"the bits of our lives advertising agencies prefer to ignore."

 "Christianity is recognisable, drawing on the deep and deeply ordinary vocabulary of human feeling, satisfying those who believe in it by offering a ruthlessly realistic account of the bits of our lives advertising agencies prefer to ignore."(1)

"the bits of our lives advertising agencies prefer to ignore." That phrase so well addresses a large part of the disconect between what seems to be continually broadcast over us, and the reality of our relationship, or potential relationship, with God.

My 'world' seems to be continually messaging me that my relationship to God through Jesus is irrelevant, not needed, archaic, irrational.

And yet in my world, 'on the ground' the oppsite proves true. In so many people's lives, where there is hardship, poverty, injustice, unemployment, struggle - in many of those contexts, it seems faith flourishes and God is present in a way that seems alien to my world as it is portrayed to me by 'the advertising agencies'.

Could it be the part the advertising agencies choose to ignore is more the real world?

It is fashionable to say that faith cannot hold up in the face of reality and yet, at least as often, when I look at 'reality' on the ground, in the real world, I find the opposite is true. Real faith navigates the struggles and challenges of life rather well.

Recently I read of a man who 'lost his faith' in the course of theological academic studies - a not unheard of  experience. He 're-found' his faith in the middle of a battle field when a bullet killed his friend as they were speaking together. His 'academics' had no answer, or efficacy, in the face of such 'reality'.

Jesus said that when all has been said and done that many who actively trust in Him and are now 'last' will be 'first' (and vicki-verka). I increasingly suspect that we will find the 'first' will contain a large number of those who have met God and followed God in 'the bits of our lives the advertising agencies prefer to ignore'.

(1) This is part of a description of Francis Spufford's book  "Unapologetic: Why, despite everything, Christianity can still make surprising emotional sense"  http://amzn.com/B008CB9J4C