Come on a journey with me…
Think back to your life before you met our Loving Lord.
If you've ever 'walked away from the faith', ever 'backslid', ever 'lost your first love', ever had a season when you questioned your beliefs and/or salvation... think back to that time in your life.
How did you view the teachings of the church during any of those times? How did you receive the 'loving instruction' your so-called stronger Christian friends longed to provide? You know the ones. The 'practically perfect in every way' people ... at least in their own minds. Those that never wavered, never strayed. Tell me...
Did you listen to them?
If you were still back at that point in your life, would those strong in-your-face I'm right and you are wrong social media posts of today draw you to our Loving Lord or push you away? Would someone protesting against your actions, decisions, and beliefs cause you to say "Hey! Gimme some of that"? Seriously...
Would you even listen to them?
I once thought I had all the right answers. I once thought I had every aspect of Christian living figured out. I once thought I knew the formula to please God and have him bless me in every aspect of life: Marriage, family, career! Then...
Then I hit adulthood!
I entered the world outside of my 'good Christian upbringing’. Interacted with more people that were different than me than people who were similar to me. This exposed me to more viewpoints that created more questions. Even at my faith-based college. For example, I was raised and educated to be a complete teetotaler yet found plenty of alcohol available nearby campus and was ‘shocked’ to find out how many of my classmates willingly imbibed. Like I said…I thought I knew all the answers.
Then ... I entered marriage. I had ‘played by the rules’ so marriage was supposed to be ‘perfect’…or at least without any big problems. Um, nope! My preconceived knowledge/answers were insufficient for the real world.
Then ... I became a parent. Let’s just say I still had so much to learn about being a role model for Christian living. (I wish I knew then what I know now…I wish I knew then what I have learned from watching stronger, ‘role model’ parents.)
And let’s talk about the workplace! Can I even begin to describe how insufficient my answers were to all that corporate America wanted to teach me? Throughout my working career, I was viewed as too straightlaced for most because I held to my faith-based point of view. Yet many of my church friends wanted to criticize me for not being a stay-at home mom. Many of my coworkers wanted to criticize me for not being worldly enough.
Through all of these stages, and even as I go through new ones, there’s no shortage of people to offer me advice. Well, not advice exactly. More like ‘corrective instruction’ or should I say rebuke.
Many of these people were/are the type of people I spoke of above. You know the ones. The 'practically perfect in every way' people ... at least in their own minds. Those that never wavered, never strayed. At least that’s what they’d have you think!
Do you think I wanted to listen to them?
Then I saw those same ‘perfect’ families deal with family alcoholism, sexual promiscuity, teen drug abuse, juvenile arrests, and more.
Do you think I wanted to hear what they had to say?
I longed for advice and support from those who could show their flaws. I longed for those who had walked in my shoes, and successfully traveled the journey, to share their stories in a loving, non-condemning way. I longed for people who knew they weren't perfect and were not afraid or ashamed to admit it. I longed for people who would love me enough to see me through all of it.
Yes! That's who I wanted to listen to.
I learned a song as a teenager that said, "They will know we are Christians by our love." Some of the lines from that song are:
"And we pray that all unity will one day be restored." "And together we'll spread the news that God is in our land.""We will work with each other, We will work side by side,
And we'll guard each man's dignity, And save each man's pride.
Yes, they’ll know we are Christians by our love."
LITTLE LESSON LIFE EXPRESSION
💙 Can the world (or even other believers) tell we are Christians by our love? Are we promoting unity or only being divisive? Are we walking/working side by side by those that hold different views than we have and shining Light?
💙 When we see someone walking outside of the Light, do we walk beside them and guard their dignity and save their pride? Or do we condemn?
💙 Are we making space for people just off our path to come walk beside us and find hope? Or are we pushing them farther off the path and deeper into despair?
💙When you think about sharing
your opinion,
your point of view,
your personal beliefs,
... ask yourself this question:
Would you want to listen to you?
~~ Let your gentle spirit [your graciousness, unselfishness, mercy, tolerance, and patience] be known to all people. The Lord is near. (Philippians 4:5 AMP)
~~ Above all, have fervent and unfailing love for one another, because love covers a multitude of sins [it overlooks unkindness and unselfishly seeks the best for others]. (1 Peter 4:8 AMP)
~~ Who do you think you are to sit in judgment of someone else’s household servant? His own master is the one to evaluate whether he succeeds or fails. And God’s servants will succeed, for God’s power supports them and enables them to stand. In the same way, one person regards a certain day as more sacred than another, and another person regards them all alike. There is nothing wrong with having different personal convictions about such matters. For the person who observes one day as especially sacred does it to honor the Lord. And the same is true regarding what a person eats. The one who eats everything eats to honor the Lord, because he gives thanks to God, and the one who has a special diet does it to honor the Lord, and he also gives thanks to God. (Romans 14:4-6 TPT)
Little Lesson from my Loving Lord by Sharon Bardwell
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