Put on the spot...

How interesting. Following our Sunday street basketball game, and a couple of post-game beers, somehow the conversation turned to religion. I guess my neighbor friends thought health care reform, foreign wars and Tiger Woods were too dull to talk about.

There were only a couple of us left at that point. Me, a fellow Christian, and a couple of friends who profess their disbelief in a supreme being and disdain for the Christian, and apparently other, religions.

I need to be better prepared for this kind of thing. I am a preacher's kid, coming from two generations of Episcopal clergy. I've learned a lot-- and forgotten a lot-- over the years. But I have Christ in my heart. It may or may not be evident in the things that I do and say. His presence and comfort are my foundations.

Can I prove anything? Can I prove the existence of heaven? Or a resurrected Jesus? No, I cannot. I can only share my faith. I profess my faith each day in prayers and Sundays in corporate worship. I have faith in the things unseen. That is not enough to convince a cynic who is interested in proof.

Some of my non-believing friends might like to think that I reside in a perfect place and stand quick to criticize when I fail. What can I say? I struggle with lusts and lies and everything else, like lots of us. My relationships are not always easy. But I believe there is an example of holiness to which to attain, as exemplified by Jesus Christ. Through the millennia, he has been the example. It has taken me years to reach this understanding and joy. How can I share this in a matter of minutes?

Here's my faith in a nutshell: I love the church; I love the tradition, the liturgy and music. It bring me to center place for renewal after my sins and failures. Any works that I do are not done to earn God's favor, but, instead, are done to show gratitude for his love for me, which I experience every day. It is an amazing thing. Faith works for me.

At the end of our conversation, we depart as friends and exchange Christmas wishes. How ironic that this annual holiday, a cornerstone of Western civilization, is recognized by even the most brazen unbeliever.

I've done my best with my limited skills to share my understanding. God will have to take it from here.