Today I was able to finish a book that I had been reading over
the past few weeks, Blue Like Jazz by
Donald Miller. You may have heard of it because it was also recently made into
a movie.
The book is fantastic. Miller is very honest in his struggle
to believe in Christianity and reconcile it with his feelings and experiences
in the world. From being raised in the church, in the same way I was, he had grown
up experiencing the world through the stereotypes of a typical, sheltered,
sometimes, judgmental Christian.
For those of us that
are in the same boat, of being raised with stereotypes, I think this book
offers a refreshing perspective on Christian spirituality. I also recommend it
to non-believers, because it emphasizes the humanity of us Jesus followers. I
think that Christians are sometimes placed on this pedestal, and when we mess
up and act like the broken, even stupid humans that we innately are, the world
says: See! You are no better than me! Why should I change my beliefs?
It is when we embrace the fact that we are God’s broken masterpiece
that we can be true examples to the world of the hope that we have in Jesus. We
are still broken and human, but we are set free, in the process of healing, and
embrace the purpose that our creator has for us.
I think that this short excerpt from the book says it the
best:
“In a
recent radio interview I was sternly asked by the host, who did not consider
himself a Christian, to defend Christianity. I told him that I couldn’t do it,
and moreover, that I didn’t want to defend the term. He asked me if I was a
Christian, and I told him yes. “Then why don’t you want to defend
Christianity?” he asked, confused. I told him I no longer knew what the term
meant. Of the hundreds of thousands of people listening to his show that day,
some of them had terrible experiences with Christianity; they may have been
yelled at by a teacher in a Christian school, abused by a minister, or
browbeaten by a Christian parent. To them, the term Christianity meant something that no Christian I know would defend.
By fortifying the term, I am only making them more and more angry. I won’t do
it. Stop ten people on the street and ask them what they think of when they
hear the word Christianity, and they
will give you ten different answers. How can I defend a term that means ten
different things to ten different people? I told the radio show host that I
would rather talk about Jesus and how I came to believe that Jesus exists and
that he likes me. The host looked back at me with tears in his eyes. When we
were done, he asked me if we could go get lunch together. He told me how he
didn’t like Christianity but how he had always wanted to believe Jesus was the
Son of God.”
~Blue Like Jazz, 115
I am so sorry if a Christian hurt you. Unfortunately, as
much as we strive to be, we are not always the best representatives of Christ.
However, we are broken masterpieces created with a purpose to bring glory to
Christ, despite our weaknesses. I pray that you will meet Jesus and see how he
can make your life different; he loves you more than you could ever imagine.
And if you get a chance, read the book, Blue Like Jazz!
