Wrong thinking

Why is it so hard to be a Christian... among other Christians? Something I've noticed, since I've arrived here at BJU is that I'm having an increasingly hard time finding Christians who are passionate about Christianity. I'm not saying having fun isn't a good thing... but I've hung out with a few different groups and never has the topic of God come up... With the exception of the one time that one of the friends I was hanging out with mentioned that the entire time she had been there, she hadn't had a serious conversation with anyone and we should all talk about what we learned about God that week (I applaud the move). Unfortunately, instead of having a conversation about God, there were some giggles and a few people said that they thought John 3:16 was the best verse EVER..... No wonder she hasn't had a serious conversation since she got here.

This is a Christian College!  Most likely, everyone you encounter here should be saved. Talk about it. Tell people your testimony. Discuss chapel messages... That's a great way to stay awake in chapel... if you know that you will be discussing it over lunch. The most I've heard anyone talk about chapel was when there was a bird in chapel. Everyone stayed awake for that one. No one remembers that he was making the point that God wants to save sinners.

Frankly, I think there is a bit of trying not to appear too weird. "If I bring up that subject, such and so might not like it", "there's plenty of preacher boys around here, they can be the ones to start that kind of conversation." Guess what... It only takes one person to start a revolution. Yesterday in chapel, I heard the story of William Borden. He was in training to be a missionary to China at Yale university (while it still was a college that produced ministers). He began a small prayer group in the morning (yes, before classes started) by the time he left, 1,000 of Yale's 1,300 students were involved in that prayer group. You would've been weird to not be in those meetings. He had an impact on nearly an entire college.

Here's the thing, though. If you are not willing to be bold when you are among friends, how can you ever expect to be bold when you are out among the enemy? My pastor calls it raising the flag of Christianity. That doesn't mean wiggling the tiny white handkerchief of defeat. A flag is tall, proud of what it stands for, and waves back and forth so that everyone can see what it really is. Why is our flag hidden? The moment we step off campus, people are watching us. Our testimony. How we act, what we say and do. The Devil has no problem pointing out our flaws to everyone around us. The time we slip up and say... maybe not a curse word, but certainly a word that Christians really should avoid. When we wear the skirt that is almost uncheckable just because the dorm supervisor didn't have a chance to stop us on our way out the door. When we are walking around the mall and complain about how legalistic BJU is with all of their rules.... People are listening. There have been a few times when I was eating a meal alone for one reason or another and I love to listen to other people's conversation. Sometimes I'll be sitting by myself and just start laughing at what the group at the table behind me is saying. There was one time when I saw a girl trying to put her plate away and dropped a napkin. For the next two minutes she tried to roll the napkin to the top of her foot and pick it up that way...  She did eventually succeed, but as she walked past me talking to a friend I heard her tell him that she had only done it because she didn't want to bend down and mess her hair up. I know that I am not the only people-watcher in the world. Everyone around us looks at us. We live in a world of entertainment and we look to other people to entertain us. The lady at the store with her triple stroller... She is listening for intelligent conversation that is not coming from two-year olds. The elderly gentleman who sits on the bench with a cup of coffee waiting for the bus... He looks for smiles that are genuine.

We are Christians. It is wrong for us to think that acting like it makes us boring and we will never have any friends. When Christ is at the core of our relationships, we can do nothing less than grow closer together. Our life should not be about how many sins we can get away with or how many friends we have on Facebook. Our life should be for the praise, honor, and glory of God, our gracious and perfect Redeemer.

Because of Him,
Missa