CaroleMcDonnell

Psalm 44

2012-02-29T03:00:00.000-05:00

This psalm really speaks to me. It speaks to anyone who seeks the "living" God. I read it this morning while I read Hebrews 4

It's one thing to worship a distant God who one must surrender to, who is praised but whom one doesn't really have any relationship with. With a far-off God one can believe what one wants to believe. One can have any kind of theology because chances are nothing can "prove" you wrong. But when one serves a living God and asks him for blessings, healings, etc. That's when the rubber hits the road.

So here we have the psalmist saying: our spiritual fathers, our grandparents, etc, all told us about all the great things you did back in the day. They even told us that you fought us. They rested in you! But we don't see any of this in our lifetime or in our own afflictions. What's going on here, God?

When I was reading Hebrews this morning, I once again realized that the entire book speaks about the rest of God...especially the rest found in the living word. Sometimes we read the Bible and suddenly the writer of the book we're reading -- Holy Spirit and the human he inspired to write-- makes some weird comment that doesn't seem to make sense in the context. Then one realizes that was what he was talking about all along. Hebrews 4:1 begins with a discussion of the rest of God and states that the gospel was told to the people in Moses day. Those Israelites were baptized in the water and ate of the passover lamb. Then suddenly at Hebrews 4:12 he suddenly says The Word of God is living and active. I'm like..."What?" But then, I said, YES! YES! You have been talking about the word all along. The rest of God.

Psalm 44

1We have heard with our ears, O God, our fathers have told us, what work thou didst in their days, in the times of old.
2How thou didst drive out the heathen with thy hand, and plantedst them; how thou didst afflict the people, and cast them out.
3For they got not the land in possession by their own sword, neither did their own arm save them: but thy right hand, and thine arm, and the light of thy countenance, because thou hadst a favour unto them.
4Thou art my King, O God: command deliverances for Jacob.
5Through thee will we push down our enemies: through thy name will we tread them under that rise up against us.
6For I will not trust in my bow, neither shall my sword save me.
7But thou hast saved us from our enemies, and hast put them to shame that hated us.
8In God we boast all the day long, and praise thy name for ever. Selah.
9But thou hast cast off, and put us to shame; and goest not forth with our armies.
10Thou makest us to turn back from the enemy: and they which hate us spoil for themselves.
11Thou hast given us like sheep appointed for meat; and hast scattered us among the heathen.
12Thou sellest thy people for nought, and dost not increase thy wealth by their price.
13Thou makest us a reproach to our neighbours, a scorn and a derision to them that are round about us.
14Thou makest us a byword among the heathen, a shaking of the head among the people.
15My confusion is continually before me, and the shame of my face hath covered me,
16For the voice of him that reproacheth and blasphemeth; by reason of the enemy and avenger.
17All this is come upon us; yet have we not forgotten thee, neither have we dealt falsely in thy covenant.
18Our heart is not turned back, neither have our steps declined from thy way;
19Though thou hast sore broken us in the place of dragons, and covered us with the shadow of death.
20If we have forgotten the name of our God, or stretched out our hands to a strange god;
21Shall not God search this out? for he knoweth the secrets of the heart.
22Yea, for thy sake are we killed all the day long; we are counted as sheep for the slaughter.
23Awake, why sleepest thou, O Lord? arise, cast us not off for ever.
24Wherefore hidest thou thy face, and forgettest our affliction and our oppression?
25For our soul is bowed down to the dust: our belly cleaveth unto the earth.
26Arise for our help, and redeem us for thy mercies' sake.

The New Shape of World Christianity: How American Experience Reflects Global Faith

2012-02-28T13:22:00.000-05:00

The New Shape of World Christianity: How American Experience Reflects Global Faith
Mark A. Noll (InterVarsity academic)

Hardcover: 212 pages

Publisher: Intervarsity Press (June 1, 2009)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 0830828478

ISBN-13: 978-0830828470

The Growing Seed, Fallow Ground, Sheep, Milk

2012-02-27T11:27:00.001-05:00

We were reading Proverbs 27 this morning and the following section really spoke to me.

Be thou diligent to know the state of thy flocks, and look well to thy herds.

For riches are not for ever: and doth the crown endure to every generation?

The hay appeareth, and the tender grass sheweth itself, and herbs of the mountains are gathered.

The lambs are for thy clothing, and the goats are the price of the field.

And thou shalt have goats' milk enough for thy food, for the food of thy household, and for the maintenance for thy maidens. Proverbs 27:23-27

At first one could think about it as a kind of verse about accounting and good stewardship. And I guess I could see how it might be speaking about my books and my fabric designs (seeds sown) fields (where I sowed or marketed them) and when the money starts trickling then flowing in. But the more I thought of it, the more it seemed to me that the passage can also be about the process of how we deal with the riches of God's word that is sowed in the fallow or fertile fields of our hearts.

So many times we hear Bible verses preached to us by those who - it seems, anyway-- have just heard a word but who have not really digested it. Consider ministers who talk about why folks are or aren't healed -- yet those ministers have never healed anyone. Or folks who talk about the power of the word -- yet they don't have the full flower of the sowed word in their lives.

So many things in the Bible is about "growing" ....and endurance and patience is often about growing.
So for now this verse is meaning this to me: we hear the word of God as a seed. But we can't eat the seed immediately. We eat seeds and the seeds grow silently as we digest the word and soon becomes a seed. Then the tender grass will grow in our lives (which might take a while.) Then after we fully have digested the word and broken up our fallow field. Then we can feed the sheep the "tender grass" and the sheep can grow from what we have learned slowly and deeply. And after that they give milk to us. Interesting that loop. We give to the sheep and they give to us. So we don't take spiritual seed primarily for ourselves. There is always giving seed and milk to each other. Until we all get stronger in using and understanding the word of God.

It connects to the following verses.

An inheritance obtained too early in life is not a blessing in the end. Proverbs 20:21

He told them another parable: "The kingdom of heaven is like a mustard seed, which a man took and planted in his field. Matthew 13:31

He said, "The Kingdom of God is as if a man should cast seed on the earth, and should sleep and rise night and day, and the seed should spring up and grow, he doesn't know how. For the earth bears fruit: first the blade, then the ear, then the full grain in the ear. But when the fruit is ripe, immediately he puts forth the sickle, because the harvest has come."

— Mark 4:26-29

Reminding myself again about the only cure for this hypochondria

2012-02-26T09:00:00.000-05:00

It's terrible to be sick and to have battles with hypochondria. It's terrible to be fat and to have battles with hypochondria or cancer-phobia or diabetes-phobia. Why? Because the world trains people. And the stuff the world teaches us is often so counter to truth.

(Digression here: I finally had to stop watching two of my favorite TV shows because I am getting so tired of divorce, marriage drama, sudden accidents, cancer, being used to further the plots. Sure, I know this is something done by screenwriters but it has its effect. People are constantly getting divorced or dropping girlfriends and husbands on TV in situations that are trumped up to be meaningful. I have no doubt this kinda stuff affects people's minds. Such plot tropes are seeds and they plant weeds in the minds of young (and not-so-young) brains. Okay, digression ends.)

So, anyway, it is very hard to live in a world as a reasonable person because reasonableness is defined as fear. Fear is seen as rationale and adult, hope and trust and trusting God is seen as childish. In fact we live in a world where many Biblical truths are undermined and treated as fairytales. Hope is maligned and even the idea of the power to create our world through our words is mocked.

Fear creates negative emotions in the body. It creates negative reactions in our actions. There is a spiritual power in the world trying to make us fear. The spirit of fear rules the media. Pundits everywhere talk about how we should fear disease, job loss, Alzhemiers, dementia. But the Bible tells us over and over to conquer fear by trusting in the love of God and by loving our neighbors.

In Timothy:

God didn't give us the spirit of fear but one of power, love, and a sound mind.

In 1 John:

There is no fear in love but perfect love casts out fear.

In the Proverbs:

When you lie down, you will not be afraid. As you lie there, your sleep will be sweet.

Do not be afraid of sudden terror or of the destruction of wicked people when it comes.

The LORD will be your confidence. He will keep your foot from getting caught.

