And the Winner is...

For my final blog on this subject, possibly, I would like to introduce to you the best sign that I could find that describes the intersection of Christianity and Culture as we really see it. It may not be the sign that we, as Christians, were hoping was the most realistic, but regardless of what we think, it is probably the most truthful of all. I hate to say it, but I really think that most of the time Christians leave non-believers staring at the sign as if they had been left there by their mother to find their way home. I think that we definitely do not intend for there to be this much confusion or the feeling of being left, but nonetheless, it happens. I think that sometimes in Bible study or some small group format, the differing opinions of different Christians can lead to a lot of confusion. For me, if I was to be left at this sign, I would have turned right around and gone on my way. As Christians I think that we should strive to be in deep enough relationship with people that they do not see this sign at all, much more, that they are not alone if this is what they see. We need to be walking along side people on their journeys as we further our own journey. You can't walk a road for someone, but you can hold their hand while they walk onwards. The second thing that I think we need to do is simplify. This has been known to be a dangerous word in the church because we think that if we over-simplify, we won't present truth. I think that the same can be true though. Sometimes, the more details and rules and doctrine that you shove down someone's throat, they more discouraged and turned off they will become. I think it is important to remember that the real message is the love story of God for His creation and what He has done to reconcile it to Himself. When we forget that it is all about the love of God shown in Jesus Christ, we trade our simple truth in for some complex, distracting, harmful un-truth. Just like the sign could have simply stated the directions, so too we should be able to tell non-believers what the real moral of the story is. God loves us so much that He sent His son to die for us so that we could live a present and eternal life with Him. Let's not forget what all of the sign really says.