I Have Found…

“I have found…”  Is it really as easy as just four little words to share our faith?  In a recent sermon, we were challenged to get started sharing our faith by using these four little words: “I have found ….”  Use whatever it is you have found in Jesus.  Love, acceptance, hope, joy, forgiveness.  But, what about being ready with lengthy descriptions of who God is and why He is important to me?  Won’t I have to defend theological arguments about Jesus and the Trinity?  Do I need to have all the answers before I start ‘that’ conversation?

Or, what if it is really as easy as four little words?  What if I could easily share the HOPE I’ve found in Jesus?  What if I could find the words to let the JOY I’ve found in God finally bubble out?

When I think about the relationship with God I’ve formed in the past few years, I want to shout from the rooftops that I have found something so amazingly wonderful that I want everyone else in the world to find it too.  The problem is that shouting from the rooftops isn’t me.  It’s not my style at all.  You see, I’m a pretty quiet person; one of few words (at least spoken words).  So, as much as I want to share my faith and help others find this amazing relationship too, it’s a daunting proposition for me.

I found some encouraging examples in the Bible where these simple words proved to be extraordinarily powerful.  In John 1:40-42, we see that Andrew met Jesus while following John the Baptist.  Andrew rushed home and told his brother Simon, “We have found the Messiah” and that was enough to convince Simon to meet Jesus.  In John 1:43-49 we see that Philip meets Jesus. His life is changed, so Philip rushes to his friend Nathanael and tells him “We have found the one Moses wrote about in the Law”.

Do you think it can still work today?  Can it work for me?

I’m launching this blog as a way to begin sharing.

• To share what I’ve found and what I’m learning along the way.
• To share words of encouragement through the ups and downs of this journey toward a transformed life.
• To help me be intentional and focused as I continue growing my own faith.
• To find my words and my voice.

So, now let me stand here on my virtual rooftop and SHOUT!

I HAVE FOUND HOPE!  Hope that no matter what trials life throws at me, I will have God at my side.  I do not have to be defined by my trials or my circumstances, but instead my life can be defined by who God made me to be.  Hope that I’m never alone when storm clouds form on my horizon and the wind and waves of life threaten to overtake me.  Hope that God has a bigger plan for my life, beyond what my human mind can imagine.  Hope that even though I may stumble and fall short, may lose confidence, may not live up to the ideals that God wants for our lives, He will still be there for me, waiting with open arms to take me back.

I HAVE FOUND JOY!  Joy that is more than happiness.  I used to believe that happiness was something I had to make for myself.  I had to fix all the broken pieces and then I would be happy.  I had to set my mind to be happy, even when life wasn’t so cheerful. But joy is different.  Joy comes from the inside, from having a heart full of hope, peace and thankfulness.  Joy isn’t dependent on your circumstances.  You can have joy even when times are tough and life is anything but happy.  You can still find joy in life and in God.  And that makes all the difference.

So, what have you found?  Who will you tell?  Write yours in the comments and join me in this journey to discover a life transformed by God, one step at a time!

What Hope and Joy I find in these little ones, too! Me, with my kiddos – Sophie and Ryan

John 1:41  The first thing Andrew did was to find his brother Simon and tell him, “We have found the Messiah” (that is, the Christ).