"A Wolf in Sheep's Clothing"

It has recently come to my attention that a member of my former church has labeled me a "wolf in sheep's clothing". This comes as no surprise as I consider the source of the comment; however, this is not the first time that the self-righteous have bared their claws.

I actually take this sort of thing as a compliment. 

The past few years of my life have been the most significant, the most revealing, the most precious - as far as my spirituality is concerned. I've learned a lot. I've unlearned a lot. Somewhere in between lies doubt. I've learned to both embrace and resist doubt in equal measure. It's incredibly frustrating at times, not knowing all of the answers. If I could have one wish in the entire world, I would want to have a one-on-one with Jesus Christ, in the flesh. I would like to sit with him, maybe sip on a cup of coffee, and go down the list of questions and concerns that I have about life, about his Word. However, the closest that I'm ever going to come to this - until I enter the pearly gates, of course - is what I have in front of me. The Bible. The teachers, leaders, and counselors that God places into my life. Sometimes it's all that I need, and at other times, it's not good enough. Sometimes holding onto my faith becomes a sort of wrestling match between Rinky and the Almighty. The only thing that I've noticed thus far is that He won't let me go. I can't escape his grasp. Not that I'd want to.

I've noticed that this has made me stronger. As I said, I still have doubts, but I have a strong spiritual foundation, thanks to my wonderful mother, which has allowed me to explore, to roam freely - to figure things out on my own. It's my faith. It's my journey. It's unique. It pisses people off. My quest for total freedom in Christ gets me in trouble. It upsets the self-righteous - the hypocrites who hoist themselves up onto pedestals and toss out labels, such as "heretic", "false prophet", and "wolf in sheep's clothing". Maybe they're upset that they haven't yet discovered the freedom that I've found. This is possible. Maybe they're just having a bad day.

Or maybe they're just assholes. 

Who's to say? We all toss out labels from time to time. All I know is that I don't have all of the answers. I'll never have all of the answers. Until then, I'm going to keep searching. I'm going to push forward on this beautiful journey - and if that makes me a wolf, then so be it.