Because our culture is shifting from a Judeo-Christian tradition, fewer people understand what it means to be a Christian than ever before. To illustrate how far our culture has shifted, a friend of mine related what happened to him recently in a jewelry store. He had gone into the store to buy a cross necklace for his daughter. She wanted to wear it as a way to display her faith, and he wanted to support her in that effort. Instead of just buying her a cheap necklace, he thought he would go a nicer store and buy one that would be special to his daughter. As he looked through the various options, he did not find what he was looking for. He asked the store clerk if they had any other cross necklaces to choose from.
The young man said, "Yeah, we have some in this other case over here, but I don’t know if you’d want them or not; they have some dude on them." When my friend looked at the other case, the “dude” on the cross was Jesus and the crosses were actually crucifixes. Though my friend was not interested in buying a crucifix, he was stunned that the young man had no idea who the “dude” on the cross was.
Though our society has always had people who do not follow Christ, few would have failed to recognize a crucifix as being Christ on the cross. But this young man had no idea that the person on the cross was Christ. He did not realize the unparalleled sacrifice Jesus had made on his behalf. He was missing a critical piece of information that could change his life forever.
Though we can pretend that young man was just ignorant of the truth, the reality is that he represents a growing number of young adults who do not know who the “dude on the cross” is. The good news is that young people are interested in finding out. They are very open to sitting down with a friend or relative and having a genuine conversation about who Jesus is and what part He might play in their lives. Though they may not be quite ready to commit their lives to following Christ, they are increasingly curious about who He is. Are we ready to tell them who the “dude on the cross” is?
Though we can pretend that young man was just ignorant of the truth, the reality is that he represents a growing number of young adults who do not know who the “dude on the cross” is. The good news is that young people are interested in finding out. They are very open to sitting down with a friend or relative and having a genuine conversation about who Jesus is and what part He might play in their lives. Though they may not be quite ready to commit their lives to following Christ, they are increasingly curious about who He is. Are we ready to tell them who the “dude on the cross” is?
Lord, help us share the story of the cross with those around us, especially with the next generation. Amen.
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This post is an excerpt from the book, The Heavenly Mundane: DailyDevotions from Ordinary Experiences. Filled with stories of how God spoke in big ways through small events, the book will encourage people to look for God in the mundane things of life. Great for both personal use and to give as a gift to friend, either the print version or the e-book version may be purchased at this link:
http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MJ2UE4E
This post is an excerpt from the book, The Heavenly Mundane: DailyDevotions from Ordinary Experiences. Filled with stories of how God spoke in big ways through small events, the book will encourage people to look for God in the mundane things of life. Great for both personal use and to give as a gift to friend, either the print version or the e-book version may be purchased at this link:http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00MJ2UE4E
Love this.
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