Belief = Evidence?

The Myth
Christians have no need of evidence; we have belief.

The Reality
This is a tricky one, especially when you throw in Hebrews 11:1:

"Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen."

Does this mean belief in something is just as good as hard evidence? If so, how does one know what to believe?
I think it's necessary for there to be a balance between faith and evidence. There should definitely be some basis for your beliefs, but in many cases, it's a bit of a cycle: Evidence leads to belief. Belief, if well-placed and sincerely felt, leads to actions which lead to further revealing of evidence.
An example could be choosing a spouse: When choosing a spouse, I must first look for evidence that she is trustworthy, faithful, upstanding, and an overall good choice for devoting my love and affection. And, while I can do my best to gather all that information and examine the evidence, it will ultimately require an amount of faith in that person, because they can't prove that they're a good wife before they're a wife. But, if that faith is well-placed, it will yield further evidence, which will in turn strengthen my faith in her.
A friend of mine, Paul "Shammah" Pavao, shared an example of faith that resulted in evidence:

1985, I think. My sister sends me a letter that my nephew Joseph has lost all his sight in one eye and 50% in the other. Infection's been increasing for 18 months, and the Air Force has moved her to Andrews AFB so she can be treated at some really good medical facility there. I'm in Germany, and when I get the letter, friends and I pray for around an hour. I could feel the "release" as we prayed, and afterward I told my friends that I felt like God heard us but something didn't quite feel complete. Two weeks later, I got another letter, which had to have been sent a week after we prayed, saying that my nephew had 100% of his sight back, and the infection had retreated. They didn't know why. The infection was not quite gone, explaining what I was feeling way over in Germany, though it disappeared over the next few months.
I think that feeling of "release" I had was faith that was the evidence of things not yet seen. It was the substance--something tangible--of what we were hoping for.

Why It Matters

Our belief should not be the basis of truth. Instead, the truth should be the basis of our belief. To believe something without cause is like jumping from an airplane without first making sure you're wearing a parachute. I think some people mistakenly confuse following God blindly with following God without reason.

If my wife blindfolded me and ask me to let her lead me around the room, then I would have no problem following her blindly, but only because I know her and have reason to trust her. If a stranger blindfolded me and asked me to follow him, I would not comply, because I have no basis for my faith.

Likewise, we must get to know God. The more I know Him, the stronger my faith becomes.

Apologizing for God

The Myth
The Bible is the truth, except the parts that aren't palatable to me, which I try to explain away or make more acceptable.

The Reality
God doesn't need us to apologize for Him. He needs us to approach His word with humility and honesty, even (or especially?) the parts that we don't find as agreeable as the "love your neighbor" stuff.

I'm a pretty big fan of Francis Chan. I admire him in this video for taking an extremely transparent and uncommonly honest approach to the discussion of Hell, and his faith in general.

Why It Matters

God doesn't need us to make Him more presentable or acceptable. He needs us to recognize our subservience to Him, and accept the fact that we only see a small part of the picture. And, as Francis says, there are certain things that we can not afford to get wrong.

I haven't read the book yet, but I plan on reading it in the near future. For anyone concerned that this video is just a commerical for Francis Chan's book, with the intent of making him rich, consider this:

‎"Chan gives away about 90 percent of his income ... Chan doesn't take a salary from his church, and he has donated all of his book royalties, which total about $500,000 to various charities. Much of it goes to organizations which rescue sex slaves in foreign countries." - Christianity Today, October 2009

Wherever you go, there you are!

The Myth
"Wherever you are, take comfort in knowing that God has you there for a reason."

The Reality
Christians like to feel good about where we are. We're extremely inert, loving to continue doing what we're already doing. That's why many of the most successful modern pastors and motivational speakers are the ones who make you feel good about yourself: You're okay where you are --in fact, you're there because GOD wants you there!
In reality, it's actually dangerous to think that every situation is where God wants you. Think about it: If you murder someone and become a fugitive from the law, do you think God wants you there? Of course not! God wants you to be in HIS will. You're only where He wants you to be if you're there as a result of obedience to Him. If you're in the place you're at right now because of your disobedience, then you're not where God wants you.
That doesn't mean God can't still use you in your current situation, or that He won't work it out for good, but it definitely does not mean that God is happy with the way everything is.
I think we often read the verse, "All things work for the good..." and forget the rest of it: "of those who love Him, who are called according to HIS purposes."
If you're not called according to His purposes (aka obeying and doing His will), then don't blame your current situation on God and say, "Well this is where God wants me, so I'll just trust Him through this."

Why It Matters
Until you're obeying God, you can't have confidence that you're where He wants you. Don't pretend to "trust God in your current situation" if you're not trusting Him in your current actions.

