It appears that for the first anniversary of my fathers death, on the beginning of the three days of hell (July 19th, 20th, and 21st) that started last year, Barb and I celebrated our mourning by accepting a recently made homeless man who I met initially at the St. Vincent Intensive Outpatient Psychiatric Program and then again in DBT. I offered him a play to stay. We offered him the food from our table, safety, and a couch to sleep on until we clean up enough for a bed to be made available. He shared his carnivorous plants that took care of our bug problems, helps clean and water the plants, and offers a unique perspective on life (one that is very challenging to my comfort zone). Our guest was raised as a fundamentalist Christian and then became something of a fundamentalist atheist. Hes never had the opportunity to feel safe or to have time to rest. Hes having his expectations challenged at the same time we are having ours challenged. He is very much a person in need. While Barbara and I are poor as church mice, we feel more than comfortable offering all that we have in our Lords service. I cannot expect others to be as batshit crazy as me in the Anointed without demonstrating that behavior myself. Im a failed creature myself, and expect and want no glorification for my acts. I just want to share them to ask for prayer for the healing of this young man of thirty-four, that he feels peace in his whole being, and the this might demonstrate to other Christians how we are to act in mission. Im not being invasive. I try to demonstrate Gods love through action. I am pretty unstable (which I could use prayer for), but I pray that Barb and I change Joshs expectations of who Christians are and who our God is through action, not through the words of broken people who seek to suck the lifeblood out of souls as so many churches in America do. Joshs story is one convicting the churches of their sinfulness, their departure from the teachings, and their separation from God. Whomever they are in relationship with, I struggle to believe that it is God by their actions, unless they are very good at not listening to anything that challenges their norms? I struggle with Josh here because he is a constant challenge to my faith, a trial if you will, by exposure. I have several other friends who are atheists, but at least the ones with whom I regularly interact do not judge my faith (perhaps, we simply do not live together. ;) ). It is not so much Josh as is I think the views he holds that are anathema to my whole way of being (and his atheism isnt really the issue). Such as the social opposition to dialogue in America between any group. Those of us who can still sort of dialogue have become either libertarians if we are conservative or socialist radicals if we are liberal, or some weird combination of the two if we cannot make up our minds (like myself). I would like my friends to pray for all three of us and pray that the church extends additional hands to help us care for Josh. Just because someone does not abide our faith because the faith has so hardened their hearts by cruelty and wrongdoings, does not justify abandoning this person no matter what views they hold. We are to love them and trust that God is more powerful than this persons words or actions, and that through our representation of the overwhelming forgiveness and love of the Anointed Jesus, we make manifest the ideal representation of human affection, of unconditional love and acceptance. I may be poor, and I may have very little to give, but I will still give it because I trust in the love God has for me. God is more amazing than anything you could imagine if only you would or could listen. Blessings everyone.
Posted on: Sat, 26 Jul 2014 15:37:01 +0000
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