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Posts Tagged ‘religion’

THE CONUNDRUM OF COMPLEXITY

Posted in It's Not About 'Religion', tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on December 6, 2025| 1 Comment »

When the actor famous for portraying Harry Potter says he has a “problem with religion,” I just nod my head in silent agreement.

I’ll bet when you think about religion, the most you can come up with is judgmental, stone-hearted people telling others they’re going to hell, correct? Well, I’m right there with you.

So let’s talk about something that I regard as quite different: faith/spirituality. I can tell you that as a follower of Jesus of Nazareth (who many people believe is the Son of God), I DO NOT have all the answers and I don’t know of a single honest Jesus follower who thinks any different.

That said, Jesus followers DO have answers to many of life’s most pressing questions, like why are we here (to have a relationship with our creator and tell others about Him), and is there life beyond death (yes!). But many, many others remain unanswered. And that’s OK because God is God and we are NOT.

Are humans complex? Heck YES. Just consider all the denominations in the Christian faith: Roman Catholic, Baptist, Orthodox, Pentecostal, Alliance, Methodist, Presbyterian, Anglican, Lutheran and many more. Regardless of what they think of each other, that certainly proves that Jesus followers are an example of the complexity Daniel Radcliffe mentions.

When Radcliffe, an atheist, says we humans often change our minds on issues, I agree. And that’s a GREAT reason, in my opinion, to follow Jesus of Nazareth.

Without an unchanging moral centre upon which to base your life, consider these questions:

  • How do you know if your opinion on any issue is right?
  • How do you know that you won’t change your mind on something important, then embarrassingly wonder how you ever believed the opposite viewpoint?
  • How do you know if your actions are really, REALLY correct? If it’s just your opinion, then it’s based on nothing but your subjective worldview.

I’m not wise enough, virtuous enough or mature enough to have a worldview that’s solid enough to base my life upon. Let me be bold and declare I think the same way about Radcliffe’s worldview. And YOURS.

By following Jesus of Nazareth, I know there’s lots of room for complexity (unlike religion) while still sticking to the objective truth of doing the good things for other people that you would want them to do for you (the “Golden Rule”). The truth of setting aside my selfish, self-centred ego and trusting something (Someone!) bigger and better than me. The truth of accepting Jesus’s radical statement – made to anyone willing to listen – that “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.”

If you give any credibility to Jesus and His statements, what are you going to do about the previous paragraph? Our culture insists you should ignore it and go shopping, but I bet that if you’ve read this far, you’re ready and willing to resist that siren call.

I suggest looking reading the four original accounts of Jesus’s life, ministry, death and resurrection (the “Gospels”). Take your questions to a Jesus follower (my email: fdking@hotmail.com) and keep your mind open. It could change your life for the better!

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THE FACTS VERSUS BELIEFS DEBATE

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on October 25, 2025| 3 Comments »

When I discovered this meme, I immediately understood that it’s a shot across the bow at spiritual people. The book — almost certainly a Christian Bible — behind the clutched hands makes it clear this meme was likely created by atheist people.

So what about it? I’m sure there are some misguided spiritual people who claim their beliefs are facts. I’d never insist that my faith in Jesus of Nazareth, who many people believe is the Son of God, is a proven fact.

Now let me be clear: my faith is based on important truths (just one example: a vast majority of secular historians believe Jesus was a real person), but much of my spiritual convictions builds faith into those truths.

What is interesting, though, is through all my years of interacting with atheist people, I find they regularly deny their beliefs are anything other than cold, hard facts.

Based on hundreds of interactions over the past decade, I find a majority of atheist people have these beliefs:

  • There is no creator
  • People have no soul and, when they die, all that they are becomes NOTHING more than rancid worm food
  • All Jesus followers are deluded and stupid
  • All Jesus followers are in a cult
  • All Jesus followers should be mocked and denigrated whenever possible.
  • The Bible is toilet paper
  • All prayer is useless and should be mocked whenever possible.
  • Atheists are the only people who are smart
  • Atheists must teach the world how to follow them.
  • Anyone who disagrees with atheists is ignorant and deserves to be ridiculed.
  • All church leaders are money-grubbing liars.
  • God is a rapist
  • Anyone who believes in the existence of hell is a sadist

Notice that none of these points can be proven? Every one of them is a belief — or a conviction, if you prefer that term. Now I know that any atheist person who reads this blog (and I do have some regular God-denying readers) will strenuously disagree with me, but none of them have ever proven these points.

