God's Cosmic Safari Rain Forest Adventure

I've been noticing something odd recently. Churches all over the place are advertising for the various VBS experiences that they are offering for the young people in their communities. That in itself is not odd, but the adventurous names given to the VBS themes are what keep catching my attention. Names like "Safari with God" or "Rain Forest Adventure" or "Galactic Explorers" are marketed by taping handmade signs to the church's roadside display (the same displays that list the pastor's name, service times, and denomination, telling everyone exactly when and how they can access God once a week on Sunday mornings). Some lucky churches may receive thier national denomination's chosen VBS materials in advance, so that they even have some marketing signs to display for all who drive past (as if to say, "The party is in here for this one week this summer!").

This type of thing sends a message that the really adventurous life with God can only be found on adventures with wild animals in Africa or in the rain forest or even in outer space. This plays right into what I call escapist theology. Most Christians in America today live like their own towns and cities are evil, that this whole world is evil, and our only escape is to either become missionaries to the rain forest or hope that we are going to somehow vanish and land magically in heaven to escape everything (the rapture, and escapist theology in general, is not biblical by the way). What's my point? God created everything, and it is GOOD! Even though we live in a present evil age, God does not say that his creation is evil. Christians need to engage culture, especially our own towns and cities every single day throughout the year. God is in cities! Some people think God can only be found in nature by sitting next to waterfalls or frollicking in mountain meadows. Yes, God is found in those places, but he is also to be found in cities and in the midst of broken systems and broken relationships. People are hurting right next door and right down the street from us, not just in the rain forest and on safaris. We should be teaching our children that!

We need to stop teaching our children that life is adventurous with God only one week during the summer of every year. We need to stop teaching our children that the real adenturous life with God only happens in the rain forest. Life is adventurous with God all of the time! Our children should be doing hard things, learning how to engage brokenness in the world, and learning how God is moving every day throughout our own lives and our own culture. Instead, most Christian parents are very actively overprotecting thier children and "providing" for them as stagnant and neutral environments as they can possibly force upon them. We simply must create that all important Christian bubble, which will serve to protect our children from this evil world. Then, we'll let them out of the bubble for one week each year so that they can learn about how an adventure with God is found in outer space. But then it's right back into the bubble after that. Right?

Parents... please, please, please teach your children by both telling and modeling for them that life with God is an adventure all of the time, in our own contexts, in our own communities and schools and workplaces. God is not only to be found and experienced in a church building on Sunday mornings, or for one week each summer. The reason most kids walk away from their Christian faith when they enter college is because their parents helped them develop a very wierd escapist theology which they in turn are unable to contextualize to their new environment on their own. Teach your children how to engage culture, not escape from it. We don't really need to send our kids as missionaries to Africa or the rain forest anymore. Eighty percent of the world's Christians now live outside the West in places like that. That missionary strategy worked! But now, it is not needed anymore. Christianity is rapidly declining in America. Africa is now sending missionaries to us in America! You need to teach your children how to be on fire for God and live the adventurous journey with Christ right here where we are living right now!