freedom

imagine being a believer in another country. how about another country that doesn't allow you to worship God. imagine bringing up a church service on your computer and putting your earbuds in and closing your eyes to worship silently. imagine the emotion of coming back to the United States and being able to walk into a church and worship openly for the first time since you lived out of the country. what that experience must be like! the freedom you finally have. you can sing as loud as you want. you can raise your hands in adoration of our God! you can say words that you weren't able to say. you can pray out loud. you can encourage one another with words from the Bible. its freedom.

As I was going to church last week at LifeChurch last week, I started thinking about believers (in ministry or not) overseas, in Russia or the Middle East especially, who can't worship God openly. If they are caught, they are legally and physically in trouble. I was thinking what a blessing it is that LifeChurch (and other online churches) can be seen anywhere at anytime. Believers in other countries can worship and grow in God's word in the privacy of their own home.

From here, I was thinking about what an incredible experience it would be to come home from such spiritual confinement and be able to worship openly...however they want.

As I was thinking about the freedom they have in the United States, I started questioning why other believers can be so judgemental about HOW people worship. I'm not talking about religion. I'm talking about Christianity. There is a difference. Not all religions teach that Jesus Christ is the only way to heaven. Not all people believe that Jesus Christ is God! He is. He is the only way! With that said, it makes me sad that believers worry about others' worship styles so much that they take their own eyes off the Lord and the relationship they have with Him.

We need to stop being so worried about other people and what they are doing and start focusing on our own relationship with the Lord. We need to stop finding reasons to condemn other people so we feel better about ourselves. We need to stop finding things "wrong" with other people and focus on reaching the world. We need to extend the same grace that Christ offered. Love others the way He did.

"For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through Him." John 3:17 NIV

***click here to see all posts from 31 days of relationships***