JOPLIN, Mo. —
If we Christians are admonished not to practice our religion in public, as I believe we are, then are we hiding our religion? Isn’t it our purpose to present who we are to the public?
This raises a question: How do we present ourselves and our message to the public, while at the same time heeding the words of Jesus, who instructed us to practice our religion discreetly?
We begin by noting the difference between the practice of one’s religion and the result of one’s religion.
Prayer, worship, giving and communion are ways we practice our faith. We do these things in order to develop a more mature, stronger faith which allows us to handle life in a responsible and compelling manner.
The result of our religion is a different dynamic altogether. The Apostle Paul refers to it as the “fruit” of the spirit. He lists these as “love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23).
Consider how contrasting these qualities are against the backdrop of all the greed, dishonesty and self-serving morality we see today. Paul’s attributes are the result of a mature, vibrant faith in God. These are the qualities we want the public to see. These characteristics will generate the kind of conversation we want to have.
A young minister was spending a devastating day in the waiting room of a maternity ward. The doctors had failed to listen to this young couple, and what they feared was indeed becoming reality. The nurses were continuously in and out, keeping him informed about the deteriorating situation.
Another young father-to-be was there, observing these developments from the other side of the room. He too felt fear and anxiety, perhaps multiplied because of what was going on with the young minister. It was all too much for him. He became loud, demanding and rude to the nurses.
Each dad went through his own experience, each aware of the other. The minister’s child did die and mom was in critical condition. The paths of the two young fathers crossed in the corridors and they stopped to express condolences and congratulations. This led to quite an extraordinary conversation about the dynamics which had occurred in the waiting room.
Of course certain psychological and personality factors come into play as each of us responds in our own way to life’s battles. Some people want to leave it at that. But I believe a healthy faith in God provides an enhanced dimension in our response to these struggles.
The two young fathers talked about these matters. A couple of days later, as the young parents were going home with their baby, they stopped to say good-bye.
Clearly, this experience demonstrates the difference between the practice and the results of one’s religion. In that waiting room on that day, the result of the young minister’s faith is what became evident. The practice or the doing of his religion had already been done. The worship, prayer, communion and study (in other words, the practice of religion) enabled him to respond to these circumstances in a compelling manner.
When you pray, said Jesus, go into your inner room. And when we come out, our lives should reflect a greater degree of those qualities listed by the Apostle Paul. These will capture the attention of the public and will inspire constructive conversation.
A couple of weeks later the young minister received a telephone call from the other man in the waiting room and asked, “Can we talk?”
Craig Tally is the senior minister of First Community Church in Joplin. His column appears bi-weekly. He can be reached at ctally7740@gmail.com
Lifestyles
Practicing religion different than result
- Lifestyles
-
-
Balloons become everything from giraffes to gateways in Joplin man's hands
Ronald Metz’s fingers fold pinched-off portions of a skinny, blue balloon, wrapping and squeezing them until the balloon ends up looking like a tail-wagging pooch.
-
Frankie Meyer: Tornado stories should be recorded
The Joplin tornado was one of the worst disasters to ever hit our area. Thousands of families were forever changed.
-
Cowboy church offers non-traditional Bible camp
Vacation Bible school gets under way in full force at Joplin area churches next month, but one congregation offers an alternative. How about Horsemanship and Bible camp?
-
David Yount: Christians still await return of Jesus
Unlike ourselves, the earliest Christians lived in imminent expectation of the consummation of history, when Jesus would return to usher in the kingdom of God. They thought heaven was right around the corner. This expectation explains their fervor.
-
Dave Woods: Branson attractions welcome Memorial Day visitors
People ask me the same question time and time again: How are folks in Branson?
-
Lee Duran: Aspiring authors must ‘be tough or be gone’
According to Chila Woychick, most readers will close a book and walk away at page 18. Could anything be more depressing?
-
Jeremiah Tucker: New charting methods help alternative music
Now the Hot 100 is using digital data such as iTunes downloads and plays on streaming sites such as Spotify, in addition to radio play, to determine a song’s ranking. This is likely a big reason why a song like “Somebody That I Used to Know,” which has benefited from high-profile exposure on TV, can be the No. 1 song in the country.
-
'Battleship' shows need for list of summer movie warnings
I like to think that writing these columns does more than just allow me a chance to offer up senseless opinions that are easy to skip over when trying to find the next show time for the latest “Madagascar.”
-
Joe Hadsall: Sherlock Holmes enjoying a renaissance
I was in the first grade when I read my first “Sherlock Holmes” book. It was a young readers edition of “The Hound of the Baskervilles.” Each left-hand page had 14- or 16-point text set in New Century Schoolbook; each right-hand page had a line illustration. One of those was a big, scary-looking dog.
-
Second Restore Fest to feature Jeremy Camp, Mandisa
Jeff Roman, partner relations director at Convoy of Hope, worked with Cox to return Christian recording artists to the stage in the second Restore Fest, which will take place Saturday in Landreth Park.
- More Lifestyles Headlines
-
