I BELIEVE

      Many years ago, as I was riding along I-80 with a friend, we passed a billboard that pleaded with us to "know Jesus"... and my friend said, "I don't think it matters what you believe, just as long as you believe something." His aim, I think, was to be tolerant and understanding of people who held differing beliefs. I agree with this entirely... but his words didn't make any sense to me (and they still don't). Indeed, it seems to me that what we believe should guide and shape our lives. For instance, if I didn't believe that I had a Creator who has given me a purpose, and a Savior who has promised full and eternal life in His hands... then I would be forced to "come up" with a purpose that made life worth the living... and I would have to deal with the fact that life on this earth is all that there is. Likewise, if I didn't believe that the meek inherit the world, I would continue to elbow my way to the front of the line... and if I didn't believe that God loved me (with my pride and my secrets) so much that He died for me, I would never know the joy and freedom of being known and loved anyway.
      In short, I believe that what I believe governs how I live. It is critically important. With this in mind, I encourage all of those who read these words to do business with the living God and come to grips with what it is that you really do believe. As for me, I have come to believe the following things, among a hundred more.

1   I believe that our hearts will never rest until they come to rest in God;
2   I believe that, without God, we are "empty" and "lost" in all the ways that we get lost;
3   I believe that we are chained by our own will, our pride, and our fears;
4   I believe that we all have a desperate need to be forgiven;
5   I believe that it's more Christian to forgive someone... than it is to attend church;
6   I believe that being known and loved anyway is the highest and deepest love of all;
7   I believe that, in Christ, there really is NO b/w, m/f, straight/gay, worthy/unworthy. Period.
8   I believe that the word "Christian" is much more of a noun than an adjective;
9   I believe that there is no higher calling than to love others in God's name, where love is an action word;
10 I believe that we are prone to worship ourselves in a "loud voice" as we pretend to worship God;
11 I believe that God meets us where we are... and empowers us to be more than we ever dreamed;
12 I believe that yesterday I was at the foot of his cross... and tomorrow I will see him face-to-face.

      Christians interpret the Bible in different ways. They worship in different ways too, and they attend different churches. They see things differently. They vote differently and they cheer on different teams. But every Christian tries his or her best to live out their belief... that they are in the hands of a God... who has SAVED them and CALLED them to a life of loving service in His name. Christians, in their most genuine and powerful form, know what they believe and they live it out everyday! What we believe matters. Amen.