Today, I am a Christian who is on a
continual process of learning. And the more I learn, it seems the less that I
know. But here are a few things that I have decided as I have been on this
journey.
Nobody has all of the answers. No
religion. No person. No political group. We are all human beings with something
to share and something to learn. And believing we have it all figured out is a
sure sign that we don't.
God loves us all, no matter what. He
loves us when we soar, and He loves us when we fall on our faces. He loves us
when we obey Him, and He loves us when we don't. He loves us when we love Him.
And He loves us when we love everything else more than Him.
God is not narrow-minded. God's mind
is as vast and as open as the universe He created. So in our attempts to place
God in a box, I would have to imagine He is heartily laughing at our vain
attempts.
God loves gays and pro-choice
activists just as much as He loves those who seek to condemn gays and
pro-choice activists. Because, guess what? A person can be a gay Christian and
a person can be a pro-choice Christian activist. Just as a person can be a
judgmental Christian. Christians are not perfect. Nobody is perfect.
And just as God loves Christians, he
also loves Muslims and Buddhists and Athiests and Agnostics. God's love is
totally unconditional, so it is not affected by how much a person believes in
Him or loves Him.
To all Christians
Ease up. Let us ease up on each other and
ease up on those who do not believe as we do. We are not in charge of
anything. God is.
It is not our job to point fingers
and walk as if we are so much better than those who believe differently than we do. It IS our job to LOVE...period.
How can we condemn people and
expect those same people to embrace us and our beliefs? Why would they want
to?
Let us not pretend that we are "perfect" Christians, because there is no such thing. We are Christians for one reason only...because of the grace of God. The Ten
Commandments were given to us as a guide and to show us how in need we are of
God, because we cannot obey all of the commandments. It says in the Bible that
if we break one, we have broken them all. So while we are busy condemning someone
for being gay, we are, in fact condemning ourselves as well.
We are, indeed, sinners. But does
being a Christian mean we have a "ticket to sin"? Absolutely not, and
any Christian who sins with that thought in his mind needs to rethink his
relationship with God. We are to strive daily for a closer walk with God by
praying, thanking Him, and asking Him for help. The closer we draw near to Him, the more the
desires of our hearts will be in keeping with what He wants.
It really comes down to treating
others as we would like to be treated. Very simple.
To all Non-Christians
Ease up. Ease up on what you believe
about Christianity, and realize that we are just as broken...oftentimes more so
than those who do not profess a belief in God.
Please don't judge all of us on the
basis of the ones who are still fumbling around in the dark, trying to find out
what it is that God wants them to do and be. The truth is, we are all fumbling
or have fumbled at some point. But that's how we learn.
Please know that there are kind,
loving, open-minded Christians who do not seek to judge you.
Also, know that, inasmuch as we are
not perfect, we very often do some very stupid things. As a matter of fact,
very often its hard to tell who is a Christian by the way we conduct ourselves.
You may find us in bars, or watching porn, or having affairs, or doing drugs.
You may find us in abusive situations or mentally ill. But this does not mean
we are not Christian, for Christianity does not mean we are perfect.
It means we are struggling, but have
found Someone to help us get back up. It means we are heartbroken, but we have
found Someone to dry our tears. It means that we are angry, but have found
Someone to gentle our spirits. It means that we are sinning, but have found
Someone who forgives us.
We are no better than you. We are no
less than you. We are all walking the same road of life to reach our final destination.
Some of us may have few more bumps in the road than others. Some of us may have
a few more detours. Some of us may have more money and more possessions. But in
the end, we are all the same. Death sees to it.
Here is the biggest difference
between Christians and non-Christians. This is where the road forks, depending
on what a person believes. Christians believe death is only a transition into a
new and better life, made possible by the birth, death, and resurrection of
Jesus.
Let me state that this it fully what
I believe. But let me also state that I have questions as well, for I am still
searching and learning. I know that God is a God of great mercy, and in
a way it almost seems like I am placing Him in a box by limiting Heaven to this
strict interpretation.
I don't know. I really don't. All I
can do is continue to live to the best of my ability and continue searching
with an open mind. Hopefully the reader will do the same, no matter what your present belief.
Photo by Cheryl Williams, 2014
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