By Jenny Dean Schmidt, ChannelMom Media
When I hear the predictable pulpit cry of “put your faith in Jesus as Lord,” I don’t respond well. When I hear someone announce, “the only way to God is to have a relationship with Jesus Christ,” I cringe from the inside out. Finally, when someone demands “do you know Jesus as your Lord and your Savior?” I worry this question will intimidate even the most sincere seeker. Why do these Christian cliches bug me?
Because, I am a Christian.
And, as a Christian, I am deeply concerned we will lose our children — our future generations — if we continue to lean on cliches to explain our faith. Well-worn words or cliches, no matter how worthy, have evolved into a language called “Christianese,” an insider’s code that drives non-Christians away.
Allow me to explain…
I grew up in a family composed of intellectuals and academics — virtually none of them card-carrying Christians. They are brilliant people, who follow moral principles and help their fellow man. They just don’t believe Jesus is their “Lord and Savior” and they certainly don’t believe He provides the only way to God. I am fairly confident that I cannot convince them to believe that Jesus is their “Savior” by using that language.*
Even though I personally “believe in Jesus,” I didn’t get there with those words. When I went through a severe postpartum depression at age 35, I was in need of more than a cliche to find God.
… READ the rest of this blog here: http://www.1corinthians13parenting.com/christian-cliches-bug/#comment-143710
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