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“I went to Christ, you went the other way, still my brother[/sister], man.” -Byoo

That won’t change. I will always be your brother, I will always be your friend. No matter what choices you decide to make with your life, I will stand firm in having your back whenever you need me to. I’m not saying I agree with what you’ve decided to do, nor do I condone the things that you’re doing. But my word is out to assure you that even if all of the world turns their back and disappoints you, I’ll be there to pick you back up as your bro.

I know you’ve been disappointed by the church, mainly by the people in it. I know that you’ve been hurt and scarred by other people that you trusted to have your back. I know that there have been moments where you were disgusted by self-righteousness, and maybe disappointed in me as well. To that I have not much to say.

I can say to you that church is a gathering of broken sinners, not a congregation of perfect examples. I can tell you that all of those people are sons and daughters of God, as you are. I can quote scripture, and I can argue various points.

But all these things I put aside because I know it does not fully address the hurts that you have inside. It’ll help you think, change of perspective, but I know that it won’t deal with the fact that somebody did hurt you, and was not a good example of what Christlikeness was like. No matter what anybody says, if you were hurt, you were hurt; no one has the right to say that your pain is illegitimate, and that you need to grow up. It has to be addressed.

All I can do is apologize for the times that I was not a good ambassador of Christ, and represented Him in wrong ways. I apologize on be half of the people of church that hurt you and left you scarred. Though of course I cannot bear their sins against you on the cross, I implore on behalf of them that you would look at the sins in the light of the cross.

Which leads me to this: Finally, and ultimately, I implore you to come back to the cross. I really really pray deeply for you that you would once again come to find the beauty of the cross and the grace of Jesus. That you would leave your failing hopes of the world to find unfailing love of Christ. That you would be filled with a hope and a purpose for your life, instead of chasing after empty things. You know yourself that embracing the passion and the joy you had for the Lord, was something that nothing in this world can replace. You yourself know that God loves you and cares for you deeply. Regardless of people, regardless of memories and the past, you know that God loves you unconditionally without fail, and has no condemnations for you in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1)

You probably have no clue, but I’m still praying for you. My heart breaks so much whenever I see you turning deeper and deeper into sin instead of Christ. My heart yearns for you to come back to the cross, to come back to the unrelenting mercies and grace of the Lord to find your true self once again. I look forward the future day that you will return, and find that the cross gives new life though you may die to your old one. That though you would lose the world, you would gain Christ.

His love heals every hurt and shame. His love keeps no record of wrongs. His love renews you in hope, and fills you with grace.

I genuinely fear for your soul, and pray that you would turn to the salvation that you had once clung so passionately on to. God never gave up on me though I hated His guts, and eventually brought me back to His embrace to know nothing more. And in that persistence that brought me back to Christ, I will continue in prayer for you.

I was, and always will be your brother.

A soft answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger.

—edit

writing my 5-7pg essay is making me very grumpy but I am seeking peace of mind through Christ’s steadfastness.