The Core of the Christian Faith

 I am not afraid of encountering and processing human emotion.   If someone is planning a tear jerker, they are aiming at me.  I am bawling at those golden buzzer, NBA back story, triumphant underdog kind of moments.  I love getting invested in the people around me.  Here's the thing.  A lot of people out there, see religion as another talisman, emotional feelings, riding the energy wave, kind of experience.  It looks like a lot of hype without much substance.  Do they have a point?  Or are those skeptics off base?

I became a Christian when I was four years old.  I was in my Pre-K class learning about the letter I, "Itchy Ivy" was the character on the letter.  My teacher told us about Jesus and I accepted him in my heart.  I even remember going home and telling my mom all about it.

Do you want to know why I am a Christian?  I could answer that I have had a ton of encounters with Jesus in my own life.  I could answer that I was raised in a Christian home, which would also be accurate.  I could also answer that I believe in the Bible, which is correct. Even though all of those are answers I could have, they aren't the reason I am a Christian. I am a Christian because its true.  Sure I've gotten caught up in a worship night filled with Cory Asbury and Hillsong, but I've also researched beyond the feelings.

My life has had its hard times and it has forced me to question God.  At one point in my life, I even told God, "I was going to take control of my life," and I did - the results were NOT good!  Feelings aren't enough to sustain a faith in God, more specifically Jesus Christ.  You need more.  It has to be more than the overwhelming emotion after a moving set of worship music.  Without substance, it wouldn't work.  It wouldn't last.

I have studied the historical data and discovered for myself that the facts point to Jesus being who he said he was.  History proves he was a real person.  He made claims he was God and the evidence that is out there, shows, he truly was (and is) God.  If you want to know more, let me know.  I am happy to answer more questions or point you toward some resources that have helped me over the years. For now, because this month's topic is "back to the basics" I will just share some hallmarks of the Christian faith. 

We were born into a world that degenerates.  People aren't naturally good.  Just look at the news and see things are getting worse, not better.  Christians call this bad thing, sin.  Sin separates us from God. The best picture for me of this is two people trying to hug while holding suitcases.  The baggage gets in the way.  Sin is sin.

Sure, you may go to prison for more years if you murdered someone than if you stole a drugstore candy bar, but wrong is wrong.  Too often we get caught in the trap of justifying what we are doing wrong because we see the person next to us doing something we deem far worse.  Missing the mark is missing the mark.  If I jump from one cliff to another, and I miss the other cliff by a mile or a millimeter, it doesn't matter, I will be plunging to my death in both scenarios.

God (including Jesus) made us.  He wanted a relationship with us and when sin got in the way of that, he made a way for us to still have that relationship.

Christians believe in one God (its called monotheism).  We do see him in three persons that we call the Trinity.  Many look at the Trinity and think we are polytheists and that Christians believe in 3 Gods, but that isn't true.  Nabeel Qureshi, shared in his books and in this video that best way for him, a Muslim converted to Christianity, understanding the Trinity was simply about "what" and "who."  God is one being in three persons.  Being is the what and persons is the who. 

It can be hard to understand because I am Carrie and I am a human being, which means that I am one in being and one in person, but God is actually one in being and three in persons.  We call them God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit.  Jesus was God sent to us in human person.  He was still God, and the Holy Spirit is the person of God that stays with us once we accept Jesus.  Jesus came to the world to be a sacrifice for us. He gave his life in exchange for us.   If you owe $10,000 on your credit card, and you didn't have it, someone pays the bill so you don't have to.

After Jesus died on a cross, he came back to life and wants a relationship with us, his creation.  He offers us life if we believe in him as God.  This is much like someone who falls off a boat is offered a life raft to help them swim to safety.  God didn't come into the world to condemn but to save it.

The number one rule of Christianity is love.  If you want a definition of that word check out I Corinthians 13.  We are to love our neighbor as we love ourselves.  Part of that love is sharing the good news of Jesus with others and helping them connect with him and grow closer.

Being a Christian means admitting you don't know it all and receiving Jesus as our Lord and Savior, which just means we will live serving and following him.  We do have to surrender our lives to him, but like I said before, doing life on my terms, actually produced worse results than when I followed God.

Baptism isn't necessary to be a Christian but its a great faith step that helps us to not only publicly acknowledge we are serving God, but also is a great symbolic act of being washed by God's sacrifice on the cross.

Its a step by step walk through life with the Creator of the Universe and beyond.  He isn't out to make you someone you aren't, but instead to show you how to be the you he made you to be.  The best version of yourself and the person who can best love the world around them.  I am in awe how God continues to reveal areas I can still grow.  I love it.  I want to be the best me, I can be.  I spent years of my life ashamed of who I was, but God actually made me with purpose.  He made you that way too!  

