A Little Different

When a person gets hurt, a friend or family member, they break an arm or leg or maybe something worse, we rush to comfort them. We sign their casts or visit them in the hospitol. When they're sick, or have had surgery we send them flowers and stuffed bears with colorful cards filled with hope. Sometimes we do these things even for our enemies. People we don't particularly like or love, but still, even they deserve some love and comfort when they're stuck in a death trap.
There has been a significant tragedy in the Body of Christ this past week/end. A good man has done a bad thing, a bad thing he tried to keep secret, even denied and lied about it. That thing was found out and now he is in a true death trap in desperate need of rescueing. As is his family and his church. Most of you have probably heard the news about Ted Haggard. If you haven't, just type in his name on Google and I'm certain you will be flooded with information about his "tryst".
Already people are rejoicing at his misfortune. I looked at a discussion page on MSN about what's happening and wasn't really surprised by what I read, but still disappointed in the people of our country. Regardless of who you are, you have no right to rejoice over the misfortunes of another. And I know that there are people within our own Body of the Church that will stab him in the back and say "I knew it all along!" If that is you, I am especially disappointed. Surely you must remember that we are a BODY of Christ, when one part struggles the whole body struggles. That includes you, so don't turn your back on Ted now. If you are not a Christian, if you are gay or a satanist or whatever else you can name, please do not rejoice over this. If you have any respect for anyone or anything, do not be glad that a man so high up in the Christian community has fallen. I would certainly not be glad at your misfortune.
And in fact, if you are not a Christian and have this impression that we are all hypocrites and really only care for our own people, and not always them... I am very sorry that you have been given that impression and hope that you have the great blessing of meeting one of us who can show you how much we do genuinely love you. Sure, we're hypocritical, so are you. We all do things we say we won't, or shouldn't, blah, blah, blah. We are people, we are not perfect, even Christians. Any Christian who tells you that they are perfect is telling one really big lie, you can't get further from the truth. We still sin, Ted is an example. We try not to. But we are human still, and we are no better than anyone else. The only difference is that we have accepted the forgiveness of a God who is LOVE. I'm sorry you have not been shown that, and that the things we have said or done did not come out the way we meant for them to. We do not hate gay people, or people who have abortions, or people who practice witchcraft and devil worship. No, we don't hate you. We love you, in a way that we do not understand, because from a very human standpoint we have no reason to. But we do love you, it's a love that comes from God. It's the only explaination. We desire for you to know love and peace, to be filled with mercy and joy and life. Sometimes we get over zealous and lose focus on those things, but that desire is always there. I am sorry that we have sinned against you, and I hope that one day soon you will see the love that is deep inside us trying desperately to reach you.
To the Body of Christ... be brave in this time of sadness. What Ted did was very wrong, but we cannot turn our backs on him. Christ said that we must forgive a man seventy times seven times! We cannot turn on our own Body! And we cannot forget those who do not know God at this time. We must continue to love Ted and forgive him and bring him back. And as we do that we must reach out to the non-Christian community and show them love, even as they rejoice at our misfortune. They will have questions that will be difficult to answer, about how God could allow such a thing to happen, or allow a sinful man to lead his church, or how a Christian could do such a thing that he has preached against all his life? I don't have the answers to these questions myself, but I know that if we inquire of King at this time He will make things clear to us as He sees fit. We cannot turn our backs now. We much rise to the occassion and fight the enemy, and trust God above all else. Nothing is out of His control, the arm of the Lord is not to short to heal this wound. Be encouraged people of God, this is only a bump in the road and we have victory! It's cloudy now, but the Son is about to break through. All will be well in the Lord's timing. Pray for this man and for the unbelieving, that God would be glorified in all things. God is faithful to His people and faithful to answer their prayers as well.