Reid - 21 years old

Annie and I bumped into Reid up at SAIT as he was sitting on a concrete garden box texting on his phone. He said that he was up to answering some questions from our spiritual questionnaire, and so we began.

We asked him about his spiritual background, and Reid said that he was not “religious” in the traditional sense, but he believes in the earth as our mother and that she gives us energy. He describes his worldview as “grounded,” “open-minded,” and “accepting.”

He would like to ask God, “What is life?” We asked him to clarify what that meant, and he said that he had read a book which describes D M T which is a part of every life and every cell and that his question, “What is life?” is the question that that book entertained.

“If God exists anywhere to stand before him and he said, ‘Why should I let you into heaven?’ what would you say?”

“That's a good question,” Reid said as he pondered it for a moment. “I think I would say that I have lived my life for me. Do whatever you choose.”

Reid would rate his goodness at 5 or 6, halfway between good and evil “for balance.”

“That's the end of the questionnaire,” I said. “Do you mind if I ask you a few more questions?”

“Sure. Go-ahead.”

“You said that you believe in mother Earth and that she gives us energy. Is that something you've always believed, or is that something you just recently begun to believe?”

“My girlfriend's family is very spiritual.  They've taught me a lot. For example, they have taught me to go out to the mountains to take off my shoes as if were standing on sacred ground to put my feet upon the earth to feel the earth and to absorb its energy.”

“Does that appeal to you because you feel disconnected from this world?”

“Yeah. I think a lot of people feel disconnected from this place,” Reid said.

“Did you have any other spiritual background growing up?  Did you ever attend a church or were ever a part of a community of faith?” we asked.   Reid simply shook his head.    At this point, he told us about his girlfriend more, and about his studies.  

Trying to wrap things up after about 15 minutes, I gave him a booklet explaining Christianity and said, “You consider yourself open-minded.  You might find this interesting.  It speaks of spirituality from the perspective of what Jesus taught.  You had mentioned that you would rate yourself somewhere between good and evil. This booklet actually has a copy of the 10 Commandments by which we can rightly evaluate our life.”

As Reid was flipping through the book, I asked him if he had ever heard of the 10 Commandments. He said, “No.” I asked him if he had ever seen the classic movie, “The Ten Commandments,” and he had said no.  [Insert a double “Wow!” here].

I told him that I thought he would find the contents of this booklet intriguing, and that it might stimulate his thinking in these areas.   He said he would read it.   “Fair enough,” I said, and thanked him for his conversation, and as we walked away, I looked back and indeed he was reading the booklet.

Looking back on this, I think I should have stayed engaged in the conversation a bit longer, and I wished that I had given him a copy of “The Essential Jesus” to read (which I had in my backpack), but with a headache I wasn’t as quick on my feet as normal.   At any rate, we were able to get a copy of the Gospel into his hands.  Annie & I found a bench and reflected on the conversation, and Annie prayed for Reid.   

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Acts 18:26, "From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live.  God did this so that men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from each one of us.  For in him we live and move and have our being."

Lord God, would you reveal yourself to Reid.  With is background, he has not even heard of the 10 Commandments until this conversation.   Please use the Gospel to speak deeply to him, and draw him to yourself.