Verses: Susanna 1 : 15-27
My thoughts about the
verses:
Standing your moral
ground is very hard to do in many situations.
You do not want to lose friends.
So instead of doing what you should do you do things that you should not
do. You lie, cheat, steal, do drugs
anything to stay friends the people around you.
People who are
disenfranchised from society are even more tempted to do things that are
outside their moral compass. They fear
that the people around them are the only ones that will be their friends. They fear of isolation jeopardizes
people. What makes it even worse is most
of these individuals are pushed away from organized religion. These limits the people that they can be with
that will accept them for who they are thrown out into the world to make it on
their own.
It is very sad when you
think about it one of the groups that have the hardest time is the
LGBTIQA. Many churches have isolated
them. The churches preach that they are
sinners. This push has isolated people
that need a safe place to be free and to live within the boundaries of
God. This forces them to hunt for a
place where they can be themselves. The
bars become the place where they can feel free.
The saddest part of the whole thing is that many have turned to Alcohol and
drugs to ease their pain of being alienated from society.
Let us take a closer
look at what Susanna was facing in this moment of her life. She was being confronted by two men that were
seen as leaders in the community. They
were judges that had brought people down for breaking the law. They gave her two options neither one of them
would end well. She could agree to have
sex with them and go against her religious belief of not committing the act of
adultery. Her second option was to say
no. They had already told her if she
refused they would say that she had had an affair with a young suitor that got
away from them.
Susanna was a very
religious person. She knew the law. She was in a lose/lose. She could die an innocent Peron or she could
live her life knowing that she had given into this two men. She refused to have adulterous behavior with
the elders. At that moment she had
signed her destiny. She knew that she
would die because they would accuse her of adultery even though she had not
done anything. Yet, she also knew that
she would die with a clear conscious and God would know the truth if no one
else on Earth did.
They immediately acted
out their plan because of what they considered her stand against them. They couldn’t handle the rejection so they
opened the gate and began making noise to convince the members of the house
that they had foiled the meeting of Susanna and her young suitor.
I want people that read
this to understand that I am not against the way that people have turned to in
their despair to fit in. I am ashamed of
Church leaders that have pushed people away.
There are so many people in the community that were raised in religious
institutions. They have accepted the
love of God in their heart. Yet, through
the actions of the Church they start doubting if God really loves them. They need an outlet to deal with their
rejection. So it is no wonder that they
turn to places where they feel safe.
The Church has to change
their view on society. They have made a
lose/lose situation for so many people.
They teach them if they are LGBTQIA that they are not worthy to be accepted
by God. This group of people then
searches for a place to be free and to feel worthy. The Church then comes back and says that look
they are living in sin.
I challenge people that
truly believe in God to stop this vicious cycle. We have to open our doors and hearts to
people that feel disenfranchised. We
have to give them a safe place in which they can live their life accepted for
who they are. We have to stop pushing
people away from the Church then mocking them when they turn to things that we
deem immoral. Christians have to take
responsibility for what they have done to people. We have to acknowledge that we have pushed
people out of the Church because of our feelings of insignificance. If a church truly believed that they were
living right they would open their door to all.
This is for those that
feel that they have no option but to do things that give they contact with
people that will accept them for who they are.
There are places beside bars that will accept you. There are churches that will allow you to
worship in a place of where you are accepted for who you are. I know that there are times that I go to bars
to be able to show love to my partner without judgements. Yet, I also have Churches, organizations and
other outlets that allow me to be free.
I once was like so many
of the people that currently feel disenfranchised. My home church had pushed me away. They had alienated me and I felt like there
was no place that was safe for me. I was
in a lose/lose situation. I could go to
places that accepted me and hang out with certain groups of people that were
not necessarily living a Christian life.
I could also stay hid in my closet worshiping God in secrecy. I chose to do both. My friends that didn’t believe in God didn’t want
to hear my “Christian Stuff.” My studies
were proving to me that I was a beloved child of God with nowhere to worship in
the open.
The day came where I
found a group of people that accepted me for just who I was. I was finally free to be a Lesbian and a Christian. I tell people now that I am a Christian that
just happens to be a lesbian. I want you
to feel a since of hope. You can still
have the friends that you have now. Yet,
ask yourself do I need a church home in which I can feel free to be me. I will share with you that there are ways to
find these open churches with very little effort. Just simply do a search of progressive
Christian churches. Check out the list
and you will find people that do not judge based on your sexual or gender identity.
You can also search by gay friendly churches.
I will let you know that is how I found my first “Church home. It is the place where I came free and I was
allowed to live within the moral compass that I longed to live in.
I am not saying I am
perfect by any means. Yet, I am free to
be who I am with my mistakes yet in the eyes of God I am a perfect Human being
who accepted the grace of God. No matter
what remember that God accepts all, loves all, and wants you to be a member of
the Church that was created by the power of the blood of Jesus
Prayer:
O holy God hear our
praises and prayers. We thank you for loving
us just as we are. We worship you for
the love that you so freely give. Help
us make choices that are in a ‘godly manner.
We ask that you be with those Churches that are pushing people away by
their words and actions. Help us Dear
God is the children that will make you happy.
In the name of the Loving God we pray.
Amen
Questions:
Do you feel alone? Are
you afraid God will not accept you for who you are? Have you been isolate from Church? Is today the day that you find a place where
you can be free? Simply ask God and God
will provide all you needs. If you
believe in this pray to God right now to open the door, or window that you need
to step through to find the peace that is truly waiting for you in the arms of
God?
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