I've had some things in my head for about a week and it's just now that I get to put the fingers to keys to get them out. You know there are those people in your life who you are never sure about why. Why does God continually tell you to pursue certain relationships when the people really are quite rude, inconsiderate, arrogant, selfish, etc. I suppose one reason might be that he puts those people in our lives so we feel, if only in minute proportions, what it's like to be a perfect God and have people continually turn their backs on you. Don't misinterpret that into me saying that I'm a perfect God, I'm an imperfect sinner who continues to amaze himself of the depths of my own internal sin daily. All I'm saying is there are people in my life who day in and day out I've pursued. These aren't people who haven't showed interest in forming a friendship, these are people I'm "friends" with. But why in all of the world if you considered yourself someone's friend would you be an asshole to them? I just don't get it? The most confusing part about all of this, the people in my life who I struggle with this the most.....screeching halt noise

(whoa, timeout from the blog for a second. This lady at my work walked by, she's been going to the tanner and I noticed, but she must've gone yesterday because she's darker than the night sky now. Why do people do that, do they think the unnatural, look at me and all the time I've spent in a tanning booth look is natural...NEWSFLASH - IT'S NOT!)

Ok back to what I was saying. The people in my life who I'm "friends" with, who I see on a regular basis, who I'm pursuing in friendship and trying to encourage to grow in Truth, they are all Christians. What happened to old school Christians, and I'm talking old school. What happened to Christians like Paul, who said he was worse than anyone else, what happened to people like the hooker who took a year's wages worth of perfume (channel or brut I suppose it depends on your year's wages) and poured it on Jesus' feet and wiped it off w/ her hair. Even Judas was aware of the sin in his life and he let it destroy him. I'm not saying that what Judas did was good, but at least he "lived" in his sin. Too many of us now walk around like we've never sinned, except we'll say "I sin all the time". Who cares when, how, what or why you sinned...it doesn't really matter! We all know that we are all sinners, and while that is only a chapter in the amazing story of God's salvation, that's what we often get hung up on. We forget to realize that the cream filling of this Twinkie (props to RD for that line) is not the sin that exists in all of us, it's the everlasting Grace that covers that sin.

I see people who love God with all of their heart, but look at homeless people like they'd look at a murderer on TV. Guess what Mr. Christian, being given the title of Christian, Christ Follower, Lover of Jesus, etc gives you the right to do one thing and one thing only....Love like you've been loved. We aren't called to condemn people for what we see as wrong, we aren't called to know everything - heck we are barely called to know anything, we are simply called to love. Check these out...

John 15:12 My Command is this: Love each other as I have loved you
John 15:17 This is my command: Love each other
John 13:35 By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another

Is that what the church is it today? Is it a haven of love, do we all "love" each other? Do we tolerate each other? These are all things that continually run through my head. Just like the 15 times I've heard people mention that the last place a hooker feels comfortable is in church, because she doesn't want to feel any worse than she already does. What about a drunk, what about a guy who cheats on his wife, what about a homosexual, where do these people go to feel loved...well a lot of them aren't going to church, and that's a problem...because that's why He came, and that's who we are called to chase after. I'm sure most Christians would love to chase after those individuals, but they are just so busy with the kids, with work, you know the building fund at church is kind of a priority right now, I'd love to help but I'm helping out with YMCA soccer this spring, oh I can't be there but is it ok if I write a check? Too many Christians out there forgot that the faith we practice and have only survived generation to generation for the first 1700 or so years it was around through word of mouth and people passing it along and getting their hands dirty. Yes know with the advent of the printing press the gates have been opened and God's word can go places where the people who should be preaching can't or won't, but has that made us lazy...I would contend that to a degree yes it has...and that's just sad.