Feeling Invisible?

Are you one of those people who feel ‘invisible?’  Do others overlook or even devalue you because some ‘difference’ in you?

The world is frequently unkind to those who are deemed ‘broken’ in some way. IF you think I’m wrong …
Ask the kid with some disability about his daily experiences at school.
Ask the girl whose body does not conform to the beauty ideals of social media!
Ask the man whose business failed.
Ask the person who struggles with chronic disease.
Ask the elderly person who cannot move or think as quickly as they once did.

 Some of us shy away from those we find hard to deal with. We avoid that person who acts or speaks in ways that bring us discomfort. Without words we may speak loudly to another person, letting them know that they are ‘that’ person, the ‘invisible’ one, implying that they are too broken to love.

An essay in Christianity Today (Sept/Oct – 2025) was written about God’s care for the “good,” not just the “perfect”  “When the Church sees disability solely as something to be fixed rather than as something that can be honored and received, it obscures the Truth of creation’s goodness and distorts the image of God.”  Yes, think about that!

A young woman in our congregation comes to us with halting steps, unable to speak, touching others with quiet grunts that seem to express recognition. She obviously delights in the music of worship. Should our only prayer be for healing or should we consider that God has a purpose for her, that she is worthy of being counted our ‘sister’ and a gift to our congregation?

Jesus was always aware of the needs of those others considered ‘broken.’ 
He touched lepers.
He engaged with those who were possessed by demonic beings.
He let prostitutes into His company- a scandal, right?
He looked up into a tree and saw a social outcast, a man short in stature, whose heart was aching for love, and He went to Zacchaeus’ house for dinner.

As Jesus became more well-known, the rich came to Him, but He was not seduced by their money, power, or influence. He remained the champion of the broken. His mission statement was not just for publication, He lived it.

Quoting Isaiah, He said, “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.” (Luke 4:18-19, NLT)

The radical Gospel follows His path which is, truly, the ‘narrow road and few find it!’  Many Christians develop romantic notions of ministry to some needy part of our world. They are going to feed the hungry, house the homeless, love the orphan – and they do, for about 6 months. When they find that the pit of human need is bottomless, that people do not always (I might even say seldom) respond with gratefulness. Change is slow in coming. When their ‘service’ loses the shine, when excitement fades, too many retreat to the company of those who seem to be whole, who appear to have life all together, those who bring fewer demands and less discomfort.

God forgive us when we, the Church, take the broad road of the ‘world’ and only loves the lovely!

James, the pastor of First Church in Jerusalem, was inspired to teach us. His words are pointed. Take them to heart, as I did this day.
” My dear brothers and sisters, how can you claim to have faith in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ if you favor some people over others?

For example, suppose someone comes into your meeting dressed in fancy clothes and expensive jewelry, and another comes in who is poor and dressed in dirty clothes. If you give special attention and a good seat to the rich person, but you say to the poor one, “You can stand over there, or else sit on the floor”—well,  doesn’t this discrimination show that your judgments are guided by evil motives?

Listen to me, dear brothers and sisters. Hasn’t God chosen the poor in this world to be rich in faith? Aren’t they the ones who will inherit the Kingdom he promised to those who love him? But you dishonor the poor! Isn’t it the rich who oppress you and drag you into court? Aren’t they the ones who slander Jesus Christ, whose noble name you bear?

Yes indeed, it is good when you obey the royal law as found in the Scriptures: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”  (James 2)

Jesus offers a Gospel for the rest of us!
Yes, in the end, we are all imperfect, broken by sin, scarred and marred – but as He loves us, we are made into “His treasure” and we are declared “Good” though imperfect. Oh, what a Savior!

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Video of this blog

https://www.youtube.com/@JerScott55

 

Excuses, Excuses

How honest are you with yourself? It’s a tough question, isn’t it? Are you self-aware, able to see what you do clearly as well as understanding why you do it?  Learning to be honest to God and ourselves is a big step in spiritual maturity, a key to personal freedom.  I am a real supporter of AA as a pathway to sobriety. The 10^th step addresses this issue, with the person seeking that freedom committing he will “take personal inventory and when wrong promptly admit it.”

In recent months I noticed that I was becoming more irritable and critical. Finally, I took time to prayerfully examine my life and realized that I had been repressing an unfocused anger. I took steps to address it, to think about it, and to ask God, the Holy Spirit, to work in me for a change. What freedom I found in the process.

Often when we are challenged about some choice or behavior our first response is to rationalize and excuse, pointing out why we are right. It is a pattern as old as Eden, where Adam told God that "it was the woman you gave me that gave me the fruit!" She, in turn, blamed the serpent, "it deceived me and I ate the fruit!"

Think of the various excuses you use to justify yourself. Some blame bad parents. Others point to a poor education. We might point out our genetic heritage, co-workers, traffic, our spouse … the list is long, isn't it?  Many years ago, a wise teacher repeated a phrase that sticks in my mind. It was her definition of a self-justifying excuse - "a skin of a reason, stuffed full of lies!"  With that little phrase, she pressed us to be responsible people.

If you want to be right with God, throw away the excuses; forget about convincing Him that 'the Devil made you do it.' Spiritual freedom and maturity begin with honesty – with ourselves, with others, and with God. John teaches us - "If we claim we have no sin, we are only fooling ourselves and not living in the truth. But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all wickedness." (1 John 1:8-9, NLT)

We look at the mess we've created
with ill-informed, or selfish, or thoughtless choices
and we say,
"That's what I did. God help me!" -
the glorious truth is - He will.

In the book of Romans there is this passage that is packed with promise. Take a look.
"Now a righteousness from God, apart from law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness from God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe. There is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus." (Romans 3:21-24, NIV)

The Law of Moses defined the standard we were to live up to in order to be acceptable to Him. In our human frailty, we all fail – miserably! Those failures are sin, and sin separates us from God. But God… yes, He stepped in to provide a way home, a path to maturity.  The situation is not hopeless, because what I could not do for myself- get right with God - has been done for me by Christ Jesus.

When we get ‘honest to God,’ when we turn to Him in faith accepting His invitation to live in grace, we are justified! No excuses are needed. God declares our sins forgiven and erases the debt and guilt. Yes, as the old phrase says, I am new; “just as if I'd” never sinned!

Are you wallowing in guilt?
Are you still trying to excuse the things you have done that you know are wrong, sinful in the eyes of God and others?
Throw away the excuses and choose to humbly acknowledge the truth. THEN, accept the gift of forgiveness and renewal. We can become ‘new creations’ through Christ’s death and Resurrection, empowered to please God by the Spirit Who lives in us.

It is the way to real and lasting change, the only way to become genuinely holy, and therefore, pleasing to God.

Take this Word with you today. Meditate on it for a few moments.
"Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory. We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance.

And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love. When we were utterly helpless, Christ came at just the right time and died for us sinners." (Romans 5:1-6, NLT)

Lord God, lead us to freedom, to maturity, to lives of beauty through Christ, our Lord. Amen.

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Video of this blog

https://www.youtube.com/@JerScott55