(The following is an excerpt from my upcoming newsletter…:-)
Religion VS. Relationship
Religion is man’s distorted, manipulative attempt to harness the god story and use it to further his own selfish purposes.
Relationship is God’s idea of how we’re to co-exist – with him and with each other.
Religion is based in fear, guilt, shame, and bondage.
Relationship is based in love, freedom, peace, and self-expression.
It is vital that each one of us recognize that there is a difference, because I have seen so many people go through their entire lives with spirits that are in such severe atrophy and anguish that it’s a wonder to me that they are still alive. And I don’t use that wording lightly.
When you begin to understand that man’s religion is different from the Creator’s model of relationship, everything begins to change.
Seeing relationship instead of religion makes us look differently at ourselves and our relationship with God. Instead of seeing ourselves how man sees us – and attempting to live up to some distorted, guilt-ridden code of conduct – we are allowed to see ourselves as free, as powerful, and as beautiful.
Whereas religion seeks to reduce the individual to some kind of robotic, indistinguishable clone that never does anything bold or dangerous, a thriving relationship with the Creator God brings us a colorful, purposeful life filled with greatness and brilliance.
When we are in relationship with the Truth, with God, it means we no longer have to live with the idea that we somehow don’t make the cut. He’s already made the way for us to be called “worthy, family.”
It changes how we look at our earthly relationships. It forces us to consider the idea that we are all connected in some powerful, eternal way – again, to each other and to God. Which, if that’s the case, then we have got to learn to treat each other better, right?
If religion divides us and puts us into all these little categories and then tells us to hate everyone not in our little category, then relationship kicks down the walls and tells us that we are all connected, and that the fundamental elements holding all of this together are love, not hate.
Freedom, not fear.
Joy, not sorrow.
Life, not death.
So today, will you be religious, or will live like you’re in the best relationship in the universe?
