I have discovered over the years that I have this penchant for saying things out loud that other people don’t like to say because they are too busy being polite! Being po-lite dun killed off a whole lotta really really sweet folks who had a job to do for the Lord. 😳 And I ain’t talking about flower arranging! Sometimes, you just gotta say it how it is!

So many fantastic people over the years have given up trying to be themselves, because they couldn’t handle the opposition from the very place that was supposed to nurture them! The Lord Jesus LOVES His Bride … He sees her through His eyes of faith and love. A whole lot of people have ended up hiding from each other, mainly because they’ve been clobbered by OUR side one too many times. I’ve found that all of us just want to belong, and I suspect many of us secretly feel like giant failures. The Lord Jesus is the most wonderful fiancé… . It is time to let love cover a multitude of sins and move on to the real work – sharing His love with everyone around us.

Here’s my little tuppenny theory: these dear, difficult and awkward, sometimes annoying people that have been coming to our churches Sunday by Sunday, for years (!)  – despite them feeling alone, rejected, alienated and overwhelmed. They need to be seen differently. Perhaps it is time to realise that we have been blessed with some people who are incredibly loyal to Jesus – despite the opposition they have faced. Ya might want to pause and think on that one! 🤔

Our churches have been straining out gnats and letting camels through that dratted sieve for way too long. When anyone goes fishing, the fish don’t jump into the boat, all nicely cleaned and filleted. We need to accept each other. We have all been re-designed to grow in GRACE. Some of us are slower than others, but none of us do that just sitting in church, patiently listening to sermons – we grow by going outside the building, and stretching our faith! We all need transformation. May people have given up being REAL because they are so busy trying hard to be a good witness.  

Maybe some people in our congregations are a different kind of gift! They are here simply to annoy the living daylights out of others, because the Lord wants to show each one of us that we are not perfected yet! We gotta stop beating each other up, and start practising compassion on those amongst us who are struggling. Personally I have people in my life that I simply can’t talk to without asking for His help first. It is never good when Christians are scary.

Christians have been told by very enthusiastic leaders that if we just shape up, live right and sound right and look right, then God will be able to use us. I wonder how Balaam’s ASS managed that? Or how it worked out for Jonah, the whale mail specialist. The Lord accepted us before we even knew He was there. Let’s get this clear, being able to pray for the sick and raise the dead is not a sign of perfection. The Holy Spirit has given the Body of Christ  gifts. 🙌 Meanwhile, miracles are totally a part of everybody’s new DNA – we all get to do this stuff. Miracles are not a prize for getting Christianity right! Jesus hated it when people fussed over the supernatural and ignored opportunities for spiritual growth. He did what Father God told Him to do and walked on.

Our focus has slipped from Him to US. Do I like the singing – how was that sermon did it met my needs? The cross of Christ changed everything – now we are here for Him. The church is definitely not all that – but Jesus is! He always WAS! We’ve let our own immaturity govern the way we approach other people, as well as the rest of the world. The Body of Christ is not a club with an exclusive membership. We are a bunch of broken, ornery, sometimes imperfect people, who found out, by happy accident, that Almighty God truly loves all kinds of people! That’s what we must shout from any platform we have

I believe in miracles, and praying for the sick, and seeing people saved and set free – but you cannot convince me that one person is more valuable to the Lord than another. The people in the Old Testament that are featured were all leaders. But when we get to the New Testament, you see an ordinary man and a slip of a girl, fulfilling God’s purposes. The Holy Spirit is teaching us something from the first sentence in Matthew … you and I live in the time of nobodies doing great exploits. God is simply looking for hearts that are devoted to Him. Instead of praising or elevating men and women, because of gifts – we need to focus on the Giver Who gave them.

I don’t care how spiritual we think we are, ordinary people need to stop hiding and climb out of the dug-out and find somebody to help, and then start praying for and helping them. Share His love. Meanwhile, God’s love doesn’t need thousands of dollars to keep the ministry wheels turning – Jesus walked everywhere! 

His unconditional, overwhelming Love transforms people –  telling other people – that is our mandate. 👋🏻