The day I came to Christ is forever ingrained in my memory. It started out like any other day and ended being the best day of my life. Nothing in this world can happen to a person that is more wonderful than having someone save your life. Christ had done that for me by allowing Himself to be sacrificed on the cross for me, and that day He revealed Himself to me and snatched me out of the grip of evil to live eternally with Him praising the Father. But, as clean as He is, as holy and spotless and without flaw as He is when I accepted His gift I was hardly fit to be presented to a King.
When I met Jesus on that Saturday morning I wreaked of cigarette smoke, and many times I smelled like a brewery. My attire was hardly appropriate for meeting the world, let alone the Father. Most people knew I wore my jeans too tight, and I showed way too much of my body. I was a mother of three, but that made me all the more proud of a trim body and all the more eager to flaunt it. Probably the most unattractive thing about me was the language that spewed out of my mouth along with my rebellious attitude about anyone or anything that went against what I wanted. I was sitting on the throne, and no one, nothing, could make me get off. But, that day God showed me that in my heart I really wanted Him there on that throne, and all I wanted was to serve Him and love Him for the rest of my days.
But I wonder what would have become of me if Jesus had come to me that morning and said, "Oh, my. I don't want you. You smell. You can't come into my kingdom dressed like that, smelling like that, with those filthy words spilling out of your mouth. If you want to come into My house you are going to have to clean up first, or I won't accept you in. Your disgusting manners are unacceptable for my presence." If Jesus had set those rules I would never have come to Him and learned to love Him as much as I do today. Praise His Name!
When we look at people with such a critical eye and tell them we don't want them because of the way they dress or how they smell we are rebelling against the very center of God's will for us which is loving others, accepting them where they are and showing them the true and pure love of God the Father. When we tell our children that they are not acceptable because of the color or length of their hair, that they must wear what we want them to wear instead of allowing them to dress in their weird fashions and colors, and when we criticize them for all the things that they do that makes us shake our heads and sometimes even turn away in disgust then how are they going to know that love is unconditional as the love of God is? If we don't allow them in who is going to tell them about Jesus?
Yes, we must have rules for safety and order, but so many of the things we nag at others about are just little things compared to showing them the love and acceptance of God. Let's stop growling at the appearances of people and look farther, deeper to the lost soul who needs our friendship. Let's not worry so much about the men pulling their pants up and be much more concerned with their souls. I wonder how you looked to Him the day He saved your life.
