Pray for Reconciliation in Kenya

Hey y'all!

      Okay, so finals are over and I was able to do a little thinking....I know, it's dangerous for me, but hear me out   So there's a song that's been stuck in my head.  I think it's called "At the Cross".  Here's the part that has been replaying in my head all the time:

"...and the wrongs that we've done,

and the wrongs done to us,

they're all with Him, there on the Cross...

At the Cross (at the Cross), He died for our sin,

At the Cross (at the Cross), He gave us life again..."

And the thing that struck me is this: we get mad at people a lot.  We get upset when they do things that harm or inconvenience us.  We get mad at people who do things that hurt other people...things that we say we would never do.  But to God, all our sins are the same.  That means that we're all on par with people like Sadaam and Hitler.  That means that the lying, lusting, jealousy, anger, etc that we feel is the same as their genocidal rampages...at least in the eyes of God.  What's more so, the line in the song that says "...and the wrongs done to us..."  We always emphasize that Christ died for OUR sins, trying to get people to believe because that's so awesome (don't get me wrong, it is the most awesome thing that has ever happened to me!)  But I think we forget a lot of times that line "...the wrongs done to us..."  We shouldn't get mad at other people.  Christ died for their sins too!!!  He died for every sin...even the ones that people do to us...so if our sins equal theirs, which equal the sins of Sadaam and Hitler....maybe we shouldn't go around getting mad and frustrated at other people because they hurt us or make us uncomfortable...maybe we should go around thanking God at every moment that He forgave us and He forgave them (even when they are doing mean things to us.)  I think that's why the disciples were able to be happy, even during persecution.  Cause they knew and remembered that Christ even died for that persecution that they were facing that very moment...He died for their persecutors.  And if those persecutors were important enough for Him to die for...maybe they're important enough for us to die for too....Have a Blessed CHRISTmas everyone!!!

Currently Reading Speaking of Jesus: How to Tell Your Friends the Best News They Will Ever Hear (The Video Series With Book and Discussion Guide) By J. MacK Stiles see related

Hey y'all!  Okay, so I have 2 tests tomorrow and I shouldn't be procrastinating, but I just finished this book and I wanted to let y'all here a little part from it.  It's all about sharing your message of Truth with others and I just thought this little story was funny.  It's from the end of the book and it definitely shows that anyone can share the Gospel:

Mike, a sophomore from UK [University of Kentucky], always seems to show up at mealtime.  He's good-looking, a young Christian, and a classic Generation Xer. 

"Well, at least I finished the manuscript of your book," Mike said as he plopped the dog-eared pages on the kitchen table. 

"Great," I said as I pulled the pizza from the oven.  "What did you think?" 

"I really liked your stories - it's going to help lots of poeple."  A pause. "But it's not for me." Mioke perched on our kitchen windowsill and crossed his arms.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I guess it's for people who are more spiritual than me."

"Well, Mike, that shakes me some...I want people who aren't religious to be able to read this stuff." 

Mike looked at the pizza.  "Pizza looks good," he remarked.  Then he said, "I guess I just can't imagine me doing something like sharing my faith on a beach or anything."......

Then I said,"I don't know how spiritual it was to go to the beach."

"Well, you'll see what I mean when you read my comments on the manuscript.  I hope you don't mind, but my friend Terry wrote on it some too." 

"No, I don't mind.  Who's Terry?" I asked.

"Oh, just a friend.  We worked in Colorado together this summer.  Some of your stuff really made her mad, so don't be offended." 

I said, "Don't worry - I'd only be offended if she said she was bored."

"She wasn't bored, that's for sure."  Mike stared at the pizza while I sliced it. "It really only got her angry at first, but after she finished the manuscript it really affected her. Like, she went back to Chicago and went to talk to htis pastor in a real active church. She's on a canoe trip with them this weekend even." MIke paused. "Like, she even got baptized." Mike said that as if it were really strange.

"Like, what?" I roared. Mike looked at me blankly. "Mike, it sounds as if Terry became a Christian!"

He looked up at the ceiling. "Yeah, I guess it does." 

I ponited my pizza slicer at his face. "Are you telling me that God used you to help bring someone to Christ?"..."Are you telling me that God used you in evnagelism?"

"Well, I never thought of it that way."

"You never thought of it that way?!" I howled.  I grabbed the baggy thermal underwear that he wears for a shirt. "Mike, you bonehead, don't tell me it's not for you when you did it!"

He grinned at me sheepishly. "I didn't do anything." 

"That's just my point! We don't have to have it all together to share our faith.  We just need to take some steps where we are.  You gave her the manuscript, didn't you?"

"Well, yeah."

"Mike, that's great news."

"Yeah, I guess it is," he said. "Hey, you remember that book you gave me called The Fight?"

I nodded knowingly. "You want to give it to Terry, don't you?"

"No," he said. "I was hoping you could give me another copy. I just want to read it again."

I said, "What did you do with the last copy I gave you?"

"I dunno." He shrugged.