I’ve always been a Christian, a believer, I grew up going to Church, but that’s about it. I knew about God, spiritually, I think I’ve been an okay person. That’s the problem, I only knew about God. I only knew that he was a loving father, but I never really took the time to expand on that relationship, and there are plenty of other Christian’s who don’t know what they are missing out on.
Eternal life doesn’t start after life, it starts now. A relationship with God almighty, the creator of the universe, himself, that starts now. Wait no longer. God longs for a relationship with you, he yearns for it, more than you could ever know in your lifetime. Realize that as a Christian, your life should focus on the Cross, otherwise its just religion itself, I wrote you can be religious (and have all the knowledge of theology), but at the same time something could be missing like Jesus said himself, what good is the salt if it loses it’s salting? (Luke 14:34). What’s missing you ask? Do you truly have a relationship with Christ? Do you realize the importance of having one? If you even hesitated to answer any of these two questions, than your further away then you think of being close or “getting right with God”.
If you aren’t sure, or if you hesitated to answer the two questions above, than let me explain to you what it means to have a relationship with Christ, yet I’m still on my journey to carry the cross, so of course this isn’t complete, or as awe-inspiring as the stories of Jesus in the New Testament, but I truly believe that as the Bible says, he who starts a good work will finish it to the day of Jesus Christ (Philippians 1:6) and faithfully I will wait on his plan. `
A relationship with Christ, through God is the key to love, it’s the key to the gates of Heaven, and we should know that (nobody gets to the father except through him) (Jesus) (John 14:6). I must realize that as a Catholic, my faith in Christ alone will save me, not in Catholicism, and this is something I’ve realized. I need to realize more than that though. I have to be careful in this world where many will say one thing and do another contrary to their professed beliefs, luckily though Jesus has provided me and you with a colorful key to follow as Matthew 7:16 says we will know other’s by their fruits, and of course do people pick grapes from thorn bushes, or figs from thistles? If we aren’t careful with this than guess what, we will likely be twisting God’s word either unbeknownst to ourselves or through temptation to satisfy our own selfish desires of the flesh.
This means we must cut off the flesh, pluck our eye’s out if necessary, because this world isn’t all that glitters is gold, once, or if we do come to realization with that fact, than we should have no trouble continuing on higher and newer depths in our walk with God, which might I remind you, starts in this lifetime. I view it as simply as this: God gave us life, so we are to give it to him and ask him to do whatever it is he wants, because he gave us life. We also, I might include myself, be careful not love the things of this world, but love it enough to change it, or make some sort of difference.
Often times though, we like to sit down relaxed and say “I wasn’t called to do this, or that, or that someone else is doing it, that’s good enough for me, and that’s good enough for God”. That’s not right. Remember that God does have a plan for you, he has an individual plan for us all, otherwise we wouldn’t be here, otherwise, living for ourselves is to easy, to comforting, to typical. We weren’t called to be typical, to sit in the pews for an hour each Sunday, and listen to a sermon alone. That’s not good enough. God requires more than that, he’s not just simply an accessory piece we are to add in our lives, no he wants to get to know you. He wants you to know him, and there are plenty of different ways to do that.
Read the scriptures, and you will find dozens (more than dozens) of his identities. Saying you know something is one thing, but living the life that shows your intimacy with God, and through him your relationship with Christ, than Matthew 7:16 clearly shows up in your acts, in your way of life, in your desires. If you have a personal list of different names you have come to call God in your life, like provider, than that shows some of the depth’s of your personal relationship with God, because you have come to know him, how he works, when he chooses to work (and he always does, it’s just we aren’t always willing to be content with some of the regular blessings he gives us). God gives us the nice things we have because he wants us to spread his word and his glory through the nice things we have, and other’s to will come to know God, and through God will see the importance of having an everlasting relationship with Christ. God is good.
God is so good he sent his only son to die for our sins, that we might see his glory through that, and his mercy, and his love, which is richer than the depths of the sea, he see’s our heart’s which has deceit and selfish/lustful desires all over it, and chooses to love us the same. But we must be true, pure, righteous, honorable disciples of Christ, following the good shepherd who laid down his life for all of us.
Carry The Cross 