For Those Who May Wonder...
Upon reading some comments on the blog, I want to take some time to expound upon what I keep referring to as "the journey." I guess that the term comes from what I am coming to believe about what I think it means to be a "Christian." To be candid, that term has lost a great deal of meaning that it used to have. It means "little Christs" and I am of the opinion that while that may be the rendering of the definition of the word, some who use the word to describe themselves do not fit the definition.
That being said, I would rather be called a follower of Jesus Christ. I think that it fits with what I feel being a "Christian" is about. Hebrews 11:13 brings up the idea that we are foreigners here on this Earth. While I do not want to get weird here, I think that simply by throwing the word Christian around, we tend to forget that there is something mysterious and other worldly about saying that we follow a carpenter from Nazareth who claimed to be God, and whom we believe was raised from the dead.
Think of the idea that we are "following" Jesus. If we are following him, that means, at least to me, that we are going somewhere, to where he is. It is one of the reasons that I believe that all our lives as like a journey. We are going somewhere, moving toward something. What has been the interesting challenge is that this church plant that we call "LIFEhouse West" is part of my journey. Long before we arrived at where we are now, God put the dream in my heart as I walked along on my journey of following him. It has been a very personal thing. Now there are others who have come along on the journey that I find myself on. As frightening as it may sound sometimes, they are following me as I am following Christ. We are now on this journey together.
I am convinced that LIFEhouse West is not a building, it is part of a movement, a journey, that God willing, will bring many others on the journey as well, which we trust will, in the end, bring us into the presence of God for eternity. I hope that for anyone who is wondering, this brings some clarificaiton. Lets all enjoy the journey together.
PJ
That being said, I would rather be called a follower of Jesus Christ. I think that it fits with what I feel being a "Christian" is about. Hebrews 11:13 brings up the idea that we are foreigners here on this Earth. While I do not want to get weird here, I think that simply by throwing the word Christian around, we tend to forget that there is something mysterious and other worldly about saying that we follow a carpenter from Nazareth who claimed to be God, and whom we believe was raised from the dead.
Think of the idea that we are "following" Jesus. If we are following him, that means, at least to me, that we are going somewhere, to where he is. It is one of the reasons that I believe that all our lives as like a journey. We are going somewhere, moving toward something. What has been the interesting challenge is that this church plant that we call "LIFEhouse West" is part of my journey. Long before we arrived at where we are now, God put the dream in my heart as I walked along on my journey of following him. It has been a very personal thing. Now there are others who have come along on the journey that I find myself on. As frightening as it may sound sometimes, they are following me as I am following Christ. We are now on this journey together.
I am convinced that LIFEhouse West is not a building, it is part of a movement, a journey, that God willing, will bring many others on the journey as well, which we trust will, in the end, bring us into the presence of God for eternity. I hope that for anyone who is wondering, this brings some clarificaiton. Lets all enjoy the journey together.
PJ
posted by PJ | 8:47 AM
1 Comments:
Yeh, I agree PJ. I'm living in Germany and my husband and I are beginning to gather a team together to start an English speaking Church. We are trying to eliminate jargon from our vocab. especially as 'Christian' is used very lightly these days. We refer to ourselves as "Christ followers" or "Followers of Jesus". Have you read Bill Hybels latest book "Just Walk Across the Room". It's a fantastic read and has some great practical helps.
I'm enjoying reading your blog.
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