Righteously indignant and a little pissed off...?

I think I've just found my unofficial calling.  I've tried a few different kinds of ministries, and for all kinds of reasons, they've never been a match.  But now, I think I've finally discovered the people group that I am specifically called to minister to in an unofficial way:  those shunned, disrespected, thrown-out-of-for-some-ridiculous-reason, offended by, or just not loved by the organized church.  

Just yesterday I received two emails from people I love telling me stories of how the church, "God's" people, have trashed and thrashed them.  Any of you who know me know that I don't get all that many emails on any sort of regular basis, so to get two in one day is fairly significant, but the fact that they both told the same story just really irritates me.  How did the church come to this?!?  Where do we get off telling anyone that they are not worthy of God?  How can we possibly talk about love when we are so judgmental?!?  We are the epitome of hypocrisy when we talk about acceptance and grace, but we only let certain types of people into our little cliques.  Are we so pure that we can claim, just like the pharisees and sadducees of Jesus' time that we don't need grace because we follow all the right rules?

Here's what I think:  I'm just as messed up as the next guy, depending on the day, maybe even more so.  I put on a happy face when in my head I am saying terrible things about my coworkers.  I think things that I am too embarrassed to admit.  Sure I don't act on them, but I think, and Jesus backs me up on this one, that thinking the act is the same thing, maybe worse.  Some would say, "well at least your not acting on those thoughts," but in all actuality, aren't I the worst of the hypocrites?  I can't even be honest enough with myself and those around me to admit my thoughts; at least if I did act on them, I'd have the gaul to admit my problems, I'd have the audacity to claim honesty in my life, instead of this duality.  So if I'm just as bad, guilty, sinful if you insist on Christianease, I think I should work on loving, celebrating the good in, and welcoming all those around me, saved or otherwise.  I think this is the meaning of grace.  When God calls us to be in his image, to give grace as He gives grace, I'm pretty sure He's not telling us that we're all that great; I'm pretty sure that in fact He's slamming us in the most appropriate way:  He's telling us that in the same way He gives us grace when we don't deserve it, every time we don't deserve it, that we should extend the same undeserved grace to those around us.  We are pathetic, grasping, undeserving people, every day, all the time.  But He choses to overlook that; the Creator of the universe choses to look only at the potential good in us: our choice to admit our wrongs and claim the only thing that could save us.

This is my mission field:  those who have been abandoned by those who have no excuse for not loving, for not giving grace.  And I'd rather swing towards the liberal in my acceptance than ever be accused of being judgmental or hypocritical; I would rather take the chance and not be right, then not give the chance at all...  I chose love and grace.