the sad sage

i had the great privilege the other day to join my fiancé in an atypical conversation with a deist who i'm willing to bet has a very high IQ. before the server had even brought the bread and salad i was roped into the discussion the guys had going before we met up: the origin and potential end of the universe. umm, yeah. by the arrival of the steaks, we could add quarks, black holes, spirits, the apocalypse, the purpose of man, the exclusivity of Christianity vs hinduism, the crusades, scientific theory, the similarities and differences between the major world religions, and the weird tesseract-like layer of pure energy enveloping the sun that supposedly could power the world for like, a billion-jillion years. [and also whether or not nik copied my order because he realized my choice of steak was superior, or if he really had independently decided on the exact same meal. i hold the former, he the latter.]  because we weren't done with the discussion, we split a massively unhealthy dessert so we could finish talking…exactly where we began, but so full of food that i couldn't slouch and breathe at the same time.

 

and while it was a true privilege, i walked (or rather, waddled) out of the restaurant fighting off waves of frustration- and wonder, oddly enough. it's been a hot minute since i've met a person who not only believes in nothing that can't be explained a mathematical formula, but who also doesn't care at all. he gets the physical world. he thinks he has a grasp on the world religions. computer code? nailed it. steve jobs? stephen hawking? loves 'em. but for himself, life is a giant shrug. does he have purpose? eh, probs. *shrug*. is there something not strictly physical about a person? dunno. *shrug*.  what does he think about the possibility of eternity, and what that could mean for him? huh. guess i'll find out when i get there. *shrug*. he's content to focus on his career right now and worry about the afterlife later. he's got places to go and good things to do now.

 

a rising number of individuals from this generation have embraced this sort of thinking, though. take this friend's thought process, add some eastern-style clothing and a yoga mat, and you've got just enough religion to make these busy people feel safe without inconveniencing them with concepts like absolute Truth. i mean, if all these super-spiritual ideas come from old, dead, bald guys with single names- like, "confusious" and "ghandi" and "buddha," it must be wise enough to live by, right?  it all sounds 100% legit… until you process what you're being told.  

 

i've got a scratch-off poster of 100 really cool books to read ("cool" here applicable only for major nerds).  it includes everything from harry potter to the time machine to the origin of the species to the fireman to watership down. 

 

***bunny trail: harry potter- loved the series of wholesome, family-oriented characters with a wonderful moral compass, leaders worth following, and followers who know the value of friendship, loyalty, honesty and respect. time machine- amusing and fun. the origin of the species- darwin seems to think if he uses enough science words then most everyone would rather accept the theory than be bothered to suffer through more than a chapter or two. he's not wrong. the fireman- the absolute worst book to read during a global pandemic that kills people almost at random, causing most of society to shut down, about a global pandemic that kills people almost at random, causing most of society to shut down (the cool part being that instead of coughing, the victims of this pandemic spontaneously combust). watership down- bunnies galore. it's like a hug for the soul. read this one.***

 

with my library book app charged up, i began one that sounded fascinating- mahatma ghandi's "my experiments with truth"- his autobiography. i love hearing from leaders of other cultures and countries, especially ones who project wisdom, justice and some level of spirituality.

i was too far in to quit (and determined to complete the scratch off poster), but i wish i could have. it's depressing. for all his wisdom, justice and spirituality, after 300+ pages there is only one "truth" that ghandi was hardcore, dead-set, steadfastly sure of in this life. wanna know what it is? vegetarianism. i wish so bad i were lying.

 

is there a God? well, there's some kind of god/life force in all of us; this force has no name or specific characteristics, but it definitely/probably hears prayers and keeps me from temptation to eat meat or even drink milk.

which exclusive religion is true? eh, they're all true; i shall teach all my friends' kids to follow whatever god/life force they want, to be hard-working, and to not eat meat or even drink milk.

what "is" good or bad, or right or wrong? being mean to any living thing is bad and wrong; therefore i shall be good and right by never eating meat or milk. and also most grains. and spices. and eggs.  i shall eat bananas and walnuts all my days.

is there an afterlife? i sure hope so. even more days to eat bananas and walnuts.