Do not hold back anything good from those who are entitled to it when you have the power to do so.
When you have the good thing with you, do not tell your neighbor, "Go away! Come back tomorrow. I'll give you something then."
Do not plan to do something wrong to your neighbor while he is sitting there with you and suspecting nothing.
Do not quarrel with a person for no reason if he has not harmed you.
Do not envy a violent person. Do not choose any of his ways. Proverbs 3:24-31

1 Peter 3:8-11

Finally, be ye all of one mind, having compassion one of another, love as brethren, be pitiful, be courteous:Not rendering evil for evil, or railing for railing: but contrariwise blessing; knowing that ye are thereunto called, that ye should inherit a blessing.

For he that will love life, and see good days, let him refrain his tongue from evil, and his lips that they speak no guile:
Let him eschew evil, and do good; let him seek peace, and ensue it.
For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil.

We are to demolish arguments against God's power. And we are to take captive all the thoughts and making it obedient to Christ's power and love. We have to use the Philippians filter: we have to think of whatever is lovely, true, noble, admirable, faithful, trustworthy, beautiful, of good report, true, virtuous, excellent, praiseworthy. We are to think about out thoughts.

So upshot: I have decided to believe that I am not dying of some horrible disease and to believe that God will keep me well. And if he sees me heading toward sickliness, he is faithful and loving enough to tell me how to keep healthy. So right now... since God hasn't told me I am dying, I will believe I am healthy.

God will keep those in perfect emotional, spiritual, and physical peace who trust in Him.

Turn your eyes upon Jesus; Look full in His wonderful face, and the things of earth will grow strangely dim in the light of his glory and grace.

American Babylon: Notes of a Christian Exile

2012-02-24T13:15:00.000-05:00

American Babylon: Notes of a Christian Exile

Hardcover: 288 pages
Publisher: Basic Books (March 16, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0465013678
ISBN-13: 978-0465013678

Also:

Looking Toward the New Jerusalem
Here's the blurb:

Dark Parable (Vision): The Burning City

2012-02-23T09:02:00.001-05:00

Okay, so this morning:

I had a vision of a large city criss-crossed through with rivers. It was a very modern city with high-rises and all the city was ablaze. The fire occurred at night, or it was nighttime when i was seeing it at its most powerful. The view was a night-time aerial view so I could see the outline of the skycrapers and the outline of the cities and fire everywhere with the rivers running through. It looked as if the city was utterly devastated. The entire city. Not just a part of it. That city was so destroyed it would take years to rebuild it if at all. It didn't look like New York, but it felt like a city where several rivers met. I kept trying to se clear to see what city it was but I was too far away. I couldn't see the writing, but it had many skyscrapers and was surrounded by rivers. (A thought: when I h ad the vision of the seashore with the birds, that was a vision of water. And it took place a few weeks before the Japan tsunami. But I still don't think that the vision I saw was of Japan. So here, I don't think this vision was of New York. But it might have been. -- or might be-- it felt like a city surrounded by rivers but the rivers themselves were inside land.)

If you do these things you will do well

2012-02-22T10:15:00.001-05:00

Then the apostles and elders together with the whole church in Jerusalem chose delegates, and they sent them to Antioch of Syria with Paul and Barnabas to report on this decision. The men chosen were two of the church leaders—Judas (also called Barsabbas) and Silas. This is the letter they took with them:

“This letter is from the apostles and elders, your brothers in Jerusalem. It is written to the Gentile believers in Antioch, Syria, and Cilicia. Greetings!

“We understand that some men from here have troubled you and upset you with their teaching, but we did not send them! So we decided, having come to complete agreement, to send you official representatives, along with our beloved Barnabas and Paul, who have risked their lives for the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. We are sending Judas and Silas to confirm what we have decided concerning your question.

“For it seemed good to the Holy Spirit and to us to lay no greater burden on you than these few requirements: You must abstain from eating food offered to idols, from consuming blood or the meat of strangled animals, and from sexual immorality. If you do this, you will do well. Farewell.” Acts 15:22-29

It amazes me that of all the laws written in the books of Moses, the Holy Spirit told the early church elders (and the Pharisees within the early church) that these were the only portion of the Law the Gentile Church needed to obey. Even more amazing, most of these restrictions are food related. Food is always important to God, it seems. Food has power. And now with modified foods where sugar, caffeine, and other things that control our minds are added to our foods, we really understand how a fruit such as the fruit of the tree of knowledge could be mutagenic (so much so that it could cause man to die) and eye-opening (and not merely hallucinogenic as some substances like poppies and nutmeg are.)

But even more more amazing, these laws which Paul and the early apostles and elders considered so so so important, aren't laws that most Christians today obey.

Okay, so let's see:

1) No eating of foods offered to idols. Eating together is often a covenant. I'm thinking that if one thinks of Allah -- the Islamic God-- as an idol...then one should not eat halal foods or foods blessed by priests of religions one doesn't believe in. Now I'm wondering if I should eat foods blessed at some of the most extreme ecumenical dinners.

2) No eating of blood. This doesn't mean not eating any animals, I think. Because God allows meat. Some Christian vegetarians will probably ask, "How can one eat meat without blood?" (They ask this rhetorically.) But I suppose one can always soak out the blood if one wishes. The thing is God gave the Israelites a list of clean and unclean animals. They had to eat lamb for Passover for instance. And lambs have blood last time I looked. So this prohibition probably has to do with the verse "the life of the body is in the blood." In the blood is where the spirit lives, in the blood is where the demonic lives. That is why there are so many stories about "memories" when there are organ transplants. It's often best to pray over blood transfusions when we get someone else's blood. Yeah, i know...flaky talk but hey... there are so many anecdotes out there. True, odd, little stories. So where there is smoke, there is fire.

3) Keeping away from foods that have been strangled. I'm not up on what chemical stuff happens in the body of an animal when it is strangled but hey if God warns against this kind of food...we should take heed.

4) Abstain from fornication and sexual immorality. Well, this is obvious. Not only does sexual immorality bring all sorts of grief and make lives and emotions messy but it enables also sort of demonic activity in the lives of the sexually immoral. But Christians are generally way immoral. (They often say "God will forgive it.) The list of sexually immoral relationships can be found in Leviticus and Deuteronomy. They include the well-known such as homosexuality, adultery, incest...and the not so well-known such as not making love to someone who has already made love with your siblings, descendants, or ancestors.

So... I wonder.... if we set our hearts to do these things, will we do well?

Learning to hear and trust God's voice

2012-02-21T13:32:00.002-05:00

The power of believing in a promise revealed in a night dream is a wondrous thing. OR believing in a truth spoken to one's spirit. When I think of the prophet who got the word of the lord but who changed his mind when the older prophet told him otherwise then got himself killed by a lion, I think how wonderfully powerful the Bible is in its declaration of God's nearness. Unlike that prophet, we are to decide: HAS God spoken to me or not? Has God told me about the 6 great works?Has God said? (The Bible chapter is at the end of this post.) So I have made the decision: If I am given a dream with promise of loveliness, health, etc... I am going to believe it is from God. If I am told how to eat and what to eat in a dream, I will take the guidance as being from God. The world tells us that good things in dreams -- such as my son talking or me getting better-- are wishfulfilment from my mind. But the Bible calls these things God's promises and "words from God."

There is nothing else but our spirit, and what God has told us.There is no proof that what we think we heard is really what we heard. We wonder if it's all in our minds. But we are called to have a relationship that tells us that God is loving and very near us and that "if we hear his voice we must not harden our hearts." It is a difficult thing in a world that depends on "the tree of knowledge of good and evil." It's a hard thing when we want hard facts

and we want communal support to believe that Jesus disarmed the principalities.

But a personal relationship means trusting that God is really with you. So this morning although i was so so so tired and i was on the verge of crying because i have lived since I was 13 with cancerphobia and since i was 28 with sleeplessness issues, I said to God "I will hold on to what you have spoken to me in my spirit."

The stronghold of the human mind is: But why is God so near me? Does God speak to little old me?

The stronghold says, "Has God said?" This is the great temptation said to Eve. So, in answer to this primal temptation, we have to set our hearts to be fixed on the fact that God has indeed spoken to us.

