Seeking The Kingdom

Are You Serious?

2013-02-13T17:24:00.003-06:00

It can be difficult to know who is!

It's always been a challenge for me to figure out and I know people probably say the same thing about me! Of course at times I wonder how seriously some things actually should be taken. Perhaps it's because of my analytic nature that I focus so much on details and have a tendency to be more literal in how I understand things. I'm someone who's quite serious,too much so in fact,who's trying to interface with a read the fine print "Just Kidding" world.

This fixation of mine seems to play out most noticeably in my relationships, both personal and professional. I don't think it's really so unusual or remarkable in any way,on the contrary! I see this mindset as being rather common hence the familiarity of the phrase in our culture. However,when combined with any sort of OCD or perfectionist tendencies it typically leads to disappointment and frustration on the part of all who're trying to understand the appropriate roles of the respective parties in any given situation.

Enough setup?

Looking back on my spiritual journey which for me began at age nine or ten it seems to of,almost without fail, follow a distinct pattern. I find myself being drawn into "all things spiritual" until I reach a point where I can't find answers to my questions or perceive "it" or myself, as somehow being in contradiction or one of us not living up to the associated claims. All of this is based on or evidenced by how I see "God" manifested in the world, in myself,and in other Christian people I know. At times the answers I do find seem to conflict with what's taught or simply lead to more questions.

Here's one...

Is Christianity the perfect ideology for people with low self esteem?

The idea of redemption was never hard to sell to me...As a youth I was so full of self loathing that the idea of being someone other than myself or a better version of who I was seemed like an answered prayer! (I'm still rather frustrated on this score) There are times that I think Christianity would be the greatest thing in the world, that it'd be worth screaming from the rooftops about if it simply did what it claims to do! I suppose that yet again I'm just "doing it wrong" but it's awfully hard for me to conceive of a God who loves us so much and yet Who would make it so complicated or confusing to be redeemed or to get a taste of that victorious life we're teased with!

In first Corinthians fifteen Paul talks about our faith being in vain. I don't think I'm taking too great of an interpretive leap here to juxtapose the relevance of his statement to our spiritual lives. To me He seems to be saying that if Christ didn't walk out of the grave then what we believe is in vain. If we've been crucified with Christ,born again and are in truth new creations in Christ which will someday rise just as He did,why are so many of us still dead in our sins?

"Because someday hasn't come yet dummy and as long as you dwell in this tent of flesh,you'll fight this battle regardless of how you feel about it"...The Holy Spirit

WOW! He's in a mood today...

Anyways, my point is that if our new lives in Christ aren't a miracle of some kind isn't what we're believing also in vain? I understand the eternal aspects of this statement but I also have to believe there are significant implications for our here and now lives as well! It is a bit confusing when you read what Paul says in Philippians about his own righteousness.

Philippians 3:9

KJV And be found in him, not having mine own righteousness, which is of the law, but that which is through the faith of Christ, the righteousness which is of God by faith:

Or verse 12 of Chapter three in which Paul goes on to say...

¹²Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus.

And of course this confusing admission of his own inadequacy.

Romans 7:14-16

KJV For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin.For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I.If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good.

Obviously Paul saw himself as a work in progress! That he was running a race,not that he had finished one...

There are however ways to know we're on the right road!

Galatians 5:22

KJVBut the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith,

Certainly I"m not SO arrogant to in any way expect more from myself than Paul did!

Or am I?

Or pigheaded enough to be unforgiving towards myself when God the Father has already seen fit to forgive my many sins...

Surely not!

WHEW! Glad that's been cleared up...

So, then what am I really so unhappy about or what are my real expectations?

Oh not much...

I once heard an analogy when I was in addiction recovery that related to what's known as "recovery time" and "clean time". It served to help distinguish the differences between them. The phrase "clean time" relates to how long someone has gone without using whereas the term "recovery" is an indication of the healing that's occurred in someones life, of how much of the causative component involved in a persons addictive behaviors have been dealt with. Clean time is also known as "white knuckling it" the idea being that a persons sobriety is a function of their own "self will" and that inevitably it will fail.

Recovery time is so much better because once we understand the reasons we used to begin with we're much,much less susceptible to their influence. Nothing is quite so liberating to an addict as understanding why it's not just "okay" to be who they are and sober but how actually fantastic it is! They'll never go back to using because they understand how much better off they are where they're at! It's no longer a struggle to stay sober,because from this new perspective you know that YOU'VE WON! And that you can live in victory over your addiction because you have something that's SO much better!

That's what I want from my spiritual life!

I'm tired of white knuckling it!

And I can't stand the frustration of the failure that comes with it.

Which is what most religion comes down to in my opinion

and I definitely don't believe in that.

What I do believe in is love.

And it's transformative power!

So what I want is a personal encounter with it, or Him...

1 John 4:8

KJVHe that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love.

After all that I've been through...

all that I've seen and done.

I have to be honest enough to say I don't have it!

which gives me the perfect opportunity to end this post using my title and the likely reaction to it by some!

Are You Serious?

Truth Incorporated

2013-01-07T07:53:00.003-06:00

Truth is kind of a big deal to me. Maybe because knowing the truth has always been the best way for me to have peace of mind! It can be considered knowledge,and of course knowledge is power! Power needed to overcome the fear and anxieties which accompany it's antithesis of lies and confusion. Over the year's I've become frustrated with how unnecessary and manufactured that confusion often seems to be. Businesses use deceptively simple premises that sound good on the surface to entice people into becoming customers. Then when they've got you in the door they employ some form of a "bait and switch". To my way of thinking, this sort of marketing strategy is little more than legalized falsehood...It seems as though you can lie in the large print if you tell the truth in the small!

That's Corporate truth!

Over my lifetime I've been taken in many times by such tactics, which are, like any successful scam based on the greed of it's intended victims. You have to present a "something for nothing" scenario in order to peak the selfishness of the intended "mark". Because I've been burnt before, I've become quite sensitive and even resentful towards any institution or corporation that attempts to use this method to engage me. I'm leery of any offer which seems overly generous or "too good to be true" and rightly so I'd say!

Christianity can also be misrepresented to people. They're told that after trusting in Jesus Christ as their Saviour they're born again and that their burdens in life can be laid down there at the foot of the cross. Most people understand that to mean that life as they know it is going to get easier but if you've been "around" at all you know that's not really true. I'm not saying that it never happens or even that it can't happen, what I am saying is that it's a process. One that requires a lot of hard work over time. One that you'll need lots of help with! People who are mature in their faith know this is true. If you think that Satan is just going to stand by and watch while someone grows in Christ you're dead wrong! Nope, he'll attack anyone who's moving in the opposite direction that he is! Truth is, if you're not encountering his handiwork maybe you should consider which way you're headed!

According to data I've looked at, Christianity is in decline in the United States. Why? I think it's because we've totally underestimated our enemy! We don't believe we're in a spiritual battle and that lives are at stake. No, either we've somehow been convinced that half measures and playing Church is God's purpose for us as His ambassadors or perhaps we just don't care.

There's a lot more to being a Christian then just walking down an aisle and saying a prayer! That's just the start! But if you want to live a victorious Christian life there's a lot more to it. I'm talking about discipleship,which can't sail without relationship! Relationships that run much deeper than shaking someones hand on Sunday morning and that aren't put off by the walls that people have built around their hearts.

This symbol appears through the Ancient Ephesus. This symbol, a code unknown to the Romans was used by the Christians to indicate they were followers of Christ

Somewhere along the way the church's priorities have changed from operating in the five fold ministries they've been called to in Ephesians four to instead function more like a business whose goal is warm bodies in pews paying tithes. God's Spirit won't occupy and empower that...but without His Holy Spirit they're selling a product that doesn't really work! Maybe that explains the large number of dissatisfied Christian consumers who've left the church seeking something they perceive as being based more on integrity.

These types of marketing strategies don't work on people who,because of their sense of integrity,see them for what they are. Who aren't only interested in their personal gain or benefit but also in that of the other parties involved. They seek true value, to pay a fair price for any goods or services because they understand the interconnection that exists between all members of an economy and have an uncommon respect for what's known as "parity".

The last time I was in church the pastor made fun of people like me who write blogs critical of the church. He said it was like saying "Lord I love you, but Your bride? Not so much" I understood his point but maybe not all church's deserve that title...

Gandhi didn't think so!

"I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ." - Mahatma Gandhi

I'm not just here trying to be critical or condemning, I freely admit that I'm struggling just as much as anyone to try and understand what we as the church should be doing.

When I ask myself that question it seems to become less about "what" and more a matter of how can we do it?

By what power?

Again, we know the answer...by the Holy Spirit!

Okay,how do we "get that"?

What does the Bible say?

Acts 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

I read this quote the other day and it stopped me in my tracks...

"I am Pentecostal by necessity, not by choice." Dick Brougdan

I do know this much...LOVE is the answer!

The answer to any problem as I see it is to simply figure out a way to get closer to God, Who is love!

And then we won't be able to not love others in a genuine way just as He loves us!

Now that sounds like the truth to me...

Not "Truth Incorporated"

Is That You?

2012-10-31T17:34:00.002-05:00

The sudden slapping sound of the metal on metal made by the tumblers in the door lock broke the empty silence and her eyes opened.

Covered by blankets and the heavy darkness her breathing goes shallow to listen more intently. Her mind sorts through scenarios, and then if only to satisfy her anxious internal voice and quiet her fears she calls out in a voice just loud enough to be heard...

Is that you?

Practically every married couples lived out this scenario or some version of it and at times our relationship with the Heavenly Father is also this way. We've been together a long time,during which His Holy Spirit has been a counselor and guide. We've walked together,He's carried me, I've walked away, He's been faithful. You'd think we'd be more discerning of His "moving" by now but somehow at times we still find ourselves feeling like the woman under the blanket. Seeking confirmation of what we think we know, anxious and fearful of the unknown, and that can be dangerous because many times we only see what we want to. Our spiritual eyes can easily become accustomed to an environment of darkness!