Maybe you’re not sure where you stand on God and Jesus. So let me encourage you to spend a little time doing research. Find a Jesus follower and engage him/her in a mature, respectful conversation. You can even email me (at fdking@hotmail.com) and I’ll be my imperfect best to help.

My point is, this is important. If there is a creator and He sent His Son to show us how to live, then died for ALL the wrongs we’ve done and ALL the right things we’ve failed to do, then this is important.

If there is something beyond 70+ years of eating, working and sleeping, then this is important. Please consider my words carefully, because it could effect the direction of your life — now and beyond the grave.

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THE BOOK OF REALITY

Posted in It's Not About 'Religion', tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on August 16, 2025| 7 Comments »

Perhaps you’ve never read a Bible and, based on what you’ve heard from others, never want to even touch one.

You’ve lived with the satisfyingly vague notion that there’s some kind of creator out there and, if you manage to do more good than bad, you’ll get entry to whatever coming’s next.

And yet, here you are, reading a blog examining a book that apparently still leaves you curious. So give me a few moments to do my imperfect best to explain the Bible and encourage you to give it some consideration.

First of all, it’s absolutely NOT a novel. While the Bible contains narrative sections, it also has historical accounts, poetry, legal codes, letters and prophetic writings.

Plus, novels are usually written by one or two people; the Bible is written by dozens of people in three languages (Hebrew, Aramaic — the language of Jesus of Nazareth, who many people believe is the Son of God — and Greek) over thousands of years.

Despite all these authors and all that time, the Bible has consistent themes:

  • The universe, this planet and everything on it are God’s creation
  • Humanity is the crowning touch of God’s creation because we were made aware of ourselves and aware of our creator.
  • Through the bad things we’ve done and the good things we’ve failed to do, humanity has walked away from the love and care of our creator.
  • God ceaselessly invites us back to Him — first through passionate men (called prophets) endowed with unique knowledge/experience of God, then through the life, teachings, miracles, death and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth.

The last point is critical, because Jesus told anyone willing to listen: “You must be perfect, just as your Father in Heaven is perfect.” So there it is; when this life ends, you’ll need to be perfect to get past the bouncer at the ‘pearly gates’.

Well, that’s a problem, isn’t it? Since no one can ever get close to perfection, how can even one of us get to Heaven?

The answer is Jesus. When He allowed Himself to be arrested on false charges, convicted and put to death, Jesus paid the penalty for every wrong thing done by His followers, and every right thing we’ve failed to do.

After that, God saw — and continues to see — His Son’s followers just as He sees Jesus: perfect in every way. The result is when Jesus followers end this life, the bouncer ushers them into a joyous eternity with God.

Just as important, when people like YOU invite Jesus to be your Lord and Saviour, He comes into your heart IMMEDIATELY and begins making you more like the person God created you to be.

All this is in the Bible for you to discover. What about the “murder, corruption, homophobia, bestiality, incest and cruelty”? Well, the bible absolutely isn’t “full” of that stuff as the meme creator suggests, but they are there. Why? Because the Bible is about REALITY.

It doesn’t sugar-coat the often horrific behaviour of humanity. The Bible lays it all out so it’s plain to see why we are in a bad way and why/how Jesus can and does fix that for everyone who follows Him.

So how about you? Are you willing to at least read a few Bible chapters now and then? Yes or no, post your comments below and let’s have a conversation.

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“THIS IS NOT A FULFILLING LIFE”

Posted in In The News, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on July 19, 2025| 3 Comments »

I’m not a huge golf fan but this headline, in Canada’s National Post, grabbed my attention because in our culture, professional athletes are supposed to obsess over their careers.

So what gives with American golfer Scott Scheffler, who’s currently the top-ranked player in the world?

“I’m not here to inspire someone to be the best player in the world because what’s the point?,” he told reporters, who must have been thoroughly gobsmacked at hearing this heresy. “This is not a fulfilling life.”

What?? How can this be? Did Scheffler get hit in the head with a golf ball? Did someone whack him with a putter? There must be some explanation for this wonky, ridiculous thinking.

