Internet Christianity

My soul has been aching for the church lately. I see the words written on social media. I hear the sideline conversations. People share blogs that offend other believers. Some of it is political. Some of it is ideological. I hear from pastors about the fractures in their local bodies of believers. It’s heartbreaking. I want to pretend it isn’t happening. Or it isn’t a big deal. Or just shut my ears and say, “LALALA.” After all, we have always had differences of opinions within in the body of Christ. The New Testament and church history reveal that the church has struggled with unity from day one. During some seasons …

Oh Be Careful Little Fingers…

What you type…. I grew up singing a little song at church that sounded like this: Oh be careful little mouth what you say… Oh be careful little feet where you go…. Oh be careful little hands what you do… For the Father up above is looking down in love so be careful little _______ what you _________. It wasn’t a shaming song. Instead it cautioned us to remember that our loving God wants us to express love in what we say and do. Lately, as followers of Jesus, it seems we need to add a verse to the song that says, Oh be careful little fingers what you type. …

Proposing

Getting along is so hard. One of the things that makes it so difficult is our tendency to project our thoughts, feelings, and beliefs onto to others. Our default is to think: What annoys me also annoys everyone else. What doesn’t bother me shouldn’t bother anyone else. If I need time to process things, so does everyone else. If I don’t need time to process, then you shouldn’t either. When I know the right way, I should keep pushing until everyone acknowledges that my way is right. You get the idea. How can we step outside our own way of feeling and thinking and see other’s points of view? Yet …