 

this man who was so kind and respectful and honest to a fault never finds the truth he's looking for. he spouted words, phrases, ideas from the Bible and hindu teachings… but seemed to contradict both faiths; he wouldn't go for hinduism because he frankly didn't know anything about it, and he shied away from Christianity because it was boring. really. that was his reason. but since he was kind and respectful and honest and vegetarian, he has earned his place as a role model, leader, sage.

i feel it is worth actually saying that in many ways, he was indeed a role model, leader and sage. he gave his life to improving race relations, easing the suffering of the mistreated lower classes, feeding the hungry, educating the poor, giving them a voice in their country's government, practicing self-control in all things, and holding himself to very high moral standards. he was probably the first, and also last, truly honest lawyer who actually didn't lie to, for, or about any judge, witness or other lawyer. he promoted freedom of religion, openly (yet respectfully) spoke out against horribly unjust government practices, and led by example in all things.

 

but he never found truth.

he never reached the point of "satyagraha" (reliance on/pursuit of truth) where he felt he was pure enough. he prayed to "God," but was fully convinced that "there is no God but Truth." and he was still searching for it. his fasting hadn't helped. his impressive legal practices hadn't helped. his long list of excellent, kind, noble, peaceful, (vegetarian), generous, wise deeds… hadn't helped. 

 

what kills me, and what made me want to stop reading was when i saw just how close he was to the true Truth.  about 2/3 through his book, i read this:

 

"i hold today the opinion as i held then. to my mind the life of a lamb is no less precious than that of a human being. i should be unwilling to take the life of a lamb for the sake of the human body. i hold that, the more helpless a creature, the more entitled it is to protection by man from the cruelty of man. but he who has not qualified himself for such service is unable to afford to it any protection. i must go through more self-purification and sacrifice before i can hope to save these lambs from this unholy sacrifice. today i think i must die pining for this self-purification and sacrifice. it is my constant prayer that there may be born on earth some great spirit, man or woman, fired with divine pity, who will deliver us from this heinous sin, save the lives of the innocent creatures, and purify the temple."

 

and he did. ghandi died still pining for the Lamb who gave His life freely- it wasn’t taken- in order to not just purify the Temple, but to purify us and make US the new Temple. we have been delivered from every heinous sin, because God in His unfathomable, divine, "reckless" love caused to be born on earth that Holy Deliverer Jesus Christ. He didn't save innocent creatures, because innocent creatures have no need of saving. "Jesus Christ came into the world to save sinners, of whom i am the foremost" (1 Timothy 1:15). we are sinners, whose even "tiniest" of sins is an affront to God's holiness and incompatible with His character. perfection simply cannot be with even a slight imperfection without becoming itself imperfect. no matter how much ghandi (or you, or i) fasts or how little he lies, or how much he donates to the poor, he will never be perfect and thus literally cannot be in the presence of a perfect God. only a perfect sacrifice can make that possible. and that sacrifice is Jesus.

 

ghandi's prayer had already been answered, and ghandi refused to believe it.

the absolute worst part is that ghandi has now spent 72 years of atoning for his lack of perfection- and he still has an eternity. he will never be perfect enough to save even a little lamb, much less himself or another human.

in the world's opinion, if there is a heaven, then ghandi is definitely there and probably has one of the biggest mansions of all.

however, one thing ghandi got (mostly) right was that God is Truth. and the truth is that those who are not delivered from their heinous sins by the Lamb must themselves pay the penalty, which is eternal separation from God.

that's where ghandi is right now- he's in hell. that's where all the self-sufficient "nice people" who did "good" things are- they are in hell.

that's where my newest acquaintance will go if he chooses to continue his current plan of walking into eternity with zero concern. he will go to hell.