I know that there are definitely times when I find myself asking...

Is that You?

I find biblical context for my confusion In Luke's Gospel chapter 7:19-23.

What John was experiencing was definitely not what he or any of the other apostles had expected to occur. At this point John was perhaps facing death, so I can understand how difficult it must've been for him to trust who he thought Jesus was.

I don't make very many life or death choices but given what was at stake here I can totally understand how he might've wondered if he'd been mistaken somehow.

He needed to ask Christ in as direct a way as possible exactly who He was. He chose to send two of his friends to ask Jesus because he was imprisoned. Can you imagine that? Telling your friends and most likely people who you've taught about Jesus to go and ask Jesus this most basic question! As awkward as that prospect must've seemed to him, I believe his biggest challenge was to first face his own fears.

Fear of being wrong, of not seeing things as they really were and of exposing his own humanity to his friends. He had to first understand that thinking you know something is the greatest obstacle to learning anything!

That's certainly a mindset I can relate to.

Recently I've had occasion to reevaluate some of my own beliefs. Take abortion for example...I just don't think that denying that choice to a woman is very much of an expression of love which is what Christian people are called to do and be in this world. I understand that it's about the unborn child but it's still the woman's real estate that it has to be conveyed through...

Our Father hates all sin, as should we, but He gave Adam a choice because
without it...

It's not love...it's just the law!

and while God's word certainly carries that authority He's too much of a loving Father to treat us like programmable robots, no, He gave Adam a choice!

What I'm saying is "Who are we to insert our authority over the lives and choices of another when God Himself who is love, chose to do otherwise"

Do I hate abortion? YES! but standing outside an abortion clinic harassing people who're already going through perhaps one of the most difficult times of their life doesn't seem all that loving to me...

We're not called to be anyone's judge or to be argumentative like an attorney...we're just supposed to be witnesses of the difference His love has made in our lives! To be ever-ready to give an answer when asked about the source of our hope!

I see the people outside the clinic with the huge and unspeakably gruesome pictures of aborted babies on display. I look into their accusing self righteous faces as I walk by and then stop for a moment and ask...

Is that You?

I know it's me...

Listening to the lyrics of a song recently I was struck by their accurate reflection of my own life!

I want to know what became of the changes, we waited for love to bring. Were they only the fitful dreams of some greater awakening?

Jackson Browne "The Pretender"

I'll admit that sometimes I feel that way. I'm certainly not as committed to living my life for the Lord as some are! And I do feel somewhat frustrated and discouraged over the status of my own spiritual life! It's been quite a challenge to me that's with me to this day! At some point, who knows when...I'd like to find my own state of grace where I can truly accept the full measure of forgiveness that Jesus was crucified to secure for me!

Take this guy for example...

I met him one day while I was taking a break from driving. He told me drives this bus up and down the west coast doing his ministry which he claimed was based on Seventh Day Adventist teachings...

He told me that Christ had established his true church in 1866 which had me wondering what the second chapter of Acts was all about!

My issues with this particular variety of religion are numerous but in a nutshell, well...it's a religion! A man made set of rules that when followed entitle you to go to heaven. Based on the belief that Christians are still under the law instead of the "new and better covenant" spoke of in Hebrews 8:6.

Is that You?

If what your looking for is a perfect representation of God the Father in Christians or the institutions they establish you'll never find it! If you think otherwise I believe that's an indication of how you see yourself, Perfect!

I know I've found it to be true in my own circumstances...

Can you see the problem?

We're all created in Gods image but our sin shattered it into shards and fragments that show a perverse reflection. There are times when man does reflect enough of Him,or is able to die to his self to such an extent that what we see seems like perfection...

We call that "art"

In the ninth verse, thirty eighth chapter of Marks gospel,John brings to Jesus' attention certain other practitioners they'd observed who were engaged in a deliverance ministry of sorts. The idea being to get His approval to "forbade" them from it. My sense is that based on His reply Jesus wisely observes that "if our policy is to shut down everyone who doesn't have it all together who'll be left?" And tells John to basically leave them alone!

None of us have got it all right...

No need to ask, "Is that you"!

We are the woman,

we're also the bride.

We are the pretenders,

prevented by pride.

From seeing the truth,

Through our fractured eyes.

We fear what could save us,

And instead cling to lies!

Learning To Dance

2012-07-12T12:45:00.002-05:00

It's said that "you can never go home again" but what I think's meant by that is that you can't go back in time. And while that's certainly true, at the same time I've also found that it can seem impossible to move out of your past and into the present, let alone into your future! Despite all of that, earlier this year I did make a move! I moved my family from south-central to a new place in south-west Missouri,back to my hometown!

Not only my hometown,but to the very neighborhood I grew up in...

Even though I consider myself to be a sentimental person who as such is well acquainted with the "slings and arrows"which so often accompany it I'll admit to being caught off guard by my subsequent reactions. It took a while for me to sort out why on a certain level I seemed angry about how so many things I remembered had changed! Like I was caught in the throes of some childlike egocentric fit over not having been "consulted".

I didn't say that the feelings were "right" only that I was having them!

Another thing I wasn't really prepared for was the onslaught of questions that living in such close proximity to my past would move to the front burner of my mind or the rough terrain I'd have to traverse to find the difficult answers they demanded! Questions like...

"What the heck happened to my education?"

Just exactly where and how did my life "Jump the shark" so to speak...

I want to make it really clear that this isn't just some sort of pity party I decided to throw for myself nor am I attempting to fix blame on God or anyone else. Some of the events of my life have been rather unfortunate and apart from my aforementioned personal search for answers my intent or purpose in writing about them here is to encourage others who've had or will have similar experiences.Understanding our own issues of the past can be the key to moving beyond them into a better future! I can hardly express how important it is for me to be able to look back on my life and instead of feeling despair regarding certain aspects of it, to feel hopeful. Hopeful not only because I survived it but because I somehow found the courage to go on and the faith to believe there was something better waiting for me somewhere. lastly,to express my thankfulness to my Father in heaven who did then,and does now hold me in the palm of His loving hand!

I'd like to start with this video clip which was probably taken in the summer of 1971 when I was 10yrs old. As I watched it I remember being taken aback at how happy I appear to be! This video was taken by my father during one of the most difficult periods of my life,within a few months after my parents' divorce.

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qC3JQcT7KOg&w=420&h=315]

The surrealistic background music provides a fitting contrast to the seemingly carefree display caught on the clip. It truly is a reality vacuum! Not only had my family recently changed in a not so good way, I'd also been the victim of significant sexual abuse on several occasions by people close to me. I'd recently become involved with a local church and had accepted Christ as my Savior, been baptized,and then when I stopped coming...forgotten.

I watched helplessly as my father who I worshiped became increasingly distant and more invested in his new life and family and less in me. I found out what it was to be hungry and to not have sufficient clothing that fit properly. And so at my lowest point,to then have my mother on whom I had become quite emotionally dependent begin spending a great deal of time away from me further compounded my feelings of insignificance. I was still just a bit too young to roam the streets after dark like my older brother...so I spent a lot of time at home alone.

When I watch this video...

I wonder what in the world I had to dance about!

And then it hit me...

I was playing the best cards I had in front of the one person I loved the most in the whole world! And despite everything wrong that had happened in my life up to that point in that moment,I chose to dance!

To block out everything else and focus on the only thing I felt had the potential to save me...

His love!

In my mind I was just doing what I'd always done...performing!

But what I was really doing was sort of the ultimate act of defiance.

I was in effect saying to the circumstances of my life,

You have not defeated me, you've thrown just about everything you could at me.

And guess what? I'm still dancing!

Isaiah 54:17

No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tongue that shall rise against thee in judgment thou shalt condemn. This is the heritage of the servants of the Lord, and their righteousness is of me, saith the Lord.

It still inspires me...But what happened after that? You'd think that someone with that sort of "sand" would probably go far in life. I think what happened to me, and what happens to a lot of other people too is that we eventually become convinced that there's nothing in this life worth dancing (or smiling) for!

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fHZ4kgOzpyU&w=420&h=315]

When the subject of my education comes up what happened is no surprise considering I'd been a dedicated addict for almost six years at the age of 17. What I struggle to understand is why my school counselors and administrative staff chose to ignore what was happening. I attended a vocational course in the mornings which I was bused to and from daily and then spent the afternoons in various classes. As that last semester of my junior year came to a close I believe I was simply overwhelmed by the assignments which were due. Not knowing quite how to handle that I chose to simply skip the last eight days of afternoon classes...and so I flunked the eleventh grade!

I understand that I wasn't the only "problem child" they were dealing with but I wonder could they of made a phone call to my parents? Aren't there policies in place concerning this type of infraction? One last thing,anyone that reads this who attended my high school or any high school in the seventies for that matter knows what it was like as far as drug use on campus is concerned,and so, after they failed as an institution to provide a safe and secure environment for students to learn in and I become a victim of that I'm appalled that they could then decide that the thing to do is throw me out!

This took place during a time when my mother was going through another divorce from her second husband and we ended up moving from an upper class home in an exclusive neighborhood into a small two bedroom apartment. I did enroll the next year at a different school and lasted maybe a month before my principal at vocational school suggested that what would be best for me would be to quit school and get a GED. I did get a GED, and that was basically the end of my formal education although in truth I believe I learned precious little from formal schooling past the age of about 12.

One of the most common, if not the most common things you'll hear Christian ministers say is "God has a plan for your life" and of course I believe that! I also believe that our enemy has a plan for us too...I'm convinced that on the day I made that walk down the isle and knelt down at an altar to accept Christ as my Lord and Savor there was a celebration in heaven! I also believe there was an emergency board meeting in hell! That meeting's purpose was to put the kibosh on the plans my heavenly Father had for me and subvert the role I was designed to play in ushering in His kingdom.My sense is that there must of been no small amount of surprise and disappointment expressed by the attendee's that their earlier efforts on my behalf had had so little present effect on me.

