Eat, Pray, Love

Yeah, I just saw the movie, spent 2:15 hours soaking up some pretty empty philosophy on God, relationships and meaning of life. The company was sweet - thanks to Lori - the movie was free - thanks to NCG theatre - the experience was limp - thanks to the writers ( I don't know or care who they are).

No, I didn't read the book and don't tell me "Oh, the book is so much better". I won't read it. I got enough of the core meaning in the movie and didn't "buy" it. No time for that - literally and figuratively.

I'm sticking to the Truth. I know it. I believe it. It lives with me and guides me true north.

One Path

What you are about to read is the backdrop of my thinking. Because I write from my soul, things that are in my spirit will no doubt surface from time to time. The following may help you understand where I'm coming from.

Those who say that there are many paths to God are sadly mistaken. The Bible says that Jesus is the only way to relationship with God. Answering the question - who is Jesus? - is the most important question you will ever consider and answer. I love that the word "quest" is in the work "question". Most questions that are in the deep places of our heart are really about a quest to relate to the God of the Bible. Questions such as "Why am I here?", "What is my purpose?", "What's going to happen to me when I die?". I'm not here to preach at length about the answers to these questions. I would point you to the Bible, the God of the Bible and the redeeming work of Jesus, His Son, on the cross that births our personal relationship with Him. He loves me. He loves you. I relate to Him with each breath I take. You can relate to Him too. I have found peace and security. I have found acceptance and joy. I have found strength and courage. I have not found any of these things inside my "self". My "self" is a weak and miserable portrayal of humanness. I have found these things within my relationship with God. It has been my choice to respond to Him choosing me first.

Go to the Bible. See for yourself that He is Light, and Life and Truth. ( John 1:4; John 14:6)

HAVE A LITTLE VISION, PEOPLE

Undertaking any kind of change - from redecorating, to rebuilding, to moving, to marrying, to starting a new job - can be scary business. One thing I have found that helps is to have a vision of what you want that "whatever" to look like, feel like, accomplish?.

Doing some mental work on the front end allows the necessary steps to get there come into focus. Once you have the end result in your mind's eye you can work backwards to decide how you are going to get there. Let me encourage you that many times there is no right or wrong way to "get there". You and I might want to end up in the same place but take diverse roads to get there.

Let me give you an example. My sister and I both love to plan events. We can easily get a vision for what we want the event to look and feel like, the experience if you will. It's at that point that we take diverse turns. My sister functions best by being fluid and spontaneous in her process. I find more satisfaction in laying out a well thought out plan and executing it step by step. Which one of us is right?

The point is that she has pulled off some spectacular events where everything came together and people felt like things when off exactly as planned. (It's only their perception that's important, by the way) I, too, have pulled off some pretty big deal events where people felt that everything had gone exactly as planned. We both reached the end we had hoped for coming from our own different paths.

Our vision is the most important thing. Capitalizing on our personality traits, gifts and talents helps us figure out how to get there. I love the individuality of vision and arriving at the vision.

What is your vision? How do you plan to get there? Follow your heart and mind right into that change and make it happen.

Key Thought - when it comes to God and our spiritual journey, however, there are not many ways to the same end. See post "One Path". Those who say that there are many paths to God are sadly mistaken. There is only the One True God of the Bible. And He says that Jesus is the only way to relationship with God. Answering the question - who is Jesus? - is the most important question you will ever consider and answer. I love that the word "quest" is in the word "question". Most questions that are in the deep places of our heart are really about a quest to relate to the God. Read more in the "One Path" post.