New here--finally figured out posting

[agapeluv]

Good evening all of you---I finally figured out the posting by accident.--LOL

I have been a Christian for almost 19 years. It has been almost 2 years since my husband and I left the church I attened for 17 years. It did not take long for me to learn how rude the pastor was but I was taught from when I first started going there it did not matter if you liked the pastor or not, what mattered was if the church you attend preached the gospel. I tried for years to ignore his rudeness, but ended up with having a lot of hurt to overcome. I have health problems which makes me feel so much older than I am. Hardly a sunday went by that the pastor did not "TEASE" me from the pulpit, or so he thought. I would put a fake smile on and act like it did not bother me. I would leave in tears many times. After our grandaughter died 3 days after my mom, ( both unexpected), I could not believe the rude and hurtful remarks that were made. The pastors' way of consoling me continued to be his rude remarks from the pulpit. If he talked about the age of the earth, I was always much older. My husband talked to the pastor on more than one occasion telling him his remarks were bothering me, only to have him quit a week or two and then start all over. I would go to the restroom in tears only to have someone follow me telling me how I should be grieving, mostly NOT GRIEVING according to them, even though I felt such a closeness to the Lord.I even had one woman tell me the baby could have died because of some sin in my life.

More than once I left the church saying I was never coming back, only to have the Lord speak to me in that still small voice saying NOT YET. I knew He wanted me to learn to lean more on Him and not what I expected of people.

I created a ribbon angel pin and the Lord spoke to me to make the pins in memory of our losses. I was excited but not so excited when He spoke to me to make them for ALL the ladies in the church. It is hard to make a gift for someone who has been very hurtful, but yet such a blessing after you do it and sure did help with healing. The Lord spoke to me to make the pins to give to visitors who come to the church as everyone needs encouragement. I have so many testimonies of how the Lord used these pins to put a smile on someones face. The Lord then laid it on my heart and my hubbies to do an encouragement ministry. After much prayer the Lord gave me the name "The Agape Love Ministry". I made cookies in a jar, did all kinds of things anonymous and shared the ministry with the church letting them know anyone could get involved. My husband and I were wanting to do all kinds of things that the pastor had said from the pulpit so many times that he wished people would do, yet when the Lord would lay these things on our heart, the pastor would try arguing with me that the Lord did not tell him these things. We knew it was finally in the Lords' timing for us to leave. when I first started going to this church, the pastor had told me that if things ever changed the way that they now were that people should leave. when I told him this, he of course argued. He hollered at me on the phone telling me we had no biblical reason for leaving, even though I had done my homework and had lots of scripture backing up why we needed to leave. He did not even bring his bible when he got together with us. He just wanted to argue. I told him I could not take anymore of his abuse, but of course he would not admit that is what it was. The ones that are in leadership positions are like this also, therefore when they treat people badly, he sticks up for them and viceversa. I wanted to slap him across the face with what he said to me one day. I was visiting with one of the deacons wives and he interrupted us and said something to me that was unbelievable. I told my hubby on the way home and he was really angry. He went and talked to the pastor and he of couse lied. it would not have done any good to have mentioned it to the lady I was talking to as they are good friends of the pators and she would have stuck up for him.

What a breath of fresh air it has been these almost two years since we have left there. Our former pastor told my husband that no matter where we go there are people who will say hurful things. My hubby told him, after your church, we are not worried too much about that one. LOL, added to the fact we now have lower expectations.
I love the verse Psalms 118:24---This is the day that the Lord has made, we WILL rejoice and be glad in it. Through the verbal abuse that I went through, it has taught me to rely more on the Lord and not on man. I believe everything happens for a reason and no matter what I have gone through, we don't always know what someone else who comes through the doors of the church may have gone through and how an angel pin, a cookie in a jar, or just a SMILE might brighten their day. Praying an AGAPE day for each one of you as the Lord brings healing to your life. I am so thankful to belong to a church now where the pastor shows respect to others from the pulpit, therefore the children and adults also show respect. What an AWESOME God we serve. We are doing the AGAPE LOVE MINISTRY at this church and the pastor is very encouraging.