More madness from the morning show

I don't want to sound as if I'm picking on Christian radio morning shows, however, I heard something else this morning that helps me identify with what others see when they look at Christians. The hosts were discussing alternative methods that can be used as mosquito repellent. It's a suitable topic on a Twin Cities radio station. One of the hosts explained how Listerine can be used to keep the nasty bug away. Simply spray it on the wood and door knobs in the area you desire to keep them from. The other host didn't seem convinced. She went on to explain how well it works and then said she had never actually done it before. Really? She gave me the impression that she swore by it. I thought, are you going to give testimony to something you've never experienced?

In the world of mosquito repellent, I guess it's alright to take someones word on a remedy they haven't tried. What do you have to lose, right? But when it comes to eternity...

I hear Christians on a regular basis giving testimony to God's Word when they haven't even read it for themselves. I've been around individuals who encourage others to trust God, but haven't done so for themselves. People telling others about the power of prayer without having been on their knees before the living God. Telling people about forgiveness while holding on to bitterness that has haunted them for years. How God can change someones life, but living as if God isn't even a part of their own. Preaching to others how they need Jesus and living in a way that doesn't demonstrate a need for Christ at all.

Those who proclaim Christ as their Savior are under a microscope. And they're accountable to a Holy God. Personally, I'm not going to give testimony to anything I haven't yet experienced for myself. I don't in everyday life and I'm certainly not going to from an eternal perspective. I've experienced the grace and love of God and it's my responsibility to tell the world about it, however, I'm not in a position to give testimony about things I haven't experienced. How can you speak on behalf of something that you haven't first experienced for yourself?

People who are seeking God are looking for something specific from Christ followers and it can be summarized in one word: REAL. They want to see authenticity. If someone is speaking about topic, they want for them to have experienced it.

Often times those who represent Christ publicly believe God's Word in their minds and not in their hearts. Simply believing God intellectually doesn't leave much room to experience God. Experiencing God is what the Bible is about. It's not about fulfilling a set guidelines or meeting expectations of others. God is not concerned about your image. He's concerned about your heart. Have you experienced God?

“Somehow Christianity has become a nonmystical religion. It’s about a reasonable faith. If we believe the right things, then we are orthodox. Frankly whether we ever actually connect to God or experience His undeniable presence has become incidental, if not irrelevant. We have become believers rather than experiencers. To know God in Scriptures always went beyond information to intimacy. We may find ourselves uncomfortable with this reality, but the faith of the Scriptures is a mystical faith. It leads us beyond the material world into an invisible reality. We become connected to the God of eternity. Who you are at the core is spirit. God is Spirit. To walk with God is to journey in the spiritual realm. ”
- Erwin McManus, Barbarian Way