Shoutlouder

a close shave with 'Make me a Christian'

// August 10th, 2008 // 2 Comments » // TV

So a few months ago a member of our congregation – Tracey – called me up to say she’d been accepted to appear on an ITV documentary about people of different faiths who were trying to find the perfect partner via faith based dating sites… very odd! But after meeting with the ITV crew and seeing that they just wanted to show Tracey in her church environment we agreed to let them film… everything went really well as I mentioned in my previous post.

The bizarre thing was that about a week later I got a call from some Reverend who was working with a Channel 4 company on a new programme and they wanted to film in our church too. At first I thought it was a joke! Someone from our Sheffield congregation (mainly the senior pastor who is the ultimate prankster) but as it turned out it was a genuine programme. So we chatted about the possibilities but the more I chatted with them the more I thought – this thing sounds really odd. From what I could gather the programme was taking a bunch of non-christians – and when I say non-christians it was like a politically correct collection of anybody and everybody who could be as far removed from the stereotypical christian portrayed in the media – and trying to MAKE them a Christian through exposing them to different aspects of Christianity. They were being ‘mentored’ and taken to various places around Leeds and the rest of the country to see if they could be ‘convinced’ to give Christianity a go…

Well to be honest – something just didn’t sit right in my spirit – it was one of those ‘no peace’ moments and so we made our excuses and left them to it.

Tonight the show aired in a prime evening slot on Channel 4. I just watched and thank God we didn’t get involved. The only thing I feel sorry for is the poor bunch of guys who have been subjected to a literal Bible-bashing…

I’ve just read Bill Hybels amazing book on how to point people towards faith called ‘Just Walk Across the Room‘ – where the main premise of reaching people for Christ is to live life in 3D: 1st Develop Friendships, 2nd Discover common ground Stories, 3rd Discern next steps – all the time keeping your life open to the guidance of the Holy Spirit. However a small proportion of the nation just watched a group of clergy attempt to indoctrinate the poor guinea pigs on the show by telling them what to believe, visiting their home and telling them what they shouldn’t be doing, and then sitting them down in a ‘mentoring’ session and dictating what they need to do to become a Christian.. I’m sorry but there was no grace, no love shown to these people and to be honest – their current lives looked a lot more interesting than the monastery of a life they were being sold.

Now I know that the media is a vicious being when it comes to editing and so I give the clergy involved a degree of grace over the whole thing – but I’m glad we didn’t get involved! The last thing this country needs to see is a documentary that gives them the impression that all Christians want to do is ‘Make them a Christian’ and that means you better lock away anything that might be deemed sinful cause otherwise you’re going to have to burn it all before you can come close to having any relationship with God.

I appreciate that people need to deal with the stuff in their lives. But that’s what Jesus died for – so that God’s grace can be extended FIRST to everyone no matter where you find yourself in life. The dealing with sin has already been dealt with – so first you can enter into relationship and then as God’s love and design for your life is revealed to you the stuff of the old life will be left where it belongs in the past.

Make me a Christian! I think not… Show me a loving Saviour… I think so!

can it really be that simple?

// August 2nd, 2008 // No Comments » // Book Review, Evangelism, Self-Development

I’ve just started reading Bill Hybels latest book, “Just Walk Across the Room: Simple Steps Pointing People to Faith”. I say just started reading – but I started yesterday and I’m already a third of the way through because it is that inspiring, challenging, moving, provoking…

I actually had to put it down for a minute early this afternoon. I was sat reading it in a Playcentre whilst my son was playing and I felt such a touch of the Holy Spirit, provoking, proding, convicting me (righteously – not with guilt) about how I really need to change the way I approach evangelism in my life that I was about to bust into tears… (something I regularly do – much to the enjoyment of my congregation – when I sense the Holy Spirit at work).

The thing is – Bill Hybels is writing about something so simple – the simple concept that all it takes is for us ‘Christ-followers’ to step away from our Circles of Comfort and take a walk across the room to engage people who mingle around our world. How else can we share the incredible nature and power of God’s love and grace if we don’t make the effort to actually connect with someone. It’s not rocket science and yet every born-again Christian will say Yes to the need to share Jesus with the world, but still never make that one move out of comfort that may just open the doors, or sow a seed for someone to step into eternity. It’s so simple… yet why don’t we do it!

This book is incredibly practical and insightful as to how we must approach evangelism in our culture and society today. I couldn’t do justice to summarise it here – but let me say if you’re going to read one book this year then read this one and it will totally redirect the outward focus of your Christian life and liberate you to see that evangelism isn’t about gifting, crusades, great apologetics and deep theological expositories – it’s just about you being open to allow the Holy Spirit to guide you in building bridges across which the truth of the Gospel can carry lives into eternity…