Last night i was hit with the "aren't you just being bitter" thing... and it has really made me examine whether or not i am...



it's in the good book that we ought to look at ourselves closely to make sure we're really following the man...



so i am looking into it. why would i harrass a pastor handing out donuts with my experience and my concerns? why do i meet with local youth ministers and any other church dudes who would and always push the limit? I'm always trying to strip it down to the real Jesus, not the one who's lacquered over with years of Americana Church Culture blahblah...



is this attention getting behavior? is this the ranting of an angry man?



maybe sometimes, yeah. undeniably, i am angry sometimes and i rant.

undeniably, i want to feel important and sometimes act out of that idiocy...



but there's more. In Jeremiah 8, god is all worked up because the priests and prophets didn't tell the whole truth about how bad things were... and they offered solutions to the spiritual problems of the people that were not deeply healing.



Jeremiah 8:11

They offer superficial treatments for my people's mortal wound. They give assurances of peace when all is war.



And that's what it feels like to me. I remember what it was like to read what Jesus said for the first time and really live it out... that was really healing to my sick soul...



but around here, you're more likely to encounter a watered down thing that's primarily about church culture and meeting attendance than real life and the power of the Holy Spirit that's described in the Bible with jesus and the first wave of xians...



so i speak from that perspective, but not with malice. it's with HOPE that maybe some americana churchies will bust out and stick it to the man and Live hardcore for christ. then they'll find healing and joy...



as it is, many are lukewarm.



i don't think this is a bitter rant.



Lew