Living the Christian life

Wednesday, May 3, 2006

There are many of us who see life as stressful, unkind, uncaring and unfair. We approach our daily tasks without confidence in ourselves and our abilities, and long to see the end of the day, so that we can be free from its strains.

Even at home, some of us see life as a daily struggle, with children to raise, bills to pay, repairs to be done to our homes, and we wonder when will all of these worries end, and we can live a life of ease and peace, and do the things we always really wanted to.

Life does not have to be like this, however. It was made for us to enjoy, and to live to the fullest while achieving our goals.

Life is about accomplishing our objectives, establishing real friendships, helping others, and being our brother’s and sister’s keeper. It can be all of this, and much more , if we just simply calm down, reflect on what we are doing, and after evaluating who we are and where we want to go, choose the path that brings the most joy and satisfaction with little effort. This path is living life the Christian way.

What is really involved in living life the Christian way though? It is simple. Just follow the easy to understand teachings of Christ as He outlined them.

This means several things. We must most importantly love our enemies and convert them to friends, treat those who do not like us well, bless those who say mean things about us, and offer prayers for those who have not treated us as they should.

When we adopt this change in behaviour, we unburden ourselves of ill feelings which could make us unwell. In making friends of our enemies, we do not need to have these people in our minds, thinking of them anymore.

We will not feel upset, or afraid that we will meet them at work, or at the supermarket, and try to avoid them. We become free of these anxieties, and this makes great friendships possible. Life therefore becomes richer and healthier.

Often we do not do anyone anything, but they harbour malice towards us. The Christian way is to treat these people as if nothing has happened. Smile when we meet them, lend a helping hand when it is required, and if any of their love ones happens  to be at our place of work and we are their boss, treat them positively, and be gracious and kind to them.

Seek to make life at the office pleasant for them, and open new opportunities for them. When we do this, a sense of peace and calm come over us, since we do not have them on our chests, and we feel better and become mentally healthier, because we have done a good deed to someone. The Christian is bigger than any petty problem or issue, and always reaches out to correct and heal a situation, bringing benefits to those affected and to himself or herself.

When we bless those who say unpleasant things about us, and offer prayers for those who have mistreated us, physically or psychologically, our prayers penetrate their souls, which is the Christ within them and us, so that we connect at a divine level, where all things are possible and changes take place for the better.

Our prayers connect to the heaven within them, which is the place of perfect peace within each of us, and it is at this heavenly divine place, that we meet the source from which we came, and which makes us related, so that we then realize that we are each other, and therefore we will not, and cannot hurt our own true selves.

Living the Christian life further means, doing to others as we wish them to do towards us.  It means that we will not, and cannot harm each other, since we will treat others the way we treat ourselves, and since the Christian’s relationship with others is based on love and forgiveness, we will always show this positively towards others.

We therefore become more fully human, and more divinely inspired, and will be incapable of having any quarrels with others, since brotherhood and togetherness is what the Christian way is all about.
Again, the Christian way involves showing mercy. This means showing compassion and forgiveness.

We therefore do not judge anyone, or become hostile to the actions of anyone, but keep an open mind, and welcome the wrong doer back into the fold without condemnation, since our goal is to reform the ways of the wrong doer through counseling, encouragement, and get him or her to see why what they did was harmful, so that they show remorse.

The person concerned therefore comes to grace in his or her own way, through guidance, understanding the consequences of his or her action, and realizing that doing good brings greater benefits than committing harmful acts. A new person then emerges, committed to doing what is right and just.

We must also remember that what we use to measure others, we will be measured by it. And what we do to others will be done to us, good or bad. What we say about others in private will come out in the open, and when we try to deny opportunities to others we will be denied them and those connected to us as well.

Doing good towards each other is therefore at the core of living the Christian life, and one good act produces a greater good. When we commit good acts, we are greatly rewarded both here on earth, and by our Father who is in Heaven.

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