Knowing that my souls redemption was a done deal at this point, their only remaining option was to try and stop me from doing what I had the God given potential to do and be in Gods Kingdom by whatever means available to them! I mentioned at the beginning the feelings I'd been having and what I thought they were related to. However at this point I'd have to say that they're actually directed at the forces of darkness which have for many years stolen so much from me in this life. Who've worked diligently behind the scenes orchestrating circumstances and events in my life to do towards me what's prescribed in the mission statement below...

John 10:10

The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.

Obviously there's a disconnect between those two premises...

Genesis 50:20

But as for you, ye thought evil against me; but God meant it unto good, to bring to pass, as it is this day, to save much people alive.

These are all life verses to me...

They give me hope,encouragement and peace in the midst of my storms!

Romans 8:28

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.

King David danced before the Lord. Out of joy that the Ark of The Covenant had at last been returned to Jerusalem. David had to go through quite a painful learning process as he endeavored to lay down his will and surrender completely to God. In my life I've been challenged by similar lessons,it seems as though I too was following the example of the Philistines! Learning to trust that God truly does know what He's doing allows me to be able to sit, (or dance) so that He can stand for me! The answers to our problems are still the same for us today as they were for David then! All of us have a God sized hole which can only be filled by drawing closer to Him! By staying focused on The Father, through our Lord who is Love,which is the answer,instead of on our world and it's problems! If we can do that, we can also experience the continual joy of being in the Lords presence!

To me,that's what "learning to dance" means...

The Sacrifice of Praise!

2012-05-15T20:59:00.002-05:00

In our society, if we don't abide by the law, chances are at some point we could find ourselves answering to a higher authority. And then there are laws of physics, far more absolute and impartial, but even they are subject to a "higher law". Here's an example...an airplane is much heavier than air and therefore according to the law of gravity it cannot fly. But when the law of thrust and air flow are introduced into the equation guess what? It flies! Because of the over-riding principles of a "higher law" which has dominion over it,what was impossible becomes possible.

The other day I was talking with a friend and I mentioned how glad I was to be "On this side of the cross". I'd been reading some of the old testament books and was overwhelmed by all the sacrifices they seem to be constantly making. His reply to me was "We still make sacrifices,the primary difference being that everything we do now to honor God has to do with our hearts and not our hands!"

And he was right!

Mankind is still under the law,the wages of sin is still death! And of course the great news is that Christ's death on the cross paid our sin debt freeing us from that penalty! Christ fulfilled the requirements of the law on our behalf and gave "Whosoever Believes" the opportunity to come under a new covenant based on higher precepts,or commandments. Ones that can't be satisfied by anything less than the sacrifice of our own most precious possession...

Our Love!

Jesus told the Apostles this...

John 14:12

Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also; and greater works than these shall he do; because I go unto my Father.

Healing people,feeding thousands with practically nothing,raising the dead,turning water into wine, these are just a few of the things Jesus did! How is it possible for us to do these things which are impossible based on the laws we understand? By understanding a higher law!

1 Peter 2:24

Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed.

Didn't Christ die to redeem us from the curse of sin,sickness and death? If that's true,and I believe it is, then the manifestation of what Jesus said then is possible in the here and now! More than that, it's a foregone conclusion...ye were healed! The victory has been won! We simply must, by faith, acknowledge this truth and the power of the higher law Jesus the Christ died to make available to us!

We're called to proclaim His Kingdom!

Luke 10:8-9

And into whatsoever city ye enter, and they receive you, eat such things as are set before you:And heal the sick that are therein, and say unto them, The kingdom of God is come nigh unto you.

Matthew 4:23

And Jesus went about all Galilee, teaching in their synagogues, and preaching the gospel of the kingdom, and healing all manner of sickness and all manner of disease among the people.

The kingdom Jesus spoke of is a place where there is no sin. No sickness,pain or death. It's a restoration of The Father Gods creation to it's original condition as it was when He pronounced it "Very Good". Not crippled,or sick, or afflicted in any way

Genesis 1:31

And God saw every thing that he had made, and, behold, it was very good. And the evening and the morning were the sixth day.

The gospel is "Very Good News" and I believe that the stronger our grasp is on the reality of the higher law which rules there, the less power the laws of this present, perceived kingdom can have over us! We simply subscribe to a higher truth,Gods truth! We choose to operate in it! Choosing to believe what He says about every aspect of not only our lives but the lives of others and the world as a whole...in short,by our adoption into His kingdom we adopt a whole new belief system that transforms everything about our lives! As a result, we're empowered to speak to the deception's of Satan's kingdom and command them to flee!

Healings, deliverance's, manifested blessings of all kinds!

Wouldn't you like to see that?

I believe it's possible,in truth,I think it's required!

But first, would you give it up for God?

Whatever it is that you love most...

Just like Abraham did with Issac.

Except Gods not asking for your son,

He wants YOU!

To perform a sacrifice of praise, to put your pride on the altar...

And then stand back!

1 Peter 2:5

Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.

Everyone's A Winner!

2012-04-25T13:35:00.001-05:00

Did you buy a ticket in the recent mega-millions lottery? I heard that the odds of winning were somewhere in the neighborhood of being struck by lightning four times and surviving...It's interesting that given those odds that anyone would still participate! Apparently even the remotest possibility of us being a winner has a powerful draw on us. The siren song of the carnival barker seeks out such a hope in each of us. Playing on our vulnerabilities,our insecurities, boldly declaring that...

Everyone's a winner!

But who are the real winners in life?

My guess is that we all know at least one person who based on our own specific criteria we consider to be a winner. There might be a number of factors that cause us to view them as such or perhaps just one thing that proclaims success to us. Untold fortunes have been made by authors, ostensibly trying to help the rest of us to achieve our potential's and thereby enjoy the benefits of being a member of the coveted "winner" club.

I have my own theories as to what's most essential, they go something like this. It occurs to me that all winners have one very important thing in common. They all know in the depths of their being that they are loved! The most successful young adults I've observed are those who're able to remain focused on their life goals instead of being distracted by all of the misguided attempts engaged in by those around them to get this most important need met. Who can deny that this fundamental lacking is the source of many (if not all) problems in young peoples lives.

I've also noticed that people who have a winning attitude seem to fall into two distinct categories. There are those who believe that based on the merits of who they are see themselves as being quite deserving of the love they've received and then those who instead are humbled by the love which has been shown them despite who they are! What's interesting about that to me are the ramifications of these relationship dynamics. One party,believing themselves to be worthy often operates from a place of insecurity while the other,believing the opposite, draws their esteem based on the unconditional love of another which relieves them of the anxiety and insecurity of living up to expectations.Being a winner by the worlds standards can be a very difficult task for most people. I understand that all too well! But what's so wonderful to me is that I can be a real winner through my relationship with God The Father through His Son Jesus Christ! Because I know deep in my soul that I am loved! I'm not anxious about where I stand with Him because His love for me isn't about my worthiness...it's about His nature,it's about who He is, Who once you have an encounter with will end your own misguided questing for love a love that grows more real and true with every passing day!

It's also interesting to me that modern psychology teaches the former,

while Gods word teaches the latter...

I'm going to go out on a limb and make a few unqualified statements.

I believe that everyone wants to be a winner!

I believe that everyone IS loved!

Not based on transient things or superficial qualities,

but for no other reason than for just "showing up"

If only we could all know it...

That everyone IS a winner!

EVEN YOU!

Bless This Mess!

2012-02-28T21:53:00.000-06:00

Have you ever seen a tongue and cheek petition like the one on the left displayed in the home of someone you know? Have you ever felt as if those words might be a pretty fair description of your own circumstances?

I know I have!

Sometimes the pace of the work in progress known to me as my spiritual life seems painfully slow or to even be moving in the wrong direction!Named among my numerous transgressions are things such as mean spiritedness or being judgmental and becoming quickly irritated or impatient with people or things I interact with daily. As much as I don't like those aspects of my personality, what's far more disturbing to me is my own tolerance,nay comfort with them!

It's a bit of a mess...

One the most difficult,and yet most important things about being a follower of Christ I've struggled with is how a Holy God could love a very un-holy sinner like me...There are exceptions, but for the most part Love as I've been able to understand it is about deserving or qualifying for it in some way.In this world we pick winners and losers,we analyze and judge people constantly choosing to love in others the "good" aspects we recognize in ourselves. At it's core it's selfish and based on lies fed to us via our own personal self-exhalation express the ego. We rationalize their validity based on societal dogma, which is nicely packaged and fed to us under headings such as self esteem and positive affirmation. The truth is the only real basis for "self" esteem any of us can actually claim is that we're loved by our omnipotent Heavenly Father!

That's it!

That's our "claim to fame"

And it's much more than enough!

Why?

Because it's a claim that's based on something real, real because it's unthreatenable! It doesn't change or cease to be for any reason. All of the things we esteem in this world will fade away or can be lost in an instant, but NOT Gods love!

Recently I read a status on FB which said that God works through imperfect people and circumstances to accomplish His purposes. My reply was,

"Is there any other kind?"

Our Father loves each of us Just the way we are...

Warts and all

But He loves us too much to just leave us that way!

His death on the cross was a victory over sin and death that was done on our behalf, that we may have eternal life. I also believe that the power of His shed blood gives Christian's the opportunity to claim that victory over their own here and now life circumstances

Truly, we're all a bit of a mess!

How wonderful is it then,that...

Jesus is the Great Mess-iah!!

Emmanuel עמנואל, “God is with us” Part III

2012-01-11T11:02:00.002-06:00

If we could, for even just a day, have our eye's opened to all of the many way's in which God intercedes for each of us on personal level perhaps we'd better understand Paul's seemingly impossible exhortation here...

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18 Rejoice evermore.Pray without ceasing In every thing give thanks: for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus concerning you.

Maybe that means keeping a deer from running out in front of your vehicle. It might mean keeping any uncontrolled cell growth which commonly exists within each of our bodies from becoming cancerous.

