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God has to be given permission to work in this earth realm on behalf of man…Yes! You are in control!
-- Frederick Price, Prayer: Do You Know What Prayer Is…and How to Pray? The Word Study Bible, 1178
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Are we close enough that we rub?
Posted on Wednesday, February 15 @ 18:00:00 PST by Randall East |
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daveedwards submitted: "That was said to me a long time ago when I first became a Christian. I had developed a friendship with another member of the congregation and we would often get into minor spats over doctrinal issues. One of the senior members of the congregation told me that we had gotten so close that "we rub". She described it like two rough stones in a river bed that over time and proximity, had their rough edges smoothed out.
That has always stuck with me over the years, especially when disagreements came up over issues in the church – some major and some not so major. I was always wondering if I was close enough to the other person in order express my beliefs. Could we disagree and still be friends. Often I'm not that close to someone and I find myself desiring the closeness and not the theological debate. Often instead of two stones rubbing against one another, we're like a piece of grit or sand that we throw in someone's eye and then walk away. I call them "3x5 card Christians." "Oh you have a problem – let me rifle through of my box of favorite scriptures and chuck one at you." We do the same thing when debating theology or worse yet, our forms of worship or prayer.
We are so quick to correct someone before we even know them.
One of our elders taught that we should never judge another man's conscience because we never know at what point upon their journey we may meet them. That smoker could have been doing drugs a month ago. That father cussing out his wife could have been beating her two months ago. We would probably be amazed and humbled to know how far some people we look down upon have come and the things they've had to go through just to be where they are today.
Sometime ago I was leading worship and I had a brother in the congregation with a great voice who wanted to sing on the team. I knew this brother pretty well and I knew of his past drug use and mental problems. This was a big step for him and one that I knew he was nervous about doing. He would get so nervous that before each service he would go outside by his car a smoke a cigarette. After a while some of the girls that also sang confronted me about him "smelling" bad with the smoke. I about hit the roof! I told them this if him smoking a cigarette would keep him out of the psyche ward and off drugs "I’d buy the $@#%^$ things for him!" Not a very Christian expression, but I think you understand my heart.
Another time two of the members of my homegroup got together and drew up a list of things they didn't like about the leader and if things didn't change, they were leaving. At first the leader was going to argue each point with them, but decided there was a better way. He basically told them "Fine – I'm guilty on all charges, now what are you going to do?" We don’t need people to tell us we're not measuring up – most of us have a hard enough time not beating ourselves up. Were these people close enough to stay in the group and love and pray together to help each other along the way or at least get close enough to the person to find out why they are they way they are?
I'm not close enough to most people to tell them what I believe or express my disagreements. And of the people I am, I could tell them anything – personal, religious, or otherwise and they would be there right with me, no matter what. They will listen to my weird beliefs and I'll listen to their's. But that would never happen unless we had gotten close enough first.
I know there are big issues, but the issues should drive us together not apart. I want to know you, because I want to know why you believe what you do. If I know the "whys" then I start to have respect, understanding and compassion for the other person. The theological debates only come much later. This human condition can be tough and some of us hang on to some pretty weird things just to keep sane. We do some pretty odd things in our walk with God too…
What about praying the Rosary?
What about walking a labyrinth?
What about Singing in the Spirit?
What about drum circles?
What about dancing?
What about Vespers?
What about Communion?
What about Holy Kisses?
What about washing feet?
What about lighting candles?
What about incense?
What about waving banners?
What about blowing a ram’s horn?
What about crashing cymbals?
What about electric guitars and Fender amps?
What about pierced ears?
Paul said, "One person esteems one day above another; another esteems every day alike. Let each person be fully convinced in his own mind. He who regards one day as special, does so to the Lord. He who eats meat, eats to the Lord, for he gives thanks to God; and he who abstains, does so to the Lord and gives thanks to God.... You, then, why do you judge your brother? Or why do you look down on your brother? For we will all stand before God's judgment seat."
I've often said that if you look long enough and hard enough, you can find something to hate about anyone. I wonder if the opposite is just as true? I want to look hard enough to find something I can love about each of you. Have we gotten so close that we rub? Are we stones or just sand and grit?
David William Edwards
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Average Score: 5
Votes: 1
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Re: Are we close enough that we rub? (Score: 1)
 by Virgil on Wednesday, February 15 @ 18:52:44 PST
(User Info | Send a Message) | AWESOME Dave! :) You are just rehashing the things I have been speaking about for over a year now. Love wins over all these matters...candles, dancing, instruments, icons...etc.
A while back Terry told me a story. He was one time preaching in his old church and a guy from the local drug rehab center was attending the service sitting on the front row. Terry was intense on making some important point that this visitor was fixated on, when he (the visitor) exclaimed outloud: "Damn!"
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Re: Are we close enough that we rub? (Score: 1)
 by MiddleKnowledge on Wednesday, February 15 @ 19:30:24 PST
(User Info | Send a Message) | Dave,
Great article. What especially caught my eye was:
"We are so quick to correct someone before we even know them."
A lot of that going on these days.
Blessings,
Tim Martin
www.truthinliving.org
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Re: Are we close enough that we rub? (Score: 1)
 by Flakinde on Thursday, February 16 @ 09:07:45 PST
(User Info | Send a Message) | Excellent!
Something I heard recently really stuck with me. I was listening to one of Doug Grisham's (C.S. Lewis' step-son) many interviews to promote the recent Narnia film. He was saying that Lewis had a circle of friends who all shared different point of views on many subjects. Then he shared his observation that friendship these days has a very different meaning from what it used to refer to. People in Lewis' days would actually seek out friends who thought differently, because those were the ones who would challenge you, who would not let you be comfortable in your self-justified assurance, but above all, would never mistreat you. Nowadays, on the other hand, we tend to want to have approval as a condition for friendship.
I have a friend in Mexico with whom I have debated many subjects, including Eschatology. You see, he is a hardcore Adventist, and if you know anything about Adventism, you know that their view of Eschatology is very particular and is essential to their whole theology. However, because of Christ's love between us, I have been very satisfied in my relationship with him, to the point that we have a Bible study each week through the net. By being open and listening before speaking, we have noticed that we actually have many things in common in our views, though as I inferred, finding things in common is not really our objective.
Sometimes I think that God has allowed differences to continue in the New Jerusalem precisely to offer us a "playing field" where real love, charity, compassion, understanding and grace can be evident.
Keep it up, everyone . . . let's let Christ's love continue expanding along with His Kingdom, let's not hold back!
Blessed in His rest,
A. Rodríguez |
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