Can I Get an Amen?!
March 13, 2009 by Alan Cooper
What are those boisterous stand-up campus preachers actually teaching us? And why is it called the "good news" when people feel accused, angry and confused after listening to it? To my knowledge, it’s all fire and brimstone with a glimpse of hell and repentance.
Yet, we still gather 'round so that we can be criticized for how these preachers think we live our lives. They accuse us of being immoral, trying to scare us into becoming believers of God. Maybe they don’t even care if we believe. Maybe they just want us to stop acting “immorally.”
From what I heard, these preachers cause the opposite to happen. I was told that a lesbian couple started to make out in front of one of these preachers in the middle of one of his rants.
So, why do they speak these words, or rather, scream these words at us? Yes, of course they need to talk loudly so that everybody that is surrounding them can hear what is being said. But, shouldn’t they be proclaiming something that would give us hope; something that would actually give us a reason to question the way we are going about our lives and why we should change.
What about love? What about heaven? What about sacrifice and salvation? This is what people will listen to without wanting to hurl their number two pencils and notebooks at the preacher. They should be telling us what the possibilities are when we choose to live our lives out for God.
Don’t shy away from the group even though everybody looks mad or confused, either. Listen to what the preacher says and ask questions. Hopefully there will be people around you who can, and want to, inform you of what God’s message is.
The last time I witnessed one of these gatherings, people were asking questions. The preacher was trying to address them but eventually worked around them to move on to another point that he wanted to make clear to the group. Luckily, when these questions weren’t answered fully, there were others in the group who had answers and shared them with these inquisitive people.
All of a sudden you saw random factions of circles scattered throughout the group that was formed around the preacher. They were addressing the questions these people had more in depth, and to me these conversations had more compassion and more concern for the people’s understanding of God.
Instead of getting fired up and leaving the group, or eventually forgetting about what was said on campus, search for answers. Ask the people in the group. Ask your friends. See what other people have to say on the subjects that were brought up. Don’t let this preacher be the one that scares you away from God or puts a bad taste in your mouth when you meet other believers.
Find people who know of God’s loving nature so that you can know the truth and understand who He is and what He has planned for your life. When I had questions in my life, I was able to find a place that could give me answers. Trying to get my life back on track, I visited Xenos Christian Fellowship in Columbus on 4th and 18th.
It was ten times better than any AA or NA meeting I had been to. Not saying that those groups aren’t beneficial, but the Bible study at Xenos had truth, meaning, and I understood what was being said which truly impacted my life.
So if you try to ask questions and figure out what the truth is, you’ll understand how God views you and you will see the error in the way the preachers view you. You will be able to stand in these groups and not feel accused but feel a burden for those who don’t know the truth.