Well, its been a great week. Do you ever have those weeks when bizarre things just seem to happen? Well I did, and it all seemed to happen on Monday.
I got home from the GYFC office to learn that the pet rabbit had been eaten by the fox. My eldest (10) was in floods of tears and quite treaumatised, my youngest (6) was confused and wondering where the rabbit had vanished to while my daughter (8) very matter of factly told me ‘Damn fox ate the rabbit’ with a weird smile on her face.
It does not end there! We were sat down to dinner when we heard this massive crash upstairs. No one seemed too bothered apart from me so I left them all eating and went to investigate. To cut a long story short, I found next doors cat trying to eat the pet gerbils.The next 10 mins saw me chasing this cat and shouting at it trying to get it out of the house. No matter which way I went it just seemed to go further up the house until it jumped out an open window in the loft! ‘Oh **** I’ve killed next doors cat’, I thought!
The cat had actually managed to cling on to the guttering, pull itself to the top of the roof, and them spent the next 5 hours lying on the ridge tiles in a taumatised state! I was wondering how I, the YFC evangelist ‘supposed to be nice’ Christian was going to tell my neighbour that I had effectively killed his cat. Thankfully I did not need to!
Looking back the images must have been very comical (and they did produce a laugh when I shared them in my sermon this morning).
The whole incident did set me thinking. It’s amazing how different people will all react differently to the same incident. The rabbit killing is a prime example. If we take that on in our faith I guess it is not a surprise that we all react and relate differently to Jesus.
I guess the real challenge and issue comes when we learn whether we can cope with people relating differently to God than the way we do. Too often in the evangelical church this has not been the case. If you do not think this view or if you don’t like that style of worship then you do not fit. In some places we are even made to feel that we are not real Christians, or at best sub-standard Christians, if we take this view or that one.
I like to think that we can be better than that and that we can move on from this. It would be great if more could acknowledge and celebrate our differences in how we relate to God, and felt able to chat and question more, as this must then give us a bigger, better and more complete picture of who God is.
The Shiny Headed Prophet
a space to talk about faith, church, god, society, our journey and all that real stuff that matters in a post modern world … or just the ramblings of a bald post modern pilgrim! I must stress the postings on this site are my own and don't necessarily represent the views of anywhere I may happen to be working. These views are personal!
The Shiny Headed Prophet 
HAving experienced many forms of Christian Denomination, your view seems to be rife throughout Evangelical society. Whether it be an all singing all dancing Club Chruch, a traditional baptist, or high Anglican…if you don’t fit, you are either made to feel uncomfortable (usually by the spine chilling stares, half joking whole earnest comments, (invariably disguised in a hearty chortle)or just blatant ignorance.) or pulled aside and asked to go on an Alpha or such course so they can make sure you’re “O.K” (in other words figure where you’re different and challenge until you either conform or leave!!)
Yes, I tend to agree with your comment. We see the problem, what can we do about it? How do we challenge this sort of behaviour, or is it best just to leave it and go elsewhere until we ‘fit’ (and, I guess, spend our time rejecting others that don’t fit?!)
I don’t know if we can challenge it…as you said in your first post we need to recognise difference, the churches way of doing this seems to be to make another denomination, but I think we both agree that this isn’t the best way probably because it means rejecting people, and that isn’t what Church is supposed to be.Like most things God wise there must be some middle ground somewhere…we’re all humans so we’re not going to get on with everyone, and differences will wind us up to the point of moving on sometimes, but on the other hand, if you join a church, following the church leader/leadership has to be of prime importance so that everyone resonates together. Dispite their differences they unite behind GOd’s chosen person/people.But even a middle ground between unity and division is still gonna create rejection…I think I’ve sussed it, the problem is diversity and difference in people…God why did you make us different!? Church would have so much easier without people!!I think like most theological questions, we could talk for years and still not reach a solution that would satisfy one and all, until we reach heaven!