First of Many

In the 2004 general conference of the Wesleyan Church, Leonard Sweet compared Christian evangelism to spreading the Starbucks brand experience. ("Brand" is a marketing term more than anything else as I use it here.) People must become acclamated to Starbucks terms and experiences, but it's still one of the most popular cafe experiences in North America (and rightfully so). Likewise, asserted Sweet, Christians ought not to tone down everything about a worship experience to avoid making non-Christians feel out of place. Non-Christians approach the Church (universal) expecting Christianity to be different. They assume it will be different and are disappointed if it's not. Those who subscribe to Sweet's approach would actually bring non-Christians along as they seek out Christ through Christian terms and experiences.

I saw the Holy Spirit move in such a Sweet (pun intended) way yesterday. A new heroine of mine who does not claim much in the Christian faith (only having a Catholic background) was recently at our college for business. In a meeting with our staff and faculty she communicated well about "spirituality" and "faith-based college life." The people in the meeting responded well to her, using as much Christian-ese as I've ever heard. Expecting discomfort, I prayed for the Father to move in the situation to ease any angst my friend may have felt. Instead of angst, there was a sense of understanding and connection as the meeting progressed. She was led through Christian terms and experiences. Before most of the people there realized she didn't stake much claim to Christianity, Sweet's principle had taken hold.

Who knows the eternal effect? My point is that we need not to dog people's Christian terms as much as we need to help others realize the point of the terms.