who me? . . . religious?

I read the following post at Gary's Blog and I thought it was just awesome. What would you say if you had to explain to someone what it meant to follow Christ? (Be sure to follow the blue links to see what God has to say!!)

Well, I could say I was religious but that wouldn't necessarily tell you anything. One definition of religious is, 'conscientiously faithful.' So I used to be religious about rock and roll. And beer. Or I could be religious in the sense that I was Jewish or Muslim or Buddhist or Protestant or Catholic -- but those are all different religions, so you still wouldn't know what I meant. Almost all those religions have to do with what I have to do to qualify to get to God, to go to heaven. Christianity is different.

It's about what God did for me. I ran my own life and could NOT qualify for heaven. I deserved to be punished for running my own life. Running my own life is not right, and running my own life is not good for me. I think it's kind of like God owns my life, and it's a big crime if I steal it from him to use it for myself. But God loves me and doesn't want to punish me, so Jesus, a person and God, took my punishment for me. When I believed that -- accepted that -- personally, for me, from him, then I was set free. Rescued. Plus, I get this personal relationship with him. Religion didn't rescue me. Being religious didn't rescue me. A person, Jesus, rescued me. So, since it's possible to be religious and interested in God -- and yet still run your own life, without ever being rescued by Jesus -- some people want to make sure you know what they mean, and they say, "I'm not religious, but I do have a personal relationship with Jesus."

For me it's like being married. It's not the ring that makes me married, or the paper at the court house, but it's the relationship that I have with my husband. It's a relationship like none other. That's my relationship with Jesus, close and personal and by far the most important one I have!