IT IS GETTING HOT!

The Lord is working overtime on me these days!  I had been really down the last week or so and a bit disillusioned with what I had deemed as a closed mindedness among many of my brothers and sisters in Christ.  I was truly hurt and very sad.  It's been the type of cloud that consumes.  I mean school wasn't getting finished.  I was disorganized.  I wasn't keeping up with my household tasks.  I was ignoring my children because I've been consumed with this hurt.  Several things have happened though:

  The Lord keeps reminding me of the unit Randy taught on forgiveness.  I am called to forgive.  Immediately......completely.......no matter what.  How precious is Jesus?  That he would allow me to go through this wonderful study in Sunday School with my husband BEFORE I needed it.  Now I get to put into practice what I learned!  I am not saying people have meant to hurt me.  I am not saying people have intended me harm.  I am not saying people have sinned against me.  I was hurt and I have needed to forgive.....not because of others actions but because of my interpretation of those actions if that makes sense.....ANYWAY on to the main point:


Even more then that though.....I've had an epiphany.....I know it is the Lord's work in me....because this is so not me and my flesh....

I have been praying for MONTHS about my role in the universal church.  I honestly have been a bit (okay REALLY) disillusioned by so many Christians sitting and getting and not caring. I have been praying that the church would COME ALIVE (myself definitely included).  I have been TOTALLY frustrated.  I hope this isn't too offensive........it's just honestly what I have been frustrated with.  So now this whole big amendment thing comes up and boy oh boy are the passions flaring......it is easy to get sucked in!

Revelation 3:15-16
"I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot.  I wish you were either one or the other!  So, because you are lukewarm-neither hot nor cold-I am about to spit you out of my mouth."
This scripture is always a bit scary to me.  But guys guess what?  It is gettin HOT in here and I like it! 
We are talking about REAL stuff....and sometimes that gets messy....but I would so prefer messy and real to pretty and fake!
COME ALIVE!!!

But guess what I realized today......our church has a PULSE!  People CARE!  A LOT!!! THANK YOU JESUS!  THERE IS HOPE! Do we agree......not on everything! However, we do agree on the authority of God's Word.  We do agree on God's definition of marriage.  We do agree that we are called to love God and others.  We do agree that we should lavish people with God's grace.  We do agree that we are called to love sinners.  We do agree that Christ died for all.  We do agree on so much.

We are talking to each other.  We are wrestling together with hard issues.  How Satan would LOVE to use this to draw lines of division.  I think God could use this for such good.  Yes our church has been in the wringer these last months.  We are at a crucial time in our church I believe.  We are at a crossroads.  We can be destroyed OR we can glorify God.  WE DO NOT HAVE TO AGREE POLITICALLY.....yet we can love each other....How healthy is that?  We can passionately disagree.  We can passionately debate.  We can passionately wrestle these issues AND we can passionately LOVE each other in spite of it all.  We can talk about this stuff.  We can disagree totally and we can still really love each other!  Now that my friends is a testimony!

The TRUTH is absolute.  It will not change.  On that there is NO DISAGREEMENT.  How we as individuals are used to live this out will look different.  We are different.  God has different plans and different jobs and different missions for each of us to fulfill.  YET we are ONE Body.  Our body has many parts....many functions....many differences.....BUT we have one head...JESUS CHRIST and his HOLY, GOOD, PERFECT WORD!

"If you love those who love you, what reward will you get?  Are not even the tax collectors doing that?  And if you greet only your brothers, what are you doing more than others?  Do not even pagans do that?" 
Matthew 5:46

We are Christians.  We are brothers and sisters in Christ.  The world is watching us.  We do not agree on this issue politically.  However we can love each other anyway.

AND I'm so happy that people care enough to get a bit uppity.  I'm glad we have passion.  I'm glad we are thinking!  I'm glad because I'm infused with hope.  Maybe....just maybe.......WE (myself definitely included) will COME ALIVE!

Love, Love, Love you all!
Thank you Jesus for your WORD and your TRUTH and your FAITHFULNESS and your REDEMPTION!
Kim