Tag: division

My Unpopular Opinions

I had a dream last night that I was in heaven. It was a really strange dream. I was exploring, and I was aware that I was dreaming. And I kept hoping that I wouldn’t wake up, because I wanted to see more. It was peaceful. I remember, in the dream, taking note of how I felt, Hmm, I don’t feel creeped out like I usually do in dreams, this feels peaceful, it really must be heaven. But, there wasn’t very much that was “heavenly”. It was like being in a regular city. The buildings weren’t amazing, just regular city buildings. I went inside one building and it just looked like a regular building. Nothing amazing. I talked to people and there was nothing that stood out about them. Just regular people. The only two things that were different was I had a “new” body that I barely paid any attention to, and I was handed some amazing french baguette bread, and told I could eat it without worrying about gaining weight. (Yay!) And then I woke up, thinking, huh, that was a weird dream. And I’ve been thinking about it and I quickly realized what was wrong. Jesus wasn’t there. I think in the dream, I was subconsciously looking for him the whole time. And there was no sign of him, except for the peaceful feeling. And a pleasant city with pleasant people, but no Jesus? That’s just not heaven. 

 

All the biblical descriptions of heaven make it very clear that God is the center of heaven. God on his throne, angels worshipping him. 

 

Revelation 21:23 The city does not need the sun or the moon to shine on it, for the glory of God gives it light, and the Lamb is its lamp.

 

I would think that if the glory of God is the light source of heaven, you are definitely going to be very aware of his presence when you are there. In fact, if I were to give a definition of heaven, I would say, it’s being in the presence of God. 

 

And for some reason, my mind is drifting to our country and politics and the current mess that we are in as we approach an election in the Fall. 

 

I have found it pretty amazing that I have had Christian friends express the sentiment that to vote for Trump is “unchristian” and at the exact same time I have had other Christian friends tell me that to vote for Biden is “unchristian”. 

 

Can I ask a favor? Could we stop doing that? God is not setting up his kingdom solely in the United States of America. His kingdom happens to be in every single country on this earth. His kingdom does not rely on which party is in office. His kingdom does not depend on whether our country is socialist or capitalist. His kingdom does not depend on us being a republic or a democracy. There is no government that can stop the spreading of God’s kingdom. 

 

In my dream, the “heaven” I was in was nice, peaceful. Pleasant enough people, the surroundings were ok. But it wasn’t Heaven. Jesus wasn’t there. It was just a nice place. Kind of like our country. Nice place. Not heaven. 

 

For some reason, right now, Christians on both sides of the political spectrum seem to be taking a stance that if their candidate wins, we will be able to have a country where the Kingdom of God can be advanced. But, if the other side wins, the future of Christianity is in grave peril. 

I would like to put forth the idea that God is sovereign. He can and will advance his kingdom no matter who is in office. And while our country is a nice place, filled with nice people, it’s not heaven. It’s not the headquarters for God’s kingdom. God’s throne is not in Washington D.C. (thank God!). Believe it or not, this upcoming election is not going to be a deciding factor on whether God’s kingdom advances. 

 

Now, I know that by now, everyone is mad at me. I’m sorry. I understand that your political stance is very important to you. And I understand that you are very worried about the upcoming election. Thinking about our country being led by a political leader you don’t respect and don’t agree with is alarming. And right now, our political beliefs are so strong that we seem to have overset our tendencies to be polite and respectful to other people. 

 

We need to understand something though. There are born-again, on fire, devoted believers on both sides of the political spectrum. And when we start tossing around the term “unchristian” concerning our political beliefs, we are causing a LOT of division in the body of Christ. And we are living in a state of fear that is unnecessary. God is on his throne, his kingdom is not in danger. Yes, your Christian beliefs have shaped how you feel you should vote. But please understand, this is true for both sides!!

 

So, yes, have your political beliefs. Campaign for your favorite candidate. But keep in mind, this is an earthly kingdom we are talking about. Somehow, our country is going to have to gain some unity. And a good first step is to stop throwing around the term “unchristian”. 

Why are we so Angry?

My last post was essentially an Angry Rant about people Angry Ranting on the internet. Yes. I see the hypocrisy here. Of course, when you’re angry, it’s kind of hard to think clearly. All you can think about is your anger, and what’s fueling it, and you just want to lash out. And I did. And I’m sorry. While I had many friends that could empathize with my position, I knew that I had written it in anger, not love. So I removed the post. 

