Do YOU Believe

John 20:29  Then Jesus told him, "You believe because you have seen me. Blessed are those who believe without seeing me."

I truly enjoy watching movies that I don't feel the need to apologize for and especially those that encourage my faith.  Risen is a great movie that challenges a mythical Roman Centurion's beliefs and generates good discussion among Christians and non-Christians alike. 
Among the many verses quoted as the movie tracks Jesus death, burial and resurrection through the experiences of the centurion, is John 20:29.  Jesus remarked to the centurion who was clearly shocked and amazed that the Jew He had just seen dead on a cross just a few days previous, was clearly very much alive and talking to him.  Yet he struggled in his belief.  Jesus simply defied all of his daily experiences with death and that impracticality made it nearly impossible to believe. 
How about you?  Do you believe?  Do you live like you believe?  We have the benefit of being raised in a Judeo-Christian culture that has adopted core Christian theology including a miraculous birth of the Messiah, the One who ultimately conquered sin and death for us all.  Then He sent Himself to live within those of us who believe.  That last fact is one I find that we don't fully comprehend today.  We pray for God to join us in places.  We sing songs about Holy Ground or meeting Jesus in places.  I like to recall circumstances including places where I enjoyed a moment in the Spirit, but I don't find many people who really live like they believe Jesus in the form of the Holy Spirit lives within them.  I find most of us believe we need to go somewhere or do something to "go to God."  This is false theology and leads us to live "on the fence" struggling like the centurion to truly live out an abundant life of faith in the One who became flesh like us, died for our sins, conquered death, and has now made His Holy Spirit available to live within us so that we are never apart from God. 
We need to know beyond a shadow of a doubt that for those of us who believe, God lives within us.  All the strength, knowledge, wisdom, and power of God is literally resident within us, yet we live life from a belief system of doubt, worry, and defeat.  We wonder how awesome it would have been to have seen and spoken with a risen Jesus, yet we carry Him with us every where we go and don't seem to fathom that reality.  Are you waiting on your next encounter with Christ?  Are you planning to go to a place to find Jesus?  Do you pray for God to join you in a place?  WHY?  He is with you ALWAYS.  He lives within you.  He can inspire, council, comfort, and help you always.  You must simply live as if you believe that simple fact. 
The Roman centurion had a very difficult time believing what his eyes and ears were clearly observing.  Today, we as Christians seem to struggle in a similar way with the reality of the Holy Spirit.  What if every Christian live every day KNOWING that Christ was in them, with them, and available to them each and every experience of each and every day?