Communication Basics: Being Clever in our Communication

A part of speaking well is to have a good catch phrase that captures the audience's attention.  There is one that has caught on in Christian circles in recent years.  It is memorable, so it is often quoted (though in the middle of summer, it is out of season).  It is: "We need to put Christ back into Christmas".   This statement is very clever whether true or false.

I can think of an opposing catch phrase for those who love Jesus more than Christians.  They might say: "We need to put Christ back into Christian".   That is equally clever.  What might be even better is: "We need to put Christ back into Christianity".  I have to agree with both of these statements personally.

I recently heard a Christian video series that wanted to eliminate the use of Christian, because it was a name from outsiders and because Christian was not defined.  How can a word be better defined?  Christ is the central part of the word Christian.  He defined a lot of things as to what a Christian should be.  Sometimes we can be a bit too clever.

So back to my point.  We can be very clever in our communication by using catchphrases that are very memorable.  I think that remains true whether or not the catchphrase itself is true.  A few thoughts here to ponder, but don't miss the importance of being clever in a helpful way for our audiences.


Sincerely,

Jon