A message to all my friends (and hopefully well beyond).
[Before I continue with my latest post, I feel I should re-post the first few blogs I had written on Facebook. Here is the very first one I published back in January 2010.]
I am a born again Christian.
Hopefully many (if not all of you) know this fact about me. What most of you probably don’t know is that for many years I’ve been a compromising Christian.
What do I mean by that?
I’ve always had a strong relationship with God, and I was a very strong Christian all the way up through High School. But I felt that I didn’t have enough friends. I was only into church, comic books, wrestling and video games and it was hard for me to make friends with anyone who wasn’t into those things back then. That resulted in me having very few friends and just not feeling very accepted, especially outside of church. The one thing that I felt (at the time) kept me from having friends the most was my faith. Because I used to be made fun of for what I believed in, like not using profane language (and being harassed to curse when I didn’t want to and sometimes being beat up for refusing), or being called gay because I didn’t go around kissing girls like many of the other boys my age did. Even when I was offered, I didn’t like, let alone love these girls, so I didn’t see the point and I would politely turn them down. I would also encounter people who didn’t want to hear about God and being rude to me just because I was a Christian.
In an attempt to become more popular I tried to change myself over when I got to college. I lost a ton of weight, became more outgoing, expanded my horizons in my interests, and I slightly pushed God into the background (still serving him and remaining faithful, but not letting it be as obvious to my friends). And while many of these things worked for me and I’ve made an amazing network of friends, the last thing I did, was probably one of the stupidest moves I’ve made in my life. Recently, as I’ve grown closer to God I’ve experienced so many blessings, and it’s upsetting to know that I could have had these blessing years ago if I had only stayed on the path I was on, no matter the cost.
But God is good and has always been a part of my life and has always had a calling on me. I’ve grown stronger in my relationship with him, but I still felt I tried to justify some of the things I did and compromised too much, like in the music I listen to, movies I watch, the way I talk and acted, and most importantly- not expressing how I truly felt on a variety of topics, for fear I’d either be made fun of, or worse yet- that I would lose the friends I worked so hard
to make.
But I’m tired of living in fear, especially of losing my friends. We’re all adults at this point, and if people decide they don’t want to be friends with me anymore due to my beliefs (and expressing who I truly am) then that is something that I feel would be unfortunate, but will have to live with. I hope this won’t come to be, but I don’t know how people will react to some of the things I may say in the future. My prayer is that everyone has an open mind to things, just as I have had an open mind to the many things I’ve seen and experienced over the years.
******************************************************************************************
One of the things God has put upon my heart is to spread his word. And I intend to do that through my blog. Whenever God puts a word in my heart I am going to type it out and post it and hopefully everyone on my friends list (and far beyond) will read it and respond (even if you disagree with what is stated, b/c there is nothing wrong with a healthy, civil debate).
The first message God has put on my heart to share is actually a challenge.
I challenge everyone reading this to examine what you really believe in terms of God and religion. This message is more specifically focused to those who actually already do go to church (no matter what kind of church it is- Born-again, Catholic, etc), or believe in God in some manner (even if you don’t practice). But please, even if you don’t fall into either of those categories, I’d like to hear your opinions.
So once again, the question(s) are: what do you really believe? What are you looking for by going to church or even just praying (for those that don’t fully practice)?
I fully believe that everyone is searching for something. Some of you may not want to agree with me or take offense at the notion that your life is missing something, but especially if you are going to church, or have some kind of belief in God, then you are searching for something. Maybe you are searching for an answer to something going on in your life, or the mysteries of the world, maybe you are searching for happiness, for comfort, for healing (emotional or physical), help/deliverance on a particular issue or even escape.
Whatever it may be, are you finding it? And if you are, is it staying with you once you leave church or say that prayer? Are you maintaining it and living the life meant for you as a Christian/believer of God of or are you only going to church (or having a talk with God) just to get your weekly/monthly/annual fix and hope it lasts?
To be a Christian means to be “Christ-like.” Being a Christian is not just something we just check on a box on a survey and claim ourselves as. It isn’t a title- it’s a relationship. One of my favorite quotes that always comes to my mind when I’m struggling (or see a fellow Christian struggling) with something is:
“The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians, who acknowledge Jesus with their lips and walk out the door and live on by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.” DC Talk “What If I Stumble?”
