The Barbarian what?

Sunday night, we watched a video from the Willow leadership conference. The segment we watched was Erwin McManus call the Barbarian Way. I know we watched it at a Core Focus recently. I am here to tell you if you have not seen it – call Steve Thompson and ask to see it.

One of the comments Erwin has made “The greatest enemy to the cause of Jesus Christ today is Christianity.”

I want to really absorb that thought. Could it really be true that we, as Christians, are one of the biggest problems of people coming to know Christ? I think there is some real truth there. I am still seeking after that.

The older I get the more I think before I react. I am not sure if that is wisdom or the fact that I have been cut off at the knees too much. So I sat there Sunday night thinking about the video and listening to the other people in the group. I was so moved by what I had just seen and heard that I did not want to speak. I found myself in a place where God and I meet. I could not help to think that this video was meant for me.

This is the thing I am trying to come to grips with. How could anyone watch this video and not be moved to change? Our prayer time should have been more about confession and change and then about others. Confessing about how we have allowed ourselves to move so far away from where God really wants us to be: on the frontline doing His work. The frontline of meeting people where they are and just developing relationships. Letting God change lives instead of looking at people as targets. Then asking God not to let us forget what we just heard and fall into old habits of what the church has taught us to do.

One thought that Erwin talked about was how he, as a young Christian, would talk to others about Christ and how they would respond. In addition, he commented how inadequate he felt because his knowledge base was so limited. Yet, he continued on. What I pulled from that is the urgency of the moment. The need to develop the relationship and then not be afraid to pray with someone or talk to them about Christ. I am confident we could all go to seminary, learn everything about Christ and the bible; and still not feel prepared to talk to someone about Christ. And in that process, more people would be lost.

Yeah, it is heavy on my mind. Deur, Smith, Thompson, Harrison, Da Roach, Morgan all have communicated their passion for the lost and the need for us as Watermark (and beyond) to engage in the lives of others. We need (I need) to sense the urgency and follow Jesus.

The next time you are in a group, at Meijers, or soccer game: count off 6 of 10 people. It is likely that those 6 do not have a relationship with Christ or for that matter may not even want to.

Pray. Pray. Pray
Carter