Dear bloggers, we are a body.

“I have not coveted anyone’s silver or gold or clothing.” Acts 20:33

Our transitional pastor shared Paul’s sermon to Ephesus with us yesterday as it was his last day and he was saying good-bye as Paul said good-bye to the Ephesians. It was a fitting close to the time he’s spent at our church.

The verse I above is from this sermon, and it reminds me of several things mulling in this head of mine. Namely, how one woman can write a post called, “Dear mom on the iPhone” and another can write a response to it called, “Dear mom on iphone, I get it,” and call her judgmental. I read both posts, and I didn’t really intend to write a commentary on either. But I don’t get why there always has to be two sides. One this. The other that. Why must we covet who another is or is becoming. Why do we want the spiritual gifts someone else has? Why are we not content?

Dear bloggers, we are a body.

I was edified by reading the first post, the one were the mom is guilty of sometimes looking at her phone instead of her child. I knew it was a post I would not choose to share however, because I am friends with at least one mom whom it might hurt. You see lately I sometimes think I waste too much time on the computer, not so much on my phone, though there is that too.

John says Jesus came to show us grace AND truth. Sometimes, truth cuts to the marrow. We call it judgment when it cuts deeply. Most of the time, we allow ourselves to be cut deeply by people who don’t even know they’ve done so, and then we call it judgment. We draw a line, create a boundary toward the person, but I wonder if we ask God if it is He who cut us. If we ask Him if we have been wounded by God Himself? For truth judges.

When God wounds me, it is painful, but still less offensive than when someone else does it. I can accept it. I understand it is for my good. Though God does not shame us or condemn us, He does rightly point out our wrongs. If He had not given us the Holy Spirit to convict or even make us guilty for a short time, how would we understand that we could and sometimes should change?

Why do we refuse to work as a body together? What one post offered was truth. The other post offered grace. Maybe both should have given a little truth and a little grace. But one blogger doesn’t get to decide what is inside the mind of another’s heart when it was posted. We are all so easy to offend.

All I know is that sometimes the computer is my choice of addiction. A quick mind-numbing fix to the pain or the mundane, and sometimes this fix lasts longer than is okay. This is my reality. There was a time in my life when I needed the grace to say that it’s okay. I needed grace. But for a while, I’ve tested the boundaries of grace, roaming a little too much, and truth has called me home, to close the computer, put down the phone, so truth tellers, tell it, and grace givers, give. And as the body, let us lift one another up together.  Let us listen to His voice. His truth. His grace. and His offense.