Recently, it was the job I didn't get that I'm thankful for!

I had applied for an over the road driving job with a smaller company who ran regional freight. During the ensuing interview which seemed to go very well I remember the owner telling me that because of how junky his equipment was I would have to drive around scales and that I would be paid on a percentage of what the load paid. Despite both of those pieces of really bad news I filled out the application he gave me and faxed it back to him ready to work if and when he called!

But he never did...

So I called another company that I had been considering who I knew ran first class equipment but who also ran a much bigger territory. I was hesitant about my ability to meet their expectations because it had been over four years since I drove on that level. The thing is,God didn't really leave me any other options! Getting back into the transportation industry with no recent experience is difficult so I was ready to take anything...

but I was also well...afraid!

I struggle with anxiety and fear quite a bit, it's one of the biggest areas my Heavenly Father is helping me to grow in! Mostly by protecting me from things that would overwhelm me totally, other times by just being close to me in the midst of any circumstances that I feel threatened by. What faith is to me is knowing that God had control of my circumstances yesterday, and so therefore also has my today and tomorrow under control as well!

Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

That's what this verse means to me...It's also why I'm so thankful! There's nothing as empowering and fear squashing as knowing that the omnipotent God who created the heavens, the earth, and all that is,is with you and that He cares about YOU!

Does that mean nothing bad ever happens to me?

We all know that "Stuff Happens" don't we...

The question most people have is when does the "stuff" STOP happening?

It stops when GRACE happens! When we come to the place where we can truly say,

"Father, not my will but yours be done"

and mean it...

Several years ago I was driving along in my truck near Jamestown N.Y. on hyw 87 on my back west after doing four drops earlier in the day. I had heard that the D.O.T. was setting up in the rest areas inspecting trucks so I was very leery of being inspected. It was later in the evening, maybe 8pm,and usually they quit inspecting at dark so I thought I was home free…then I saw it,the flashing yellow lights on the roadside sign,”surely this is some kind of construction warning” I thought,but as I drew closer startled panic settled on me as the words “all trucks must enter” assaulted my unbelieving eye's! I was trapped and there was nothing I could do…no ramp to pull off of and “fix it” so with cold resignation I pulled off onto the ramp twoard the man waving his flashlight holding hand at me.What else could I do but accept the fact that I was screwed,perhaps my full cooperation and good attitude would as they had so many times before see me thru,I doubted it.As I pulled to a stop he stepped up onto my side step and spoke to me,

How’re we doing tonight? Oh,I’m doing fine I guess...What’re you hauling? Nothing, I’m empty. Well, have a good evening then!

And that was the extent of it, I hauled out of there on an adrenaline high that would entice any skydiver,or cause a lion tamer to stare curiously in wonder,not yet ready to dip my chip in the “crock of life” I’d just been handed,it just seemed un-real to me. Why did ‘nt he at least ask to see my log book? thats S.O.P. basic stuff,you look at the driver,gauge his condition,look at his book,and then if all seems right,you send him on,or if,as was the case here,you’re not at all busy,just send him inside anyway for the 3rd degree check,you know,wanted/warrents/unpaid tickets/child support un returned library books,lol really! but he did’nt,so I’m driving down the road thinking, WOW! that could have been a whole weeks salary down the tubes but for some reason which I can’t explain I just walked thru the fire without so much as a mark on me…Does the Lord work in mysterious ways? did he know that if I would have been shut down/fined etc…that it might break my spirit? someday I’d like to ask him.

Emmanuel עמנואל, “God is with us” Part II

2012-01-01T21:11:00.001-06:00

Long before the first wisp of chimney smoke makes it's way up the flue and is carried along on the chilly November breeze to our olfactory senses, the preparations have already begun. With the passing of the oppressive summer heat and the previous vocational opportunities it afforded me I made new plans. It's fall,and so it's time for me to shift gears once again...

Literally!

Working in the logging woods is one of the cornerstones of the local economy where I live employing perhaps half of the local people in various capacities. In the past six years my involvement has been in nearly every aspect of it at one time or another.I've operated sawmills,skidded logs,hauled logs and sawed out products such as railroad ties and "cants". However,one thing I'd never done before was haul bulk logs on a "pole trailer" which is basically a very long piece of steel pipe with log stakes attached.

looks like fun doesn't it?

Well let me tell you it's not...At least not for me it wasn't!

The reality of the dangerous nature of the work I was doing combined with the questionable mechanical integrity of the equipment I was operating was the source of much anxiety for me. Hauling the massive loads of logs to the local mills was also problematic in that I was sure any DOT officer worth his salt would certainly shut me down and ticket me based on the numerous safety compliance violations of said vehicle.

But what a blessing...I immediately made a renewed commitment to praying!

I did it before leaving,quite often during the trip,and then I thanked God after and despite all of the aforementioned complications I was able to be quite successful. From my perspective God was faithful to me in so many ways during this time. A specific example of Gods favor toward me was that despite the fact that I was carrying very heavy loads on some very thin trailer tires over roads full of sharp rocks I only had one flat tire! If I'd of had that flat on the state highway instead of on the gravel road where it did happen it definitely would've been a much bigger deal! It happened right in front of this old country church which gave me the opportunity to check it out and take some really neat pictures of it's interior! I've had people tell me it's a symptom of being delusional to place unwarranted significance upon chance occurrences or to read too much into what is most likely just coincidence and I understand that...but when you're hauling a load of logs down a two lane hilly,curvy road and you experience a sudden loss of power due to a lack of fuel and then at the last moment before you stall out in the road you see a perfect place to pull over it's hard to just brush it off as luck...over and over again

I wonder if they understand that?

Emmanuel עמנואל, "God is with us" (part 1)

2011-12-14T08:15:00.001-06:00

That seems to be the only possible title for a post that endeavors to describe the many ways in which God's been faithful to me in the past year...I truly am the grateful recipient of His grace which is defined as the unmerited favor of God.

What else can I say?

He loves me!

It's the only way I can begin to understand how my family has once again very comfortably "made it" through another year! Especially a year like this past one in which so many were negatively affected. As it draws to a close and I look back on the many ways Gods cared for us I feel many emotions. First of all I'm humbled,and then I'm bewildered at His love for me. It's hard to truly understand what I mean unless you're someone like myself who is at times perhaps a bit more "human" than most in that I have a history of making more than my share of mistakes and bad choices. Most people find it pretty easy to explain away the "near miss" or disregard what could've happened under slightly different circumstances but I can't. I suppose that's because I've seen it happen so many times or perhaps it's because I've been "blessed" to see myself so clearly for who and what I really am without Him.

It's been quite a year for me, the job I had at the beginning of the year ended when the teenage girl I was working as support staff for flipped out one day and took an overdose of her prescription drugs. It was quite traumatic for everyone involved, afterwards everyone was put under investigation by the department of mental health. I was cleared of any charges of neglect,which is a very big deal and I was extremely relieved. I knew I hadn't done anything wrong but I also know that people get wrongly blamed for stuff all the time.

Thank You God!

My next job was a blessing in it's self. I worked over the summer for the Eleven Point River canoe rental outfitter in my hometown shuttling people down to the river to go on float trips!

It was a great experience for me to meet so many interesting people and to be able to play a part in their summer fun! Where I live is such a beautiful place and I never grew tired of introducing others to it's wonders. Oh,and on top of all that I got paid for it!

God...You're my rock,and you ROCK!

Among the things I'm most thankful for this year I have to include being invited to join a small study/worship group which meets at a friend's home nearby. For a while prior to that I had stopped going to church. I soon found the groups emphasis on study and open discussion as well as the great time of fellowship we shared to be just what was missing!

It's wonderful to come together with other Christian's and really be the church to those in need in your own community. That's what attracted me to become involved with an organization called One Hope Outreach located in my hometown of Springfield, Mo. They're focus is helping homeless people find permanent housing and empowering them to make positive changes in their lives. This photo was taken at a fundraiser which was held at a local restaurant.

Thank You Father for meeting ALL of my needs, both physical and spiritual! Thank You for giving my life meaning and purpose!

I Think You Know

2011-10-24T21:07:00.000-05:00

I've always thought that one of the things I do best is to understand (and sometimes explain) abstract concepts. I'm certainly not a concrete linear thinker so that's all that's "left" right?

Today,as I reclined in my chair, lost in the serenity of the view outside my window Ihad one of those disoriented moments...It happened as I was making the transition. It was a moment in which the perceived insanity of this world seemed so clearly juxtaposed against the peace and tranquility of the world I had drifted off into,and like going from hot to cold the effects were magnified.

My next thoughts were analytical and seemed to question the authenticity of what I was experiencing and it's relevance to anyone besides myself but the case was quickly lost. I knew it was more than just my own egocentric flattery... No,the observance of this familiar topography was a product of months,perhaps even years, of subversive confoundment at the perfect storm of circumstances that seemed to not only be following me but hanging over the whole world as well!

One very dark cloud that's predominant characteristic or quality lies in the inability of anyone to put their finger directly upon it

I've noticed that everyday the water seems to get muddier. That with each new shocking headline or catastrophe I become a little more jaded. With the advent of each new previously unthinkable event we're forced to redefine what is reality.Have you ever wondered "What next?" And then,wanting to turn directly towards that roaring sound you hear creeping up on you, you begin to move only to be halted by your sternest inner parental tone barking out for you to do anabout face back towards "reality"? Often it's accompanied or supported by another inner voice espousing the convincing logic of continuity, the notion that what hashappened will always continue on and on,and to think otherwise is well...foolish

2 Peter 3:3-4

Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts,⁴And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.

To me it's no mere coincidence that this is also the concept science bases much of what it espouses to be true upon. That this is the threshold of truth used as a platform for hypothesis and theory to explain practically everything. Be it carbon dating or that most sacred of scientific cow's "the speed of light" both of which have faced a re-examination in recent years. The crisis then becomes a cliche, it's almost like saying,

"What if everything you know is wrong?"

Am I being overly abstract even for me, painfully esoteric and annoyingly cryptic?

