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Coffee Talk Thursday
Recently, (I think it was on "Earth Day") I caught the tail-end of a radio program, where the guest was contrasting environmentalism with Christ's Great Commission. The call for Christians is to "go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation" (Mark 16:15). The guest said Christians today are emphasizing less the making of disciples and more the advancing of a "green" lifestyle. His point was: While we can take steps to be wise stewards of creation, we should not replace evangelism about Christ with evangelism toward going green.
I thought his point was a good one--definitely something to chew on. There are so many blogs, books, and other sites that are dedicated to sharing the "dangers" of dairy, deodorant, sugar, flour, conventional chicken and beef, non-organic food and much more. (For the record, while I am committed to providing my family a healthy diet with as many whole foods as possible, I don't buy into much of this propaganda).
We can become devoted followers of pursuing an organic, green lifestyle and sharing that "gospel" with others; or we can aim to live healthy lives while keeping the emphasis of our time and attention on growing as a follower of Christ, and sharing His Gospel with others.
"For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking, but of righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit." (Romans 14:17).
So what do you think about all of this? Are we replacing growth as Christians with growth as organic foodies and environmentalists? What can we do to put priorities back in their proper places?
(By the way, just a reminder that our once-a-month cooking festival will fall on the 1st, a Saturday).
Amen and Amen. Good post and good timing. I agree with the need of wise food choices, but some people in their attempt to make some healthy choices become overly focused and consumed by a lesser importance (the physical) than the greater importance (the spiritual). Paul remindes us of this in 1 Timothy 4:8, "For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come."
ReplyDelete1 Timothy 4:8 says, "For physical training is of some value, but godliness has value for all things, holding promise for both the present life and the life to come."
ReplyDeleteWe must remember to focus on the main thing and not get overly veered off course on any type of tangent, whether "good or bad".
Thanks for the post.
oops - it didn't look like it posted, so I shortened it and posted again.....my bad.
ReplyDeleteI agree with you! There must be a priority placed on making disciples of Christ. A healthy physical lifestyle has a place in the Christian's life, but it should not take preeminence over a healthy spiritual life.
ReplyDeleteI follow your blog but seldom comment. Thanks. Usually your posts are right along the lines of how I think. I am encouraged.
Stephenie
Hmm very thought provoking! Must go chew now :)
ReplyDeleteI agree! I agree! I agree! LOL As a pastor's wife in the thoroughly modern and green city of Vancouver, BC, I see and hear so much about "green" and "organic" (I've had people express shock that an organic cinnamon roll is still a no-no for this diabetic - after all, it's ORGANIC, so it must be ok), and it has come to the point that to be considered a "spiritual" Christian, one must also embrace all the propaganda about the environment. While I do believe we're to be good stewards of the earth the Lord has given us, saving the earth is not our purpose. The only way I know to restore the balance is with good biblical teaching, but in these last days, people don't want strong teaching; rather, they want teachers who will tickle their ears, ie, be politically and socially correct.
ReplyDeleteWe do what we can to care for the world - recycle, use reusable bags rather than plastic at the grocery store, eat as healthily as we can afford (!), etc. But our main job here is to win the lost to Christ. Great post!
I was just discussing this with my husband tonight! I was telling him how I used to watch one reality show about a family and they heavily emphasized organic, etc. and I kind of bought into the idea of it too (though very difficult and costly to carry out in a small town). And then how thankful I was and how much more I enjoy watch the Duggars, whose emphasis is on the spiritual and moral training of their children. Kind of a reality (no pun intended) check for me--keep the Main Thing the Main Thing, Christ and being His Light in the world. I also read your blog daily, sorry for not commenting more often. I don't subscribe because I enjoy clicking on you in my favorites and hoping you have something posted! :) I am always encouraged and truly look forward to reading your blog during my break at work. God bless!
ReplyDeleteGood post! (And yes, I'm one of those who writes about living more green or sustainably, but the last several months I've thought more and more about being purposeful with it. ie How can we take our actions to better support our brothers and sisters.)
ReplyDeleteAlso want to thank you for the blog. I catch up on it in spurts, but I love your thoughts.