JESUS

What characterizes Christianity in the modern world is its odd-ness. Christianity is home for people who are out of step, unfashionable, unconventional and counter-cultural. As Peter says, »strangers and aliens.«

I pastor the slowest growing church in America. We started twelve years ago with 90 members and have un-grown to 30. We’re about as far as you can get from a »user friendly« church—not because our congregation is unfriendly, but because our services are unpredictable, unpolished and inconsistent.

We’re an »odd-friendly« church, attracting unique and different followers of Christ who make every service a surprise. We refuse to edit oddness and incompetence from our services. We believe our oddness matters. We want our service filled with mistakes and surprises, because life is full of mistakes and surprises.

One Sunday morning, during the time for prayer requests, a member began describing the critical illness of her father. Because she was close to her father, her request for prayer was frequently interrupted by tears. Those around her reached out a hand or nodded with sadness. Some found their eyes filling with tears as well. The woman finished her request as best as she could.

Seated in the front row was Sadie—a young woman with Down’s syndrome. Sadie stood and walked up the aisle until she saw the woman in the middle of her row. Stepping over the feet of other people in the aisle, Sadie reached the woman, bent down on her knees, laid her head on the woman’s lap, and cried with her.

Sadie »inconvenienced« an entire row of people, stepped on their shoes, and forced them to make room for her … but none of us will ever forget that moment. Sadie is still teaching the rest of us what the odd compassion of Christ’s church looks like.

Someone said »you shall know the truth and the truth shall make you odd.« Whoever made that statement understood what it means to be a follower of Christ. Followers of Christ are odd. Oddness is important because it’s the quality that adds color, texture, variety, and beauty to the human condition. Christ doesn’t make us the same. What He does is affirm our differentness.

Oddness is important because the most dangerous word in Western culture is »sameness.« Sameness is a virus that infects members of industrialized nations and causes an allergic reaction to anyone who’s different. This virus affects the decision-making part of our brain, resulting in an obsession with making the identical choices that everyone else is making.

Sameness is a disease with disastrous consequences—differences are ignored, uniqueness is not listened to, our gifts are cancelled out, and the place where life, passion, and joy reside are snuffed out.

Sameness is the result of sin. Sin does much more than infect us with lust and greed; it flattens the human race, franchises us, attempts to make us all homogenous. Sameness is the cemetery where our distinctiveness dies. In a sea of sameness, no one has an identity.

But Christians do have an identity. Aliens! We’re the odd ones, the strange ones, the misfits, the outsiders, the incompatibles. Oddness is a gift of God that sits dormant until God’s spirit gives it life and shape. Oddness is the consequence of following the One who made us unique, different … and in His image!

One of my son’s friends (I’ll call him Greg), recently celebrated his 28th birthday. Greg’s parents weren’t happy with his life choices, especially his decision to live with his girlfriend. Knowing his parents’ displeasure, Greg and his girlfriend decided to get married, and they called his parents to give them the good news. »We want to be married in Minnesota, so the entire family can come.« Greg’s parents were happy, but restrained.

While they were planning the wedding, Greg’s girlfriend discovered she was pregnant. Realizing the coming pregnancy would upset his parents, Greg decided to call off the wedding and use the money they were going to spend on the wedding for their new baby instead.

Greg and Diane opted for a courthouse wedding with a justice of the peace presiding. Only my son and his girlfriend witnessed the union.

A couple of weeks after the »wedding,« my son and his girlfriend were with some friends, and the subject of Greg’s marriage came up. Everyone concluded that it was more like a »non-wedding«—impersonal and isolated. As Greg and Diane’s friends talked, their conviction grew. No wedding should be an impersonal, isolated, bureaucratic, legal transaction. Weddings should be celebrated. The couple should be surrounded with the support and care of family and friends.

The group looked at each other and almost in unison said the same thing: »Why don’t we give Greg and Diane the wedding they never had?« As soon as the words left their mouths, they knew what had to be done. Even though Greg and Diane were legally married, the group decided to gift them with a »real« wedding. The date was set, both families were called, and, surprisingly, all agreed to come to the surprise wedding at their own expense. Sixty friends and family were involved in a conspiracy of grace.

To ensure that the couple was available on their new wedding day, Greg and Diane were invited to my son’s home for a »dress up« dinner on the day of the wedding conspiracy. When the couple arrived for dinner, a group of Diane and Greg’s friends kidnapped each of them separately and each was given the bachelor and bachelorette party they’d never had. The »bride« and »groom« were separately driven to a secluded place where, seated in a circle with their same-gender friends, they were asked a series of questions like, »Now that you have been married for three months, what mistakes have you made? How can we help you in your marriage?« Both the young husband and wife were given a picture of their spouse and asked to write on the back of the photo all the reasons they loved that person.

