Gospel In The Everyday

If you’re the parent of multiple children, no doubt you’ll see (as we do) huge differences between them.

One of our children has an incredibly vivid imagination – they could quite easily disappear for an hour into their own world, emerging from the other side having scaled volcanoes, travelled through the depths of space and conversed with dinosaurs.

Another of our children is sensitive. There’s nothing they love more than some quality one-on-one time, showing them you care about them, understand them and are there for them. They respond to knowing they are loved as an individual, and start to play up when they’ve not had that personal, direct affection.

Our other child is an extrovert. They get their kicks being around people, they light up when people are around, they are never happier than when getting to interact with a whole range of folk and making them laugh.

We could list a thousand more ways that our children are different to each other.

Their differences matter, and their differences should shape and mould the way we seek to introduce them to Jesus.

There is one gospel. We can’t change the content of the gospel to suit our own ends. Nor would we want to! But whilst there is only one gospel, there are innumerable ways to communicate it, and our communication of it should always be tailored to its audience. In other words – who the child is should shape how we show them Jesus.

We see this so clearly in the Bible, and perhaps no where more clearly than the book of Acts.

In Acts we see one gospel being proclaimed, but we see it proclaimed in hugely different ways, depending on the audience.

Take, for example, Peter’s sermon at Pentecost. We’re told that Peter’s audience is Jewish. And so because of that, Peter speaks to Jews – he shows them how the life, death and resurrection of Jesus are the fulfilment of the messianic prophecies that they hold so dear. He leans on authorities that they recognise (the Old Testament scriptures), uses arguments that hold sway with them, and preaches the one gospel in a way that connects with the world they understand.

But if you look at Paul’s gospel proclamation to the Greeks in Athens, it’s a wholly different story. They have no understanding of scripture, so he never refers directly to it. Athens was proud of it’s philosophical heritage, so Paul leans on that authority. Taking his cue from Psalm 19, Paul knows that the book of creation causes them to have a sense that there is a God who they don’t know (as demonstrated in their altar to an unknown God), and he speaks into that and fills their void with the God of the Bible, proclaiming the gospel to them in terms they understand.

Then in Rome, at the end of Acts, Paul takes still another tack. Employing the very careful legal arguments that Rome was notorious for, Paul gains a hearing for the gospel.

C S Lewis understood the importance of proclaiming the one gospel in different ways to different audiences. In Mere Christianity*, he argues for the reasonableness of Christianity. In the Chronicles of Narnia * he appeals to the imagination to convince a different audience of the gospel. And then in the Pilgrims Regress * and Surprised by Joy * , he shows how the gospel provides the fulfilment to human longing. The same gospel, but communicated in vastly different ways to connect with different kinds of people.

All that is to say one thing – as you get to know your child better, and as you get to see how they tick, then be creative and adventurous in seeking to adapt your presentation of the one gospel to connect with the specific child in front of you. Noone (other than God) knows them better.

Let me think about how we might apply this to our children, and see if it helps you think about your own.

Has your child got a vivid imagination? Think of powerful stories that draw them in and captivate them with the wonder of the gospel. Take a parable and run with it, or help them get caught up in the twists and turns of a missionary of the past, or get great Christian books (like Narnia * !) into their hands.

Is your child sensitive, or do they value quality time? Make sure that you take the time to personally, lovingly invest in them, and take some of those precious moments to whisper to them of the God who values them so deeply, who is always there for them, whose door is never shut. Press home to them the wonder of the torn curtain in the temple that means they have direct access to God, or the sweet knowledge that the very hairs on their head are numbered by God – that’s how much he cares for them.

Or maybe your child is an extrovert – they love people, they are energised in a crowd, their passion is spending time with others. Speak to them of the community that God is forming – a heterogynous people who are deeply connected and united by the gospel. Show them how true community, true companionship is God’s idea, and how he’s creating a church that should be the best expression of shared life. Involve them as much as you can in the lives of other Christians. Envision your church to invest in them, so that the people they love are people who will point them to Jesus through their lives and words.

There is one gospel for all people, but there isn’t a one size fits all way to communicate that gospel. So why not take some time now to think about your children, and dream about how you might share the gospel with them in a way that really connects well. Then pray that the Spirit would take that and show them that it’s true.