And there is. Consider Scheffler’s answer to a question about his reading habits: “I have a devotional book on my iPad. I have another book which I’m reading that’s definitely not a golf book. It’s another spiritual book. My Bible is pretty much it.”

Ah. There it is. Scheffler is some kind or religious nut, right? And yet you’re reading this blog because somewhere in your mind and heart, you’re open to spirituality – and maybe even to Jesus of Nazareth, who many people believe is the Son of God.

Despite Scheffler’s astounding success — the article says the 29-year-old Texan “has taken over the sport as the most dominant player since Tiger Woods” — he has found himself grounded in a way most of us can only dream about.

Among the many things Jesus told anyone willing to listen is this: “What kind of deal is it to get everything you want but lose yourself? What could you ever trade your soul for?”

Scheffler appears to understand this very well. And maybe this understanding has contributed to his success.

There’s something for me and you to learn from this. Whatever we’re pursuing, is it worth damaging our health, our emotional well-being or our relationships? NO. Especially when it’s all temporary. Our 70 or 80 years on this planet are nothing but a blip compared to what’s coming next.

Scheffler seems to comprehend what’s coming next. That’s why he’s placed his faith and trust in Jesus, because anyone who does so will spend a glorious eternity in the presence of their creator.

This is how it works: Jesus told his listeners, “You must be perfect, just as your Father in Heaven is perfect.” So there it is; when this life ends, you’ll need to be perfect to get past the bouncer at the ‘pearly gates’.

Well, that’s a problem, isn’t it? Since no one can ever get close to perfection, how can even one of us get to Heaven?

The answer is Jesus. When He allowed Himself to be arrested on false charges, convicted and put to death, Jesus paid the penalty for every wrong thing done by His followers, and every right thing we’ve failed to do.

After that, God saw — and continues to see — His Son’s followers just as He sees Jesus: perfect in every way.

Just as important, when people like YOU invite Jesus to be your Lord and Saviour, He comes into your heart IMMEDIATELY and begins making you more like the person God created you to be.

Are you interested? Yes or no, post your comment below and let’s have a conversation.

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OUR HEART PROBLEM

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on May 17, 2025| 3 Comments »

Do you share the opinion of famed Indian actor and atheist Kamal Hassan? It wouldn’t surprise me. There was a time when I thought this way, too. So stick with me as I do my imperfect best to unpack this statement and, hopefully, persuade you to rethink your position.

First of all, The U.S.-based World Food Program says this: “There is no global food shortage because we produce more than enough food to feed everyone in the world.” The problem, according to the United Nations, is:

  • 14 percent of the world’s food (valued at $400 billion per year) continues to be lost after it is harvested and before it reaches retail.
  • a further 17 percent of our food ends up being wasted in retail and by consumers, particularly in households. That lost and wasted food could feed 1.26 billion hungry people every year.

This is why, when I showed my pastor friend Ross Carkner the meme above, he noted “the problem is not with what God has provided us, but with the hearts of humanity. God provided food for every hungry child, but it has been kept from them by greed, indifference and selfishness. We can’t blame God for our injustice!“

In other words, all of us, including ME and YOU, have a heart problem. Said Ross: “This is hard for us because we feel like we don’t have enough … we always want more. To live more simply so others can simply live is beyond too many of us.”

Again, it’s a heart problem. That problem manifests itself in labelling so many of our selfish, indulgent wants as needs. And I’m as guilty as the next person.

Meanwhile, there are many charitable organizations that follow Jesus of Nazareth — who many people believe is the Son of God — and are committed to being the hands and feet of Jesus to people imprisoned in generational cycles of poverty. I recently retired from one of them, Samaritan’s Purse. Others include Lifewater, Compassion Canada, Salvation Army and the Mustard Seed.

As you digest this, consider your heart problem and how to fix it. Are you frustrated that so often, your efforts to improve yourself have failed? That’s often been my frustration, until I realized that I simply cannot do it on my own. I don’t have the willpower, the endurance, the strength of character.

So I trust God to improve me. Years ago, after much reading and discussion with thoughtful Jesus followers, I decided to trust my present (and future) to Jesus. I asked Him to forgive me of all the wrongs things I’ve done and all the right things I’ve failed to do.