 

i made it to the end of the book, at last.

and if you are reading this, you made it to the end of this post.

i learned quite a bit from ghandi, but i hope somehow i'm not the only one.  my prayer is that his life and message might compel someone to find what the sad sage never did. if it's my new friend, or you, or your friend- whoever it is who finds the Truth will be blessed indeed.

a picture worth 4 words

a few years ago our church ordered the updated AWANA program materials, which was a blessing and a loss for me, as a large part of my work had now been outsourced. every wednesday, i would show up early in order to get everything organized and set up and photocopied and labeled.  the most time-consuming part, but an intriguing diversion, was to come up with pictures for each week's Bible story.  for some reason, in another classroom in that wing are 2 massive wooden shelves or drawers stuffed with what appears to be every single Bible picture card that any baptist ever drew.  the oldest copyright date i've located predates the Cold War. 

i loved rifling through so many creative expressions of these scenes of David or Nebuchadnezzar or John the Baptist or Moses.  while i don't know what Moses looked like, i'm pretty sure he wasn't white, and i'm very sure he didn't have google eyes.

while i don't have to fight anymore to find an appropriate picture, in that mess of cardstock i actually took my favorite one and now keep it in our Cubbies room with our flashy new google-eyed picture cards.  it was such an inspiration to me, and even now i wonder at it. it's an artist's conception of one of my favorite Bible stories, even though there is no action, no drama, no loud noises or excitement at all.  it's two people, talking.  that's it.

but one of those people is Nicodemus. and the other person is Jesus. 

i identify strongly with Nicodemus on many levels.  i can more than imagine- i can remember- what he was thinking that night.  he was creeping in the shadows to Jesus's house because he would die of shame if anyone knew that someone raised in the church, who'd made a profession of faith and been baptized at 12, who read her NIV Bible every day and knew all the trivia answers… if someone like that still didn't know the basics of that religion?  if they struggled with anger, depression, forgiveness, trust?  if they could quote tons of verses but couldn't life them out? if they'd rather die than go one more day without peace or hope or something bigger than myse- i mean, himself- to live for? oh wait.  that wasn't Nicodemus- that really was me… but Jesus sat down that night and talked to him anyway. no sneer of contempt.  no raised eyebrow or turned up nose. He said, "sure. come on in- let's find a quiet place to chat."

and then that pasty-white, brown-haired, blue-eyed Jesus told Nicodemus the same incredible story that the google-eyed Jesus helped me tell the Cubbies last week. although the editors cleaned it up a bit, the picture card is pretty clear about what's happening to Jesus on that cross. to the left is a giant red "C" with 4 words underneath: "…Christ died for us." 

the 1986 version depicts that proud Pharisee sitting in the dark, hoping none of the members of his Sanhedrin facebook group tags him in a picture with a "heretic" like Jesus. he's aware of what hangs in the balance, though, and he knows it's worth risking a visit to this man who somehow speaks about God like He's real, and close, and personal, and powerful, and wise, and every bit as incredible as the Torah says He is. Nicodemus wants that God- at the very least, he wants to seriously look into it.  he's not ready to ditch the prestigious job, and he can't quite figure out how someone can be "born again," but he also knows there's something different about Jesus.

as i look into options, here and abroad, for sharing that same Good News on a longer-term basis, i've made sheets for each of the Cubbies to take home and share their story or verse with family and friends each week.  i bribed them with hand stamps, but hey…

holding myself accountable to that goal, i was given the opportunity to share the Gospel with a few people myself. a couple of them responded like Nicodemus's Sanhedrin friends did, complete with name-calling, self-righteousness and complete rejection (not unexpected, but my soul hurts for them anyway).  but one responded like Nicodemus. he can't quite let go of the Hinduism he grew up with, but he knows there's something different about Jesus.  he wants a God who listens to prayers, who cares about his burdens, who doesn't require penance for every single individual sin.  he wants to know what's going to happen to him after his life here ends. he wants justice for the evil he sees everywhere humans go. 

the best part is that Jesus gave Nicodemus 4 other words: "For God so loved…"  God loves the self-righteous as much as He loves the Hindu.  which is good, because otherwise i would have been chucked out on my ear. Jesus continued to say, "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him will not perish but have eternal life."  that's a promise. a mighty big one, at that.

and it's one that everyone needs to hear, because that promise is to them also.  

