Experiencing God Monday, 30 July 2012 00:00 Published in Life Style

People know God in many ways. He is the center of debate of most Christian and n on-Christian religions. It seems everybody knows something about Him, but few ha ve actually experienced Him in their life. The truth about this is so simple. God, Christ and all the prophets taught us to love and respect all mankind and creation, but some people who claim to know Go d as their savior and their God cannot love and respect those with other beliefs . As Christ forgave those who crucified Him, His self-proclaimed believers hate and malign those who oppose their own interpretation of God's teaching in the Bi ble because of self-interest. The true believer of God imitates God. He lives within the simple teaching of Go d nothing less, nothing more. So basic and so simple is having love in your hear t, not just for those who love us, but most especially for those who persecute u s. God conquers man not by fighting them, but through forgiveness of their sins and loving them. The proof of the matter is the Vatican, which is the seat of po wer of majority of Christian belief. The Vatican is seated in the heart of Rome, the state or city of the same people who condemned and crucified Christ. This i s a clear evidence of triumph over hatred and sin; a clear example of bowing to God's power and humbling of a state over God's power. By doing so, Rome survived the many trials a man can endure. Rome maintains its status as one of the best cities in the world by bowing to the power of God. Its main attraction is the Va tican itself. Men who possess power and knowledge usually forget God, the universe, and the pe ople around them. They tend to think of themselves as demi-gods; that with the s trike of their hand, everything is achievable. They think that whatever they asp ire for and desire must come true, only to find out in one dramatic trial in lif e that one has nothing even if he has everything in life. On the other hand, tru e believers experience God in everything, and everything is possible even if he possesses nothing in life. Man will never know the true God while they are in the peak of their life. They forget that someone is more powerful than them. They believe everything is withi n their control and everything is possible. But people never learn from history. Even the greatest king like David was powerless in one of the trials he experie nced during his relationship with Bathsheba. Only by being humble and bowing to God did David get the second chance and blessing of God. A story By fate and destiny this young man gets all his successes in life with miracle o r luck. He never strives as hard as his contemporaries yet he gains more in life compared to them. For sure, if he just worked more, then his success would be w ay beyond imagination. But, time and again, like all the men who experience succ ess in this world, he forgets God and leaves Him behind in his life. He feels th e power that wealth brings. He feels that his achievements in life can give him more power through politics. Connections were all in their proper places for a c omplete victory come election time. He completed the mastery of success in all f ronts. What he says is a law that must be followed among his followers. All his wishes must come into reality by the exact moment he wishes. He is a master of h is own right, in his own turf. Everything is perfect except God was in the sidel ines. He is now the center of everything and God is now just a symbol of faith i n his life. Then, the greatest trial of his life happened. His father was killed while still in his prime. There was no ailment, but with the one strike of another man's ha tred and vengeance, not to his father but for another man. It was a case of mist aken identity, of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. The successful man brought all his money to buy the life of his father. He broug

ht all his weapons and ammunition to take revenge with his own hand. He called a ll his connections in government and the underworld for a massive manhunt and ev entually vengeance. But all of them had no power to bring back his father's life . Money was worthless. Life was gone and the idea that money can buy life dimini shed. The second option and plan was revenge. Using all the power to get the kil ler went into futility. Though many possible suspects were picked up and forced to admit to the crime, witnesses to the crime negated them. Three days had passe d and there was no clear indication that the crime would be resolved. In spite o f all the resources he had, results remained negative and they were still starin g at a blank wall. On the night of the third day, the man succumbed to the thought that getting the killer before the scheduled interment in three more days was next to impossible . Then, with all humility, he now asked for God's mercy and intervention. He now remembered God and asked for forgiveness for forgetting Him when everything was fine. He asked for His intervention in getting the criminal. He talked sincerel y and surrendered to God until there were no more tears to shed. Then he went ba ck to the wake of his father. After several hours, he received a call from the p olice station informing him that the true killer, positively identified by witne sses, had surrendered. The power of God works wonders and almost spontaneously works as a miracle. When he asked the killer why he surrendered, he said that he heard a powerful voice that frightened him, telling him that he must admit his fault. He was so frighte ned that he immediately went to the police station to submit himself. The police said, "Nakonsensiya daw." But the man knew that it was the voice of God, powerf ul and almighty. Since then, the lesson of the incident was learned and never forgotten. Money an d power are nothing. There are things within man's control and only to these thi ngs man's power is possible. But the best and greatest things in life are beyond our control. Here, man has no power, but God has all the power to make things p ossible. That man learned that when God is put in front of one's life, all thing s are possible right from the start and life will be easy if God carries you in this battle called life. And the greatest evidence of God's presence in a man's life is humility, respect and overflowing love to fellow man. Comments and suggestions can be forwarded to anthonyvivero@yahoo.com and anthony vivero@hotmail.com.