If you call yourself a Christian or Catholic then you need to act like it in ALL aspects. Doing good deeds is nice, and “living right” is good too, but it is not enough either. It’s not the same as having a relationship with God and that is what I hope for everyone. If you’re going to church, or saying you believe in God and proclaim yourself a Christian/Catholic and you’re still using profane language, having sex outside of marriage, gossiping, smoking/drinking/doing drugs (destroying God’s temple), etc then how are you like Christ?
The purpose of church is not to make us feel good. Yes, we may feel good after attending, especially after confessing and being forgiven from sins. But if you leave and go back to do things you did before, then what was the point?
Now, don’t mistake me. People do fall- NO ONE is perfect. You may go out and immediately commit a sin (we all do at one time or another), but are you sorry? Do you feel guilt? Did you even try to stop yourself from sinning in the first place?
If so, and you confess, then God will forgive you of your sins. However, the catch that many people forget about is that now you must do your best to not commit that same sin again. You shouldn’t keep repeating and asking for forgiveness from the same sin. Technically, you can, and if you are truly repentant, you will be forgiven. But that’s not the way it’s meant to be, and honestly, if you are asking forgiveness for the same infraction over and over again, how truly sorry for it are you? Eventually, committing that same sin is going to reach into other areas in your life and possibly pull you away from God altogether (intentionally or not).
One major consequence of sin, that many people do not even realize is that it leads to anger and even hate toward others in order to deflect from their own sin. Granted, some “Christians” will do this as well and harshly judge (which we should not do at all) in order to feel better about the sins they are trying to hide themselves. An example is “Christians” that bully (physically and verbally) people that disagree with them, especially on such hot-button topics as abortion and homosexuality. However, you cannot let these people and their actions affect YOUR walk with God and personal relationship with Jesus. They are merely distractions and obstacles set in front of you by Satan himself to keep you from God.
The fact is, being a Christian isn’t easy! One thing I learned this weekend at the retreat I went on is “You can’t get to God through convenience or comfortability.” Look at the example of Abraham in Genesis 22, where God tests Abraham by asking him to sacrifice his only beloved son on an altar. In the end, God told Abraham to not do it, but he just wanted to make sure Abraham had the right faith to trust in God and follow all his commands, even if they don’t seem to make sense.
And while that may be an extreme example, we are still asked to make sacrifices in this day and age. This is another major obstacle in the path for people to truly find what they are looking for in God. Everyone comes to God with baggage and some things are harder for people to get rid of than others.
You are required to lay something on the altar to sacrifice in order to receive God’s blessings. Your old self and habits need to die and you need to lay it on the altar. And you cannot ask and pray, “Lord, lay [insert problem here] on the altar.” No, it must be brought by you. [FYI, I don’t mean a literal altar. I simply mean confessing it to God and completely giving something up that has a hold on your life]. And it can’t just be anything. You can’t “get over” on God. Paraphrasing another verse from Genesis, you should not bring something to God that you wouldn’t want yourself (ex. from the Bible, people bringing animals that were sick or injured to the altar to sacrifice instead of their best animals as they were commanded. They brought the “lesser” animals because it wouldn’t be so much of a loss to them, and they can still feel good about themselves for “still obeying” God by offering a sacrifice). God doesn’t want your dregs. He wants your best. So don’t start small- you may say something along the lines of “ok, I think I curse too much, I’ll try to stop.” That’s all well and good, but is that the root of the problem? Usually people curse out of anger, so there may be an underlying issue/problem you need to address. You need to bring before God the BEST to sacrifice, not the minor things. Don’t bring to God all the small problems and hold on to what is the root of the problem. You may fix the minor issue, but what does it accomplish? Or more likely than not, you won’t fix the smaller issue and you will end up saying to yourself “if I can’t even fix that minor thing, what hope do I have of solving this larger issue?”
Meaning you may need to bring forth the thing, person, plan, agenda, that you treasure most, for example, your computer, TV, even a significant other, if that is what is causing you to sin. One of the 10 Commandments is “… thou shalt have no other gods before me.” And that doesn’t just mean actual “gods.” Anything that you value in your life more than God is considered a God to you. If your life revolves around your computer (like with World of Warcraft or even Facebook), you can’t do anything without it, you make all your decisions based around it and it affects other areas of your life, than that computer is your God. The same for anything else in your life, even things that may seem positive- like centering everything in your life around saving money specifically to buy a house. Yes, that is a great goal, but if that is the driving force in your life and 90% of your decisions are focused on that, then that is your God. Everyone needs to trust in the actual God, and then all their secondary desires will be fulfilled if it falls within God’s plan for you. Because in the end, we may not always get what we want, but God will always provide what we need.
