Your own personal Jesus

I've always find it surprising how little a correlation there is between a person's age and their life experiences. The things I can go out and learn, someone else may be learning other things or the same things in a different order and faster or slower than I did. I guess the only thing we really have in common is that no one has all the answers so our pursuit of understanding often leaves us fumbling in the dark.

A good friend of mine is going through a highly evangelistic stage of his life and it's left some of us wondering if it's going to cool down at some point, and if so, when? While his mission field is not (openly) spiritual in nature, it does have a lot to do with self-discovery, which I hold to be one of the most important tenants of any spiritual work. And while he may be ruffling a few feathers in the process, I don't feel a need for concern.

When I was in my early twenties, I got very involved with the church and set out to convert all my friends. Just like my friend, I had the best intentions to share this thing that was so valuable to me. What I couldn't understand at the time is that many paths can lead to the same place. Not everybody had to find their spirituality the way that I did and yet, they could still be spiritual beings in spite of it. I've had this conversation with my evangelistic friend and while he's stopped trying to convert me, he's still quite aggressive with our mutual friends.

I don't know. I don't really feel a need to say anything to him because he's a smart guy and he'll eventually figure out if he's helping or hurting. I see both so I'm not really a qualified judge. If someone asks me for help, I'll step in. Failing that, I'd rather respect his need to go through this.


Everybody's got to find they're own way through
but if you love Love
then Love loves you too.

~ Bruce Cockburn