This post was inspired by a chapter from the book ‘Mere Apologetics’, by Alastair McGrath *

A couple of weeks ago, tragedy struck the Thomson household.

We thought it might be coming, but it was still a shock. The signs had been there – but I suppose, if we’re honest, we were in denial. We just didn’t think it would happen like this. It was too soon.

Our dear goldfish, Sparkly, shuffled (or floated) off this mortal coil.

Okay, so perhaps we’re not as upset as we made out there. Sparkly appeared in our lives after the grandparents took our toddler to the annual town moor fair. He arrived back happy, full of sugar and clutching this small, orange aquatic creature with a huge grin on his face (that’s the toddler, not the fish).

The grin on our face may not have been quite so sincere given this was unexpected and not particularly wanted.

Nevertheless, after it’s brief life with us (and it’s significant dent in our bank balance!), we had grown quite attached to our fishy little friend. Our toddler had given him his official birth-certificate name, Sparkly, and he’d even given him a variety of other names, playing with his proper name. Our favourite was probably “Sparkelina”. Cute.

When everything went (literally) belly-up for Sparkly, we had two options. The easiest option was to head on down to Pets at Home* (*insert your pet shop of choice), buy a similar looking fish and pop it in the tank – our toddler would be none the wiser.

Or the more difficult option was to tell him what had happened.

And that’s what we did.

We decided that instead of taking the easy dodge (which might have been the right thing to do at other times), we would use it as an everyday opportunity to talk to our toddler about the gospel. We wanted to raise the subject of death, in an age appropriate way. You just never know when he might need to understand death and the comfort of the gospel in a more significant situation.

So down comes our toddler, and we break the news to him that Sparkly has died, and that we won’t see him anymore.

He took it surprisingly badly. “But I love him”, he said. “I want to see Sparkly”, he said. He even said “but Jesus can make him better”. Whilst that’s technically true and totally adorable, we didn’t fancy fishing him out of the wheelie bin at that stage.

Instead we sat down with our little one, hugged him, and spoke to him of the New Creation. We told him about the world that we’ll one day live in. The world where there will be no more tears – no more sadness or pain. No more death. We told him that Jesus will make this new world, and that those who love Jesus will be there with him, forever.

It didn’t totally remove the sadness. It never does. But we hope it took at least some of the sting out of death.

That’s what the hope that Jesus offers does. Is death still sad? Of course. Jesus wept at the grave of Lazarus – angry tears at this foreign thing that should not be in the beautiful world he created. He cried even knowing that he was about to raise him. He cried even knowing he was one day going to remake this world. Because death is unnatural, jarring and wrong.

But Jesus’ weeping wasn’t a hopeless weeping. Nor does ours need to be.

For those who know Jesus, death is not the end.

We didn’t get in to the ins and outs of whether Sparkly would be in the New Creation! But we did try to show our little one something of the difference that the gospel means when death rears it’s ugly head.

Gospel in the everyday – it’s these everyday moments that give us opportunity to show our children how the gospel impacts real life. They’re not always easy, but they’re worth fighting for.

Tomorrow it’s Father’s Day.

Father’s day is an annual event – it’s a day set aside to celebrate and honour Fathers. It’s a day that is celebrated in many countries across the world (mainly on the third Sunday in June, though this does vary), and it seems that in some places it has been celebrated since as far back as the Middle Ages.

The origins of the day vary from country to country… apparently in France it came about because in 1949 a company selling lighters wanted to increase their sales – father’s who were most deserving of winning a lighter were to be put forward, and the winner was decided on la Fête des Pères (Father’s Day), the third Sunday in June. This date officially became Father’s day in France 3 years later.

There are various traditions associated with the day, but in most cultures it includes children spending time with their father, and giving gifts. In Germany, it’s traditional for groups of men, on Father’s day, to go on a hike pulling small wagons with wine or beer. It’s often used as an opportunity to get drunk. This tradition may find its roots in the 18^th century, where Christians performed ascension day processions in farmlands. Men would be seated in a wooden cart and carried in to the village plaza where the mayor would be waiting to award a large piece of ham to the father with the most children!

