Skip to main content

the deconstruction of my life and other not-so-fun moments : love others

 

Jesus said, "'Love the Lord your God with all your passion and prayer and intelligence.' This is the most important, the first on any list. But there is a second to set alongside it: 'Love others as well as you love yourself.' These two commands are pegs; everything in God's Law and the Prophets hangs from them." Matthew 22:37-40

Love has always been a big deal for me. If I have nothing left at the end of this journey, I sincerely hope that Love is still standing strong. Throughout my christian walk, the one constant that I have believed about Love is this: it is unwavering, unconditional, extravagant and indiscriminately lavished upon all. And that sounds perfect and good and exactly how a creator would feel about their creation, right?

So, you can imagine how one begins to question this sweeping love of god that is deep and wide, encompassing all in its vast path, with the love being preached over pulpits every week.

Love all ... but tell those of the LGBTQ community that they are a mistake.

Love all ... but allow racism to run rampant in the pews.

Love all ... but keep your women quiet and submissive as the lesser sex.

Love all ... but make your circles exclusive.

Love all ... but refuse to take small safety measures that honor the health of others.

Love all ... but ignore the poor, the needy, the hungry and the homeless.

For every time that I heard a "love all" and then witnessed the "but" playing out before me, I questioned. A little piece of me shrank back. A bigger piece of me cried out. Love isn't supposed to have a "but" attached.

and if it does, if you are going to quote his words and justify your bigotry and twist his book and claim that you are closer to him than I am, therefore smarter and better about how you portray his love...

do I really want to be a part of that love?  


**************************************************************************

you can read my other deconstruction moments here

racism 

forgiveness

**************************************************************************

 

My deconstruction has no time frame, no ending in sight (yet), no right or wrong way to process, and no predestined landing spot. It is what it is, and I am allowing it to flow naturally for me while enjoying the ride.

Please do not offer me words that minimize the actions of others. ('god didn't hurt you, people did' type of statements) That is an example of how we allow The Church to shirk responsibility for its part in wronging others.

Love calls out injustices. Love calls for accountability. Love asks each one of us to own our mistakes while diligently being better in the following moments.

I have never given up on Love, and She doesn't give up on me.

 

 

 

 


Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

and the honor goes to...part 1

This will be a series of posts in which I honor people who have made an impact in my life, both in my past and in my present. I am blessed to still have some of these people in my life; others have left this life for their next one; others are no longer a part of my close circle, yet still made a difference to me. I want to share them with you. I want to honor them. I want them to know how much I love and respect them. The first one is dedicated to my childhood babysitter, Pat B. Growing up, both of my parents worked. This meant that my sister and I went to a babysitter when we were younger. We had a few, but the one that we spent the most time with, and that I remember the most, lived right up the road from us. We were actually neighbors, but being in the country, that meant a cornfield separated us. I recall being there when I was in kindergarten until I was old enough to stay by myself, probably around 12 or 13. I love to reminisce about my time there. It was my home away from
5 comments
Read more

the day that never came

What am I going to do? I'm sitting in the office waiting for the results of the test. My mind is racing. My palms are sweating. Heck, I'm sweating all over. I'm scared. and nervous. and feel like throwing up. Or is that just a symptom? I'm making promises to god, which is pretty funny since I haven't talked to him in awhile. Not since the last time I needed help. What am I going to do? Time is dragging. Where is that nurse? Shouldn't she be back by now? Is that a good sign or a bad one? I need to know the answer. No wait, I don't want to know (yes, I do). I can't bury my head in the sand (or can I?). I can't pretend like this isn't happening (right?). I have to know one way or the other. Yes or no. Positive or negative. What am I going to do? This is crazy. How did I get here? I'm too young for this. I'm just a teen. This only happens to other people. This can't be happening to me (can it?). I did what I was supposed to do (or didn&
1 comment
Read more

no more hiding

I first published this in May of 2013. A lot has changed in that time. A lot has stayed the same. There are updates at the end of this post. One of my daughters is on a daily SSRI (selective serotonin reuptake inhibitor) or, in layman's terms, an antidepressant. She was diagnosed with the main dish of Anxiety Disorder, with a side of depression. I can joke about it now - and she can too - but it hasn't always been that way. . We first encountered it years ago. At the time we sought church-based counseling but nothing else in the way of help for her. She was so young that I just couldn't imagine putting her on a medication. I had a hard time even accepting that she might have a mental disorder. We got through that time - barely - and went on without it rearing its head again. But when it resurfaced three years ago, it did so with a vengeance. This time, I was better equipped myself to deal with it. There was no hesitation. We immediately saw a doctor, got a prescrip
2 comments
Read more