The first time I read the book ‘The Shack’, by Wm. P. Young, was the first time I heard an emotionally & Biblically true parable of what the Love of God can look like. What I read seemed to clash with a lot of ‘images’ and beliefs of who I thought God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit were.  Growing up, I was never taught about the profound love and acceptance the Trinity had towards me, instead, it was quite the opposite. I always believed God was distant, relationally unapproachable, and any connection with Him was conditional based on my positive or negative behaviour.

I was living ‘judged’.  Believing God was frowning down on me and only once in a while giving me a nod of approval, hindered my ability to trust anything He had to say to me.  It hindered my ability to believe some significant truths found in the Scriptures.

I was living ‘shamed’.  The European concept of raising and educating children is a shame based model.  Shame the child into submission or into proper behaviours.   Continue reading →