BACKSLIDE

[bak-slahyd]

verb
-to regress into previous sinful behaviors and bad habits

Let's use it in a sentence!
I haven't seen Peter at church in three weeks. I'm worried that he is starting to backslide.

Secular Synonyms:
Relapse (as in drug or alcohol addition)

Find it in the Bible:
This term does not appear in the Bible.

Fun Fact:
Commonly accepted evidence of backsliding includes drinking, spending time alone with a member of the opposite sex late at night, infrequent church activity attendance, vulgar language, watching "R" rated movies, spending time with non-Christian friends, listening to secular music, voting for Democrats, and reading Harry Potter.

WALK

[wawk]

noun
-spiritual life

Let's use it in a sentence!
You've seemed really down lately, Debbie. How is your walk?

Secular Synonyms:
none

Find it in the Bible
Although this term appears in the Bible, it never appears as a noun in this context

Fun Fact:
When concerned about a fellow Evangelical, this should be one of the first questions you ask.

SPIRITUAL GIFTS

[spir-i-choo-uhl   gifts]

noun
-abilities given to you by the Holy Spirit that serve a purpose in fostering spiritual growth or serving in your church

Let's use it in a sentence!
Alice always has the best dinner parties. Her spiritual gift of hospitality is obvious.

Secular Synonyms:
natural abilities, talents, skills *note that these are not true synonyms as they would not use them only in reference to how one can serve in church ministries

Find it in the Bible:
1 Cor. 12; Rom 12:6-8; 1 Pet 4:10-11;

Fun Facts:
-Lists of spiritual gifts often include those listed in the passages above as well as others that Christians believe to be spiritual gifts. They include prophecy, discernment of spirits, teaching, giving, serving, compassion, faith, healing, working miracles, knowledge, wisdom, speaking in tongues, interpreting tongues, pastoral, exhortation, evangelism, voluntary poverty, celibacy, craftsmanship/artistry, worship/music, and  interpretation of dreams.

-There are many places online to take spiritual gifts assessment tests.

-Once you know what your spiritual gifts are, it is a handy excuse for not doing other things in the church/ministry that you are less interested in. Simply tell people "That's not my spiritual gift" and you are off the hook!

CONVICTED

[kuhn-vikt-ed]

verb
-to be impressed with a heavy sense of guilt and shame

Let's use it in a sentence!
As I was praying during church today, I was really convicted about all the "R" rated movies I own.

Secular Synonyms:
Although this word can still apply in a secular sense, it is rarely used as such and even more rarely with the level of guilt that Christians associate with it.

Find it in the Bible:
When appearing in the Bible, to be convicted only refers to the act of being found guilty of and legally responsible for an action/sin. It does not appear in reference to strong personal sense of shame.

Fun Fact:
Studies seem to suggest that there is a direct correlation between the things people are convicted of and the pet issues their pastors speak against.

MK

[em-kay]

noun
-missionary's kid; common Christian abbreviation
-a child raised by missionaries, usually in another country

Let's use it in a sentence!
Tracy grew up as an MK in Ecuador.

Secular Synonyms:
missionary's kid

Find it in the Bible:
This term does not appear in the Bible

Fun Facts:
Sometimes Christians also refer to them as "third culture kids."

PK

[pee  kay]

noun
-pastor's kid; common Christian abbreviation

Let's use it in a sentence!
Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Rebecca are all PKs.

Secular synonyms:
pastor's kid

Find it in the Bible;
This term does not appear in the Bible

Fun Facts:
-Ironically, in many churches the PK can often easily be spotted as the most rebellious youth in the congregation.

HUMAN VIDEO

[hyoo-muhn  vid-ee-oh]

noun:
-non-verbal performance set to music that tells a story

-a wordless live drama performance set to Christian music that is performed at churches, outreach events, or on missions trips and tells the story of Jesus or of Jesus intervening in a modern day situation to save someone from his/her sin

-a live drama performance set to music that often occurs immediately before an altar call

Let's use it in a sentence!
The annual fall festival will end with a presentation of the drama team's latest human video.

