Come and see. No arm twisting. No gimmicks. No Bible thumping. No apparent pressure. Just a simple, forthright invitation — come and spend time with Jesus and with those he is calling to join with him in living and proclaiming a new way of living. Come and see — see with eyes of faith, allowing oneself to be transformed by Christ's Spirit. Is this not what Marcus Borg had in mind when asserting in his book, Meeting Jesus Again for the First Time? "Believing in Jesus…is the movement from secondhand religion to firsthand religion, from having heard about Jesus with the hearing of the ear to being in relationship with the Spirit of Christ." It is a matter of firsthand encounter with God, trusting that similar words spoken by God to Jesus at the time of baptism are also spoken to us, "You are my beloved daughter or son." And once we are anchored in that kind of love, we find the strength and power to walk in the footsteps of Jesus, going the extra mile in relationships, witnessing for peace, extending arms of reconciliation, offering acts of compassion and care, serving those in need. As Henri Nouwen writes, "Only when your roots are deep can your fruits be abundant."