In the end, many people just don’t realize the opportunity they have. We live in a country with many religious freedoms. Many Christians go to church and take God’s love and mercy for granted. There are people in the world that would literally die to be in our position (to even just be able to openly talk about God, let alone attend church). If you are not taking advantage, then what are you going for?
I know so many people, even in my group of friends that are looking for the secret to happiness. Reading books on the subject, searching around in other areas, but the answer is right in the Bible, Psalm 119 to be exact. It states plain as day- “Happy are all who perfectly follow the laws of God. Happy are all who search for God and always do his will, rejecting compromise with evil and walking only in his paths.”
Some may say, “I know plenty of Christians that aren’t happy people. Actually, I know some that are downright mean and miserable.” And I say to you, if that’s the case then they probably aren’t following what the Bible says. They very well may not even be real Christians. Because the flat out honest truth is, going to church does NOT make someone a Christian (or Catholic or whatever denomination a person may identify as). As it says in the Bible (in many places, see: Acts 4:12, John 14:6, John 3:16, John 3:36, and 1 John 5:11 as just a few examples), the only way to be saved is to accept Jesus Christ into your heart as your Lord and personal savior AND follow his laws (as stated above) in order to maintain it. Now I’m not saying that accepting Jesus is going to be like some magic trick where all of a sudden all your problems disappear; not at all. You will probably still face many trials, but at least now when you go through them, there is true hope behind it and faith that there will be a better tomorrow. There are so many people all over this world that do not have that. They just want that glow, that peace, that happiness that can truly only come from knowing Jesus. Think of all the people you know. Think about who has that special something and who doesn’t? I think for the most part, the ones that come to your mind will most likely have something in common.
If you want what is missing from your life, then please feel free to contact me or anyone you may trust in your local church. I will definitely pray for you.
If you agree with what God has put on my heart to share, let me know. If you completely disagree, then let me know as well (but let’s keep it clean and civil please), I have no problem debating any of the things I’ve put on the table with anyone.
My hope is that at the very least, what I have written has gotten you to think. That’s all I’m asking for right now. The Lord has placed on my heart a few more things to share as well, but those will come over time. Thank you for reading though, I really appreciate it. I love all of you. God Bless!
I am a born again Christian.
Hopefully many (if not all of you) know this fact about me. What most of you probably don’t know is that for many years I’ve been a compromising Christian.
What do I mean by that?
I’ve always had a strong relationship with God, and I was a very strong Christian all the way up through High School. But I felt that I didn’t have enough friends. I was only into church, comic books, wrestling and video games and it was hard for me to make friends with anyone who wasn’t into those things back then. That resulted in me having very few friends and just not feeling very accepted, especially outside of church. The one thing that I felt (at the time) kept me from having friends the most was my faith. Because I used to be made fun of for what I believed in, like not using profane language (and being harassed to curse when I didn’t want to and sometimes being beat up for refusing), or being called gay because I didn’t go around kissing girls like many of the other boys my age did. Even when I was offered, I didn’t like, let alone love these girls, so I didn’t see the point and I would politely turn them down. I would also encounter people who didn’t want to hear about God and being rude to me just because I was a Christian.
In an attempt to become more popular I tried to change myself over when I got to college. I lost a ton of weight, became more outgoing, expanded my horizons in my interests, and I slightly pushed God into the background (still serving him and remaining faithful, but not letting it be as obvious to my friends). And while many of these things worked for me and I’ve made an amazing network of friends, the last thing I did, was probably one of the stupidest moves I’ve made in my life. Recently, as I’ve grown closer to God I’ve experienced so many blessings, and it’s upsetting to know that I could have had these blessing years ago if I had only stayed on the path I was on, no matter the cost.
But God is good and has always been a part of my life and has always had a calling on me. I’ve grown stronger in my relationship with him, but I still felt I tried to justify some of the things I did and compromised too much, like in the music I listen to, movies I watch, the way I talk and acted, and most importantly- not expressing how I truly felt on a variety of topics, for fear I’d either be made fun of, or worse yet- that I would lose the friends I worked so hard
to make.
But I’m tired of living in fear, especially of losing my friends. We’re all adults at this point, and if people decide they don’t want to be friends with me anymore due to my beliefs (and expressing who I truly am) then that is something that I feel would be unfortunate, but will have to live with. I hope this won’t come to be, but I don’t know how people will react to some of the things I may say in the future. My prayer is that everyone has an open mind to things, just as I have had an open mind to the many things I’ve seen and experienced over the years.
