I've spent a lot of time lately thinking about the best way to relate to people outside the church. Within the last couple of decades there have been all kinds of different strategies of how to get people into our churches. On the one hand that's a good thing because hopefully they will hear the Gospel, accept Jesus Christ as their Savior, and grow as a Christian. On the other hand I think we have to ask the question, what sacrifices did we make to get people to come into the church?
Recently I heard a pastor remark (unfortunately I can't remember which pastor) that Christians have had no trouble convincing the world that we can live like them. What we struggle with is showing them that we can live differently.
Christian merchandizing has created a Christian knockoff of almost everything secular. One of the things that I have learned over the years in dieting is that when you eat a no-fat, no-calorie candy bar, not only does it not taste very good, it makes you crave a real candy bar. Sometimes it's just better to learn to live without candy bars.
Food for thought... It may be time for the church to start worrying more about how to live like the church than how to live like the world.
- Aaron
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