In The Light

Though the winds of change may blow around you,

but that will always be so
When love is pain it can devour you, if you are never alone
I would share your load. I would share your load

Led Zeppelin

And all who believed were together and had all things in common. And they were selling their possessions and belongings and distributing the proceeds to all, as any had need.

Acts 2:44:45

The Gospel is about two things. The first is loving God with all our hearts, minds, and souls. The second is loving our neighbors as ourselves. I can't begin to attempt to count about how many people I've met that have been burned by church. How can this be so? I have certainly been burned by two churches, campus ministry, and a multi-billion dollar mission sending agency. While I was partly to blame with the mission sending agency, the punishment never came remotely close to fitting the crime. The other 3 instances, I'm not sure what I could have done differently. My point though, is that this happens to millions of people on a regular basis. Are we so self-absorbed that we assume as long as we show up to church and read our devotion book during the week that we really don't have to get our hands dirty? I've been in very few churches, maybe one or two, that were interested in doing the dirty work that Jesus requires of His church. By dirty work, I simply mean loving and serving others. It sounds easy. In principle it should be very easy. But it is not. I've come to realize that the average American church goer could really care less about the people in the next pew. And this is one of the reasons that the church is losing it's relevance every day. Instead of getting her hands dirty, she would rather water down her message, serve coffee, hire a rock band to lead the worship, all in a vain attempt to make herself less intimidating. I am a firm believer that people ( at least the majority) do not go to church to be entertained. I think people are simply looking for love. This world is so overbearing, oppressive, and lonely. Most people just want an ear to listen. I know I do. So where has the love gone? How easily the second greatest commandment gets trampled underfoot.

It is easy to love God, but it is hard to love others, even other believers. Loving people takes time. It takes effort. It takes patience. It takes sacrifice. It takes faith. All of these things are the fruit of the Spirit. So let us love one another as Christ has loved us. Let us help our neighbor move his furniture. Let us spend time listening to those that have nobody to talk to. Let us give our time to meeting the needs of the less fortunate. Let us lend a helping hand to our lost co-workers. Let us give of our time and money with joy and humility. Let our ears be willing to listen and our hearts willing to pray for one another. This is my prayer. To love as Christ has loved. Loving like Christ will transform a lonely and broken world.

Lean On Me is probably my favorite song at the moment. It was written by Bill Withers. I could not find any info on his religious affiliation. This song has recently become my life anthem.

Sometimes in our lives we all have pain
We all have sorrow
But if we are wise
We know that there's always tomorrow

Lean on me, when you're not strong
And I'll be your friend
I'll help you carry on
For it won't be long
'Til I'm gonna need
Somebody to lean on

Please swallow your pride
If I have things you need to borrow
For no one can fill those of your needs
That you don't let show

Lean on me, when you're not strong
And I'll be your friend
I'll help you carry on
For it won't be long
'Til I'm gonna need
Somebody to lean on

If there is a load you have to bear
That you can't carry
I'm right up the road
I'll share your load
If you just call me

So just call on me brother, when you need a hand
We all need somebody to lean on
I just might have a problem that you'd understand
We all need somebody to lean on