God's School

My parents became Christians when I was beginning my adolescence. It was not long before I decided to follow Christ and got baptized, but because I lived in a city which was far from the pastors who guided us, I didn’t experience the value of attending a local church until years later when I moved to Buenos Aires to study journalism. My first community experience was quite particular because, in response to God's call to serve him, I entered a Catholic seminary with the idea of ​​becoming a priest. There, I received an intensive course on coexistence.

When I abandoned that path, I was housed by a pastoral family, who continued to deal with the roughest edges of my character. They had an infinite patience! And then I went through a very wise discipleship of a brother who had the unique ability to discover my intentions and help me correct them if necessary. My way to become a disciple wasn’t easy at all.

Then, God managed to put in my first years of formation holy and wise men who were bringing out the worst and the best of me. These were many years of hard dealing with my life, but how grateful I am to God for each one of them! Church is the school of life par excellence, because in it we are molded into the image of Christ.

The members of God's family were called to be related in love and humility. When we ask Jesus into our hearts, God introduces us to his Kingdom and changes our hearts so that we learn to live in a spirit of community, like in a family. He teaches us to share, to love and accept our brothers and sisters, even if it is not always so pleasant. The Church is not a repository of souls, nor is it a place to entertain people until Christ comes. It is a place where, by enriching each other, we are transformed into the image of Christ. No one who wants to resemble Christ can achieve it without the church because the church was founded by Christ so that we can put love and generosity into practice as well as exercise all the fruits of the Spirit.

At Church, selfishness and individualistic thinking are over. There’s no place for indifference and disinterest in other people, and above all, there’s no place for: "Don't mess with my life and my family," because in Christ there is light, and lies and a life of appearances must give way to authenticity and transparency.

Just as the early Christians were together and shared all things, Christ leads us to engage in a relationship of love and unity. At Church we learn to love and share. Why should we be united? Because Christ died for us to be one, and his greatest desire is that we learn to have a deep unity such as the one He has with the Father. This unity is reflected in the facts, that is, giving us confidence, sharing and relating with each other without any fear of being judged. At church we live in light and in fellowship. That doesn’t mean that my problems are of everyone’s knowledge, but it doesn’t mean either that I am an absolute stranger because I do not let anyone into my life.

Relationships are what God uses to sanctify us. You can only love, be taught and be corrected, be served and serve, if you have a close relationship with others. If we are alone, it is then impossible for our character to be transformed, because the fruits of the Spirit are put into practice by sharing with each other.

Some people want to be helped by God but are not willing to commit to his Church. They have no interest in sharing their lives with others, and they make all kinds of excuses for not committing to communion.

All His miracles and blessings are given in that framework, because Christ established so. By relating in love, we receive shelter and advice, we are taught and exhorted.

Church is made up of men and women who make mistakes and who strive to change, so we need to learn to be patient, to forgive, to endure, to yield, to trust, just as others do with us. If we commit to these relationships, we learn to die and have mercy as Christ did with us. Church is the school of love and life!