When the individual parties were finished, Greg and Diane thought that the surprise was over. You can imagine their shock when they were returned to the house, only to discover 60 of their family and friends waiting for them, laughing, yelling »Surprise!!!« The hugging and the crying began. It took Greg and Diane a long time to stop crying and after they regained their composure, the entire group moved into the back yard surrounded with flowers where a minister was waiting. The couple exchanged vows, each parent vowed their support, and each friend walked by and whispered a blessing to the couple. When the service was completed, there wasn’t a dry eye anywhere. Everyone left knowing they had participated in a moment of grace. This wedding had »Jesus« written all over it.

My Testimony For Jesus~»Sue«

I was Raised Catholic. One day a Baptist preacher knocked on my door. He had a black Bible under his arm. That was the first thing that caught my eye. I didn't want to hear it. I was Catholic! My husband let him in,(they had pre-planned this) and asked him to have a seat. The Baptist preacher actually reached over & turned off my t.v. program. I looked at him like he was crazy. He just smiled at me in a sweet understanding way, which for some reason, upset me all the more! He was the pastor of the Landmark Baptist Church in town. They were having a Revival starting the Next Sunday. (I had no idea what a Revival was.) He said, he came by to ask me a question? (I figured it must be a good one since he turned off my t.v. program.) »If Something happened to you tonight, and you died, where would you go?« he asked. I didn't even hesitate. »To Heaven, of Course;« I replied. »Why do you say you'll go to Heaven?« he asked. »Because I am a Catholic;« I answered with assurance. I got to give that little Baptist Preacher Credit. He didn't Laugh! »Do you believe the Bible is God's Holy Word?« he asked me. I told him I did. He asked, if he could show me what Jesus said, about how to get to heaven. That puzzled me, because we were not encouraged to read the Bible. The priest told us everything we needed to know. I figured he wasn't going to leave unless I let him show me whatever it was he wanted me to see, so I said, All right. He turned to the book of Roman's, and took me down what's Called, »The Roman Road to Salvation.« He started out with Romans 3:23~ & All have sinned & come short of the Glory of God. When he was finished, I realized I understood the word's he showed me, and I knew I had been lied to. I went thru a week of Misery, confusion, and guilt as the fleshly nature Battled with the Spirit over being Born Again. My husband dragged me to the first night of the Revival. I didn't want to go~it was a sin~I was going to split Hell wide open for going in another Church that wasn't Catholic~What would the priest say? I was a Mess~I Was Confused! The first night, I couldn't get my feet to move. The second night, a lady next to me said; »If You take One step, God Will Take Two.« I took a step toward the Isle to go down front, and she was right. I went forward when the invitation call was given on the Second Night. I knelt down, and the pastor knelt beside me, and guided me through, asking Jesus into my Soul. I felt the Spirit~I Felt so Clean~There was No Doubt about what had just Happened. »I Was Born Again!« It was a Rocky Road I traveled with that little preacher, as I took him thru all kind's of changes regarding the lies I had been taught for 22 years of my life. He hung in there for Jesus, and I promised Jesus~I would do All I Could, to Make Sure those who had been lied to like I was, learned the Truth. That's My Testimony for Jesus~He set my Feet on a New Path & Put a Song of Praise in my Heart~He filled My Heart with Love for all people & gave me a Desire to Reach as many as Possible with The Truth of His Word. He is My Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.~»Sue«

Every month the youth group at River Road Church visited Holcomb Manor, a local nursing home, to do the church services for the people who stayed there. Daryl Jenkins, a reluctant youth group volunteer and former alcoholic, didn’t like nursing homes and had avoided the services. But because of a flu epidemic, Daryl was asked to join a depleted group of sponsors to help with next month’s service. He agreed to go as long as he didn’t have to be part of the program.

The day of the service, Daryl felt awkward and out of place. While the service was in progress, Daryl leaned against the back wall, between two residents in wheelchairs. Just as the service finished and Daryl thought about a quick exit, someone grabbed his hand. Startled, Daryl looked down to see a very old man in a wheelchair holding on to his hand tightly. The man was very old, frail, and obviously lonely. What could Daryl do but hold his hand back? Oliver Leak was his name, his 91-year-old frame bent and twisted, his face covered with deep wrinkles, and his mouth open most of the time. Oliver’s face was expressionless, and Daryl doubted whether the man could hear or see anything.

As everyone began to leave, Daryl realized he didn’t want to leave the old man—he’d been left too many times in his long life. Confused by his feelings, Daryl leaned over to Oliver and whispered, »I’m…uh...sorry. I have to leave, but I’ll be back. I promise.« Without any warning, Mr. Leak responded by squeezing Daryl’s hand and then let go. Daryl’s eyes filled with tears, and he grabbed his stuff and started to leave. Inexplicably, Daryl heard himself say to the old man, »I love you.« (Where did that come from? What’s the matter with me?)

Daryl came back the next month…and the month after that. The routine was the same: Daryl would stand in the back, Mr. Leak would grab his hand, Daryl would say he had to leave, Mr. Leak would squeeze his hand, and Daryl would say softly, »I love you, Mr. Leak.« (He had learned his name, of course.) Soon Daryl would find himself all week looking forward to visiting his old friend.

