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Governor
Jesse "The Body" Ventura once said "Religion is a
Crutch for the Weak-Minded." There are many out there who
truly believe "Faith in God is a sign of weakness," I myself
believed that very same thing. I would often say "those who
had God were weak" and "lacked any real intestinal fortitude
to make it through life." I personally found going through
life simplistic and utterly boring, it all seemed surreal and
pointless.
At my 17th birthday, I had set some long-term
goals for myself and focused on accomplishing them by my 25th
birthday. My goals: To Graduate HS in 94, Join the U.S.
Marines, Work for Microsoft, purchase a house by my 24th birthday and
to become an FBI Agent. I had accomplished all my goals but the
last. I was going to school for my Bachelors in Psychology as a prerequisite
to joining the FBI. I spent my 25th birthday reflecting upon all
that I had accomplished "seemingly" on my own merits.
Once again, I found myself pondering peoples need for God when He
didn't seem necessary in life to get ahead or reach a certain level of
success. So what was this strength Christians had? A hard
life had given me nerves of steel, nothing bothered me. There
wasn't anything
"life" could throw at me that wasn't handled with the
greatest of ease. I was on top of the world, things were going
great, I was the envy of those around me...and yet for all that I had
going my way I could not find the peace or joy that eluded my
grasp. I was healthy, worked out, dated, partied weekly, spent quality time
with my family and friends. All this and yet I still found no relief in
sight for the unknown emptiness I carried inside of me. I tried filling it
with more fun and adventures; rock climbing, scuba diving, snow
boarding, and anything else that provided a momentary rush. It seemed the
more I fed this emptiness, the larger and hungrier it grew.
I started searching for
answers in Philosophy, Psychology, Humanities, Self-Help Books and
countless types of literature only to find that I had come full-circle
with my questions.
They made sense and certainly helped people lead a good moral life, but
there were still so many unanswered questions that remained.
Finally, I wondered if I would go to heaven when all was said and
done. I had lived an okay life, I had certainly did more good than
evil during my tour of duty in this lifetime, but was it enough to save
me from a certain hell that awaited me? What I finally realized
was that Christians were not weak, but strong! People who don't
have God are full of reasons to excuse their actions of moral
degradation, they are quick to CA$H
in their values, ethics, and way of life without regard of an impending
judgment. Christians on the other hand maintain them, it is so
much easier to give in and do everything according to what the world
expects of us. It is far more difficult and rewarding to go
against the grain of life and live according to God's Will. A
Christian's weakness in themselves gives them great strength through God
who empowers us to do All Things. Today I can honestly say
that all of my questions have been answered by God through the Bible and
continuous prayer. I now have the peace and tranquility I had
been searching for all my life. My chief aim is to use the rest of
my natural God-given life to help
others find their answers and peace in the last place they would dare
search...The Bible, given to us by God Almighty.
So is God my
Crutch? Certainly Not...! He's is my stretcher and I
am nothing without him.
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