Who Is Jesus To Me?

I find this question to be really interesting, and one that I feel most people really don't seriously think about. We have people who attend seminaries and other religious schools who will give you and academic answer to this question, but this isn't a question that any school can teach and give and answer to, as who Jesus is to each person is different. You see, the real answer to the question is what is in your heart, and since we all don't have the same heart, then the answer can not be exactly the same for everyone.

Now the church is very good at telling you who Jesus is and about the life that Jesus lead in his humanly form on this planet, but the church seems to fail at getting people to really look inside of themselves and see how they view Jesus. Oh yeah, there will be those within the church who will tell you how you should look upon and how you should have Jesus in your heart, but if one follows what they are told, are they really allowing their heart and soul to really know who Jesus is, or is their faith and God really of the person that is telling them how to think?

I was in a conversation in a MySpace group a few years ago. now I look up on my views and life as being more of a Moderate than being either Conservative or Liberal. The conversation was interesting, as both those on the conservative side and the liberal side were in agreement on the issue. Now the conservative side had been saying that the liberal side really weren't Christians mainly because of the views about hommosexuality. The liberal side keep pointing out stuff in the Bible concerning other laws in the Bible (mainly the Old Testiment by BOTH sides,) and that the conservative side wasn't following what was set down. Neither side would give up in the battle, then someone happen to mention a denomination. Both sides agreed that the people in that denomination were not Christians. I then asked a question that neither side was able to answer biblically. Where in the Bible does it say that people in certain denominations were Christians? I wanted them to point exactly to the verses. I found it funny that both sides started bringing up stuff that was not in the Bible, btu were things that Man, NOT GOD had said over the years. When I pointed out that I wanted Bible verses, they continued with the things supposed “Learned People” had said and written. I then had an say that I guess that they must be wrong in that they were unable to quote a single thing biblically to support their arguments. They were basing their arguments on Man, not on GOD.

And I find the same in many ways with what people have to say as to who Jesus is to them in their heart. But really, sit back and think about it. Why do you truly believe in your heart the way that you do? If you are a Christian, Jewish, Buddist, Islamist, or don't beieve in a higher being or not, why do you believe in your heart the way that you do? Why is YOUR Faith really YOUR Faith?

I find it funny when someone wants proof that God exist, and I ask them to prove that God doesn't exist, they tend to make some kind of remark, but the remark is one that doesn't even attempt to prove them being right. I had meet a very beautiful woman online that I really wanted to go out with at least once if I should of made made it to her area. We have a lot in common, really enjoyed talking with each other, but what our desire to do could not happen, as we had a God issue. She insisted that God didn't exist, and I was am (and am not) willing to give up my faith, as I know in my heart and soul that God does exist. I don't recall how we got into the issue, but one day we just got into a very short disagreement about the existance of God. When I said that I wanted her to prove that God didn't exist, she made a remark and we have not spoken since. Yeah I do miss my conversations on other things with her, but all that I can do is hope and pray that some day God touches her heart.

But back to the question. For me, Jesus is the one person in my life that I know really cares about me. Jesus isn't demanding anything from me, nor is he just wanting things from me. Jesus isn't like some of the people who have come into my life and act like vampires who just want me to do something for them. Jesus is the one person in my life who contacts me and asks me how I am doing.

People in this world get upset and complain to me that I never call them, and this is when I am the one who has called them. The funny thing is that they never call me, and when I have pointed this out, they change the subject.

Jesus comes to visit me. No I am not talking about coming to my place in a physical form, but Jesus stops by and visits me. I have lived in the same place for the last three years, and since I have moved in not a single person has ever come by to just visit,, but yet people will complain that I don't come by to see them. But Jesus comes by and checks out hwo I am. If I am not feeling well, Jesus is there.

Jesus is willing to listen to my ideas and hear what I have to say. I have gotten to the point with some people where I know that they aren't going to listen to me. Everything has to be about them. The funny thing with that is that those people who don't want to listen and want to make things about them is they think that they know all about me, but the truth is they really know nothing. They do their darndest to come across as an expert in many things, but the truth is they no nothing about anything.

