Challenge #1: In Christian Love

This past Sunday at church, we had a guest pastor because our regular pastor, Dr. Lincoln, was on vacation. Our guest pastor was Dr. Bill Bouknight and he continued our series on Faith, Hope, Love.

He had three challenges for each of us this year.

To be...


1. In Christian Love
2. In Usefulness
3. In Christian Witness

Over the last few days I have had a lot of time to reflect on the sermon. Because we have had 4 days of no school because of snow and ice I had a chance to read some books written by my favorite Christian author Francine Rivers.

The first book I read was A Voice in the Wind, and the second I started was Echos in the Darkness (they are both in the same series). In the book, a young slave girl, Hadassah, loses everything around her including her family. She falls in love with her master's son, but refuses to marry him because he is not a Christian. The daughter of the master is out-raged and she sends Hadassah to be eaten by the lions.

In the second book (which I am not finished yet) Hadassah's life is saved by a young student studying to be a doctor. Although Hadassah lives, her master's family does not know that she is alive because if they did know, their daughter would probably have her hang. Because of all the scars from the lion's attacks Hadassah wears veils over her head to hide her scars mainly to keep from scaring people around her. The doctor uses her as his assistant.

This is a general summary of the books I read, but in the book it goes a lot deeper than just the words I said above. I saw Hadassah use each of three challenges Dr. Bouknight set before us, and it challenged my own mind of how I could do this in my own life....

Challenge #1: In Christian Love
-In church, Dr. Bouknight challenged us to love everybody, even our enemies.

In A Voice In the Wind, Hadassah entire family was murdered and she was taken in as a slave. She was assigned to care for her master's bratty daughter, Julia. Julia got everything that she wanted, she took advantage of Hadassah, called her names, and everything. Yet, Hadassah loved Julia. She cared for her. She learned her needs, she learned her temper tantrums. She even took a beaten that was meant for Julia from Julia's husband.

I think about if I could do that? Could I love the one that curses my name? Could I take a beaten for the one that wants my own life destroyed? Could I lose my entire family and be the only survivor?


Realistically, no...I don't think that I could do that. I want to be more like that. I pray that I can be more like Hadassah, more like Jesus. But we all know it's so hard...

The Bible says...

Mark 12:31
The second is this: 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no commandment greater than these."

Luke 6 27-31
[27] "But I tell you who hear me: Love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, [28] bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. [29] If someone strikes you on one cheek, turn to him the other also. If someone takes your cloak, do not stop him from taking your tunic. [30] Give to everyone who asks you, and if anyone takes what belongs to you, do not demand it back. [31] Do to others as you would have them do to you.

I know how hard it is to this. I know how hard it is to forgive and to love those you hate. I can honestly say I am working on this myself.

Growing up my parents were not the kindest to me and my brother. They were abusive, and my brother always got it the worse.  My dad would often come home in a rage just waiting to take it out on somebody. No one talked in my house, scared of what my dad might do. He would beat us for the littlest things. I remember getting in trouble and having to stand in the corner. My dad went outside, and I had to go to the bathroom, so I snuck real fast to go. But he caught me. I will never forget the bruises on my legs and the look on his face. My brother however, got in way more trouble than I did. Patrick was always the center of his target. His power over us was overwhelming. My entire childhood I lived in fear. If you ever read the book, A Child Called It, that was my life. Not as severe, but severe enough, where the wounds are still there.

Growing up, school was my haven. I couldn't wait to go to school so that I wouldn't have to be in the house with him. Part of the reason I am a teacher today is to create a safe haven for my students because you never know what those children go through at home.

Growing up, I have always believed in God. My neighborhood friend, Lindsay Sanders, use to pick me up and take me back and forth to church, and when she moved away the Dusenburys would pick me up (which I am so grateful) So then church became my haven. I loved it. I loved everything about the warm feelings of having those around you love you. I loved knowing that no matter what I did, God loved me. I knew that with God's help I could endure what ever pain my dad could deliver. I knew that God had plans to prosper me, to not harm me. I knew it. And I just knew I was not giving up on my faith living in that house. I could not let God down.

Now that I am adult, and I look back on the environment that I grew up in, I don't know how I survived. I don't know how my brother survived. But I know we survived. I know God had better plans for us.

Through my college years, I have held onto a lot of pain towards my parents. I hardly talked to them. And I hardly saw them. I didn't wish to, I didn't want to, I had no desire to.

But over the years, God has been weighing on my heart every day to do something about the relationship that I have with my parents. I have been reading and reading, and praying and praying about how to forgive them. How to love them? I have also been able to talk about my life growing up more and more with my friends and my coworkers. This has helped me to let go of that anger I have felt.


Before the holidays I wrote my parents a letter. Basically asking them to forgive me for the horrible daughter that I am. For taking such a grudge on them, for not being a better daughter.

That letter still sits saved on my computer. I have reread it and reread a dozen times. I have not mustered up the courage to mail it my parents. I know I am scared to send it.


But I can honestly say, although my words were chosen carefully, I don't think I was hurtful to them. I used words of love to explain myself and to ask for forgiveness and to ask and give them love...

After reading that book, A Voice in the Wind. I am so much closer to actually mailing that letter to my parents. After hearing the sermon on Sunday, I know I need to reconcile.

I want to show Christian love so badly to my parents. I want them to know God's love. To feel God's love in my letter, in my words. I want them to feel God's love in me.

My friends, I ask for your prayers. Please pray for me. I am almost at the point where I think I can mail it, but I need your prayers. Pray I will hit print on my computer, sign that letter, and stick in the mailbox. Pray for me. Pray for my parents. Pray we will show Christian love towards one another.


Friends, I challenge you. What can you do to show Christian love? Do you love your enemies? Do you turn the other cheek? Do you forgive? Do you love unconditionally as God loves you?

Thanks for taking the time to read this. I wanted to put challenge 2-3 on here as well, but decided I would post them in a separate entry. Challenge 1 is enough to take in.

Be blessed.