Relationships In God

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"It! Is! Just! A! Couch! This isn't life, it's just stuff. And it's become more important to you than living. Well, honey, that's just nuts." --Lester on American Beauty

Meaningful Relationships (11-25-02)

For once here I sit without a plan on which to write, whatever comes to me will be said. I went to a service yesterday at a new Church. It was certainly different from anything I've atteneded before, and while I felt very welcome there, I felt uncomfortable at first. Why is it that music is such a large part of my life, but when it comes to singing in Church I'm afraid to sing? It doesn't make any sense, when I'm in my car, at home, in the shower - wherever, you'll catch me singing all the time. But in Church I feel uncomfortable doing it. The only other thing that made me feel uncomfortable yesterday was Communion. I have gone to Catholic church my whole life and was not at Catholic church yesterday (it was a non-denominational Church). The entire concept of Communion has me confused. At this non-denominational Church they have bread and wine which is symbolic of Jesus' body and blood. As a Catholic I was taught that it was Jesus' body and blood I was receiving (as opposed to being symbolic of it) and that a miracle was performed at each Mass to transform this bread and wine into His body and blood. I'm not sure what to think about this. I chose not to receive Communion yesterday for two reasons, the first being that I had eaten already that morning, and I was taught that I was to fast until receiving Jesus on that particular day (the Sabbath), so I didn't think it was right - even though this Church claims it's only symbolic. The second reason I chose not to recieve communion is that I am a very confused individual right now - and unless I know what I am doing is right, I don't want to do it. Sure, I certainly believe that it is symbolic, but I'm not so sure that at Catholic Mass that I actually believe it is transformed from bread and wine into His body and blood. Is it a sin to be uncertain of this? Until I have an answer for myself, I don't know what to do in that situation and don't want to base my actions involving Jesus on uncertainty.

Other than those two things (the singing I'll certainly overcome soon) the service was a fantastic experience. The pastor seemed to speak of things that had specifically been on my mind as of late. He talked a lot about realtionships with other people and what you need to do in life to be a happy person both in your own eyes and in the eyes of Jesus. I took mental notes of things I felt he said were important, and I suppose I'll share them with you! You need to have meaningful realtionships with other people in your life. This kind of seems like a no-brainer to me, but at the same time I had some uncertainty about that lately. The word "meaningful" could easily be taken out of context in that statement. My very good friend told me an interesting analogy yesterday regarding my friendships - she said if you are alone, you're standing on the ground. But if you're with friends you're standing on a table. Now, is it easier to be pushed off the table or easier to pull someone up to the table? I don't know if I phrased that right or not, but the point of the anaolgy is that if you are with your friends - you will be tempted to sin much more than you would on your own. They can help you (pull you up) in many ways, but it's much easier for them to push you down (or for you to fall off). So by taking that into context, the word "meaningful" in the phrase meaningful relationship would mean a relationship which helps both people in the relationship and the relationship is guided by God in a positive light.

I suppose that was doubtful to me because I felt that even alone I should be able to be a happy person with solely Jesus in my life. I still don't know what I believe in this area - should one be able to be happy alone (in the flesh) or do we need the presence, compassion, and understanding of others in our lives? The preacher claims we do need others, I think I agree with him. Jesus is always there for us when we are down, but sometimes we need other people to pick us up and point us in the right direction so we can see He is there. Should we rely on our friends and families or should we place all our trust in Jesus? This is a difficult question to answer, so I'm not even going to attempt. All I can say is, develop meaningful relationships with people you love and trust. The preacher said relationships are like homes built on rock vs. homes built on sinking sand. Base your relationships on something solid - God. If your relationships are based on something solid (the Word of God) they will be much more meaningful than a relationship based on sand (hanging out and partying and drinking and all that stuff) Don't get me wrong - I'm a party type of guy, but there's a time and place for it, and I'm learning that everything needs to be done in the light of (I know, this is cliche and tacky, but true....) "What Would Jesus Do?" So I need to try to keep things in perspective when having fun with my friends. No matter if they're your friends you're with or not, at a wedding, at xmas time, or whenever - the rules of right vs. wrong never change.

At yesterday's service, the pastor also spoke of knowing your meaning in life. It's difficult to find this, but it's something that must be done. I don't know how you find out why you are here, but you must. If you don't find this out, you will make up some reason you are here and will possibly live your life in a negative light. I know why I'm here and what I am supposed to do in this life. Sure, there are millions of details of my life I have no clue about - but a general overview - I know why I'm here. It's not something that just comes to you either, you place your faith in the Lord and He will tell you why you are on this Earth. There's countless reasons God put us on Earth, but we were all put here for a reason, and each of us needs to find that reason for ourself.

So I know this is a lot of rambling (which is typical for me!) but just take it into context. Bring God into your relationships with your families and friends. I am just beginning to do this .... I'd like to say "we'll see how my relationships change once God enters them"....but there's no need to say that, because I'm positive He will turn them into very meaningful relationships - and if they already are meaningful, they will only get stronger.