Who is this "Craig"?

Confession: I love me some Craigslist!

I'm a CL master. It seems pretty rare that I go down to Albuquerque or Santa Fe without brokering at least one CL deal, if not two. Recent CL finds include:

• Beautiful queen size oak bed frame
• Lawn mower
• Coffee table with drawers
• 12x10 rug
• GPS

The bad news about CL is that in order to find the good deals, you have to sort through the lame ads. Usually, when I read one, I move on to the next ad and don't think twice about it.

Sometimes, however, I run across one so ridiculous that I can't resist the urge to email them and tell them what I think. Below is an ad I read today that falls under this category. I found it in the "free" section:

YOU OPENED IT SO YOU BELIEVE IN BLESSINGS TOO .SOMETHING GOOD WILL HAPPEN TO YOU BETWEEN 1200 PM AND 9OO PM TOMORROW.NO CATCH. IT COULD HAPPEN ANYWHERE OR ANYTIME YOU WILL FIX A RELATIONSHIP PROBLEM OR FINANCIAL BLESSING IF THAT IS WHAT IS NEEDED OR SOMETHING YOU LOST WILL BE RESTORED TO YOU OR JUST SOMEONE GIVING YOU A HELPING HAND TO SPREAD THE POSITIVE BLESSING RE-POST THIS IN ANOTHER CITY IN THE NEXT 10 MIN AND SEE WHAT HAPPENS IN YOUR LIFE TOMORROW I BELIEVE .I HOPE YOU DO TOO

I couldn't help myself. Something had to be said. Below is the email I sent to the person who posted the ad:

With all due respect to you and your beliefs, I have to say that your post on craigslist was a crock.

If you honestly believe in God, then you know that He is all-powerful, all-loving, and everywhere. You cannot confine Him or box Him in. Saying that something great will happen during a particular time on a specific day puts God in a box. It says that we have control over Him. Even to promise a good thing, regardless of when it happens, it not ministry unless you are talking about Salvation. But beyond that, we can't promise people that good things on Earth will happen. Suffering is a part of life and I fear that if anyone were to believe your craigslist ad, they would be misled.

I think it is great that you wanted to post an ad with a good message about God. The fact that your faith is welling up out of you and you don't know what to do to express it is a wonderful thing. But if you REALLY want to spread the Good News, a better message might simply be this:

"You are loved. Life may be full of struggles now but if you belief in Christ, you will be with Him in heaven for eternity. Though I do not know you, I will pray for you. Pass it on."

Please do not be offended by my words. But if you are, then I will be praying for you

Maybe I should just move on and mind my own business but I just couldn't resist.

Keep It Real!