Jesus is willing to apologize to me without excuses. I know someone now who has come up with excuse after excuse to me without ever saying the words “I'm sorry.” How this person can sit in a church week after week and ask God for forgiveness and to aplogize to God for the wrong that they have done is beyond me. I was taught that one sees God in there fellow human, so when I screw up, I say apologize. During service yesterday I screwed up as I had misread soemthing, and it effected the congregation. I apologized, and when someone else tried to blaim it on something else, I again apologized to the congregation and said that the fault was mine and mine alone.

Jesus died for my sins, and if he hadn't who knows what I would be like now. I want to again thank Jesus for dying for my sins, and continuing to be punished for my sins now. Yes most of the time I try my best to lead a sin free life, but I screw up.

Jesus is my best friend and has nothing but love for me. People say that parents have unconditional love for there kids, but think about it really. How often have you heard or even said that you would do something for your (or any) child as long as they do something. You have now put a condition upon actions, whereas in unconditional love actions aren't needed except by you.

Jesus is my guide. I am one of the sheep of Jesus who he is leading through an area where there are things that could kill me, kidnap me, or do me harm. Yes at times I do go off of the path and he leads me back, but he is my guide.

Oh I could go on and on about who Jesus is to me, but I want for you to sit back and think about who Jesus is to you?

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

Jesus Phreak! (the trailer)

 I wish that we could get this show to come to my diocese, as I think that it could go over very well...

Jesus Phreak! (the trailer)

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

BEST POEM IN THE WORLD!

I was shocked, confused, bewildered

As I entered Heaven’s door,

Not by the beauty of it all,

Nor the lights or its decor.

But it was the folks in Heaven

Who made me sputter and gasp–

The thieves, the liars, the sinners,

The alcoholics and the trash.

There stood the kid from seventh grade

Who swiped my lunch money twice.

Next to him was my old neighbor

Who never said anything nice.

Herb, who I always thought

Was rotting away in hell,

Was sitting pretty on cloud nine,

Looking incredibly well.

I asked Jesus, “What’s the deal?

I would love to hear Your take.

How’d all these sinners get up here?

God must’ve made a mistake.

“And why’s everyone so quiet,

So somber - give me a clue.”

“Hush, child,” He said.

“They’re all in shock.

“No one thought they’d be seeing you.”

Read and post comments | Send to a friend

Are We Like Sheep?

“All of us are like sheep: We have wandered away from God. All of us have turned to our own way. And the Lord has placed on his servant the sins of all of us.” - Isaiah 53:6

 

June 2, 2007 was a good day for me, in that I went to Grace Cathedral for the Ordination Service, and came out thinking about something. I will have to give credit my Bishop Marc Andrus for making me think about this, for it was his sermon that brought it to my mind. Bishop Marc’s sermon dealt with Sheep and Shepards. Even though he didn’t talk about the topic, I began to think about the Anglican Communion, and more about the Diocese of California.

There is a wonderful book titled “The Way Of The Wolf”, by Martin Bell. It’s a collection of stories, poems and songs that are kind of like the parables of Jesus, but written in modern language and in some cases modern versions. Now I love to read short stories, and this is a book that has a wonderful collection of them. One of the stories is called “”Rag-Tag Army”. It talks about God having trouble keeping his army together as they travel, for groups within the army keep doing different things, and God has to stop what he is doing to get everyone back in step so that they can get to where they are suppose to be going. God is the Shepard, and the army is his sheep.

Another thing that came to mind is a song from Handel’s Messiah called “Are We Like Sheep?” As the song runs through my head, I wonder if the Episcopal Church has gone astray? Has this diocese gone astray from the teachings of Jesus? Have I gone astray from the Orthodox teachings that I was taught in the congregation that I grew up in when I was living in another diocese?