So why are we telling you these things about Father’s Day here on Gospel-Centred Parenting (other than the fact that it’s mildly interesting)?

Well we thought it would be good for us to think about three ways that we can help our children engage with the gospel on the occasion of Father’s day.

1. The reality of fatherhood should serve as a picture for us, pointing to and telling us something about what our God is like. Isn’t it incredible that our God chooses to identify himself as a father – as Father of Jesus, and (through adoption) as our father too! Father’s Day must be his day too then – why not develop a tradition with your children that will help you to remember that Father’s day is His day first? Be creative with what that could be…

•  Maybe pray to him over breakfast, giving thanks for your adoption?
• Or make it a tradition to bake a cake and decorate it with the words “Happy Father’s day, God!”.
• Perhaps you could always give a small financial gift to a charity working in something close to our Father God’s heart – mission work, or something working with widows and orphans?
• Or maybe you could just make sure you always buy a Father’s Day card for God too, and get your children to write in it something that they’re grateful to their Father God for from the past year?

2. Help your children be grateful for fathers. If the father is still present in your children’s life, that is a kind gift of God and you shouldn’t take it for granted, and nor should your children. Broken marriages are tragic and prevalent in our society, and other families have lost fathers through death. Help your child to be grateful for their father, if he’s still present. in their lives. 
3. The gospel should work out into our lives to give us compassion like our heavenly Father. So if your children are old enough, help them to pray for children who are without a father. Similarly, if there are couples you know who have been unable to have children, pray for them. Or pray for single men in your circle of relationships – in your church or neighbourhood or friendship group – for some of them who long for children of their own Father’s Day may be a hard day as it highlights to them the lack of their own children. Maybe you could make it a tradition for your family to include some of these people in your day somehow? Have them round for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Organise an annual walk and make sure to invite some of those who might be struggling with Father’s day.

Father’s day is something that will come around every year. Why not try to help the gospel shape the day and thus make it a day that will help you and your children grow in your appreciation of the gospel, and in their gospel-heartedness.

Do you have any more ideas for a gospel-centred Father’s Day? Why don’t you let us know what you’re getting up to tomorrow, by commenting below or on our Facebook page.

If you’re a parent you’ll be acquainted with tears.

Tears of joy when the two lines appear on the test. Tears when the hormones surge and you feel overwhelmed at all the changes that are happening to your body. Tears of gratitude when you see the vertebrae of your baby’s spine on the scan. Tears when they wiggle and kick inside you just as you were afraid of the worst. Tears when the contractions get stronger. Tears when the pushing gets tougher. Tears when the baby gulps down their first breath and screams at the top of their lungs. Tears when they lie peacefully in their cot next to you and you think, “They’re actually here, I’ve never seen anything more beautiful in my life.”

Tears. Tears. Tears.

Tears when the social worker asks intrusive questions and makes you doubt your suitability for adoption. Tears of fear before your interview with the panel. Tears after an argument because the pressure and uncertainty is straining your marriage. Tears when weeks roll into months and you still haven’t had the phone call of the perfect match. Tears when you meet your child for the first time. Tears when you take them home and show them their bedroom, and introduce them to the dog, and tell them where their toys are. Tears of relief when you get the court ruling that you are the legal parent.

Tears. Tears. Tears.

Tears of frustration when they defy you for the millionth time because “no” they do not want to eat their cereal and would much rather scream at the top of their lungs. Tears of fear when they have disappeared and you can’t find them and you know there’s a busy road outside… and tears of relief when you find them hiding in the food cupboard! Tears of sadness when they are left out and rejected by their peers. Tears of joy when they sing in the school play. Tears of pride when they finally learn to ride their bike without stabilisers.

Tears of disappointment when they lie to you. Tears of worry when they retreat into themselves and keep you locked out of their heart and room. Tears of anger when they treat you appallingly. Tears of fear when they don’t come home when you are expecting them and they don’t answer their phone. Tears of pride when they pass their driving test. Tears of joy when they are wearing their gown and hat and you’re not entirely sure how it’s happened but your baby is a (somewhat!) responsible adult who can live independently and who has just graduated with a degree. Tears of sorrow and joy as they say their wedding vows.

