Picking Up Prostitutes (and other biblical activities)

Quite a few years ago I was serving as youth pastor in a small country church. We were foster parents at the time, so we had been reaching out to the biological mother of one of the children in our home. She agreed to attend church with us one Sunday, so I drove down to meet her at a bus stop in a town to the south and give her a ride the rest of the way. On that particular morning she was a no-show, and I started the drive back north, somewhat frustrated over my wasted trip.

As I passed through another town I saw a lady hitchhiking on the side of the road. I felt the Spirit prompt me, so I stopped and picked her up. She told me she was trying to get to church and then proceeded to tell me her story. She had been a prostitute for years and only two weeks before had found out she had AIDS (a death sentence in those days). She was alone, scared and seeking answers. So as I drove her to the church she was seeking to find, I talked to her about how much Jesus loves her and how He could change her heart and her life. She wept, I wept, we prayed together and I dropper her off at the door of the church with a hug.

I finally made it back to our church and the service began. Each week we had a time in our service where people could share prayer requests, so I took that time to ask for prayer for this young woman. Of course, I started it by saying, “I picked up a prostitute this morning” and then told the story. (That is probably not the best introduction to a prayer request.)

As soon as the service was over I was cornered by a woman from our church who proceeded to chew me out. She told me that I had acted inappropriately and placed both the church’s and my reputation at risk. “Do you have any idea what kind of reputation you could get doing things like that?”

I paused for a moment, took a deep breath and smiled. “Yes, I do. If our church keeps doing those kinds of things we could get a reputation like Jesus had. We could actually become known as friends of sinners.” That quickly ended the conversation as she turned and stomped off to go talk to some of the Board members who confronted me as well.

So, why am I bringing that long ago event up now? Well, I have been thinking a lot about what it really means to live a life that moves in harmony with the Bible. I believe we often think we know what that means, only to be far from the mark. Most of us have a picture of what a Christ-follower looks like. We have gotten it from our parents, our church, personal experiences with believers and/or popular culture. But often that picture does not line up with the Word of God, even when we think it does.

Stop for a moment and think about the heroes of Scripture, including Jesus Himself. What did they look like? How did they act? Were they safe, predictable and well respected? Were they the suit and tie crowd? Were they good stewards as the church would describe Christian stewardship now? Did they fit into a mold at all?

Over and over when you look at the men and women of faith you see people who were scandalous, reckless, dangerous and unpredictable barbarians. They were unconcerned with their reputation but very concerned with God’s voice which led them to do crazy things. They touched the untouchables, loved the unlovable and did the impossible while the religious crowd told them they were crazy. I believe that most of the faithful people of scripture, including Jesus, would be quickly rejected were they to walk into the typical church today because they do not fit our unbiblical view of what a Christ-follower should be.

Please understand, these crazy radicals of Scripture were not that way because they were seeking to be crazy. They were that way because they obeyed God’s call, and He asked them to do things that, from a human viewpoint, were crazy and reckless. They were not lunatics, they were God-followers.

I am, by far, not a good example of a true disciple. I fall short in so many areas. But over the years Wanda and I have gotten a few things right. However, in the few things we did get right, we almost always experienced resistance from the church. Consider the following:

1. When we started fostering back in 1992 we were told that we were being irresponsible by exposing our children and the children of our church to “those troubled kids.”
2. When we started adopting after having five biological children we were told we were being irresponsible by having so many children.
3. When pastoring a church plant that was reaching severely troubled families I was told by other pastors that “You can’t build a church on those kinds of people.”
4. When we started downsizing our lives and giving the money to ministry we were told that we were not being responsible stewards.
5. When we decided to move to Guatemala and begin this ministry I was told that I was a bad husband and father for putting my family at risk.

Hidden in each of these objections were the lies that God calls His children to be safe, careful and well-financed. It is okay to help others as long as it is not risky and doesn’t demand sacrifice. A good Christian looks out for himself and his family first and foremost.

In reality, many of us believe that we are living biblical lives but in reality are only living churchical lives. (Yes, I made up that word. Deal with it.) The filter of the traditional church has caused us to interpret scripture and discipleship through a dark lens. As a result, we are getting a lot of it wrong.

And, yes, I realize that I am likely getting it wrong in some areas as well. The problem with having a filter that skews your perception is that you usually don’t realize you have it because your perception is skewed. But God is challenging me anew to head back to His Word with fresh eyes, trying to forget what I think I know so that I can learn what I really need to know. So that I can learn what it really means to be Christ-like in a world that really needs Jesus.

I believe that if each of us would do that, we would become far less safe, tame and predictable and spend more time picking up prostitutes. I know…scandalous, right?

If this strikes a chord in you, I would encourage you to pick up the book, The Barbarian Way by Erwin McManus. It is a worthwhile and, perhaps, life changing read.

Blessings from Guatemala!

Daryl, Wanda and the Crew