Are You a Believer?

Over the weekend, Jason and I watched a Christian movie.  Overall, it was a cute movie, but let me tell you this, the "Christian" aspect of it needed a lot of help.  There were several little things that bothered me, but there were also a couple of huge spiritual issues that upset both my husband and me.  To explain, let me give you a brief summary of the plot of the movie.

Tired of being alone and frustrated by the many disastrous dates she's been on, a young woman decides to try out a Christian online dating site despite the fact that she is not a Christian herself.  She meets a wonderful guy and soon finds herself lying to him, his friends and family, all in an attempt to keep her unbelief a secret so that she won't lose this guy of her dreams.  When her secret is revealed, the young man breaks off the relationship and goes back to his former life.  The girl tries to do the same but realizes that the more she learns about God and His ways, the more she seeks Him.

My first of the big problems is that the guy, upon finding out about her deception, pushes her away, promising to pray for her.  While I certainly understand his not wanting to stay in a relationship with her, he had the perfect opportunity to be a witness to her, and he passed it by.  After all, she had been studying the Bible, attending church and Bible study, and much more to keep up her ruse.  She admitted to being drawn to something but simply didn't know the way.  Right there, she opened the door for him to show her the way, but instead, he left her to figure it out for herself.  That part really bothered me.

Another issue I had with the movie was with the girl's coworker whom she had known for many years.  Throughout the movie, you see the girl confiding to her coworker about her deceitful plan to meet a guy.  She tells her everything.  Toward the end of the movie, we find out that the coworker is a believer.  The girl didn't believe it and questioned the coworker about wearing a cross or some mark to let people know that she was a Christian.  The coworker only replied, "That's not my style."  Consider me irate!

The fact of the matter is that if this coworker worked with this woman for years, and the woman still had no idea that she was a believer, then the coworker was a sorry excuse for a Christian.  A Christian doesn't have to wear a cross necklace or spout Bible verses 24/7, but a true Christian should stand out.  There should be something different.  Obviously, this coworker never witnessed to the main character, not even when she knew what the girl was up to with the Christian dating site.  Again, there was an open door to share the love of Christ, but instead, the coworker chose to stay true to her "style."  Grrrr!

My friend, are you a believer in Christ?  I pray that you are, but I also pray that you behave like one.  If we have to go around telling people that we're saved, we're obviously not doing a very good job living it.  Christians act like Christ, and the Bible gives us a clear record of how He behaved and spent His time.  We are to follow His example, and when we do, it won't come as a surprise to anyone that we're a child of God.

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. - Matthew 5:16