Tears. Tears. Tears.

The life of the parent is a life marked by tears.

The life of a child is a life marked by tears.

Tears express lots of things for a child.

Hungry tummy, scared to be alone, teething pain, scraped knees, hurtful words, losing a game, disappointment, sickness bug, being disciplined, failing, being left out, nightmares, chicken pox, braking an arm, having to share, injections, facing exams… so many reasons to cry. Life is hard. Kids learn that pretty quickly.

Tears. Tears. Tears.

The other day that familiar sound rang through our house. Running feet, head impacting wood and an almighty scream! Our pre-schooler picked himself up and started running again, this time to me. He buried his face in my neck. Between sobs he exclaimed  “kiss me better!” So I did what any parent would. I kissed his head. I held him until his body stopped shaking. I told him I was here with him. And I waited for the sobbing to subside. Then when he had quietened down I looked at his face. Red. Blotchy. Wet. I wiped away his tears and kissed his cheeks. The salty taste lingered on my lips and in my mind I was transported to a future moment.

“Then I saw “a new heaven and a new earth,” for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the Holy City, the new Jerusalem, coming down out of heaven from God, prepared as a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Look! God’s dwelling place is now among the people, and he will dwell with them. They will be his people, and God himself will be with them and be their God. ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!”

Revelation 21

You see our parental instinct to kiss away the pain and wipe away the salty tears is just a tiny reflection of the Father-heart of God. God collects our tears in a bottle and keeps track of our sorrows (Psalm 56:8). And one day he will wipe away every tear from the eyes of his children – forever. He can wipe them away forever because he is recreating this world into a world where all the sad things will end. Where, as Samwise Gamgee wonderfully puts it, all sad things will come untrue.

There are some lovely things in life that bring tears of happiness. But many tears of pain are shed too. It’s a sad reality of life.

For now.

But one day that will no longer be the case.

So next time you wipe away your child’s tears (or even one of your own), let it be a gentle yet wonderful reminder to you of the gospel. Let it remind you that God sees your tears. Let it remind you that God sympathises with you as the one who knows our suffering and has been there with us. And let it remind you that God will one day wipe away the final tear of sadness from your eyes, and then tears will be no more.

Come Lord Jesus.

This is part of our “Gospel In The Everyday” series where we explore how everyday, ordinary moments point us to the comfort, hope and joy of the good news of Jesus. Click here to read the introduction to this series. 

We thought it would be inspiring to hear about how Christians parent their children in different parts of the world. There are many similarities in gospel-centred parenting world over, but there are also many differences depending on our cultural context. Read the introduction to this series here.

We’re excited to hear the story of a missionary couple living in South Sudan in this post. For safety purposes, they asked to remain anonymous.

Where do you live and what’s it like?

South Sudan. Amongst a rural people-group of agriculturalists in a remote and hilly region.

What are some of the challenges and opportunities that you face in Christian parenting because of your context?

We are missionaries here and so our days and life are shaped around telling our friends and neighbours about Jesus. The community is currently very open to us sharing the gospel so it is easy to talk of Jesus freely and openly both at home and around the villages. We are part of a team with other Christian families so all our daughter’s peers also know Jesus. Because our environment is so isolated we have a lot of control over what she sees and hears. There is no TV/internet or secular input aside from the local African traditional beliefs.
Some of the challenges include being away from a wider support network, such as Grandparents, to get advice/support. We are in a team of mixed nationalities, some of whom parent in quite different ways, so though we are all Christians this can be very challenging at times. Our daughter is often overwhelmed by attention from the local people who are fascinated by a little white girl with blond hair, which makes it a constant tension between loving and not offending our neighbours but also loving and protecting our daughter. It can also be hard to balance our ministry responsibilities alongside spending quality time with her, especially to stimulate and educate her when she must often play alone.

What do you do to encourage your daughter to love Jesus?

