An "Action of Love" ...Not Really

I often wonder what travels through the minds of people.  I'm sure others wonder this about me as well.  It's human nature to be curious and to seek understanding.  I also wonder how it is that some people can so easily judge under the guise of "love."  How they can put so much time and effort into something that, when that time and effort is stripped away, is nothing more than a foundation of judgment, hidden in what is supposed to be seen as an action of love.  How is it that they believe it is their job or their right to take this action...even if it came from a place of love...Judgment rolled in love is still judgment.  Condemnation rolled in love is still condemning.

As I sip my coffee this morning and pray for a softer heart and understanding... the twinge in my gut and the nausea in my stomach is a sad confirmation of my initial reaction to this "act of love."  I pray for a way to define what I'm feeling so that I can dissect it, cut through the emotion and think rationally.  The word that keeps penetrating my thoughts is arrogance.

This "action of love" was dripping with arrogance and it sent a red flag soaring in my spirit.  Asking myself if I would ever do the same, the answer is a resounding no.  I wouldn't...but not because the thought behind it wasn't special...but because the river of arrogance carrying that thought is something to which I cannot relate.  I would never deem myself worthy enough to take this action.  I would never assume that I knew better than everyone else and that it was my duty to pass my knowledge, my perspective, my beliefs, my interpretations, and my outlooks onto them.  I would never assume that I knew more than anyone else.

How can an act of love send such a crushing blow?

Often times when judgment is dolled out under the pretense of love, we try to use that affection to justify the judgment; but it cannot.  There is no justification.  There is no blanket of love large enough to mask or hide the true spirit behind the action.

I don't sit here in anger this morning... I sit here in sadness.  Once more, arrogance has reared it's ugly head and taken out the feet of those it encountered.  Out of love, you say?

No.  Love waits and speaks when asked.  Love doesn't force or assume a position that is not theirs to assume.  Love doesn't push. Love doesn't drive a wedge.  "Love is patient and kind.  It does not envy or boast and it is not proud."

Thought, time and effort can be beautiful actions of love but only when they are not dipped in utter arrogance, laced with condemnation and a raw, hurtful action of judgment.

#crushed

 

I Don't Want to Go Off On A Rant Here, But...

In the words of Dennis Miller, “I don’t want to go off on a rant here, but …”

  Mean people suck and let me tell you why.  Arrogance.  The meanest people are the ones that proclaim to be nice and actually believe that they are.  They are the people that believe that they have a right to speak into your life because they are so arrogant that they believe their perception of your reality is correct. They believe that they and they alone hold a truth you lack and therefore it is their responsibility to inform you of this so-called relevancy.  They are the ones who drip outwardly with sweet verbal expressions but whose words are inwardly laced with condemnation, judgment, arrogance, contempt and elitism; all masked by a misguided appropriation of a Divine agenda they swear to possess but have not a clue. They have taken the Word of God and mixed it with their own ideas of God, thereby distorting the very truth from within.  These people attack those that do not live according to their standards.   They stand with hate signs while proclaiming love and I ask you, could there by more irony than this?   Muslim terrorists blow people up in the name of God.  Radical Christians tear people down in the name of God.  Both proclaim to possess God’s agenda and both are sorely mistaken.  God’s agenda is love.  It has always been love.  From Genesis to Revelations it speaks of love.  Love one another, for if you do it will be impossible for you to be mean.  That doesn’t mean you’ll never error, explode in anger or say something hurtful by mistake… but it means that even your mistakes will be made from a heart that was simply trying to love and not to attack, blow up or tear down.  Mean-spirited people are not the hostile ones you see throwing their hands in the air or venting frustration… those are just frustrated folks.  Mean-spirited people are the ones that live under the pretense of spirituality and purity and yet their hearts are filled with arrogance.  Arrogance…the root of all evil.  Arrogance…the root of a mean-spirit.  Arrogance…the cause of destruction.  Arrogance…distorter of the truth.  Arrogance…deliverer of death. 

God loves all of us equally.  There are no levels of His love.  Most importantly, He loves us because of who He is, not because of anything we do, did or didn’t do. 

So, to all of the mean people….stop sucking...shut the hell up…and let’s just all enjoy this wonderful gift of life we’ve been given.  ~

Me...In A Nutshell

“Where does a person go to fit in when those of her own faith judge her to be too pagan and worldly?”

I saw this quote on a Facebook status the other day and it stuck with me.  Maybe it’s because it is the story of my life and the constant pondering of my soul.  You see, the greatest judgments in my life have come from those that share my faith, but do not share my religion because, as it would seem, I have none.

There is a vast difference between religion and relationship and I truly believe that God doesn’t care what religion you practice as long as you have a relationship with Him.  I believe He wants you to know Him and love Him as much as He loves you.  Does it matter if you worship the Almighty on a mountaintop or in a pew?  No.  It only matters that you worship Him.