All apologies...

I've chosen to write this primarily for myself, if someone else gets it then great. It's simply a situation that's increasingly difficult for me to abide with and so my hope is that by exploring it here I can perhaps put a finger on it or give it a name. In the past I've railed against what I perceive as the hypocrisy of institutionalized religion that's become an "I've got mine" Christian social club or the pridefully motivated law keeping that would do the Pharisee's proud! But that's not really it. It's so much broader, and yet it can take the form of small annoying things that seem out of balance or somehow just wrong in your life...like living someplace where flies seem to outnumber humans by 10,000 to 1 or too much month left at the end of the money...

My annoyances and inconveniences seem petty when I look around and see the interminable struggle just to live that's faced by so many here on this blue and green spinning ball. Reconciling those realities is like trying to ignore some 800lb existential gorilla in the room or not be shocked at an emperor without any clothes. It's an out of whack reality that can unexpectedly slap you in the face evenin your favorite chair or anywhere that the illusion is strong enough, accepted as the norm or thought of as just the way it is...

I'm simply trying to relate how in one moment

I was startled to see through the illusion.

James 3:15-17

¹⁵This wisdom descendeth not from above, but is earthly, sensual, devilish. ¹⁶For where envying and strife is, there is confusion and every evil work.¹⁷But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, and easy to be intreated, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality, and without hypocrisy.

To some who read this what I'm saying will make little sense. Others may relate,acknowledging the new status quo of confusion and deception. It's probably not any revelation to many that this world is going to pot,

but what I'm pointing at is how, on a very personal level,

I feel the effects of what's happening!

How sometimes it still takes me by surprise.

like the frog in a pot eventually looking around as if to say,

"Isn't it getting hot in here?"

What in the world am I talking about?

It's really no great matter unless it leaves you different than you were before

Different in what way?

I think you know...

The Presentation

2011-09-06T19:39:00.000-05:00

A young woman is introduced by the pastor and spends a couple of minutes talking about One Hope Outreach and then introduces me to the congregation using sort of a hesitant "despite my better judgement" tone. Music cue: (Gimme Shelter by the Stones plays) I walk on stage, take off my jacket and walk to the front, taking the microphone in hand I begins to speak.

Hello! Thank you pastor for allowing us to come today,I want to thank you young lady for that introduction and of course all of you for taking the time today to learn more about what's happening in your community. It's really great to see you all here, I mean, you have no idea what it's like to walk out here to an empty room! But I'm not here to talk about MY issues, instead the issues I'd like to talk about concern people in our community who for various reasons have no permanent housing, and what organizations like One Hope and others are doing to put an end to that. When I was first asked to do this I was excited at the idea of doing anything I could to help, but within a couple of minutes after I hung up the phone my excitement turned to anxiety..."What would I say? What could I possibly say that would raise peoples level of awareness or concern and perhaps encourage them to join us in our mission to make a difference?" As I sat there thinking I was reminded of a joke I had heard about a church congregation who were having services when a group of masked gunmen burst in brandishing automatic weapons and in a loud and menacing voice declared to the crowd...

"Alright, we're going to kill all of you except those who don't know Jesus and who aren't sure where they're going when they die...those people can leave!"

Well, about 90% of the congregation hurriedly got up and crowded out the exits and when they had gone the gunmen whips off his mask, turns and locks the sanctuary doors behind them and says

"Okay, I just had to do that...NOW we can really have church!"

I felt a sense of relief come over me as I began to understand that there are, and always will be, a certain percentage or group of people in the church who are committed to serving in Jesus' name, who're typically responsible for most of the real work done in the church. I felt much more confident knowing that nothing I could possibly say was likely to change that! No, that's not my job... My job is to talk to those people, the people who truly understand what Jesus has done for them, who know that He's the source of all their blessings, and who want to be the people He uses to reach out to those in need around them. I'm here to talk about solutions, and about beginning the process towards seeing changed lives for Gods Kingdom and His glory. I believe that process starts with understanding. Understanding that there's a harvest of souls right in our front yard waiting for workers to pick it! I know that the church already does a great deal to address dis-located people but when I look around I still see ripe fields, I believe the church could do so much more so what's the problem? Of course when I thought about that I began to recognize a familiar tactic of our enemy the father of lies that we should also understand! He's working overtime distorting the real reasons behind this problem, conspiring contempt and keeping people from feeling the compassion needed and from walking in the faith and trust of our Lord! No, he doesn't want that...and so today I'd like to take this opportunity to come against those lies by confronting them head on with truth!

Join with me in prayer that we will be the victors in this battle, in asking that our enemy would be bound and cast out of this place by the power of the blood of Christ, that eye's would be opened to the truth about the harvest before us that so urgently needs workers and that strongholds of hate,intolerance and willful ignorance would be broken Father in Jesus' name we ask it and for your glory to be shown through it...amen!

Going back to my preparation, I wondered how I could do this. I wondered how I could help people to better understand the causes of homelessness and dispel some of the misconceptions about people who find themselves without permanent shelter and I kept drawing a blank. I've always found that I learn quicker if I can see an example of something. And unfortunately, I also have a tendency to forget it unless it involves some sort of pain...you too? Well, I was still coming up short and as the time drew near to come here today I just decided to wing it, trusting that somehow the Holy Spirit would lead me into all truth so now I'm just going to wait on him.

well this is awkward...

I jam both my hands into my pants pockets and look around at the ceiling, pull one hand out and look at my nails, using both hands I hold them out to my side palms up in the non-verbal "I don't know" posture. I then reach out with my right hand and take hold of the podium and begin to lean on it which immediately collapses causing me to fall onto the floor of the platform.

I'm okay! I'm not hurt, boy that's the last made in China podium I'm buying!

You know, no one will ever convince me that God doesn't have a sense of humor or that He doesn't know how to get through to someone as dense as me!

Lets see, Illustrative example...check!

Pain involved...check!

Thank You Father!

Here's the message I got from that...

All of us depend on things to support us, not just podiums...I'm talking about jobs, relationships, maybe even a talent we posses or whatever! We lean on these things for years and then one day they go away. The job we had for 20 yrs, our spouse who provided for us so well leaves us or dies, things change without our permission! Situations we thought we had control over can leave us shattered by their abrupt change or disappearance. Many of us have experienced this type of circumstance in our lives and however difficult it might of been, we have, over time, and with the help and support of those who chose to come alongside us in our time of need made a recovery! If you've been through one of these life changing experiences I need not tell you the immeasurable value of a support network of friends,family,church,community, you may of even said it at some point "Well, I just don't know what I would've done had it not been for X" or "God only knows what might've happened had I not had the help I needed from Y" Friends, I invite you to stare into the abyss of "what could've been" for just a moment and see yourself without the benefit of a kind word spoken in love when you needed it. Without the "day saving" financing that kept you from disaster or imagine a life without the self satisfaction you enjoyed for all those years as a result of a "good job" you were blessed to have. Does the phrase "But for the grace of God, there go I" take on any new relevance for you? can you see the hypocrisy of our judgement's towards each other?You might say, "But they made bad decisions and need to suffer the consequences of them" Yes, they did! but no more than I did when I chose to lean against that podium, I did it based on it's previous history of an ability to support me and a gazillion other people! It seems pretty disrespectful to those who stood in the gap for us and to the immeasurable grace and blessings of our loving heavenly Father for us to take that mantle of honor entirely onto ourselves as if we're truly some sort of "self made man"...What sort of hog-wash is it that enables us to look down our noses at others who's only crime was to have never been shown the sort of love that was shown to us? Or to have been born without whatever it is we posses which by it's use our lives have been sustained and enriched?

Don't misunderstand me, I do believe that we're all responsible for the choices we make in this life but lets take a closer look at that word "choices".

What sort of a choice is it between apple or cherry pie for desert? simple?,qualified? informed? of little consequence?

As opposed to something like who we marry, or what we choose for a career, How about our friends? My point is we have to make some of the most important decisions in our lives when we're the least capable of doing so. Some people are just blessed with extraordinary common sense and need very little help to make good choices for themselves, but as for the rest of us, we owe a great amount to those who parented us,counseled us,mentored us,coached us,and inspired us to make good choices! We can honor the investment they made in our lives by paying it forward to someone else, we can choose to suspend our judgments about people whose lives we know nothing about and simply assume that no one just gets up out of bed one morning and says,

"How can I really screw up my life today?

No, that's not how it works...trust me, I know!

Because. . technically. . . I am considered a "homeless" person.

I lost my home due to a foreclosure in 2009, but Iwas fortunate enough to be able to move in with a close relative. Due to the fact that I haven't been able to regain my financial stability since then I'm currently still living there with my wife and daughter. There are three common categories of homelessness, sheltered,unsheltered, or "doubled up". My living situation is the later.

I guess I am here to talk about my own issues after all...

Wintertime will be here in a matter of weeks, my family and many others who aren't as fortunate as us are in desperate need of overnight warming shelters where we can escape the cold winter night's to come...

Can you help?

Since it's beginning One Hope Outreach has been a grass roots organization whose mission it is to catch those people in our community that may of otherwise fallen through the cracks. They've helped many to find temporary shelter and recently even permanent homes and they really need your financial support to continue this work.

You may not know it, but when we as Christians see an opportunity to help those in need and respond to it we're preaching the Gospel to our world. We preach this good news in a way that they can easily understand because we're using the universal language of love!

I urge you to let your actions speak loudly today!

Thank you.

How Do I Know?

2011-08-15T16:53:00.001-05:00

A story was told to me many years ago about love. About how when we're truly loved by someone whom we see as being wonderful the effect is transcendent. We're lifted up, empowered, the phrase used in the story I heard was...

If I said it was because of the way He so faithfully provides for the physical needs of my family and I, which I believe He does, I wouldn't be able to explain why it is that God loves everyone but some in this world go without.

I could say that I know God loves me because He sent His Holy Spirit to be a guide and counselor to me who leads me in all things but His Spirit is like the wind. You can't actually see it...even though you can easily see it's effects!

