Religion Vs. Relationship

As we minister in mid-Wales, we're discovering a heartbreaking trend that has emptied many chapels across this beautiful country—religion itself.

I can't tell you how many adults have shared nearly identical stories with us. As children, they were bundled off to church or chapel every Sunday without explanation, marched down the aisle in uncomfortable clothes, and told to sit still and be quiet. They memorized prayers and recited responses without understanding why. They were taught how to act but never why it mattered.

"We just did it because we had to," one elderly gentleman told me, his weathered face creasing with the memory. "Mam would've had our hides if we'd refused."

Church services were as dry as month-old scones—formal, repetitive, and utterly devoid of life. The ministers droned on about the stories of the Bible without ever bringing about an application to the people or helping them understand how and why the Bible is still relevant today.

So what happened? These children grew up, gained independence, and made a perfectly logical choice. They walked away. They turned their backs on forced standards and religious emptiness to seek peace and fulfillment elsewhere. Who could blame them?

Their hearts hardened toward God because of what religion had taught them. God was distant, demanding, and disappointing. Church was boring, burdensome, and bland (and sadly still is in much of our area).

Yet something beautiful happens when Jason and I chat with some of these same individuals. They lean forward, curious, and often say, "There's something different about you. You're not like the other religious people I know."

This allows us to explain the critical difference between religion and a relationship with Christ.

Religion is about ticking boxes. Did you attend the service? Check. Did you put something in the offering? Check. Did you avoid significant sins this week? Check-ish.

But a relationship with Christ? That's something altogether different and wonderful.

"For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God: Not of works, lest any man should boast." (Ephesians 2:8-9)

A relationship with Jesus isn't about earning God's favor through religious performance. It's about receiving His love as a gift and responding to that love naturally.

Religion says, "Do this, and God might accept you."

Relationship says, "God already accepts you because of what Christ has done."

Religion is based on fear.

A relationship is based on love.

Religion focuses on external behaviors.

A relationship transforms from the inside out.

I've seen eyes light up when people grasp this distinction. The God they've been running from isn't the real God at all, just a hollow religious caricature.

Last month, a woman nearly wept, telling me, "Since I've met you and Jason, I see things differently. I wonder now what I've been missing all this time."

That's why we keep serving in Wales, sharing cups of tea and the genuine gospel. Because a relationship with Jesus isn't another religious burden. It's the freedom these dear souls have been seeking all along.