I’ve watched it too many times. A couple of those have been up close and personal. Too close, too personal.

But I also get it.

How can someone live without God? Perhaps the more accurate question is how can someone live without acknowledging God, since he is part of our lives whether we acknowledge so or not. The discussion that follows usually begins to split into a couple different scenarios. There are reasons why someone who has never followed God continues down that path. Then there is the situation where someone followed God well but decided to turn away, to turn toward something or someone else, to replace God with themselves or a belief of something more comfortable.

And that’s why I say “I get it.” The turn toward comfort. The turn toward what we want instead of something outside of ourselves that might make us squirm, might challenge us, because growth often does. The turn toward pride and away from humility, because it stinks sometimes to sacrifice with a good attitude, being patient, forgiving, and generous in situations we’d rather pinch and claw and spit.

Just because I get it doesn’t mean it’s what I plan to choose. But because I’ve seen it up close and personal, because I’ve wrestled with God, because there are some situations in life that pretty much feel like “deja poo,” I get it.

Turning from God means getting to do life the way I want. Even if people try to hold me accountable to truth, I don’t have to listen anymore. I get to choose my way. I get to define happiness. I get to decide whether I’m responsible for something or if I’d rather just set it aside. I get to choose who stays in my life and who goes. How they respond or feel doesn’t make much difference. Usually, they’re wrong and I’m right. They just don’t understand. Turning from God means I get to put me first. And that can feel good.

But even if I get the reasoning behind turning from God doesn’t mean it’s truth. Turning from God always involves distorting truth, keeping what we want to claim as truth but inserting a lot of our own to fill the spaces to suit our comfort. Rejecting truth stunts our growth. Oh, sure, we still grow the way we define it, but is growth progressing or regressing? Are we doing more irreparable damage than we are aware? And when do we reach the tipping point of “I’ve gone this far already, so I might as well just be consistent. No sense in trying to struggle back now.”

God is worth the struggle. He is worth the humility, sacrifice, and forgiveness. He is worth life, because he is the one who determines worth.

Choosing him is not easy or comfortable. Choosing him is constant. Choosing him is costly. Choosing him is everything.

If you need help, reach out. Fight for faith, growth, truth. Choose to turn well.