John 14: 6 “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

                                                        Paula

 Like a hummingbird, during my long search for God I flitted from one attractive religious tradition to the next, seeking some illusive sweet nectar that always looked promising but never quite satisfied. “Why is the void still there, God? Which religion do I choose?” So many paths spread themselves before me, studying them only made me more and more confused. Each religion had its own merits—some sounded so convincing it’s a wonder my steps led away from them. I’d enter into each with great hope and expectation, only to come away disappointed that I hadn’t yet found the fulfillment I sought.

Our politically correct world proclaims that there are many pathways to God. For centuries mankind has invented and practiced countless religious traditions, each attempting to satisfy the soul’s hunger for Something outside ourselves. But if we are honest, if we stop for a moment to carefully examine our own inner beings (that deep, private place in our mind and spirit where we alone are allowed to tread), we can’t help but recognize a void exists that only God can fill. Some try to fill that void with lusts of the flesh—be that addictions, worldly distractions and the pursuit of wealth, carnality, intellect, or even by denying that the void exists at all. Some try to fill the hole with religious ritual—faithfully attending church, temple, or mosque, or by practicing sacred rites or by spending countless hours in prayer and meditation. All these practices in and of themselves are well and good, yet without first walking through the Doorway that God the Father provided from the beginning of eternity, none of them will ultimately satisfy the hungry soul.

One day Thomas asked how he and the other disciples could know the way to the Father’s house. Jesus replied: “I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”

When I first read those words, I experienced an epiphany. The proverbial light went on in my mind and heart, and my spirit nearly flew to heaven with the revelation that light revealed.  It wasn’t a religion I should be looking for to satisfy my longing; it was a relationship with Jesus Christ. The only way to God the Father was by saying yes to Jesus Christ Who is the Way, the Truth, and the Life.

So, how do you step through the Door? In his letter to the Romans* who practiced polytheistic worship, Paul admonished: “If you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.”

Three centuries later, St. Augustine wrote: “Thou hast made us for Thyself, and our souls are restless until they find their rest in Thee.”

Amen and amen.

*Romans  10:9,10

Pam

What is the big whoop about Jesus? That’s what I used to ask myself. What do I need him for? Surely, I can love and worship God without bringing a third party into the picture. As it turns out, I was wrong. I found that if I sincerely wanted to have a vital, living relationship with God, then I needed to accept Christ in my heart.

In my opinion, trying to know God without Jesus is like trying to know the ocean from watching Jacques Cousteau documentaries. Don’t get me wrong. Cousteau made fascinating films. His documentaries show magnificent blue whales, the Great Barrier Reef, and freaky anglerfish. He explains the science behind the movement of the ocean currents and the effect of the moon on tides. All good stuff. But it all takes place inside your head. You are trying to understand something by using another person’s experience. You’re taking their word for it.

Accepting Jesus into your life is like being invited aboard the Calypso. Suddenly, you feel the wind in your hair and the slime of seaweed, smell the briny air and taste saltwater. You can see for yourself dolphins playing. Your relationship to the ocean is real and you’re connected.

When I accepted Jesus as my Lord and Savior my relationship with God became tangible.  Without Christ God is just an image, a concept, a good idea. With Jesus in my life I can receive and accept an infilling of the Holy Spirit. (Now there is a splash of cold water to the face of your spiritual life.) My feeble, thin prayers are no more. I approach the Throne of Grace with confidence.  With Jesus as my teacher and guide I can grow in Christ. He is the perfect role model.

I have to say that God did hear my earlier feeble, thin prayers. He answered them by bringing me to Jesus.