Go Ahead....Yoke Yourself with Unbelievers

In Second Corinthians, the Apostle Paul stated 

"Do not be unequally yoked together with unbelievers. For what fellowship has righteousness with lawlessness? And what communion has light with darkness?"  (NKJV) 

---2 Corinthians 6:14

I have heard this verse quoted all my life regarding marrying or even hanging out with people outside your faith. I can understand this wisdom to a point, however, as we always seem to do, we can take this too far. 

Those of us in the bible belt are especially good at this. We have insulated ourselves from other views and in doing so, cannot see ourselves for how we really are. We cannot look at ourselves through the perspective of the rest of the world and so when someone asks us to consider that we may be wrong about something, we cannot think outside the box in order to do this. 

I know I couldn't until I moved out of the bible belt. Once I lived with people who think differently than the way I grew up, my mind began to open so I could see through their eyes. 

And I was astounded at what I saw. 

The Christianity that we hold dear in the Bible Belt has become so out of touch with the world, that we no longer speak the same language. It has become a political force rather than a source of hope. It is about right fighting rather than fighting to stamp out the things that matter like poverty and hunger. It is about whining about God being removed from America, instead of sharing the joy that IS God and showing America why God is so amazing. 

We have lost the God that was shown to us by the likes of Jesus, Ghandi, and Mother Teresa. He is no longer here for the poor, the meek, the downtrodden. He is a cruel judge, a God who can only be a republican, heterosexual, patriarchal , and protestant. His followers are allowed to be cocky and mean and to carry signs of hate rather than than let their lives be signs of hope.

I refuse to call myself Christian anymore because I know that to the outside world, that shuts the door immediately. 

It has even become an instinct for me to close myself down as soon as I hear someone say they are Christian. I immediately expect to get judged and to be treated poorly. If a business claims to be Christian, I avoid it because I expect to be cheated. The idea of church rarely brings positive emotions. 

However, like many others, when I think of God, I think only positive things. I think of love, compassion, and hope. I think of acceptance, understanding, and wonder. 

So in yoking myself with unbelievers, I became a better believer. I listened better, I saw more clearly. I developed more understanding. I became more like the God I love. No doubt I have a long way to go, but I am no longer in the same place. I have grown. 

When I looked at the definition of "yoke" I found that it is something that allows two or more to work as a team, to move in one fluid motion. Just because someone does not believe exactly as I do does not mean that we are not moving in the same direction. For the most part, we all want to feel loved and to understand why we are here. I think if we looked for the things that we have in common instead of concentrating on our differences, we would realize that being yoked together, may not such a bad thing. 

"Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”           

---Matthew 11:29-30