**************************
One of the things God has put upon my heart is to spread his word. And I intend to do that through my blog. Whenever God puts a word in my heart I am going to type it out and post it and hopefully everyone on my friends list (and far beyond) will read it and respond (even if you disagree with what is stated, b/c there is nothing wrong with a healthy, civil debate).
The first message God has put on my heart to share is actually a challenge.
I challenge everyone reading this to examine what you really believe in terms of God and religion. This message is more specifically focused to those who actually already do go to church (no matter what kind of church it is- Born-again, Catholic, etc), or believe in God in some manner (even if you don’t practice). But please, even if you don’t fall into either of those categories, I’d like to hear your opinions.
So once again, the question(s) are: what do you really believe? What are you looking for by going to church or even just praying (for those that don’t fully practice)?
I fully believe that everyone is searching for something. Some of you may not want to agree with me or take offense at the notion that your life is missing something, but especially if you are going to church, or have some kind of belief in God, then you are searching for something. Maybe you are searching for an answer to something going on in your life, or the mysteries of the world, maybe you are searching for happiness, for comfort, for healing (emotional or physical), help/deliverance on a particular issue or even escape.
Whatever it may be, are you finding it? And if you are, is it staying with you once you leave church or say that prayer? Are you maintaining it and living the life meant for you as a Christian/believer of God of or are you only going to church (or having a talk with God) just to get your weekly/monthly/annual fix and hope it lasts?
To be a Christian means to be “Christ-like.” Being a Christian is not just something we just check on a box on a survey and claim ourselves as. It isn’t a title- it’s a relationship. One of my favorite quotes that always comes to my mind when I’m struggling (or see a fellow Christian struggling) with something is:
“The greatest single cause of atheism in the world today is Christians, who acknowledge Jesus with their lips and walk out the door and live on by their lifestyle. That is what an unbelieving world simply finds unbelievable.” DC Talk “What If I Stumble?”
If you call yourself a Christian or Catholic then you need to act like it in ALL aspects. Doing good deeds is nice, and “living right” is good too, but it is not enough either. It’s not the same as having a relationship with God and that is what I hope for everyone. If you’re going to church, or saying you believe in God and proclaim yourself a Christian/Catholic and you’re still using profane language, having sex outside of marriage, gossiping, smoking/drinking/doing drugs (destroying God’s temple), etc then how are you like Christ?
The purpose of church is not to make us feel good. Yes, we may feel good after attending, especially after confessing and being forgiven from sins. But if you leave and go back to do things you did before, then what was the point?
Now, don’t mistake me. People do fall- NO ONE is perfect. You may go out and immediately commit a sin (we all do at one time or another), but are you sorry? Do you feel guilt? Did you even try to stop yourself from sinning in the first place?
If so, and you confess, then God will forgive you of your sins. However, the catch that many people forget about is that now you must do your best to not commit that same sin again. You shouldn’t keep repeating and asking for forgiveness from the same sin. Technically, you can, and if you are truly repentant, you will be forgiven. But that’s not the way it’s meant to be, and honestly, if you are asking forgiveness for the same infraction over and over again, how truly sorry for it are you? Eventually, committing that same sin is going to reach into other areas in your life and possibly pull you away from God altogether (intentionally or not).
One major consequence of sin, that many people do not even realize is that it leads to anger and even hate toward others in order to deflect from their own sin. Granted, some “Christians” will do this as well and harshly judge (which we should not do at all) in order to feel better about the sins they are trying to hide themselves. An example is “Christians” that bully (physically and verbally) people that disagree with them, especially on such hot-button topics as abortion and homosexuality. However, you cannot let these people and their actions affect YOUR walk with God and personal relationship with Jesus. They are merely distractions and obstacles set in front of you by Satan himself to keep you from God.
The fact is, being a Christian isn’t easy! One thing I learned this weekend at the retreat I went on is “You can’t get to God through convenience or comfortability.” Look at the example of Abraham in Genesis 22, where God tests Abraham by asking him to sacrifice his only beloved son on an altar. In the end, God told Abraham to not do it, but he just wanted to make sure Abraham had the right faith to trust in God and follow all his commands, even if they don’t seem to make sense.
And while that may be an extreme example, we are still asked to make sacrifices in this day and age. This is another major obstacle in the path for people to truly find what they are looking for in God. Everyone comes to God with baggage and some things are harder for people to get rid of than others.
