Blue Like Jazz

I finished another good book today, Blue Like Jazz. If you liked The Shack, you might like this book as well.

I'm not sure if it is the books I've been reading, the fact that we've gone to several different churches lately, or listening to people that profess to be Christians - but are very judgmental of others and say one thing and do another. But something inside me has changed lately. I feel closer to God - but further away from the church. I almost feel angry at the church right now and I'm trying to figure out why. It's like going to several different doctors and they all tell you something different. They both practice the same medicine, but their diagnosis is different. I feel that way about the church. Aren't we supposed to love EVERYONE the same? No matter if they are rich, poor, Christians, non-Christians, etc...? I don't feel like I'm hearing that right now. In fact, I had a person tell me just recently (and let me mention up front, this is a person that has invited us to their church, go every time the doors are open, and talk about their walk with God), tell me that she was glad we were going to another church other than Life. She said her son was dating a girl that went to that church and when she wouldn't change churches, he broke-up with her. He wouldn't date anyone that went to a church like that. Huh?? I don't understand that. I always thought having a relationship with God, meant that you loved people like God loves you...unconditionally. Am I missing something? No wonder so many people stray away from the church. Sometimes I feel like I should apologize to people that don't have a relationship with God...that "we" are the ones that have pushed them away. I say "we" meaning the people that go to church and have a relationship with God. Shouldn't we be the ones loving those people RIGHT WHERE THEY ARE?

Blue Like Jazz is a little different, and some people may not relate to this book...but I started reading it because my son (Brandon) read it and asked me to read it. He really related to it, and to be honest, has struggled with church and his relationship with God in the past. I thought if this is something that will help him grow spiritually, then I need to take the time to read it. And I'm glad I did. There were several things I really liked in this book...one was when he (Don, the author) and a group of his friends decided to put a "Confession Booth" on the University Campus. Not knowing how people would react, but they felt the need to do it. And they ended up confessing their sins, and actually apologizing to non-Christians (or so they thought were non-Christians) and ended up reaching out to a lot of people. They got out of their comfort zone and I think that is something I don't do often enough. And the other part of this book I liked was toward the end...the Chapter called "Love, How to Really Love Other People" - I love the way he writes and explains his feelings toward other people. How he says he was using love like money, withholding it to get somebody to be who "he" wanted them to be...disobeying God. Later in that chapter he writes, "When I am talking to somebody there are always two conversations going on. The first is on the surface; politics, or music or whatever our mouths are saying. The other is beneath the surface, on the level of the heart, and my heart is either communicating that I like the person I am talking to or I don't. God wants both conversations to be true. That is, we are supposed to speak truth in love. If both conversations are not true, God is not involved in the exchange, we are on our own, and on our own, we will lead people astray. The Bible says that if you talk to somebody with your mouth, and your heart does not love them, that you are like a person standing there smashing two cymbals together. You are only annoying everybody around you." That made me stop and think how many times I've been talking to a person and not truly engaged...because maybe they aren't my favorite person. Again, it just makes you stop and think about things and put them into perspective. Who am I to be judgmental or decide who to love? Again, God loves us unconditionally and that's the way I want to be. May not always happen, but at least I will be more aware of it in the future. AND, that's the way I wish the church would be. I wish we (as a church) could love people unconditionally.

I will continue to try and figure all of this out within myself. But in the meantime, I would welcome any comments, thoughts...or good books :)

KB