The Love of Christ
May 17/2020
Wow, it has
been such a long time since I have wrote my thoughts on paper. So I thought it fitted
to add another chapter of the topic of reflection. I also wanted to share some
of the events that have happened since I've written the last time. We all go
through events in our lives that we think we are adding value to ourselves and
adding value to others. The thought that comes to my mind is of a time exposed
picture of an airplane coming in to land safely. With that time-lapsed photo, you
can see the aircraft makes hundreds of small course adjustments to land on the
runway safely. I guess I can relate to that visualization right now as I am making
a course adjustment to head back to that safe landing on a runway.
One of the significant
events that happened to me not that long ago, I started a new relationship with
Jesus Christ. The last time I wrote, I would have been embarrassed to share that
fact, and I would not have used the name Jesus Christ due to embarrassment of
what others would think of me. The gratefulness of what I experience daily
right now is because I have changed my mindset, which is building my spiritual
relationship with Christ. The gift that I have has provided through that
fellowship with Christ is beyond my wildest dreams and the most important gift
I have received is a new closeness with my family that I have never felt
before.
When I was a
kid, I was part of a religious group that has a focus on a linear mindset of
the gift of God's grace. And through that interpretation, what I learned at
that time is God's grace is often transactional and straightforward. What I
have now acquired with my new relationship with God and Christ is that the gift
of his grace is never transactional and always transformational. The unlimited
love and gifts of Christ I feel daily and I'm so grateful for the fact of Christ
not giving up on me and still allowing love to embrace a sinner like me.
Since I
started re-reading the scripture and specifically in the New Testament, I have
found old stories that are new to me. I see these stories from a different lens
of life now and realize there are layers of stories in these stories. I also
realized that the people in the Bible all had hopes and feelings and desires
and trials of struggles that we all experience today. When I was a kid, I
didn't see that vision and thought that folks have an easy life when I read the
stories. One of the first things I learned about lately was the miracle of
Jesus changing water to wine. When I was a kid, I thought it was as simple as
just that miracle and that act to engage followers and create believers. Yes,
that is true, but there's so much more to the story that I didn't realize
before. It is very subtle, but when his mother Mary asked him to do the miracle
Jesus wasn't ready, even Jesus, in his human form, had doubts about his ability
to make miracles happen. It truly takes a village to create greatness, and what
I realized next was Mary didn't accept that statement from Jesus, and she
directed the events team to do what Jesus asked and walked away. When I reread
that passage, I stopped, and I couldn't believe what it just happened there and
what I had missed for so many years. Mary had faith and knew the strength in
the special abilities that were within Jesus, yet she had to show him that she
would not accept anything but his ability to teach others. She knew the time
was now for Jesus to start showing the love of God to others, and Jesus needed
that gentle push to start performing miracles. The love and support that Mary
gave to Jesus at that moment changed everything that we now get to experience once
you've accepted Jesus into your life. It also shows we all require support at
every level in your life, and you will be given the gift of that support when
you ask for it and need it the most.
What I
realized in my journey that feeling the love of Christ is not about acts and deeds to show others how great you are. It is genuinely having a relationship with
Christ and allowing that to be my focus. With the center of that relationship, the
energy is given to me builds, and I have it a higher level of the need to share and
provide value to others. During unsettling times that we live in now, I have
found the strength through Christ rewarding and provided comfort and Peace of
Mind. There is so much information out there generating so much fear, and it
feels like our current trajectory to landing on a safe runway is entirely off
course. What I have found through my growing relationship with Christ is the strength
to be able to look into the future for that safe landing. Even though I don't
know what tomorrow may bring, I have faith and confidence and hope and love
within my heart that I have never felt before. There are moments where I
struggle, there are moments where I feel anxiety, there are moments when I'm
not sure what to do next, and it is in these moments I pray for the strength and
calmness. When I do, peace returns, anxiety disappears, and quiet confidence
resumes.
With the recent shift of events of social distancing, I also thought of the traditional worship
buildings that are not currently used. When I started reading again in the New
Testament, one of the first things Jesus did when he began his ministry was to
show it's not about a building and brick and mortar. It is about a relationship
where you can feel Christ within you every day, and through that grace, you're
able to grow and become a better person every day. Jesus modelled the behaviour
of giving to the weak and helping others, showing forgiveness and providing
value with each conversation and act he performed. As I thought about this
concept, I then thought about our current churches across North America and the
world sitting empty and vacant. What would Jesus say right now? What would his
counsel be? All these empty buildings cost billions of dollars every year, and where
is that money going? Why is that money going to brick and mortar? Are there not
still sick and poor people? Aren't there still people that need help? Aren't
there still people that go to bed hungry? Aren't there still people that need to
hear Christ's voice? How is that happening now? How do we move forward? We need
a way of providing the service and worship of Christ and God. With the rapid
increase in the use of technology, the word of Christ can go to everyone now. There
is no need for brick and mortar, and there is no need for the financial cost
and burden that it puts on everybody to keep brick and mortar buildings open. All
we need is Christ, and all we need is his love, and all of us can experience
that in a way that we have never experienced before by using technology. Through
technology, we can connect up with every person in the world and share the
gifts Jesus wants to give to all of us. It is not held with constraints, and it
is not attached with any tithing to a building, it is not owned by strict rules and
regulations and protocol and tradition. It is simple as loving God and allowing
that love to come to you and then to pay it forward to someone else.
The time is
now to connect up with others the time is now more than ever to share Christs
love the time is now to make a difference the time is now to help others. The
time is now to give people the word of Christ so they will feel everlasting
love and feel his everlasting strength, and they will understand it is not with
conditions, and they'll realize it's not with tradition, and they'll realize there
is hope. Some of the greatest gifts I have ever received in my life I realize
now is based on the fact I had faith. The random life events that I have
experienced would have never happened if I didn't have faith. Through this faith,
the time is now for all of us to experience hope and joy and know that even
though right now we do not know what tomorrow will bring but by through the service
of Christ it will get us where we need to go, and it will indeed be a beautiful
experience. By embracing the love of Christ, we will also be able to share with
others unlimited love and the infinite gift of grace that will provide hope for
tomorrow.
Be safe, be
strong, be kind, be open, seek love, and give love all in the name of building
a relationship what Jesus Christ. Until next time stay well.
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