Friday, September 14, 2012

Let's Be Truly Authentic

Stephen Altrogge:
How many small group/home group/community group/cell group/care group meetings (did I forget any names?) have started out like this:

PERSON 1: I’m really struggling with [insert impatience, anger, lust, discontentment, and any other sin].

PERSON 2: Thanks for being so open and honest about your struggles. We can all identify with that struggle.

PERSON 1: Yeah, it’s just so hard to overcome. I feel like I’m struggling with this all the time.

PERSON 2: I can relate to that feeling. I feel the same way. In fact just yesterday I [yelled at my kids, looked at porn, wasted money, etc.] We’re all broken people. Thankfully there’s grace. Let’s pray and ask God to help us.

Now, is there anything wrong with this interchange? Not exactly. It’s good to confess our sins to one another and pray for one another. Plus, if there’s one thing the world hates, it’s hypocrites. So, in an effort to obey scripture and be “authentic”, we confess our struggles. And we drink fair trade coffee, listen to Bon Iver, and wear faded jeans.

But I think in general, we as Christians need to be less authentic.
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