Conviction and Confession

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“𝙸𝙵 𝙹𝙴𝚂𝚄𝚂 𝙲𝙰𝙽 𝙳𝙸𝙿 𝙵𝚁𝙾𝙼

𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝚂𝙰𝙼𝙴 𝙱𝙾𝚆𝙻

𝙰𝚂 𝙹𝚄𝙳𝙰𝚂,

𝚆𝙴 𝙲𝙰𝙽 𝚂𝙷𝙰𝚁𝙴

𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝚂𝙰𝙼𝙴 𝚃𝙰𝙱𝙻𝙴,

𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝚂𝙰𝙼𝙴 𝚂𝙿𝙰𝙲𝙴,

𝚆𝙸𝚃𝙷 𝙰𝙽𝚈𝙾𝙽𝙴,

𝚆𝙸𝚃𝙷 𝙶𝚁𝙰𝙲𝙴.” -𝒜𝓃𝓃 𝒱ℴ𝓈𝓀𝒶𝓂𝓅



It looks like this may be a week of conviction and confession. 


I saw this quote and immediately sat down to write about how so many of us look down on others whose sin or whose lifestyle looks different from ours-- How we won’t entertain this orientation or that--The dingy, the dirty, the down and out. 


I have had no problem sitting at the table with the “undesirables.” The ones society often overlooks or looks down upon. 


I was going to talk about this issue 𝐈 don’t have a problem with, until the Holy Spirit once again convicted my heart. But, I’ve always been kind to, or friends with every kind of person 𝐬𝐨 𝐈 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡𝐭.


But there are others. I can easily love them from afar, but as far as inviting them to my table. . . That’s been more difficult. As far as I can tell, they are greedy, they are materialistic, their politics frustrate me, they struggle to love the people I love, and they don’t 𝐠𝐞𝐭 me. Once again I’ve come back to an issue of judgementalism. 


My Judas may look different than yours, but I still struggle to share that table, to share that space, and to find grace.


I can’t come to you each week, sharing the way God is asking us to care for each other when I still have reservations about who I need to care for. I see now that not only have I not realized it, but I’ve been justifying my reluctance. . . or refusal to bring them to my table. 𝑩𝒆𝒔𝒊𝒅𝒆𝒔, I thought. 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒐𝒘𝒏. 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒅𝒐𝒏’𝒕 𝒏𝒆𝒆𝒅 𝒎𝒊𝒏𝒆. 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒔𝒆𝒆𝒎 𝒑𝒆𝒓𝒇𝒆𝒄𝒕𝒍𝒚 𝒉𝒂𝒑𝒑𝒚 𝒂𝒕 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒊𝒓 𝒐𝒘𝒏 𝒕𝒂𝒃𝒍𝒆.


Ooh ouch. Conviction.


Friends, as I type these words, my heart is being pierced. I feel grief over this attitude I’ve justified and carried. However, once again, I know I’m not alone. I know that most of us carry this same burden. Did you even realize it was a burden? Can we be willing to give that burden to Jesus?


 

It’s time for radical change in our hearts.


“In your relationships with one another, have the same mindset as Christ Jesus:” (‭‭Philippians‬ ‭2:5‬)

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