"Jen, you're a Christian right?"
I shuddered.
Not because I am ashamed of my faith, or that I am ashamed of loving Jesus but because of the label that "christian " can mean in America, or at least Southern California.
Lately this label means to me a conservative man who will judge you at any given moment.
It means seeing only black & white, and not the complicated shades of grey.
It means being a consumer of Christian marketing that really has nothing to do with being a follower of Christ.
It means having bad taste in music.
I wish it identified more with a people group that loves with compassion instead of judgement and isn't so stuck in a box.
I answered my co-worker with a "why do you ask? " before I committed to labeling myself.
Most of my co-workers know who I love and who I follow, but it's not because I ever claimed myself to be a Christian or answered the religious question of "are you..?". I think it's because as I live out my life they are curious why I make certain decisions or say things that I do that have led to great conversations about who God is.
I wish now there was a different label. I don't want to be boxed into the label of 'Christian" , "Presbyterian" "moderate" or anything else. I just want to be known as someone who loves Jesus and does her best to communicate the amazing and abundant love God has for all His people.
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3 comments:
That was a rockin' good post wife.
Ha, ha, ha!..."Christian," "Presbyterian," and "moderate" are all the things that I'm listed as on Facebook, and I'm really o.k. with it. I guess I see the problem more with the person who judges based on the "label," than the label itself. I see it more as a superficial descriptor. Those things aren't who I am. People I work or spend time with on a daily basis know that.
People are going to have biases and presuppositions about one another, regardless of what we call ourselves. But, you're right; we have to live out love in our lives. That's the only thing that's going to challenge the picture of the "ugly Christian."
That was Sarah, by the way. Dave was signed on to his blogger account. Oops!
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