A friend recently forwarded me a link to a video on youtube that was done by Penn Jillette of Penn & Teller fame. The video was about an encounter Penn had with a christian who gave him a bible after one of his shows. Penn is an atheist and merriam-webster defines an atheist as "one who believes that there is no deity" (God or supreme being). I really liked the video and appreciated Penn's honesty. He talks about "proselytizing" and says:“I’ve always said that I don’t respect people who don’t proselytize. I don’t respect that at all. If you believe that there’s a heaven and a hell, and people could be going to hell or not getting eternal life, and you think that it’s not really worth telling them this because it would make it socially awkward—and atheists who think people shouldn’t proselytize and who say just leave me along and keep your religion to yourself—how much do you have to hate somebody to not proselytize? How much do you have to hate somebody to believe everlasting life is possible and not tell them that?"
“I mean, if I believed, beyond the shadow of a doubt, that a truck was coming at you, and you didn’t believe that truck was bearing down on you, there is a certain point where I tackle you. And this is more important than that.”
This video has triggered so many "shiny" thoughts and since this is my blog, I thought I would share them. I realize you may not agree with me and I am not asking you to do that, I am simply sharing some thoughts that this video triggered in my mind. I would like to ask that if you post comments that you keep them respectful. So here we go!
Proselytizing is a strange word that more or less means "trying to convert someone to your faith or cause" and the "Great Commission" found in Matthew 28:16-20 says to "...go make disciples of all nations...". This is our job as christians but it is a difficult job. When Penn said "How much do you have to hate somebody to believe everlasting life is possible and not tell them that?", well, that hit me like a ton of bricks. Seriously, this is an amazing question and yet how many of us ever truly ponder this?
You see, I have 100% buy in, when it comes to my faith. My life experiences have shaped what I believe and have brought me to this point. I go to this amazing church that has done an incredible job of dispelling the doubts I once had. I read anything and everything I can get my hands on. I am always seeking answers, trying to get a better understanding of my faith as well as perpetually re-examining what I think to confirm it aligns with truth. With all of that said, I still find it extremely difficult to explain my faith. I mean think about it, how do I get years of learning and translate it into a fifteen minute conversation? If you add in my propensity to get "shiny", you will find that I also struggle with regurgitating the details I learn. What I mean by that is I know what I have read and I can usually point you back to the material, but "Johnny-On-The-Spot" I am not. Many people take this fact about me to mean that I don't really know what I am talking about or that I don't have any answers and I am just a fool with blind faith but they couldn't be farther from the truth. We all have our gifts and our struggles. Reiterating facts without a cheat sheet is one of my major flaws, one that I wish I could change and often work on, but alas as of yet, it is what it is.
Don't get me wrong, just because it is difficult, doesn't mean that I don't share, I do. I agree with Penn, if we truly believe then we need to share. I find it interesting the number of encounters I have where faith becomes the main topic. It's interesting how we always get there, too. I have even tried to avoid being the one to bring up christianity as a sort of social experiment and everytime, we still end up there. I am the type of person who when asked, "how are you doing?" will return with "I am fine, how about you?" This tends to catch people off guard but usually it is followed by a smile and then a polite conversation about why I am where I am and what the individual is doing there as well. This happens big time when I am standing in lines. I have found that there is one main question people ask me that always triggers "faith talks". This is "What do you do for a living?" Until recently I worked with High School students. The follow-up to this answer is usually "Oh really, where?" My answer has the word "church" in it and no, I don't work at "Church's Chicken" but I did work at a church. I don't like to lie, so I answer honestly when asked these questions. I have found that even with simple answers, people keep asking more questions and I find it rather funny at times. I have had some great talks about faith and I have had a few scary encounters with people getting all aggro on me (but hey, they asked me what I do and all I did was answer 'em).
Now I am not saying that I try to avoid conversations, quite the contrary, in fact I love the opportunity to meet new people. I have to admit though, I am not the "walk up to you and ask you if you know Jesus" type of person. I have even struggled with this, because I believe in my faith so entirely, it is hard to encounter people who don't believe and not scream "Don't you understand? Hell is real but Christ provides an easy way out!" But could you imagine the look on someone's face, if I did that? I have a pretty good feeling it would either be a look of frustration or fear.
Oh, I forgot to mention, I haven't always believed. In fact, I remember checking out tons of religions, philosophies and even played with the idea that there is no God and everything we see is a "crazy random happenstance". I try to remember that time of my life when it comes to sharing my faith and this is why I don't run up to people screaming "Don't you understand?". I know that almost everytime someone ran up to me, yelling at me about being a sinner, I shut down and got uber defensive. So if I felt that way as a non-believer, why would I do that as a believer? In fact, it was a friend of mine who got me to look into christianity. She had started to go to church and was checking it out and I noticed a change in her for the better.
I guess what I am saying is I believe proselytizing is a good thing but I also believe that knowing your audience is important as well. I don't believe in standing on street corners and yelling bible verses. I believe sometimes the Lord opens doors for conversations about Him and other times those doors are closed tight and pounding on them will be of no use. There is this saying, "no one cares how much you know until they know how much you care" and this is how I approach sharing the gospel. (BTW- there seems to be some debate over who said it but that really isn't pertinent to this usage, please don't get "shiny" on that and feel free to google it, I know I did.) If you ask me what I believe, I will tell you. If their is an open door for discussion, I will gladly share what I know and how I came to the belief that I have. I have nothing to hide and no fear of being disliked for my faith. If you cross my path, ultimately we will have a conversation about my faith, what you believe, and in my heart of hearts, I hope I can persuade you to give it a chance, to take a look and ask some questions.
If you are a skeptic, atheist, non-believer or simply a human being who doesn't like labels, please know that I am not trying to force my faith on you. It is the conviction of my belief that compells me to share with you, because in my heart of hearts I believe what the bible says is true and to paraphrase 2 Peter 3:9 I, like the Lord, do not want anyone to perish nor do I hate you and I will tackle you, if a truck is bearing down on you!
If you are a believer but struggling with the fact that you don't have all the answers, may I encourage you to keep searching for answers but also understand that "faith is confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see." (Hebrews 11:1) Do not be discouraged, keep seeking Him and continue to share what He has done in your life.
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