on christian ecumenicism

It has been forever since I have posted, and since I do not want to dive too much into detail about this, I will sum it up here: with the help of others, the words of Jesus, and the conviction of the Holy Spirit, I have been drawn into a deeper relationship with God, and have noticed many things in my life that need to change. I have coined myself a hypocrite, and one day God just told me, "How long are you going to keep living this life and call yourself one of Mine?" It took me a while to get the point, and here I am. Life is busy, but enjoyable, and I am very excited to be a part of God's plan.

Well. During work, I had my eyes opened to something that had been staring me down for months, and I have decided it is big enough--at least in my eyes--to throw on here. One of my coworkers and a customer were arguing about different denominations of Christianity, arguing about which one is right and which ones are wrong, and eventually my coworker told the customer, "If you believe that, then you've missed the boat." Something clicked in my head, and I wanted to say, "Both of you have missed the boat. It isn't about Lutheran, Messianic, Pentecostal; it isn't about philosophy or theology! It's about Jesus, it's about God!" I have always been partial to nondenominational, but I have come to realize that most of the Christian denominations are just that--Christian. We are all one body, and there are real, authentic followers of Jesus in every denomination. The difference between denominations is that they show, express their love for God in different--not wrong--ways. Black Gospel congregations express their love for God through intense, shouting, clapping music; snake-handlers do it through their daring risk-taking; country churches through their simplicity; Catholics through rituals and ceremonies; others through wearing nice clothes, pounding the Scriptures, singing loud or soft, fast or slow. All beautiful in God's eyes. Real expression of love--a.k.a. worship--isn't bound by a book, but is simply true, authentic, thoughtful, and everyday--not just on Sundays or Wednesdays. Naturalists worship God through the outdoors, nature; Sensates through all five senses; Traditionalists through rituals, ceremonies; ascetics through practicality and simplicity; activists through helping others, battling evil; caregivers through helping/caring for others; enthusiasts through celebration; contemplatives through adoration; intellectuals through studying with their minds, and more. None of these ways are wrong, and none are by-the-book; this isn't the set-in-stone list.

Just an insight.