religion? no, thanks. here's the whole truth
people are always asking me if i'm "really religious." by that i'm assuming they're wondering if i go to church every sunday and pray and read the Bible, etc. well, yeah, i do all those things, but it's not because i have to. it's because i want to. see, a lot of people seem to think of religion as some sort of cult with a strict set of rules that everyone must abide by or they will be condemned to hell. in some places, this is true. but it is in no way true of the lifestyle that i know. that's what i call it, a lifestyle - not religion.
the Bible is clear to say that there is only one way to eternal life, one way to Heaven, and that's through Jesus - not by being a "good person" or obeying commandments. if we admit that we are sinners and believe that Jesus is the Son of God, that he sacrificed himself so that we may live, and wholeheartedly give our hearts over to him....then we have been born again, made new...pick your own choice of words for that. it does NOT mean that if we screw up, we go to hell. God's love is not conditional. i know that i am going to heaven because i have been born again, and i try to live my life in a way that glorifies God, but being born again does not mean being made perfect. the truth is this: mankind will never know perfection. i make mistakes every day, but God still loves me and forgives and forgets so quickly because of that love.
how many people in this world truly understand unconditional love? that is, to know that you are loved every moment of every day, no matter what you do or say, no matter how many bad choices you make or how many times you fail. i have to say the only one i've ever known to love me like that is God, my best friend, my savior. i'm not ashamed to say it.
i'm so excited to see God's plan for my life unfold. i know it's going to be a thousand times bigger and better than anything that i can imagine. my dreams are huge and totally unrealistic, but then God is not a realist. his ways are not our ways, his power completely unfathomable. my life is in his hands, he's sitting at the wheel. this comforts me because there are so many things that i can't control, so many problems that i can't avoid, and i'm way too small to handle them by myself. i don't need to worry about tommorrow, or where my finances are coming from, or how i'm going to make a difference in this world, because God knows the answers and that's all that matters. i believe everything happens for a reason, that there is a purpose for every aquaintance i make or job that i have. i pretty much always hated working at this one job and never understood why God was keeping me there. it took me four long years to realize what my purpose was for being there, and only after i came to that realization was i suddenly given another job opportunity. so i've learned to be patient and allow God to work in my life and mold me into the person he wants me to be.
so there's my answer, in a big nutshell. there's probably a lot more that i could say, but...i'm tired. maybe there's a Part Two in the future.
the Bible is clear to say that there is only one way to eternal life, one way to Heaven, and that's through Jesus - not by being a "good person" or obeying commandments. if we admit that we are sinners and believe that Jesus is the Son of God, that he sacrificed himself so that we may live, and wholeheartedly give our hearts over to him....then we have been born again, made new...pick your own choice of words for that. it does NOT mean that if we screw up, we go to hell. God's love is not conditional. i know that i am going to heaven because i have been born again, and i try to live my life in a way that glorifies God, but being born again does not mean being made perfect. the truth is this: mankind will never know perfection. i make mistakes every day, but God still loves me and forgives and forgets so quickly because of that love.
how many people in this world truly understand unconditional love? that is, to know that you are loved every moment of every day, no matter what you do or say, no matter how many bad choices you make or how many times you fail. i have to say the only one i've ever known to love me like that is God, my best friend, my savior. i'm not ashamed to say it.
i'm so excited to see God's plan for my life unfold. i know it's going to be a thousand times bigger and better than anything that i can imagine. my dreams are huge and totally unrealistic, but then God is not a realist. his ways are not our ways, his power completely unfathomable. my life is in his hands, he's sitting at the wheel. this comforts me because there are so many things that i can't control, so many problems that i can't avoid, and i'm way too small to handle them by myself. i don't need to worry about tommorrow, or where my finances are coming from, or how i'm going to make a difference in this world, because God knows the answers and that's all that matters. i believe everything happens for a reason, that there is a purpose for every aquaintance i make or job that i have. i pretty much always hated working at this one job and never understood why God was keeping me there. it took me four long years to realize what my purpose was for being there, and only after i came to that realization was i suddenly given another job opportunity. so i've learned to be patient and allow God to work in my life and mold me into the person he wants me to be.
so there's my answer, in a big nutshell. there's probably a lot more that i could say, but...i'm tired. maybe there's a Part Two in the future.
posted by audrey at
9:29 PM
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