And the power of hopeful and guiding dreams have been to tell me to hope --no matter what. I have to decide

once and for all that God has spoken in these hopeful and guiding dreams. So hope is here. My friend Jessica says that "false humility says to believe you heard nothing but faith says to believe and hope." This is true.

It is seen as educated to not believe. It is seen as self-caring to be wary of hope and trust. It's seen as mature to be cynical and to have no hope. And to be "realistic" means looking at the worse case instead of trusting that God has told you to hope. But the real world is not like that. I'm so glad God gave Jessica into my life

because, like me, she works daily to not fall into the world's ideas and so many Christians are only vaguely aware of God speaking to them in dream in such a real "hear his voice" way. And so many are only dimly aware of the real world (as God sees it) in a rare dim kinda way. So it's good I have her for fellowship.

But we have to be strong y in the knowledge of God's nearness. To be without God is a nightmare

So many Christians say that God hasn't guided them, or that they've been waiting for him to say something

but God's sheep hear his voice. Jesus said that. So people hear and they just harden their heart because it is hard to believe the good news to think that God is telling you to hope and we are all trained that God is a big CEO in the sky who only talks to important people. It's hard for the human mind to think that God speaks to everyone in dreams. But God has said in the last days He will pour out His spirit upon ALL (not just Christians.)

God has reconciled us to Him. So we have to walk in the spirit. We have to walk in the sensitivity of God's view of the world. Like if God says to you out of he blue, "Don't turn the tv to that channel" or if God says "turn on the radio to the channel." Every day we are either yielding to the flesh (and the world's way of doing things) or to the spirit and learning to trust in hope, love, faith.

The human way of thinking and the Godly way of thinking are always warring against each other

and the mind of man is so so so so prone to think carnally. So hard to renew one's mind because we are trained from ages to be conformed to how the world thinks and works --that being conformed to the world's ways is the "wise" thing

We are blessed that we have eyesalve to anoint our eyes that we can see. We just have to hold on to what we have seen, and having begun in faith, we must not fall back on the law or worldly wisdom.

Anyway, the good thing is that I am holding on to the promises in those dreams as if God himself had come to me and spoken the word to me himself. God wants to teach us to rely on Christ in us and it's taken me a long long long time to kinda sorta consistently hold to the heavenly vision of things. But I'm getting really better I think. A true spiritual hope, a true conviction and expectation of good and belief in God's continuing work...walking in faith and not by human wisdom or human sight

1 Kings 13
King James Version

And, behold, there came a man of God out of Judah by the word of the LORD unto Bethel: and Jeroboam stood by the altar to burn incense. And he cried against the altar in the word of the LORD, and said, O altar, altar, thus saith the LORD; Behold, a child shall be born unto the house of David, Josiah by name; and upon thee shall he offer the priests of the high places that burn incense upon thee, and men's bones shall be burnt upon thee. And he gave a sign the same day, saying, This is the sign which the LORD hath spoken; Behold, the altar shall be rent, and the ashes that are upon it shall be poured out. And it came to pass, when king Jeroboam heard the saying of the man of God, which had cried against the altar in Bethel, that he put forth his hand from the altar, saying, Lay hold on him. And his hand, which he put forth against him, dried up, so that he could not pull it in again to him. The altar also was rent, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign which the man of God had given by the word of the LORD. And the king answered and said unto the man of God, Intreat now the face of the LORD thy God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored me again. And the man of God besought the LORD, and the king's hand was restored him again, and became as it was before. And the king said unto the man of God, Come home with me, and refresh thyself, and I will give thee a reward. And the man of God said unto the king, If thou wilt give me half thine house, I will not go in with thee, neither will I eat bread nor drink water in this place: For so was it charged me by the word of the LORD, saying, Eat no bread, nor drink water, nor turn again by the same way that thou camest. So he went another way, and returned not by the way that he came to Bethel.

Now there dwelt an old prophet in Bethel; and his sons came and told him all the works that the man of God had done that day in Bethel: the words which he had spoken unto the king, them they told also to their father. And their father said unto them, What way went he? For his sons had seen what way the man of God went, which came from Judah. And he said unto his sons, Saddle me the ass. So they saddled him the ass: and he rode thereon, And went after the man of God, and found him sitting under an oak: and he said unto him, Art thou the man of God that camest from Judah? And he said, I am. Then he said unto him, Come home with me, and eat bread. And he said, I may not return with thee, nor go in with thee: neither will I eat bread nor drink water with thee in this place:For it was said to me by the word of the LORD, Thou shalt eat no bread nor drink water there, nor turn again to go by the way that thou camest. He said unto him, I am a prophet also as thou art; and an angel spake unto me by the word of the LORD, saying, Bring him back with thee into thine house, that he may eat bread and drink water. But he lied unto him. So he went back with him, and did eat bread in his house, and drank water.

And it came to pass, as they sat at the table, that the word of the LORD came unto the prophet that brought him back: And he cried unto the man of God that came from Judah, saying, Thus saith the LORD, Forasmuch as thou hast disobeyed the mouth of the LORD, and hast not kept the commandment which the LORD thy God commanded thee, But camest back, and hast eaten bread and drunk water in the place, of the which the LORD did say to thee, Eat no bread, and drink no water; thy carcase shall not come unto the sepulchre of thy fathers. And it came to pass, after he had eaten bread, and after he had drunk, that he saddled for him the ass, to wit, for the prophet whom he had brought back. And when he was gone, a lion met him by the way, and slew him: and his carcase was cast in the way, and the ass stood by it, the lion also stood by the carcase. And, behold, men passed by, and saw the carcase cast in the way, and the lion standing by the carcase: and they came and told it in the city where the old prophet dwelt.

And when the prophet that brought him back from the way heard thereof, he said, It is the man of God, who was disobedient unto the word of the LORD: therefore the LORD hath delivered him unto the lion, which hath torn him, and slain him, according to the word of the LORD, which he spake unto him. And he spake to his sons, saying, Saddle me the ass. And they saddled him. And he went and found his carcase cast in the way, and the ass and the lion standing by the carcase: the lion had not eaten the carcase, nor torn the ass. And the prophet took up the carcase of the man of God, and laid it upon the ass, and brought it back: and the old prophet came to the city, to mourn and to bury him. And he laid his carcase in his own grave; and they mourned over him, saying, Alas, my brother! And it came to pass, after he had buried him, that he spake to his sons, saying, When I am dead, then bury me in the sepulchre wherein the man of God is buried; lay my bones beside his bones: For the saying which he cried by the word of the LORD against the altar in Bethel, and against all the houses of the high places which are in the cities of Samaria, shall surely come to pass.

After this thing Jeroboam returned not from his evil way, but made again of the lowest of the people priests of the high places: whosoever would, he consecrated him, and he became one of the priests of the high places. And this thing became sin unto the house of Jeroboam, even to cut it off, and to destroy it from off the face of the earth.

A Tribute to Charles Saunders, one of my Favorite Black SciFi Icon

2012-02-20T09:22:00.000-05:00

There are three greats in the annals of Black Speculative Fiction. They are Charles Saunders, Octavia Butler, Samuel Delaney.

Samuel Delaney I have never read. Octavia: I read Kindred. But it's the world of Sword and Soul writer Charles Saunders that I often wish to inhabit, a world that takes in the spirit and cultures of Africa. His stories of Dossouye and Imaro bring the reader to the lost greatness of Africa. His books are available online or on his website Charles Saunders

Paperback: 256 pages

Publisher: Night Shade Books; 1st ed edition (April 18, 2006)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 1597800368

ISBN-13: 978-1597800365

Saunders' novel fuses the narrative style of fantasy fiction with a pre-colonial, alternate Africa. Inspired by and directly addresses the alienation of growing up an African American fan of Science Fiction and Fantasy, which to this day remains a very ethnically homogonous genre. It addresses this both structurally (via its unique setting) and thematically (via its alienated, tribeless hero-protagonist). The tribal tensions and histories presented in this fantasy novel reflect actual African tribal histories and tensions, and provide a unique perspective to current and recent conflicts in Africa, particularly the Rwandan genocide and the ongoing conflict in The Sudan.

