If You Have Friends Like This

A long time ago I made a conscious decisions to not be cynical but allow myself to be critical. This has served me well. One of the blessings (or is it a curse?) of grieving is to see things a little clearer than I ever have. Especially when it comes to faith. What I have noticed is that a lot of people are interested in going to heaven, but not a lot people are interested in living the vocation of a follower of Jesus. This lead many to pray a prayer all followers of Jesus should pay attention to: “Dear God, save me from Your followers.”

What is that vocation? It is to be the visible and tangible presence of Jesus Christ in the world. Sound good? Or troubling? Or complicated? No it is none of those. But it is difficult. It’s difficult because if we actually live that way, the evidence will be in the way we love, forgive and show mercy.

Today I encountered two examples of how demanding such a faith is. The first was quite simple. Since i now am living in a community where I once served a church, I often find that I encounter people I once knew rather well. Perhaps surprising to you, but even pastors have some difficult relationships. This was true with the two different people I encountered today. I learned a lot from these encounters. First, I learned that some people truly embody God’s love and forgiveness. Just a few short loving words and a generous offer came from one couple that I accidentally saw today. But it was the other couple that caused me to reflect on how demanding it is to be a follower of Jesus.

Without revealing too much, let it suffice to say that this couple remembered me with a bit of disdain, which I say with some understatement. As I recall, they did not care for me all that much! Truly I enjoy encounters with people who, over the years, for one reason or another, made a decision to end our relationship. Truth told, I take a bit of pleasure in making them uncomfortable by not avoiding them. But even with all my experience, today I was taken a bit aback.

If one could turn air into ice by the way one looks at another, I would have experienced frostbite today. I understand that some people enjoy holding on to grudges but what I don’t understand is how someone who would claim to be a follower of Jesus could. Instead of simply feeling superior, I asked myself a series of questions that ultimately moved me from being cynical to critical. Not critical of my icy old friends, but critical of myself. How often have I treated others in such a way to make them uncomfortable? How many times have I held on to grudges that make me more like a snowman that a follower of Jesus? And finally, what am I going to do about it?

I wonder if the church suffers in our day because of the witness that so many church goers make of what it means to be a Christ follower. We need to look no further than the political climate that fills our hearts and divides one against another to see that most people’s Christianity is about a mile long and a quarter inch thick. What are you doing to be a compelling reason for others that Jesus has come to offer love, forgiveness and mercy? Or are you simply holding grudges and keeping your own faith shallow and focused on simply wanting to go to heaven. Who could blame anyone from saying, “Dear God, save me from Your followers.”