This morning I jumped on the scale for my Monday morning reveal. The digital readout displayed 202.8. I've hit another plateau, but I'm still enjoying the 20.2 lbs that are no longer part of my daily payload!
I hiked Mummy Springs trail on Mt. Charleston last Saturday. The views from atop the ridge line of the Vegas valley below were amazing. At one point on the trail my hiking partner and I viewed the oldest known creature on planet earth--a 4,000 year-old bristle cone pine. That's pretty cool to say the least.
I was hiking with a friend who was born in the states, but who has roots in Iran. When I was asking him about the religious climate in Iran he told me that roughly half the population there practices Islam. He then went on to say that it's much like what we see here in the states: some Christians practice; others call themselves Christian by name only.
"What does it mean to be a true Christian?" I asked.
"Oh, people who are practicing Christians go to church on Sundays and pray before meals."
After listening for a few moments I said, "Yes, that is a common misconception about what it means to be a Christian who's practicing faith."
His reply: "You're saying that I have a misconception?"
"Not exactly. Your perception is right on target. The misconception comes for those who go to church and pray before meals and think that's the basis for calling themselves Christians."
The whole conversation got me reflecting again on this thought: why is it that when people outside the Kingdom encounter Jesus' people, often the only thing that makes them different is their Sunday morning schedule and 20 seconds before eating? Is it that they're not getting close enough? Does the way we live not reflect anything of comparison to the rest of the world?
Here, here, to a discipleship that is so life changing/encompassing that when people encounter us they know that something is radically different about us because of God's work in us!
No comments:
Post a Comment