Red Letter Christians UK Launch

I wanted to share a little about the event I attended on Thursday this week.

*Faith-based post*

I have followed the Red Letter Christians blog for some time and many of the posts resonated with me. So when I heard that there was an intention to Launch a similar movement in the UK I was very interested.

http://redletterchristians.org.uk/what-is-rlc-uk/living-jesus-red-letters/

On Thursday, my husband and I went to Heaton Baptist Church in Newcastle to hear how this movement started in America and how it might look here. I didn't really know what to expect but came away inspired and challenged by what I heard.

There was a time of singing - as there often is in a regular church service, and then a couple of local groups shared how they were seeking justice for people in the area. One of which was Action Foundation, which works with refugees in Newcastle and the North East and the other was Common Change, who work in small groups to pool financial resources to help those in need in the local community.

The Founders of Red Letter Christians in the USA, Shane Claiborne and Tony Campolo shared what the vision of this movement was. They are both inspiring speakers - but very different.

The movement focuses on the words of Jesus. These would have been printed in red in some Bibles to draw attention to them. It's a call to live by those words and follow the example of Jesus, rather than the policies and rules that have grown around the church today.

https://www.redbubble.com/people/claracooper/works/37042207-seek-justice-love-mercy-walk-humbly?asc=u&p=t-shirt&style=mens&ref=explore-recently-viewed

I don't know what your stance is on matters of faith. but I do know that in our society Christian can be a dirty word among many. Often the term Christian has been associated with hatred for those who are LGBTQ+, hypocritical, legalistic and particularly in America this has sometimes been linked to which political party you follow too. Many Christians hate that this is what the term Christian has come to symbolise.

http://redletterchristians.org.uk/

The Red Letter Christians movement is a move against that. It's a desire to follow Jesus' example of love and his words that bring justice and life. It's a call to love and stand with those who are persecuted, homeless, poor, bereaved...  
...the list goes on.

I know I'm not perfect. I know I won't get it right all the time - that's not the point. I can honestly say I want to be a Red Letter Christian. A follower of Jesus. I want to learn from him to live my life as fully as possible in his way and to make a difference to the world. I can't do this on my own. I need God's spirit to help me and my friends and church to support and challenge me. but I'm up for the challenge - are you?

You can find out more about Red Letter Christians UK on their website, Facebook and Instagram.