Day 122: Psalm 91-95
I just returned home from the BCS National Championship game between Alabama and Texas. Although the game didn’t end the way we (my dad and I) had hoped, I still had a great time. The whole experience was a once-in-a-lifetime thing, and I’ll remember it for a long time.
While I was there, I saw two types of “witnessing,” two methods of sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ, two testimonies. The first one was given by four men carrying signs. The signs were enormous, well above our heads when we walked and easy to read from afar. The text was in black on yellow signs, held up on these long poles. We had to walk about two miles to the stadium from where we parked, and everywhere we looked—no matter where we were on the trek—we could see these signs. They, too, were headed to the stadium.
Immediately when I saw them, my heart sank because I did not like what I saw, even though some of the quotes were from scripture. I can’t remember what all the signs said, but a couple of them stuck out to me:
“Hell AWAITS you.”
“God will come to JUDGE the earth.”
Now here you have these guys who are “doing their part” to tell others about God and Jesus. They carry these extremely heavy signs all around the place; they are virtually telling people that they follow God. If I give them the benefit of the doubt, they even seem to be concerned that the people they hope to reach might be going to hell, or that God is coming to judge, so all these people at the game should “turn from their evil ways” (but I’m totally inferring that; they could not want that at all).
Like I said, they are doing something, even if I don’t approve of the way the messages they are sending. But what good are they really doing? It seems to me that this fact that they are “doing something” might be doing more harm than good. Would it be better if they weren’t doing anything? I’m not one to make that claim, but I wonder why they're really doing what they're doing. Who are they really helping? Do they really think that an atheist, an agnostic, a Christian even will respond positively to that sign? What do people think? I know what I think. I think it’s hurting Christianity to spread this idea of God as hateful, avengeful, vitriolic, and fear-chasing. It is NOT the gospel I know and love. It is NOT the Jesus who came to save the earth, wash away all of our sins, and show us how to live like humans while we are on this earth. These men are preaching these passages out of context and in error, I believe. If I were to conduct an analysis of these signs and the men holding them, it appears that they are judging an audience of people that they don’t know, with whom they don’t have a relationship, with whom they don’t love or respect or care about even.
These are not the type of messages we should spread.
And then I saw another type of message. One that speaks of finding hope in Jesus Christ, even when you’re experiencing deep pain. This person I’m speaking of is Colt McCoy. Many of you may already know what happened during the game: on the first Longhorn drive of the game, Colt McCoy hurt his throwing shoulder. He was out for the rest of the game, and if he had played, most commentators and journalists are now predicting that Texas would have won (who knows, though?). Regardless, Colt was gone. He was the winningest quarterback in NCAA history, and he set numerous other records as well. This game was going to be it for him.
As soon as Colt got hurt, the fans were devastated. The mood changed, and we were all heartbroken for the kid. He did come back in the second half to help coach the freshman quarterback, but it was a little too late. Texas lost. 37-21 was the final score.
After we finally got back to our car (after a two mile walk) and then drove all the way to Orange County to the hotel where we were staying, I was able to turn on the TV and watch a little bit of ESPN. Here I saw the post-game interview with Colt McCoy. Wow. He was asked, “What was it like to watch his final game as a Longhorn from the sidelines.” For several seconds, he couldn’t speak. He was obviously broken up about it and it looked like he was trying to fight back tears. It took him a while to form words. He responded, “It’s unfortunate I didn’t get to play. I would have given everything I had to be out there with my team.” And then he gave his testimony to millions of people: “I always give God the glory. I never question why things happen the way they do. God is in control of my life, and I know that if nothing else, I’m standing on the Rock.”
Wow. Here you have a man who is suffering from probably the greatest disappointment of his life—not the loss, necessarily, but not getting to play in your final football game for a team for which you have started every game since you’ve been there, and then this reality ultimately leading to a loss. That’s a lot to take in. But even in the midst of his frustration and regret, he responds by praising God and placing his faith and trust in Jesus Christ.
Two kinds of stories. Which one makes more of an impact on you? Which one illuminates the gospel in a healthier way? Which one might convict an atheist, an agnostic, a Christian? I hope the answer is obvious.
There are several kinds of stories we can tell in our own lives, and I hope that you will think about the kinds of stories you tell about God, the gospel, and Jesus. We want to share the good news about Jesus, not news that makes people cringe and react against our stories.
