I am currently reading “The J-Curve” by Paul Miller, an interesting book that sees suffering as a tool of sanctification in our lives. One of my favorite quotes from the book is seen above. Those words are precious to me because it shows the path of love is incarnational.
Christ displayed His love by entering this messed up world…..
And we display God’s Love by entering into the mess of others.
A big part of missions and pastoral work is counseling. Some see this as someone sitting down in a chair and continually asking “how does that make you feel?”, but there is a lot more to counseling than that. It means practically helping those who are overwhelmed with the challenges of life.
A foundational part of counseling is to share God’s truth. But you must also be PRESENT in the persons life! Counseling cannot be done when we live like the lawyer who passes by on the other side of the road in the parable of the good Samaritan, or tell someone who is hungry “I hope you get some food” while food is in our house (James 2:14-16). You must enter into their mess.
In practical terms this means you walk with them, don’t try to fix them.
I believe most overwhelmed people know what God wants them to do. But they don’t have the strength to do it on their own. So they don’t need someone to tell them “here’s what to do”, but someone who puts an arm around their shoulder and says “lets do it together.”
The practical application of that principle for me is dealing with those who have substance abuse issues. I have friends whose lives revolve around alcohol, Marijuana, and a local rum shop. Now I could look them in the eyes and say “Stop drinking!” and they MAY stop for a while. But what they need is someone who will say “Let me help you stop drinking.”
Of course this doesn’t mean it’s okay to drink! But I must understand they rarely have the willpower to stop on their own.
In a deeper sense entering into their mess illustrates the Gospel because God doesn’t tell me “stop sinning!” because I can’t! Instead Christ entered into my mess to bring me Salvation.
So as I enter into the mess of people’s lives with the Gospel they see the love of Christ.
May we remember those who have messed up don’t just need a confrontational word
They also need an arm around their shoulder.
Johnhwilburn.com 
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