Pot of Gold: Understanding

"Religion is about having the right answers, and, some of their answers are right. But I am about the process that takes you to the living answer, and once you get to him, he will change you from the inside."
~taken from p198 of 'The Shack,' by WM Paul Young

I've always been a questioner. Sometimes, I think, I spend far too much time questioning, analyzing, and looking at situations from multiple vantage points. This can be good. This can be bad.

Believe it or not, when I take a position on something, I often go into a silent conversation with myself. In this conversation, I play the opposition; the opposite side of what I think. At times, I've found that my opposition is right. Then, I am forced to retract my prior thoughts and opinions and re-evaluate my agenda.

More often than not, this leads me to what I call "circle thinking." I go round and round, but never really reach a solidified conclusion. Personally, I believe this has its benefits. I tend to be liberal in my thoughts and truly respectful and open to the opinions and propositions of others.

However, when it came to religion, I just had a hard time. I struggled with so many thoughts, questions, and belief structures. But, and this is important, I wanted to believe. My mind just wouldn't let me.

I could not let go of so many nagging thoughts from my brain. My heart would say, "Believe!!!" but my mind would echo, "humm....well how do you explain (insert your own question here)?"

I was between a rock and a hard place.

Recently, a dear friend of mine, someone I look up to greatly (yes, Greta- that's you!) suggested I read the book, 'The Shack'. Greta just so happens to be the best person I know. She's honest, real, forgiving, and understanding. She listens with a true heart, offers unbiased advice, and is completely devoted to God. I'm beyond blessed to have had the opportunity to merge lives with her.

Anyway, the book truly changed my life. In it's own way it answered so many questions I had pondered for years and years. It was simple and easy and basic, yet deep and thought-provoking and invigorating. I've been going to church, reading my bible, doing daily devotions, and spending time in prayer, thanking God for the blessings in my life.

I've bough this book for all the dearies in my life. So far, all have reported that it has life changing implications.

Naturally, it's not the end-all, answer-all of life. However, it gave me the foundation, the building blocks, and the mortar I needed to begin building a strong relationship.