The Baby and the Bathwater

In my lifetime (thus far) I have probably met 30-40 famous people, most of whom were in the music industry. I started going to a bunch of concerts when I was in high school and made a habit of waiting after the concert to meet whomever. I learned a great deal from those experiences. Many times I had a preconceived idea of what they were like as a person and then found out I was completely wrong. Some who appeared to me to be snobbish or arrogant in interviews or on stage were actually the nicest people. I learned that you simply cannot judge a book by its cover. There are far too many variables involved, like how tired the person is, the tone with which an interview is being conducted, their personality type (expressive, driver, amiable, analytical), and so on. The same is true of many preachers and/or evangelists who are on television these days. I used to have a tendency to look at what someone was wearing, how they acted, or even take bits and pieces of what they said and then decide whether I was for or against them. It took me a while, but I realized how immature that really was. I realized that even if I don't agree with 100% of what they are saying or writing, there is still much to learn from them. We have the Word of God, and that can help us discern what is wheat and what is chaff. I have Christian friends who mention this preacher or that and make it clear that they cannot receive from them at all, while I have received much. Don't get me wrong, if someone, no matter who they were, came out against Jesus being the Son of God or said He did not rise from the dead, I would have a big problem with that. However, in that case, I would question whether that person was even truly part of the Body of Christ. I am mainly saying that I have found I can learn a great deal from people who initially may have made me raise an eyebrow for whatever reason. We all make up various parts of the Body. What if a finger or a hand said, "Hey, check out that elbow! Isn't if funny looking? Rather dry at times, too." Maybe they are right, but it would be very hard to feed ourselves without elbows. We should celebrate the uniqueness of God's callings instead of trying to fit everyone into the "this-is-how-I-would-do-it" box. Let's not throw out the baby with the bathwater. The more I learn, the more I realize I have to learn. The key is continuing to seek. I want to constantly be rising higher in God, and I am thankful for the variety of teaching and resources available today. I am excited about being alive in this hour.

More on this can be found here. I just found Cameron's blog recently and have been blessed by his posts.