Keeping It Real

Where is God in our crazy lives?

I write now from the heart.

I believe that God created all things. And yet, God had no real reason to create anything. For what could the infinite need? Creation is an act of love when there is no need for it. I sing, I paint, I write, all out of love for the work I create. Think of God as an artist then, an inventor, an engineer. Moreover, God has created us in his image and his breath flows in us. He is a part of us, which makes us capable of creating art in the same way — out of love. Therefore, love is the agent of creation. Love is love when it expects nothing back to be sustained. Whatever you make of life is most like the act of divine creation when it is done out of love. Isn’t that something?

And like every car has to be filled with fuel to run properly, God has designed us to be fueled by himself. So now, here we are on this earth — creatures that bear the image of God and that need God to be properly functional. We spend most of our lives trying to find the right fuel. Career, family, wealth, love, creativity, technology— we chase them around and find ourselves worn out. One need succeeds another, yet never completely fill you. Your aims in life, held intensely this very moment, may tomorrow change horses as life springs a surprise. Is this all there is to life? A rat-race till death? God offers us an anchor in these stormy seas. A firm foundation built on unconditional love and support. God, through the story of Jesus in the Bible, tells us how much he loves us, and how much he wants us to be close to him. For this is our default, which we choose to ignore time and time again.

With the coming of Jesus, we can now say God is not a distant, other-worldly being, but someone who actually existed and who we can relate to. Jesus felt joy, sorrow, compassion and pain — he was one of us, and he lived a perfect life. And that says a lot about how much God wants us to understand Him and His love. For God to stoop so low so as to die at human hands, nailed to a cross! How scandalous. And yet, how else could we so clearly see the kind of love God has for us? Now, it stands undeniable, we cannot wish it away, cannot sweep it under the carpet. It begs from us a decision. How do we react to it?

If all this sounds very cheesy and predictable, it is. All faiths have some variant of this. Everyone knows it one way or another. But seldom is it executed. Here, I’m sharing my experiences with the Christian faith, working on the heart to transform living. Life isn’t the same for everyone. Some have it harder than others. But love makes all things more bearable. And love immeasurable comes from above. From the one who has made us all his children and promised to love us forever.

There is a passage from the story of Jesus in the Bible that I find curious and relevant here. Early on in the Gospel of John, John the Baptist, a famous preacher of the time, called Jesus the “Lamb of God” when they met. Intrigued, two of John’s disciples follow Jesus and he asks them, “What do you seek?” They ask him, “Teacher, where are you staying?”, to get an idea of who this man was and where he’s from. And Jesus simply says, “Come, and you will see.” And they followed, not knowing a thing about him. How strange, and how fitting! This sort of thing cannot be observed from the outside, it has to be experienced from the inside. Keep an open mind, and let’s explore. Be skeptical, ask questions, but give it a fair shot.

To fall in love with God is the greatest romance;
to seek him the greatest adventure;
to find him, the greatest human achievement.
— St. Augustine