> You know, they say the only way to salvation is through Christ, and I believe that. I'd say I'm pretty up on all my theology, except for one rather important thing: when I hear the phrase "relationship with Christ" or "relationship with God", I don't have any idea what it means. This is kind of distressing me, so if any of you have an answer I'd like to hear it.
>
> -Eric "Except from Wes" Sleator
> Sun 19 Aug A.D. 2001

The main difference between an actual theistic religion (like Christianity) and a generally theistic philosophy (like Deism, or 7th Heaven-style watered-down TV Christianity) is that we believe God is an active, personal force rather than an abstract mental concept.

Meaning that you don't just passively believe in him the way you believe in right and wrong or the idea of love or justice or whatever. You actually can communicate to him, and he communicates back. Really, not metaphorically. You feel him listening to you when you talk to him, you receive an impression (sometimes dim, sometimes clear) of what he wants from you and what he wants you to know.

And God does more than communicate, of course. Things happen in your life (both psychologically and physical changes in your situation, even, maybe, miracles) because of your relationship. You change your priorities, you do things that he wants you to do, you start to get a deeper, fuller understanding of who he is. Prayer becomes more natural, more open, more heartfelt. (Though I speak as someone who hasn't gone all that far down the path yet, I'm afraid. But I've been privileged to know spiritual giants, who sometimes let me sit on their shoulders.) Like any relationship, it grows. But it all starts with communication.

That's why many prefer to call Christianity a relationship rather than a belief system. It is a belief system, but that's a rather weak way of describing it. (In a sense, loving your wife is a belief system, but it doesn't consist of just saying to people, "Hey, I believe that I love my wife." Or even saying "I love you" to her three times a day.)

It's no major logical leap from believing in God, though. After all, if I believe that a person exists, and I have a genuine desire to understand that person and communicate with her, then a relationship will develop naturally. That's the way we human beings are; we're social, we're designed to relate to each other. And, similarly, we're designed to relate to God.

So if you genuinely believe in God and have consciously expressed the desire to live for Christ and accept his sacrifice (in other words, all the theology), then you will have a relationship with God. How good a relationship depends greatly on you, of course; nothing in this life comes without effort, especially the important things. (In one sense, salvation costs nothing; in another, it costs everything.) But the relationship exists, like it or not, in fact. Though God has chosen to speak in a whisper more often than a roar during our lives, he is there. (Speaking as someone who has wrestled with questioning the reality his salvation in the past.)

Ar"hope this helps you a little"thur