So, this blog has consisted, on the whole, of silly posts about whole milk and my love of crisps, but I’ve only really cursorily touched on the whole point of my entire life — which is Jesus Christ!

Yes it’s true, the main focus of my life is my faith. It fully is! It’s the first consideration in any decision I make, long term or short term. There are things in my life, big things, that I have given up and turned away from because of it. And there are things that I’ve done that have been prompted by my faith too, such as the Leadership Academy which I am currently enrolled in. (This is like a Bible college, I suppose you could call it that. But that makes it sound like we all wear cardigans and learn how to not have sex before marriage. Which is not what Christianity is about!)

I love being a Christian because it’s so positive. Sure, there are things it forbids, but I’ve found that not doing those things has led to things like emotional stability, strong sense of identity and future, great mental health, better relationships, positive outlook on life … I could go on!

There’s this constant drive to live for more than just me. It’s like a never ending challenge, and it’s so great! I live with an ever present drive to move forward in life and do everything well, it’s really encouraging.

So that’s like a brief dip into why I love it. It gives me a sense of meaning and purpose. But I also think that’s half the picture. Everyone is looking for meaning, it’s a natural human drive, but I don’t think that’s enough. It has to be true, too.

I’ve heard people talk about their beliefs, and I can appreciate that they’re personal things, beliefs, but they have to be true. Otherwise they’re not beliefs — you might more properly call them attitudes. For me, it’s not enough just to have a positive attitude towards life, though that’s obviously crucial. What you believe about it has to be true.

I’ve heard people say that they think things happen for a reason. Or that there is “something”. But I would say that these things need to be investigated further! For me, I have always had a sense that God exists. I just look around at the world, and this seems apparent to me. There’s too much beauty and it all works too well for it not to the the product of some enormous, expansive, creative intellect.

So if there is a God, or even if you reduce that to “there could be a God,” I would say that it’s worth looking into! Come to your own conclusions, don’t just go along with what people say. Do your own thinking, it’s too important a question to leave with a vague sense of “something”.

My faith is characterised by seeking out the truth. I’m not afraid of the truth; I love asking questions and trying to find answers. If it turns out that it’s true that God doesn’t exist, then that’s that. I can’t change the truth, I can only respond to it and change my life accordingly. So my faith is something that is developed. It grows as I learn more about life.

Well this has been a bit rambly. I hope that it’s piqued some interest!

So I found something I wrote a while ago. I think it’s brilliant. Wrote this for myself, and then forgot about it, but it’s worth sharing with the world — I hope you catch its spirit!

Is it just a dream that would be nice? It calls to you, and you know it would be excellent, you can sense its purity, perfection, and its desirability, but you aren’t pursuing it.

Or … do you follow it, think about it, pray about it. Fast for it! Are you clearing up your life, letting God change you by putting out the fires that you can put out, and expecting him to come and put out those you cannot, those which are too deep, out of reach?

God will honour prayers that are in accordance with his will. He will act slowly, but he is generous. Pray for more than you can imagine. Pray and dream about more areas that are accessible to you at the moment. Start getting a break-out mind that pushes the limits on your imagination. Like little soldiers, they will energetically and faithfully stab away at the walls of your prison, day and night. Erode limitations, dissolve them with dreams of possibility. God’s light is an active, forceful light. Gentle to you, but lethal and destructive to darkness.

Spend more time with God than you ever have before. Every time you pray, don’t settle for a sense, or a feeling. Go for focus. Get words. Get a kick. Every time you worship, seek to lift him up. Seek to be in tune to the Holy Spirit. There is always more. There is always more!

So, there are certain parts of the Christian journey that you have to get used to. They are like problems that keep developing so that in order to solve them, you need to keep developing the solution. The trick is to remember that this is called growth, and it’s a process that won’t stop!

One feeling to get used to, if you’re a Christian (or if you’re living a positive, forward moving life) is a feeling of frustration mixed with confusion. Sometimes it will be stronger than other times, but it will always be there in the background. This is not something that limits your life, nor is it a drain. It’s more like a constant reminder that there is always more.

The way to get rid of the feeling is to move into it and find out what it wants. If you let it, it will push you into a bigger person. If you ignore it it’ll take over until you can’t sleep at night, and then you’re moving into “a part of me died” territory. The one thing you can’t do is get rid of it, because it represents your future.

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