According to research, when a person comes to trust in Jesus before the age of 13, it is through parent’s influence (50%) more than anything else. Between 13-21, friends and parents are equally influential, (20% each). If a person comes to trust in Jesus after 21, the highest percentage (20% again) do so as a result of the influence of friends. This is not shocking that friends would be so influential.

What energizes us, energizes our friends. I have a friend who is a latecomer to the internet. Sure enough, as soon as he is online he discovers a poker game room. He has told several friends and they are now playing. He said this to me.

“If I would make the same effort letting my friends know about Jesus as I do about internet poker…”



You get the picture. Our friend’s respect our interests. They also trust us. They feel safe with us. If they didn’t, they wouldn’t remain friends. The more transparent we are to our friends, the richer the relationship can become.

So, why is it so hard to share our faith with them? Some possible reasons:

1. We will be held to a different standard if they know we are an active Christian.

2. We are hesitant to say the wrong thing.

3. We are fearful they may be turned off by our faith emphasis and not continue the friendship.

Some observations:

1. Different standard? Meaning we don’t want to make lifestyle changes more in tune to a disciple of Jesus?

2. Wrong thing? The whole idea of friendship is wide boundaries for saying whatever one wishes. The absolute worst response from a friend in a sharing faith experience is going to be, “That’s great for you but I am not interested.” How devastating is that?

3. Turned off? It all depends on our approach. If we are respectful and caring (always a good idea in all our relationships), and don’t treat them like idiots, friends will at best want to explore more, and at worst change the subject.

When we reach out to potential disciples of Jesus, there are some basics to consider. I will post on several this week. For instance…

According to research, most people have acquired their morals values and the faith they will hold by the age of 13. Afterward, learning and growing in their beliefs is primarily reinforcement. So, when you are reaching out to adults with the good news of Jesus, from a human standpoint, good luck. No amount of persuasion, argument, challenge, any other “method” is going to make much of a dent. It is not common for an adult to come to trust in the Lord for the first time.

So, what is the use? Well, let’s wait a minute. There are many possibilities that make it more likely someone is receptive. Here are a few.

We know the Holy Spirit has been drawing the other person to Jesus anyway he can. Always without forcing love, but ready for an open heart seeking. If someone is truly seeking, eventually they will come to Jesus. That’s the way he set it up.

There are times in life, especially crisis or uncertainty, where someone is less likely to accept his/her own status quo and be more willing to consider the possibility of trust in Jesus. These are the times when we may ask questions of meaning and purpose to who we are and why we are here. Soul searching time is ripe for Jesus to break through.

Friends trust friends. If you are in relationship with potential disciples of Jesus, they will have the opportunity to see him at work through you. Why would they be influenced? I’ll look at that tomorrow.

If you have been reading this blog for any length of time, you have seen I am not a big fan of using “labels” like “left wing” or “right wing,” “Christian Right” or “Christian Left,” and so forth. I would personally fit into what would be traditionally called “conservative” by some, and I would also fit into what would be traditionally called “liberal” by some. Now, I do not find the terms, “liberal” or “conservative” offensive. But alone, they are not very accurate descriptively. It simply depends on the issue. I would hesitate to guess I am not alone in not fitting neatly into any category.

A friend of mine recently wrote an observation about this issue that was extremely helpful. She said,

The prime example of that in today’s world is the reference to the Christian Right and the Left……….Yes we have Christians that have different philosophies and approaches when doing the work of Christ. Within a liberal frame of mind and a conservative frame of mind sits many common values.



Well said. I did a Google news search on the use of these terms in the public media. Here are the results:

“Christian Left”- 10 uses in the news

“Christian Right”- 345 uses in the news

Let’s be careful about our use of “labels” and let’s hope the media catches on.

The outpouring of support for the tsunami victims has been amazing. The American government, in particular military, and the private sector are responding in record numbers. If the trend continues, the contributions made by Americans will exceed all the donations of all other countries in the world combined. The two top ranked charities, according to the American Institute of Philanthropy, are the American Red Cross and Lutheran World Relief. These are the only two organizations to receive an A+ rating. Donate on-line by clicking on their name.

Well, it’s been almost a month since Antony Flew, world’s most prominent atheist, announced he was a believer in God. As has been said, the equivalent of Billy Graham announcing he has become a Buddhist. I have already posted on the lack of response by the media. As of today, my own local paper, The LA Times, has never mentioned it at all! Well, my hunch is the name Antony Flew will not go away. His “conversion” (remember, he is only talking “god” here, not God of the Bible) was based in a large part in examining the evidence of design in nature. His claim that the evidence for intelligent design is compelling will make for a huge shift in the intelligent design/ Darwinian evolution rhetoric. Every time I read or hear from a Darwinian evolutionist, they use the common litany that intelligent design is simply “creationists masking their religious views in scientific language.”

