Make Your Life the Invitation

An Ordinary Life, Extraordinary Love

I have a deep passion for adding value to the mission of helping people become more aligned with God.

Not through fear.
Not through judgment.
Not through convincing people that they are wrong and we are right.

But through helping people discover the peace that can come from living a conscious, awake, aware, and intentional life surrendered to God, while recognizing that we are also empowered by Him.

I believe there is something beautiful waiting to happen in the way we represent God to the world.

Because, if we’re honest, we who have called ourselves religious have not always given the world the best picture of what it looks like to follow God. Too often, our image has become associated with judgment rather than love, correction rather than compassion, and being right rather than being kind.

But what if that isn’t what people should see when they look at us?

What if when people speak about us, they don’t say, “Those are the people who think they’re better than everyone else.”

What if they say:

“Those are ordinary people living an extraordinary life.”

People who are different not because they think they are better, but because they love differently.

People who forgive differently.

People who serve differently.

People who respond to suffering with compassion instead of judgment.

People who have found a peace that doesn’t mean life is easy, but means they don’t have to face life’s difficulties alone.

I want to follow Jesus.

Not simply identify with Him.

Not simply defend doctrines about Him.

Not simply talk about Him.

Follow Him.

Love God.
Love your neighbor.
Love yourself.

Forgive.

Have mercy.

Serve.

Feed those who are hungry.

Sit with those who are lonely.

Bring compassion to those who are hurting.

Create community for those who feel forgotten.

And help people discover the presence of God that is already closer than they may realize.

I don’t want another denomination.

I want unity.

I don’t want another group of people convinced that they have figured God out while everyone else has gotten Him wrong.

I want us to remember that we’re all human beings trying to find our way.

Different denominations.

Different traditions.

Different understandings.

Different questions.

Different places on the journey.

But still together.

And perhaps grace means allowing people to be where they are without making our job their correction.

We don’t have to agree with everyone to love them.

We don’t have to believe exactly the same thing to serve one another.

We don’t have to make someone believe what we believe before we treat them with dignity.

Maybe our lives can become the invitation.

I don’t want to preach hell and brimstone in an attempt to scare people into God.

I want people to see the beauty of a life surrendered to God.

Let them see the peace.

Let them see the forgiveness.

Let them see the resilience.

Let them see the compassion.

Let them see what happens when a person stops living entirely for themselves and begins living from a deeper place.

Because life is hard.

Sometimes we’re desperate.

Sometimes we’re down right scared.

Sometimes we don’t know what tomorrow will bring.

And none of us are exempt from that.

We’re all human.

We’re all carrying something.

We’re all going to experience loss, disappointment, fear, loneliness, and pain.

So perhaps the greatest thing we can do is stop pretending we’re above one another.

We’re not.

We’re all in this together.

And maybe that’s where the message becomes most beautiful.

Not “Look at us. We’re better because we found God.”

But:

“Come walk with us. We’re still learning too.”

“Come sit with us. You don’t have to have everything figured out.”

“Come experience this love with us.”

Because the goal isn’t to create more people who look religious.

The goal is to become more loving people.

More forgiving people.

More compassionate people.

More peaceful people.

More conscious people.

More intentional people.

More Christlike people.

And perhaps the greatest testimony we can offer isn’t what we say about God at all.

Perhaps it’s what people experience when they’re around us.

Love God.
Love your neighbor.
Love yourself.
Forgive.
Serve.
Have mercy.
Walk humbly.
And let your life become an expression of the love you say you believe in.

We’re all on the same journey.

We’re all in need of grace.

And we’re all invited to live this beautiful life together.