| Seriously Funny |
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Do you think that religion is about knowing all the answers, getting everything right and being just that little bit better  than other people? Anyone who’s genuinely tried the Christian life knows that that isn’t really what it’s like at all. But there are two writers and speakers who put into words the puzzles, worries and irritations of faith today better than anyone else. Their names are Jeff Lucas and Adrian Plass, and they’ve just written a book together. Seriously Funny is made up of letters between the pair, in which they are painfully honest about life and faith. Most of all, they want to say something about God. As Adrian says, people imagine him as ‘narrow, simplistic, humourless and boring’ – when he’s anything but. They are also very honest about the church, which can be wonderful but can also be pretty dreadful – because it’s made up of ordinary people, who struggle to be good. For instance, here’s Adrian talking about forgiveness: Just recently, after speaking at a church in the north, I was approached by a lady who sat next to me and, after checking that no-one in authority was listening, spoke from behind her hand in worriedly hushed tones. ‘Adrian,’ she whispered, ‘I only became a Christian a couple of months ago, and they’ve told me I’ve got to forgive everybody. Everybody! The thing is – I can’t. Not just like that, I’ve been so hurt in the past. I can’t just pretend to feel all right about it, can I? The thing that worries me, though, is they say Jesus said that I can’t be forgiven if I don’t forgive others, so what can I do?’ ‘Go to God,’ I suggested, ‘and say something like this – be completely honest. ‘God, it says in the Bible that I should forgive my enemies. If that’s what you really want me to do, then that’s what I want as well, but at the moment I can’t. There are people in my past who hurt me so much that I’d like them to die, and I’d like to be there to watch. Jesus says we must love our enemies and pray for them. For now, I don’t really know what loving them means, but I’m going to do what you say. I’m going to grit my teeth and ask you to give them the best of everything they need, even though I don’t mean it and I hate them as much as I ever did. I know it’s only one rung of the ladder, Father, but it’s all I can manage for now. Help me to climb a bit further every day. Thank you. Amen. Seriously Funny is published by Authentic, price £8.99. Available at www.veriteshop.co.uk |
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