 

It’s got me thinking about why am I so angry? Why is everyone else so angry? It’s also got me a little more sympathetic for everyone else’s Angry Rants. Yes. I see. When you are angry, it’s hard to be kind and respectful and thoughtful. 

 

I’m going to try again. 

 

Take 2

 

So, why are we so angry? 

 

I can’t speak for everyone else. I can tell you some of the things that have made me angry recently. 

 

I am angry about a pandemic that has shut down my normal way of life. I am angry that the leadership is so divided, that I have no trust in how my country is dealing with this. I am angry that the news media is so biased, I have no trust in what they are saying and now I feel like I am sifting through mountains of information, and it’s just a guess as to which one is true or false. I am angry at the stories of Police Brutality that have come to light. I am angry that I really wasn’t clued in to what was happening. I am angry that I seem to have no tangible way of making the situation better. I am angry at how politicized the whole thing has become. Instead of a human rights issue, the media (on both sides) seem determined to make this a Political Party issue. I am angry at how divided our country is. And there doesn’t seem to be any way to fix it. I am angry that we are turning against each other on social media, drawing lines in the sand on issues, that many of us just really don’t fully understand. 

 

I am angry at how this shut down has made my life so much more difficult as I try to raise a large family. I am angry that I am exhausted and the light at the end of the tunnel seems very far away and it keeps flickering, like it might disappear. 

 

I am angry at myself for not being “better”, “stronger”. Why do I have to be so weak? Why do I have to struggle with depression? Why can’t I rise above my circumstances? 

 

Before I took my post down, a friend commented on my Facebook page that he disagreed with my sentence I had written that said, “We are better than this.” He pointed out that we are actually worse, and it’s only God’s grace that has kept us at any kind of level of civility (paraphrased). And I had to agree. He’s right. We are all so capable of so many horrible things: anger at each other, racism, superiority complexes, oppression, hatred, murder. 

The other day I was faced with a confession by a fellow human being, they told me of a horrible deed they had done and I was shocked. Shocked into silence. You did what?? How? I just sat there. There were no words to offer sympathy and justification for the deed, just horror. And suddenly, I found myself preaching the Gospel. This is why Jesus came. All of us have done bad things. Every single one of us. And none of us can fix it. None of us can make all those bad things go away. We are completely helpless. And Jesus came. He lived the perfect life for us. He died on the Cross and paid the price for these horrible things that we have done. He wiped the debt clean. He removed the offense. He is the only one who can make us pure again. We need to come to him. Confess our sins. Ask his forgiveness. Accept his forgiveness. Have faith that he has made all things right again. 

 

That’s where we are at as a country. We have done horrible things. We have turned a blind eye, we have walked in pride, we have vented our anger, we have mocked and scorned each other. There is no way to fix this. People who are concerned about White Privilege feel that old debts need to be repaid. How?  It is too big, too messy, too arbitrary. White Privilege is in essence the privilege of the ruling class which has been going on since the beginning of time in every single country that has ever existed. How can we go back and fix every single wrong? And yes. It is definitely wrong. It is sin. It is evil. 

 

I would say that it can’t be fixed. Every single one of us needs forgiveness. You might say, I’m not a racist! I don’t have any privilege! Or maybe you are black or another one of the minorities, and you say, Hey, I didn’t do anything wrong, I’ve just been wronged against. 

 

Maybe, in the matter of race, you are completely innocent. But can you say the same for every other area in your life? 

 

All have sinned and Fall short of the glory of God. Romans 3:23

 

I look at the mess we are in. All the anger. I am overwhelmed, there are no words to fix it. And so I will preach the Gospel. Because, sappy as it is, Jesus truly is the only answer. And I’m not talking about a religion. I’m talking about the God who says, “Love Me and then Love your Neighbor as Yourself.” And then he gives us his Holy Spirit to give us the power to do those two things. 

 

And as I focus on Him, some of the fear eases away. And as fear eases away, I suddenly don’t feel like I have to lash out. Yes, I can still be angry at injustice, wrongdoing, violence. But, I can also get a bigger perspective. This is a spiritual battle. (As a friend reminded me today!)I need to be praying for my enemies, not gloating over them. Each person I meet is a soul that needs Jesus. My anger isn’t going to save them. But my love and compassion might.