The Time Has Come, the blogger said, to Talk of Many Things, of Politics and Biases - of Liberty and Kings

I am on all kinds of yahoo groups. You know, the kind where people often say what they would never say to you face to face. Oh yeah, I am also on some that rock, and where I know I am among friends. Today on one of the less friendly groups that I stay plugged into because of geography, someone stepped on my toes BIGtime.
I think the anonymity of the cyber community can be a place of tremendous fellowship and support. Say if you live in a po-dunk-town in rural Texas somewhere, you can still find friends who share your convictions about education, marriage, politics, faith, etc. Other times you are affirmed in your assertion that some people should have an island.
In community with other Christians, lots of assumptions are made. Recently I have had people assume I am affiliated with a specific political party, endorse a specific candidate, or am passionate about specific issues. In what should be a vibrant, kaleidoscope community of faith, followers of Christ,we have allowed everything to fade to gray, (pardon the screen writing terminology - it is my current passion) and expect some sort of homogenized, Stepford believer to surface eventually from the seed of each new convert.
I spent a lot of years expecting all Christians to look the same, talk the same, be passionate about the same things. I spent a lot of time drawing lines in the sand separating the "us" from the "them". It took a lot of gentle care from the Father, removing the sand from my eyes one grain at a time to reveal the circle that God has always been trying to draw around all of us, if only we were willing to stay inside.
Don't make assumptions. Not just with politics, but in all areas of life. My thoughts do not threaten your thoughts, as yours do not threaten mine.
Assumptions are dangerous things.

Just for fun, can anybody tell me where the context of the title for this post comes from? Hint: think walrus!

Fake and Phony

The girls went to youth group with Michael tonight. Every time they go they come home with the same complaints, that certain people are phony. People don't talk to them, or they act differently. Michael said the same. He has friends he has known for a long time there that in the last year or two have just started to act so differently toward him. I am crazy about Michael - almost like I am about my own kids. All the kids who have known me over the years know that when I love somebody - I don't do it with half a heart - I do it hook, line and sinker. The fact that people have misconceptions about him makes me want to poke them in the eye. (I know, very Christlike of me.) Has he made some mistakes, heck yeah - haven't we all? The thing that really bugs me is that in Christian community there is no room for anything short of perfection, or at least the appearance of perfection. What the kids are finding that makes me so sad, is that there is no room for mistakes. Once you screw up or do something others find unbecoming, you will never be given a chance to redeem yourself. I have news for them - Christ redeemed us all and they don't get to say whether you, or me, or Michael, or Kendra, or anyone else is in right standing. It is not their assessment of your heart that counts. I am glad that Michael doesn't allow "them" to change who he is because they don't approve of him. The rest - the icky stuff, the growing up, the sin to be overcome - all of that is the Lord's territory. The problem is that all too often God can't clean up the mess, cause other people are trying to do His job for Him. God loves you, Christ died for you, and in the end, what they think doesn't really matter. Find a way to love Christ in spite of what some would-be Christians try to say He is. They have Him all wrong.

A Plea to Fellow Believers

Throughout the last several years, I have often been plagued with this thought – as Christians in the world what impact are we making? This goes beyond witnessing to someone to share Christ with them, but even to every transaction we make, every word we say, the attitude we express to our children and spouse, etc. If we hand back the dollar we were overpaid to the cashier – this speaks volumes about our commitment to integrity. If we let someone out in busy traffic – we are living out that we are not just looking out for number one but living out the Biblical mandate to think of others more highly than ourselves. Even if we aren’t evangelistic in how we speak to others , our lives are either a witness to or a mockery of Christ’s love.
My daughter has a new friend. He is a special young man, you can tell this when you first meet him. Some other teens that we have met tell us that he is the VP of the CIA (Christians in Action) club at school. He used to be a leader in the youth group. His spiritual life seems to be in a bit of a slump. His appetites for the things of the world seem to be on the increase. He loves the Lord, and every single time I see him, even though he pulls up playing music that I don’t want my 9 year old to hear, he is wearing a “Christian t-shirt”. The last time he was here, I was asking him why I don’t see him in church. He comes to Sunday school, but he goes directly to work at one of the only local restaurants after that. I told him that stunk – to which he replied, “Yeah. The people who come in after church are our WORST customers.” While the enemy and the world are enticing his heart towards its values, those who profess the name of Christ are pushing him away. Evidently these “Christians” are demanding, rude, picky, and leave poor tips. Yes, we are only human, and everybody has a bad day, but if we are being constantly transformed into His image – these instances should be very few and far between. And what about going back to apologize when you have that occasional "bad day"?
I have been in gatherings where others have acted hateful to our wait-staff, only to turn around and bow their heads over their meal. It smacks of hypocrisy. If you are going to behave badly, don’t wear your “Christian” jewelry, t-shirts or bumper stickers. Just blend in with the homogenous crowd – which is all you are doing anyway – but don’t defame the Name of MY Jesus. Or, decide right now to be different – swim upstream against the flow of the crowd, and you’ll never know what an impact your words and actions may make to a watching world.