Dialogue

About a week ago I had an awesome conversation with a bunch of friends of mine-
I was working on getting my show, "Speakeasy" together for Saturdays at 6pm on KKIM AM 1000 in Albuquerque (listen to it online at http://www.mykkim.com) and I was having trouble reaching the question behind all my dialogue and thinkings...

I think I hit on it on my last post-

See there's this bubble in Christianity these days- and most people are completely unaware about it- we spend so much time debating over theological questions and writing books and preaching we forget something essential to keeping ourselves relevant. You see, many people who grow up in Christianity, or came to it and are clinging to it for reason in life, are steeped in what I like to call "the Conversation"- we talk about the books of the Bible- we talk about baptism-only vs praying the prayer- we talk about fatalism vs free-will; we talk all day long about the end of the world and about how horrible American morals are...
we have an entire Christian "culture" obsessed with abortion, gay marriage and sexual purity... and nearly every book, radio show and song grinds the ax over and over and over again....
Many feel they must go to church or risk eternal damnation.
Many feel if they don't worship with enough fervor God will not love them.
And Many feel that if they don't adhere as perfectly as possible to what modern "Christian Culture" sermonizes as good and right, they cant know God or themselves.

All of this goes on behind the minds of most modern-day Christians-
so when they are dogmatically blackmailed via guilt and fear to reach out to the assumed "sub-human" unchurched- they have no clue how to communicate with them.
So they come off hard-line
or really awkward
and just don't know how to connect
they usually either feel like saints enduring all things for Jesus
or just write off the unsaved as ignorant heathens.

All of this goes back to that awesome conversation i had with a bunch of (non-Christian gasp!) friends last week:
I asked them, point-blank, what bothered them the most about Christians and/or Christianity-

and do you know what they said?

they don't like being yelled at about something they have no idea about at all.
(like going to hell or being "saved")
they're usually open to something real
and if you are going to talk about the most sensitive thing about them- their soul-
it is an equally deep insult to just buddy up to them so you can get another "saved" notch on your Christian belt.
How insincere.
How ignorant.
If you are going to talk to someone about their soul
you have to know them like a brother or better-
you have to walk the extra mile with them
you have to give them your coat and your tunic too.

Because they're not in on the conversation.
They cant name the books of the bible
they don't care. -when did that ever help them?
They don't care about baptism vs praying-
that has nothing to do with their real lives.

Many have been deeply hurt by the church
and are really angry
and they're RIGHT to be so!
So when they see your bumper stickers
and cheesy t-shirts,
your tracts and leaflets
it's just salt in the wound.

You cannot substitute living life, in deep friendship, with someone
for anything else.

Because when you get right down to it- you're just like they are.
there is no "us" and "them".
and all your spiritualism is facade if you cant relate to your friend
and help him where he stands.

So re-think your sermons!
Re-word your bumper stickers!
Exchange your cheesy Christian t-shirts
for plain old work clothes.

Try getting in on their conversation for once.
Because if you love God- it will show,
or it wont because you really don't.

You love your Bible translation more.
You love Church more.
You love the moral high ground more.
You like being right more.

And if you don't give up mother
father
brother
and sister
for Jesus

what is it, exactly, that you really have?

...

quit speaking in Christianese-
it's annoying
and it doesn't work.

Join the conversation-

or don't.

Check out Speakeasy every Saturday night at 6pm mountain standard time on KKIM radio for more-
join in
and break the silence.
thanks