By: Mark Magbee

Mark Magbee — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 17:58:35 +0000

Dearest Debbie, I am the son of a Presbyterian Minister. Early on I was confused by the teachings of the Bible and the actions of people that said they believed. “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.”, “Love thy neighbor as thyself.” and “Judge not lest ye be judged.” are just a fiew of the concepts that I did not see in action. I became disillusioned in religion and the Christian faith and spent hours arguing with Christians about what was wrong with their faith. My brotherinlaw, in the heat of one such argument said “You just don’t understand.” That was a slap in the face that woke me up! I then realized that all I was doing was behaving like them. I was basically saying that if you believe like me then I can love you. The most important concept in Christianity is unconditional love and all I was doing was behaving badly. As hard as it was to swallow I realized that I was not loving unconditionally. All I was doing was alienating people who were on their own spiritual journey. When I stopped arguing, an amazing thing happened. We became friends. I realized that the only way to change the world is to change my self. that striving to love unconditionally actually had a healing affect on all involved. Loving unconditionally meant respecting other people’s beliefs. THEY ARE ON THEIR OWN SPIRITUAL JOURNEY AND THEY HAVE TO LEARN LESSONS ON THEIR OWN. By striving to be the best person I can be, I actually become an example for others. Actions do speak louder than words.
As for the person that was attacked in the chat room , it is up to them to use that exsperience to grow into a better person. Forgiveness actually heals the forgiver more than the forgiven resulting in the peace and joy felt in the absence of resentment. The power of the forgiven is weekened because they are not getting the response they desire and generally that is to make that person as miserable as they are. When someone attacks me, I try to look for the truth in what they say. If I can learn something I grow a little bit more and try to become grateful for the exchange.(I am a work in progress) If there is no truth in the attack, I let it go because I know more of the truth about my self than anyone else. I try to use every apparent bad experience as a challenge to overcome, an opportunity to practice unconditional love. Putting it all in perpective means that everyone is on a spiritual journey. They maybe more spiritually advance than me or less. It’s my job to make sure that I use every encounter to raise my level of spiritual growth. This is my responsibility! No one elses.
I hope my message resonates in your soul. If not please use your reaction as a stepping stone for growth. Take what you can use and leave the rest. You are obviously one who is seeking the truth and we shall always have that in common NO MATTER WHAT! May God Bless, Protect, and Guide you on your journey.

Comments on: Lip Service Christianity and Patriotism

By: Mark Magbee