Hello, my fellow sojourners!
Alright, let’s talk about something that’s been bugging me lately–the way some folks who call themselves Christians treat their kind and those who don’t quite buy into the whole Jesus thing. It’s like they missed the memo on love, compassion, and acceptance, you know?
I mean, Christianity is supposed to be all about ‘loving God and your neighbor as yourself’. Instead, we’ve got some Christians throwing shade at their fellow believers and anyone who dares to have a different perspective. It’s frustrating, to say the least. Where’s the love, people?
What grinds my gears?
Some Christians say they’ve found more understanding and support from non-believers than from their church community. Isn’t that wild? It’s like the outsiders are the ones showing the true Christian spirit, while some insiders are missing the mark entirely. I’m not talking about accepting sin and inappropriate behavior or even excusing wrongdoing. We need to be more understanding of people and less judgmental. It’s necessary to show them a better way. We need to show them THE WAY! We need to show them Jesus!
Why is it that non-believers seem to have an easier time being real and telling it like it is, while some Christians are walking on eggshells, afraid they might offend someone? It’s like we’re so caught up in our religious bubbles that we’ve forgotten how to have genuine conversations and connect on a human level.
You know what?
It doesn’t have to be this way. We can do better. We can break down the walls that separate us and start building bridges instead. It’s gonna take some guts, some humility, and a lot of love, but it’s possible.
For us Christians, it’s time to take a long, hard look in the mirror and ask ourselves if we’re living up to the teachings of Jesus. Are we showing love and compassion to everyone, regardless of their beliefs? Or are we too busy playing judge and jury, casting stones at anyone who doesn’t fit into our narrow idea of what a Christian should be?
I know we are called to walk a narrow road, but some of y’all have made it so narrow even Jesus would have a difficult time walking it. Where’s the compassion? Where’s the understanding? And where’s the desire to help them become more like Jesus? Instead, we viciously attack and alienate anyone who’s even remotely different from us and our narrow views.
And for you non-believers,
We’re not all a bunch of judgmental hypocrites, I promise. Give us a chance to show you the real deal–imperfect, and flawed, but trying our best to live out this crazy thing called faith. Have some patience with us. We’re doing the best we can. Jesus is one heck of an act to follow.
Let’s start by ditching the labels and stereotypes and just sitting down to have a genuine conversation. Let’s be willing to listen, to learn, and to challenge each other in a spirit of respect and understanding. We don’t have to agree about everything; especially our beliefs, but we can give each other the simple respect we all deserve as fellow humans.
We can accomplish this, my friends. Let’s build bridges instead of walls. Let’s show the world what Jesus looks like.
With love and hope,
Brian