"I have accepted Jesus Christ as my Personal Lord and Savior.
I am a convert. I believe that every convert to Jesus Christ brings, with him or her, a unique and authentic set of life experiences. Only Jesus Knows the intimate details of each convert's life. Only Jesus Sees the sinful truths that lie within each convert's heart.
When a convert performs 'a living sacrifice' and chooses Jesus Christ as Personal Lord and Savior, Jesus Makes a way to Him that is right for that individual convert. No matter how closely-knit converts are to one another, each convert's connection to Jesus is both unique and authentic.
Only the King of Kings is qualified to judge whether or not I am a 'true Christian.'
Until that day of judgement comes,
I am His loyal convert."
'The Order of the Fixed Cross
(The Convert)'
by Al Wiggins Jr.
Inspired by Romans 12:1-3.
Photo by Marcelo Bernardo on Facebook.
I seek His Face and walk with Him in the present. I no longer seek to know the future by way of tools of divination. I prefer to let Him reveal His Will to me in His Way and at a time of His Choosing.
I am free to celebrate the sign I am born under: Scorpius (a.k.a. Scorpio) the Scorpion. The celebration is called 'Dreamtime.' This year, Dreamtime lasts from the first day of the Scorpio-Libra cusp to the last day of the Sagittarius-Scorpio cusp: October 19 to November 24.
As a lay-priest in Nichiren Shoshu of America (1988-2009) I once studied a form of Mahayana Buddhism. I was taught that Karma is 'the mystic law of cause and effect.' Karma applied to all believers. It was impersonal, easy to understand and definitely reliable.
If I understand correctly, Romans 12:19 is another matter entirely. Before God says "I will repay," He asks believers who have been wronged to not seek vengeance. It is His personal guarantee to destroy the source of one's suffering while keeping believers at a safe distance from His Wrath.
The most difficult part of my transition is the part that spans the distance between Karma and Him from a convert's perspective.
For decades, my shrines were built outside of my person. No matter how big or small the shrines, it is from those vantage points that I would deal with the effects of my Karma, good or bad.
Jesus is with me wherever I go. His Challenge to me: Stay focused on Him and live my life, thank Him for all He is continuing to do in me and through me, and watch what happens. God is good.
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| Photo via Pixabay.com |
