By Meg Rooney

Growing up in the church, I often only associated Jesus with Bible stories. It was easier to separate any talk of Jesus from the rest of my life, allowing it to be contained in the walls of the church. The Bible stories, after all, were only Bible stories. At that point in my faith, I wasn’t even sure what I believed.

For me, Jesus was only ever presented as someone to study, not someone to know. The reason my faith struggled throughout my middle and high school years was that I didn’t recognize Jesus as a living person. I only recognized Jesus for what he did, not what he was currently doing. I questioned what it meant to follow Jesus and what it meant to be Christian. And although I had been baptized, I still could not fathom how I could follow someone that I didn’t know. I felt like a fraud. I felt like I wasn’t really following. I was going through the motions, attending church, youth group and mission trips without knowing their significance. I spoke of the Word but interpreted it without the necessary context and belief in who it was about. I reduced the Gospel to the confines of church walls, hymns and sacralized text. Through it all, my one question remained: Was there more to following Jesus than this?

Sometimes instead of sending the answers, God sends people. God sent me leaders, friends and mentors to change my perspective about knowing Christ. They showed me that Jesus wants to be more than a Bible story, he wants us to know him and seek a relationship with him. I can learn about Jesus’ character through the Bible stories as well as the work he and God are doing right now in all of our lives. The Gospel, Jesus and God cannot (and should not) be reduced to person-made constructs. There is so much we don’t know, so much we will never comprehend. There is so much that I long to know about Jesus and his purpose for me and my life.

There is something about visiting hometowns where you get a glimpse of the person you wouldn’t see otherwise. Last May, my understanding of Christ and his story was completely transformed. Along with about 20 other CBF Virginia travelers, I journeyed to Israel. I got to witness Jerusalem, the Sea of Galilee, the Jordan River and more. There was an entirely new dimension to Christ and my relationship, one that few get to experience. By walking where Christ may have walked and standing where he may have stood, I found myself knowing Christ better. There was a witnessing that not only did Jesus live but that he lived there, and impacted the people he led.

Although this trip didn’t provide clear-cut answers to God’s mysteries, it actually gave me more questions. I learned more about the One I chose to follow. It gave me the first-hand context of Jesus’ life and ministry on earth. To know and be known by Jesus has transformed my life. I only hope to continue to know Jesus a little better each day, to understand his steps to direct my own. I hope that my longing to know Jesus encourages others to do the same, spreading the love and grace that has already been extended to us all.

Meg Rooney is a first-year Master of Divinity student at the Candler School of Theology at Emory University from Richmond, Virginia. She is a graduate of James Madison University in Harrisonburg, Virginia where she received her Bachelor of Arts in writing, Rhetoric and Technical Communication. Meg has served Passport, Inc. for three summers, most recently as the Pastor for the Passport Kid’s team. She currently serves at Second-Ponce de Leon Baptist Church as the Children and Youth Intern and is a freelance writer for the Cooperative Baptist Fellowship.