there's about a 0% chance that you do not know someone who needs to be told those four words "for God so loved."  someone you know is struggling with doubts and concerns and needs to hear, "Christ died for us."  you may or may not get a response.  that response may or may not be positive.  but just a few words can change a life.  Nicodemus was changed, and he makes an appearance at Jesus' cross with other believers.  i was changed, and i showed up at the cross, too- just a few thousand years later.  you were changed, or you never would have read this far.  

celebrate that.  celebrate the change in your life, because it's mind-blowingly awesome what God did for you. 

then find your "nicodemus" and have a chat with them.  it can all start with a few words.

beautiful feet

i am quite often surprised and amused by some of the things our church's band of 4 year olds can come up with to say. very often it's right at (or after) the point where i am tempted to give up in frustration.  but just as often it's a well-timed word that guarantees a good day no matter what comes because it's just too sweet to have anything spoil it.

this wednesday was no different.  one of our most faithful Cubbies entered the room went to his seat but instead of sitting down just looked at me shyly while i organized papers and whatnot.  his mother gave him an encouraging cue- "what did you want to tell your teacher?" and he opened his mouth and said, "you have beautiful feet!"

now, i've heard compliments on hair, jewelry, shirts, smiles, eyes, nails and you name it, but this was a new one. after another encouraging cue, he helped his mother explain that it was related to Isaiah 52:7 which says, "how beautiful upon the mountains are the feet of him to brings good news."  good verse. it wasn't our memory verse for that week so i don't know what inspired that conversation, but it made my day.

what made it even more fitting was that our section of Bible stories covers the first Pentecost and the international spread of the early church.  so that night the 15 Cubbies who came heard about how Philip's "beautiful feet" took him for a nice jog through the desert to explain to a stranger from Ethiopia the gospel, because the good news is international and worthy of any level of confusion and exhaustion and persistence and passion that it takes to bring it to those who are ready to hear it. and that means we go wherever God says.  God told Philip, "go to the absolute middle of nowhere, and then run." so he did, and he found one guy.  but that guy went to Ethiopia and told others.  one of our Cubbies shouted out, "hey- i was born in Ethiopia!" and indeed he had been.  his family is also scheduled to move to Paris (the France one, not the Tennessee one) because God told them, "go."  another Cubby is about to head back to China, because God told his parents, "go."  the rest of them were not quite sure who they could tell here, but they will learn.  where sin abounds, grace abounds all the more- here, there and everywhere.

several promotional videos for the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering feature Pr Jorge, who is now back at his hometown of Comerio, Puerto Rico, because God said, "go." the home he ran away from is where God sent him right back to.  the people he stole from he is now giving to and preaching to.  the very same drug dealers he used to associate with for illegal reasons now see a man changed, free, happy, confident- and they want to know why. and so he tells them.  4 months after moving back to PR, a hurricane wiped out all resources for the isolated Comerio.  Jorge and Rebeca felt led to buy a washing machine… even though they had no electricity.  immediately, they received a generator from NAMB's SEND Relief division- and just like that, they had the only electricity in the area, and a way to reach the whole town.  within 6 months, they had an active house church. within a year, a group of SEND volunteers moved them into their permanent home, and set up their church building for the newly ordained Pr Jorge.  all because of their obedience- and the obedience of everyone who gave to the AAEO that provided the generator.  that money generated a lot more than electricity.

https://www.anniearmstrong.com/resource/jorge-rebeca-santiago/

it's all exciting to us, because places like Puerto Rico seem foreign and distant to us.  guess what.  they are neither.  on a map, maybe.  but in every single other respect, not at all.  the "exciting" part is because of the gospel, not the place on the globe where it is being told.  true, after a number of weeks or months or years the excitement wears off, and "new mission" feels "normal," not like a new field ripe for harvest with new converts every day and rapid church growth. 

i'm thinking that's why the North American Mission Board uses Pr Jorge for these videos.  it's easier to get north american churches to give money to people "over there" in cool places with palm trees and iguanas than it is to get them excited about cities like chicago or denver or boston.  but chicago and denver and boston are other pastors' mission fields, too.  God is doing big things in North America, too.  not often as explosive as in Puerto Rico, but just as important.

