One of the things that I get excited about in ministry is talking to people who don’t have a faith community that they call their own. I love sharing faith and beliefs. I also love it when others come to know the Good News of Jesus. But time and time again I find that people are turned off from church because of other church people. It is not that they don’t know about the Christian faith, but that someone has told them that missed the mark.
Many times Christians have the best of intentions when making comments and trying to proclaim the Gospel, but with little concern for the audience that they are attempting to reach. When I have seen these interactions from a distance it is like watching the show “The Office” when Michael Scott has a great idea that always turns into a very very awkward interaction. Michael begins with a sincere heart and then it gets twisted and lost in translation along the way. Katie always wants to fast forward through those parts, or she tells Michael to “stop talking right now!”
I was reading some blogs that I follow this week and came across a video that then had this one (below) as a related video. I click on it and a couple others by this same girl and I can’t help but feel like she has a little of the Michael Scott Syndrome.
Another of the videos she asks Atheists how did we get the Bible, must have been God. So that proves God exists. This question gave me a mental image of God Faxing, or lightening bolting down the complete Bible in King James English. Nice!!
Today, apologetics have changed as our culture has changed. Apologetics is the discipline of defending a position, usually faith. When I Have faith conversations today I usually have to apologize before I can defend my faith. I have to ask the person if they would be willing to begin fresh with new perspective. The vast majority of us have been hurt (at one time or another to varying degrees) by the church. At times the most well meaning people can do the most damage. As I watched this young woman’s videos I just wanted to say to the people that were watching that I am sorry and sometimes Christians get it wrong.
