Mudslinging

Last year I read a story to Caleb for school titled Mudslinging (from Kingdom Tales by David and Karen Mains). In it two sides were slinging mud at each other, and claiming to know the "Kings Ways" best. In the middle was a street cleaner who no matter what hit him kept cleaning up the mud while more mud flew. When he looked at anyone in the face they were ashamed and stopped throwing mud. One person, Little Child, recognized the street sweeper for who he was, the King himself. Then Little Child went to help the King clean up the mud. I don't know why but it broke my heart and it was hard to read. Whether in thought, word or deed we have all been guilty of flinging mud at other Christians. The part that hurt was picturing Jesus in the middle as the street sweeper; that our mudslinging hurts him, because in the story sometimes there were rocks in the mud.

I thought of this story lately when I heard about backlash two Christian artists got for posting on Facebook pictures of themselves in costumes around Halloween time. There are people that now refuse to listen to their music because of this. It made me so sad to hear it. I think this hurts Jesus, because we’re missing the point. The point is to bring people to Jesus. Mudslinging does not bring people to Jesus, it turns people from Him.

I am one of those hardcore individuals who does not celebrate Halloween and I do not tell my kids about Santa, the Tooth Fairy, or the Easter Bunny. I could make adhering to these convictions become more important than actually loving people. But what the Lord has been teaching me is that there is something more important than convictions. Here’s what Oswald Chambers said…

“Beware of making fetish consistency to your convictions instead of being devoted to God… There never was a more inconsistent being on this earth than our Lord, but He was never inconsistent to His Father… It is easier to be a fanatic than a faithful soul, because there is something amazingly humbling, particularly to our religious conceit, in being loyal to God.”

These are important words. With all my heart I want to be Little Child who went to where Jesus was. Being faithful to my word, to my convictions is important to me. I try to set a consistent example to those around me and especially my children. But imagine if God ever so gently prodded me to follow Him in a way that was against my conviction. Not against His word, He would never do that. But would my conviction be more important than God’s leading? God forbid if that were the case.

Now I plead with you, brethren, by the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that you all speak the same thing, and that there be no divisions among you, but that you be perfectly joined together in the same mind and in the same judgment. 1 Corinthians 1:10

I plead with you too, for the sake of winning souls to Jesus, to follow Him faithfully. To stop the mudslinging, whether you’re holding a conviction or not holding one. Look at Jesus’ face and be the Little Child who goes to the middle with Jesus.