I actually caught some kind of virus the week before my trip to Vietnam, so I’m going to obey doctor’s orders and get a lot of R&R, take my meds, drink lots of liquids, up the vitamin C, 
and so on. So in short, not much blogging is going to happen this Friday, but I thought I would leave you with a pretty groovy U2 clip.
This clip comes from a DVD a loyal reader and good friend sent to me in which Bill Hybels interviews Bono about his faith and Africa. So who’s Bill Hybels? In short, he’s the founding pastor of Willow Creek Community Church which is one of the most attended churches in America and was named one of Time Magazine’s 25 Most Influential Evangelicals in America. It’s also worth noting that he leads a network of 10,500 churches and trains more than 100,000 pastors each year.
Regarding this clip from that DVD, it has which I think is my favorite U2 concert moment. It’s from the Elevation tour and has scripture references on the screen for “40” and “Where The Streets Have No Name”, and there is a small clip of Bono speaking at the National Prayer Breakfast. I’ve often wondered how many people in the crowd really knew they were singing something straight from the scriptures.
Some of you pastor folk will be getting a copy of the DVD in the mail from me, but for those of you who are not getting one from me, you can order a DVD free of charge here (one per church).
Also, if you are wondering about Bono’s faith, I would suggest checking out this link and reading the section “Bono confesses his faith”.
Sorry you are sick. I hope you are feeling better soon
Thank You!!!
This may be an unpopular statement.. but,
It’s my hope and prayer that if I ever find myself on a stage as big as U2’s, no one will “wonder” if I am a follower of Christ or not.
I concur…
And I do too!
isn’t it clear he’s a christian? it is to me.
besides, it’s not up to us to judge. if it were, i would say the ted haggards of the world . . . well, nevermind
I”m not sure exactly what the argument here is, but I’ll try to respond.
nathan, you said if you had a huge audience, you wouldn’t want anyone to have to wonder if you were a Christian. What I think you mean is that you would, if given the opportunity, present yourself in a way that would make it obvious to everyone watching that you are a Christian. What would that look like? Would you simply state “I am a Christian” at the opening? Would you dress a certain way? Would you use a certain set of words to indicate your belief? Would you read John 3:16? Would your concert look “churchy”? I’m not being a pain in the butt, I’m really just curious.
I’m wondering if you are concerned with “external qualifiers.” In other words, are you suggesting that Bono’s appearance or presentation is what makes him a Christian or non-Christian? Are you concerned that his external qualifiers are those of a rock star *instead of* a Christian?
…
I work as a missionary in a totally secular culture. I present the Gospel to people who have never heard it before. These people HAVE heard, however, of Evangelical people. They watch TV and see Falwell, Robertson; they’ve seen “Jesus Camp”; they have listened to televangelists on Sunday morning. In my experience, if I at ANY point resemble any of those characters, my credibility is GONE. If I use the words they use, dress the way they do, or reference them, I’m discredited. People would judge my external qualifiers and deem that I am crazy. Worse, those who are “obviously Christian” are perceived as dangerous, having elected and supported a war-hungry president, even after such images as from Abu Ghraib were disseminated. That’s how the world sees Christians right now.
But I’m getting sidetracked by politics.
The point is, I can only imagine a person about whom nobody would have to “wonder if he is a Christian” on stage. I can only picture someone that the rest of the world is likely to immediately discredit and even consider dangerously faithful.
The main reason Bono is so effective is that he looks like a rock star. He has shared the Gospel with millions (literally, millions!) of people precisely because he does not have the external qualifiers of say James Dobson. James Dobson might have millions of people on his mailing list, but how many of them are not already Christians?
Godspeed Bono and his message.
I hope you feel better soon.