wideawakeanddreaming: lately...

thoughts about jesus, travelogs, and anything else i can find swimming around in my head....

lately...

Published 23 March 2006 by will | E-mail this post

lately I have been noticing something that maybe I was just ignoring for a long time. I think I must have been turning a blind eye to it – because now that I have noticed it again I see it happening over and over and over. why do so many Christians feel the need to classify everyone or everything as Christian or non Christian? why in the heck would you ever say that you are having a casual Christian gathering or dinner? why would you ever tell someone that you are travelling to a place with one of your friends who is a non Christian? and my favourite – why would you ever tell someone that they should act like that because they are inside a church? somehow to me, this seems to add a certain stigma to being a non Christian, and that we look down upon these people and think we are better. how can this sound anyway but this way? why does this happen? some of my best friends are Christians and I would never consider saying something like this about them. why is this preface needed? do we want to sound smart in front of other Christians? do we think that it makes you more acceptable in their eyes? do we actually think god loves us any more then these people? what is the deal here? if you think that there is a barrier in place now without a person who happens to not be a Christian hear you say this – wait until they hear it. I would hate to know if I was not a Christian the way I was talked about. maybe we don’t think that it is in a bad way – but im not so sure that a way that makes others feel isolated and weird is such a good thing. I think it is way past time to stop making people feel like they cant come as they are. you don’t have to change to know Christ- he changes you. so why do we put these walls around us that keep the ones out who really need in? why don’t we try to stop classifying everything and start seeing people for who they really are. gods children.

anyway – I am heading to Poland this weekend with Linds. we are leaving tonight and coming back sometime sunday. I think it will be a great weekend. Krakow is supposed to be beautiful and I hope the weather holds up. maybe I will have some pictures to post when we return. and only 2 more weeks until tbone and bowers are gonna be here. I am really excited about that too. well – enjoy your weekend wherever you are. and if you have sunshine – enjoy some for me. I think my skin is turning greenish from not seeing it in so freaking long…

5 Responses to “lately...”

Anonymous on 23 March, 2006 17:34

Professionals call this leveling, well the beginning stages of leveling. Not saying I agree with this but anyway here it is. We generally classify people, at start, to put them on a “level.” Then in turn we put ourselves on another “level”, and the way we communicate to them is what is called leveling. We either act smarter to be smart like the one we are talking to, or we dumb them down to our level. Ultimately it is inferiority. We are either intimidated by the person or we feel better than they are. Instead of accepting them as they are, and you as you are. I call it “faking the jackass”, yourself usually being the jackass, we are just too blind to see it.

On the other hand it could be a courtesy notice to who ever they are telling. That way they don’t over react when “something” happens, or what to expect so to say. Either way in my opinion it shouldn’t really matter. People are going to be who they are eventually anyway. The problem is that is the way we should be all the time not just “faking the jackass” on Sundays or at church.

Oh yea, I’m pretty positive it hurts them, you generally show it through your actions anyway. I'm glad someone is willing to come to me when I'm "dirty"
Anonymous on 24 March, 2006 06:38

You know today i just couldn’t stop thinking about what you wrote about. It has been puzzling my mind all day. I don’t believe that harm is always intended in informing company if someone is a Christian or not. I have been trying to place myself in each person’s shoes to see what i would think or why i would do the same. Lets say that i am not very good at verbally witnessing, and you are. Well after inviting a friend out to eat, i ask you to come a long, and you agree. At that point i tell you this other person is a good friend of mine, but “he’s not a Christian.” What i might be asking is: since I’m no the best at verbally witnessing will you see what you can say to him or her.

If i was a doctor it would be my duty to identify sick people. That way i would not be wasting my energy on a perfectly healthy person. Maybe, just maybe, this is how someone is trying to ask you to help another person that is spiritually sick. Christians should identify people as “Christian and non-Christian” that way we know who is sick so to say. Christ gives us this example when he tells the Pharisees why he eats with sinners (Mat. 9:9-13). So yea we should classify people “Christian and non-Christian” not to discriminate others or exalt ourselves, but only so we can see who is sick w/o Christ.
Anonymous on 28 March, 2006 09:03

hey will, i was looking forward to your cookies on sunday, and here i read you were off to poland. hope you two had fun there. see ya. marketa
Anonymous on 12 April, 2006 18:29

Hey, you don't know me but I found your blog through a mutual friends blog (Bekah). I was reading over what you've written and you have some very powerful things to say. It has actually been quite a wake-up call to the little "Christian" bubble that I live in and has gotten me thinking about how I do things and handle certain situations. And I'm not only referring to this post but previous ones as well. Anyway, thanks for being honest and open with what you are thinking about and dealing with. Keep it up! And if it's alright, I'll keep reading.

Tabs
Anonymous on 16 April, 2006 13:41

hey tabs - thanks for your input.. i appreciate it. and yes - feel free to keep on reading.. hehe....