Do We Truly Know Him?

This year, we're collaborating with writers across the Augustine Collective, a network of student-led Christian journals, to bring you a series of short devotional articles during this season of Lent, the 40-day period prior to Easter. Find this series also published by UChicago's CANA Journal and UC Berkeley's TAUG.

By annabelle bann

“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life.”  John 3:16

Those who grew up in Christian households heard John 3:16 many times. And yet, we now flippantly pass over it. We are no longer moved to praise, worship, or even gratitude.

There is a danger in knowing God (and his Word) in our heads but not our hearts. We know of Him, and maybe even about Him, but we do not know Him.

So it was for me. Growing up, I attended church and a Christian school. Veggie Tales and The Torchlighters replaced Disney Channel and Cartoon Network. My whole life was comfortably wrapped in Christianity. And still, my knowledge of God did not transform my heart—it only filled my mind. 

This is a common difficulty for those growing up in a Christian environment. Bible stories, like words said aloud over and over, lose their form, meaning, and importance. They become just other stories: Old, stale, and forgettable.

Lent, too, can become tired. It is another tradition we’ve learned to observe, and it is easy to participate because everyone else is participating. When we fixate solely on the ritual, we risk forgetting the true purpose of Lent.

Lent isn’t just sacrifice; it’s preparation. It is a season to reflect and prepare our hearts for God, a time to remember Jesus’ life and death and focus on Him instead of ourselves.

So let me ask you: When was the last time you truly engaged John 3:16? When have you paused to thank God for sending His Son to die for you? 

This Lent, let’s not settle for a surface-level faith or turn truth into cliché. Instead, let us take time to sit with God and read our Bibles—not out of obligation but because we want to know Him. Let us talk to Him throughout our day, not just as a morning routine. Let our faith transform us.

We’ve heard John 3:16 a thousand times. But maybe we need to attend to it a thousand times more until it moves from our heads to our hearts.

Annabelle Bann is a freshman studying Hotel Administration and Hospitality at Cornell University.

SOURCES

[1] https://www.christianity.com/wiki/holidays/what-is-the-purpose-of-lent.html