Would it be easier for people to understand how I know if they could experience His peace? If instead of feeling anxious about their circumstances,both present and future,they could cast their cares upon Him knowing He cares for them?

That's a lot of "If''s" in one sentence...

I used to walk through life carrying heavy burdens that I couldn't put down! I know Jesus loves me because He took my burden of condemnation and sin and made me free!

What about the way Jesus is working in my life to heal me from all of the wounds I've suffered from the weapons formed against me by my enemy, continually transforming me by the renewing of my mind...

Would my testimony be convincing?

Oh I know! It's the joy I feel in my life which is the fruit of His Spirit! It's very attractive to others but can be so difficult for them to accept because it's a gift!

All of us have placed our faith in something. Mostly in the things we can see like science,technology,and of course people! Every time we pay attention to anything we give it tribute and power in our lives. If we place our faith in Christ it can be said of us that though we may be in this world we're not of it.

Our faith is the only requirement for us to receive our Father's real love! But have you ever tried to explain what love is to someone? If so,you no doubt know it's futility.I can tell you how much God loves you, I can show you in His word how He's shown it, I can let His love shine through me for you to see, I can show you a world of miracles based on His love for you, but would it be enough?

The choice belongs to each of us,to decide what it is we believe.

Of course the responsibility for those choices is ours as well!

Into The Mystic?

2011-08-15T16:45:00.000-05:00

Would it surprise you at all if I told you how thankful I am to have the limited amount of intelligence I posses? On my better days I'm a person to whom humility comes easily and who harbors few if any misgivings about his place in the grand scheme of things. I suspect it was a product of his own similar revelation and his subsequent observations of me that my father once said,

"Son, you don't have to be really smart in this world if you have smart people around you"

His words stung a little then but now serve as a confirmation to me of a blessing that has in may ways characterized my life and that's helped me to be more comfortable in the many supporting roles I've played since.

Genesis 3:22
And the LORD God said, Behold, the man is become as one of us, to know good and evil: and now, lest he put forth his hand, and take also of the tree of life, and eat, and live for ever

Knowledge can actually be a curse, look what happened to Adam after he "got smart" via the fruit of the forbidden tree! I think God is saddened by what's happened, it's as if He understands what a burden it is to know, to understand, and that as a result man will now be held responsible to choose good over evil...

Can you not see how much better off Adam was before just being

"dumb and happy" ?

In a recent post I wrote about our freedom in Christ and how Christians have allowed a spirit of fear and deception to keep them from experiencing any possible benefit or blessing from things like yoga,the martial arts, or even performances by theatrical magicians and I still believe that. I understand dancing is now considered "okay" as well...However, when it comes to things like Christians practicing Transcendental Meditation or being involved with any other altered consciousness producing practices I think you're on very shaky ground and through your own freewill are in danger of coming under their mastery and of being in an idolatrous relationship. It's more likely to be a person who's real god is intelligentsia who comes to see themselves as some sort of "mystic" Christian. People who because of their vanity, pride and egocentric perspective have moved out to form a new Christian elite of super apostles enabled to be our metaphysical snake handlers, qualified by Christ no doubt to handle things that would cause the rest of us to stumble...

After all, they're the Most Holy People of God!

I write about things that are personal to me and this topic is certainly no exception. I struggle with my own rebellious folly but thankfully I'm not smart or creative enough to come up with the necessary lies and perverted logic which would allow me to continue in it's pursuit. No, I'm a real amateur compared to people like Thomas Merton who laid the groundwork that "enlightened" generations of free thinking people! People who are, both then and now, spiritually seeking and who because the church was asleep at the wheel or busy organizing a bingo game somewhere were left without a proper challenge to this heresy which seemed to meet that need . I've noticed that people refer to him as a spiritual visionary. A so called Christian mystic who sought to bring together all of the worlds major faiths and traditions. Sounds good right but there's so much more! I believe that in the very near future it's going to be people such as Merton who will be the new age metaphysical apologists for the anti-christ and his one world religion!

When I first began thinking of writing on this subject I wondered if there were any real or legitimate examples of what could be considered Christian mystics. What about John of Patmos the writer of the final book of the bible Revelation? St. John of The Cross who's writings so many Christians find inspiration and comfort in? And in conclusion I think the answer has to be yes! But I don't think they're the pretentious, self-important, whack jobs that are attempting to pass themselves off as such today!

But what do I know? I'm just dumb and happy!

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cpPSBzGEklE&w=425&h=349]

Get Closer

2011-08-15T16:43:00.001-05:00

Several weeks ago I read a post by a woman explaining why her stock answer to anyone who had needs or problems of any kind was for them to simply "get closer" to God. In my heart I understood the truth of what she was saying but I also understood how someone might react incredulously or see it as a trite or flippant answer. Since then I've discovered many other bits of wisdom and insight as I browsed various social media sources that seemed to speak to the same issue. Like this one...

If, for you, belief requires "a leap of faith," you are not yet near God. In his presence, there is no gap to leap over.

The video I posted in my previous blog also spoke about Christian people having a much deeper relationship with our Father through Christ and The Holy Spirit.

I think I'm starting to get the message!

As followers of Christ, as vessels of His Holy Spirit, as heirs through our adoption and with Christ as the firstborn, what I believe God's wanting us to do is to be His presence, to carry His glory with us in this world, to shine brightly into as many darkened lives as we can and to live lives of victory over sin! In all of the challenges we face, not only in our lives but also in those of people we encounter everyday I think God does simply want us to take authority in Jesus' name over sin sickness and death! What's most important is that we abide in Him and He in us, all of the stuff in our lives that's purpose is to distract us from His peace will only continue if we decide to focus on it instead!

I absolutely love what Jesus says here!

John 17:21-23
²¹That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.²²And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:²³I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.

If reading that doesn't leave you feeling empowered you may want to check your "spiritual pulse"

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E_NdTYcUvr4&w=560&h=349]

In His Presence!

2011-06-17T06:22:00.003-05:00

In the past few weeks just prior to Pentecost Sunday and in the partial week since it seems as though I've been thinking, talking, writing, reading blogs, articles and "tweets" about, watching video's, and listening to other people talk...

all about the same thing!

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CfnHT3sJrCU&w=425&h=349]

(Check out the video on youtube)

It's just like Bill says in this video, between bites of lunch...It's a move of the Spirit, a fresh presence of Jesus one can only describe as an "encounter". Jesus is showing up in miraculous ways and reaching out to His Church, to the people who are truly seeking Him and who are dependent upon His Holy Spirit to empower them for His mission works which are to begin within the church first and move out from there. Some are being healed, others delivered from crippling emotional wounds, still others from stagnant and prideful religiosity, The mission is the same, it's a great co-mission between Gods Holy Spirit, Jesus and through us to deliver the captives! The miracle is that none of the weapons formed against Gods children can prosper in His Holy presence which is being poured out, He causes the lame to walk and the blind to see! The manifestation is His Glorious light and His presence that we carry with us into this dark, and dead world!

It's said that fear is the beginning of wisdom, in that verse to fear means to be in awe of who God is. We're taught that no sin can come into the presence of a Holy God and I believe that's true but why? After all, Satan is the father of lies but didn't Satan come before God to talk to Him about Job? Could it be that our misunderstanding of this is whats keeping us from experiencing a life changing fullness of His presence? When we finally come to a place where we know what we are and seek to repent be forgiven, are we still afraid to come into His presence because of our attention wrongly being placed on the sin's of our past and those we're yet to commit, on OUR profound unworthiness instead of His agape love? What if the reason no sin can be in Gods presence is simply because of how much it breaks His heart? Some don't believe God has feelings and that the descriptions of such in His word are allegorical and simply for the benefit of our understanding but I don't agree! All of us love our children, can you imagine having them paraded before you in any condition other than being in perfect health and how that would affect you?

I AM THE GREAT AND POWERFUL OZ!

I think some people's perception of God and the idea of being in His presence are scary thoughts because they imagine the experience being something similar to that of Dorthy in The Wizard Of Oz!

Surely at some point in your life you've encountered a stray dog who's been severely mistreated by people. Even though it may be starving and you're holding out food to give to it, it will approach you with fear and almost against it's own will,with it's head down ready to run at the first sign of your displeasure. Sadly, because of their life experiences that's how many people feel about love and so consequently they also feel that way about approaching God who actually IS love!

I want a visitation, a personal encounter with Jesus! Like the Israelites I want to pass over the Jordan into the presence of His blessing and rest. Joshua Made two piles of stones that day to mark the significance of what had happened, the first one on the bank from smooth river rocks that were taken out of the Jordan and another in the middle of the river where the ark stood as the entire nation walked past. I believe the stones he used to make the second pile were gathered from the land and were in a much rougher sharper condition than the smooth ones he first used, their roughness symbolizing our present sinful condition. The smoothness of first stones was the result of the influence of the water, placing them in the river represents the Holy Spirit's work on our hearts of stone and just as it was with the Israelites who did cross over into Canaan it took an act of faith to make the waters part and repentance or the circumcision of their hearts to enter in! Through my experiencing the presence of Jesus and His wondrous love, I too must leave my own sin or "Egypt" behind before I can cross over into and all He has waiting on the other side for me!

Scratch That Itch!

2011-05-28T12:00:00.003-05:00

I remember one Sunday morning a few years back. My family and I were suck at home because of car trouble ans so we were having home church which was being led by my daughter. She had prepared a short message that she shared on what it means to have a relationship with Jesus. I thought it was pretty good for an eight year old and after she finished we talked a little more and thats when this analogy occurred to me.

I asked her,

"What if someone cleaned your room when it was so messy that there was no way that you could ever do it yourself! Picked up all your toys, made your bed, vacuumed the rug, we're talking immaculately clean! And then, after they were finished they leaned against the door frame and just watched you because they love you and enjoy seeing you play in your restored to order room. Would it change how you played? Would you try your best to keep it that way and never let it get dirty like it was before? If you answered yes then know something about what it means to have a relationship with Jesus!"

