Have you ever joined the gym? Have you ever tried to follow a certain diet? Like you, my answer is a resounding yes many times over! The media is constantly reminding us that we are in the midst of an obesity epidemic and that the solution is to basically lose weight. For those like myself who fit into the 'big' category, the most obvious way to go about shedding those excess kilograms is to join a gym and follow a diet formula like the Atkins diet or weight watchers etc. The media constantly presents us with success stories of people who are transforming their lives by following a certain diet or going to a certain gym.
Of course there are some home truths that the health industry does not present. The first is that it is very easy for people to lose weight. The second is that over 90% of people rapidly put the weight back on. The third and most under reported fact is that fluctuating weight puts enormous stress on the human body and is one of the most effective methods of reducing one's life span, right up there with obesity in fact! Several weeks ago, there was an article in the Sydney Morning Herald about the results of a long term study on that very rare group of people who successfully lost and then kept off their weight permanently. The researchers made a surprising discovery in their observation of those who had 'succeeded in maintaining their weight loss.The researchers found that only 14% of those who had succeeded had followed a diet / exercise programme or method such as Atkins, weight watchers etc etc. On the other hand 86% joined no gym or followed no weight loss programme. The key to permanent weight loss was not the right plan, or knowledge of nutrition and exercise, but being self motivated. Self motivation overcame all obstacles and ignorance. Self motivation often came from an event that shook the person out of the status quo they were living in and motivated them forward.
Like the health business, we Christians are obsessed with finding successful programmes and systems to see more people come to be followers of Jesus Christ. We can be blinded by the shininess and apparent success of the Mega churches we see on the television and the evangelism programmes that are currently popular along with the stories of their success in bringing thousands 'to Christ' that we try and adapt them ourselves. How often are we disappointed when the programme or the plan does not live up to our expectations?
The reality is that it is easy to get people to say yes to Jesus, just like it is easy to get people to the gym or to start a new diet (just look at the millions of diet books sold!) The reality though is that no matter how easy we make it for people to respond to Christ, over 70% have fallen away in two weeks and a significantly higher figure than that after a year (can you see the connection to weight loss?). I personally have some concerns about this. One is that the large number of New Zealanders who are walking around having said the sinners prayer may be under the illusion that they have it all covered when they die. Or they may think that they have experienced all that God / Church has to offer and will be so much harder to connect with later (I have experienced this). My biggest concern is that these programmes sometimes make us as Christians feel happy and satisfied that we are seeing people responding to Christ (especially if it is connected with our organisation). When at university I was very involved with a large church that saw significant numbers of people responding 'to Christ'. It gave me a sense of real achievement and fruitfulness being part of that. It was only when I left the church that I had to confront the fact that during that whole period I had done next to nothing in regards to being personally fruitful, I was just going along for the ride.
Like those that succeeded in long term weight loss, the best way to see people become fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ is if they are truly self motivated. Self motivation overcomes all obstacles and ignorance. We call these self motivated people SELF FEEDING.
STORY
Paul Scanlon, a well known Pastor in the United Kingdom, remarked that no one needed to chase him up or disciple him when he became a Christian, though he was only 16 and from a non Christian family. The church he was attending used to move from hall to hall. Often Paul would turn up at Church to discover that it was not there and he would have to hop on his bike and cycle around the city looking for his church (he often wondered if they were avoiding him!). He was so hungry for God that he consumed his Bible and turned up unannounced at every service, prayer meeting and small group. He once turned up at a meeting to be quietly taken aside to be told that it was actually an elders meeting! That's self feeding!
We cannot manufacture or mass produce self feeding Christians (except by the Holy Spirit moving sovereignly). The two most vital ingredients are not influenced by us. The first is that somehow the person needs to have an encounter with the living Christ. The second is that they need to be self motivated (not motivated by there friend, group etc). It also helps if we are doing three things. Living our lives consistently with our beliefs. Listening to Gods quiet voice. Not being too busy and having time for people.
Besides self motivation there is perhaps one other key which I believe has a significant impact on turning a 'convert' into a self feeding Follower. That key is being prepared to open your home to let those who are new to the faith to live with you for a certain period of time. Sharing life together has an incredibly transforming effect on those starting out on the journey. This also holds true for teaching and training also. People sometimes ask me what Organic believers do in regards to training and discipleship. An open home to me is the best Bible College and training centre in the world, and seemed to work in the New Testament funnily enough. The only negative is that we have to be sacrificial to do it!
(Okay I wrote this in Sept 2005, but I'm slacking)
