I hunch over with a bag of lightly buttered popcorn to the side, blue light searing my face.
Click. Tap. Click. Tap. Click. Click. Click.
A few hours of clicking later, I finally get tired of it, so I exchange my keyboard and gaming mouse for a remote. Actually—I swapped it for the full screen button, because who watches cable TV over Netflix or anime these days?
Consumer Christianity
We live in an era where it’s hip to be a consumer.
Did you see that movie in the theater last night? How about Sarah’s new Instagram account? What did you think of the commercials during the Super Bowl? Did you get the $60 normal edition, or the $120 collector’s edition?
We’ve become proud of being influenced, but Christians aren’t meant to be shaped by the world. We were saved so we could shape it.
Christians aren't meant to be shaped by the world. We were saved so we could shape it. Share on XEphesians 2:10 (NLT) says, “For we are God’s masterpiece. He has created us anew in Christ Jesus, so we can do the good things he planned for us long ago.”
The first seventeen years of my life looked like the American’s guidebook to consumption. Little did I know that a Designer carefully weaved each thread in me and set me in his finest furniture. Yet I sat content, collecting dust instead of being used by him.
That’s why I’m here to implore you now: don’t be another useless tool in the shed. Do the hard thing and get to work!
What Should We Do?
“Don’t be a consumer. Be a creator.”
You may have heard some variation of this motto, and you may even think it to be cliché. I’d tweak it slightly to make it applicable to everyone, “Don’t be influenced. Be an influencer.”
What you do is not necessarily as critical as simply doing something. What you do is important, yes, but being on the field is already one step ahead of sleeping on the couch.
Do you like to write? Go write short, encouraging things on social media! Like to take photos? Volunteer to help a friend who needs pictures for their blog or project. Music? I’m no musician, but I’m pretty sure you can let your Christian worldview into your lyrics.
And if you don’t have something specific in mind, then just do something nice for a family member or friend. Don’t be satisfied with watching football or Netflix five hours a day. That’s far, far too easy. Make an effort to love others through everything you do.
Go Influence
I’ve decided to make it my mission to find God in culture. For me, that sometimes means challenging unbiblical ideas in shows I watch. Other times it might mean bringing out Christian themes in books. I’ve even written about popular sayings as simple as “I just want to be happy.”
The significant part is that I want to let Christ work through me to change the culture, instead of allowing culture to drive my life.
I want to let Christ work through me to change the culture, instead of allowing culture to drive my life. Share on X“Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?” (1 Corinthians 3:16)
There are hundreds of young Christians. All of us have the Spirit of God inside. If we’re all filled with such a powerful force, then there ought to be some powerful effects visible! If we all band together and make a commitment to be influencers, even if for some that means influencing only one person, there will be a magnificent result.
A lot of things can try to control us. As a home-school student in the thick of the Bible Belt, terrifying “peer pressure” was never much of an issue for me, but I recognize that it’s a struggle for many.
Ultimately, the only person we should desire to be influenced by is Jesus Christ. Everything else is extraneous.
So go, and let your life in Christ impact others.