Paperback: 212 pages

Publisher: Cornerstone Book Publishers (June 17, 2011)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 1613420129

ISBN-13: 978-1613420126

The first ever African American 1930s avenger sets out to stop a Nazi plot to subvert a championship fight. From deepest Africa to the streets of 1930s Harlem, the action is none stop. Written by famed novelist Charles Saunders, with interior illos by Clayton Hinkle and a cover by Charles Fetherolf, this is a history making pulp adventure fans do not want to miss.

Publisher: Sword & Soul Media; First Edition edition (2011)
ASIN: B00262OF88

Charles R. Saunders, critically acclaimed author of the cult classic Imaro novels, has created yet another heroic-fantasy icon in an Africa of a different place and time. Orphaned at a young age, Dossouye becomes a soldier in the women's army of the kingdom of Abomey. In a war against the rival kingdom of Abanti, Dossouye saves her people from certain destruction; but a cruel twist of fate compels her to go into exile. Mounted on her mighty war-bull, Gbo, Dossouye enters the vast rain forest beyond the borders of her homeland, seeking a place to call her own. The forest is where Dossouye will either find a new purpose in life... or find her life cut short by the many menaces she encounters.

Please post the link to this article to twitter using any of the following hashtags. Pass the word on about Blackscifi.

Twitter hashtag: #blackscifi2012 #blackscifi #christianspeculativefiction #fantasy #blackfiction

Other participants

Check out the other members of this Online Black History Month Event:

Winston Blakely, Artist/Writer-- is a Fine Arts/Comic Book artist, having a career spanning 20 years, whose achievements have included working for Valiant Comics and Rich Buckler's Visage Studios. He is also the creator of Little Miss Strange, the world's first black alien sorceress and the all- genre anthology entitled - Immortal Fantasy. Both graphic albums are available at Amazon, Barnes and Nobles and other online book store outlets. Visit him: http://blakelyworks.blogspot.com/ or http://blakelyworkstudio.weebly.com/

L. M. Davis, Author--began her love affair with fantasy in the second grade. Her first novel, Interlopers: A Shifters Novel, was released in 2010, and the follow-up Posers: A Shifters Novel will be released this spring. For more information visit her blog http://shiftersseries.wordpress.com/ or her website www.shiftersnovelseries.com.

Milton Davis, Author – Milton Davis is owner/publisher of MVmedia, LLC . As an author he specializes in science fiction and fantasy and is the author of Meji Book One, Meji Book Two and Changa’s Safari. Visit him: http://www.mvmediaatl.com/Wagadu/ and www.wagadu.ning.com.

Margaret Fieland, Author-- lives and writes in the suburbs west of Boston, MA
with her partner and five dogs. She is one of the Poetic Muselings. Their poetry anthology, Lifelineshttp://tinyurl.com/LifelinesPoetry/ is available from Amazon.com Her book, "Relocated," will be available from MuseItUp Publishing in July, 2012. The Angry Little Boy," will be published by 4RV publishing in early 2013. You may visit her website, http://www.margaretfieland.com

Valjeanne Jeffers, Author -- is an editor and the author of the SF/fantasy novels: Immortal, Immortal II: The Time of Legend and Immortal III: Stealer of Souls. Her fourth and fifth novels: Immortal IV: Collision of Worlds and The Switch: Clockwork will be released this spring. Visit her at: http://valjeanne.wordpress.com and http://wwwsistermoon.blogspot.com and http://qandvaffordableediting.blogspot.com/

Alicia McCalla, Author- writes for both young adults and adults with her brand of multicultural science fiction, urban fantasy, and futurism. Her debut novel, Breaking Free will be available February 1, 2012. The Breaking Free theme song created by Asante McCalla is available for immediate download on itunes and Amazon. Visit her at:http://www.aliciamccalla.com

Carole McDonnell, Author--She writes Christian, speculative fiction, and multicultural stories. Her first novel is Wind Follower. Her short fiction has appeared in many anthologies and have been collected in an ebook, Spirit Fruit: Collected Speculative Fiction. Visit Carole: http://carolemcdonnell.blogspot.com/ orhttp://writersofcolorblogtour.blogspot.com/

Rasheedah Phillips,Author--is the creator of The AfroFuturist Affair in Philly. She plans to debut her first spec/sci-fic novel Recurrence Plot in Spring 2012. You may catch her ruminating from time to time on her blog,AstroMythoLosophy.com.

Nicole Sconiers, Author-is also a screenwriter living in the sunny jungle of L.A. She holds an MFA in creative writing from Antioch University Los Angeles, and she recently published Escape from Beckyville: Tales of Race, Hair and Rage. Visit her: http://nicolesconiers.com/index.html

Jarvis Sheffield, M.Ed. is owner & operator of TheDigitalBrothers.com, BlackScienceFictionSociety.com & BlackCommunityEntertainment.com. Visit him: http://www.blacksciencefictionsociety.com/profiles/blog/list?user=2stjwb1h216fd

Thaddeus Howze, Author-- is a veteran of the Information Technology and Communications industry with over twenty-six years of experience. His expertise is in re-engineering IT environments using process-oriented management techniques. In English, that means he studies the needs of his clients and configures their offices to optimize the use of information technology in their environment. Visit him: http://ebonstorm.wordpress.com or http://ebonstorm.weebly.com

Balogun Ojetade, Author—of the bestselling “Afrikan Martial Arts: Discovering the Warrior Within” (non-fiction), “Moses: The Chronicles of Harriet Tubman” (Steampunk) and the feature film, “A Single Link”. Visit him:http://chroniclesofharriet.wordpress.com/

Longing for God: Seven Paths of Christian Devotion

2012-02-17T13:21:00.000-05:00

Longing for God: Seven Paths of Christian Devotion

Richard J. Foster and Gayle D. Beebe (InterVarsity)

Hardcover: 364 pages

Publisher: Intervarsity Press (April 1, 2009)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 0830835148

ISBN-13: 978-0830835140

For the Beauty of the Church: Casting a Vision for the Arts

2012-02-15T07:50:00.000-05:00

For the Beauty of the Church: Casting a Vision for the Arts

by W. David Taylor

Paperback: 208 pages
Publisher: Baker Books (March 1, 2010)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0801071917
ISBN-13: 978-0801071911

Think of your local church. Without art--music, song, dance, etc.--it would be a much poorer place. But if protestants have any vision for the arts, it tends to be a thin one. This unique book is an attempt to contribute to a robust, expansive vision for the church and the arts. Its specific aim is to show how the many parts of the landscape of church and art hold together. You can think of it as a kind of helicopter flyover, but one with expert pilots. The guides include the likes of Eugene Peterson, Lauren Winner, Jeremy Begbie, Andy Crouch, and John Witvliet, helping to inspire readers and empower pastor-leaders with a vision of the church and the arts that is compelling, far-seeing, and profoundly transformative.
From the Back Cover
Once upon a time, the church was deeply involved in the arts, leading the way in beauty, technical ability, and even funding. In many churches today the arts are an afterthought at best and forbidden at worst. This insightful book takes you beyond "how we've always done it," beyond fads, beyond mere imitation of the culture, and beyond utilitarianism to develop a robust, dynamic, and substantive vision for the place of the arts--and artists--in our churches.
"The church ought to be synonymous with all good gifts and stewardship of the earth. And it most certainly ought to be synonymous with the stewardship of the arts. For the Beauty of the Church reminds us of this essential truth and many more."--Charlie Peacock, codirector, Art House America; author of New Way to Be Human

"Pragmatic and theologically astute at the same time, For the Beauty of the Church is a gem-packed collection for those navigating between the realms of the arts and the church."--Makoto Fujimura, artist; founder and creative director, International Arts Movement

"One reason the church exists is that our hunger for beauty will not go away. These essays remind us why."--John Ortberg, author of God Is Closer Than You Think and Love Beyond Reason; pastor, Menlo Park Presbyterian Church

"This book is an urgently needed wake-up call for the church! I pray that it will encourage more artists and churches to offer each other their respective gifts."--Marva J. Dawn, author of In the Beginning, God and A Royal "Waste" of Time; teaching fellow in spiritual theology, Regent College

"This book is encouraging, celebrative, and hopeful, but it is also explosive. This conversation is critical not only for its practical suggestions about the arts but also for its bracing theological framework that will help make artistic and spiritual worship the transforming experience God intends it to be."--William Dyrness, professor of theology and culture, Fuller Theological Seminary

Contributors include:

Eugene Peterson
W. David O. Taylor
Lauren Winner
John Witvliet
Jeremy Begbie
Andy Crouch
Barbara Nicolosi
Joshua Banner
W. David O. Taylor is an artist, author, and advocate for the arts. He is a graduate of Regent College and served for eight years as the arts pastor of Hope Chapel in Austin, Texas. He is currently pursuing doctoral studies at Duke Divinity School.

