What happened to the fact that Yahweh is first and foremost LOVE?! No wonder people don't want to come to Him! All they see are religious people condemning them to hell for this and that. "You're showing too much boobs. You're showing too much butt. You're having sex with your boyfriend and you're unmarried..." the list goes on for the judgments. Yes, these things are wrong. But when you're constantly telling everyone what they're doing wrong, why in the world would they ever listen to you about a "loving God"?!
This has been the truest thing I've ever learned: Love a person to God. Don't condemn them, don't chastise them, LOVE THEM! And when they experience the love of Yahweh, they will WANT to change to please Him! They will want to be more like Him. Newsflash people: Sinners sin. Stop trying to change them. Instead, change yourself. Because I'm pretty sure your judgmental attitude that turns away people by the multitude is more displeasing to God than the little bit of cleavage that woman is showing. Why MORE? Because you call yourself "Christ-Like" and you're acting anything but! I'm sorry, but I don't remember in the Bible where Y'shua asked anyone to stop sinning before coming to Him. I don't remember anywhere in the Bible where a list was laid out, "Now in order to have a relationship with me, you have to stop cussing, dress like a nun, etc. etc." BULL!
He wooed people with His LOVE! He hung out with the sinners, not the Religious leaders. Why do you think that is? He was of a genteel spirit. He truly was LOVE. So if you TRULY want to be Christ-like, stop judging sinners for doing what comes naturally to them and just love them. Accept them for who they are and stop shoving God down their throat. If someone feels loved and respected by you, they will be more apt to come to you and ask questions about God.
Oh, and by the way, to those who are out there judging about boobs and butt showing, why don't you take a look at your own family and set them straight before you start condemning the rest of the world. Get the plank out of your own eye before you try to pull the speck out of your brother's. And when you're aware of the plank in your own eye, don't beat your brother over the head with it. I'm so fed up with Religion pushing people away from the Love of Yahweh. Instead, how about we Love people into His arms and let HIM bring about change in their lives?
Fed Up,
A Former Slave to Religion
Greetings from a Granddad in the UK. I've just finished reading your blog. My journey has been very different but I've been outside the walls of traditional Christianity for some 40 years and I can relate to just about everything you have written - apart from the experiences of your early years. I have no recollection of ever doubting the existence of God but I walked away from Sunday School just before I was 14 because I understood that the teaching I had just received about the trinity was rubbish! That was well over 60 years ago and I have been asking those awkward questions to which there are no easy answers ever since.
ReplyDeleteI found the story of Jake when the two authors had only written the first three chapters. I've spent a couple of weekends with Wayne Jacobsen when he has been in the UK and I was overwhelmed by The Shack when Wayne brought some of the original copies to the UK in the summer of 2007.
I've recently rewritten my blog in order to share something of my very long wilderness journey, and some of the questions that I have been considering over the years. The blog is full of questioning and short on answers. I'm not a teacher (or leader). What I understand is that we only have one mediator and we don't have to do His job for him. We are all seeing different parts of the overall picture.
I hear your anger with religion - and that's a common reaction amongst those during the earlier parts of the journey away from traditional Christianity.
I hope you find my blog encouraging.
Pete
Hey thats my soapbox you're standing on! LoL!
ReplyDeleteNo one gets cleaned up to take a bath!
Haha, Shane! It annoys me to no end that church ppl are so judgmental and they push people away from Yahweh; then they say, "Well I don't know why people don't want to get saved." Well duh! Geez! It's just frustrating. But you know all too well how it is. :)
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