Do this but don’t do that

People like to tell others what to do and what not to do. If you do what the majority says to do then you may be accepted but do what they tell you not to do then you face being rejected. The problem with this is one person trying to control another. If you do not agree with another person the you face judgment and rejection. We want to be loved and accepted. Yet who is it that we really need to be accepted by? People either want o please other people or to be pleased by others. If you stand out and do or say things others do not agree with then you are wrong. The world we live in is divided. Even the body of Christ is divided. There has always been division. We say to agree to disagree but what we are really saying is that I am right and you are wrong. We do not want others to truly think for themselves. We want others to agree with us and by doing so they are telling us we are right. Being right is the only thing that matters. Look at all the different denominations and how even those denominations have different beliefs and divide from one another. There is no unity. We say we love but we do we really love? One thing I learned from reading and studying 1 Corinthians 13 is that love does not demand its’ own way. Yet believer or nonbelievers make demands on each other everyday. The we quarrel and fight when others do not  agree with us. If we were honest we would admit how easily angered we become over things that really do not matter. I know as I write this there are those who already disagree with me. Guess what that is okay with me because you have your own opinions just as I have mine. I know that I make mistakes and do wrong on a regular basis. One of my worst faults is I find myself judging others as harshly as I am being judged. It is a self defense tool that I use and others do as well. I am just grateful that i have some to learn this about myself and confess it openly. Leaving myself open to judgment and ridicule is not easy but it is necessary because I know whose judgment and approval that I really need is that of God. God is my judge and Jesus is my advocate and Satan is my accuser. I must throw myself on the mercy of Heaven’s court. I will never be able to please every person. Hard lesson to learn since I have been a people pleaser most of my life. Trying to fit in and do what others want to make them happy while making myself miserable. I am learning that pleasing God is more important and that I do not have to demand my own way or even demand what the world calls my rights. I have done many things wrong in my life and I have also had many wrongs done to me. I have been hurt and I have hurt others. I would be a liar if I said that I have only been a victim.At the same time I have acted like a door mat and let others walk all over me. Too afraid that no one would want or love me. Wanting to be included and accepted.  What I did not know was that I was already loved, wanted and accepted. God loved me before I was even born into this world. He loved me so much that He sent His Son, Jesus to die in order to save me from the sins He knew I would commit. He forgave me before I even knew who He was. He loved me when I did as I pleased.He loved me when I was an angry, bitter mess. He never told me that He would love me only if I did everything right and did no wrong. He just loved me and in receiving that love I have learned that I do not want to do the things that hurt Him. The love He gave me without condition is what is transforming me and teaching me how not only to be loved but how to love others who not only disagree with me but even hate and attack me. The hardest thing for me to do right now is not to react in hate or anger, I do not know God’s thoughts nor do i know all of His ways. So who am I to tell others what to do and why should I be angry with others who try to do the same to me? I need to let the love of Jesus to grow in me and allow it to flow through me. Learning to love not just those whom I agree with but those who even hate me is what will please God. I have my own opinions and point of view and because I share them does not mean I expect everyone to agree with me. There are two sides to a coin and even more opinions and point of views in this world. The only truth is Jesus and the only way to the Father is through Him. Doctrines an theology are made by man. Religion is made by man. What I need is a true relationship with my Heavenly Father and my Savior Jesus. This is what matters to me.