International survivalist Bear Grylls has always been forthcoming about his Christian faith, but took time recently to delve deeper into his beliefs and what it means to follow Jesus Christ.
According to an op-ed by Grylls, which was published in The Times, Grylls recalls a time during his teen years when he heard a vicar say during a school visit that “Jesus Christ came to kill religion and bring life.”
“I was intrigued,” Grylls wrote. “On one hand, religion always seemed the source of war, division and conflict. On the other, whenever I came across stories about Jesus, he seemed to be about peace, kindness, sacrifice, freedom and affirmation.”
Grylls said this inspired him to research Jesus in more depth, noting that whenever there was mention of Jesus within stories, every person came away from the experience a new person, no matter what background they came from.
“It made me want to explore the notion of faith and learn more about what he was about,” Grylls wrote. “It wasn’t religion I was after — as a teenager I wasn’t exactly hungry for more rules, restrictions, customs and conventions. But I did like the sound of the freedom and empowerment that seemed to come from being around this guy. What I didn’t know was how it would truly change me from the inside out.”
Grylls detailed how Sir Edmond Hillary — the first man to climb Mt. Everest — had said there are few atheists in the dead zone of the mountain. Grylls noted that often when someone is afraid with no one else around to help, faith can give a person the courage to continue on.
“I can only talk from experience,” Grylls said. “For me, having a Christian faith can be difficult to articulate. It’s like describing ice cream or swimming — it has to be tried to be felt. In a nutshell, my Christian faith has strengthened me in so many battles I’ve faced in life.”
Grylls added that even though no one deserves the gift that Christ gave to us all, we are still forgiven because Christ paid the price when he was crucified on the cross.
“In years gone by, I have ignored my faith and tried to do life without it,” Grylls said. “I have tried to be strong only in myself. But I have found that my heart is restless until I open the door to Christ again. I have discovered that we lose our power when we try to live on our own strength alone. I really need His helping hand, His peace within and that quiet assurance.”
Grylls added that choosing faith take courage and can be a “tougher path” to follow but is often the more fulfilling one.
“So be brave. Bend the knee, close your eyes and ask for help. It’s a beautiful, humble, powerful thing to do. We have nothing to lose and everything to gain,” Grylls said.
