Wife Swap

Tom and I were watching an episode of "Wife Swap" tonight and they swapped a Christian African American woman from North Carolina with an atheist, freakish white woman from California. The atheist dad was rude and down right mean at the mention of God. He was a real jerk. The African American woman told him that he prides himself on being open minded and wants his kids to chose things for themselves, but yet is extremely close minded and won't let his kids even entertain the thought of God. He thought about it and decided to go to church with her. Well she found a church in California to take them to, obviously it wasn't her home church since she is from North Carolina, but she found one that is much like her home church. The church opened their arms and their hearts to him and his children. They played games, got to know them, etc. It had to be hard for them because their kids were tattooed like their freakish mom and one even had a mohawk. But nobody in the church cared about their outward appearance. The dad made a VERY profound statement. He said "If this is what Christianity is all about, I need to rethink my position because these people have treated me and my family with love and respect and welcomed us into their fold."

THAT is how Christianity is supposed to be. It isn't supposed to be picking apart someone for the way they dress. Afterall, being a Christian is a heart conversion, which comes from within. I wondered how many churches, good Bible believing Christian churches, across America would have welcomed this man and his children the way this church in California did. None of their members were tattooed and pierced everywhere, wearing freakish hairstyles. But they looked past the outward and loved that person like God commands us to do. So much emphasis is placed on clothing in churches across the country that it is no wonder people don't want to go.

Right after my dad died, my mom came to stay with us for awhile. She came to meet me at my job one Wednesday night and we left my office and went straight to church. I got off late so my mom didn't have time to go home and change into a dress or skirt like we thought she would. That night at church, over half of the people we crossed paths with looked down at her pants/looked her up and down. She said she has never felt so uncomfortable in her life. These people didn't know if she was unsaved or that she had just lost her husband of 54 years. That didn't seem to matter because she was in pants!!!!! The God I love, who sent his son to save pants wearers as well as skirt and dress wearers, would not approve of that holier than thou/look down your nose junk.

We need to all take a lesson from this church in California as well as "Big Mama" (that was her nickname on the show) and love one another like the Bible says.....no matter how they look!