Rubbernecking: watching people fall in love

In his book Blue Like Jazz, Donald Miller lays out one of my very favorite concepts.

“‘I never liked jazz music because jazz music doesn’t resolve. But I was outside the Bagdad Theater in Portland one night when I saw a man playing the saxophone. I stood there for fifteen minutes, and he never opened his eyes.

After that I liked jazz music.

Sometimes you have to watch somebody love something before you can love it yourself.’”

This isn't the jazz player in the book, but it's a great representation.

Is there a more beautiful and simple way to describe how ministry and evangelism should be? 

Even to me - a Christian - “evangelism” is a scary word, a confrontational and impersonal word, that has a worldly association of door-to-door Bible bangers and televangelists preaching 5,000 miles away. Now, don’t get me wrong; I have a lot of respect for those people, especially those who walk around and have the courage to talk about their beliefs only to get the door slammed in their faces. Most Christians wouldn’t dare. But I think Jesus meant more than that when he said to go and make disciples of all nations.

Doesn’t everyone love watching someone talk about or involve themselves in something they’re passionate about? There is just something about it, about the way their eyes light up and they talk more earnestly. 

I have a friend who quite possibly loves Batman with almost all his heart. He’s so immersed in Batman everything that he seems to find a way to bring lines from the movies or Batman jokes into most any topic of conversation. And if you ask him about it, he comes to life. His eyes light up, his tone of voice changes from one of mediocrity to excitement, and it would seem your conversation could never end. I’ve never even seen the Batman movies, but I love watching him talk about it. Like Donald Miller watching the jazz player play those sweet notes with his eyes closed, there is something remarkable, intriguing, even enticing, about watching someone love.

John 4 tells the story of Jesus breaking cultural taboos and speaking with the Samaritan woman at the well, and it says later that “many of the Samaritans from that town believed in him because of the woman’s testimony.” Then they got to know Jesus for themselves and said in verse 42, “We no longer believe just because of what you said; now we have heard for ourselves, and we know that this man really is the Savior of the world.” In the same way that the people sought after Jesus because of her encounter with him, so it should be with us. 

So maybe spreading the gospel of Christ is meant to be less of rules and regulations, of Sunday rituals and cheesy catch-phrases on Christian t-shirts. If that is the gospel you have encountered through the Christians you’ve met, please hold on; there is more, far more. I think the gospel is more like people falling in love with the Lord and everyone else standing aside watching in wonder, rubbernecking the way people do when there is an accident on the side of the road. It is like how people who are single realize how much they desire companionship when they see happy couples with one another. Because maybe - just maybe - watching you love Him is the catalyst someone needs to figure out what it is about Him that makes you love Him just that much.

This means that the Christian life is, most simply, falling in love with Love himself. At it’s core, both ministry and falling in love should be rooted in a deep enjoyment of God. Francis Chan said of falling in love: 

“When you are truly in love, you go to great lengths to be with the one you love. You’ll drive hours to be together, even if it’s only for a short while. You don’t mind staying up late to talk. Walking in the rain is romantic, and not annoying. You’ll willingly spend a small fortune on the one you’re crazy about. When you are apart from each other, it’s painful, even miserable. He or she is all you think about; you jump at any chance to be together. We need to be like with this God.”

Are you are lost in your enjoyment of God? And even more importantly, are you captivated by his delight in you? Isaiah 62 paints a beautiful image: “...for the Lord will take delight in you...as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride, so will your God rejoice over you.” Zephaniah 3:17 says, “The Lord your God is with you, the Mighty Warrior who saves. He will take great delight in you; in his love he will no longer rebuke you, but will rejoice over you with singing.” People disagree about why Solomon’s Song of Songs was included in the Bible because of it’s sensual language, but I would venture to say that maybe the relationship between lovers is supposed to shed light on our relationship with God, our Bridgeroom. Because God is not only supposed to be believed in but also adored, and also loved, a rare and beautiful phenomenon for all the world to see.

posted by Taylor Fohr