That opened the door for Jesus to come into my heart and soul and start the life-long process of making me more like the person God created me to be. And when that journey finishes, I’ll spend eternity with my creator.

Does this sound interesting to you? Yes or no, drop a comment below and let’s have a conversation.

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WHO KNOWS IT ALL?

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 12, 2025| 4 Comments »

Maybe you’ve encountered some “religious” Christians who left you with a bad taste in your mouth because they insisted all they need to know can be found in the Bible.

I’m with you on this. In fact, this is just one more reason why I want nothing to do with “religion” (a few more reasons can be found here: https://frankscottage.blog/2018/06/30/the-unniceness-of-religion/).

I’m a man of faith who follows Jesus of Nazareth (who many people believe is the Son of God), but I absolutely DO NOT know everything. In fact, since deciding to follow Jesus more than 20 years ago, I’ve yet to meet a single person who fits the stereotype of the atheist meme that sparked this blog.

So let’s clear up the misconceptions. For a start, I have approximately 1,000 fiction, non-fiction, photography, humour, history and spirituality books. Now I’d never claim that other Jesus followers are similar reading enthusiasts, but a majority read at least a few books now and then. Just like most other North Americans.

What about Jesus-following scientists (I wrote about a few of them here: https://wp.me/p2wzRb-e9)? I feel quite safe in writing that most of these folks have entire walls of books. And I can’t imagine even one of them claiming to “know everything” from the Bible.

So what do we know? Based on philosophy, archaeology, science and ancient documents that have never been disproven, we know this:

  • There’s a creator behind the universe, this planet, the air you’re breathing and YOU.
  • This creator is without fault, blemish or stain. I know this because Jesus said His Father is absolutely holy.
  • This creator knows ALL of His creations, including YOU. In fact, He knows us better than we know ourselves. He knows we fall far, far short of being holy.
  • This creator promises us that there’s much more to life that just 75 years of eating, sleeping, working and watching bad reality TV. This life is just the opening page to the book of all eternity.
  • This creator’s standard for spending that eternity with Him is perfection. I know this because Jesus told anyone willing to listen that “You must be perfect, just as your Father in Heaven is perfect.”
  • Since no one has any hope of reaching that standard on their own, God provided a way: His Son’s undeserved death and extraordinary resurrection three days later. Jesus himself said He “came to serve others and to give [my] life to save many people“.

Why not to save ALL people? Because being saved — to qualify for eternity in Heaven — requires declaring Jesus to be Lord, Saviour and best friend. When this happens, God no longer sees all the wrong things we’ve done and the right things we’ve failed to do. He only sees His Son’s perfection.

If all that seems far away and, therefore, irrelevant, consider this: Jesus told His followers that He would leave them a spiritual guide to help them become the people God created them to be. In other words, trusting in Jesus can make a positive, life-changing difference NOW.

Interested? Yes or no, post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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WHO IS YOUR AUDIENCE?

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on January 11, 2025| 3 Comments »

The title of this album, recorded almost 50 years ago by actor/singer David Soul (famous for co-starring in TV’s Starsky & Hutch) has always stuck with me. At the time, I recall a particularly unpleasant reviewer declaring that after being forced to hear the album, it now had an audience of none. 😦

From my perspective as a retired 60-something, almost all of us spend our lives playing to audiences. During my working life, I played for an audience of co-workers and supervisors. These days, I play for an audience of my wife, stepkids and grandchildren.

Audiences watch, listen and ultimately (whether they know it or not) judge the “performer”. And for performers, the key to success is knowing their audience and providing what they want. In my life, that includes dealing with the garbage/recycling/compost for my wife and picking up our grandchildren from school.

In the spiritual realm — and I assume you’re open to spirituality — there’s much, much more to this idea. In that world, all of us play to an audience of exactly one. (And no nasty music reviewer can change that).

That audience is the master of time, space and the universe. And the creator of you & me. Unlike our human audiences, we can’t hide anything from God.

“Because His knowledge is infinite and perfect, He never has to figure anything out,” says Canadian pastor Henry Shore. “He’s never surprised, confused or shocked. God knows everything there is to know about you and me.”

Kinda unnerving, isn’t it?

This isn’t just Henry’s opinion. An ancient writer and prophet noted “I’m an open book to You [God]; even from a distance, You know what I’m thinking. You know everything I’m going to say before I start the first sentence.”

