Sharing the truth with love

My thoughts on "sharing the truth with love":

The problem is that the individual decides what love is. History of human kind should show that most humans don't really have a very good or clear concept of love.

So when they try to do something that may hurt someone and say its in love, it's not received that way, because their concept of love is flawed or different than the recipient.

Incidentally Gary Chapman has his book, the 5 love languages, it's a great book because it delves a little deeper into what other people see as a loving gesture.

Now it doesn't really apply to this subject, but if even in doing things for a spouse or family member there are different ways of showing love and certain ones will not be received as love, that should give pause in dealing with a person one on one and doing something supposedly with love.

I know a few people that are really good at homeless outreach, it's really where their heart is and they are equipped to reach the wandering lost, I know many others that really are no good at it. It's pretty much not their calling.

In that same vein, I know some who can go to a bar, strike up a convo and leave with a guy who had drank all night, who they introduced to Jesus and that man is now completely sober and in love with Jesus. That's not what I am equipped to do, so I would not do any evangelizing in that atmosphere.

In the same way, there actually are many ministries and people that are equipped to evangelize to those suffering with homosexuality. They do a great job and people feel listened to, heard, and not judged so they are open to hear about Christ.

Here's where people mess up, sometimes they step into a missions field that isn't theirs, that they are not equipped for, and they do more to damage the gospel than help the gospel.

It takes humility to recognize that and when you are confronted with a question or situation having to do with that missions field you are not equipped for or called to, you respectfully decline getting involved because you are now a fish out of water and will most likely fall on your face or put your foot in your mouth.

Unfortunately, foot in mouth disease has gotten to be an epidemic with the rise of the Internet chat rooms and a society that is used to writing 140 characters and hitting post without actually thinking about the effect it will have on other people.

Jesus saw the multitude and was moved with compassion. In that multitude were people that were involved in a multitude of sin. Something that many should put on a sticky note and keep in front of then wherever they go.

Sometimes not speaking of people or a ministry field you have no place speaking of is the most compassionate thing to do.

I don't typically point out ministries I'm involved with because it's involving "people" not a cause and not check marks next to my "look who I saved" card but I've been involved with people that suffer with homosexuality.

One young man I worked with as a mentor through a program with Portland fellowship, look them up. I don't agree with them on all points but the program they use to mentor was a valuable learning experience.

In the many, many weeks of the course I was blessed to learn so much about this young man's background, his family life, his struggles, his dreams, the program has you basically share everything and as a mentor I speak life into him and help him to deal with certain issues or struggles, well, we really became brothers.

By the middle of the program I had already realized how stubborn, uncouth, uncaring, and arrogant I had been with my speech and actions towards those struggling with homosexuality all while thinking I was doing it with love.

I realized that my words and actions as pious and biblically supported they seemed to me were directly responsible for keeping people away from Jesus. My actions served darkness more than His Kingdom even with my being scripturally supported. That was an eye opener to the highest degree.

They say you don't know a man until you walk a mile in their shoes. That's kinda right. Sometimes what you "think" you know about someone or someone's behavior is completely off base, and as I said, the right thing is to just take yourself out of the conversation because you're gonna screw things all up.