I think it would do some good to read what I posted on my blog to coincide with this post.

Koffi,
I don’t know that I could add more to what you are saying.

Angela,
I don’t expressly disagree with you, but I do believe that some of the negative thoughts about the church in our modern culture is because of the fact that church is trying to be something it is not. The more time the church spends doing other things, the more the world finds the church irrelevant. For whatever reason a great big part of the church became part of the “moral majority” and that really offended a lot of people. There are many churches experiencing great growth through marketing, but much of that growth is from other churches. The world sees lots of money being spent because the church is always looking for more money.

I’m not saying good marketing is bad. I’m not saying we can’t be smart. I am saying that we need to figure out what the church is suppose to be and excel at that before we worry about the rest.

I think it’s important to realize that the world has changed in really basic and significant ways and that newer generations of people see us as increasingly “unChristian.” If you haven’t already, you should definitely read the book by the same name, written by David Kinnaman (Barna Group) and Gabe Lyons (Fermi Project/Catalyst). It will open your eyes to some disturbing and surprising trends of how we as Christians are viewed by the younger generation.

You asked, “Must Christians always be trendstalkers as opposed trendsetters?”

I think that is a good question. It is an honest question and a worthy question, too. It would be good to get lots of discussion going in answering this question.

I think we’re missing something big if we’re worried about setting or copying trends. I think we should stop worrying about our image. That is what it is, afterall–we’re worried what the world thinks about us. That is true if we use whatever cute mechanisms (copying and Christianizing fads) in order to attempt to impress the world with how “cool” we are, or if we are embarrassed by how we think the world looks at us because were not as creative, cool or “sexy” as they are.

Jesus already told us the world would hate us because of him. We shouldn’t try to make them hate us–to be sure–but we shouldn’t be worried about impressing them, either. Instead, we should just worry about seeking Jesus with all of our hearts, minds, soul and strength. If we are only what God wants us to be, that is enough–it doesn’t matter if others love us or laugh at us.

I agree that Jon’s heartfelt disclosure of personal experiences, triumphs, and failures are some of the best writing on this blog. However, the framework which these gems are set in is still photocopied. Must Christians always be trendstalkers as opposed trendsetters? At any rate, while I’ve been a critic of this blog at a concept level I have grown to appreciate Jon…at least as a person.

Steph,
Yeah, no shameless self promoting for you, you are way above that.

Nathaniel(Papa),
Sometimes hateful people are right. The worst part is, if they weren’t so hateful they might be part of the solution. Of course I’m trying to be funny, trying being the operative word, while addressing a very serious issue. I actually think Jon did a great job adapting this site into something very different from “What White People Like.” Sure they both have a satirical commentary into a specific culture for comedic effect, but Jon also provides some amazing inspirational insight even in many of the funny posts.

Anon @1:18 am,
Sorry, I thought I worked that into the first comment, but apparently I forgot because of … well probably my brain racing ahead of my fingers and my attention disappearing too quickly. Terrible of my but true. Jon is pretty awesome even if he didn’t comment.

When’s Jon going to comment anyway?

I apologize for all my fellow smarty-pantsers and their inconsiderate hijacking of this blog.

I would never be so shameless.

Katdish, speaking of Mike Rowe, have you ever noticed how much his Dirty Jobs gigs revolve around poo? Weird.