Maybe Christianity is More like Netflix

I rinsed bits of wild rice and cranberry off my plate and grabbed my laptop from the table. While the next episode of Gilmore Girls loaded, I nestled into the couch and prepared myself for a Netflix binge.* 

The following morning, as I sipped on a cup of french roast, I contemplated my media marathon and the power of stories to pull us in. For centuries, story-telling has kept humans up after dark—around fires, in igloos, and via MacBooks on the couch. 

Stories sneak past our mental gestapo and grab us at a level where facts don’t reach. They penetrate down to where emotions shape what we want out of life. 

Which makes me wonder…why do we tend to talk about Christianity like a set of beliefs, rather than a story that we’ve been swept up into? 

All too often for Christians–myself included–“sharing our faith” has focused on convincing someone (who didn’t ask our opinion) that they believe the wrong things. And the conversation usually results in sweaty palms and shallow breathing. But, what if talking about our faith looked more like Netflix–a series of stories about our life with God?

I already tell my coworkers about how I drove to Oklahoma to visit my brother, the latest date I went on, and getting sick after eating Ethiopian food. And, they tell me about the Dallas Cowboys tickets they bought and how their son got into trouble again at school. Stories are how we open our lives to each other. 

I wonder what would happen if we Christians let Jesus make an appearances in a few of our stories. He is the main character, after all, isn’t he? 

* While I enjoyed several seasons of Gilmore Girls for its excellent story-telling, my general disposition towards the show could be the topic of another blog. At any rate, it is not the point here.