No longer will they be able to say this with much energy. I don’t doubt we will continue to hear this logical fallacy of the “straw man” variety (straw man- find the most extreme example related to your opponents view and then attack that example as if your opponent believes it). Oh, there have been many atheist and agnostist proponents of intelligent design out there. But, we are now talking about Atheist #1. Pretty difficult to spin that Flew is trying to get Christianity taught in our schools under the guise of intelligent design.

We shall see…

There is an outpouring of response for the tsunami victims, and rightly so. A natural disaster where 120,000 have died and perhaps another 120,000 will die of disease in the aftermath is worthy of the world’s attention. Our prayers and support go out to these parts of the world.

And then there is the Sudan.

An Arab Islamist government has “quietly” murdered or starved a couple of million Christians and other non-Muslims in the last 20 years and we hear nary a peep. Last year the government became an “equal opportunity” demonic power and began killing fellow Muslims in the Dafur region at the pace of 70,000 in the last several months.

What is the moral of this situation? First of all, news is news. A Google news search, “Dafur,” results in 72 mentions. “Tsunami,” 120,000. Second, plate tectonics and the unleashing of such devastation on a natural level is cause of great international concern and response. But the “tsunami’s” of the human variety of religious bigotry, racism (the Muslims of Dafur just happen to be black), and bloodlust, well, this warrants some concern, meager response, and quite frankly, business as usual.

And I haven’t even mentioned the lack of international response for the AID’s crisis in sub-Sahara Africa… (6,600 dead a day in 2004!).

So, I am looking at the various statues of ganesh at the Norton Simon, and then I’m thinking about God coming to earth as Jesus. Some of these statues are formed during the same time Jesus was here in person. There is a distinct difference here. Worshipping a many limbed man with the head of an elephant or worshipping the God made man who said,

Luke 4:18-19

“The Spirit of the Lord is upon me,

for he has appointed me to preach Good News to the poor.

He has sent me to proclaim

that captives will be released,

that the blind will see,

that the downtrodden will be freed from their oppressors,

[19] and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.”

Why did some people worship an elephant god and some Jesus? Same time, same “eastern” culture. Same intelligence, same human need, same seeking. Why?

When you think of this situation at its basic core, it is an amazing statement of God allowing human freedom of thought. The Bible addresses this issue. (Romans 1:18-22)

I am thinking about this deeply. Every one of us has a choice. Either Jesus is God or he is not.

Follow the evidence. Open yourself to the possibility.

I visited the Norton Simon Museum yesterday with Kristina. Daddy/daughter day choice, as it were. It has such a rich and varied collection in such a small space. I am a painting guy myself and the Rembrant’s, Degas’, Van Gogh’s, and such were fascinating, as usual. But we made a special trip downstairs to see the South Asia exhibit. One of the most extensive collections from this region anywhere in the world.

With only a couple of exceptions, it was all religious art. Hinduism, Buddhism, and a little bit of Jainism thrown in. So I am looking at a statue of Ganesh, the elephant/man from about 100 B.C. This is one of the most popular Hindu gods. Here is what I am thinking.

It always strikes me as inaccurate to call Christianity a “Western” religion. Yes, the “West” has come to dominate world culture in some ways and Christianity is the religion most practiced. But Christianity and the faith it grew out of, Judaism, are “Eastern” religions. Born in and bred in the Middle East. Our Holy Scriptures written by people of an “Eastern” mindset. So, when someone says to me, “I’m into Eastern religions,” I reply, “I’m into an Eastern religion, too. Christianity.”

More on this tomorrow.

Jesus wants us to worship him. Someone once said when you worship you are declaring “whose side you are on.” Jesus desires our worship, as it makes it clear to us what team we are on. The Jesus team. This simple fact is important as a statement as well as an act of personal faith.

In the “olden” days when I was a young child, it was an advantage to be connected to a church. People were expected to “go to church” in my community. It was good for social reasons and business reasons, as well as spiritual. Many banks would even require church membership before they would give out a loan!

My, how times have changed. Oh, it’s still good for social reasons and business reasons to be involved in a church. This is because active disciples make good friends and following Jesus’ way helps business success in the long run. Not a magic blessing but Jesus’ principles are just sound truth for healthy practice. But all of this is without the cultural approval for joining a church that was available a couple of generations ago.

When you look at the faces around you today at worship, you are looking at people who may be there for a variety of reasons. But there is one reason you know why they are not there. Societies expectations.

I was reading the story of the woman at the well from John 4. After meeting Jesus she got so excited she dropped everything she was doing and ran into town to tell everyone about Jesus.

Boniface is one of my favorite Christian missionaries. He gives up the life of a noble in 8th century England and goes to the wild woods of Germany. There he found people worshipping the Norse Gods such as Odin and Thor. Boniface stayed and brought the good news. He was so excited to tell everyone about Jesus.

Christians have the greatest mission in the galaxies. To tell of the love of Jesus for all people. This love is received purely as a gift. It is not dependant on human effort or ability. Instead of humans relying on their efforts to obtain the favor of God, Christianity teaches God is pleased with humans already and gives them his love freely. He breaks into our history as Jesus and lets us know himself.

Now, that’s something worth getting excited about.