Dang it.
I just tried to write a post but the system self-corrects and won't come out the way I needed it to, so please bear with me.
I've had a few dreams from God, but now I feel like He drops thoughts into my head that I know have to be Him -- because there's no way I would be smart enough to come up with them myself!
Many years ago I was at a church that was becoming a family affair -- as in, only members from one family were being approved for leadership positions. Outsiders were unwelcome or expected to be molded into the hive, and if they couldn't be shaped to specification, they were pushed out or let go.
Doctrinally, everything seemed sound. But for some reason, I was uneasy. I asked God why.
One day, I sat down with a sheet of lined school paper and felt God was saying to me, "Spiritual Cloning Produces Spiritual Inbreeding." And here's the illustration He gave me:
(I tried leaving spaces before each set of numbers but the system isn't letting me do that -- it pushes all the numbers to the left and makes them even. Please look at this as if the *** aren't there -- the main point is showing how far to the right the numbers get pushed every time they are repeated.)
123
*123
**123
***123
****123
Notice that technically, the "same" thing is being reproduced every time -- 1, 2, 3.
But what God pointed out to me is that every time it gets duplicated -- every time the church molded someone else to take over and be exactly like them -- the row of numbers drifts further and further from the margin, which is the original will of God.
In other words, if only the same set of people control everything and keep trying to replicate themselves, it can result in them moving further and further from things God wants them to stay close to, because they pick and choose what gets emphasized and what gets ignored, and pass that along.
I saw another blatant example of this in a friend's church, where one set of leaders never wanted to try to reign in the church budget. Spending was out of control, but each new set of leadership was taught not to talk about or face money problems head on, so it always got shoved into the closet. Several years later, the church was in a mountain of debt and in a heap of trouble.
For me, this was a good lesson as to why God sometimes sends us outsiders or those who rock the boat -- sometimes, they're trying to show us things we've tried to hide in the closet but must be faced -- and dealt with.
I was thinking of the times He's done this to me in my own life as well. It sure didn't feel like a blessing at the time, but now I'm thankful for it because it taught me the true meaning of someone what to look for in someone I really trust.