SEVEN HABITS OF HIGHLY INEFFECTIVE CHRISTIANS

By Michael K. Farrar, O.D.

© God’s Breath Publications

 

Chris Fabry has written a book called, “The 77 Habits of Highly Ineffective Christians.” It’s a very well written book but is extremely sarcastic. It convicts you by illustrating how you can mess up your Christian life by practicing certain habits and following fleshly guidelines. I was so intrigued by the book that I decided to add my own 7 habits to his list. Hopefully you won’t find yourself following any of these habits, but if you do, forgiveness from God is only a prayer away.

 

#1 Bible Study

 

Bible study is crucial in the life of anyone who wants to be an effective Christian. So if you want to excel at being an ineffective Christian absolutely avoid any type of Bible study with a passion. When crossing paths of another Christian who wants to invite you to a Bible study; make sure you have at least three or four good excuses as to why you can’t attend. During sermons at church wear earplugs so you can’t hear any scripture references that the pastor shares. Absolutely never carry your Bible to church for you might be tempted to look up a passage that is referenced. Another helpful ploy is to have someone hide your Bible at home for you so you won’t be tempted to read it when your spirit is craving to be spiritually fed. It will also help if you repeat the phrase, “The Bible is not the Word of God.” Or “It’s just a book like any other book,” over and over so that you can brainwash yourself into believing that scripture does not originate from God Himself. Never consider scripture to be the actual communication of God to you, but simply just another book that can sit on the shelf unread. Scriptures to completely avoid reading or hearing are Hebrews 4:12, 2 Timothy 3:16-17, 2 Peter 1:20-21,

 

#2 Prayer

 

Effective Christians pray a lot and I do mean a lot. They spend much of their waking moments talking to their Heavenly Father. So if you truly want to be an ineffective Christian abstain from any outward or inward attempts at prayer. This means no prayers of thanksgiving, no prayers of praise or worship, and no prayers requesting help or assistance from God. It also means no communication of any sort with God while you are ill or having a bad day. Put any thoughts of speaking to God out of your mind completely and you will be on your way to becoming a very effective ineffective Christian. Avoid passages such as Ephesians 6:18, 1 Thessalonians 5:17, 1 Timothy 2:1, 2 with a passion. If you can’t help yourself and must pray, pray the following prayer:

 

THE SELFISH PRAYER

Our Father, which art in heaven,

I don’t have time to speak Your name.

My kingdom come.

My will be done.

For I’m on earth and I don’t care about heaven.

 

I’ll get my own daily bread.

I’ll increase my debts and punish my debtors.

I’ll succumb to all temptation.

For my heart is evil.

 

For I rule my kingdom,

With my power and my glory,

Forever and ever, because I am!

 

#3 Fellowship

 

Fellowship with other Christians is very important to anyone who wants to be an effective Christian. So to be ineffective as a follower of Christ you must disdain any contact with other Believers. When possible avoid church services, Bible Studies, Church Potlucks, worship services, special Christian concerts or even visiting your neighbor if he or she is a Christian. When shopping and you notice a fellow servant of Christ in the store, quickly go down the opposite aisle. When you’re at work and a Christian comes in, have another staff person help them. Say you’re busy and can’t be bothered. Don’t even say “Hello” for this can lead to a personal discussion about spiritual matters. Fellowship breeds accountability, spiritual growth, encouragement in the faith and all sorts of support for someone becoming an effective Christian. This is not what you want if you want to be an ineffective Christian. Fellowship provides support for you when you’re struggling with the issues of life and fosters a love for other Believers. Ineffective Christians are loners. They seek solitude so as not to get closer with God, but to be alone with themselves. To be truly proficient at being an ineffective Christian you must seek to isolate yourself from others whatever the cost. Ignore your desires for friends in the faith and if at all possible offend everyone! You must rewrite Hebrews 10:24-25, which says “And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another — and all the more as you see the Day approaching.” You must make the following changes and memorize it, write it on poster boards and hang it on your walls.

 

“Let us strive to ignore how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds. Let us absolutely give up meeting together in whatever way we can. Let us make a habit of this practice of not meeting together. Let us avoid encouraging one another, especially as we see the day of Christ’s return imminent.”

