Christian Worldview

Dan and I went to see the movie, "Lord Save Us From Your Followers" at the Hollywood Theater last week.  It was a great documentary where the director asks the question, "Why can't Americans just have a conversation about beliefs?  Why must everything be such a huge battle?"  He looked deeply at the way Christians are perceived in American culture (extremely out of touch, very judgmental and full of hatred).  At one point he compared that perception with the perception that Africans have of American Christians.  They (generally) see us as full of Christ's love and compassion.  Why is the divide so great?  

The basic perception that Africans have of American Christiansis that we are the people who are over there, giving of ourselves, meeting basic needs, truly being the hands and feet of Christ.  Meanwhile over here, the least of these are very rarely even noticed by Christians.  We seem to be too busy fighting against the gays to realize that these are people...just the same as us.  We are all people who need to be loved.  We all have a story.  Why do we need to travel to Africa to love people and help people?  Of course, we need to be in Africa!  The extreme poverty must be helped and Christians have a call by Christ to help. But, we also need to treat people here with the same love and compassion that we have towards people in other countries.  

It would be a great day when our neighbors felt the same way about American Christians that the starving children in Africa do...that we love them, want to help them and most of all, that we do all of this because Christ first loved us.  Wouldn't that make people stop and listen?  Wouldn't that be so much more effective to sharing Christ's mission than picketing abortion clinics and supporting political candidates who will ban gay marriage?  In my mind, the answer is a huge YES!  Now, if I can just remember to live what I believe...to remember that this can be as simple as offering a hug or a meal to someone who is in pain, to stand up for people that the church views as marginal and to teach my children that we are all equal in the eyes of Christ and that God has told us to love Him first and foremost and to love His people...ALL of them.