When I was growing up, my mama taught me many things; life lessons to guide me and protect me when she could not be with me:

Never run with scissors
Honesty is the best policy.
Look before you leap.
Actions speak louder than words.
You can’t please everyone.
Laughter is the best medicine.
You’ll never be too old to learn.
Nothing ventured, nothing gained.
You win some, you lose some.
Where there’s a will, there’s a way.
Love will find a way.

The list goes on.  And on…

Mama can’t be with me anymore, she’s helping God with things in Heaven, but her lessons are imprinted on my soul.  When I recall them they can help to guide me and protect me.  When I forget them… Well… Never run with scissors!

Spiritually  speaking, the past few months have been an amazing roller-coaster experience! The high points were mountain-top high. The low points…?

I once knew a man who described his lows like this…”I feel lower than whale poop. And that’s clear down in the bottom of the ocean.” Now while my lows have not be quite that dramatic, there have been lows. Too many of them! And in those low places mama’s voice would creep into my mind with one of her old-fashioned homilies designed to remind me, “You should have known better!”

Typing up this list I noticed in almost every case there is a choice to be made. I can choose to lay the scissors down before running. I can choose honesty when a little white lie would bring seemingly less drastic consequences. I can leap, full force, into a project only to find myself in over my head and desperately searching for a way out. I can say I’m a Christian, but act like the devil!

I am free to choose.

When I was a child I didn’t need to ask my mother which choice was the right one! She offered guidance, direction and quick retribution for rebellion. Mostly, I didn’t enjoy the consequences of my wrong choices. But, overall I’ve got to say it was a far easier system than making ‘adult’ choices, from a Christian point of view…at least that’s what the religious view of Christianity teaches.

Religion is a hard task master – if we choose to develop a religious mind set rather than a spiritual approach to life. But being a believer in and follower of Christ is not about being religious! Jesus teaches:

“God is spirit, and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth.” John 4:24

It seems to me God would have us know and understand his true position regarding our faith. In His Word I find evidence that God has, for all time, sought a people who would live by their faith; seeking his will, and following his directions for their lives. He pours out his Spirit on us as a sweet balm of oil, anointing our praise and prayers if we believe.

Can we believe that God’s heart takes great pleasure in our faith? Can we truly give God our faith? Surely it is a tool he can work with; a tool he can use to touch lives and nations. With our faith, our unity and our love God can make a difference in us and in the world around us.

Today, perhaps more than at any other time in the history of mankind, the body of Christ will touch lives and nations, hearts and homes – through Jesus gift on the cross and our faith in it!

Love will find a way!