Hate and violence stir our nation, and they stem from one source…judgment.  Mother Teresa said, “If you’re judging someone you are too busy to love them.”  There are countless verses in the Bible that speak against judging others.  The reason for this emphasis is that judgment stems from a spirit of hatefulness masked in an evangelical motive of purity labeled “God’s Agenda.”

But it is wrong.

 

The world may end in judgment, but the agenda of the Most High is one of love first, followed by mercy and compassion. Put your hate signs down.  Stop your condemnation of others.  If you need to point a finger go look in the mirror. Fight against the enemy, not against one another.  Who IS the enemy?  Hate is the enemy and it shows itself in the form of judgment derived from pseudo-godly arrogance and elitism.

Let me pose an odd question:  How many atheists are judging others for their beliefs or lifestyle choices? 

Now, I’m not saying I think people should become atheists.  I’m merely pointing out that somewhere along the line it seems that the "religious" people have picked up the torch of hate and have begun terrorizing the villagers and burning the towns…all in the name of God, which is ironic since God is love, not hate. 

Love is the most powerful influence in the world, and its counterpart, Hate, is the most destructive weapon known to mankind.  It starts in the heart and is fed by arrogance until it finally manifests itself in an act of violence against others.  "I'm right and you're wrong," is the foundation of judgment.  "I hold the truth and you are deceived," is the foundation of judgment.  Judgment, fed by arrogance and elitsim results in hateful actions, some of which can manifest violently.

I may not have a “religion” that those who share my faith can understand; but I have a relationship with God.  You won’t see me in church every Sunday, because quite frankly, I don’t always feel close to God while I’m in church.  You won’t find me handing out tracks, putting ‘Life’ tape over my lips or holding a sign that says ‘God hates homosexuality.’  I refuse to cast judgment on anyone else.  I'm not "right" and I don't hold a "truth" that isn't available to anyone else.  Thus, it isn’t my place to spew forth judment and frankly, I don’t want to carry the hatefulness that accompanies judgment in my heart. 

Hate destroys.  Whether you use a gun, a bomb, a knife, a rope, a sign or your words…hate brings about destruction; internal and external.  And if you are invoking judgment and destruction in the name of God or under the guise of His agenda, shame on you.  Shame, shame, shame on you.

I once had a fellow Christian scoff at me and say, “Well, how many people have you led to Christ?”  I didn’t answer, for it was none of her business.  That answer is between me and God.  I should have asked her, “How many people have you chased away from Christ with your judgmental arrogance and hateful elitism?”  That is the real question.

People of my faith don’t always like me…and I’m learning that that’s okay.  God likes me and He loves me and my faith is established in HIM alone and not the man-made, religious rules that cause damage to others.  Jesus said to love others, not judge them.  "Love your neighbor as yourself."

Would you stand in your own yard with 'Life' tape on your mouth?  Would you stand in your own yard holding a "God hates ME" sign?  Would you treat yourself the way you are treating the rest of the world who doesn't agree with you?

I might be nuts, but in the words of Gladys from the Ellen Show, “I love Jesus, but I drink a little.”  J  That’s me in a nutshell.  ~

Isn't It Ironic

Isn’t it ironic that the people living a lie are always the ones adamantly proclaiming to know the truth?   

 

Isn’t it funny how a person can believe in something like psychic ability, but denounce the prospect of demonic  or angelic activity?  How does one choose the spot in which to draw the line?

Isn’t it strange that people can accept something as real if it happens to them, but dismiss something that happens to another person as an exaggeration or an outright lie?  Are we all that jaded that it is easier to proclaim someone a liar than to accept the possibility that a reality exists beyond our own perspective of personal experience?

 

Isn’t it odd how the most closed minded people are the ones who claim to be open and accepting?

Isn’t it weird that we have a propensity to deny what we don’t understand instead of taking the time to look deeper?

 

Isn’t it ironic how the people who claim to be the hardest working are usually the laziest while the workaholics deny that they have a problem?

 

Isn't it crazy how the feeble-minded believe they are solid while it is the solid thinkers who seek more information so not to become feeble?

Doesn’t it strike you as odd that some people will believe nothing and yet fall for everything?

Isn’t it ironic that trust promotes both the feeling of vulnerability and of strength?

 

Isn’t it amazing how some of the people with the strongest personalities also have the softest hearts?  That the seemingly tough ones are usually the most tender underneath.

Doesn’t it seem strange that in weakness there is strength and in strength there is weakness?

Isn’t it funny how those who pretend to be something they are not often accuse others of not being something that they really are?

Isn’t it odd how some of the people who laugh the loudest often cry the hardest?

Isn’t it comical how a big fish in a small pond is arrogant and the same size fish in a bigger pond is humble?  Can they not see that they are the same?

Isn’t it ironic that some of the most beautiful individuals externally have nothing to offer internally and some of the cosmetically challenged radiate absolute beauty from within?

Isn’t it interesting that the extrovert can be a true introvert in disguise and vice versa?

 

Isn’t it funny how those who are spoon fed information think they know everything, when they have merely tasted only a small portion of knowledge?  From where does such arrogance stem?

Isn’t it ironic…  ~