We pray for her, that she may know and love Jesus herself. However much we would like to, we can’t make it happen. We hope we demonstrate our own love of Jesus in our own lives, our marriage and our wider relationships. We do our own ‘kids church’ every week, sometimes twice weekly, where we sing songs together, read a Bible story and pray to God. Singing is something our daughter loves so it is easy to share Christian music with her e.g. Colin Buchanan*/Emu music. We try to include God in everything we do daily, so when out for walks we talk about the things Daddy God has made, or we explain when we are out telling Bible stories in the villages that it is so our friends can know King Jesus too. With limited resources we have found having ‘Beginning with God*‘ from the Good Book Company a helpful resource.

It’s so interesting to learn about parenting in different contexts. It helps us to analyse our own contexts where we our bringing up our children. We hope you’ve found this post inspiring and helpful.

Where we live in the UK we don’t have to worry about a lack of good Christian resources, or fear that our children will face isolation because of their faith/race. But we do face challenges like secular messages being communicated to our children through the internet, TV and even the school communities around them. Evangelistically there are challenges too, with many people being suspicious or apathetic to Christianity.

Reflect on your own context for a moment. What challenges and opportunities face you as you seek to live for Jesus and share your faith with your children?

We’d love to hear your reflections! Please fill in the form below to take part in the series yourself.

“Is it a bird? Is it a plane? No it’s…

That sentence could be finished with any number of superheroes at the moment, as they seem to have taken over the Thomson household. Our 2 ½ year old is obsessed! Somehow, he knows the names of multiple superheroes, without ever having watched any superhero movies or programmes.

Most of us love a good superhero, don’t we? We love the idea of someone superhuman; someone who can come to the rescue when we’re most in need; someone who will battle for justice against the forces of evil.

Sound familiar? We love superheroes because they itch where the world is scratching; they seem to solve the problems that human can’t face on their own. We love superheroes because they tell a story that seems impossible in this world. We love superheroes because superheroes remind us of someone else. They tell a fictional version of the true story of Jesus.

Spiderman, Superman, Batman, Iron Man, Captain America, The Hulk – all of these are regularly on the lips of our little one at the moment. But there’s a certain superhero, or rather a band of superheroes, which has held a special place in his heart for some time now.

The Go Jetters.

You may not be familiar with Go Jetters if you don’t have pre-schoolers, but it’s a CBeebies staple.

The four heroes, Xuli, Kyan, Lars and Foz travel the world with their disco loving teacher and mentor Ubercorn. Each episode they travel to a famous landmark only to find it being “glitched” (changed or damaged in some way) by the evil Grandmaster Glitch. The Go Jetters invariably rescue the landmark and restore it to its former glory (and then take a souvenir selfie to remember the moment!).

It’s superheroes for toddlers, and it very effectively captures the essence of the superhero genre.

We believe that we can use the everyday situations that we face to help us speak to our children about the gospel, and that even applies to a 2 ½ year old watching CBeebies.

You see, much of what is great about Go Jetters is seen even more beautifully in Jesus. Jesus is the true rescuer. He sees the “glorious ruin” – a fallen humanity rather than a glitched landmark. He too is angered and saddened by the brokenness he sees, and he too defeats the enemy – the enemy of sin – to restore us to what we should be: the beautiful image of God.

That’s deep theology – wouldn’t it be wonderful if our children began to grasp these things for themselves? We want to give our children every opportunity to engage with the gospel.

As superhero stories capture our children’s imagination and rouse their yearning for justice, we have the privilege and honour of showing them this doesn’t need to end in fantasy and the imagination. There’s a true story that these other stories point to – one that, when our children see it, is far more exciting. It’s a story that they are caught up in, one where the superhero can be their rescuer too.

Does your child like superheroes? How can you help them to see echoes of the gospel in the story they love?

This post first appeared as a guest post on the Sunshine Lenses blog of our friend Cat Caird. It’s posted here too as part of our “Gospel in the Everyday” series. If you’d like to read the introduction to the series then click through to find out what it’s all about.

Earlier in the year we had the joy of attending the lovely wedding of some friends of ours.

Reu is at an age where he doesn’t really appreciate the finer details of weddings yet. He didn’t really see much of the ceremony – he was intent on swiping the pretty sequins off the table next to us, and playing with the bouquets of flowers that were attached to the barriers. In the end daddy took him out to play during the talk so that we weren’t too disruptive!

