More than Sunday Morning

"Do you go to church?" is a question that in our culture seems to be synonymous with "Are you a Christian?" Relationship has been boiled down to two hours once a week of singing and preaching . My spirit reacts to this concept strongly. My walk with God is so much more than Sunday mornings. As I have tried to define exactly what it is for myself, I have come up with what my life looks like because of this God I follow. So here are a few ways how my life and my daily living define Christianity:

• Because I follow Christ, there are things I do not do. I don't drink. I don't smoke. I don't party (the bar hoppin', dancin', drinkin', kind of partying). I don't have sex. There are movies I don't watch, and places I do not go.
• Because I follow Christ, there are some things I do do. 
• I pray. Now this needs a bit of explanation. Yes, I pray, but honestly it is more of a continual conversation that seems to never begin or end. See, I wake up thinking about Him. I go to bed talking to Him. From the one moment to the last of the day,  I am reminded of Him in just about everything. Beautiful sunsets make me cry out, "Oh thank you that I am so blessed to experience this." I see suffering and it makes me suffer and bring that suffering to Him.  As a task oriented person, I do get caught up in tasks at hand and so often forget to consider bringing Him into the process or the task, but then there's realization of that and the conversation continues. Sometimes, actually most times, just simply repeating His name, "Jesus, Jesus, Jesus. I need you," is all that comes out.
• I also read my Bible. I like checking things off of lists, so unfortunately this transfers into my Bible reading as well. But even when I am hyper-focused on getting it done and checking it off, a question will come to mind as I read. Was Methuselah still alive during the flood? How did everyone know Mordecai was a Jew, and he's hangin out asking about Esther and no one figured she was a Jew too? Why was it so bad that Noah's son didn't cover up his nakedness, and why didn't Noah get in trouble for getting drunk? These questions keep coming amid my checking of lists. Questions aren't the only thing, though. As I read heart-piercing truths also come and go straight to the deep places with encouragement, conviction, prodding.
• I also go to church. I love it to be honest. The church I am in now is a great source of joy for me. It has not always been this way, but right now, I wake up on Sunday mornings eager to get there, eager to see these fellow followers, eager to serve the children in Sunday school, eager to encourage and help where I can. 
•  Because I follow Christ, the way I make decisions is totally different. To begin with, thoughts of how much money I will make, what my schedule will be, where I will live, are all secondary to whether the decision at hand will bring God glory. I want in every major move, every major decision, for this God that I serve and His will to be given first priority. I don't always do this well, but I do it; I ask Him where He wants me to go and what He wants me to do. Following Him means that in a second I could sell everything, leave my family that I love, and go to Nepal or the Philippines or Ecuador or San Fransisco or right around the corner. 
• Because I follow Christ, I struggle with sin. I am human; therefore, sin is a part of my life. Please don't misunderstand this entry, I am no where close to perfect. I sin and in grand style sometimes. My mind is full of dirty thoughts and dirty dreams. I am selfish. Pride so easily fills my heart a lot of the time that I puff myself up and put others down. I often practice idolatry as I worship my desires for food and entertainment or  comfort or recognition. I sin greatly. But because I follow Christ that sin is always met with struggle. I feel a battle raging inside me. Sometimes before I sin the battle rages, "Don't do it". Then after I sin, the battle rages till I turn away and repent. The Spirit inside me is not happy when my flesh takes over and I am miserable until I call out to Him and agree that my sin is horrible and has separated me from Him. When I do, the battle stills and He gets the victory and relationship is restored. That battle itself testifies that I know Him, for without Him in my life I would sin and not care, though racked with guilt and regret. With Him though, guilt turns to repentance and repentance to grace. And that is where I want to be.
• Because I follow Christ, heaven is always on my mind. I cannot wait till I hear His voice say, "It's time! Come up here, Come up now, My Beloved!" I can't wait to see the gates swing open and my soul leave its body and my eyes see His face and my whole being to be alive for the first time. I can't wait to breathe in His all-consuming, life-giving fragrance and to finally be home.

Even as I write this definition of Christianity as my life defines it, I am struck that I could be misinterpreted. My goal here is not to toot my own horn or call out my own name. Instead it is an effort to say this is who God has made me to be: a lowly human being who has been touched by the Master's hand. His breath has given me wings and made me come alive and this is why I follow Christ.