Authenticity: Are You “Feelin’ It”?

My nine year old son has a new saying these days: “I’m not feelin’ it.” As in,

“Son, will you help clean up the dishes?”

“I’m not feelin’ it, Dad.”

Now, despite the obvious parenting dilemma this brings out(!), I think my son has tapped into a defining characteristic of our society.  “Authenticity” is a buzz word these days. People want to be around others who are “being real” with them. Fake is not cool! In the church, it’s all the rage to say you’re part of an “authentic” community.

Of course, it’s helpful to draw attention to the ways we hide behind our various “masks” and false-selves in the church and it’s right to move away from these. Being fake is no way to advance biblical community.

However, I think the focus on authenticity as a virtue can create dangers. If we’re not feelin’ it then we’re not doing it, for that would be inauthentic – we don’t want to feel like (or be labeled) a “hypocrite.” When we apply this logic to worship, serving, and personal devotion, then emotions reign.

And emotions are full of lies.

Responding to the logic of “authenticity,” Eugene Peterson wrote these words:

“The wisdom of God says something different: that we can act ourselves into a new way of feeling much quicker than we can feel ourselves into a new way of acting.”

Although he wrote this nearly 30 years ago, his words engage our present culture well. Here’s what he said about one aspect of church life: “Worship is an act that develops feelings for God, not a feeling for God that is expressed in an act of worship.” What if you take that further? I think you can extend his sentiment to include the whole life of following Jesus. Self-less love, reaching outside ourselves to another, compassion, prayer, and extending the good news of grace around the world … all of these are acts that “develop feelings for God.”

In the end, perhaps the most “authentic” thing we have as creations of a loving God is obedience. Because we trust that this kind Father has our best interests in mind, we will act as he’s instructed and the appropriate emotions will follow.

Related posts:

1. Authenticity and Hypocrisy from the “Pulpit”