What Spirituality Looks Like

The Myth
Spirituality means _________.

a. having miraculous or exciting supernatural experiences
b. getting really into worship
c. possessing extra-charismatic spiritual gifts

The Reality
This is another thing that Christians like to make about ourselves; we have to be constantly experiencing something supernatural or emotional in order to be spiritual.
Paul outlines what spirituality looks like in his letter to the Galatians, wherein he lists the Fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, goodness, kindness, gentleness, and self-control. Jesus said you can know a tree by its fruit. In other words, if you feel really emotional during worship or have all sorts of supernatural experience, but the list above does not describe you, then you should seriously re-evaluate your level of spirituality.
True spirituality is demonstrated through a sacrificial lifestyle of obedience to God's Word and Holy Spirit.
My dad, who is a pastor, put it succinctly in a recent sermon he gave:
"Being spirit-filled (having more of the Holy Spirit) is simply letting God the Holy Spirit have more of you." - John Cowan

Why It Matters
We get too easily distracted from the things that really matter. Christians are so good at getting involved in programs and activities and trying to reach God through experiences, but when it comes to actually OBEYING God, we somehow miss the mark.
If our lifestyle is not reflecting Christ, then all of our so-called "spirituality" is worthless. God wants us to be doers, and not deceive ourselves by thinking that feeling or acting spiritual has any meaning apart from obedience.

Disciples making Disciples

The Myth
It's the pastor's job to train people to be Christians.

The Reality

"Jesus didn't say, 'Hey get people to these gatherings and then have your pastor disciple them.' See, that's where we've had it so wrong in the church. God puts that burden on all of us. He says, 'You learn the scriptures, and you teach the scriptures, and you live the scriptures, and then you teach other people to do the same thing. You make disciples.'" - Francis Chan, Basics video series

I don't really have anything to add to that myself, but when I shared this on Facebook, a friend added the following comment, which I think is worth sharing here:

Pastors disciple the disciplers, and it is SUPPOSE to trickle down from there. "For the equipping of the saints for the work of service."( Eph 4:11-12) Too many Christians in America think they've "hired" the pastor like you'd hire a lawn service - to do the work so after your "busy" week so can enjoy the scenery...

Why It Matters
We should not be content to sit back and watch the pastor disciple and grow others. We need to make sure we're doing our part to represent Jesus, and then teach others to do the same!

God's Modus Operandi

The Myth
God accomplishes His will primarily through miracles and direct intervention.

The Reality
Let me establish right off the bat that I believe in miracles. Unfortunately, I think a lot of Christians put way too much emphasis on miracles and experiences, when there are a lot more important things that require our attention.
Jesus said, "A wicked and morally unfaithful generation craves a sign." (Matt 16:4) That's not to say that we shouldn't want to see God in action, but He is not some sort of entertainer that performs endlessly for our pleasure.

I was discussing this with my brother-in-law, and he said something to the effect of this: God rarely does things through direct intervention when He can use a person to do it on His behalf.
I think that sums it up nicely. For me personally, most of the stuff I've seen God do has been the result of people applying His Word and following His lead.

Why It Matters
As I said, this is not to discount the fact that God does perform miracles, but rather than expecting God to intervene directly all the time, we should appreciate miracles and interventions for what they are, and recognize that the primary means of God's will being done is through His disciples. Therefore, we should make sure we're doing our best to BE God's actions, rather than waiting around for a sign. God would much rather see us obey His commands than applaud His performance.

"It's Not a Religion; It's a Relationship!"

The Myth

Evangelical Christians are often quick to counter anyone who calls Christianity a "religion," sometimes even to the point of being offended! We will often respond with, "It's not a religion; it's a relationship!"

The Reality

This is something I used to say, but I've had to re-evaluate it. Obviously, there is a relationship, but I think a lot of people are being too cheesy when they talk about their relationship with God and try to make it sound exactly like a friendship with a human. In reality, the whole "it's a relationship not a religion" thing seems to just be a recent trendy Christian thing to say.
By definition, of COURSE Christianity is a religion: "the belief in and worship of a superhuman controlling power, esp. a personal God or gods"
I think problems arise when we try to pretend that there's more to it than there actually is. Christians often treat things like there's some emotional experience we're supposed to get out of it. Take worship, for example: People say stuff like "worship was really good today" if they were particularly swayed with emotion or some experience, when ACTUAL worship is a lifestyle, not just a time set aside for music. ACTUAL worship is a sacrifice to God, and it's giving sincere praise and thanks to Him; it's not about how warm and toasty I feel.
That's not to say God doesn't give us special experiences or speak to us through emotions, but I think there's way too much focus on that going on. It's also not to say we shouldn't have time set aside to sing praise music to him; just that we should have an accurate understanding of what it is.
My idea of a relationship with God is pretty simple:
1. Try to obey Him and represent Him with my life
2. Talk to Him
3. Listen to what He says to me through His Word and through fellow disciples
4. If He leads me to do something special through His Spirit, try to listen and obey

Why It Matters
Ultimately, you could say that it's a matter of semantics... but I think it's a good idea to make sure we're applying accurate definitions for the words we use. We can have a relationship with the Almighty God! Let's make sure we're not trying to dumb Him down to our level, like he's just some buddy we pal around with.
I think it's also important to make sure we're being down-to-earth and honest when we talk about our relationship with God. No matter how fantastic a concept it might seem to you to have God be your best buddy, nobody is going to be impressed if they feel like you're being cheesy. I'm not saying don't call Jesus your friend, but we must recognize that it's an incomplete description.

Sure, Christianity is a relationship with God, but it is also, by definition, a religion. And that's okay, too.