Doug Van Pelt

It's Not Supposed to Make You Sick

Wow, McManus sort of goes off on religion in Entry #20. He describes Jesus like a cold drink of water in a parched desert, but Christianity (can be) as sour milk. He relates a story about a trip to Syria where he and two others drank some Diet Coke. The fine print said it was bottled in Syria. They were poisoned and puked their guts out. The right name was on the label, but what was inside was fake. It was toxic. It was poison. The point he makes is that some religion is toxic. It can make you sick. Another point he brings up is that -- even amidst the sick feeling of frustration and anger over being duped by a fake Christianity -- something inside of you knows that there is something better, something real.

I can relate to the anger a non-believer feels when a tv preacher is exposed as a sex addict (like Jimmy Swaggart). Something inside of this non-believer's heart knows that there is something better, something real. The injustice of this scenerio points to a God-given sense of justice that each of us holds in our hearts or conscious. In fairness to Jimmy S, God is the lover of second (and third and three hundred and seventy fourth) chances. I hope that his heart has been broken by the grace of God and that he's walking in the natural response to that (humility, gratitude, and love). If so, that'll keep him free. This guy might have a tremendous one-on-one ministry now to people who get to see his brokenness over his sin.