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God doesn't need our advertising to be God.

St. Francis of Assisi once said: "I am always preaching the Gospel. Sometimes I use words." Our senior pastor claims that in order to really share your faith with the hope that they too will get to know and have a personal relationship with the source of that faith, one should invest at least two years in the friendship. You really get to know someone in eight seasons. Perhaps your friend may even "witness" what you are like under extreme duress. A mark of a true Christian, I believe, has self-control; it is especially true of how one "acts" in stressful situations. Are they humble? Christ was humble. Are they forgiving? Christ said forgive 77 x 7.

Faith is not a feeling. Its a belief. Doing what makes you feel good, in itself, is a religion. And then there is one's culture and the marriage of the two. My personal trainer claims to be Jewish. But he knows very little about his Jewish ancestors and the ancient Israelite faith. Every year he shares in Seder with his parents, but by his own admission, he has never read a Torah or Hebrew OT or much less a Bible. Upon getting to know him over the years, I have discovered that his religion is not Jewish, but rather closer to New Age. He is what one calls a "cultural Jew." Many Jews of today are even atheists.

My trainer knows that I am a born-again Christian. I have read all 1600 years of our ancient History. I tell him he is chosen, I am grafted in. He likes that. He often likes to hear the stories of his Jewish ancestors as I lift, push, pull, stretch, run, walk, and grunt through my workouts at the gym. These stories have entertained him for three years. Nonetheless, he sternly believes that all power lies with the person, and has tattooed his religion of "power" on his upper arm for all the world to see. Our religions clash, yet we love each other and respect each other very much. So how do two people, whose faith are worlds apart, get along so well? The answer lies in the balance of our will (the mind), spirit and emotions (our flesh).

Just, too, most "Christians" I know are "cultural Christians." What I mean is, these cultural Christians are in it for the convenience, perhaps just by tradition of family. But how can you tell a cultural Christian apart from the real deal? One good way is if they martyr themselves, often taking the place of God. Truly, I say, this is shameful to our faith. The women who walked out of the hair salon huffing and puffing were not witnesses to the Christian faith, as Jesus himself assured, there would be many false prophets before his second return.

Our church has this mission statement: We want you to belong before you believe, and believe before you behave. We don't expect the behavior to change overnight. But one good thing about our faith is that it a very practical faith. The reason I became a Christian is because how practical this faith became to me. I prayed to Jesus and the heart transformations, the miracles of healing, and the life dreams all started coming together. I developed unspeakable joy. I had peace that surpasses all understanding, and I handled all the stress better. I delivered the goods! And now, even my trainer says, you ARE the real deal! But no one knows better that you are renewed from the inside out than those who live with you, as my husband and children can attest to that.

God is the source. Religion is the resource. God doesn't need our advertising to be God! How we manage the resources He gives us in this short life of ours should be the true debate.

Learn more about this author, Frances Newman.
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