The more I learn and dig into the details of faith and what it means to live that out, the more I am pointed toward Jesus in scripture, and learning from His life and being. That sounds obvious in some ways, and it is, because the Bible hinges on the Gospel, which is built around Jesus, His sacrifice, and who He is as God’s son. I’ve realized though, that a lot of times it’s actually not so obvious.
A lot of times, when we’re soaking up scripture, we get focused on how to live our lives – which isn’t a negative thing, to be clear. We as humans need guidance and wisdom on how to live life in the cracked and desiccated world we live in. But what about those times we get almost obsessed with what we believe (e.g. Christianity) more than who we believe in (e.g. Jesus)? During those times (speaking from personal experience) I’ve found that’s when things start to feel less shiny, more heavy, and I harbour ship-wrecked thoughts that end up in words that splinter when they crash into others. Another way to put it – that’s admittedly uncomfortable to, well, admit – is when we get more “religious” oriented than we are relationship-focused.
I feel like this is another reason it always feels off when people outside of faith use phrases like, “So, you’re religious then?” It’s an honest question using the words they’re familiar with, but it’s something I’ve sensed and experienced and reacted to. It’s always felt…well, icky to me. It’s a word and phrase I’ve long come to associate with an imbalance of relationship, and the more I learn, process and pray, the more I can put words to why.
That’s why I say that learning to focus more intensely, more intimately, and more closely on Jesus and everything about Him isn’t always obvious. It’s not always obvious that sometimes the best response to escalated emotions and opinions is holding our waggy tongues. It’s not always obvious that a selfless and kind word or act will often open up an avenue to share truth later on. We as people forget this a lot in practice, and that’s okay because Jesus planned for that. He planned to die for us, to provide unlimited grace and life, and to appear in the flesh so that we could know that He truly understood what it felt like, smelled like, sounded like, etc. to be human.
“The Word became flesh and blood, and moved into the neighborhood. We saw the glory with our own eyes, the one-of-a-kind glory, like Father, like Son, Generous inside and out, true from start to finish.” John 1:14 MSG
In other words, the word (the Bible) is Jesus. I want to continue deepening my faith in Jesus – to look and sound and feel like Him, especially when I’m interacting with other people with whom I want to leave a Jesus-shaped impression. I want to build my relationship with Jesus daily so that He’s constantly rubbing off on me; I want to fill my head and my heart with His thoughts and ideas and so that’s what will slip out in those times I forget to think first. I want to surround myself with His thoughts and love for me so that I have fresh inspiration and reserves to encourage others in how Jesus sees and values them.
It sounds funny, but I don’t need to leave behind the how and what and why of what I believe in every conversation I have, but I do want to always leak out His love (or gush, when fitting!). Basically, I want to be truthfully kind and interested and invested in the dignity of those around me. Perhaps one last way to say it is: when I grow up, I want to be like Jesus!
And honestly, don’t we all?
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