Cleaned Up, or Broken

This has been a busy week for me. School started for my youngest son; he's a high school senior this year. While this wasn't officially the first week of school, it is still a new routine after the summer break, so that influenced my week.

Also, I had some gear issues at SoAcres (www.SoAcres.com) that had to be addressed this week. Additionally, we are gearing up for fall kickoff, so beyond the gear issues that occurred, I was also pretty much going through all of the systems to see what non obvious issues needed to be addressed.

And then I started college this week. Twenty-five years after first enrolling in college right out of high school, I've returned. This also added to my schedule.

If all that wasn't enough, I also did some integration work in the evenings three nights this week. After working at SoAcres all day, I went to another church here in town and helped install their new video and audio system.

All in all, a very busy week.

But I was able to find a few minutes beyond my "required' reading to check out some of the blogs I follow regularly. And the following statement stood out on one blog:

"The church went from being a cleaned up, homeschooling kind of church to being a church with a lot of broken people" (Nicholas McDonald quoting Dr. Rosaria Butterfield).

Dr. Butterfield wasn't a Christ follower. She was however befriended by a pastor and his family while living in a lifestyle many in today's church not only condemn, they openly and aggressively attack those living in that lifestyle.

Unfortunately, the result has been many, many people who Jesus loves have been turned off by the Church.

It took time and a loving relationship, but Dr. Butterfield finally came to church. And the preceding comment was made after Dr. Butterfield developed a relationship with people inside the church.

People who admitted to Dr. Butterfield, "... it was easier for them to be disgusted with a person like me than to pray for me ..." (ibid.).

Isn't that the sad commentary on today's church? We find it so easy to attack and condemn people. To be disgusted with those with whom we don't agree.

We do it to those outside the church.

But we also do it to those inside the church; but those who are inside a different church than our church.

We have walked so far from the path Jesus demonstrated while here on earth. I believe that if Jesus came back to earth today, he would have the same things to say about many of the churches and people inside them he said about the Jewish religious leaders in his day.

"White washed tombs." (Matthew 23:27)

"Hypocrites." (Matthew 6;2, 5, 16)

"Brood of vipers." (Matthew 12:34)

Jesus only had harsh things to say to those who claimed to follow God. He had loving things to say to those who needed God.

Now, just because Jesus only said loving things, doesn't mean he didn't speak the truth. It also doesn't mean the things he said were easy to hear.

The rich young ruler walked away very sad because he could not do what Jesus said he needed to do in order to follow. (Mark 10:21, 22)

Contrast that to the woman who was living a sinful life, she anointed Jesus' feet with perfume. (Luke 7:36-38)

So the question for each of us today is are we cleaned up, the equivalent of white-washed tombs; or are we broken?

Broken people have had much forgiven, so they show gratefulness. They want others to know and feel this great forgiveness. The woman at the well, she immediately went back into the city full of people from whom she was hiding to share the good news. But she also invited them to come meet this man who, "told me everything I did." (John 4:39)

Truth, spoken in love, leads to forgiveness. Forgiveness leads to us wanting to share it with the world.

Let's remember that we have had much forgiven. We are all sinners saved by grace. As we live into that forgiveness, we will share love with others; others who need forgiveness too.

Through our brokenness, God is able to provide healing to the world.

Stop living a cleaned up lifestyle today and live into the redemption of a broken vessel now redeemed and filled with God's love.