I recently started exploring my faith and religion again. I don’t actually like to use the word religion, because I fully believe that it’s a word that divides people. I know that I will offend some by saying that, but it’s what I believe. Allow me to explain as best that I can.
I like to think of my faith as a form of trust. In case you haven’t figured it out, I am a Christian. Many jokes have been made about people claiming to be Christian. Some of these jokes depict others walking away from the Christians, laughing at them. And I don’t know how else to say it. You can break it up into Pentecostal, Evangelical, Church of England, Catholics etc… [insert dominion here]. But I want to be clear, I am a Christian. And the type of Christian that I am, is one that is continuously learning by reading scripture everyday. Then I read books by other Christians, including C.S. Lewis, who gave us The Chronicles of Narnia. And reading extra literature by others who discovered their faith in Christ later on in life, like Nicky Gumbel.
I have always been the kind of Christian who was raised into this faith. All the teachings were by others’ own translation. Therefore, I never felt the desire to learn on my own. I was like, well, they said that, so it much be right. Or, try and do the year long Bible reading, and still just browse through. I didn’t care if I actually understood what I was hearing. They say to listen and to hear are two different things. And for me, it was always the same. Until the last couple of years. Someone close to me started sharing scripture. They shared testimonies—actually no, stories—of what they believed to be from God. It was all doom and gloom. All about being judged and how this is what God wants for the world. Now, this person began to make me realise that they were the reason many people dislike Christians.
There’s a part of me that did not believe the scriptures and the Bible are about that at all. You see, this is the thing for me. I am not saying that doom and gloom isn’t in the Bible. I’m simply saying that it’s more complicated than that. And it’s not the only thing in the Bible. The Bible is a long love story in a way – a telenovela. It’s never ending, and that’s what I am realising makes it so amazing.
I like to think of it like the doomsday conspirators, or flat earthers. The thing is, I don’t think that being a Christian or having faith is about fear. Fear mongering is the worst kind. It twists what is already tainted in those who are scared. Instead of drawing them closer, it takes them further away from what they are meant to be learning about Christ. This is how cults are ‘born’.
Jesus Christ is known as the Prince of Peace, of love. And remember, God is love and he who abides in love, abides in God. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and love your neighbour. Be kind to others and show them love… Do you see where I am going with this? Love is the ultimate emotion in all this. And it is what makes it harder for us as humans.
We are so caught up in the literal, that we don’t stop to read between the lines. Yes, there’s sad things happening around us, and they will always be around us. But what are we doing as humans about it? Are we willing to help those closest to us first? Shouldn’t we do this before we go out to help the rest of the world? And if the ones closest to us reject us, then we keep trying and move on to the next person.
But like I said at the start, I am just starting to rediscover this faith and what it means. I don’t know what the road ahead will be like, but I know that I don’t have to know. All I have to do is focus on the now. How can I make the difference in my own house, and use this as practice for when the time comes. And I know that the time will come.
I will be exploring my faith in the next couple of posts, which I am excited about.