Authentic Representation

            A while back, I received a free, convenient, re-useable carrier bag - it collapses to look like a bundle of grapes, which makes it easy to both carry and locate in my purse. However, the quality of this giveaway is not high, and I've had to repair it a number of times.

            Here's why that bothers me: the company it is promoting prides itself of using only the best ingredients to produce a superior product. The quality of the giveaway bag is incongruous with the message the company is trying to convey.           

            This inspired reflection on how we, as the church, convey our message to the world. We may think that because we congregate in our comfortable pews on Sunday mornings (or whenever) that the world will *know* that we are good Christians. However, we congregate, literally, behind closed doors. The <world> likely does not see us there. 

            What the world does see is what we present to the world when we come out of worship. How we treat one another, how we treat God's creation, reflects who we really are. If we are behaving like the cheap giveaway bag, then our (individual and collective) name will carry a message incongruous with the Good News or the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

            We must constantly challenge ourselves to live our lives as authentic Christians - in all we do, in all we say, in all we pray - and at all times. If we choose dialogue instead of insult in our social media debates, we are living an authentic faith. If we can give a gift without selfish pre-conditions, we are living an authentic faith. If we can respect someone else's decision without criticizing, we are living an authentic faith.

            So often we see the opposite, from people who might call themselves Christian: name-calling those of different opinions, lack of generosity in giving, judging without bothering to learn the facts. If this is what the world sees of us, they are seeing inauthenticity: like my shopping bag, the demonstrated "Christianity" is cheap, disposable, and of low quality.

            So I invite us to be authentic Christians. I invite us to ponder every day how we are presenting the faith, how we are proclaiming the Gospel, how we are living into our baptismal vows. I invite us to find ways to be the Christ-followers that we want to be, living our lives with integrity, with authenticity, with the intention of showing the world that we are exactly who - and whose - we say we are. May God be glorified in all we do, today and forever more.