I found myself in what has become a familiar place recently.
Union Station.
On my drive in with one of my oldest friends a song came on the radio I had never heard before.
Due to our awesome and sickeningly consuming technology I was able to hold my phone up to the radio and boom, just like that I had the song uploaded, downloaded, side loaded…you name it. It was loaded onto my phone.
As I entered the business of Chicago and made my way with my obnoxiously heavy and over packed bag I was surrounded by more and more people. I made it to my gate, plopped myself down, and popped in my headphones.
I started in on one of my favorite things to do.
People watch.
The song continued to play in my head as I scanned the room.
I saw a group of Amish people eating McDonalds…I feel like they aren’t allowed to eat that stuff so I snapped a picture and uploaded it to my twitter which is simultaneously uploaded to my facebook.
Creepy?
Probably.
None the less I continued to people watch.
There was a group of older women all chit chatting and trying to find seats. As an older man gave up his seat to one of them I thought to myself, “well that was nice…” I made up in my head where these women could possibly be going all together and thought of my friends and I doing the same thing at their age.
I just don’t think the world is prepared for that.
The song was on repeat by this point, much like it is right now as I write this.
I kept scanning the room and all of the sudden there was a lump in my throat.
Then came some sort of liquid that welled up in my eyeball region.
(For those of you who don’t know me very well, I’m not a huge fan of crying. Well I never used to be but these days I tend to get super emotional about things that pertain to people.)
As the song seemed to get louder and louder in my ear, my brain was consumed with one thought and one thought only:
“I wonder how many people in this room don’t know that God loves them…”
I have never been so tempted to stand up and shout of His love more then I was at that moment.
But I didn’t.
I mean, I would look like a total crazy person.
But maybe that’s what this world needs…just a few more crazy people.
Crazy in love with the God of the Universe who just can’t stand to be silent any more.
As I continued on in my silence I boarded the train and continued to think of such things. How funny that my mind was so consumed with such a thought but I did nothing about it.
I feel a little silly, to be honest.
My life is much like that train station. I am surrounded by people that I don’t know if they know how much God really does love them.
I often invite people to church that I know will say no. I have a love/hate relationship with this new habit of mine.
I love knowing that I have at least tried but I hate their responses. Not because they are rude about it or anything like that but because of the lies Satan has been able to get them to believe.
I am haunted by so many of their reasons as to why they will not come. So much so that they make me want to keep asking more people just to see if everyone else feels the same as them.
I have one friend in specific that I invite every Sunday and every Wednesday.
He always says no.
He’s a classic hipster, loves him some denim on denim fashion, loves randomly tattooing his body, loves food more then anyone should, and he plays in a local band.
People ask me why I keep inviting him and here is what I have to keep telling others and myself:
He’ll say yes one of these times.
This past Saturday I sent him the usually, “get yo ass to charrch” text and his response is still ringing in my ear.
“Not after what I’m about to do tonight…I’m gonna be too dirty for church.”
Too dirty?
What on earth?!
The church was made for and is filled to the brim with people who are seemingly “too dirty”. Why is it that we have somehow made the outside world feel just like that…outsiders.
My most recent interaction was with a 32 year old man child that tans at the salon I work at.
He is an 18 year old boy stuck in a 32 year old man’s body, he is an ex-con, works at a local restaurant, often found stumbling into the salon around noon still drunk from the night before, not ashamed to express his opinion, and the newest fact I have gathered from him is that he is a white supremacist.
I have a very sarcastic but honest relationship with him. My response to him after finding out he has “white power” tattooed on his back was this:
“Someone didn’t love you enough when you were little did they? I feel like you need a hug…and that you should prolly come to church with me.”
He thinks the church walls will come crumbling down if he were to come to church.
He thinks he is too dirty.
This past Wednesday at the all worship night Pastor Bill Hybels asked us to write down people we are thankful for.
Those three are on my list.
You see without people like that in my life I fear I would forget what I am called to do.
Love.
Love as God loves.
You see, God loves you right where you’re at. Not for whom you have been or for whom you will end up being, but for who you are right now.
In all your “dirtiness” God loves you.
The song that I have listened to probably a million times by now is the song “what love really means” by JJ. Heller.
The song talks about three different characters who are longing for love.
My favorite part is towards the end of the song when God shows up in a whisper, if you will, and this is his response to the outcry from the broken,
Then he heard a voice somewhere deep inside
And it said
"I know you've murdered and I know you've lied
I have watched you suffer all of your life
And now that you'll listen, I'll tell you that I..."
I will love you for you
Not for what you have done or what you will become
I will love you for you
I will give you the love
The love that you never knew
We so often dwell on what we have done, or haven’t done in some cases, that we are missing out on the love that God is so desperately trying to give us.
Stop beating yourself up.
Stop beating others up.
Stop the beating and let the healing begin.
Psalm 103: 8-12
The Lord is compassionate and merciful, slow to get angry and filled with unfailing love. 9He will not constantly accuse us, nor remain angry forever. 10He does not punish us for all our sins; He does not deal harshly with us, as we deserve. 11For His unfailing love toward those who fear him is as great as the height of the heavens above the earth. 12He has removed our sins as far from us as the east is from the west.
Let go of your sins.
Let go of those who have sinned against you.
The fact of the matter is we are only human. We will sin again…and again…and again.
But what you can not do is keep listening to the lies that Satan will attack you with. For if we keep listening to him the blasting stereo of truth will slowly become a fuzzy crackling radio broadcast that we are sure to turn off. And when we turn that off we are telling the rest of the world that the lies satan is telling them are true and they simply are not.
The world needs love now more then ever. For the past is just that and our future is not guaranteed.
So love today as God has loved us from the beginning all the way to eternity.
Love as God loves.