Here is the podcast

When Atheism Becomes Religion

2012-02-14T13:05:00.000-05:00

When atheism becomes religion
By Chris Hedges
Published by Simon and Schuster

Free Press

March 2009

Trade Paperback, 224 pages

ISBN-10: 1416570780

ISBN-13: 9781416570783

Here's the blurb:

From the New York Times bestselling author of American Fascists and the NBCC finalist for War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning comes this timely and compelling work about new atheists: those who attack religion to advance the worst of global capitalism, intolerance and imperial projects.

Chris Hedges, who graduated from seminary at Harvard Divinity School, has long been a courageous voice in a world where there are too few. He observes that there are two radical, polarized and dangerous sides to the debate on faith and religion in America: the fundamentalists who see religious faith as their prerogative, and the new atheists who brand all religious belief as irrational and dangerous. Both sides use faith to promote a radical agenda, while the religious majority, those with a commitment to tolerance and compassion as well as to their faith, are caught in the middle.

The new atheists, led by Richard Dawkins, Christopher Hitchens and Sam Harris, do not make moral arguments about religion. Rather, they have created a new form of fundamentalism that attempts to permeate society with ideas about our own moral superiority and the omnipotence of human reason.

I Don't Believe in Atheists critiques the radical mindset that rages against religion and faith. Hedges identifies the pillars of the new atheist belief system, revealing that the stringent rules and rigid traditions in place are as strict as those of any religious practice.

Hedges claims that those who have placed blind faith in the morally neutral disciplines of reason and science create idols in their own image -- a sin for either side of the spectrum. He makes an impassioned, intelligent case against religious and secular fundamentalism, which seeks to divide the world into those worthy of moral and intellectual consideration and those who should be condemned, silenced and eradicated. Hedges shatters the new atheists' assault against religion in America, and in doing so, makes way for new, moderate voices to join the debate. This is a book that must be read to understand the state of the battle about faith.

Black SciFi events, conferences, and podcasts

2012-02-13T09:21:00.000-05:00

We are a passionate fighting people, people aware that some struggles can't be won without a fight. Because of this, we have many in-roads that other US minorities do not have. We have the African-American read-in. We have Black conferences such as Onyx con, Alien Encounters etc. We have Black book festivals and podcasts.

Consider for instance, movies like Akira and The Last Airbender. White film-makers take artistic property with Asian protagonists and replace these Asian main characters with White protagonists. Such a thing could never happen with a Black novel, film, or cartoon. Why? Because Hollywood knows we African-Americans would not stand for it.

During the Civil Rights era, the Asian-American community stood by while Blacks, Native Americans, Gays, Hispanics, fought for their rights. During that time, the Asian American community benefitted from the struggles of other minorities but because they had not join in the fight, they still have not gained the creative power that Black artists have.

Wile it is true, the Black creative world has not totally arrive, we are still a PRESENCE. People notice us. We have grown in force and are involved in and apart of the mainstream. We are in White owned events, conferences, podcasts, and publishing houses. And we have our own events, podcasts and conferences. Those fighters from back in the day would be proud to see how much good their battles have won for us.

Please post the link to this article to twitter using any of the following hashtags. Pass the word on about Blackscifi.

Twitter hashtag: #blackscifi2012 #blackscifi #christianspeculativefiction #fantasy #blackfiction

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Seek ye first

2012-02-10T08:31:00.000-05:00

Most Christians -- me included-- should learn to seek God first. It's mostly a matter of habit, I think. Because I believe that most serious Christians truly love the Lord. There are a few who have a sentimental love, to be sure. And there are a few who are really more into legalism than any real adoration/attachment of the Lord but for the most part the folks who love God really do love Him, and the folks who love the Living Word of God personified in Jesus really appreciate Jesus...and the folks who are grateful to the Holy Spirit really are grateful to Him.

Hosea tells us in chapter 4: My people are destroyed for lack of knowledge.

But it gets even worse in chapter 8:

2Israel shall cry unto me, My God, we know thee.
3Israel hath cast off the thing that is good: the enemy shall pursue him.
4They have set up kings, but not by me: they have made princes, and I knew it not: of their silver and their gold have they made them idols, that they may be cut off.
12I have written to him the great things of my law, but they were counted as a strange thing.

Imagine that: God says, "if I were to tell people about the great things in this religion I've given them, they would think it was all a bit strange."

That's how bad it is. We have people in all these Christian denominations who think they know their religion but what they know is the interpretation of their priests and ministers and the doctrines of their denominations. Not always bad, mind you. But in a matter as important as our life on earth and our life after death, we really should remember what Jesus said:

Matthew 15:14 "Let them alone: they be blind leaders of the blind. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the ditch."

Luke 6:39 "And he spake a parable unto them, Can the blind lead the blind? shall they not both fall into the ditch?"

So what do we do with what is basically spiritual slothfulness and bad habits? And these habits cause us not to seek FIRST the kingdom of God. The Bible tells us to seek ye first the kingdom of God. IT doesn't say to go to the church once or twice a week and see what verses the minister has been seeking. It amazes me that we who have a religion where our Lord was highly cynical about ministers and priests should end up with an attitude where we believe everything our ministers say without searching and rightly dividing the truth ourselves.

So we must let the word of God dwell in us richly. We must talk to those we love in order to grow from love. This means we must set up our lives in such a way to allow for God's word, God's friendship, God's presence to be more and more in our lives.

A good thing to do is to listen to Bible tapes or sermons in the morning when one is dressing, and at bedtime when one goes to sleep. A tape-playing radio. Download sermons from the internet. Do a daily Bible study in the morning with one's hubby. Have a friend who you do daily Bible studies with in the morning. It can be done.

Give us vision, lest we perish

2012-02-09T10:52:00.000-05:00

We get spiritual vision everyday. The doctors plant their visions of illness inside our minds. TV fills our minds with visions of love/lust or wealth or other worldly matters. The Televangelists fill our minds with their vision of Christianity. The world around us gives us its visions. It tells us old age should expect dementia and degenerative diseases, but God's word tells us that old men will dream dreams and it shows us the works done by old folks such as Caleb, Elizabeth, etc.

We need God's vision.

Which reminds me the devil also gives great visions.

Think of Luke 4:5. Satan takes Jesus up to a tall mountain and gives him a vision of all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. The implication is amazing. Jesus could, if he wanted, live and rule and do good in all the world. Not that Satan could tempt Jesus. But many Christians nowadays have this flaky idea of Dominion Theology in politics.

I understand that the world should be filled with the knowledge of the Lord because think about it: Christians, through Christ, are a new species of man who have authority over all those things the first man Adam was supposed to have had (but he lost it.) AND MORE!

But the vision might not be from God to rule empires, to rule churches.

But I digress.

We have to hold to good visions and pull down the strongholds of bad visions -- whether those bad visions are plainly evil (like murdering our enemies or lusting for our neighbor's spouse) or subtly evil ( as in evil masquerading as goodness.)

In these days,
Our eyes must be careful what they see. Our ears must be careful what they hear. Our hearts must be careful what they love... because all these things become part of wrong vision.

Christian Comfort versus Dismissiveness

2012-02-08T12:33:00.000-05:00

It might be just me...cause I'm touchy like that... but do Christians often equate comforting each other with being dismissive about the specific sorrow?