https://www.anniearmstrong.com/soto/

i had the privilege of working with Jorge and Rebeca last february and then again this past summer.  their joy is contagious, their passion is obvious, and their faith is inspiring. their kids are adorable.  their God is big.

that same big God is changing lives all over north america, too.  pastors, church planters, families, individuals- all those who have heard and responded to their Master's call have uprooted their lives and joined His work in SEND cities across the nation.  (and canada.  Jesus loves them, too!)

in addition to contributing, and more importantly, pray.

every trip i've been on, every place I've been, God has proven repeatedly that He doesn't really need your money.  He wants your obedience, faithfulness, trust.  giving is one way we obey, but the dollar figure is not the point at all. it's praying that puts us in direct contact with the One who does more with $5 and a few faithful followers than any celebrity could with $5,000,000.

i can't say with any degree of certainty where i will go next, or how long i will be there, or what i will do.  but i can say that wherever it is, Jackson or Jamaica, America or Africa, i want to be as faithful as people like Jorge, Rebeca, Timothy, Haley, Ben, Tabitha, Andy, Laura, Emily, Aimee, Casey, Bob, Melissa, Derek, Tony, Karen, Betina, Marcus, David, Nekayeh, Tom, Vijay, and a growing list of people who, just like Philip the Fleet-Footed Philosopher, have beautiful, beautiful feet. 

 

a lament for Orlando

ugh.

i just really feel the need to tell the world that i have a sinus infection.

it's hard enough for me to think some things through, but when you've got gelatinous boogers twanging on all your brain cells, it really does something to things like cerebral functioning, temperament and personal tissue preferences.  there are some thing you just shouldn't get store brand when you are sick.  1-ply (anything)= hatred. 

our mission team to Brazil hadn't even made it past Washington DC before every tv in the airport was throwing us a barrage of updates and opinions and news conference clips regarding the latest massacre, this time in Orlando.

i had feared this very thing- the transition between a week of seeing what God is doing in other countries and in the lives of our friends (and ourselves)… and coming back to America, where things like politics, work drama, societal obligations, errands and the cat all compete for my attention.  

and then i went to a Bible study.

after a great dinner, we sat around an irregularly shaped coffee table and opened our notebooks, clicked our pens and flipped our Bibles to the… saddest and most depressing and mournful book EVER.

Lamentations, man.  Lamentations.  

it is exactly what it sounds like.  it is a collection of the prophet's (historically, and therefore here, Jeremiah's) laments.  his whines. his groans. his poetically penned complaints. no, really- every chapter is written as an alphabetic acrostic. he's got skill, even in grief.

you might say, like i have before, "why on earth?"  why would that ever be included in the Bible?  why was he so frickin' upset? why didn't God tell him to hush up?

and also, "why should i care? how can that ever make me feel better?"

here's why.  just bear with me and my snot-saturated brain for a bit.

here's the layout of this situation that was all up in Jeremiah's face:

he was a part of the nation of Israel, which had for all practical purposes split into Israel (10-ish tribes) and Judah  (1-ish tribes, depending on land, of which the Levites didn't get any, and also the fact that Ephraim and Manasseh were both from the same son of Israel. yeah, i know.  there's really 13 tribes, but one of the 12 sons got a double share, and then one son inherited the priesthood instead of land, so everything shakes out alright). 

anyway, ALL the tribes had… failed.  epically.  this was the origin of the "you had ONE job!!" line.  their ONE JOB was to show how great their God was.  they didn't even have to "do" much.  HE WAS RIGHT THERE.  LITERALLY. PHYSICALLY. VISIBLY. RIGHT. THERE. every nation had seen and heard and wondered at the HUGE things this "Yahweh" was doing. there was a temple where His presence resided, 24/7.  seriously, all the Jews had to do was point.

every time they forgot Him, He gave another gracious reminder of His eternal, all-powerful presence.  then they were good for about 6 months.  possibly a generation, if they were truly impressed.

