The Shack

I've been thinking about this book and doing a lot of wondering. What if God truly loves each of us individually? What if that person that irritates me so much is just as beloved of God as I am? Do I have a right to disparage or denigrate that person?

What if the person who abuses another is trying to deal with issues from their past and have no other way in their "box of tricks" to get help? What if that abuse is actually a subconscious call for help? They are just as much the beloved of God as I am, so who am I to get up in arms over their behavior? Doesn't mean that they were right to do what they did or that they shouldn't face consequences but is it appropriate for me to get emotionally involved in lambasting their behavior? Can I take some time to see the person that God loves within that person?

What if the Beloved of God, say, one of my pagan friends, has been so badly mangled by "the church" that they've rejected "god" and gone looking for a Diety that loves and accepts them? What if the way that I've projected Christ to them doesn't help them get over the mangling they've experienced and what they find is more loving and accepting than the way I've treated them? Which "god" is more in line with our Loving God, their's or what I've portrayed?

What would happen if people would start seeing others around them as the Beloved of God and treating them as God would treat the Beloved? What if that happened in churches, workplaces, out shopping, on the roadways, in schools? What if Christians would treat non-Christians as the Beloved of God? Maybe people would be interested in the God that we talk about?

Just turning thoughts over in my mind...