 

#4 Evangelism

 

Evangelism is an activity that pours out of the life of a mature effective Christian. They can’t help it because they love their Lord Jesus. So to be an ineffective Christian, don’t foster any affection for Jesus who died for your sins. Follow these 7 habits of ineffective Christians religiously, and I do mean “RELIGIOUSLY.” If you are able to stunt your spiritual growth then you will have no inclination to share your faith in any way. Strive to shut your mouth when it comes to sharing your faith, unless of course you want to spread the gospel of how to be an ineffective Christian. Absolutely ignore Jesus’ command of the Great Commission and you will be well on your way to becoming a highly ineffective Christian. When someone comes up to you with emotional issues, tell them to drown their sorrows in booze and drugs, but never tell them that there is hope in a relationship with Jesus. If this is too blunt for you, just say you don’t have any time to talk to them about such issues. When someone comes to you sensing that there is no meaning in his or her life, suggest becoming involved in some sort of hobby that has nothing to do with God. When someone comes to you with overwhelming guilt because of sins they have committed, tell them to go escape to the movies. Possibly, you could even go with them if they agree to pay for the popcorn and pop, of course. Avoid scriptures such as Matthew 28:19, 20, Mark 16:15, 16 2 Timothy 1:8

 

#5 Ministry

 

Effective Christians seek out opportunities to minister to those in need. To be an ineffective Christian you must avoid such opportunities to help others. In order to accomplish this you must seek to have a cold uncaring heart. When you see someone suffering turn your attention to your own desires. Never let yourself become personally involved. Avoid feeling any compassion for those who are worse off than you. Usually it helps to foster a selfish attitude toward life. To be an ineffective Christian you must claim that all God provides for you is for your own personal consumption. Absolutely never tithe or donate to any needy causes. Never share what you have. Hoarding of your assets and belongings works well to address this area of becoming an ineffective Christian. Pattern your life after the rich man in the parable Jesus spoke of in Luke 12. Consume yourself with building bigger barns to store all your stuff. If barns are a little too, “country” for you, then rent hundreds of storage units and place everything you accumulate and fill them up! Never, and I mean absolutely never, share anything you have with anyone in need, and you will become a very ineffective Christian. Never use your talents and skills to help alleviate the predicament of those in need. Hoard your time like you do your possessions. Time is very valuable these days and sharing it with those who are worse off than you should never be done if you really want to be ineffective in your Christian life. Never apply yourself to relieve the suffering of others and your ineffectiveness as a Christian will grow to new heights. Avoid scriptures such as Romans 12:13, 2 Corinthians 1:7, Ephesians 4:28.

 

#6 Spiritual Growth

 

God expects every Christian to grow spiritually and therefore become more effective in living out their lives for Christ. Therefore, you must strive to remain stunted and weak in your faith. Faith comes from hearing God’s Word, so follow Habit #1 with all your might. Faith and spiritual growth is encouraged when you endure temptations, so whenever possible fall into sin by seeking out temptations in your life. You can’t expect to be an ineffective Christian if you pray for strength to endure trials, so avoid such prayers. Blame God for your hardships and the consequences of your sin. Become a double-minded person in all you do. Let every wind of doctrine and false belief take up residence in your heart, mind and soul and you will be on your way to a life full of ineffectiveness for your Lord and Master, Jesus Christ. Be satisfied with just the milk of God’s word so that you will never grow beyond whom you are now. Never read James 1. Whatever you do, never seek to be filled with the Holy Spirit, avoid Him like the plague! If you quench the Spirit of God, this action will go a long way in building your reputation as an ineffective Christian. You can monitor your ability to decrease your spiritual growth by noticing how frightened you are of life, how stressed you become when difficulties arise in your life and how depressed you are about living in this world. Such emotions and thoughts are a good barometer of how ineffective you have become in your Christian life.

 

# 7 Pursuit of Holiness

 

God commands Christians to be holy as He is holy. This is a lifelong task of those who strive to be effective Christians. To be ineffective in this area requires you to seek all the habits of those who are unholy. The more perverse and evil the activities you indulge in will reflect the condition of your own heart. Holiness can only be pursued if a Christian listens to the Holy Spirit, so quench the Spirit whenever possible. Ignore His promptings. Squelch His desires for your life. Turn a deaf ear to any instruction that seems to be coming from God’s Spirit. Define your Christian life by habits and activities you perform and not by the condition of your heart. Seek the life of a modern-day Pharisee. Deny any sins you commit, and whatever you do, never seek forgiveness for any shortcomings. Avoid being accountable to other Christians. Wallow in your sin and guilt. Avoid scriptures such as 2 Timothy 2:21, Hebrews 2:11, 1 Peter 1:15, 16, Jude 20.

 

May God have mercy on your soul if you practice any of the above unholy habits!