So how do we deal with this audience? To start with, understand that your creator loves YOU. No matter what you’ve done or not done, no matter what kind of success or failure you’ve experienced, no matter what anyone thinks of you (including mean-spirited music reviewers). NOTHING changes God’s love for YOU.

This explains why that same ancient writer/prophet could state, “This is too much, too wonderful — I can’t take it all in!”

All this is wonderful, but it’s important to understand this: the wrong things we do and right things we fail to do put a barrier between us and our loving creator. Consider these words that Jesus of Nazareth (who many people believe is God’s Son) said to anyone willing to listen: “you must be perfect, just as your Father in Heaven is perfect.”

Oh boy. This makes the barrier I mentioned seem impossible to breach. And it is, on our own. But Jesus–His extraordinary life and teachings, His death and resurrection–is God’s gift to ANYONE willing to accept it. If you accept it, if you declare Jesus Lord, Saviour and your best friend, God no longer sees your “sins”. He only sees His Son’s perfection. So when this life ends, you’ll be welcomed to spend eternity in His presence.

Sound like a good deal? Yes or no, post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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WHERE HE KNOWS YOUR NAME

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on August 3, 2024| 3 Comments »

“There’s something missing from my life. Sure, I have a nice wife, a career and a house; I guess I’m talking about that spiritual something to give it all meaning and enable me to be at peace with myself and the world.”

This was a monologue from Norm, the barfly played so expertly by actor George Wendt on the dearly loved American comedy Cheers. I happened to see it while skimming videos on Facebook and it stopped me in my tracks.

While the “speech” ended with a silly joke that was typical of the show, I saved the video because I believe if many of us gave it any consideration, what Norm said would accurately describe our lives.

It was certainly the case for me. In 2004, I had:

  • A career in print journalism that was going nicely
  • Experience with several satisfying romantic relationships
  • A home in surburbia

To any outsider, I had all that things that would make me a success. But something was missing.

So, at a certain point, I came to recognize that my life accomplishments didn’t mean much and they would disappear the moment my soul left my body. Maybe the fact that you’re reading this means you’re at, or near, this point in your life.

So here’s what I did: Because of attending church services as a child, I had a vague idea about Jesus of Nazareth, who many people believe is the Son of God. So, with an open mind, I started connecting with Jesus followers who were capable of having spiritual discussions with non-believers.

Over time, I came to understand two vital things: who Jesus is and who I am. Some folks think Jesus was just a cool guy with some great ideas worth following. Others believe He was nothing more than a made-up character.

If you give any credibility to the primary-source accounts of His physical life on earth, then you’ll know that Jesus didn’t allow us the option of figuring He was just a great thinker and good person. You either have to believe He is who He said He is (the Son of God who came to came to live, die and return to life for our benefit) or a lunatic with a god complex.

As for being a fictional character, who would do this and carry it through? And why? To get money, sex and power? Really?

As for us, most people in the world today figure they’re good and, if there’s any kind of creator and any kind of Heaven, then we’re good enough to get in on our own merits.

But that’s opposite to what Jesus said. He told anyone willing to listen that “you must be perfect, just as your Father in Heaven is perfect.” Once I understood that, I realized that being “good” was absolutely NOT good enough. I had to trust and follow Jesus, who claimed to be “the way, the truth and the life.”

Once I finally did that, my career changed (to telling others about Jesus), the women I dated changed (I married a Jesus follower) and I came to understand that the things this world values are meaningless in the grand scheme of things. My meaning and JOY comes from following Jesus and telling people like you about Him.

Are you missing something in your life? Then look into Jesus. I think He’s what you need. Agree? Disagree? Post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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CONSIDERING A PURE HEART & GOOD INTENTIONS

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on February 10, 2024| 7 Comments »

Ah, peace. We all want it and most of us think we don’t have nearly enough of it.

When I discovered this internet meme, three things immediately set my “spidey sense” tingling.

1. The creator of this meme believes the way to peace is good intentions and a pure heart. While lots of us have similar ideas about what makes up “good intentions”, I’m sure there are many points of divergence.

