I've been talking to my brother lately about writing.  I look up to him a great deal as he is a very talented writer.  We talked a bit about different styles of writing and choosing a way of writing that suits  us as individuals.  I've been writing periodically and have tried various kinds of writing to see what suits me personally.  The more I try to stretch myself to write poetry, it just ends up sounding forced and disingenuine.  The more I try to write self help, the more I find I'm trying to sound smarter than I actually am.  The worst thing for any writer is dishonesty.  People can sniff out a fraud faster than I can eat a meal... And even if I could fool everyone while being something that I'm not, the writing itself would hold no enjoyment for me.  Probably the deepest fulfillment for a writer would be complete honesty with ones self and their audience.  Even if a person may not see things the way I see the world, they can at least appreciate where I'm coming from.

The more I've laid aside my fear of people who are not like me, the more I realize there isn't anything to be afraid of.  The scary monsters that were said to be under the bed in fact don't exist. This method of fear is an effective tool to keep people thinking and believing the way group think wants them to.  Growing up in the church, I found that many relied on those four walls as their protection.  Some would come to use that protection as a hiding place where they could hide from the things that they don't understand.  I know because I used to be one of these people.  In some aspects I still am afraid.  Whenever I see articles about gay rights activists there is still a small part of me that rises up and says "it's us against them.  This is a battle and they are the enemy, etc, etc." Sadly, I have to remind myself that this is just my fear of those who aren't like me.  It was never us against them... It's always just been us.  It's flawed humanity all trying to find meaning and happiness in life. We are alike in this, but we are different in many ways, but this isn't cause for fear.  Daily I have to choose to lay aside my fear of the unfamiliar, and embrace that which is different.

I am reminded of my own sin and my longing to love others the way that Christ loves them.  Not at arms length, but in a dirty and muddy embrace.  I used to be so angry when I would read stories about the religious Pharisees of Jesus' day.  Their pomposity and arrogance consumed them.  Their perfectly clean garments and their impeccable observance of the law justified their crushing judgement of the people around them.  Their worldview was that of separation from the common sinner.  This ideology allowed them the excuse to stay clear from the contamination of the world they lived in.  The more I come to understand the person of Jesus, the more I realize that he wanted us to know that he was one of us.  He wasn't afraid of getting down in the mud with us and if that weren't enough, He chose to die and was hung between a couple of thieves.  Simon Peter didn't want Jesus to wash his feet, but Jesus said "unless I wash you, you have no part of me." I feel as if Jesus was saying that he came to serve and to be apart of the filth of the world we live in, because unless he was truly apart of our world, we could never truly be apart of his.  John Maxwell said it this way... "In order to take someone where you are going, you have to meet them where they're at, take them by the hand, and only then can you take them with you.

In some way, I hope my writing can encourage some to put down their swords that were drawn out of fear and put away the shields that they hide behind.  Maybe a son just needs to hear from a father that they are loved rather than all the reasons why he is wrong and they are right.  Maybe a brother just need to know that his younger brother loves him.  Not because of a common view of God or worldview.  Not because he is anything like me or because he has chosen a similar direction in life. I love him because of the great man that he is.  I love him because his honest search for truth encourages me in mine.  And really I love him because of the fact that he's one of my best friends and he's earned every right to that title.