Monday, June 29, 2015

The Flip Side

My last post was about how the church has hurt me in the past.  I know some of you may be thinking... "So why do you even still go to church?"

Well, a church is not God himself.  Every church is made of humans.  It should be led by God, but unfortunately many times, it is not.  Those are what I call Social Clubs.  I mentioned in my last post that I am extremely selective about where I attend.   I have learned that there are churches out there that are full of true believers.  Now, I will admit that even in these churches, there are people who may not be a true believer, but if a church as a whole is following God to the best of their ability, that is where I want to be. 

"How did you figure that out?" You may be thinking.  I am a recovering Social Club member.  I was part of a Social Club and I was just as judgmental as the rest of them until I went through what I wrote about in my last post.  If you didn't read it, here it is:  The Social Club.

I stumbled about for years after I was rejected by that church.  It was not a church that made me see the truth, but a friend.  I wasn't really close to this woman, and I don't keep in touch with her now, but she changed my life. She was a person who had a relationship with Jesus.  More than just following an empty religion.  She shone with His Light.  Everywhere she went you could see the peace that surrounded her.  Her life wasn't perfect, she didn't have a lot of money and she struggled sometimes to pay her bills.  But she had Hope and Peace that was supernatural.  I found that it came from spending time in God's presence.  I began to want what she had.  I didn't know why or how to have that, but I wanted it desperately.  I needed it.  I knew about the Bible.  I had grown up in church.  I knew scripture.  But I didn't know how to shine like she did. 

The scriptures became real on the night that Jesus came to me.  I was lying in bed, crying because of things that were in my life had become so overwhelming.  I was depressed and scared that my life was falling apart. I prayed a simple prayer, "Help." Jesus showed up in my room. I couldn't see him like I can see my kids sitting here in the room with me.  I felt him.  As soon as he entered the room I felt his presence.  He put his arms around me and comforted me.  He promised me that things would be hard, but that He had a plan for my life.  He picked up all the things I had been holding on to so tightly and that were hurting me and took them.  In my mind, I saw a huge trash can and he threw away all of those things.  Jesus is real and he loves you. He can do this for you too, if you ask Him. 

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