very upfront about my beliefs with my coworkers when I started my job two years ago. And in the last two years, my non-Christian coworkers brought up theological questions and issues more than I did! I enjoy music, so I express my love for Christ in the songs I write and play. How do you express your faith? God has created you with interests. Pottery, music, cooking, poetry, woodworking, writing, painting - all these things can be used to express your faith.


And once in awhile, spoken words even work. :)