Since that day I've continued to search for answers to my own questions about what it means to live your life in Gods Presence. The subject of how we are to live as Christians is one that plays out daily in the many details and choices we all face. I know that there will come a time when my simple analogy to my daughter will no longer suffice and so I want to be ready when perhaps she'll come to me saying,

"I want to honor God in this way but I'm afraid some people might not understand"

I want her to know then as she did before that the reason God always has His eye's on her isn't because He's watching to see if she does wrong, it's because He loves her so much that He can't take His eye's off her!

I also hope she know's that in her relationship with Jesus there's an intimacy between her heart and His and that He understands her motives. His judgments are based in a love that not only "thinketh" no evil but one that,

1 Corinthians 13:7
Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.

I don't want her to live her life as if she's automatically guilty by association if she should become involved with things that might be thought of as being inappropriate for Christians.

I've dug myself quite a hole there, here's what I mean...

There are some who might see a person being involved with the Martial Arts as such based on it's links to Eastern philosophies and Buddhism. I just hope they don't try to sell that to Chuck Norris who's Kick Start program has helped thousands of kids find their way out of drug's and gang's and put their lives on the right track! I can't imagine a Christian having any objection to other Christians participation in the Olympic's even though originally they were intended as a competition to honor the Greek god Zeus! And Christmas? Oh come on! Ironically, in the two predominant holidays Christians observe there's more Pagansymbolism than there is Christian, does that mean we should stop celebrating them? I know at least a few that have for just those reasons...

If, in an effort to maintain the temple of the Holy Spirit which our bodies are to be we decide to employ the stretching exercises used in Hatha Yoga I hope we aren't shunned or looked down upon by other church members. Also, if your faith is such that you find exercise threatening to it perhaps yoga's not your real problem. I'm saddened that I can't tell people the whole story of how God has revealed His plan of redemption in the stars starting with Virgo the Virgin and ending with Leo the Lion of Judah's return without people thinking I'm a heretic of some kind because of the acceptance of our enemies perversion in our minds of yet another of Gods precious gifts to us!

Romans 12:21
Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good.

Several years ago I attended a revival given by a local church, during the service the kids were entertained down stairs by a Christian magician. Should I have turned around and left because of not wanting my child to be exposed to the occult? Some Christian's would say YES! Even though no where in the Bible does it say anything about theatrical magic being forbidden!

2 Timothy 4:3
For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;

I thought Id just go ahead and get this verse of scripture into the mix as well, according to the Strong's Concordance Itching ears are those which are "desirous of hearing something pleasant" as opposed to sound doctrine which is defined as,

a) of Christians whose opinions are free from any mixture of error

b) of one who keeps the graces and is strong

I'll leave it to you to decide what I am...or am not, but whatever conclusions you reach regarding me I've said all these things to make a point which is this.

I have an itch to see Gods church rise up in these last days and be all He intended it to be and for it to complete the purpose for which it was established! A burning and uncomfortable itch to see the church cast aside it's fears and it's dogma and allow The Holy Spirit to move among them in whichever way He choses! To stop allowing counterfeit spiritual perversions of practically everything God's given us to keep us from using those real gifts that we must employ if we're going to be the generation that He'll use to bring in the great harvest!

1 Corinthians 8:9
But take heed lest by any means this liberty of yours become a stumbling block to them that are weak.

If more Christian's would get a similar uncomfortable burning itch, and would scratch it, who knows...

We might just have a wildfire on our hands instead of no-fire.

How Dare You?

2011-05-19T12:00:00.003-05:00

Are you an investor? I think it must take a lot of nerve to put large sums of money into stuff and then hope that someday it'll pay off! I suppose it's kind of like the lottery, they say you can't win if you don't play but there are others who believe that you can't lose what you don't bet...I've been told that relationships are work, as if they're a task or a job that has to be done and that may be true...it would explain why so many don't work! I think it's also true that you first must venture something before it's possible to see a return of it, let alone to see a return on it! We sow seeds hoping for a crop and although there's a reasonable expectation of a result it's still not a for sure thing. I'm drawing comparisons here to various things that involve risk so that I can talk about what most people perceive to be the greatest one of all,

loving people!

Allow me to clarify, I feel as though I need to because there are so many concepts people have about what that means. I'm talking about the type of love that can and most likely will cost you everything. The type that never stops to count the cost before acting or that leaves no room for compromise or half measures. It's an all consuming obsession that's primarily characterized by selflessness and a concern for what's in the best interest of it's "object" which of course is so much more than a thing to them...

it's their everything!

Many people practice a much more conditional definition of love as in,

"I love you as long as times are good or until you do something I disapprove of."

Another common example is the idea that I love you until it becomes inconvenient for me or until my feelings for you result in a "heartache" on my part at which point we're through. Some people do see love as an investment, and as such they have some very definite ideas about what they expect in return and while I do believe that love always comes back to us I don't think that anyone truly gives love only because of what they expect to receive in return.

Having said that I'd also like to say that even though expecting a return on our love investment is not in character, that when we do give, sow, invest, or commit ourselves to truly loving someone the return is guaranteed! Perhaps not in the way we might expect or from the person whom we've loved but just as the rising sea levels of a harbor lifts all ships we benefit from bringing more love into the world! Like am electrical wire with current flowing through it, we're warmed by it's passage!

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qM-gZintWDc&w=640&h=390]

I'd like to be able to say that I've loved that way, but what Robin Williams said about loving something more than yourself kind of left me hollow, I find it's quite a struggle for me to love something more than I fear being rejected by it...

I'm also floored to know that this is how God loves each of us, except it's actually so much more than I can even comprehend. He sent His only Son Jesus to be our redeemer even though I'm sure He knew that many would reject this supreme act of love!

Thank You Father for Your infinite love, please change my heart to allow Your love to shine through me more, and for me to see the fear in my life for the liar that it is!

Do I dare?

How dare you?

It's Only Money!

2011-05-09T16:26:00.000-05:00

For anything of real value in this world there's always a counterfeit. Something that has the appearance of the genuine article but is actually nothing but a cheap imitation. It may look, smell or even provide us with comparable performance in the short term but that's usually where the similarities end.

Money is kind of like that, many people often mistake it for love or happiness...

Can you imagine anyone purposely choosing a fake Rolex watch over a real one or a Cubic Zirconia over a real diamond? You might be unaware of it but most if not all of us do something very similar to that on a daily basis! It's evident in some very significant aspects of our lives, from the way we treat each other on a personal level to the corporate structures we patronize. When we purchase food's that have been commercially processed by large corporations we become part of an industry that has little or no respect for life, certainly not for the lives of the animals they inhumanely raise and slaughter or for the lives of the workers they hire for sub-standard wages to work in dangerous pesticide saturated environments and who not surprisingly also have no respect for us either! Is life sacred to you? From my perspective that's a simple yes or no question, and if the answer is yes then the truth of that belief should extend to all life regardless of whether it's born or unborn or walks on two feet or twenty!

Instead of approaching peoples health from a holistic perspective that takes into account the root sources of our maladies which are physical, spiritual and nutritional, we're a nation of people who'd rather choose a pill that only masks the problem by eliminating symptoms to some degree. We're willing participants in a system that disrespects us by seeing our health as a business with profit as the real objective. We'd rather pay the sometimes exorbitant monetary cost and expose ourselves to the possible side effects than do the real thing which no doubt would include us making some of the different food choices and lifestyle changes as well.

Nope, hunt-uh, no thanks!

As I thought about all of this I really struggled to understand why people,myself included, seem to be more comfortable with fake than they are with real...and this is what occurred to me. Maybe it's because before we'd be comfortable with real,which is respectful, caring and is based in ethics we'd have to insist on those same qualities in ourselves...We'd need to have a healthy self respect that wouldn't allow us to be a part of such a thing, or consider doing the unthinkable...caring about others more than ourselves! Give us just one reason to choose something less and we'll swoop down on it like no tomorrow which is smack dab on the doorstep of where this sort of unsustainable thinking has landed us.

We've chosen what we think makes economic sense, and on both a corporate and personal level we've gone with what will make us the biggest profit or save us the most money with not much thought being given to the long term consequences.

1 Timothy 6:10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

I'm certainly not against people making a living and based on Paul's writing in the above verse I don't think he was either. It's placing money or the power it conveys above people, to love it, which is merely a representation of value more than we do others is to sow seeds of sadness into our own lives. What we've failed to understand is that it is truly "Only Money" and that someday, maybe even today, we'll live a life that reflects our accountability for the choices we've made.

Sick and Tired...

2011-05-09T16:22:00.001-05:00

There are always good and bad examples within any industry or profession and here in America our health care system is certainly no exception. However I don't think it would be unfair, or an overstatement to say that the business of health care in this country has gone way beyond that! At the onset I want to make it clear that I have the utmost respect for the many people of integrity who work in the medical field and who's passion it is to ease human suffering. Having said that, my intent here is to heap scorn onto the purveyors of what I see as being the primarily profit motivated, patient abusing quackery so sadly common in this country.

But first, who am I and what are my qualifications, what makes me think I could possibly have anything relevant to say on this topic? My answer is that that is exactly the perspective held by too many people both in and out of the health profession, that we're too dumb to have a valid opinion about our own health or understand there's something wrong when a listing of the side effects following a drug ad takes 20-30 seconds to recite. I'm sorry but it's just hard for me to place a lot of trust in an industry that based on the frequency of it's malpractice supports an army of lawyers or that can't seem to make up their mind about something as simple as an egg! One thing's for sure, our ill's aren't the result of a lack of drugs in our bodies...so how can they cure anything?

