When the top is up on a convertible, nothing from the outside can get in…it can feel safe. But while it may feel safe, it’s very restricted, limiting and closed off. It’s exclusive. You’re inside, all walled in and protected…and you’re also excluded from what really is! That’s a picture of religion.
Religion is any attempt to gain or maintain a right relationship with God by our own efforts. Religion fosters judgment, condemnation, shame, exclusivity and generally believes in a fictitious g.o.d. of our own imaginations…not Jesus’s Papa, the only true God!
Convertible means much more than just a type of car, it means able to change – able to be converted. Then we can see what really is!
What really is – is wide open, free, glorious – not limited! I can see things I didn’t realize were there! I can feel the wind! I can relate to those who are around me.
I’ve always loved convertibles. I love the freedom, the openness, the ability to relate to my surroundings. And I’ve become convertible in my beliefs. There’s a Greek word that was used a lot 2,000 years ago – “metanoia.” It means to change your mind, to think differently about something now than you previously thought.
I came to realize that what I thought about a lot of things wasn’t true! I needed to be convertible! I needed to change my mind!
I came to the shocking realization that many, actually almost all, of the things I had believed about God…were not true.
Sadly, a large percentage of what religion teaches is built on lies.
We shouldn’t be surprised—we have an enemy who is the “father of lies” whose name (Diabolos) means “deceiver” or “slanderer.” It’s actually “The Only True God” – as Jesus refers to His Father – whom Diabolos slanders and we are the ones who have been deceived.
Fortunately, The Truth about God…which has eluded many, is still True and can be known. God wants us to know His truth and He’s in the process of revealing it to people all over the world today!
I grew up going to church every time the doors were open. I continued going faithfully on Sundays as an adult. I tried several different churches in hopes of finding the right one.
I heard about who God (supposedly) is, what He’s (supposedly) like and what we’re (supposed) to do to try to get Him to be merciful with us rather than torture us forever. Each church had a different take on these things…and each was sure they were right!
Most religious people, I observed, never questioned those things. I also observed that many of them were up tight, stressed out, becoming burned out, and were eventually leaving their churches. They often seemed certain about what they believed – but were miserable. Many of them seemed to walk on eggshells.
At the same time, I observed a large segment of society that didn’t believe in an angry, punitive, impossible-to-please deity…and they seemed happier and more able to enjoy life!
I came to realize that the religious people… and I… had a “hardtop spiritual mentality.” I realized that I needed to put the top down and be willing to change – to be convertible. I started on an amazing journey that literally gets better every day…because I now realize every day…that God is not like I used to believe.