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I got into an interesting conversation with a co-worker who was the opposite of me in almost every way. She actually had good parents, a loving and encouraging upbringing, and virtually no major struggles in her life…not to belittle her or her feelings, but the things she considered major were extremely minor in comparison to the thing I had faced.
For example: Her father was a kind and loving man, but because of his work wasn’t able to give all the attention the daughter felt she deserved. She had a level of resentment toward her father because of this. When compared to my father, the BAPTIST MINISTER who got a twisted enjoyment out punching, choking, slapping and beating my brothers and I as if we were grown men…I would have gladly taken the father who loved and cared for me, but couldn’t come to all of my football games because he had to work in order to support our family. I would have loved the father who encouraged me…rather than always telling me how STUPID I was.
The young woman and I talked briefly about religion. She had such admiration for God, spewing the usual Christian jargon…and she actually criticized me for not having the same level of joy and told me that I should have been ashamed of myself for not giving God my total love and admiration. She called me ungrateful for not loving life as she did, then preceded to giving me a “guilt trip” about my negative feelings, because God had done sooooo much for me. As I listened to her…I realized that…in a VERY ODD sort of way…I had lost a level of respect for her. It was very hard to describe…odd…is the only word that comes close to how I suddenly felt. Here was a person who had experienced very little pain or struggle in her life, trying to preach to me with such a sanctimonious tone.
I listened calmly to what she had to say and thanked her for her advice. But as I walked away I came to the realization that though God can use ANYONE…it is people like me who can make the biggest impact. People who have been scarred, abused…people who have suffered horribly through many things, but through it all have overcome with the help of God. How can you help someone out of something, when you yourself have never been through anything?
I hate it when people scream “REPENT FOR YOUR SINS”...”LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART”…and leave it at that. There is a REASON why some people are resistant, there is a REASON why some people don’t just drop everything and follow The Lord with total and unwavering faith. There are many shades of grey as to why people feel the way they do; simply regurgitating scriptures and repeating hollow words is not enough.
Follow The Lord…or go to Hell…yea…that’s pretty much black & white. But I think when you explain it to people it should be done with a certain level of understanding for what that person has gone through…not just spitting out words and expecting them to simply accept it without question or doubt.
For example: Her father was a kind and loving man, but because of his work wasn’t able to give all the attention the daughter felt she deserved. She had a level of resentment toward her father because of this. When compared to my father, the BAPTIST MINISTER who got a twisted enjoyment out punching, choking, slapping and beating my brothers and I as if we were grown men…I would have gladly taken the father who loved and cared for me, but couldn’t come to all of my football games because he had to work in order to support our family. I would have loved the father who encouraged me…rather than always telling me how STUPID I was.
The young woman and I talked briefly about religion. She had such admiration for God, spewing the usual Christian jargon…and she actually criticized me for not having the same level of joy and told me that I should have been ashamed of myself for not giving God my total love and admiration. She called me ungrateful for not loving life as she did, then preceded to giving me a “guilt trip” about my negative feelings, because God had done sooooo much for me. As I listened to her…I realized that…in a VERY ODD sort of way…I had lost a level of respect for her. It was very hard to describe…odd…is the only word that comes close to how I suddenly felt. Here was a person who had experienced very little pain or struggle in her life, trying to preach to me with such a sanctimonious tone.
I listened calmly to what she had to say and thanked her for her advice. But as I walked away I came to the realization that though God can use ANYONE…it is people like me who can make the biggest impact. People who have been scarred, abused…people who have suffered horribly through many things, but through it all have overcome with the help of God. How can you help someone out of something, when you yourself have never been through anything?
I hate it when people scream “REPENT FOR YOUR SINS”...”LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART”…and leave it at that. There is a REASON why some people are resistant, there is a REASON why some people don’t just drop everything and follow The Lord with total and unwavering faith. There are many shades of grey as to why people feel the way they do; simply regurgitating scriptures and repeating hollow words is not enough.
Follow The Lord…or go to Hell…yea…that’s pretty much black & white. But I think when you explain it to people it should be done with a certain level of understanding for what that person has gone through…not just spitting out words and expecting them to simply accept it without question or doubt.