I'm a bit fed up with Christians. Seriously. Anytime I turn on my computer and read a story about abuse of kids/power/people/trust etc. by men claiming to be followers of Christ, I am dismayed and ashamed. First, a new rule I'm bringing to the table: beware of any man who starts a sentence with “I think what God meant to say.....” or ends it with “Call now for my new DVD set and receive a free gold pen.” They may be trying to pull the wool over your eyes in the name of God. I don't have any hard evidence to back that up but humour me here.
No wonder some people despise us. These charlatans, though, are a minority, like rioters at a football match (that would be a 'game', people of Merica) who give dedicated fans a bad reputation. They represent, rather too visibly, the antithesis of the majority who lead purposeful lives serving their community. Secondly, I'm taking the power back from these guys. You don't speak for me and never will. My dear, dear friend Ewa is self-confessed atheist/agnostic and is one of the kindest people I know, whilst the aforementioned minority can be downright judgmental. Actions are what make you, not words and falsities or trying to be a 'cool' or 'hipster' Christian. I was reading 1 John the other day and found no mention of 'Jesus takes a selfie in the temple', instead it said ~
Do not love the world or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, love for the Father is not in them. For everything in the world—the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the pride of life—comes not from the Father but from the world. The world and its desires pass away, but whoever does the will of God lives forever.
1 John 2:15-17 NIV.
Instead of posting online about what God has 'in store' for you, get after it, it won't land in your lap. And after all, who cares who sees what you are doing as long as you are doing it for Him. 'Guerrilla Kindness' is where it's at, just do it, the only rule is you can't get caught!
One Sunday after our church service in Paris, we were having our usual coffee gathering and I went downstairs to use the bathroom. When I got there, the place reeked. No joke, the odour made my eyes water. It was a homeless guy getting changed and his meek body looked so fragile and neglected. I went into the cubicle (ok, ok, too much info) and I heard another church member come in behind me and hurl abuse at this same guy, ranting at him to get out and never come back.“You can't do this in here” he roared. I mean, come on! Isn't he the type of person who needs a hand up more than anyone? Shouldn't we measure ourselves by how far we can reach down opposed to how high we can climb up? I was shocked. The guy sloped back outside probably feeling more ashamed than he already did living on the street. I'm an alcoholic and have hit low so I had a fair idea how this guy felt. I headed back upstairs and caught my friend Josh. I told him I saw a poor homeless dude downstairs trying to get some warm clothes on (not mentioning what happened) and his automatic response was “Oh man, is he hungry, is he still here?” Boom. Josh is the guy who is where we should all be at. He was not trying to be a Christian, he just was. He didn't say it because anyone was looking, just like I am sure the guy ranting would have been completely different had he known I was listening. I know that I want to be like Josh, because he is living like Jesus.