You are required to lay something on the altar to sacrifice in order to receive God’s blessings. Your old self and habits need to die and you need to lay it on the altar. And you cannot ask and pray, “Lord, lay [insert problem here] on the altar.” No, it must be brought by you. [FYI, I don’t mean a literal altar. I simply mean confessing it to God and completely giving something up that has a hold on your life]. And it can’t just be anything. You can’t “get over” on God. Paraphrasing another verse from Genesis, you should not bring something to God that you wouldn’t want yourself (ex. from the Bible, people bringing animals that were sick or injured to the altar to sacrifice instead of their best animals as they were commanded. They brought the “lesser” animals because it wouldn’t be so much of a loss to them, and they can still feel good about themselves for “still obeying” God by offering a sacrifice). God doesn’t want your dregs. He wants your best. So don’t start small- you may say something along the lines of “ok, I think I curse too much, I’ll try to stop.” That’s all well and good, but is that the root of the problem? Usually people curse out of anger, so there may be an underlying issue/problem you need to address. You need to bring before God the BEST to sacrifice, not the minor things. Don’t bring to God all the small problems and hold on to what is the root of the problem. You may fix the minor issue, but what does it accomplish? Or more likely than not, you won’t fix the smaller issue and you will end up saying to yourself “if I can’t even fix that minor thing, what hope do I have of solving this larger issue?”
Meaning you may need to bring forth the thing, person, plan, agenda, that you treasure most, for example, your computer, TV, even a significant other, if that is what is causing you to sin. One of the 10 Commandments is “… thou shalt have no other gods before me.” And that doesn’t just mean actual “gods.” Anything that you value in your life more than God is considered a God to you. If your life revolves around your computer (like with World of Warcraft or even Facebook), you can’t do anything without it, you make all your decisions based around it and it affects other areas of your life, than that computer is your God. The same for anything else in your life, even things that may seem positive- like centering everything in your life around saving money specifically to buy a house. Yes, that is a great goal, but if that is the driving force in your life and 90% of your decisions are focused on that, then that is your God. Everyone needs to trust in the actual God, and then all their secondary desires will be fulfilled if it falls within God’s plan for you. Because in the end, we may not always get what we want, but God will always provide what we need.
In the end, many people just don’t realize the opportunity they have. We live in a country with many religious freedoms. Many Christians go to church and take God’s love and mercy for granted. There are people in the world that would literally die to be in our position (to even just be able to openly talk about God, let alone attend church). If you are not taking advantage, then what are you going for?
I know so many people, even in my group of friends that are looking for the secret to happiness. Reading books on the subject, searching around in other areas, but the answer is right in the Bible, Psalm 119 to be exact. It states plain as day- “Happy are all who perfectly follow the laws of God. Happy are all who search for God and always do his will, rejecting compromise with evil and walking only in his paths.”
Some may say, “I know plenty of Christians that aren’t happy people. Actually, I know some that are downright mean and miserable.” And I say to you, if that’s the case then they probably aren’t following what the Bible says. They very well may not even be real Christians. Because the flat out honest truth is, going to church does NOT make someone a Christian (or Catholic or whatever denomination a person may identify as). As it says in the Bible (in many places, see: Acts 4:12, John 14:6, John 3:16, John 3:36, and 1 John 5:11 as just a few examples), the only way to be saved is to accept Jesus Christ into your heart as your Lord and personal savior AND follow his laws (as stated above) in order to maintain it. Now I’m not saying that accepting Jesus is going to be like some magic trick where all of a sudden all your problems disappear; not at all. You will probably still face many trials, but at least now when you go through them, there is true hope behind it and faith that there will be a better tomorrow. There are so many people all over this world that do not have that. They just want that glow, that peace, that happiness that can truly only come from knowing Jesus. Think of all the people you know. Think about who has that special something and who doesn’t? I think for the most part, the ones that come to your mind will most likely have something in common.
If you want what is missing from your life, then please feel free to contact me or anyone you may trust in your local church. I will definitely pray for you.
If you agree with what God has put on my heart to share, let me know. If you completely disagree, then let me know as well (but let’s keep it clean and civil please), I have no problem debating any of the things I’ve put on the table with anyone.
My hope is that at the very least, what I have written has gotten you to think. That’s all I’m asking for right now. The Lord has placed on my heart a few more things to share as well, but those will come over time. Thank you for reading though, I really appreciate it. I love all of you. God Bless!
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