For the Will & Grace to know all people are equal

For those who read this blog regularly I'm quite sure I'm starting to sound like a broken record, but there are A LOT of people who haven't grasped this simple principle yet -

GOD LOVES EVERYONE

I can't say it often enough, or loud enough, or strongly enough - God loves you.

Not for what you will be, or what you can be but he loves you for what you are. Listen to Lady Gaga's 'Born this way'. She understands the idea.

Whether you're broke or evergreen
You're black, white, beige, chola descent
You're Lebanese, you're orient

Whether life's disabilities
Left you outcast, bullied or teased
Rejoice and love yourself today
'Cause baby, you were born this way

No matter gay, straight or bi
Lesbian, transgendered life
I'm on the right track, baby
I was born to survive

No matter black, white or beige
Chola or orient made
I'm on the right track, baby
I was born to be brave

I'm beautiful in my way
'Cause God makes no mistakes
I'm on the right track, baby
I was born this way

What's so hard to grasp? Why do I have to repeat it again and again and again?

God loves you as you are, each one of you. And, here's the problem for us, he calls us to do the same.

In this, and I shudder to say it but, there is so much we can learn from cheesy American sit coms. Take Will & Grace or Friends or the Big Bang Theory, some funny shows with some funny lines but like them or not they go out of their way to show the equality of their characters, no matter what their differences.

In Friends we saw how strong women characters can compete in a male dominated world. Monica, Rachel and Phoebe proved it to us every week.

Big Bang makes intelligent geeks cool but also shows that being intelligent or geeky doesn't make you better than anyone else. How often do we see Sheldon knock on Penny's door for help?knock, knock, knock Penny,
knock, knock, knock Penny,
knock, knock, knock Penny.

Will & Grace remind us, every week, that there are gay people living in our world, yes even in Melbourne, maybe even coming to the Melbourne Welsh Church, and that shouldn't be an issue.

Yes we laugh with them (sometimes), or at least at them, but we also learn from them. The things that make us different, our skin colour, our gender, our wealth, our geek factor, our sexual orientations are all seen in these shows and are shown not as failures of character or bad things but as positive differences.

We, who try to follow Jesus, are called to a life of love and service. Not a life of weakness but one of strength. It takes a lot of will & grace to love people - especially people who you don't like, or don't get on with. (Fortunately we're not called to like everybody, only to love them, but that's hard enough.) We are not blind to who or what people are - we are commanded to love them despite their differences, perhaps because of them. God does....

I'm sure that when he looks at me and he sees past the short, handsome, funny, brilliant, deluded Welshman - and sees his child with huge possibilities, amazing potential - someone he loves. And that is what God sees in everyone. Why can't we?

So our prayer for this Pentecost week is that we are given the Will (power) and Grace (of God) to remember that God does not look at the differences, he looks at the heart. So let us love as he loves, unconditionally; not counting the cost but seeing all people as just that - people - with hopes, and dreams, with hurts and worries. People with a God that loves them whether they know it or not.