I've seen and heard it so many times: Christian A starts talking about some sorrow; Christian B responds with a platitude that often is aimed to making Christian A feel better -- after all, God is strong and all-- but inevitably the comfort comes off as dismissive.

"Sure you have no house but well, there are people who are sick in the hospital dying."
Well, yes, that is true...but putting the problem in proportion to the general suffering out there doesn't help the sufferer does it? It might make the sufferer feel belittled or it might make the sufferer belittle his own pain as invalid.

What is true comfort?

It is hopeful. It acknowledges the pain of the person. It comes from the mouth of someone who fully understands (or at least tries to appear as if she fully understands) the sufferer's plight. True comfort implies the listener will do something about the situation: namely the listener will go to God and pray and intercede in a very personal caring way about the situation.

Promo Day: Wind Follower First Chapter

2012-02-06T09:20:00.000-05:00

Folks say I did a great job researching the spirituality in Wind Follower. I didn't actually research anything. I tend to read a lot of anthropology so I began writing and whatever my subconscious deemed necessary just popped up as needed. I'm pretty convinced God helped me with this book.
This excerpt is the first chapter of my novel, Wind Follower. This chapter is probably the second to last chapter I wrote for the book. Probably it was the last. I don't remember exactly. All I remember was the editor emailing me and saying something like: Your main character is always talking about this past event. I think we better show it. Cause he seems so traumatized about it.
So I sat down and wrote it. Off the cuff. I think it was written in one day and critiqued by my friends the next day. Then sent to the editor. The same goes for another chapter -- the chapter about sorrows going hand-in-hand. The editor said: Uhm, we need an alternate chapter here with Satha.
Weirdly, these chapters -- written off the top off my head and in the space of about two afternoons-- are two of my favorite chapters in Wind Follower.
Wind Follower is primarily a fantasy romance and secondly a spiritual book. Quests, warfare, et al... are purely as needed. So although there is some fighting in the story, and although there is some talk of lances and battles in the first chapter, it's best to think of it as a romance.

I will tell you first how Krika died.

Okiak, his father and the chief shaman of our clan, brought Krika before the elders at the Spirit Shrine, the sacrificial mound we called Skull Place. My friend was bound hand and foot, and the skin of his face had been flailed away so that all the muscles and bones beneath his right eye glistened. He was weeping and crying out for mercy, choking on his tears. This surprised me, but I forgave it. Who could bear such pain without weeping?

Okiak lifted the shuwa, already reddened with his son’s blood, and there -- surrounded by bones and burned flesh -- remnants of the monthly sacrifices, he shouted, “My son has not obeyed me. I have warned him time and times to pay obeisance to our spirits, but he has refused.”

The spirits had ordered his death. I stood far off, struggling with my father and Pantan. Their hands held me fast and kept me from racing to Krika’s side.

Nevertheless, I called out, shouted aloud for everyone to hear. “Are the spirits so puny and helpless they must force people to worship them?”

All eyes rebuked me, yes, all the elders of the Pagatsu clan, and Father yanked me back by my arm. “Be careful, son,” he said, “lest the spirits also demand your life.”

I glared at him. “And if they did, would you be so weak as to comply?”

He turned away. “The spirits have not asked for your life. Why ponder a demand that has not been asked?”

I hated him for that. Yes, although I loved him with all my heart, I despised him for those words.

Krika continued pleading for his life. Okiak aimed his vialka and let it fly through the sky toward his son. Krika’s wail sounded over the fields and the low-hanging willows and past the Great Salt Desert. But no one spoke for him, not my father, not the other shaman, and not the Creator. He died, battered beneath a hail of stones; all eyes but mine witnessed his last breath. Father had pulled my face into his chest, and I hated my weakness for allowing it. My tears soaked his tunic. He gently stroked my head and played with my braid, and told me that I should forget, forget, forget, for death – however it comes– is the destiny of all men.

They left Krika’s body where it fell. Unburied, he was to be devoured by wild wolves and bears. Worse, his lack of a burial meant he could not enter the fields we long for. He could not hunt with the Creator. His father had damned him to everlasting grief.

Krika had been my age-brother, taught with Prince Lihu as I was. While he lived, his presence colored my life as a wolf’s continuous howl or a woman’s singing might color the night. He seemed to rage against the spirits while yet singing to the Creator. This was a strange thing, for at that time no one in the three tribes sought the Creator; we thought those shadow gods were his servants. Even I, who was suspicious of the spirits from my birth, had never warred against them as Krika had.

That night, as the sun set over my father’s Golden House, I escaped to the shrine. There lay Krika, broken on the ground. With many shuwas, I warded off the wolves and lions that had sniffed out my friend’s blood. But the spirits fought against me, calling from the east, west, north, and south, all creatures of earth and air. How black the field and night sky grew with their descending shadows. In the field, only two men: Krika and I, one living and one dead. All my father’s so-called Valiant Men were nowhere to be seen. Although they had battled mightily against the Angleni, on the night of Krika’s death they hid in the compound trembling in fear of the spirits.

Then, all at once, I understood the spirits had arrayed themselves in battle against me, that I would always battle them alone, for I had no ally...no, not one among my clan.

Twitter hashtag: #blackscifi2012 #blackscifi #speculativefiction #christianspeculativefiction #fantasy

Please post the link to this article to twitter using any of the following hashtags. Pass the word on about Blackscifi. The top three tweeters of my blogs posts will receive a copy of my short story collection, Spirit Fruit.

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Ja Ja (DjaDja) N Medjay , Author—DjaDja Medjay is the author of The Renpet Sci-Fi Series. Shiatsu Practitioner. Holistic AfroFuturistic Rising in Excellence. Transmissions from The Future Earth can be found at: www.renpetscifi.com or on Facebook -www.facebook.com/RenpetSciFiNovel or on Twitter - https://twitter.com/#!/Khonsugo

Remembering God's Faithfulness

2012-02-03T09:11:00.001-05:00

Okay, so I have a major discipline problem and last night I realized I haven't been disciplined in keeping up my Book of Remembrance.

In the Bible, a book of remembrance is discussed. And the Bible is always telling us to "remember when the Lord did this" or "Remember how the Lord delivered you from so-and-so." In fact, holidays in the Bible are mainly about remembering. And (I'm way too lazy to look up the verses now) but there are countless verses in the Bible where not believing in God is equated with not remembering. For instance, "they forgot that he was their rock."

It's odd to think but in the Bible "lack of belief" is not about not rationale declarations and being super mentally-enlightened but about simply forgetting. The holidays of Passover and Purim are there to make us remember what God has done. I don't know what the holidays of other religions are about but in Judeo-Christianity, a holiday is not merely about remembering God's holiness or for us to be holy. Holidays are about remembering some aspect of a holy Personal ever-present all-knowing God's loving kind protection toward us.

Okay, so back to me. So although I always remember the angel preventing me from falling off the cliff on Bear Mountain, and the angel smiling at me beside my bed, and God's guidance in finding children who wander off (ah, i could tell you stories!) Or God protecting me from the knife, I had forgotten how wonderfully near He has been to me through helpful dreams.

So.......there I was in bed and I got to thinking about dreams. I write down most of my dreams. (Pretty faithfully so I'm disciplined in that....it's something I am wont to do.) But I got to thinking; "Am I deluding myself with all my concerns with my dreams?" What if some of my dreams are nothing more than my mind wanting to do this or fearing to do that, yadda yadda? I got to thinking, "God just isn't being near me. He doesn't help me at all. Why do I even trust in Him?" <-- yes, yes, I get this way sometimes and I forget all He has done for me.

Then suddenly... I REMEMBERED something that was really important in my life, something that had to do with a dream, something that shows how near God is to me and how faithful He is to me.

