i cannot be...

i am who i am....that's all i can be..

i am who i am because my experiences have shaped me into....well....me. given the opportunity i would have skated through life without a scratch..i would have lived at peace with everyone around me...i would have made sure that i did the "right" thing in every situation that i encountered. but i didn't. i didn't always make the right choices...i didn't always walk the way i was supposed to walk or say the things that i was "supposed" to say. and because of the road that i have traveled, i have picked up a few scars and a few bruises that just won't go away...scars and bruises that have made me who i am...

i am who i am because my experiences taught me lessons that i had to learn the hard way in most cases. for me, it takes a burning bush...i very seldom get the hint the first time. and so because of this i am battling with a few others for the top spot in the school of hard knocks...but i have learned this one lesson very well....i am who i am

i cannot be who you want me to be....whoever 'you' are. i can only be me and you should only be you. don't conform to others' picture of you....do not allow others to write the story that you were given the pen to write....be who you are.

you're killing me 'christians'

unforgiving, selfish, exclusive, toxic, condemning, condescending

i've had quite a few conversations over the last several months about the church and the people that the church is made of....you may know that term as 'christians'....the terms at the top of this post "unforgiving, selfish, exclusive, etc." are all words that people used to describe 'christians' in our conversations. the people in my convos ranged from long time followers of Christ to... new followers of Christ to.... people that were once followers of Christ and were burned by the church to.... finally, people that do not follow Christ and have no desire to....

what are 'we' (and by we i mean 'christians') doing?

being a 'christian' is not being a member of a club...you don't pay dues so that you get to come to fancy meetings in your fancy halls and sit back and talk about how cool you are because you are in the club....to be a 'christian' is to follow Christ.....follow - that is an ACTION! following Christ isn't about being good or safe or protected in your walls....it's about being! getting out of your comfort zone and getting your hands and feet dirty while caring for others and meeting people's holistic needs...

we have turned the word 'christians' into something ugly...and that's completely our fault...take a look at that list of words that was used to describe 'christians' again:

...unforgiving, selfish, exclusive, toxic, condemning, condescending,....what happened to love? what happened to giving of yourself and your resources and all that you are to those in need? if you think about it, everything you are and everything you have was given to you by God....so technically it's his anyway right? who are you to hold onto something that was given so freely to you?

when someone is hungry....feed them. when someone is thirsty.....give them something to drink. when someone is in need....MEET. THE. NEED. if you can't meet the full need, do something in the direction of meeting that need. just love!!!

we've got to change the people's perception of 'christians' and Christ....let's not talk about "doing good" and "being the church" - let's actually DO IT.... there are so many organizations that are providing ways for you to reach others. if you don't want to give through an organization then look into your community because there are needs every. single. day. that aren't being met and those people are hurting. show God to those people by loving them. and don't expect anything in return....just love them.....because they were created in the same image that you and I were...God's...

let that sink in a minute...