Culture's Changing Tide toward Christians

When the moment of truth came, I used to sweat like I'd just sucked 24 hot wings to the bone with only a small complimentary cup of water to relieve my fiery palate: What would happen when I revealed that I was a Christian?

Perhaps I would suddenly be marginalized or outright dismissed for my faith. Besides, it is cool to bash Christians--those people who belong to a money-grubbing irrelevant institution that are out of touch with the real needs of society ... or so they say.

However, if you look closely, you'll see that sentiment is starting to change. And as a Christian leader, if want to stand on the precipice of change, you'll have to truly embrace the rhetoric of Jesus that was far more than mere words. The current of evangelical Christianity in the west is starting to shift from building a powerful political empire to a return to its roots: helping the downtrodden. And that's what is getting the secular world's attention.

New York Times columnist Nicolas D. Kristof revealed how closely he's been paying attention to the shift in evangelical Christendom in the U.S. In a recent column, he wrote: "Scorning people for their faith is intrinsically repugnant, and in this case it also betrays a profound misunderstanding of how far evangelicals have moved over the last decade. Today, conservative Christian churches do superb work on poverty, AIDS, sex trafficking, climate change, prison abuses, malaria and genocide in Darfur. Bleeding-heart liberals could accomplish far more if they reached out to build common cause with bleeding-heart conservatives."

While many Christians are quick to engage in "culture wars" with the world, Jesus never behaved in such a manner. Instead of condemning sinners, he ministered to their needs -- and then they listened to him. If evangelical Christians want to change the world, we must start with a raw assessment of the needs in each of our communities as well as the problems nationally and internationally. Then, we must find a way to provide solutions and hope with the same heart of love Jesus demonstrated daily as he walked among the people.

I've already witnessed this seismic shift taking place where I am as part of the movement to call churches to care about creation. Through the book we published in Saving God's Green Earth and pastor and author Tri Robinson's "Let's Tend the Garden" ministry, I have had the opportunity to connect with people all over the U.S. who have probably never darkened the door of an evangelical church if one at all. But they're drawn to what we're doing, intrigued by the idea that Christians just care about something they care about. And while I've heard the concerns voiced by national evangelical leaders that this movement is being co-opted by the left, those concerns are mere myths, created to help them hold onto their political clout that they fear is slipping into a sea of Christian relativism.

What I've found to be true -- and should be true of everyone who truly is evangelical -- is that it doesn't take long before the iron curtain of distrust makes way for a heart that believes maybe there's more to life than simply their "cause" as the questions start to come my way. It's not revolutionary; instead, it's merely undoing years of perception (sadly, some of it is accurate) of who Christians are and what their faith is all about.

I'm tired of being a Christian in hiding, a mere do-gooder. But those days are coming to a close. The shift taking place in the church is from one of building giant empires based on Sunday attendance to that of giant movements based on a group of people committed to being the hands and feet of Jesus. That's what I signed up for. How about you?

Jason Chatraw is the publisher of Ampelon Publishing and the co-author of Saving God's Green Earth and Mystics, Mavericks & Miracle Workers.