Written original by Brian Brooks -
Confession of a former political conservative
For long-time friends and family, some of you may be asking, "What the hell happened to Brian? Once the most politically conservative guys ever in the world. Now he's dissing the new Republican president."
Well, life happened and, more importantly, the Gospel happened. Strange. Most people associate religion with right wing politics. But Jesus never lowered himself to politics. He came for everyone. He came for the comfortable and complacent as well as the suffering and the radical. He came for those who value what we call traditional values as well as all those who have chosen or lived different paths. He came for the immigrant, the homosexual, the refugee, the forgotten, the abused, the refused, the rejected and the rejectors. He loves those who are suffering as much as those who are comfortable. Loving your God and loving your neighbor were said in the same breath. That neighbor is everyone around you! The Muslim, the Sikh, the atheist, the Jew, the Mormon, the gay, the veteran, the black, the Hispanic, the Asian; even the racist, the misogynist, the adulterer, the pornographer, the alcoholic, and the addict. He came for all of us.
And guess what! He didn't come to change the laws of the land. He came to change the heart of man! He came to give hope, give life and give purpose! And He did it without the government! In fact, He did it in spite of the government!
That's where the religious right gets it all wrong. You want to make an impact? You want to fulfill the cause of Christ? Stop shoving it down the throats of those who need a change of heart! Stop backing very fallible people in the election process! Get out of politics completely! Spend all that time, money and personal investment in people that need it! Show them the love of Christ rather than preaching! Be the hands and feet of Christ and stop trying to be the voice! Love one another!
And to my liberal friends, government can't fill the void either. We have to do this as a body of believers and people dedicated to peace, love and understanding.
I don't have answers. I just want us to fulfill the greatest commandment - Love one another. That commandment should be easier for those who know Christ, but it's an invitation and a call to those who don't or won't know Christ. No matter your position, loving one another is something we all need to get behind if we want to stop this insanity.
