We take Christianity too serious.
Naturally, because 'church', as most of us know it, requires us to sit in a chair or pew for an extended amount of time, be quiet, listen to a person stand up front and speak, keep our hands to ourselves, sing whenever we are instructed to and pray with our eyes closed and hands crossed, we view Christianity as, somewhat of, a gentlemen's religion.
If you have ever attended a church service were an individual didn't follow the list of do's and don'ts, aka the norm, it was probably very apparent. You know, like when you invited the kid to church when you were younger and during the prayer he tries to trade pogs with you or blurts out during the initial silence at the beginning of a prayer, "Geeez, this silence is really awkward. I wonder if your parents will take us to Chucky Cheese for lunch."
If we're not careful, that's all Christianity becomes.
A habit.
A predictable, dry, uneventful habit.
A predictable, dry, uneventful habit.
The good news is that Christianity is more than what I just described. If you really buy in to the whole 'personal relationship' with God offer then you know that Christianity is anything but a dry, uneventful experience. How crazy of a thought it is to consider that the God of creation, the one who created you, me and everything that we know desires to know us in a personal way.
The main reason I am addressing the reality that Christianity is often taken or viewed as a very straight-forward, no fun, follow the rules experience is because I don't think this idea reflects accurately on our God.
Now, don't get me wrong. Silence out of respect, following rules, honoring God by doing what is right or bowing your head out of reverence are all good things. My point is that if this is all your know and what you deem as Christianity, you are missing something.
If Jesus/God is at the center of Christianity and Christianity is, as I described earlier, predictable, dry and uneventful then doesn't that make Jesus/God the same?
I strongly disagree.
Here's an example...
Two weeks ago the staff, volunteers and 40 some odd spanish Bible study students surprised Martha, a Cross and Crown board member and active, daily worker, for her birthday. The students were all circled up studying the good news as the rest of us charged in with a couple birthday cakes singing happy birthday.
After getting over her initial shock Martha finally calmed down long enough to say thank you, while chocking back tears. If you know Martha then you know that she takes any and every opportunity to turn the praise and honor back to God. Someone drops some cake on the ground? "Hey, thank you God for giving us paper towels and water to clean it up with." Someone breaks in to her house and steals her tv? Eeeh, no biggie. "Thank you, God, for at least giving me a home for someone to break in to. You get the idea."
So, Martha talked for a few minutes about how thankful she was to God for allowing her the opportunity to come to the neighborhood that Cross and Crown is located in and how the people of the neighborhood had allowed her to be family with them.
Next, several women from the neighborhood, mostly in spanish, stood up and expressed to Martha how thankful they were for her in their class, in the baby room at Cross and Crown and just her overall, general presence at the mission.
After everyone had been given an opportunity to express their thanks to and for Martha a women named Mary stood up. Mary walked over to Martha, grabbed her behind her head with one of her hands and looked directly at her. Martha did likewise and the two stood, nearly, face to face. Side note: Mary recently had a stroke and just recently began to walk again. She, also, has paralysis on one side of her body. So, the fact that she is even able to stand up, walk and place her hand on Martha is significant in itself.
What happens next is the part that made Ron and I stop and snicker to ourselves.
So, here we have Mary and Martha...
They are standing in the center of the room together, holding each other and Mary begins signing to Martha a song in spanish about how thankful she is for her.
Next, after she finishes signing she mentions that she has a gift for Martha. Mary reaches into her purse and pulls out some perfume...
Mary gives perfume to Martha...
As the scenario unfolded right before us I turned around to look at Ron as he was leaning over towards me and he said, "What's she going to do next? Pour the perfume all over Martha's head?"
We laughed because we both were thinking the same thing. We were both thinking about the story I mentioned above.
Predictable, dry, uneventful God? I don't think so.
My God is pretty stinkin' funny.
After getting over her initial shock Martha finally calmed down long enough to say thank you, while chocking back tears. If you know Martha then you know that she takes any and every opportunity to turn the praise and honor back to God. Someone drops some cake on the ground? "Hey, thank you God for giving us paper towels and water to clean it up with." Someone breaks in to her house and steals her tv? Eeeh, no biggie. "Thank you, God, for at least giving me a home for someone to break in to. You get the idea."
So, Martha talked for a few minutes about how thankful she was to God for allowing her the opportunity to come to the neighborhood that Cross and Crown is located in and how the people of the neighborhood had allowed her to be family with them.
Next, several women from the neighborhood, mostly in spanish, stood up and expressed to Martha how thankful they were for her in their class, in the baby room at Cross and Crown and just her overall, general presence at the mission.
After everyone had been given an opportunity to express their thanks to and for Martha a women named Mary stood up. Mary walked over to Martha, grabbed her behind her head with one of her hands and looked directly at her. Martha did likewise and the two stood, nearly, face to face. Side note: Mary recently had a stroke and just recently began to walk again. She, also, has paralysis on one side of her body. So, the fact that she is even able to stand up, walk and place her hand on Martha is significant in itself. What happens next is the part that made Ron and I stop and snicker to ourselves.
So, here we have Mary and Martha...
They are standing in the center of the room together, holding each other and Mary begins signing to Martha a song in spanish about how thankful she is for her.
Next, after she finishes signing she mentions that she has a gift for Martha. Mary reaches into her purse and pulls out some perfume...
Mary gives perfume to Martha...
"1 Six days before the Passover, Jesus came to Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. 2 Here a dinner was given in Jesus’ honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him. 3 Then Mary took about a pint of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume." - John 12:1-8
As the scenario unfolded right before us I turned around to look at Ron as he was leaning over towards me and he said, "What's she going to do next? Pour the perfume all over Martha's head?"
We laughed because we both were thinking the same thing. We were both thinking about the story I mentioned above.
Predictable, dry, uneventful God? I don't think so.
My God is pretty stinkin' funny.