One night when my older son Logan, was about three or four, I dreamed of two kids from the neighborhood -- the son and nephew of my friend Jennie-- beating my son with iron batons, sticks, etc. It was quite sadistic and just odd. I woke up thinking, "Well, that was one strange dream." I didn't really know the kids and they never visited my house so I just thought it was weird to dream of them. LATER THAT DAY, who should come to my door but Jennie's son and nephew?????????????? They said, "Carole, we're playing cowboys and indians and we want someone to tie up. Can we play with Logan?" Logan, who was with me and who had heard them, said, "Mom, I want to go! Please, Please!" I looked at those kids and there was something very -- for lack of a better word-- "evil" about them. They looked like they were planning something evil. It was so evident to me. One of them had a little red ribbon which he gently brushed against my arm, "See," he said, "it doesn't hurt. We just want to play." These guys were about sixteen and eighteen and I wouldn't have trusted them from the sneaky looks on their faces. Upshot: I didn't send my son with them.

I remember this with a shudder. Because of the dream/premonition. My God had "gone before" and had protected me from the machinations of the enemy. Jennie's son turned out to live a good life. His cousin ...well...

I often think that some evil thing had placed the idea in them. And who knows what they were planning or what might have happened? Young folks are often very easy to tempt to do evil. My son might not be with me today or those two might have done something evil to him that would have tainted him. But God saved him, me, and Jennie's son from succumbing to whatever evil plot the devil had planned. The world is indeed an evil place and we need Someone Who Walks Ahead Of Us to protect us from the snares the devil has placed for us. Holy and Faithful is our Lord!

Of course, if I had been keeping up with actually writing down stuff in my Book of Remembrance (dreams coming true, flaky coincidences, visions coming true, etc) I wouldn't have had that moment of doubt. But I thank God that although the physical book of Remembrance wasn't updated or studied by me for so long...God is faithful to remind me of that incident.

Book on Asperger's: Look Me In the Eye

2012-02-02T07:54:00.000-05:00

Look me in the eye
by John Elder Robinson

Here's the blurb:

Ever since he was small, John Robison had longed to connect with other people, but by the time he was a teenager, his odd habits—an inclination to blurt out non sequiturs, avoid eye contact, dismantle radios, and dig five-foot holes (and stick his younger brother in them) — had earned him the label "social deviant." No guidance came from his mother, who conversed with light fixtures, or his father, who spent evenings pickling himself in sherry. It was no wonder he gravitated to machines, which could, at least, be counted on.
After fleeing his parents and dropping out of high school, his savant-like ability to visualize electronic circuits landed him a gig with KISS, for whom he created their legendary fire-breathing guitars. Later, he drifted into a "real" job, as an engineer for a major toy company. But the higher Robison rose in the company, the more he had to pretend to be "normal" and do what he simply couldn't: communicate. It wasn't worth the paycheck.

It was not until he was forty that an insightful therapist told him he had the form of autism called Asperger's syndrome. That understanding transformed the way Robison saw himself — and the world.

Look Me in the Eye is the moving, darkly funny story of growing up with Asperger's at a time when the diagnosis simply didn't exist. A born storyteller, Robison takes you inside the head of a boy whom teachers and other adults regarded as "defective," who could not avail himself of KISS's endless supply of groupies, and who still has a peculiar aversion to using people's given names (he calls his wife "Unit Two"). He also provides a fascinating reverse angle on the younger brother he left at the mercy of their nutty parents — the boy who would later change his name to Augusten Burroughs and write the bestselling memoir Running with Scissors.

Ultimately, this is the story of Robison's journey from his world into ours, and his new life as a husband, father, and successful small business owner — repairing his beloved high-end automobiles. It's a strange, sly, indelible account — sometimes alien, yet always deeply human.

This is a book written for educators by someone who has Asperger's.
The author has a blog here

There's an audio excerpt from the book here. IF you click this link the excerpt will play.

You can buy it here

Predestination: The American Career of a Contentious Doctrine

2012-02-01T13:20:00.000-05:00

Predestination: The American Career of a Contentious Doctrine
Peter J. Thuesen (Oxford University press)

Hardcover: 328 pages

Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA (July 6, 2009)

Language: English

ISBN-10: 0195174275

ISBN-13: 978-0195174274

Here's the blurb:
Predestination-the idea that God foreordains one's eternal destiny-is one of the most fascinating and controversial doctrines in Christianity. In this groundbreaking history, the first of its kind, Peter Thuesen shows that far from being only about the age-old riddle of divine sovereignty versus human free will, the debate over predestination is inseparable from other central Christian beliefs and practices-the efficacy of the sacraments, the existence of purgatory and hell, the extent of God's providential involvement in human affairs-and has fueled theological conflicts across denominations for centuries.

In Puritan New England, the "terrifying decree" of predestination drove some people to suicidal despair even while it convinced others that they were an elect remnant in a fallen world. The doctrine subsequently declined, ridiculed by deists like Thomas Jefferson and evangelicals like John Wesley. Yet to those on the margins, from Lutheran immigrants to "hard-shell" Baptists, it never lost its urgency as a burning theological issue. It provided the religious context of Abraham Lincoln's childhood, and precipitated a schism in the Lutheran church. By the early 21st century, with the rise of conservative Protestantism as a social and political force, the doctrine was spawning disputes online as evangelicals disagreed over what an "inerrant" Bible teaches on the subject. Although battles over predestination occurred throughout Christianity's long history, says Thuesen, only in the American free marketplace of competing Protestant sects could the doctrine persist in so many contexts as a catalyst of religious change.

Thuesen reexamines not only familiar predestinarians like the New England Puritans and many later Baptists and Presbyterians, but also non-Calvinists, from Catholics and Lutherans to Methodists and Mormons, and shows how even contemporary megachurches preach a "purpose-driven" outlook that owes much to the doctrine of predestination. For anyone wanting a fuller understanding of religion in America, Predestination offers both historical context on a doctrine that reaches back 1,600 years and a fresh perspective on today's denominational landscape.

A Cloud by Day, A Pillar by Night

2012-01-31T08:11:00.000-05:00

So am reading in Exodus right now and am thinking about The Cloud and Pillar that went with the children of Israel. When the cloud moved, the people moved. When the cloud rested the people rested. And at night the cloud became a pillar.

"At the commandment of the LORD the children of Israel journeyed, and at the commandment of the LORD they pitched: as long as the cloud abode upon the tabernacle they rested in their tents." Numbers 9:18

What a predicament for folks who want to move on! It's not as if they don't know where they're going. God has given them guidance as to their future. But for reasons they don't understand they must not move. Now it's okay if the cloud does this resting bit for one day. But what if it rested for weeks on end? How to rest and enter into that rest, that stasis one doesn't understand? Oh, sure God might have caused us to rest to prepare the way before us -- wild beasts, warring tribes etc-- but this sitting around after guidance has been given and not moving...well, it's stressful I'd think.

And right now...wow... But I won't go on about my personal and financial life. But was blessed by this hymn...so.. here is Immortal, Invisible God, only wise. This is the first hymn I remember consciously learning. It's based on I Timothy 1:17, "Now unto the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only wise God, be honour and glory for ever and ever"

This hymn reminds us that God rules. Goodness rules. The underlying unchanging spiritual reality of perfcetion and truth rules all things, never rushes, never has to catch up. This peace operates with a wisdom human and angelic minds can't fully understand. The working of this spiritual reality -love, care, peace, justice-- is constant, powerful, mighty... yet unseen, inaccessible, mysterious. The work is to labor to rest in that truth of God's love and wisdom.

Lord, I'm trusting that underneath are your everlasting arms. -C

Theists, Deists, Atheists

2012-01-30T16:18:00.002-05:00

Someone once asked Einstein if he was an atheist. Einstein answered something like, "No. That is too easy. It's an arrogant position and it lacks mystery."

Another person asked him another time if he believed in God. Einstein answered that he believed in Spinoza's God.

Okay, so Spinoza was a deist.

And yet, although I'm glad that such a great mind as Einstein's could not accept atheism, I'm not too thrilled he was a deist. After all, deism is almost as untenable as atheism. An Intelligence who made the world but has no interest in it and really no ability to love His Creations.

I rather like the Theistic view. A personal God with a personality -- a personality I may or may not like, who does things I may or may not like. A God who is not a machine, who has whims perhaps but who is never cruel and is always just, wise, and loving.

