If I come without a thing, then I come with all I need

On Sunday Matt Chandler said that if you want a beating of biblical proportion you should read 1 John, and he wasn't kidding! It's pretty much this is how it is and if you aren't like this, then you are sinning and are of the devil! WHOA!!! crazy! (yes that was a joey from Blossom whoa!) It's crazy that so many people call themselves christians, but don't follow a word in 1 John, like seriously almost live completely opposite. 1 John 1:15 Do not love the world, or anything in the world. If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him. I mean that right there, is CRAZY! So I know that everyone has struggled with that, I mean how can you not? From the time you are born, there are people telling you to grow up, finish school, go to college, get a good job and a house, have a family and make money and have nice cars, and a nice house and so on. That's what is instilled in all of us as we grow up, and if someone does something differently its like they are shunned. But really in order to follow God and be a christian, we need to do almost the exact opposite of this. 1 John 1: 6 Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did. So did Jesus have this crazy expensive education? Did he get a high paying job? Did he get married and have a family? Did he have a nice house and car? No! Jesus spent his life walking with the sick and poor and helping them. He was beaten and then hung on the cross to die, all before he was 35. I mean you think about a life like that, and how he was listening to the preachers at the temple when he was 12 and everyone was so amazed at how well he understood everything. I know that when I was 12 I wasn't learning and understanding the Bible, I was playing basketball and hanging out with my friends.
I think this call to walk as Jesus did, is something that I have been searching for, and really running after this last year. We really are trying to downsize our lives, and live simply and help people out. The only way to be able to help other people, is to get rid of the distractions in your life. I am beginning to feel as though I am spiritually being held back in my current life situation. I know that sounds weird, but I am really not helping anyone the way I feel I should. I work retail, and while I love my job, and enjoy working with people, I am not helping them the way I feel I should be. I think I was put on this earth to listen and help people out to my fullest, and I do that sometimes at work, but it's hard to do that in that kind of setting. I feel that I would be much more fulfilled if I was teaching and helping people learn. I think by giving yourself to people and performing selfless acts, the walking like Jesus is more attainable. I really want to learn and be more of an expert when it comes to the bible, so that I can really understand and help people see the LOVE that Jesus has for us and how it can turn your life around. God is the light; and in him there is no darkness. I want to show that light! I want people to know that I am in God and will give up everything I have to follow him and to show the world who he is. Not just by shoving the word down their throats, but by lending a helping hand, giving them food, teaching them how to read so that they are able to read the bible. Showing them how it has changed my life and helping them change theirs. I have a deep desire to do these things, and sometimes I feel held back by my own insecurities and my lack of confidence. There have been a lot of opportunities for me to step out of my box and help out, but I am always reluctant to do so, because I am scared of what someone may think or worried I may make someone upset. But then I think about it, and Jesus didn't worry about that. He was who he was, and he didn't make excuses and he showed his love everyday.
So often when I write I am reminded of mewithoutYou lyrics, which are so amazing if you actually listen to the message. In the song In a Sweater Poorly Nit there is a line that says "If I come without a thing, then I come with all I need." I want to do that, drop everything to follow and be fulfilled by the light and love of God. So with all that being said, 1 John makes you think!