"Following Jesus from a Young Person's Perspective"
written by Ruth Lowe

"But God chose what the world considers nonsense to put wise people to shame.  God chose what the world considers weak to put what is strong to shame." I Corinthians 1:27
He wasn't what you would expect from a Christian speaker.  He didn't wear a suit and he didn't carry a Bible in his hand, and never once demanded that the audience "Be saved today!" Instead he had dreadlocks and wore simple, oversized (homemade) clothing.  His only request of the audience was that we help people, do good, try to make a difference.  He talked about poverty and the environment and healthcare. This may seem really different from our idea of a "Christian," but Shane Claiborne (co-author of Jesus for President) seemed more like a modernday follower of Christ than a lot of people that claim the title. Shane suggested that every hundred years or so Christianity has an image crisis and we are now in one of those periods of crises.  According to him, the Church has tried too hard to fit in with American culture lately and they need to seek a place of "relevant nonconformity."  Alluding to the story Jesus tells of the Good Samaritan (Luke 10: 25-37) in which a Samaritan helps a man on the road to Jericho after two religious leaders have passed him by, Shane told us it wasn't enough to help the man out of the ditch, we might also need to recreate the road to Jericho. And Shane and his fellow believers are doing just that. He is involved with cooperative groups that pay each other's hospital bills, turn vegetable oil into energy to power cars, and turn abandoned lots into gardens for children. To the guests that came to hear him speak, his appearance may have seemed strange, though after three years at Guilford I was hardly phazed by someone looking a little "different".  After all he's in good company.  I'm pretty sure Jesus and his followers got some pretty strange looks when they showed up to preach in a new town.
Ruth Lowe is a member of Fancy Gap Friends Fellowship and a third year student at Guilford College in Greensboro, NC.  Shane Claiborne who recently spoke there is an author as well as the founder of an intentional community in downtown Philadelphia known as the Simple Way and is one of the leaders of the new monastic movement.

Here is a prayer that caught my attention: "Thank you Lord for the water heater that exploded at my house that actually lasted 18 years and provided hot showers for 3 kids. Thank you that we discovered the disaster before water ran down through the ceilings and destroyed our house causing Alfa to lose at least $50,000.00. Thank you that I was able to stimulate the economy by purchasing a new water heater then hiring a struggling contractor that
had just prayed the night before for work. Thank you for the burned pizza last night we left in the oven because we were talking. Just 3 months ago we stood in silence with blank stares while waiting on the pizza. Thank you for restoring our friendship. The burned pizza was extra tasty. Sorry God it took 56 years to slow down and count my blessings. Sorry it took me so long to take responsibility for my own self. Sorry for the entitlement attitude I copped and for the gross impatience I demonstrated by plowing ahead no matter who was in the way. Thank you for the new mercies I received this morning and thank you for friends who are not immune to sin and it's consequences but daily lean on your mighty arm and remind me to do the same.
And finally God I thank you for my children and ask that you would be as patient with them as you are with me. Thank you God. In the Name above all names Jesus. So be it!"