Abundant Life: A Personal Journey of Faith

(4 min read)

“I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly,” Jesus said to his listeners according to the good news as told by John (John 10:10).

That is what my testimony to the truth and love of Jesus is about: seeking and finding life abundantly in Jesus of Nazareth. It wasn’t a street preacher, a political candidate, or even a well-meaning pastor that led me to this realization. It was a story about life.

Growing up in Upstate New York was comfortable. Despite my parents’ divorce, I didn’t experience much suffering. My parents were good to me, I never went hungry or without new clothes for school; my two older brothers let me win sometimes, and we went to church. I went through first communion and confirmation in the Catholic Church on Dad’s side. My mom brought us to a Protestant Church. As a kid, the one thing I noticed they had in common was that they were both incredibly boring!

In high school, I got connected to Young Life. I met a leader named Max who became a pillar for me. Max was witty, had a great sense of humor, and always had my back. When I got into some legal trouble during my senior year of high school, Max never condemned or judged me. It was the most intense guilt and shame I had experienced up to that point in my life.

I had all this opportunity in front of me, and this was how I used it? I felt awful for letting down my parents. But with Max, I knew he never thought less of me. This laid a foundation for my relationship with God, though I didn’t realize it at the time. I believed that God existed, but He wasn’t real to me yet.

During my freshman year of college, Greg, a friend from high school, took his own life. (If you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal ideation, please talk to someone. You can find help at the Suicide Hotline by calling: 988. You can also go to grace.org/care to start a conversation).

When I went home for his funeral, I learned my neighbor’s two-week-old son had died of heart complications. On the first day, I attended the calling hours for an infant who had no choice, but just couldn’t live. The next day was Greg’s funeral, a bright and energetic teenager, who had a choice, but just couldn’t live. At Greg’s funeral, his brother read a story Greg wrote about a family vacation.

The story goes that while on vacation to some tropical resort, Greg slipped away to have an adventure of his own. His family turned the resort upside down looking for him. Eventually, his brother remembered some offhand comment Greg had made about wanting to visit a particular beach off the resort. So before sundown, his family took off looking for Greg at this particular beach. Sure enough, they found Greg. Up a palm tree. Drinking from a coconut. Laughing with some locals.

Greg’s story inspired me with its adventure, whimsy, and peace. Combined with the context of teen suicide and infant death, it led me to reflect on my life. I began asking big questions: How do I want to live my life? Why am I here? Why is there so much suffering? Is there more to life than what I’m experiencing? During this reflection, the vanity of my lifestyle became apparent.

With the foundation built through my Catholic/Presbyterian upbringing and Max’s loyal love, I began to take my Bible seriously in a new way. Instead of reading it literally, I read it with my heart wide open. I saw a new way of living—a life of loving deeply and radically.

Ever since I’ve noticed abundant life all around. Its abundance is found in my everyday tasks, and my worship of God is found in the mundane daily tasks, executed in love.

Life’s most abundant moments were not found in my semester-long homestay in Uganda (though it was an adventure of a lifetime) but by telling my wife every day that I love her. It was not found hiking to the top of a mountain in Colorado but by making lesson plans for youth group and writing papers for college.

Though I was turned to the gospel by a story of living life as an adventure, I’ve discovered that the abundance of life is what I was really searching for. Loving is the most radical and life-giving thing I can do. In all its beautiful expressions, love has driven and continues to motivate a lifestyle that death cannot sting and the grave cannot conquer.

Jesus is victorious over death, and His love has transformed the heart of this repentant sinner. We are all called to choose: a life of life, or a life of death. Choose abundant life.

To learn more about John 10:10 and the abundant life that Jesus offers, watch a sermon about it here.

If you’re looking for more about wisdom around abundant life, Run With Horses: The Quest for Life at Its Best by Eugene Peterson is a great place to start. Or, if you’re looking to learn more about living life with God, With: Reimagining the Way You Relate to God by Skye Jethani is another powerful book.

You & Your Faith