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WELCOME TO GOD FOCUS THIS MORNING

THE TITLE FOR TODAY’S EPISODE:  IRONING OUT THE WRINKLES

One of the best things ever invented in my opinion is wrinkle releaser. Spray it on smooth out your clothes or toss them in the dryer. It get out most wrinkles. I hate to iron. I was thinking about how Jesus is coming after a bride without spot or wrinkle. As long as we keep ourselves unspotted by the world and our sins under the blood we just need to work on the wrinkles.

Growing up the granddaughter of an evangelist I have seen the best and the worst of those who call themselves Christians. I am blessed to remember those people that lived for Jesus with all their hearts. Those rare individuals showed me it is possible. Many others showed me another side, that it was very difficult. The Christian life is miserable if you are not 100% sold out to Christ. The closer I get to Jesus the easier things become, because I know he is in control.

It doesn’t take long when talking to people to realize almost everyone you meet has suffered from church hurt. The church is supposed to be a place of love and support. The sign outside says everyone welcome, but most mean if you change who you are to be just like us. If you dress like us and wear your hair like us. Don’t misunderstand me, I am not talking about embracing sin as if God’s laws don’t exist. But we have to show people compassion and not be self-righteous and judgmental. Many have standards that are made by man. Man’s traditions have destroyed many. When people don’t measure up to their ideas of holiness and righteousness, they are judged harshly. Gossip and judgment becomes part of the culture of that congregation. In all honesty, everyone is not welcome.

People, we have work to do. It’s time the church grew up and ironed out the wrinkles. We will never win the prodigals if we insist on judgment. The prodigal son was met by his father with open arms. He didn’t meet him with judgment and harsh words about his mistakes.

Things need to change in our culture when honest open dialog is treated as hate speech. But it is going to take that honest open dialog to get rid of the wrinkles. God doesn’t have denominations, he has those who want to know him and people who want the church culture to make themselves feel better. When God looks at them he sees wrinkles that have been made by jealousy, hate, envy and judgment. They don’t want to iron them or use God’s wrinkle releaser on their lives.

I am blessed to have a group of friends that I can pray with and have open discussions. We don’t agree on everything, but we agree to love one another and to help each other grow in our faith.

Prov 27:17 Iron sharpeneth iron; so a man sharpeneth the countenance of his friend.

I want to be around people that make we want to be a better person. Ones that will call me out on my hangups and wrinkles.

Another way to remove wrinkles from fabric is steam. It is going to take the fire of the Holy Ghost to heat the living water in our lives to create the steam that will remove our wrinkles. We cannot become unwrinkled and unspotted on our own. Jesus is the only one that can truly make us blameless. However, we have work to do. We cannot go on with church as usual, there is a great big dying world that needs us to rise up and be the church. Not a version of a church, but the church, the broken body of Christ. This is the only way we will ever win the lost, is if we can come together in honest open, non judgmental dialog. Praying with one another for God’s leading, until He shows us the error of our ways.

God is truly the only one that can turn things around. We need to keep praying and believing that he will show up right on time and lead us into all truth and unity.

Until next time,

BE BOLD, BE BRAVE AND KEEP YOUR GOD FOCUS

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