Authentic Me...Faithfully.

So, I know that there are some things we are warned about not talking about in public (or on the internet) and those things include politics and religion. I understand why.  However, I have never been one to follow the “rules.”  Plus, this is completely about me and my feelings and my failures, so there.  Also, it is thanks to someone for teaching me about being myself.

I am a Sunday Church kind of person.  That’s not saying I don’t live the other days of the week as a Christian, but I am one of those people who has historically gone to church on Sunday to the regular service and haven’t gotten overly involved in any smaller group activities or taken time to get to know my ministers or others in my church on a more personal level.  Now, don’t get me wrong, I love my ministers at my church in my home town.  LOVE THEM! However, I have always been scared they might not love me or at least not the AUTHENTIC me. I know, it sounds weird, but here’s the deal about me.  I love God. I know that Jesus died for my sins so that I might be saved. I am a BELIEVER.  However, I have (gasp) struggled with some of the beliefs and teaching of the church as a whole.  This fact has led me to keep my distance from my ministers, mostly because I was always scared that I would say something that they might not like or that might make them think I wasn’t a “good” Christian.   Basically, I didn’t trust them.  I didn’t trust them to understand that I might have different opinions or that they might think less of me for not towing the party line. (Please excuse the mixed metaphors between politics and religion.)

See, this is the thing about me, I still hold fast to the first things I learned about God and Jesus as a child, as well as the compassionate person my mother taught me to be. I hold fast to LOVE, despite what our “sins” may be. I don’t believe in judging others, nor do I believe that it is the Church’s place to judge. I think every single person, no matter what, should feel welcome in church. I think sometimes we focus too much on the sin and too little on loving each other.  However, I sometimes feel that how I think on things goes against the official church stance.  Hence, the reason I have in the past, kept my distance. However, the most awesome thing has happened to me lately.  I am now friends with one of my ministers from my church on Facebook and have learned that it is okay that I am sometimes confused and that I don’t always agree with everything that the church says.  It is okay that I question things and that my sometimes more “liberal” interpretation is A-okay.  You see, she has taught me that it is okay to be my more authentic self, even with my church friends.  WHEW!!! Say what you what about social media, but sometimes, it is absolutely AWESOME! For my dear friend who has taught me that it is okay to be me, Thank You! 

“Jesus loves the little children.  All the children of the world.  Red, Yellow, Black and White (Gay, Straight, Married, Divorced, Imperfect, Sinners…Every Single One), they are PRECIOUS in his sight. Jesus loves the little children of the world.”