I Am A Christian And...

I am a Christian
and...

...I don't only listen to Christian music;
(in fact, my playlists include everyone from Johnny Cash to Slipknot)

...I don't watch only G- or PG-rated movies;
(in fact, most of my favorite movies are R-rated)

...I sometimes use 'colorful' language;
(Not often, but often to make a point)

...I don't like much of what is sold at the Christian bookstores;
(I don't like self-help Christianity or books about someone's experience of heaven)

...I lean pro-choice;
(In this world, not many issues are black-and-white)

...I'm not convinced that hell is what Christians often think it is;
(Do some biblical research and you'll see what I mean)

...I think Church should resemble something like an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting;
(Accountability, honesty, love, and support)

...I don't believe homosexuality is a sin;
(I'm friends with too many devout gay men and women to think that)

...I don't believe everything in the Bible is to be taken literally
...or that the Scriptures have been 'handed down just as God wanted them to be';
(I've studied Greek and Hebrew, and almost every verse can be interpreted two or three ways)

...I am not very faithful when it comes to reading my Bible
(And I don't think God keeps a checklist on my faithfulness)

...In the end, I do believe love wins;
(Jesus's sacrifice was big enough for all)

I am a Christian
and...
...oddly enough

...My faith isn't something I 'am,'
as much as it's something that has been done for me
on a lonely cross two-thousand years ago.

End note: The point here is simply to challenge traditional notions of what being a Christian means. It can (and should) mean different things to different people. In the end, it is really all about being loved by God ... and not about anything that we 'do.'