No Exceptions

It's been a while since I wrote my last blog post. I have been pondering over what to write about and I have definitely been suffering from writer's burnout. Yet I tried to remain faithful in the process: that God would deliver in due time, a topic to lay in my heart.

I had an opportunity to go to a high school retreat this past weekend for Fellowship of Christian Athletes. I was assigned as a huddle leader for a group of 6 high schoolers whom I had never met before. I was nervous, anxious, and full of doubts as to what was going to happen. I wanted to connect spiritually with them. I wanted them to learn and realize how much they are valued and what their potential is. Little did I know that my worries would fade away in the presence of The Holy Spirit that weekend.

Over the course of only 36 hours, I got to know these kids more than I ever thought I would. They opened up to me and I opened up to them about what struggles, trials and burdens we carried in our lives. As I listened to their stories and how these kids wanted to seek and pursue Jesus more, I was reminded of the importance of the gospel that I often overlook. Jesus died. Jesus resurrected. Jesus forgives because Jesus loves. Jesus loves with no exceptions. None.

We are all broken people living in a broken world. The only truth that will set us free is the redeeming love of Christ that meets us where we are, sees us for who we are, and says I still love you for what you are. Jesus whispers to us "You are my child, precious and holy". As a result, we must not forget that we can live out the gospel in our lives by not necessarily having to mention the name of Jesus every time, but through small acts of kindness, love, and mercy. There's an aura about love that is contagious and hard to explain. It is simply there, present, and transformative. People notice that there is something different about those who live a life of love. Because the mind is a curious object, it has a natural desire to seek and know more. This is our opportunity and avenue to introduce the gospel. This is the way that we describe who Jesus was, what Jesus did, and what his mission is.

There were many unknowns in scripture. It seemed that through Jesus' entire life, the disciples were still left confused as to what the deeper meaning of Jesus' existence was. In many ways we are like the disciples: confused, lost, uneasy, and subject to the unknown. Many of us do not know what lies ahead. I certainly do not know but in the midst of the unknown we can become familiar with what is known. That is the greatest commandment that Jesus gave us: to love. But we must learn to love oneself before making a commitment to love others. You are worthy, valuable, and a beautiful creation just as every other human is. While we lie in brokenness, we can recover through redemption. Redemption through the forgiving power of love. So let us not remain tempted to be caught up in the unseen, but move forward in what is seen and what is known. That love carries no boundaries. That love carries no limits. That love carries no exceptions. I'm glad I met those brothers in Christ that weekend because they inspired me in ways I couldn't even imagine.

Colossians 1:13-14

"For he has rescued us from the dominion of darkness and brought us into the kingdom of the Son he loves, in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins."

"I believe that unarmed truth and unconditional love will have the final word in reality. This is why right, temporarily defeated, is stronger than evil triumphant." - Martin Luther King Jr.

"Judging others makes us blind, whereas love is illuminating. By judging others we blind ourselves to our own evil and to the grace which others are just as entitled to as we are.” - Dietrich Bonhoeffer