He made a covenant with them.  "follow these rules, be different from the pagans, and I will love, cherish, protect, bless, multiply, thrill, fulfill you. break the covenant, and I will punish you."

they agreed.

then they forgot. 

then they flat-out ditched Him.  turned their backs on the Deity that brought them through fire and water, and started praying to carved rocks and chiseled wooden pillars.

the One thing that set them apart as a people was the one thing they spurned.  they looked across to the Moabites and Amorites and Ammonites and Hittites and Hivites and Philistines (and yes, they sound like congested people named them all)- and they said, "eh- that's not so bad. it's just a little different. no way would God really have a problem with me doing this."

enter the prophets.

this tiny little subset of Jews were called individually to alert their fellow men of the coming danger.

because God did, and does care.  it's not ultimately about the "things" the people were doing.  it's simply because He is HOLY. He is so much greater and better and stronger and more perfect than our minds can fathom that He can not be around sin, much the same way that light simply cannot ever coexist around darkness.  even a little candle will shatter gloom.  the very nature of light, or holiness, is such that it is forever separated from darkness, or unrighteousness. it's why He made that covenant.  it's why He made the sacrificial system and a non-deadly way for His chosen people to come near Him, live in His presence, speak to Him "as a man speak to his friend" like Moses. it's why He said, "don't be like them" - because they were… they were evil, folks. evil. before you blame God for taking out those nations, research "Molech"-just not during lunch.  and every time His people chose evil over Him, He patiently waited, He nudged, He reminded, He spoke through prophets- everything to get their attention first.  He did everything before punishing- if that's not love, i don't know what is.

well, they didn't listen to Jeremiah, just like they didn't listen to any of the other prophets.

and because God is holy and just and always keeps every single promise, He held to the covenant.  He left His temple. and punishment came.

and Jeremiah wept.

this is not the "oh boy, this hurts" crying.

this is the hopeless, despairing, pain-beyond-words-or-tears-or-breath crying. 

the armies were coming.  the cities were under siege. the chosen people were literally starving to the point of cannibalism. and they still chose to seek favor and help from their carved rocks and chiseled wooden pillars, rather than receive the forgiveness freely offered by God through the prophets. 

guys, i was convicted. and this ain't the germs talkin'.

working through such a depressing 22 verses hurt. it still does.  if my throat weren't sore, i might be weeping right now.

this nation- my nation- has forgotten and rejected God as surely as Israel did all those thousands of years ago.  i know America isn't God's chosen people, but even His Church within America seems to be floundering a bit.  our ONE JOB is to display God and His love, mercy, justice, forgiveness, power, glory… His HOLINESS. i need to be as broken as Jeremiah over the state of this country and what it is costing our souls. i am surrounded by lost, hurting, spiritually confused people and i... i have been called by God to be a witness. and i have failed.  i have retreated.  i have caved to pressure.  and now i see judgement on its way, and i should be weeping a whole lot more than i have been.

the thing with the prophets, and God's judgements, and all that stuff nobody likes to talk about it that it is just impossible to have a true concept of His holiness and a warped concept of sin.  they go hand in hand.  to minimize one is to minimize the other.  you can't take God seriously and in the next breath say, "my sin's not so bad."  because sin is a direct affront to His holiness.  more than that, to wave off sin is to show straight-up contempt for Jesus' sacrifice.  the epitome of love, mercy, grace, justice, humility, perfection- and sinners blow it off.  "my sin's not so bad; thanks for the gesture, Jesus, but i'm a pretty decent person and i don't need your sacrifice."  when we itemize sin, when we compare ourselves, when we apply our own standards to ourselves and hold it up to God like it's some great accomplishment...all of it...all of it takes the camera off God and focuses on us.  try as we might, our souls are never gonna be a pretty picture apart from Christ. we've deluded ourselves into thinking we can dress up the outside and be okay.

i have heard many times that a main deterrent to Christianity is that while Jesus and His teachings are pleasant, God and His punishments-particularly of the ancient non-Israelite nations- are simply intolerable.  they shout "God is love" as if they really understood that phrase and stalk off in anger.  could you appreciate a God who didn't take Himself seriously, who didn't punish wrong, who broke His word and was so small and weak that human brains could completely understand Him? no, really- think about that for a sec before you answer. they ignore the atrocities those people were committing, in flagrant disobedience to God, and say Love wouldn't punish it. God IS Love- but His perfect Love is included as a part of His majestic HOLY character.

