Bound and Determined.

I concede that we all have indeed "sinned" - or rather, according to the correct definition and understanding of the word, we have all "missed the mark". But what is this "mark" we have missed? The belief that the "mark" or "bull's eye" to which we should set our aim is the fulfillment of some religious system's list of "do's and don'ts" is ultimately not only spiritually unfruitful - but it is actually very detrimental and a major obstacle to spiritual growth. It is also this belief and way of thinking which is responsible for pride and prejudice among us all.

What we do or don't do has never and will never make us any closer to God than we were the day we were born! Let that sink in for a moment. Let me repeat: What we do or don't do has never and will never make us any closer to God than we were the day we were born. Now let me clarify that by adding that I speak of our position with God. Nothing can nor will ever change our position with God. N-O-T-H-I-N-G! NOTHING!

How can I make such a bold statement? We are all the children of God. All of us. You. Me. Your neighbor. The guy at work that gets on your nerves. The woman at the checkout that looks at you funny when you buy your six-pack everyday. The Buddhist you sit next to on the train every morning. The Muslim who you ride the elevator with at work every day. The African-American who just bought the house next door. The Mexican who wants to date your daughter. The Hindu who just did surgery on your grandparent. The Jew who sits on the local school board. Regardless of who you are, your nationality, skin color, or even your religion - we are all ALL the children of God. And our position with God is set from birth and nothing can nor will ever change that. St. Paul even attested to this, as recorded in the seventeenth chapter of the book of Acts, when he was speaking in Athens to pagans and idol worshipers and said "We are the offspring of God". He also said, in writing to the Ephesians, that there is "one God and Father of all, who is above all, through all, and in all".

Religion is very good at what it does. It serves its purpose well. All religion was man made. "Blasphemer!" "Heretic!" Call me what you will. The fact remains - every religion was created by people. Ultimately, they were created to "bind us" together and to separate us from others. The very word "religion" means "to bind". Most of the problems in the world today stem from religious differences - virtually every major war ever fought was rooted in and stemmed from differences in religion. The rules and regulations we have bound ourselves with and to; and, which causes us to separate ourselves and be separated from the rest of the world. To what end?

Why do we willingly bind ourselves and take on an attitude of separateness? To try to get close to God - to reconnect with God - to try to get a better position with God. Therefore, as long as you count yourself a member of any one religion, you are destined to be separated from me and multitudes of your brothers and sisters. And it is impossible to not be blinded by a form of pride, thinking your system of religion is better than another in trying to establish your position with God. This is why religious people and religious minded individuals can be some of the meanest and cruelest people on earth. They always think they are right and everyone else is wrong. Why? Because they have bound themselves tighter to their religion's rules, regulations, ways of thinking, and ways of believing - more than you. Because they are more dedicated to it. Because they think they have, or will have, a better position with God because of it - better than you do or will. Religion will always foster an "us vs. them" mentality. "We are holy. You are a sinner, evil, and less than what we are." The fact is - religion and religious thinking will only draw its follower ever more deeply into bondage - mental, spiritual, and, many times, emotional bondage.

One of the main problems with religion is its premise that we need to reconnect with God. Their whole system of belief and thought is based on folly - the belief that we are truly separated from God and from each other.