The ancient saying “the road to hell is paved with good intentions” is still around today because it’s true. Here’s just one sad, unfortunate example:

Dr. Spock, the author of a famous handbook on child rearing, recognized that babies throw up a lot and therefore recommended newborns be laid on their stomachs to sleep. Unknowingly, this would result in thousands of accidental smothering deaths. We now know that newborns should sleep on their backs until they can roll over for themselves.

An internet search will provide many more examples of good intentions gone horribly wrong. So I need to ask: Who defines what is good? And how good is good enough?

Let me offer a very radical, very out-of-the-box answer: the creator of time, space the universe and YOU defines what is good AND how good is good enough.

ChristianWeek.com suggests achieving goodness means being kind and decent, compassionate and generous, resourceful and studious, curious and concerned with addressing injustice.

As a follower of Jesus of Nazareth (who many people believe is the Son of God), I’m delighted that these characteristics can be agreed on by pretty much everyone.

Here’s the controversial part: Jesus followers like me believe being good is absolutely NOT good enough. In one of the original-source biographies of His physical time on Earth, Jesus said “you must be perfect, just as your Father in Heaven is perfect.” Oh boy. This isn’t looking good for me, you or anyone else on this planet.

2. What is a pure heart? Ideapod.com has this definition: It doesn’t mean having any faults, but rather without any hidden intentions. It’s not about always being right or perfect, but rather doing your best to do the right thing.

This is all very, very laudable. I’m just not ready to say that me, you or anyone else has achieved it.

No matter how hard I work at it, there are times when I do NOT try my best to do the right thing. Despite my best efforts, there are occasions when I absolutely DO have hidden intentions. This means I fall short of Jesus’s standard for this life and the life to come. Can you, with complete honesty, claim you are pure-hearted?

3. What is the “end of the day”? The tone of the meme suggests it’s the end of life. If you believe there’s something beyond 70+ years on this planet, then the meme is ignoring that. Given the words of Jesus about Heaven and what’s required to get there, is that a good idea?

There’s a lot to ponder here. I suggest the best way to start is to investigate the life, ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus. If He’s right and your eternal life is at stake, then nothing is more important than checking Him out.

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UNCONDITIONALLY LOVED AND VALUED

Posted in In The News, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on January 6, 2024| 4 Comments »

“You’ve got to be clear that you don’t want certain customers coming in.”

Chip Wilson, the founder of lifestyle clothing giant Lululemon, dropped those controversial words during a recent interview about the company’s direction since he departed in 2015.

This takes me back to 2013, when an Abercrombie & Fitch executive created a media storm by shamelessly declaring the clothing retailer tried to exclude anyone but “cool kids” from buying its products. (The controversy inspired me to write this: https://wp.me/p2wzRb-7o.)

Then, as now with Chip Wilson, the issue is all about ranking the value of people. That’s a constant, subtle focus of our culture, designed to make people feel special. The trouble is, it does so by downgrading certain types of what we might regard as less desirable people.

Most of us, and that includes ME, are guilty of this — often without even knowing it. And it’s been going on since the dawn of humanity. Jesus of Nazareth, who many people believe is the Son of God, often battled this mindset during His physical time on earth.

Jesus spent time with the rejects of his day — tax collectors for the hated Roman empire (which occupied ancient Israel, where Jesus lived), prostitutes, menstruating women, people with mental health issues and more.

Jesus did so for two reasons, and I believe those reasons apply to YOU and me:

  1. He wanted them to know they were unconditionally loved and valued, no matter what anyone said to them or behaved toward them.
  2. He wanted them to recognize they had missed the mark of who God created them to be, and it was possible to fix that by following Him.

Now transfer this list to YOU: Jesus wants YOU to know YOU are unconditionally loved and valued, with all your faults and with all the wrong things you’ve done (and the right things you’ve failed to do).

Second, YOU and me have missed the mark of who God created us to be. We’ve listened to our culture’s siren call and, more often than not, made meaningless things (money, toys, vacations, trophy spouses, sexual pleasure) our focus, all the while living as if we have no Creator. In other words, at the urging of the world around us, we have made ourselves God.

Upon realizing this, I opened my mind and heart to Jesus. I’m glad to tell you that He entered my life and is making me more generous and less self-centred, more loving and less insecure, more contented and less angry. The list continues, but you get it. And the work won’t end until this life is finished and my life in Heaven starts.

Sound attractive? Yes or no, post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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