That if you confess with your mouth, "Jesus is Lord,"

and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead,

you will be saved. Romans 10:9

This morning, the day after Christmas, I awoke with the first sentence in my heart and on my lips. I started thinking of those I love who have not made this confession; of those I know who haven't proclaimed that "Jesus is Lord," and of those I saw on Christmas Eve who are struggling to break through to Christ.

Breaking through to Christ means rejecting yourself.

It means that you take the edifice that was your life up to this moment and give it up, discount it, throw it away. It means that all your proclamations, all your "sophomore year" statements of wisdom and conviction, of rationality and intellectual posturing. all the costumes and roles you've put on during your life, all are stripped away. And you stand naked before God and Jesus and confess that He is Lord.

And wait for His response.

Breaking through to Christ means stripping away the illusion of control.

You belong to God. When "Jesus is Lord" comes from your lips, you cannot then hold that you are lord. You will be called to be a child of God wherever God elects to put you. Maybe it will be in an office building in Fairlawn, maybe in classroom in Stow, maybe in the grocery store this morning: simply being a child of God is sufficient.

Breaking through to Christ means accepting the sacrifice.

Someone said on WCRF (103.3 in Cleveland) that the reason for Christmas is Easter. God stepped into time and became a babe who held himself to the cross out of love for us. He took our sin from us and gave us in return salvation. He sacrificed his life so we might have life in abundance.

And know that there is no sin that cancels this sacrifice.

God loves you.

He is waiting for you to love him.

I don't know why it has to be this way. I can't fully understand why something as important as life rests upon confession and belief. I cannot grasp the scope of infinity. I also don't need to know, understand and grasp. I can simply wait.

If you are struggling, trying to fill your emptiness, know that this may be the moment you can reject your past, strip away your control and accept the great gift.

This may be your moment to confess... and listen.

"Be still, and know that I am God." Psalms 46:10