Consider the meaning of the word "ATHEIST:." They do not call themselves "ADEISTS." Because it is not easy to challenge the existence of a deistic God. Deistic Gods do not need to show themselves good. They don't need to show themselves at all. Nor are there APOLYTHEISTS. Because in a world of such evil and confusion, one can possibly say (as the ancient Greeks and the modern Hindus and modern primitivists say) that gods have certain territories and often feud among themselves.

So the problem seems to be with Theism, and in particular Judeo-Christian Theism. After all the Moslem God is somewhere between a theistic and a deistic God. Not quite unconcerned but not quite in your face.

Some of my atheist friends seem to be at war with the theistic God's way of dealing with the world. "Why," they ask, "does he allow evil?" Of course I always counter with "When should he not allow evil? Should he only not allow evil when others do it? What about the evils you have done? Would you have wanted him to step in and stop you from say sleeping with your neighbor's spouse, ignoring the poor person on the street, stealing from your client etc?"

When my atheist friends go on one of their rants against God, I cannot help but feel they are mentally stuck at a sunday school level. They have a child's view of God. "Why isn't the world fair?" etc. Sometimes when God wasn't even mentioned in a conversation, and a news program comes on telling about thousands of people dying in some earthquake somewhere, suddenly OUT of the BLUE the atheist will say, "How can a person believe in a good God with this kinda stuff? Yeah, yeah, where was God then?"

This always seems a bit over-the-top for me....then I realize there is this hurt child who feels that God has not protected them from evil. Of course, as they grow older they deceive themselves by saying this is all about reasonableness.

Neuroscientists have proved that reason comes from the emotional center of the brain. When a person has an accidental injury to the emotional centers of their brain, they may become irrational and have problems reasoning. So, reason is born in emotion. Reason is emotion's way of proving itself.

So then, what is the duty of the Theist in this world? It falls to us to prove a theistic worldview. Then it falls to us to prove the theistic worldview of Christians. And the only way one can prove this, it seems to me, is not through WORDS and DIALOG but through the Living Christ, and the manifestation of His powers and miracles in this world. That is a point many Christians miss so one ends up with Bible versus Koran or Bible versus the latest atheistic tome. We have to prove what is that good perfect and acceptable will of God -- Christ in us the hope of glory.

Why Is it important to show race, culture, minority politics or ethnicity in SciFi?

2012-01-30T09:19:00.000-05:00

I remember the time I realized the stuff I write -- the situations I wanted to explore-- were not considered marketable by editors and agents...even if there were readers like me who lived in such situations.

The gatekeepers of book-publishing have ideas about who they are marketing to, ideas about what the reading public is like and who the readers of books are. For instance, they seem to assume that Black folks don't read or that readers don't care about religious or spiritual matters. When they see a manuscript written by a Black person, they assume the book will contain certain "issues" -- issues they feel the average American would be uninterested in. And their are expectations about books written by Christians or Black Christians as well.

My response to their expectations and stereotypes is this:
True, there are certain issues that appear in Black and/or Christian books but why assume that all Black folks write the same way.

True, but why think the non-Black world will not be interested in MY particular manuscript?

True, but why assume you already know what a Black writer is going to write?

True, but why concern yourself with only books that you KNOW will sell? It's possible Black literature -- expected or unexpected-- will sell.

But still, the sorrow that came on me when I realized I had written great works but these "assuming gatekeepers" would not let my story enter the hallowed halls of publishing. To me, race and culture are important. Religion is important. Religion interwoven in history and race is important. I remember a reviewer saying my book Wind Follower was made for a small niche audience. Why? Because it was speculative fiction AND race AND religion. She didn't consider that Black folks and Asian folks have had to deal with ethnic fantasy such as vampires, elves, dwarfs...because to her the fantasy of the white world -- all those knights, ladies in waiting, white female scientists-- were not ethnic but were the norm.

Black folks are used to identifying with white characters because we have grown up inside white culture. We can see the humanity of these white characters. It seems to me that white folks should be given the chance to identify with non-white folks, and that folks without religious faith should learn that folks with faith are not stupid cardboard stereotypes either.

The fact is all people need to see all people reflected in art. This is how we heal and humanize all humanity.

So what would I like to see in this area for the upcoming year? More cross-genre publications. Black specfic graphic novels, Black mangas, for instance

By the way, promo day is coming soon, folks. I'll be giving away copies of my book, Spirit Fruit, to the three folks who have given me the most tweets and retweets during this time period. So tweet away. Please post the link to this article to twitter using any of the following hashtags. Pass the word on about Blackscifi.

Twitter hashtag: #blackscifi2012 #blackscifi #christianspeculativefiction #fantasy #blackfiction

Other participants

Check out the other members of this Online Black History Month Event:

Reading the Bible with the Damned

2012-01-29T08:08:00.000-05:00

Reading the Bible with the Damned by Bob Ekblad

Paperback: 208 pages
Publisher: Westminster John Knox Press (September 19, 2005)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0664229174
ISBN-13: 978-0664229177

Here's the Blurb:

Both long-time church members and those outside the traditional church can find it difficult to read the Bible. Bob Ekblad encourages the church and the unchurched to read the Bible together, for what scripture has to teach us all. In this compelling book, he reflects on how Christians have often found it difficult to proclaim God’s good news to every realm of society, while those who have needed it most have frequently deemed themselves unworthy due to social circumstances or sinfulness. In Reading the Bible with the Damned, Ekblad demonstrates how to bridge this gap by showing us specific ways to engage people from all walks of life, from the poorest parts of town to inside the prison walls. This book is full of examples of how Scripture changes lives, offering practical suggestions on how to lead discussions on passages from the Old and New Testaments.

From the Back Cover

"This book by Ekblad …moves the Bible away from safe, conventional church venues and reads afresh among the alienated and marginalized. The effect of such a new interpretive context is that the text takes on a poignancy and sharpness that bespeaks the stirring of God’s spirit. We may be led by Ekblad to read the Bible yet again, as if for the first time." --Walter Brueggemann, Professor Emeritus, Columbia Theological Seminary, and author of several Westminster John Knox Press books, including An Introduction to the Old Testament: The Canon and Christian Imagination and Reverberations of Faith: A Theological Handbook of Old Testament Themes.

"Bob Ekblad is more like Jesus than most people I know…How different the world will be when more of us share Christ’s life and heart in the same way. I say when, not if, because this book will hasten the transformation." --Marva J. Dawn, Teaching Fellow in Spiritual Theology, Regent College, Vancouver, British Columbia, and author of Unfettered Hope: A Call to Faithful Living in an Affluent Societyand Powers, Weakness, and the Tabernacling of God.

"Bob Ekblad has raised an ominously serious question…what does the Bible say to the suffering down our street - across our town and city - and out in the fields where our supermarkets get our produce? The responses are both enlightening and challenging, and Ekblad has written a book to teach all of us about the Bible, faith and liberation, and the realities of our own social system." --Daniel L. Smith-Christopher, Professor of Old Testament, Loyola Marymount University, Los Angeles, and author of A Biblical Theology of Exile.

Psalm 11

2012-01-28T07:10:00.000-05:00

The verse that jumps out at me is "if the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?"

The prophet Hosea writes Hosea 8:12 I have written to him the great things of my law, but they were counted as a strange thing. Hosea 8:11-13

Romans 14:16 Let not then your good be evil spoken of: Romans 14:15-17

If the world calls good evil and evil good, where and how can Christians ever begin to show them what Christ wants?

Psalm 11

For the director of music. Of David.

1 In the LORD I take refuge.
How then can you say to me:
"Flee like a bird to your mountain.
2 For look, the wicked bend their bows;
they set their arrows against the strings
to shoot from the shadows
at the upright in heart.

3 When the foundations are being destroyed,
what can the righteous do [a] ?"

4 The LORD is in his holy temple;
the LORD is on his heavenly throne.
He observes the sons of men;
his eyes examine them.

5 The LORD examines the righteous,
but the wicked [b] and those who love violence
his soul hates.

6 On the wicked he will rain
fiery coals and burning sulfur;
a scorching wind will be their lot.

7 For the LORD is righteous,
he loves justice;
upright men will see his face.

Footnotes:

Psalm 11:3 Or what is the Righteous One doing
Psalm 11:5 Or The LORD , the Righteous One, examines the wicked,