Cool: Socially adept; great; fine; excellent.
Holy: Dedicated & devoted to the service of God, the church, or religion.
Can anyone tell me if these two words are antonyms? Can't a person be both or one has to be only one of these, in so saying, does it mean that these two are two opposite extremes?
I was having a conversation with friends the other day. At one point, we were talking about the Tsunami and other natural disasters. At the end of that topic, a friend said, "Life is so short." In a way, she's saying, "We'll never know what might happen to us tomorrow," to which she replied, "That's why we must enjoy life." I, of course being the smart-ass, said in return, "NOOO... That's why we must go to church..."
Now, imagine you were there with us. How would you react to that? Or, what would you think of me?
Coz the friends that were there all stopped what they doing and looked at me. No, STARED at me. And when they finally said something, it was, "Why'd you have to cut off the steam?" and "YOu sound like my mother." Ha ha.
I wouldn't classify myself as being holy. By 'holy' I mean, according society's definition of holy, or pious. I am a Christian. I try to practice my belief the best way I know how. And although I fail it most of the time, it doesn't make me quit trying to be a good Christian. But the world we live in makes it harder and harder to even belief in God, what more to say, to practice that belief. People wants to be seen as COOL. And it's not COOL to be religious, or to even bring it up in conversations. It's not cool to go to church. It's not cool to pray. It's not cool to be holy.
Sometimes, it (talking about religion or God) even feels like a taboo. It almost feels like you have to think twice before bringing it up in conversations, like you have to watch it if you're going to say anything God-related. Yes, we have different beliefs. But it doesn't mean that you stop talking about it altogether. Why can't we just talk about God like we talk about other people. How come it's easier for us to talk about other people's flaws (mengumpat lah bah) than to talk about God, when God is supposed to be the center of our lives? Our very being exist because of Him... Why is it a shameful thing to be talking about Him?
Religion being a sensitive issue is one thing. But amongst Christian friends, why does it have to be? From my observation, these friends are usually people who hadn't been to church for a very long time. For them, religion and God had been like a long-forgotten subject they refused to ever talk about again. Why? My guess is, GUILT. There's that huge void filled by guilt, building a wall in between them and their faith.
Well friends, newsflash: everybody has guilts. I have guilt. I feel guilty all the time. But it doesn't mean that I make it worse by shutting God out completely. When I talk about God or my belief, it doesn't mean that I'm pious. I hope to be, but truth is, none of us will be pure enough, at least not in this world. I like to think that there will always be hope for me, for all of us, no matter how guilty...
I love Jesus. Jesus is my best friend, my backbone, my foundation, my ears, my shoulders... There I said it. It's so cool to be Holy!
Here's something from poet Carol S. Wimmer, something I find solace in =)
When I say..."I am a Christian"
I'm not claiming to be perfect,
My flaws are all too visible,
But God believes I'm worth it.
When I say..."I am a Christian"
I still feel the sting of pain
I have my share of heartaches
Which is why I speak His name.
When I say..."I am a Christian"
I do not wish to judge.
I have no authority.
I only know I'm loved.
11 comments:
Can I cry ka reading this blog about God and religion? I don't know what sorts of 'suitable' feelings to be emphasized after reading it. Good and bad feelings mixed up, making me undecided to focus on which..hehe.. Anyway, your words speak about me more than any words could have. Sometimes I feel guilty about my deeds that would have offended God. But comes to think of it, God is ever-loving and merciful God. We are the ones always shunning ourselves from Him when all he wants to do is embraces us and says its ok, I'm here now, rest on me. I doubt about God many times, however, each time I have these doubts, a realization comes to me making me see that God is real to me more than anything else in this world. The feelings of aching for him is the evidence of that, the blessings and love I experience everyday are the truth in that. I am not ashamed of God, I love Him with all my heart. When everything betrays me, I know I have a true friend and source of comforter to depend on. Life is not designed for us to love the world and ourselves first, but to love God with all our heart. Because God is Love himself, without loving Him, there will be no other ways that we can love others. Each time I feel that I have no purpose living in this world, I immediately grasp on the comforting purpose of "Life is a journey back to God". Then, I know where my life stands on and leads to. Praise You Jesus!!! I live for You Everyday!!!
damainya baca ur blog amy. saya pula confirm si pendosa 100%. tapi shg saat ini saya perlukan tuhan sungguh2. dan sememangnya dgn bangganya saya mau memaklumkan kpd dunia bahawa saya hidup & mati dlm kristus.doa saya biar la anak2 saya dapat di didik dgn ajaranNya yg ada misterinya tapi kalu dihayati sebenarnya mudah difahami cuma kadang-kala(kebiasaannya)sukar dilakukan & yg pastinya penuh kasih.
kita terus berdoa kpd diri kita & insan2 yg mungkin tau tuhan tapi belum menghidupi Tuhan dlm hidup.amen.
duii amy.. buli ka sy ikut c iris menangis.. yaloh sy pun selalu kena cop "holy" padahal sy cuma kasi tau bh apa yg patut kita tau kan. tp ntah.. napa mesti kena cop "holy" la.. "sister" la.. "kuat sembahyang la"... kalau realiti hidup sy pun lebih kurang ja bah mcm org lain, tp yg penting.. JESUS selalu ada dihati sy. memang kalau holy.. sy xla.. tp...ya memang sy percaya YESUS selalu ada. no matter what. even time kita buat dosa pun YESUS ada bah... duii sy mo nangis o... JESUS 4give me...
o si laluk ni amy.
