I raised chickens for the eggs for a number of years. It always surprised me how vicious chickens can be, especially when one of the flock is seen as weak. All of the other birds isolate the weak. They drive them away from food and water. Roosters shun them. They are chased out of nesting boxes, their eggs are pecked, their social status in the roosting order suffers, and they are forced to lower levels, often to the ground. Removal of the ostracized is the only solution that allows everyone to thrive. In time, they can be reintroduced to the flock.

Likewise, many people have experienced pain when getting involved with a church. The disapproval, the haughty looks, and unwritten expectations. Gossip runs rampant, often veiled by throwing around the word “prayer.” People in a flock can be vicious creatures. Because of this, many have left the church and are unwilling to return, choosing self-isolation rather than a thinly veiled hypocritical persecution.

The outcast, the marginalized, the brokenhearted. The very ones Jesus came for, and they can wind up isolated from the flock, because people can act with a “protection” mindset that harms others. Faded Grace was written with these people in mind. It is a novel, but it carries a few central themes in its bones. The strongest thought is the idea that God often uses the least likely people to accomplish what He is doing. Sometimes those who have been cast from the club wind up in the middle of God’s action.

ComingApril 1st!

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