Freedom over rules & Love over judgment...

It's a funny thing, and I know there is an exception to every rule, however generally when someone does something you deem "bad" you offer them compassion and they change their mind. You offer someone freedom as opposed to rules and they seem to break less rules then they would have, had they had them.

Romans 2:4 "It's the goodness of God that leads you to change your mind"

Please don't get the wrong idea with what I'm about to say, my mom passed away in 2003, she was a great mom and I loved her very much. I no longer grieve over her earthly death even though those of us who knew her miss her. I know that her life now is more abundant.

I remember growing up, it would probably be fair to say I was very mischievous. ( : I was always getting into something. The more rules I broke the more rules my mom would add, Sometimes I would try very hard to not break the rules (other times I didn't even try).

I remember when I was 15, I got arrested for shoplifting, (this was not my first run-in with the arm of the law) my dad picked me up from police custody and took me home, I stayed in my room until my mom got home from work. When she got home I could hear my dad tell her what had happened. There was something very out of context that happened next, you see most of the time my mom would react with fiery, intense, loud displays of disapproval, but this time was different. Instead of the usual increase in vocal volume, she came into my room and said words that I will never forget, she said: "I give up, I will always love you and provide for you, but you can do whatever you want, I can't do it any more"

You would think that this would have a negative reaction, or perhaps your thinking; that is a terrible thing to say, but that's not the effect it had on me. Instead what it did was life changing. For the first couple weeks like the prodigal son I took full advantage of my new found freedom, but then after I had done everything and there was nothing left that I wanted to do. It was at this point I evaluated my life and began to realize that what I actually wanted most was to succeed, to live up to my potential and be the best me I could be. I wanted to believe in destiny.

There are some people out there who struggle so much with "sin" that the concept that God still loves and forgives is lost on them. As I heard a great preacher once say in response to someone who asked him "so you're telling me I can do whatever I want and still go to heaven" his answer wasn't a simple, yes, His answer was, "What do you want to do?". you see those of us who are so bound to legalism can not see past following the the "do's and don'ts". It is my belief that like the prodigal son, after all the squandering has lost it's thrill, you will realize that it is far greater to be in your fathers house, where the supply never ends.

It seems to be the norm these days for allot of us so called "Christians" or any religious fanatics for that matter to judge others lives and to attribute their own cultural disapproval and sign it in the name of God. As the old proverb says "Don't judge someone, until you've walked a mile in their shoes". Could it be that the reason you have so much disapproval isn't that the other person actually deserves judgment or punishment, but it's actually because you are not familiar with their culture, generation, or beliefs? Maybe it's time that we stop talking, and start listening.

"If you judge people, you have no time to love them." - Mother Theresa