I'm not religious, but I am a spiritual person
A warm summer afternoon in 2000, I sat alone just as I am now. Life was going okay--I suppose. I was "spiritual" as I used to say; I wasn't religious, but "spiritual". I bounced from one spiritual book to the next as I discovered that we, humans, were on the verge of a great spiritual awakening. It had been a journey of about ten years of spiritual adventures. I never considered Christianity to be very spiritual, so I stayed away from it; I had found something better, something new and exciting to the soul.
The meeting
It was about this time, while sitting alone, I met a man---Jesus from a town called Nazareth. Well, I didn't actually meet him; I read about him. My "spiritual" life was turned upside down! This man said he holds all the spiritual truth and nobody comes to God, but through him. That's pretty bold, but I was hooked. I believed what he said and I began to follow him.
I was a little embarrassed because I didn't know much about Christianity or the bible. It took about six months before I even discovered that I had become one of those "born again" Christians. Likewise, I learned I was Protestant--and I learned what a Protestant was! It took a while before I understood what a Jew was, and a gentile, what's that?
It's simple
I've learned a lot about Jesus from Nazareth over the years, but each day I sit before my children and teach them the same simple truths that Jesus revealed to me. "Kids, following Jesus is simple--Jesus and Jesus alone. Mohammed didn't die for anyone, the Buddha didn't die for anyone, Jesus did. And Jesus didn't die so we can be reincarnated and come back to this sinful hell on earth. Jesus died so sinners can be saved from God's wrath, which is coming to judge all sinful men".
Be separate
"Kids, to follow Jesus you must be separate--He calls us to separate ourselves from our sin and its lusts. He promised His Holy Spirit to help us do this. Be set apart from the world's goals and seek the goals of your Father in heaven. These goals can all be found in the bible".
Be deliberate
"Kids, to do this you must be deliberate, it won't just happen. If you don't know God's goals--you'll be swept away by the world's goals and it's lusts".
Simple, separate and deliberate
"Kids, you must be simple, separate, and deliberate. Jesus calls you to this--the world around you needs you to be like this".
Finally, Jesus promised His joy. If you don't find joy in the simple, separate, and deliberate life--something is wrong. Go back to step one and seek Jesus and Jesus alone. He is not a liar and he doesn't disappoint. He told us these things so His joy will be in us. His joy is to be one with His Father by obeying Him. This you can trust--Christianity is VERY spiritual.
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