I have a friend who is atheist. A few, actually. I have a few who are Muslim, too. Some of my friends have alternate lifestyles. Most of my friends are white. Some aren't U.S. citizens. I have friends who are skinny and some who are plump. I have some who are professional athletes and some who have no athletic ability whatsoever. I have friends who are doctors and who are janitors, some who are writers and some who can barely speak English. I have friends who like running and some who abhor the thought of it. I have friends who are vegetarian and others who are hunting maniacs.
I have all kinds of friends in my life.
And they have me.
The fact that my atheist friend doesn't believe in God and I do is a huge difference between us. But it doesn't define our friendship. Respect does.
My friends who are Muslim believe differently than I do. But when I talk about my faith and Christianity, they listen. And when they tell me about Islam and teach me things about Ramadan, I love to learn. We have our differences. But that doesn't define our friendship. Love does.
My friends who are vegetarian don't think I hate them because I like to eat meat.
To my knowledge, I haven't been called intolerant by my non-working-out friends because I have taken up a liking for running. Obsessed, maybe, but not intolerant. Or hateful, for that matter.
The differences I have with many of my friends are just that: differences. Somewhere along the lines, someone came up with the idea that we have a right to force someone to believe what we believe, to have the same moral convictions as we do and to live a life that only we would consider acceptable and right. My belief or convictions, while I would love for everyone I come across to agree with me and see it as truth, are just that....mine.
I had a lengthy conversation with my Dad one time, who would not consider himself to be a Christian. He knows about the Bible and God and the basic Christian beliefs, but it simply isn't a choice or a belief system that he is willing to take hold of. Does that bother me? Yes. And I told him so. Not because it's important for us to believe the same way, but because of the way it has changed my own life and I want that experience and relationship for him. When we were talking, I related my relationship with Jesus Christ and my faith in the work of the cross this way: If something happened in my life that completely changed me and gave me an unimaginable hope and joy and fulfillment to the point of not even being able to handle it, wouldn't it be somewhat selfish of me to think to keep that all to myself? Wouldn't he want me to share that with him, to tell him about it? Sure, I can't force him to think that way, but I can surely share it with him and tell him about it. And I will. And I won't be shy about it.
I heard a quote this morning while I was watching a film by I Am Second. Pro football player, Greg Ellis, was being interviewed and he said this: "My faith in Jesus is everything. It IS my life, it doesn't just impact my life." I cannot reiterate that statement with any more clarity or truth in my life. It IS my life, my everything. Without my faith in Jesus Christ, I am, simply put, nothing. As one of my favorite song lyrics put it, "You can have all the world, but give me Jesus."
I may not be able to force or convince anyone to believe the same way I do. And I probably won't even spend much time trying, to be honest. But I will share about my own life and the victory I have found in knowing Christ as my Savior. I won't ever shut up about the forgiveness I've found in Him and the freedom of redemption from my selfish past. I won't judge people for their lifestyles or choices when I'm still struggling and sinning in my own. I cannot, and will not, ever shut my mouth in giving praise to God who straightened my path, took the grossest parts of me and made me new.
"I will exalt you, my God the King. I will praise your name for ever and ever. Every day, I will praise you and extol your name for ever and ever. Great is the LORD and most worthy of praise; His greatness no one can fathom." ~ Psalm 145:1-3
"[The LORD] lifted me out of the slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; He set my feet on a rock and gave me a firm place to stand. He put a new song in my mouth, a hymn of praise to our God. Many will see and fear and put their trust in the Lord." ~ Psalm 40:2-3
Do I want people to believe and experience that same relationship? You better believe it. But until then, I won't ever stop loving my friends, especially the ones who think and believe and live differently than I. But even more, I won't ever stop sharing the love of my wonderful, merciful Savior.
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