Sunday, April 27, 2008

Day 27 of 100 Days of Blogging

So, I'm reading this book that I found out about in the blogging world. It's called unchristian - what a new generation really thinks about Christianity...and why it matters. It's written by David Kinnaman and Gabe Lyons. It is based on research by the Barna Group and looks at the revelation by sixteen- to twenty-nine-year-olds that Christians have taken several giant steps backward in one of their most important assignments.


In one of the chapters, they list seven elements that should define a Christ follower.
*worshiping God intimately and passionately
*engaging in spiritual friendships with other believers
*pursuing faith in the context of family
*embracing intentional forms of spiritual growth
*serving others
*investing time and resources in spiritual pursuits
*having faith-based conversations with outsiders

So, I'm interested in hearing from yall.
~Do you agree that these seven elements define a Christ follower?
~Are there other elements you would add?
~Are there any of these elements that you would remove from the list?
~What does being a Christ follower mean to you?

Looking forward to some great discussion!

4 comments:

  1. YAY! I'm the first commentor. I agree that a Christ-follower should have the 7 elements, but I also believe that one should also have a quite time built into their schedule. I would have to add something to persuing faith. It does not have to just be with family. One has to persue faith as well as with the family.

    I may take off the investing resources into spiritual persuits though. One does not have to spend lots of money while searching through the Christian world. There is so much online and through local churches.

    Being a Christ follower, basically means that I affirm that God made the world and he has an ultimate plan for me. Yes there are bumps in the road and unexpected events that are life altering, but I really believe that God is my "yellow-brick" road maker.

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  2. I love pink and purple too. This new look took me forever though. I just learned how to put music on it as well. I feel so proud. :)

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  3. I agree with Elyse that yes, being a Christ follower should have the seven elements and that also important is having a quiet time with God each day. This week, I'm just finishing up a nine-month practice of the Spiritual Exercises of St. Ignatius of Loyola, which involved an hour of devotional time each day, and I am finding that if I devote that time to God, especially at the start of my day -- although I know people's schedules vary -- it really does help the rest of the day. It's not that everything goes perfectly, but that there seems to be a sense of order and peace to the day that wasn't there previously.

    As for what a Christ follower means to me, it means, is beginning to mean, allowing His Spirit to guide me each day in the direction he would have me go. Being open to His leading, I believe, is a key to being a Christ follower, not trying to pull Christ in the direction you would like Him to go. It really doesn't work. You have to be open to His leading.

    And also being open to finding Him in the most unexpected of places and people, even in the most difficult of people we encounter and places in which we find ourselves. God may still be speaking to us; we only have to be open to listening.

    Sorry to ramble, but I did want to comment yesterday and just didn't get to it. Thanks for reminding me, C.C.

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  4. [...] can follow you. If you want to follow me on Twitter, click here. *Would love some more comments on yesterday’s blog entry. *I’m getting my hair cut on Wednesday. I’m so excited! *That’s all I can think [...]

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