Jesus loves Pookie, too.

It has been WAY too long since my last post.  Hopefully I still have some "fans".  So I have a story to tell.  Enjoy.

I suggested to some church folks that I know that we should start going to the poorer parts of town and hanging out with the people down there.  Let's allow them to experience what we have in God. 

Their response - O_O

I didn't understand why they were so stunned.  I mean, isn't that what we are called to do?

Their response - You know the bible says that bad company corrupts good character and we definitely want to abstain from the appearance of evil. (Both of these are bible verses by the way... used way wrong) 

Well because at the time, I was not very keen on my Word, I stood down with my suggestion.  Then, I remembered a story from the bible.  In Mark 2: 13 - 17, Jesus is "caught" by some similar church folks (the Pharisees) eating with tax collectors and publicans.  Well, why is that significant?  Well, in those times, the tax collector and publicans were considered the worst of the worse amongst the Jews.  The epitome of evil, the scourge of society.  No one wanted anything to do with them.  The Jews would have loved for them to be eradicated from the planet... LITERALLY.  And yet Jesus was chillin' with them... eating?  Was Jesus good character corrupted, I ask? 

So, I took it a little further and wondered... what sort of people do we today consider the worst of the worse, the epitome of evil, the scourge of society?  Ask yourself... what people do YOU consider that?  Crackheads?  Prostitutes?  Pedophiles? Mobsters?  You got those people in your mind?   

Now, realize this... those are the folks that Jesus would be hanging out with, eating dinner with, and ministering to.  Did I just jar you a little bit?  Good!  Did I just make you think?  Even better?

For some reason, those church folk I spoke of earlier and many of us think that we have the monopoly on Jesus and we don't want to "corrupt our good character" by going into those vile places where those "sinners" are.  But wasn't Jesus departing commandment in all of the gospels was "Go in the nations and make disciples (followers)?  How are we making disciples of anybody when if we're really honest, we won't go where Jesus would go.

Here's the real deal:  Jesus would NOT be in churches 24/7 if He were living today... He would be on the other side of the tracks where Pookie and them are.  He would be downtown where the crackhouses are.  He would be eating with the welfare moms and deadbeat dads at a McDonald's or something.

In Psalm 119:59, David says that he considered his own ways and turned his steps to God's statutes.  Join me in considering your ways, your thoughts, your purpose and your views about what we are REALLY called to do and prayfully let's turn towards the statutes of God.  Pookie is waiting on you.