Religion versus a Relationship

I saw a post over on the Out of Ur blog entitled 12 Months, 12 Religions. They pointed towards a story about Andrew Bowen, who practiced 12 religions in 12 months. The project came out of a crisis of faith that led to a desire to explore these different faiths. Here is a link to the original post about the project. 'Url Scaramanga' nailed the consumerism angle of picking and choosing the different faith traditions that you participate in, as well as the reflection of how many young people view religion.


While Bowen was going about his journey through 12 religions, he also sought spiritual mentors from each faith as he studied it. I was amazed at some of the reactions I read from the different mentors. For example, the wiccan mentor said that he was one of her best students. I can't help but be impressed at the drive that Bowen displayed to explore and learn. It is a kick in the pants to remember that I need to steward my time to make sure I am walking with God.


There is also deeper point that jumped out at me through this whole thing. It is a basic question that I couldn't help but see float to the surface.... "what is religion?" Is religion merely something you practice? Is it a shirt you can try on? Is "religion" somehow different than faith?


The answer to the last question helps set the stage for the rest of them. Religion and faith are different.  Religion is a set of practices that one takes on in an effort to please, show devotion to or approach God. Faith, on the other hand, is complete and utter trust in a person. In Christianity, that faith rests completely on Jesus Christ. Our faith in His story: His coming to earth to fulfill prophecy, living the perfect life we could not, and dying the death that we should have, only to rise from the dead and defeat sin and death; this is what grounds and centers any religious pursuits we may have.


The problem is that people put the cart before the horse. They think that it is about simply following a religious system, showing up at a specific place and time, reciting words and then going home. However, apart from the transforming work of Christ in our life, all of those recitations are meaningless.


We should learn much from those who practice other faiths, but we must never forget that our faith is not grounded in traditions or sacraments. Our faith flows out of a relationship with the creator of the universe.


Be sure to check out both articles to read more. The last quote from Bowen is worth the click over there and Out of Ur always has a fun comment section. Leave your thoughts below!

Lily's Story

A while ago, we were up in Detroit Lakes sharing with a church. We had a really great time up there and we were really blessed by the wonderful community.  While we were there, we met a woman named Lily*.


When we arrived at the church and got into the sanctuary before the service began, I took a second to look around.  In a room full of people chatting and greeting each other, I saw one head bowed and hands folded.  An older woman was deep in prayer before the service began.  I noticed her against the contrast of chatting but didn't think much of it until after the service.


We had a fellowship meal afterward, and Lily stopped us in line and asked if we would stop by her table to talk with her. When we had a second, we broke away and went to visit her table.


She told us about her many friends and family that were in religious traditions focused on works and not salvation by grace through faith.  As we talked with her, you could see her heart breaking for those that knew who God was, but had never had a true relationship with Him.  The more she talked, the more we could see how emotional of a subject this was for her.  She told us how glad she was for our ministry and promised to pray for us.


We are very passionate about reaching lost people in western Europe, but I was truly challenged by the fervency of this woman.  We need to continually ask God to break our hearts and show us the world through His eyes. Our prayer is that we can have a heart like Lily's for the lost people around us.


How is God breaking your heart for the people around you? 


Do you need him to break your heart again?




*Lily isn't her real name
Photo credit is here user TACLUDA on rgbstock.com

Lessons Learned from First Year of Belief Blog

This grabbed my eye recently:  One year ago (and about 5 days) CNN started their Belief Blog.  I have to say, I haven't visited CNN's "Belief Blog" very frequently, but their observations about the climate of faith in the US today interested me. Here are a few that stood out.

Photo credit: clarita from morguefile.com

#3 People are still intensely curious about the Bible, its meaning and its origins.  

So often we hear that the youth are walking away from the church and that church has lost all relevancy. I think rumors of the scripture's (and the church's) demise have been grossly overstated.  People are searching now as much as they ever have been.  Recently, I heard in a sermon, "it isn't my job to coerce you or trick you into showing up on Sunday or to meet in small groups." The gospel is compelling, even to those that will ultimately reject it> The question of meaning and existence is something we are all wrestling with.  It is a part of the human experience.  And people know that the scriptures address these issues.

This is counter balanced by...
#4: Most Americans are Religiously Illiterate.

If you are involved in the local church, you see this all the time.  Many people are not able to lay out the basics of their faith.  The Belief Blog pointed out that oftentimes the ones with the most 'religious literacy' are atheists.  And most of that is in the form of tools meant to fight belief. 


In the name of sensitivity, I think we have stripped out "unpopular" areas of the church that ultimately make the church stronger and feed Christians that need knowledge.  I am excited to see ways that we can feed the quest for meaning and not just stop at "spiritual milk", but build strong and mature believers in the church.

Religion on its way to extinction in Austria?

We were shocked to read about a recent study (by the American Physical Society) that religion may become extinct in 9 different countries. The nations on their list? Australia, Canada, the Czech Republic, Finland, Ireland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Switzerland, and...Austria. According to an article from BBC news, the group used a mathematical model that takes into account the social and utilitarian reasons that people affiliate themselves with a religion. In these 9 countries, the trends towards people identifying themselves as "non-religious" were pointing towards eventual extinction. According to the article, "In a large number of modern secular democracies, there's been a trend that folk are identifying themselves as non-affiliated with religion."

Nate and I know that ministry is going to be challenging and slow moving in Austria. This study confirms what we already knew, which is that God, church and spirituality are increasingly considered irrelevant by many Austrians. Our prayer is that our lives and our witness would break through those perceptions, displaying who God is and showing that the gospel is always relevant. Seeing more Austrians come to Christ may not be "statistically probably", but nothing is impossible with God. And we know that any progress we make in Austria will be because of God working and not because of us!