(diba2 kan)
Actually, sa pun tulis ni blog nangis2.. Hehehe.. Especially part tu Poem. Touching eh...
Ris: Like u, despite of my ever-existing doubt, I try my best to 'keep'Him in mind and in heart. Apa lagi kalau suda buat dosa tu, susaaaaa rasa mo balik sama Dia. But I do it anyway. Because yes, He is Love and ever Merciful. Nothing changes that except kita sendiri yg punya guilt.
Edna: Sama lah harapan kita. I believe that the only thing my baby would need is God as the center of his life, and he will have EVERY THING. Thus, I wish him nothing but Jesus... It will be all Micah would ever need =)
Laluk:I know how you feel. Sa pun slalu juga kena begitu, kana chop kuat sembayang, and often masa sa masih blum matang, I find that so uncool and I let it get in my way of belief. Trus kunun tia mau cakap pasal Tuhan ni bah. Bila ingat balik, besalah pula sa rasa. Tapi itu dulu. Now, suka hati orang lah mo cakap apa. Cool or not, I will talk about God whenever I want to. He is afterall, my everything =D
My dear sis in christ,
thank you for sharing these thought of yours..its very inspiring and i believe it speaks for all of us..we all feel that way one time or another..that we cant talk abt God although deep down we really want to..this is how I handle it now, everytime someone says Im holy, i just smile and in my heart i say Amen! Turn it into prayer..the more people say it, the more you pray it, the better chances of us getting there inspote of all our imperfections..
That said, i really love this post of yours..think maybe we can use it for our Vicariate magazine here in Brunei? Credits will go to you of course.
Hello Marg, it will be an honor =) I always write with the hope that others would be inspired, and I get especially serious when it comes to God. Being able to share it beyond this webpage would be terrific. Thank you for thinking that this piece is publish-worthy.
By the way, what is this Vicariate magazine? It has an interesting name.
Amy,
Its called the HOPE magazine which is a quarterly thing we publish and give out here in the Vicariate. It mostly covers news on the events within the Vicariate but we also include articles etc from sources outside the Vicariate. So far we've come out with 4 issues since we launched HOPE arnd May last year..unfortunately we dont have an online copy but I will give you a copy if we use ur article in the coming issue yea?
Also, for precautionary reasons, we dont publish names of the writers, only their initials..will keep u posted. All the best for your finals and regards to CSS!
I curse de world we live...curse u society!! Hahaha. Sometimes, I hate it when my beliefs are conformed by what society thinks. My workplace, my social friends...etc, etc. But I have learnt that being honest with my thoughts and beliefs didn't kill me. We have this inner fear, may it be consciously or sub-consciously, of what people think of us. So, sometimes we have the habit of controlling our so-called opinions. And when I say we, I was mostly referring to myself. Haha. As proof, this is my second attempt on commenting your post. I deleted the previous one which contained so many typos. Haha. But when our beliefs are strong, it manages to just roll off our tongue into words that catch people by surprise. Mostly would *gasps...or a more extreme reaction would be, to totally ignore what you just said.
So, here's what I think. Continue to hold on to your faith & beliefs. People are people. They will always have their personal opinions on almost everything and it might not always be the same as yours. I would just shrug of any awkwardness after I make unusual comments (so they say)...and continue the conversation. You entitled to your opinion.
Amy, sorry. I think I'm crapping again. Haha.
LOL. No you're not Linda.. U made sense. People will always talk, ALWAYS.. For some reason, we always care about what their opinions, ALWAYS. But what we often forget is that, it is not about them, it is not about people... For me, as long as I don't hurt them in any way or get in their way, I will say what I want to say. =D
You have all the answers Amy.
Your friend s who do not see life the way you do are not any more found than you are.
Your answers may lie in the comfort of the scriptures. For some others it may to feast and frolick, but in the end it as about living as best as one can.
Remember that Christ did not shut out the world, and neither was He preachy. He embraced all in absolute love for their virtues, their folly, frailty and forebearance.
I trust you have chosen "the better part" to sit at His feet and listen. I know I am nobody to comment, yet I am compelled to draw you to His strength, which is "to quick be broken, to heal again." Not the version of steely rigidity is it?
Look again at those whom we call saints. Save for a number who were martyred for chastity, they were notorious sinners. Yet, these were the very ones God saw fit to be co-constructors of His kingdom.
Remember that we are not sinners because we sin, but we sin because we are primarily sinners.
From here begins the path toward holiness. The finest engraving of holiness I found lies in Ridley Scott's Kingdom Of Heaven as said by one Knight Hospitaler:
"...Holiness is in right action, and courage on behalf of those who cannot defend themselves, and goodness. What God desires is here
[points to head] and here [points to heart] and what you decide to do every day..."
As a young adult, now begins this journey to tread between nurture and reality.
You are not far from the Kingdom of God.
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