If You Are Not A Christian, Don't Read This!

OK,

I put my caution out there and let me say goodbye now to those who will de-friend me as a result of what I have to say......

I am unapologetically a Christ follower.  By definition, a Christian is someone who has Jesus Christ living in them; who believes in the Holy Spirit and shows fruit as evidence of his or her beliefs.  Also a Christian is someone who is changing daily to become more like Jesus. This has nothing to do with any particular denomination, which are all man made, but only about being a follower of Jesus Christ.

So, once again, I strongly discourage anyone who does not fit that definition fully, to read further, because I am sure you will be offended. It is not my intention to sour you or anyone away from where you stand, if that is where you choose to be. Ultimately, however, I believe that it is God's goal to encourage each man and woman to walk in the full knowledge of Christ, but He is a perfect and complete gentleman.  He is not pushy or bossy.   I know that I need grace in this department and I struggled against what I felt He was compelling me to write versus remaining silent.  However, I read recently somewhere that you might need to question your "Christ Card" if you were not willing to be controversial for Him. If persecution is the cost I must pay to stand for God and His beliefs, then I am willing. It's the least I can do since, He gave it all for me!

So, I stand with the gospel and agree with the text in Matthew 10:34-37,  that Christ did not come to make us comfortable here on earth.  He came to divide those who believe and  trust Him completely from those who don't. That's a tough pill to swallow, because we want to see God only as acceptance, love and tolerance. Make no mistake about it, God loves everyone, but He doesn't love every one's actions.  We cannot go through life believing that His love alone is enough.  There will come a time when everyone will also need His salvation. He offers that freely, but only to those who accept His laws and principles and decide that for Christ I live and for Christ I die.

I heard recently, Chris Fabry from the Moody Broadcasting Network, say it best, "We do not get to weigh in on whether morality is right or not. Morality is not determined by a popularity opinion poll.  If you are a Christ follower, God's word is right and anything that comes against is wrong."

With all of that being said, I challenge all of my Christian brothers and sisters to step back from their opinions about this upcoming election and prevent yourself from voting based on color or popular opinion.  The real passion for many, whether spoken or unspoken has been, "I am voting for him because he is Black or against him because he is Black".  Or I've heard comments that indicate that many others are voting with the same passion because of just the opposite. I am ashamed to say I myself have been guilty of voting the race card.  If the shoe fits, wear it, if it doesn't then look for another size.  But, if it is you, then  I caution you to look more at what God's agenda is.  What does His word say about abortion, gay marriage, education, poverty, taxes, terrorism, violence, immigration, unemployment, health care and economics?........ When I pause to do a real study of those issues and His word, honestly, no party and or candidate matches up.

So I can't get excited about what this candidate says or what that candidate does, because none of them are representing me completely. I am a Christian before I am Black, before I am a Woman, before I am a Citizen, before I am a Wife and Mother and even before I am Physical Therapist.   I am reading a very good book by Dr. Tony Evans, entitled, "How Should Christians Vote." One of the statements that he makes is that we as Christians, because we often don't have proper representation in elections, have to make the choice of the lessor of two evils. While I believe that statement is viable, I also have to question within myself if I am really interested in lessor evil anything?  Make no mistake, this was not a blog generated to dissuade you from voting.  I know that many people suffered and died for voting rights, but what I am saying is, your passion, if you are a Christian, must be about making a conscious choice for the political agenda that best fits into God's agenda.

To put it more plainly, if President Obama gets re-elected, every community in this nation is not going
to turn into a ghetto filled with slumlords and gangs and if Governor Romney gets elected we are not going to go back into slavery.  As Christians, we have survived every political agenda and every political party change.  My security in this country is not based on what the government does or doesn't do for me.  It is solely based on what my King, who never has to get re-elected is doing and what He will do! I stand firmly next to my brother who just recently posted, "if only people were as passionate about Jesus as there are about their political candidate....."

In Him,
Rhonda

But my life is worth nothing to me unless I use it for finishing the work assigned me by the Lord Jesus—the work of telling others the Good News about the wonderful grace of God.
(Acts 20:24 NLT)