Offensive

I know the last blog I titled, I'm offended, but today's somewhat goes along with it, and I couldn't think of a better title.

Yesterday, I got to have a 30 minute conversation with a gentleman from work about God.  He mentioned he noticed that I carried my Bible with me to work and was curious as to why and what I was studying.  In the course of conversation he mentioned that he was a Seventh Day Adventist.  He also mentioned that he found it interesting that I would bring my Bible to work, because you don't see many people taking them to church, let alone to the work place.

It was a great conversation.  I didn't know a whole lot about the denomination, and still don't, so I was a little hesitant at times to share my thoughts and beliefs because I didn't want to offend him.  He is an older gentleman, always super nice,  and I don't know how easily he is offended.  However, the thought continually came across my mind.

The more I have thought about it, I begin to wonder if I had offended him with sharing any of my beliefs.  We both shared different thoughts, and seemed to agree on most topics.  Yet, the thought kept coming to my mind.

Then today, I realized I don't have to worry about if I offended him, if I am speaking the truth.  I was speaking in judgement or condemning, but rather just sharing thoughts and views about God and how they compared to what each other believed.  I'm not saying that I should have thrown all caution to the wind, but I should be able to have an open conversation about who God is.

I often wonder how God feels about the fact that we have so many denominations and are split by our views of Him.  Shouldn't followers of Christ be able to co-exist with each other and have open conversations about Him.

Maybe I am just one of those people who have been around enough Christians that say either you believe the same way they do or your going to hell.  To a certain extent, I was one of those people at one time.  On the other hand, as I spend time with my kids, I have had to realize that I have to be a little different with each of them.  They each respond to situations differently.

If God is our Heavenly Father, couldn't it be true that He has to do the same with us?  He knows how He has to interact with us, what is good for us and what isn't, and what we need to thrive.  Who are we to say all Christian's have to believe the exact same thing on every topic.

I am not saying that there is no white and black, but only grey when it comes to God.  I do believe He has certain guidelines that separate life and death.  There are differences that a good friend of mind called "salvation issues."

What if we began looking for the commonalities in what we believe and are open to discussion with our fellow brothers and sisters and work towards rebuilding Christ's church and focused less on "the color of the carpet and how it can cause people to sin."

Anyway, it's just my three cents for the day.  Like I said, it was a great conversation, I just wish I could work through the worry of offending and just enjoy the fellowship.