Free Microsoft Word - Jakefinalnoappex.doc by Wayne Jacobsen Page A

Many of them are upset with me too.”
    “What about?”
    “A few weeks ago I presented a new proposal to shift the priority of our children’s program to fit what we
    talked about when you were here.”
    “Uh oh!”
    “Uh oh? I was so excited. I spent a lot of time and printed up a ten-page paper on how we could refocus our
    classes and retrain our teachers. I was just certain they would be as thrilled as I to put this ministry on a
    better footing. I listed specific recommendations about giving up our star charts and changing our songs to
    be more grace-centered.”
    “And?”
    “They thought I was accusing them of being Pharisees. They said they believed in grace as much as anyone
    else and told me they had all grown up with those charts, and that putting up stars gives children a feeling of
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    accomplishment. I didn’t know what to say, I was so surprised. In the heat of the battle, I couldn’t even
    remember what you’d said. The night was a disaster.”
    “I can imagine, Jake. I’m sorry it was so hurtful.”
    “I don’t even know what I did wrong, John. Life at the church was tough before. Now it’s a nightmare and I
    don’t think the pastor has any respect for me anymore. My stomach is always in knots.”
    “Jake, if you listen to anything else I say, listen to this: Don’t use our conversations to try to change others.
    I’m only trying to help you learn to live in God’s freedom. Until they are looking for the same things you are,
    people will not understand and you’ll be accused of far worse. You’re trying to live what I said without
    letting God make it real in you. It won’t work that way. You’ll just end up hurting a lot of people and hurting
    yourself in the process.” John slid off the chair and stood up, fishing some bills out of his pocket to leave a
    tip.
    “That’s for sure,” I said getting up with him.
    John told me he had to get to the depot to catch his bus. I offered to drive him over to help save some time
    for him and give me some time to finish the conversation. We kept talking as we walked toward the register,
    paid his check and walked to my car.
    “You’re not finding his presence to be any more real for you than when we first talked, are you?”
    “Why would you say that?”
    “Because you’re still trying to make others do it, instead of living it yourself. It’s natural for us to deal with our own emptiness by trying to get others around us to change. That’s why so much body life today is built
    around accountability and human effort. If we could just get everyone else to do what’s right, everything
    would be better for us.”
    “Wouldn’t it?”
    “No, Jake! We’re not ever going to get it all right. People are going to mess up. Sorting out a relationship
    with Jesus is a lifetime journey. The life of faith is struggle enough in a broken world without us
    complicating it for other believers. Why do you think you weren’t there for Bob and now your pastor isn’t
    there for you?”
    “I don’t know.”
    “Because real body life isn’t built on accountability. It’s built on love. We’re to encourage each other in the
    journey without conforming people to the standard we think they need.”
    “That sounds like relativism, John!”
    “It’s not, it simply respects the process God uses to bring people into truth. I’m not talking about different
    things being true, for different people but about people discovering that truth in different time frames. If we
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    hold people accountable, they will never learn to live in love. We’ll reward those who are better at putting
    on a front and miss those who are in the real struggle of learning to live in Jesus.”
    “I can’t even imagine sharing that kind of journey with others.”
    “It’s the best, Jake! It opens the door for people to be authentic and known exactly for who they are.