Pretend

How do you respond to those who are different than you? Let’s play a game…it’s called pretend, Monkey and I do it all the time, it’s easy.

Pretend…a twenty-something woman in a pair of tight Daisy Duke shorts and a skimpy halter top walked into your church, pranced all the way to the third row from the front and shimmied in past 4 or 5 men, plops down in the middle of the pew and proceeds to kick back and apparently take a nap. What do you do with that? Or worse, she stands and dances when the congregation sings? Oh my!

Pretend…a teenager with pink hair, nose piercings, and heavy eyeliner walks into your Sunday school room and starts asking some hard questions, like, if God is real then why did my uncle have sex with me when I was 11?

Pretend…a young man dressed in black with tattoos and long stringy hair comes in and sits on the back row, arms crossed, and sullen look on face…pretend. Can you see these people?

You see where I’m going with this. We often only see the outside and if it doesn’t match what we believe “Christians” should look like then we dismiss them or try and change the external so they will fit into our mold. Or worse, we ask them to leave...

If Church isn’t a social club, but a place to equip the saints for ministry, why do we turn away these individuals who are there by no accident? Why aren’t we going out to places where the “outcasts” are and bring them the hope of the Savior? Or are we too comfortable in our pews?

I for one am very thankful for a loving group of Christians who didn’t try and change the first subject of my game, the Daisy Duke woman…

Here is the response she received…after the service a lovely older man named Duke met her, looked straight in her eyes and never let them wander below her nose, shook her hand and said he was happy she was there. Was there anything that they could do for her? Please come back, she was welcomed there. That began a time of melting, love melted through a wall of ice that surrounded a cold, dead heart. Jesus breathed life into that heart and now it beats for Him. The Christians never said one word about her attire, never criticized her questions, never looked down on her, and as a result she felt the love that only Jesus can give. Love to the unlovely, unconditional and pure.

I am the Daisy Duke woman…

We all have pasts…

We all have sinned…

Thank you Jesus for the blood that washes me clean.

If you don’t know Jesus as your personal Savior all you have to do is repent from your sins, believe in Him and accept the gift of salvation. Wearing nice clothes won’t save you, neither will driving a nice car or living in the better section of town, going to church won’t save you either, only accepting Jesus Christ can save us. Surrender to Him today.

“Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” John 14:6

“Father, I know that I have broken Your laws and my sins have separated me from You. I am truly sorry, and now I want to turn away from my past sinful life toward You. Please forgive me, and help me avoid sinning again. I believe that Your Son, Jesus Christ died for my sins, was resurrected from the dead, is alive, and hears my prayer. Jesus, please come into my heart and forgive my sins, cover me with Your blood and wash me clean,  become the Lord of my life, to rule and reign in my heart from this day forward. Please send your Holy Spirit to help me obey You, and to do Your will for the rest of my life. In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.”