Losing souls for Christ!

 

Xtian wristbands

Colourful, plastic Christian wristbands worn these days by Christians, old and young, esp. of the RCCG fold are becoming more acceptable especially in the urban centres. It is originally a good idea. It enables people identify publicly with their faith and possibly win a soul or two for Christ.

I understand people have given testimonies at the Redemption Camp as to how the bracelets were used as a reinforcer  of faith in challenging times and they overcame. It’s all very good.

However, of late, I’m wondering if the bracelets are a bright idea after all. Two quick incidents:

Less than a month ago, I was at The Guardian to see someone. Parking space was a problem, as usual, so I waited for a while until a man was ready to go out. I positioned myself to take his space. The gentleman was however having difficulties driving out, so the guards asked me to move further away to let him through. The moment he drove out and I was backing to enter the space, a lady who was just coming rushed in, and tried to enter, but the guards blocked her way and explained to her somebody else had been waiting for the space.

From where I sat, I was hearing her noise, asking the guards to move away as she was determined to take the space whatever they said. After holding out a little more, the guards gave in to her because she practically made it impossible for everyone else to move in or out and had some part of her car on the road. The guards appealed to me to let her go in and promised to look for another space for me. Lucky for me, somebody else moved out and I parked.

At the reception, I saw the lady, signing the visitor’s register, and prominently on her left hand was the colourful Christian wristband. Were I not a Christian, what would I have thought?

Some two weeks ago, I was at LASUTH when a patient who had been long in a ward was discussing with a new arrival and said: “All the nurses in this ward are really nice, except two. In no time, the two nurses she referenced showed up for their duties. In a few hours they had claimed their title of being the most unfeeling, most impersonal and rude nurses in the ward.

By some weird coincidence, they each wore a plastic bracelet which had Christian messages emblazoned on them.

Lest you jump to conclusions, it was all very simply a coincidence.  This is not about RCCG or any church. But the point is, people who elect to publicly advertise God need to be extra careful the way they conduct themselves in public. What many of them end up doing unknowingly is demarketing the faith they are so very willing to publicly profess . It’s just like when you have a Winner’s sticker on your windscreen and you are driving like a maniac, running people off the road and giving them fuck you sign when they complain. You are not winning souls. You are losing them.