If you have questions on any of this, let me know.  If I forgot something, I want to hear about that too.  I tried being concise (which is not my strong suit) and also share all the basic points.  So here you have it.  If you have gotten complicated in your religious views, maybe its time to simplify.  Study why the Bible is true, get to the core beliefs and understand what God wants to unfold in your life.

The Answer To A Question

Being a Christian can often be like walking a tightrope. If you aren't careful you will fall one way or the other.  Getting too grace-filled waters down the message of Christ and eliminates the need for a Savior and getting too truth-filled leads to harsh religion which can hurt others and ourselves.

Saturday morning a friend and I sat and discussed these extremes of religion as it related to a situation in her life.  Some people live on certain verses of the Bible alone and build their lives around it, excluding passages of the Bible that add nuance and meaning to those verses.  The Bible is best understood as a whole so when people choose to extract sections as a basis for their faith, they can deviate from its complete message.  My friend and I had a good talk, she left my house, and I thought the conversation was over. 

Then I woke up Sunday morning. 

My mom sends out a scripture every day and often some commentary with it.  But this particular morning she sent her text group some of her thoughts instead of a scripture.  Her thoughts fit perfectly as an answer to my friend's questions of me the day before.  So I immediately shared it with her.  She was delighted and I was equally delighted and a little proud of my mama who shares the truth of God with such eloquence and love.

Yesterday, I was met with another story of evangelism gone wrong and how the message of "you're going to hell" is in no way good news.  Sharing Christ with others is about what he adds to our life and how he rescues us from the junk we face here on earth.  Being rescued and loved is definitely good news!

This morning I decided I needed to share my mom's Sunday words with you.  She is a woman I admire for so many reasons and at the top of that list is her relationship with God.  I know how to be a woman of God because of my mom!  Enjoy her perspective and see the perspective we must take as we attempt to serve God.  

Sunday morning's text: 

An area of what I view as growth in my life is in the arena of openness to truth. I've always known of those people who were open to any new idea, any shiny bauble in a pretty box, who end up so "out there" that they seem to lose reality of any foundation or structural framework... anything goes! I've also been aware of those who hold to the human expression of religion so tightly in order to prevent going the wrong way, that their narrowness seems cast iron bars around them and joy was traded for a miniscule finite view of truth (defined typically from a few selected Scriptures). 

From this place as a Christ-follower, seeking humility and desiring to honor God as God, and His word as an incredible kindness from Him, miraculously preserved over the ages for the benefit of His children, is a place of awesome delight, sore muscles and bloody elbows! I'm abundantly gratified and thankful for early Scripture training and the experience of a truly personal relationship with God, in His Son, by the power of the Holy Spirit. 

I shamefully admit, I have in times past, behaved like Eve in the garden who chose to add her 2-cents to God's words, in an effort to hold tightly to obedience. Similarly, I, like she, also plummeted to the hard ground below, alive, but broken. In an effort to be perfectly obedient, I have made God small and manageable... with similar results! Except in those times, I have often snatched a few passersby with me on my descent to the rocks below. 

I don't believe one can truly SERVE the LORD while being lazy, selfish, or unloving. I'm not saying one can't be saved from the damnation of hell - Christ brings life to those who accept His gift of paid-in-full. But to "serve" God is another matter... Definitely not for the faint of heart! Service to the One true God, while on this earth calls for incredible courage, discipline, hard work, a determination for due diligence, and a selfless compassion that is far greater than our personal desire. If we stop our seeking of God's blessings at the door of OURSELVES,  we may indeed be successful in our careers, our relationships even, but we will not soar on the wings of the eagle! That requires much, much more of us.

We have a responsibility as Christians to be as Christ was and to do so is a hard task.  It takes balance found only in walking in the Spirit of God.  I hope as you read my mom's words, God spoke to you.  I hope you are inspired to seek God in a fresh way this week and to know God is there always and desires a close relationship with you.  Happy Wednesday! 

Religious Freedom

Sometimes I think I would have been a much better Old Testament Jew than New Testament Gentile Christ follower. I know that may sound bizarre, but as I read through the Bible and see the straightforward rules and regulations put on the people in Levitcus, despite the cumbersome ritual of it all, it seems easier. You know when you're on or off course.

Religion is easier than relationship, but relationship is more fulfilling and rewarding. Relationship meets our needs where religion can't. I often struggle in my relationship with God because it requires me to be present. Religion or ritual is easier on days when I just want to go through the motions. Christ offered us so much more than a "Get out of Hell" free card when he died on the cross.

Navigating through life to find Christ-centered balance isn't always straightforward it takes trust, faith, wisdom, and humility. Meeting the letter of the law is mundane and burdensome, but takes little emotional energy. At the end of it all I'd much rather put the work into a relationship and accept the gift of Christ than constantly be on point, sure it's scary, but rewarding with an eternal connection.