R is for RELIGIOUS

They have always had a saying around our parts for someone who becomes a Christian. ' Your man's got good livin' they'll say and immediately we all know what they mean. It's a strange kind of phrase to use and I don't know why some people can't just say, 'he's become a Christian' or 'he's got saved' or 'he's converted'. It's as if Christian, converted and saved are words they're afraid to use or just can't bring themselves to utter. Maybe it pricks the conscience too much towards self-examination and maybe there are those who are afraid of what they might find. Yet the phrase 'good livin' is almost always used with respect towards the subject of their statement in an almost 'leave him alone' sort of attitude, but two things always cross my mind when I hear it said. First, by using it, are they suggesting that they consider themselves to be 'bad livin'? For you can't be both. Yet I know of many who would be offended to be placed in the latter category. But secondly and more worryingly, 'good livin' doesn't necessarily make them have to admit that God is central in the whole change that has taken place. It's almost as if someone just came to their senses and decided to change including church in turning over a new leaf. Hey, but let's be honest, anyone who uses the phrase 'good livin' knows exactly what has happened. So what to such people consider to be 'good livin' There's no doubt that they see a religious element in the whole change, but usually the most obvious sign is a vastly different lifestyle, with certain vices and habits discarded and a distancing from the former friendship group and the places they used to frequent. Still, I get the feeling that they can't use the words religious and enjoyment in the same sentence when describing a 'good livin' person and maybe that's where their problem lies.

Jesus lived in time when religion played a part in the lives of many and no part at all for others, so essentially things haven't changed. Nor has the view of religion as some sort of stern, rule ridden regime totally divorced from the every day realities of life. That's what Jesus was up against all the time, lives ruled by rules and a series of 'Thou shalt nots' but rarely anything positive. And the priests and religious leaders just couldn't reconcile their existence with that of a man whose only principle for living was to ' Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind' and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' Where were all the rules? Where was the sad face? How could you enjoy something that was a daily chore? And yet that was exactly what Jesus didn't want it to become, for you see, it wasn't a religion based on sacrifices, rituals and creeds. In fact it wasn't a religion at all, it was simply a new way to live that impacted on every minute of our existence, on our decisions and, eventually, on our future. That's why He said 'I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.' Now that sounds pretty inviting to me and not a place for long faces.

I wouldn't call myself religious, 'good livin' or even Protestant, though by others' definitions I am all three. I prefer to call myself a Christian and I don't have any problem with that at all. And because I believe that Jesus died and rose again and through the shedding of His blood He became the only sacrifice I would ever need for my sins, I know with absolute assurance that I am saved. He has done away with all the rules, rituals and sacrifices. All He wants is my obedience in return for the price He paid. The world is full of gods, religions and promises but only one God ever died for me and kept the promise that He made in the Garden. I will always respect those who have chosen a different religious path to mine, those whose thoughts are drawn to other forms of worship and those whose moral standards probably far outweigh my own and who do not prescribe to any form of deity. They have their rights but so have I and if I'm described as 'good livin' or 'religious' , I can live with that for, in truth, it is a good life to know that God, the Creator and Sustainer of all life is at the centre of everything I do. Remember, you can love God and you neighbour without being religious but you can be religious without loving anyone!