Secular Synonyms:
skit, drama, performance

Find it in the Bible:
This phrase does not appear in the Bible.

Fun Facts:
-This term originated in the 1980s and seems to be unique to the Assemblies of God denomination

-NPR recently did a story about human videos.

-There are official human video competitions at the Assemblies of God's National Fine Arts Festival. The human video categories include ensemble (large & small), solo, and Spanish. (Other festival categories include vocal and instrumental music, puppetry, graphic design, photography, children's literature, dance, and short sermon.) At the competition, human videos are judged on a number of criteria including Christian message, composition, originality, facial expressions, stage presence, character development, blocking, presentation of storyline, and understandable concept. Here is a video of last year's large ensemble merit winner:

ALTAR CALL

[awl-ter  kawl]

noun:
-the portion of a Christian worship/church/ministry service where the pastor invites attendees up to the front of the church to pray the sinner's prayer and become a Christian

Let's use it in a sentence!
During the last five minutes of the Sunday morning service, my pastor always has an altar call in case anyone there isn't saved.

Secular Synonyms:
none

Find it in the Bible:
This exact phrase does not appear in the Bible

Fun facts:
-Most pastors will ask everyone to bow their head and close their eyes before issuing the altar call. (Even though they are super excited about Jesus, they seem to assume that everyone else will be embarrassed to admit to wanting to follow him.) During that time you will usually hear pastors say "I see that hand, brother....I see that hand." as they notes anyone who responds (or just want to give their congregation the impression people are responding). If no one responds and they are not the type to just pretend that someone did, they will then often launch into a prayer thanking the Lord for a saved house.

-Churches that are extremely intent on ensuring that an altar call is issued at every service will usually have a tally of the "number of souls saved" in their weekly bulletin.

TESTIMONY

[tes-tuh-moh-nee]

noun:
-one's personal story of how they became a Christian
-story of what God is doing in one's life that usually focuses primarily on how they first became a Christian or a miraculous healing

Let's use it in a sentence!
You should really come to youth group tonight. Tammy is going to give her testimony.

Secular synonyms:
personal journey, story

Find it in the Bible:
Acts 22:18; 1 Cor 1:6; 2:1; 2 Thess 1:10; 2 Tim 1:8; 1 Jn 5:11; Rev 11:7; 12:11,17; 17:6; 19:10; 20:4

Fun Facts:
-Although they are not likely to publicly admit it, many Christian prefer testimonies with a lot of high profile sin at the beginning (i.e. drugs, alcoholism, sex, etc). Because of this, many who became Christians at a young age may feel that they don't have a very interesting testimony.
-Many people in other countries complain that most American Christian testimonies given by those on short term missions trips all sound the same and almost always begin with "I grew up in a Christian home."

GOD THING

[god  thing]

noun:
-a seemly minor coincidence that is attributed to a sovereign act of God
-the unexpectedly easy resolution of a personal problem

Let's use it in a sentence!
-When she handed out the math midterm, I realized that I'd forgotten to bring a pencil, but Nancy had brought two for some reason. It's a total God thing.
-It was a complete God thing, because even though Bruce was pulled over for speeding on his way to church, the officer let him off with only a warning.

Secular Synonyms:
Coincidence, Chance, Luck, Fate, Fluke, Happy Accident

Find it in the Bible:
This phrase does not appear in the Bible
Fun Fact:
This is a great phrase to include in your inspirational Christian book's title.

LOST

[lawst]

noun:
-any person or persons who are not Christians
-any person or persons who have not prayed the sinner's prayer

adjective:
-preferred term used to describe non-Christians.

Let's use it in a sentence!
n: We really need to pray for the lost.
adj: Did you know that Jerry's parents are lost? He's the only Christian in his family.

