The other day I got a call from Shawn venting....." Christians and their stupid ways of making the simplest task a stupid revival and/or "Saving Clinic". Like there isn't anything in this world that a Christian can't do before checking in with God. Come on, I think God has better things to do then hear about us moving furniture and washing dishes!"

Now at first I wasn't really sure what to say to him. I just listened and kept my mouth shut. I knew that no matter what I could of said, nothing at that moment would of fixed Shawn's moment of anger. After about thirty minutes of some potty orders and a couple no-so-nice-phrases... I learned Shawn's real issue. Shawn had encountered the dogmatic christian.

See... Shawn was asked to help move this girl from his aunt's church. Everyone had worked for a couple hours straight without eatting and drinking. So when the pizzas showed up, Shawn helped himself and started to eat. Well, just a bit or two into the pizza break, Shawn gets lectured on the importance of praying before eatting and how dare he even think to eat before that. Not wanting to make a scene... he stops eatting for respect but then has to wait another 30+ minutes of people going on and on to God about life! Shawn was a hungry man holding his pizza in hand and now... having to wait for every Tom, Dick and Henry to have thier moment on the soap box pray before eatting. Shawn was pissed!

So what is a dogmatic Christian, well let me enlighten you. It's a Christian that takes God and puts him in a box. It's where you think the only place to worship God is in a church. It's thinking the only mission field on earth is outside of your own home, neighborhood, work place and/or country. It's when I get told by a christian that I'm not a true believer because I drink wine and drink beer. It's when you hear about all these rules and regulations needing to be done before you can ever even think God loves you. It's a Christian that is having some control issues.... That's what I think a true dogmatic Christian is.

In my walk with God, I too have been a victim of the dogmatic christian and their crazy ways of telling me how to believe. I too have found myself sometimes slander by the mouth of a fellow christian. Now don't get me wrong, I think there are times where I don't emanate God's true "poster child" follower, I know this. I'm not prefect by far. Funny thing... GOD knows I'm not prefect and he knows that yes... I Will Sin. Any person that even tries to live life without sin, is living in Sin. Your saying that you can live life without God's forgiveness and true understanding of what the cross means. Your taking God's Bible and making that God. God's more than just some words written in the bible. To me, the bible is the blue print to find God and the person you are to be in His eyes.

So with all that said and after a while of thinking and praying... I told Shawn. "You know, no one can force you into believing or tell you how to love God. That is something you work out with the Big Guy... You work out your own relationship and read/study His word for yourself and stop letting other's teach you the bible. That's when you will start to take control over your own walk and that's when I believe God gives you grace. Plus the next time someone forces you to pray before eatting again... stop them and ask, "Where does it say that in the bible?'"

I think a lot of christians start to loose what Jesus taught. I am guilty of that too and it took a phone call from a friend to make me realize, God is more than just rules and regulations. God is love. God is a chioce. God is well... everything we are not... which is prefect!