Oftentimes in conversation with various family members in the faith, somewhere in the middle of their story, I hear the same statement made - over and over. “As we left home, we would put on our masks so no one at church would really know what is going on in our lives.” It’s statements like these that make me wonder why so many are baffled why many of the children of these families have chosen to walk away from the Lord. A mask? Among the family of God? To that end I proudly declare as far as the Port Huron Church of Christ is concerned - no mask required! I say this because as a family, we understand messy lives. We understand struggling to live beyond the old man. We understand dysfunctional, because whom among us is not? We unmask ourselves not because we are proud of our dysfunction, but because we realize we don’t have to hide it. When we see the church as a hospital for the spiritually sick, instead of a haven for the righteous, we give ourselves permission to burn our masks. Jesus invites us to abandon our old man and embrace the new He is transforming us into. If Jesus knows our hearts, our lives and everything about us, what good would a mask do, except teach us to deceive one another? To those feeling a need to wear a mask, I want to encourage you to free yourself by unmasking, giving yourself permission to wear your real face. Freedom in Christ begins with accepting who we are. As we unmask, we become “real” and when the world walks in among us, they see others who, like themselves, are struggling to be better. I thank God our perfection was not a prerequisite for being His children. I thank God he chose us along with those who seem to have it much more together than we do.
”Father, thank You for giving us family members who have a faith we can look up to and emulate; and in so doing, gives us the courage to leave our masks at home. And finally Father, thank You for this wonderful place, among these wonderful people, where masks are not required.” Blessings. Lamar Comments are closed.
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