they, just like the ancient Israelites, have forgotten His holiness. we as Christians have snuck into the background and hidden from these hard questions because we don't always know the answers- we have forgotten, too.

it hasn't happened overnight.  the Jews didn't collectively wake up one Tuesday and say, "Hey- here's an idea.  let's ask that Asherah pole for some rain, good crops and many many children."  but what was once "wrong" became "weird." before too long, "weird" became "different." soon after, "different" turned into "acceptable/normal/okay/celebrated".

but unlike Jeremiah, we aren't weeping.  we've become callused to words like "abortion" or "Obama" or…

or "lie" and "pride" and "gossip" and oh yes, i just said all that.

we've downsized our "little" sins. we've blamed those who struggle with the "big" sins.  we've got them all ranked and ordered, so we know just how upset we should be. 

the problem is that ALL OF THIS takes our focus off God.  if we were doing our job and upholding His holiness, i think several things would happen.

-we would recognize that our sins are every bit as bad as anyone's from Orlando, whether inside the club or outside. murderer, hater, liar, thief, gay, glutton, abuser, gossip/slanderer...if you sped on your way to work, you broke the law.  if you can't even handle state laws, how on earth do you reckon you're just fine with God's laws? quit calling a wicked gunman "God's judgement on gays" unless you're ready for God's judgement on your sin, too.  NO!! just no. man, that makes me so mad- i almost feel like my fever's coming back.  STOP IT!!

-we Christians would recognize our part in America, and that we share some of the blame for these atrocious sins happening every day across the nation while we creep back into our tiny little comfort zones and block it out. we need to speak out, fight evil, uphold righteousness, be involved in this country and do more than we are to represent Christ.

-we would get over our pride and reach out. reach out to everyone. even if 99% of the ones you reach out to choose to remain trapped in their blindness, if you hold that flame up someone might just see their way to the path leading to eternal Life. BE THE CHURCH.  the Church is the Holy Spirit's dwelling place, the arms and feet and eyes and heart of Jesus.  BE THAT. not the loudmouths who so full of anger and pride that they can't recognize the hurting souls all around them.

-we would weep.  we would weep for our families, our friends, our coworkers and our neighbors who don't/can't/won't see God and His truth.  we would weep for our LGBT community and the sin committed against them.  yes, i think that lifestyle is wrong and outside God's will, but God is lovingly waiting for them, not targeting them.  no, God was not caught off-guard by the massacre; even though it was wrong, it is a part of God's plan that uses people's evil to show His contrasting holiness.

because the whole point of the Gospel is that because of God's holiness and our utter inability to perfectly maintain His standards, there was a Plan already in motion.  He wants to be with us.  He wants us to love Him. so He took a "risk" a gave us free will to follow… or to flop.

God knew we'd flop.  He knew that sheep and goat sacrifices were not a long-term solution to our daily sins.  so to maintain His holiness, keep His covenant and punish sin- but ALSO to not destroy the objects of His affection (that's us, people)- He sent Jesus. 

those who accept His sacrifice are forgiven.  that's it.  clean slate. there is no "ranking" of sinners or penance to be paid.

those who refuse it will take the punishment themselves.  the Jews got a taste of it- the temple forsaken by God, they were left alone and destitute. hopeless and without anyone to even hear their parched cries. 

the Gospel is a word of hope, however.

even though the critics, and many Christians… and i… forget, even something as tragic as a massacre is not outside God's plan.  His greatest victories often come through the most troubling of crises.  our lack of understanding does not negate His omnipotence,  or His ability to turn the whole situation around for good.  this is a dark time for us, for our nation and specifically now for our LGBT community. we as Christians ARE GOD'S TEMPLE that is not forsaken, the visible presence of God- and we have ONE JOB.  let's do it! let's fall down and weep with those who weep.  let's proclaim the news of hope like Jeremiah.  let's hold up a flame and light the way to the Cross, where His holiness is fully satisfied, were darkness disappears, where Hope is eternal and where all God's chosen people find the comfort, love, forgiveness and peace that can only come from Him.