December 16, 2018

Words Reveal the Heart

The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit. – 1 Corinthians 2:14

We were talking about love. We were talking about putting God first and loving others as ourselves. We were talking about loving people who believe differently than we do and trusting God with all the rest.

The normally soft-spoken woman erupted without warning. She’d been watching soap operas and other things on YouTube and she used those “facts” to launch a vicious attack against homosexuality. Everyone in the room was shocked.

We are a diverse group. We are liberals and conservatives and all of us in between those two extremes. We are accustomed to passionate opinions that we don’t always agree with. It’s okay. We love Jesus and we love each other.

This was not that kind of sharing. It was mean and vicious. It was an opinion based on lies and ugliness. It was clear she doesn’t know any homosexuals and really hasn’t done any legitimate research. Isn’t that how it usually goes?

I really don’t care how you feel about homosexuality. This column isn’t about that. It’s about hating people you don’t know based on lies you choose to believe. It’s the same thing that happened to women (another woman in the group pointed this out), people of color, and those who are Jewish. We hate what we don’t understand which, in our minds, allows us to justify our behavior.

I don’t have a lot of answers. I don’t. Neither do you. We aren’t God and we don’t understand His ways. We aren’t meant to understand this side of heaven. That’s where faith and trust come in to play.

God has called us to love without exception. We are to love people who are different from us. We are to love people who harm us. We are to love others because He loved us first. God is love. If we believe that, how can we not love others? How can we justify refusing to be the hands and feet of Jesus?

People don’t come to Jesus because His followers (that would be you and me) criticize and condemn people who believe differently than we do. People don’t know how much God loves them because we lash out in anger and fear. People know Jesus as Lord and Savior because we love them no matter what.

Maybe my views are a product of my upbringing. That’s generally how it goes. My grandmother believed the Bible teaches that blacks are inferior to whites. It doesn’t, of course. I challenged her on it one day and she never backed down. I didn’t either. But it taught me something. It taught me that bigoted people will use the Bible to try and justify their beliefs. That’s why it is so very important to know what God says for ourselves rather than try and get our “facts” from YouTube, Facebook or television.

As I said earlier, I don’t have a lot of answers. But I do believe this: God has called me to love everyone. He has called me show others who He is through my actions. Through Him, I can love people who make decisions I don’t agree with. Through Him, I can forgive those who have hurt me deeply. Through Him, I can have civilized discussions about what the Bible really says.

Your words reveal your heart. What do your words say about you?

Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Teachers Follow God’s Call

Not many of you should presume to be teachers, my brothers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. -- James 3:1

It’s been almost a year since God called me to teach an adult Sunday school class. I heard His call but I never expected it would be this particular class. God amazes me. I don’t know why. He knows exactly what He’s doing.

There have been so many times when I doubted myself. I still do. I love to read and study the Bible but I always compare myself to Biblical scholars with fancy degrees. I don’t know nearly enough. I doubt I ever will.

The first Sunday that I taught, I looked over and saw one man busy on his iphone. His wife wanted to know what he was doing. Without so much as a pause, I told her he was checking to make sure I knew what I was talking about. The shock on his face still brings a chuckle to my mind. It was exactly what he was doing. He just didn’t think I would know.

I don’t blame him. I’d want to know if my new Sunday school teacher knew what she was talking about too. In that particular case, it was just before Easter and I used material from a small group study I was taking. It was a good beginning. I loved the material and had learned a lot, so I was eager to share it.

I wish I could say that it has all been smooth and easy. Not so much though. Some Sundays are wonderful, the discussion is animated and on point. Other Sundays it’s a battle to get the class involved in the topic.

I always ask God to give me words. I want to say what He wants, not what I want. God knows the hearts and minds of each individual in the class. He knows the hurts and heartaches they’re facing. I want so much for each class member to learn and grow. But that’s up to them and to God.

Some weeks keeping to the topic is a challenge at best. I have to be conscious that we’re following God’s agenda and not someone else’s. One man chuckled the other day, saying that I’d lost control again. He meant the class discussion had gone it’s own way. But really, it hadn’t. They were involved and if the order of my bullet points got changed around, so what?

Other weeks are just such a blessing. We discussed forgiving our enemies and I could feel the healing as the questions and discussion took place. We reviewed Scriptures and we talked about how hard it is. And that some times forgiving is a process that begins anew each day.

Some days I wonder what in the world I’m doing teaching a Sunday school class. Then I laugh. I’m teaching because God told me to. And I pray that I’ll continue to follow His lead in all things but especially in this so that all of us may learn and grow closer to the One who created us all.

Friday, July 16, 2010

Open Your Minds

"As iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another." -- Proverbs 27:17

One thing I love about my Sunday School Class are the discussions. People come from all different points of view and backgrounds. It makes things lively, in a good way. Everyone's opinion matters. And, frankly, I've learned a great deal.

It was the same in small-group Bible studies I once attended. Pastor Susannah asked thoughtful questions that led us beyond the surface topics we were reading. I'm hopeful that Pastor Meghan will soon start the same sort of group. I know I'm richer for the topics discussed and, most importantly, for the people I met and came to value.

We weren't meant to be alone. We weren't meant to always try and figure out life and God's purpose for us by ourselves. We're supposed to discuss things. We're supposed to pray together and for each other. We're supposed to surround ourselves with smart people who love God and want to learn and serve Him. Then we can learn too.

And it doesn't always have to be at church. Some of the best discussions I ever had were at a sidewalk cafe in West Hollywood with an odd group of people. I learned tolerance. And I learned about hurt that comes when some folks are rejected by people who claim to know Jesus. It solidified my own faith because I know my Jesus loves every sinner, including me and you.

Sometimes listening to others is difficult. We don't want to believe they know anything. We want to cling to our own views, our own interpretations, our own way of doing things. We just know God prefers traditional music to contemporary, for example. Imagine what wonderful things we might experience by worshipping God in a new, different way.

Being around other Believers, discussing our faith and the Bible, sharpens our minds. It helps focus us on what matters. It helps us see Jesus so much better. Take the time today to seek out a small discussion group or start one yourselves. The experience may mold your life in ways you never imagined.