When God created the world, one of the first things that he gave to all of his creatures was the freedom of choice. We as humans always say that he gave just us the freedom of choice, but if you really think about it, he gave the choice to all of his creatures. Just recently a couple of humpback whales made the choice of going up the San Pablo Bay towards Sacramento. Some people will say that they got lost, but how do we really know that they were lost? They could of chose to stay with the others in their pod, but they chose to venture off to take another route.

As I read the stuff that is going on in the Anglican Communion, it makes me wonder if the ECUSA and the Anglican Church of Canada are sheep that have wondered off and the rest of the communion is trying to bring us back or are we sheep that have headed off to begin a new herd?

I have often heard the Church of England referred to as the “Mother Church” of the Anglican Communion, and one of its children is the Episcopal Church. If we look at the traditional role of a mother, it is like that of a Shepard in that she guides her children (sheep) through life to the point where they go out on their own. She protects her sheep as best as she can.

With what is going on in the Anglican Communion, is the Episcopal Church like many teenagers who think that they know everything and have rebelled against the mother church, or has the Episcopal Church grown into adulthood and mother is not ready to let her child go out into the world to live there own life?

Most parents do what they can to keep their child out of trouble and away from dangers, trying to keep their child from going through the same mistakes that they went through. Oh this is a great thing to do, but in some cases in order for a child to learn about things in life they need to make the same errors that their parents did in order to learn the same lesson. Parents tell kids not to do this or that because it is wrong, but fail to really explain why so that the child understands. People will say to kids not to use drugs, but will fail to tell kids that they used them at one point in life, and some of the things that they experienced as a result of using them.

But I am getting way off track on what my Bishop got me thinking about.

Being an Afro-Anglican in the Diocese of California is an interesting matter. In the diocese that I grew up in (The Diocese of Pennsylvania,) Black Episcopal clergy was a common thing to see. Don’t get me wrong, as they were in every congregation, but as a child it wasn’t that uncommon to come across one working not only in Black congregations, but in other congregations also. In this diocese we have black clergy in three congregations on a full time basis. Two of the clergy are priest, and the other is a Deacon. Now I know of five other black clergy in the diocese, two are retired, and at least one of the other two serves as an Interim.

Even though there are not many black youth within the diocese, sadly with the few Black Clergy in the diocese the black youth in this diocese really don’t see examples that becoming an ordained clergy person in this diocese as a viable option. This is also true of the Hispanic youth also.

This is a diocese that has only four Hispanic ministries, and not a single congregation with it’s own property. But when it comes to the Blacks within this diocese, we only have one that is looked upon as an Afrocentric congregation.

I am not 100% sure, but I believe that we have only five Asian congregations, with four of them with their own properties. Sadly though, like with the Blacks, they only have one Deacon of Asian ancestry, and I don’t think that we have a single Hispanic that is a Deacon.

The thing that each of the ethnic groups need to do is to become Sheppard's in getting the youth to realize that becoming a Clergy Person is a viable and fulfilling life that is worth considering. We as people of color need to show up at Ordination Services, welcome and show our support to the newly ordained that are of color. Yes we should show our support for ALL of the newly ordained, but with the small number of new ethnic seminarians in this country, we need to support them all.

I think that the only thing worse than the lack of people of color not becoming clergy is the major lack of people who happen to be physically handicap not being ordained.  Even though we of color are handicapped because of our color, the fact that someone is in a wheelchair, or having to use crutches, or is blind, doesn’t mean that they can’t bring forth the Good News. How can we even call ourselves an inclusive church when we deny access to people because they need a bit of help because of physical problems? Now I know that not all churches are set up to be able to handle a wheelchair in the altar area, but as we build more and more churches, it is something that we can put into the plans.

But overall, spend some time thinking about how we as a Christians are Sheppard’s in the world? How can we as a denomination be Sheppard’s to the world? How can the congregation that you are in be a Sheppard to our surrounding community? How can you be a Sheppard to those in your life? Who has been a Sheppard to you?

“And Jesus, when he came out, saw much people, and was moved with compassion toward them, because they were as sheep not having a shepherd: and he began to teach them many things.” - Mark 6:34

Read and post comments | Send to a friend