On Daryl’s sixth visit, he could tell something was wrong. Mr. Leak wasn’t at the service. Daryl wasn’t too concerned at first because it often took the nurses a long time to wheel everyone out. But as the service went on, Daryl became alarmed. He went to the head nurse. »Um, I don’t see Mr. Leak here today. Is he okay?« The nurse asked Daryl to follow her, and she led him to Room 27 where Oliver lay in his bed, his eyes closed, his breathing uneven. At 40 years of age, Daryl had never seen someone dying, but he knew Oliver was near death. Slowly he walked to the side of the bed and grabbed his hand. Oliver was unresponsive, and it didn’t take long for the tears to come for Daryl. They had never spoken, and Daryl knew he might never see Oliver alive again. So much he wanted to say, but the words wouldn’t come out. They were together about an hour when the youth director gently interrupted Daryl to say they were leaving.

Daryl stood to leave and squeezed Mr. Leak’s hand for the last time. »I’m sorry, Oliver, I have to go. I love you.« As he unclasped his hand, he felt a squeeze. The tears were unstoppable now. Daryl stumbled toward the door, trying to gain his composure.

A young woman was standing at the door, and Daryl almost bumped into her. »I’m sorry,« he said, »I didn’t see you.«

»It’s all right, I’ve been waiting to see you,« she said. »I’m Oliver’s granddaughter. He’s dying, you know.«

»Yes, I know.«

»I wanted to meet you,« she went on, "When the doctors said he was dying, I came immediately. We were very close. They said he couldn’t talk, but he always talked to me. Not much, but I knew what he was saying. Last night he woke up. His eyes were bright and alert. He looked straight into my eyes and said, ’Please say goodbye to Jesus for me,’ and he lay back down and closed his eyes. I whispered to him, ’Grandpa, I don’t need to say goodbye to Jesus. You’re going to be with him soon, and you can tell him hello.’ He struggled to open his eyes again, but this time his face lit up with a mischievous smile that he only gave to me, and he said as clearly as I’m talking to you, ’I know, but Jesus comes to see me every month, and he might not know I’ve gone.’ He closed his eyes and hasn’t spoken since.

»I told the nurse what he said, and she told me about you coming every month, holding his hand. I wanted to thank you for him, for me, and…well…I never thought of Jesus being as chubby and bald as you, but I imagine Jesus is very glad to have been mistaken for you. I know Oliver is. Thank you.« She leaned over and kissed Daryl on the forehead. Oliver Leak died peacefully the next morning.

May God give us more volunteers like Daryl Jenkins

Please tell me why God allowed over 6000 innocent people to be murdered on September 11, 2001?

Answer?

I don’t know.

Where was God?

I don’t know.

When Leslie Weatherhead, a minister in London during the Second World War, was asked by a member in his congregation where God was when his son was killed in a bombing raid, Weatherhead replied, »I guess he was where he was when his son was killed.«

And where was that?

I don’t know.

Isn’t »I don’t know« too ambiguous? Isn’t »I don’t know« an unconvincing way to convince young people Christianity is true?

Actually, »I don’t know« confirms one critical truth about Christianity…it’s a mystery!

Jesus loves us, right?

Of course.

So if he loves us, he protects us, right?

If he loves us…he is with us.

Jesus can heal, can’t he? And perform miracles?

Of course. Just not very often.

Why?

I don’t know.

What about God’s will?

My youth director says we’re supposed to seek God’s will. There are lots of verses in the Bible that tell us to do God’s will, aren’t there? God does have a will, right?

Absolutely.

Trouble is God’s will is not like a to-do list. It’s more like an undecipherable code. The Bible definitely gives us some clues about the code of God’s will, which means we can figure out part of it; but, because it’s God, we will never crack the code.

Clues?

Yeah, like, follow me, serve me, love me, live by my commandments, point people to me.

That’s it? Just follow me, serve me, love me and trust me?

That’s about it.

What do you mean »that’s about it?«

You don’t want to know.

Yes I do.

We get a cross.

Cross????? What does that mean?

I don’t know.

But God does heal people, doesn’t he?

Certainly.

And miracles do happen, don’t they.

Right.

So we can count on God helping us, can’t we?

We can count on God being God.

Which means…??

I don’t know.

And what does that mean?

It means we can trust God if we lost someone in the WTC or if they survived.

It means we can trust God when we have cancer and when we’re healed.

We can trust God if we survive a natural disaster or if we don’t.

We can trust God when we get a glimpse of Divine will and when we don’t.

We can trust God in the answers and the questions, in the good and the bad, in the light and the dark, when we’re winning and when we’re losing.

We can trust God even when the Truth doesn’t answer all our questions or leaves us with even more questions.

And, most importantly, just beyond our »I don’t know’s,« Jesus is waiting with open arms to snuggle us in the mystery of his love.