Secular Synonyms:
Non-Christian, Atheist, Agnostic, Buddhist, Muslim, Jew, Hindu, Mormon, Jehovah's Witness, Unitarian
Find it in the Bible:
Mt 18:11; Lk 15:24; 19:10; 2 Cor 2:3-4

Fun fact:
If you accidentally use this term in reference to the hit TV series, don't worry. Most young Evangelicals will know what you are talking about. However, doing so may lead them to express a lengthy lament about the the implied Universalist themes of the series finale and how it ruined the whole show.

QUIET TIME

[kwahy-it  tahym]

noun:
-personal time spent in any combination of prayer, reading the Bible, contemplation, and journaling

Let's use it in a sentence!
My day is always off to a better start when I make sure to get up early and have my quiet time.

Secular Synonyms:
none

Find it in the Bible:
This exact term does not appear in the Bible.

Fun fact:
In American Evangelical Culture, bringing up one's quiet time is an acceptable first response to hearing of any personal problems they are having.
For example:
Sally:  I've been feeling so depressed lately.
Jason:  Maybe you just need to do more quiet time.

SINNER'S PRAYER

[sin-ers  prair]

noun:
-the prayer that Evangelicals believe marks one's entrance into the Christian faith

Example of a Sinner's Prayer:
Lord, I know I have done a lot of bad things that have kept me from you. I am sorry. From now on, I want to do the right thing and follow your laws. Please forgive me. I believe that your son Jesus Christ died for my sins and was raised from the dead so I can come back to you. I invite Jesus into my heart to be the Lord of my life from this day forward and help me to walk in His ways. Amen

Let's use it in a sentence!
Sharon, if you'd like to become a Christian, you can pray the Sinner's Prayer.

Secular Synonyms:
none

Find it in the Bible:
This specific term does not appear in the Bible.

Fun facts:
-Due to the guilt of slipping into past sins, many Christians pray this prayer multiple times as a way of rededicating their lives to Christ.
-The early church viewed becoming a Christian as a process that could take years of study and devotion and generally frowned upon the idea of instantaneous conversion.

SPIRITUAL BIRTHDAY

[speer-i-chu-uhl   berth-dey]

noun:
-The day on which one officially became a Christian
-The day that one prayed the "sinner's prayer"
-The day one gave their heart to Jesus
-The day that one commemorates his/her decision to become a Christian.

Let's use it in a sentence!
Today is Jose's spiritual birthday. He became a Christian 7 years ago.

Secular Synonyms:
none

Find it in the Bible:
This term does not appear in the Bible

Fun fact:
When 30 yr old Christians who commemorate this event put up Facebook statuses and Tweets that read things like "Today is my 12th birthday!!" the vast majority of their non-Evangelical friends furrow their brow in confusion and question the poster's sanity.

FELLOWSHIP

[fel-oh-ship]
noun
-A group of like-minded Christians, usually from the same church

verb
-To hang out, spend time with other Christians
-to join in fellowship

Let's use it in a sentence!
n: The Johnsons are a family from our fellowship.
v: Join us at the annual youth group lock-in where we will fellowship and eat pizza!

Secular Synonyms:
n: congregation, community, club, group of friends
v: hang out, spend time with, chill, get together

Find it in the Bible:
Acts 2:42; 1 Cor 5:2; Gal. 2:9; 1 Jn 1:3,6-7

Fun Fact:
In Middle English (c.1100-c.1500) the term was at times used as a euphemism for "sexual intercourse"

Welcome!

Have you ever found yourself in the midst of a group of Christians and suddenly you realize that you have no clue what they are talking about? Has your lack of understanding led to embarrassing spiritual misstatements? The Evangelical to English dictionary is here to help.

Visit us frequently for new vocabulary words. In no time at all, you'll feel right at home in any small group, church, or ministry. You'll soon be a blessing to every Evangelical you meet. Improve your fellowship with other believers. (Don't worry, we'll get to those lessons.) Blessings upon your journey.