NOT "HOLIER THAN THOU"

But raw, ragged, rugged, rowdy and REAL!

• Romans 12:1-2: “I beseech you therefore brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service. And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable and perfect will of God.”

  Isaiah 57:15 “For thus says the high and lofty One that inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also who is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the spirit of the contrite ones.”

• Sometimes the Christian faith is mocked and condemned for the stereotype of ”holier than thou.”

• While some may “play-pretend” that they somehow achieve holy status as a follower of God and His Son, based on my own raw and disorganized journey toward God, holy is very tough to reach and achieve. Holy is something to aspire to and to work towards, however, as holiness is asked of of us by our Heavenly Father. Holy does not mean perfect or “full of yourself”, but rather humble and willing to be gradually and honorably shaped by God.

• Following God rattles your cave down to the roots. Your brilliant brain is in a game of dodgeball...in which your cherished thoughts are unceremoniously and summarily discussed with you ( by the One Who made you, not by fellow humans,) roamed through with a fine-toothed comb and placed under a raving hot spotlight that is larger than 100 watts...

• Christianity, the deep kind, is the most rowdy thing you can experience...while simultaneously lifting you up from the muck, step by step. What a diametrically opposed essence?? How can this be? This is most certainly NOT “polite” Christianity.

• I remember Christ being described in Isaiah 53:3, as “ a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.” Well, you try taking on not only a horrifying method of execution...but also the searing dark spiritual and physical mess of every human who ever lived. Grief, indeed.

• Not polite, not nice, not routine. The history of the sinful behavior of every human who ever lived...why would God want that awful, ugly pile??

  I have no polite answer to the love of God. My own self-struggles are epic ...most who know me, know some of them.

• That is very intense and primal stuff...not like some serene guy floating about with a beatific look on His face, aiming blessings all around. Few can remotely comprehend what Christ, the Son of God endured for all of us.

• Humans have messed up the world quite well and of course with help from the devil, he always happy to help. As Christ called him, “ a liar and the father of it,” he is disgustingly willing to hurl his “help” in your direction, messing up your world...and “always happy to help, Ma’am.”

• Yeah, no thanks, dude, you lie worse than the rug you want to rip from under me. I wasted enough time listening to your lies.

• Sometimes I don’t sound or feel very holy...but ragged and worried, supremely rumpled, little confidence, my disorder blocking roads I want and need, forever ruminating and processing to the “ ‘nth’ “ degree, lost in ideas, not enough action taken. No wonder I’m a loner...and yet even I am making slow, steady progress upwards! Hurrah!! God has not given up on me!!! A note to any Prodigals out there tonight, God does NOT give up on you! He still knows you, He still loves you, He still calls you back Home, in any condition. Just ask Him to help! He will, step by step, bring you Home.

• I am sure you have heard the frantic exhortation phrase/pun that demands “don’t just sit there, do something!” There is also a whole sarcastic admonition that…perversely reverses the demand, “don’t just do something, sit there”... and I am most familiar with the mess on both sides.

• Does that sound like it resonates with holy...?

  I tell you, GOD works in mysterious ways.

• During my less-than-stellar 35 years as a Prodigal to my Christian faith, I morphed into several things: a very sharp-tongued blaster, a full-opinion-offerer (for free!!), a small volcano of force (fruitless), and a purveyor of Leftist pursuits.

• I am a Conservative now and have been for many years.

• Needless to say, as that Wendy-prodigal “plan” slid down the hill, the seams were seriously coming apart.

  The cold bites of reality, the fact of getting older, the reality of not much good manifested, began to more forcefully place themselves on my footpath daily.

  How rude!!

  But how crudely correct and likely saved my life. Those stark realities brought me back to God.

• God works deep in the body-mind-soul- and-spirit, His miracles to manifest.

  The cog in the road is that we have to cooperate with Him, partner with Him.

  It is, after all, our only life.

  God actually chases us down!

• What?

  WHY??

  You don”t want an answer from the blunt Oregon girl, now do you??

• Aren’t “gods” supposed to demand things, to stand over you with a stick and threaten, scold and harangue?

• Jehovah/Abba/Adonai is certainly not passive or weak, He eventually judges us...but He does not force things. We have free will. Now He will sometimes allow unpleasant realities to occupy our living room at inopportune times, as He does not hide the results of our bad behavior or actions.

  People tell me, “well, I’m not religious.” Well, person, I’m not either.

  The difference is RELATIONSHIP, not religion.

• God is the Father of all Fathers...One Who looks out for His children, who have turned away from sin, turned toward Him and His Son and joined the Household of God. He provides, He brings comfort, He gives each of us GIFTS, abilities that are unique to us, that we can happily utilize to a livelihood and honorable profession. He comes alongside us and shares and enjoys the ride, even through valleys. He does not live only on the mountaintop, He joins you in the darkest night of valleys you have dug yourself into or fallen the same. I have most certainly been there and I can tell you, this is true. Even in the darkest and most dreadful hour, He is there.

• “You religious types” used to be a pejorative, by people who believe only in their own ability or resources. Now in glorious hindsight from me as a Prodigal who finally returned and collapsed onto God’s front porch in huge disarray and despair, I cannot put into words the miracle of coming Home to a family that does not fail, my Heavenly family. God, as He does for every person ever born on Earth, gave me gifts and abilities...and I do best in sharing and relationship with the One Who created me and for a holy purpose. This does not mean I am better than others, this means I am to use the gifts of God within me, to help myself and to offer help to others as I am guided.

  Not one human thing comes near.

• There is no force in my message, no attempt to harrass someone into following the Christian faith. This is simply a forthright sharing and spirited defense of one blunt woman who fled from God due to terrible grief in early teens, fell apart in her own sorrow and finally came back Home. I believe my sharing has relevance, especially to the brokenhearted of the world. As God says “I will never leave you, nor forsake you.” I am 73 and I live this miracle every day. This is true.

• Listen to Christian singer Brandon Lake sing “Graves into Gardens”, in which he speaks of God being with us both on the mountaintop and in the valley... I especially like the version from “Acoustic/Elevation Worship.” Profound and very moving! The lyrics speak directly of Who God is and how He joins us in every situation of life. Real, overwhelming, eloquent and needed by us all…

  Wendy Elizabeth Williams, Friday November 28, 2025

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