But one day, when he’s a bit older and more civilised (will that day ever come?!) we look forward to chatting to him and Bo about the significance of marriage. We wanted to share some ponderings to perhaps help you chat to your children next time you’re at a wedding.

It was such a special day, that reminded us of even more special realities.

As we watched the stunning bride walk down the aisle in her white dress – her Father beaming and delighted – it pointed to the greater meaning of marriage. As we saw the groom with eyes filled with wonder and awe at the beauty of his bride – it pointed to an even more magnificent love story. As we heard our friends vow to love, cherish and honour each other for the rest of their lives – their vows of commitment spoke of the unconditional love of another. Weddings point us to a wonderful reality embedded in the history and future of the universe – the thrilling reality that God loves the people he has made in an even more intense way than how a groom loves his bride. All human weddings are a picture of a greater love.

The First Ever Marriage

When the boys are older, we’ll be able to tell them that the first wedding happened at the very dawn of time. After God created the cosmos for his glory and our enjoyment, he created a companion especially for Adam. The first marriage was similar to every other marriage since. God the Father presented his daughter to Adam. He walked her down the aisle to her groom. God’s heart was full of excitement and satisfaction as he gave his beautiful daughter to her husband.

“The LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.”

Now the LORD God had formed out of the ground all the wild animals and all the birds in the sky. He brought them to the man to see what he would name them; and whatever the man called each living creature, that was its name. So the man gave names to all the livestock, the birds in the sky and all the wild animals.

But for Adam no suitable helper was found. So the LORD God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep; and while he was sleeping, he took one of the man’s ribs and then closed up the place with flesh. Then the LORD God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man.
The man said,

“This is now bone of my bones
and flesh of my flesh;
she shall be called ‘woman,’
for she was taken out of man.”

That is why a man leaves his father and mother and is united to his wife, and they become one flesh.
Adam and his wife were both naked, and they felt no shame.

Genesis 2:18 – 26

Christ and the Church

And we’ll be able to tell them that the love that a husband and wife have for each other (whether mummy and daddy – or any other bride and groom that they see) are a picture of Jesus and his church. We’ll be able to explain to them that Jesus loves the church deeply – that he loves his people so much that he died for their cleansing. That Jesus makes it possible for his bride to wear a sparkling, snow-white wedding gown of righteousness. You see Jesus, like prince charming in Cinderella (but in a much more wonderful way), made it possible for the church to discard her rags of poverty and disgrace and be clothed in a ball-gown fit for a Queen.

Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her to make her holy, cleansing her by the washing with water through the word, and to present her to himself as a radiant church, without stain or wrinkle or any other blemish, but holy and blameless. In this same way, husbands ought to love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church— for we are members of his  body.” For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh.” This is a profound mystery—but I am talking about Christ and the church. However, each one of you also must love his wife as he loves himself, and the wife must respect her husband.

Ephesians 5:25-33

Marriage Supper of the Lamb

And then we’ll be able to tell him that there is a wedding day to come, where we, the church, the bride of Christ, will be united to our wonderful bridegroom Jesus. At long last, we will live with our God – never to be separated again. We will enjoy the ultimate wedding day as the beloved of Jesus and we will feast and celebrate at a banquet fit for royalty – for that it what we have married into.

“Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out,

“Hallelujah!
For the Lord our God
the Almighty reigns.
Let us rejoice and exult
and give him the glory,
for the marriage of the Lamb has come,
and his Bride has made herself ready;
it was granted her to clothe herself
with fine linen, bright and pure”

for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. And the angel said to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.”

Revelation 19:6-9

Weddings are such wonderfully happy occasions – entire days set apart to celebrate covenantal love. They feel so indulgent don’t they? We wear beautiful outfits, we revel in the affection that the bride and groom have for each other, we feast on cake, we laugh and reminisce, we drink delicious wine and we dance the night away. That’s totally appropriate behaviour when we are celebrating a wedding. How wonderful that the joy that we feel at a wedding day is just a drop in the ocean compared to the joy that we’ll feel on our wedding day to Christ.