The list of things that science has gotten wrong throughout history is a long one. The world wasn't flat, the practice of bleeding people doesn't cure or help anyone, and so, we need to remind ourselves that there's no doubt we've still got a few things wrong today! In another hundred years will they look back at how we currently treat people with mental illness and wince at our crude methods? What about cancer, is it the best we can do to poison ourselves with chemotherapy and hope that it kills the renegade cells before it kills us? And yet some who work in the healing arts have the audacity to be offended when we question whether a prescribed therapy is right for us, seek out a second opinion, or opt for an alternative treatment. It's not the unavoidable ignorance of medical treatment that bothers me the most it's the eye's wide open snake oil peddlers who profit from peoples misery I'm against.

However unlikely the realization of it may seem I believe that the American people must take back responsibility for their health from the existing medical establishment. It's not really the insurmountable task that some might think, many people live long and very healthy lives by following simple principles of balance such as work eight hours, sleep eight and spend the other eight doing something you enjoy! Also why not give our overworked digestive systems a break and cut back on the amount of red meat we consume, I suspect that many peoples lack of energy is in part due to the constant demands placed on our blood supply to digest this habitual over consumption. If we could stop eating anything that's been bleached, overly processed, that contains high fructose corn syrup or comes from a drive through window I believe our collective health would improve so much that it would put big pharma and big agra out of business!

Yes, I'm sick...

Sick of the way people in this country have been brainwashed into self destructing...

And I'm tired of pretending that somehow everything is going to be "okay"...

Next post...It's Only Money!

The American Nightmare

2011-04-28T18:33:00.001-05:00

For me it's sort of an inescapable conclusion that at some point in the future man will look back at what once was the United States and weep. Perhaps he'll be overwhelmed by the loss of what once was,or enraged by the self serving greed that was responsible for it's demise! He may even be dumbfounded that people were so complacent, that they let themselves be used for profit and then be tossed out like garbage afterwards.

Call it what you will, absurd perhaps...negative, unpatriotic?

One thing's for sure, it's bad news!

In this post and in forthcoming installments I'll explain my perceptions of why I feel as though we're headed for the rocks and leave you to draw your own conclusions. While considering how to best accomplish this I was at first discouraged by the scope and complexity of the problem and then also perplexed over deciding which of our national issues to include. My intent is not to be exhaustive or to bombard anyone with more information than most people care to know, but instead to provoke thought and discussion as I casually relate what I perceive to be happening to all of us who call ourselves "Americans".

Where to start?

They say that if you've got your health you've got everything. If you doubt it, simply ask the next terminally ill billionaire you meet which he or she prefers--his or her money or his or her life!

As our nation has become more and more urban and less and less rural something critically important has changed with regard to the average Americans diet and "lifestyle". People stopped growing their own vegetables and raising their own animals opting instead to simply get a job and buy those things from a store. I believe it was called the industrial revolution. Sounds important, doesn't it? We then turned this most important responsibility over to corporations whose primary motive is profit and then somehow we're shocked and disillusioned that they might not live up to the claims they make in their commercials of how they "care about your families health". In fact, the results of this sort of "caring" are the primary precipitating factor to practically every major health problem we have in this country!

We're a nation of over-fed and obese, malnourished people...Huh?

That's right, we consume foods produced under unnatural conditions which are not only practically void of nutrition but are for many reasons outright toxic to us. Our bodies continue to crave nutrition that our foods don't have and so we continue to consume more and more in an attempt to satisfy our needs. What happens is that in this futile process we end up ingesting a incredibly high number of calories we have little or no chance of burning since few of us do very much daily manual labor while sitting at a desk or driving a truck.

Diabetes, Heart Disease, Cancer...

Recently I met a lady from Africa whose mother came here for a visit. When taken to a local grocery store she was at first very impressed with the great abundance and apparent quality of the food she saw but after tasting it her opinion changed. Within weeks she told her daughter that she had to go home because she couldn't eat our food. I believe the reason for her aversion is that she simply knew the difference between the real food she was used to and our fake food! I further believe that food does, or at least should have, "soul ". That love is a tangible ingredient that can be touched and tasted, one that's essential to our health and one that's sadly absent in our food supply! It seems as though in the name of corporate profit we've been duped to the point that we don't, as the lady's mother did, even know the difference!

Exactly who are the expediters of this American nightmare? I'm not afraid to name names....Corporations such as Monsanto,Cargill and Archer Daniels Midland top the list of entities who are out to monopolize our food supply and force feed us nutritionally bankrupt, genetically modified,commercially irradiated, poisonous, substances cleverly disguised as food! It's almost as if our government has pimped out the American people to these food conglomerates, and to the World Health Organization with their "better" ideas such as Codex Alimentarius

But don't be alarmed.

Because we in America have the best ~~health~~ sick care system in the world--

And that's the topic of my next ~~rant~~ blog entitled

"Sick and Tired"

Would You Believe?

2011-03-31T22:17:00.001-05:00

I've often heard it said by people who claim to be atheists that they wish they could believe in God. They go on to explain that for them to do so would require them to disregard the whole of science and conventional wisdom and to reject all that they believe about mans past,present and future.

And they're unable to do that.

I know people who've made a public profession of faith in Jesus Christ who claim to have trusted the care of their eternalsouls to Him but who all too often allow themselves to be put in bondage by worry. They're consumed by soul wrenching, anxiety producing worry over various aspects of their lives. If we're able to trust Him with our eternity, shouldn't we also then be able to trust Him in this moment? I think so...

But they're unwilling to do that.

John 6:29
Jesus answered and said unto them, this is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent.

As a member of the church, and of the body of Christ, I believe that many of us overlook the simplicity of what Jesus is saying here. He's saying that opening our hearts to His love is all that's required of us! From that point on, it's His Holy Spirit shining through our surrendered vessels that accomplishes His purpose.

Matthew 5:16
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

Perhaps the difficulty lies in our understanding of the word believe. Our modern usage of it as a description is often confused with what it means to know. To believe, or to think to be true, carries with it a measure of doubt or at least it leaves a space open for it as in the expression "I believe it is so" .

1 Corinthians 13:12
For now we see through a glass, darkly; but then face to face: now I know in part; but then shall I know even as also I am known.

As you can see there's a leap to be made from now to then. From what is belief to what is knowing. Faith is the conduit. Not only does it take us there but it allows it to come to and through us! Being the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not seen tell's me that it's not a blind leap but instead one of reasoned logic not unlike following a trail of breadcrumbs through a wood. It's truth based upon truth, and the belief or assumption that the past is the best predictor of the future that compels us on.

Mark 10:15
Verily I say unto you, Whosoever shall not receive the kingdom of God as a little child, he shall not enter therein.

What does this leap of faith consist of, what do Christians believe? We believe that as descendants of the first man Adam we're all born sinners. We believe that Jesus, the son of God, chose to pay the price for our sin and offer it to us as a free gift. We believe that we must accept His gift of salvation and receive it as ours. It's not too complicated; there are no unnecessary hoops to jump through or fine print that needs to be carefully read.

John 20:29
Jesus saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.

I'm quite impressed that Jesus foresaw what was going to happen with us in the future. He understood our limited ability to overcome our flesh and to have faith. I don't think He expects us all to be great theologians or to have faith that moves mountains. (Which is a good thing because most of us don't!)

I do however believe that He expects us to be moving in (and under) his direction!

Would you only believe?

Look At Yourself...

2010-12-30T23:10:00.000-06:00

I don't know any perfect people...

I'd even go so far as to say that I don't know anyone who doesn't have at least a few issue's that they're working out, myself included of course. The same goes for people I don't know, be they Christian or Atheist, rich or poor, even if you're the Pope or the Dali llama it really doesn't matter! All of us share the same gene pool, and there below our fancy Latin taxonomic name I think it should say in parenthesis...

One common approach used by those who feel compelled to address this greatest of all truths as a spiritual problem or sickness is to engage in various forms of self medication. To, by the use of ritualistic practices, behaviors or good works, overcome or compensate for their bad or evil nature with good or righteous acts. For Christian people this sometimes means regular church attendance or being involved with some personal ministry or outreach effort that their church supports. One thing I've noticed about volunteer work in the church is that there's usually far more people who're willing to sign on to do high profile activities such as taking meals to homeless people or visiting the sick than there are who are willing to work at the church. There are certainly exceptions, but usually they have to pay people to come in and do the cleaning, lawn care, and other more mundane tasks that are essential to the function and care of the church whereas outreach ministries provide their participants with an immediate "this looks AND feels good for me" pay off.

I do understand that in the body of Christ there's a place for everyone to serve and I'm a huge fan of doing so but have you ever wondered why people who consider themselves to be servants all seem to be gifted the same way? Call me cynical or whatever but it's hard for me not to see it as strange, it's as though what they're really wanting is for themselves to be glorified by these works instead of God.

Matthew 6:3-6
³But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth:
⁴That thine alms may be in secret: and thy Father which seeth in secret himself shall reward thee openly.
⁵And when thou prayest, thou shalt not be as the hypocrites are: for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and in the corners of the streets, that they may be seen of men. Verily I say unto you, They have their reward.
⁶But thou, when thou prayest, enter into thy closet, and when thou hast shut thy door, pray to thy Father which is in secret; and thy Father which seeth in secret shall reward thee openly.

Over the past several years I've been on both sides of things. I've been the person in need and I've been the one who was in a position to give. I've been helped, and helped others as well. I've also been confused by people who would help you as long as by doing so they looked like a hero but then, when it was a much smaller matter where perhaps just a word from them asking after me and my situation would've meant a great deal they suddenly seemed rather indifferent.

I can still recall how struck I was by my own feelings when after volunteering with a local outreach ministry I found myself filling out insurance forms so people could get medicines at no cost from pharmaceutical companies. Within a couple of weeks I began to dislike doing it because of how boring and confusing it was at times. I began to feel uninspired, wishing I could be involved in some other aspect of the ministry that I might find more interesting. I remember thinking... "this just isn't my area spiritual gifting!" I continued to show up and tried to do my best. It sounds bad to say it but when I eventually became financially unable to continue making the hour long drive in twice a week I was actually sort of glad.

These scenario's are just small examples of what I think it means to look into your own heart and see how self centered and prideful each of us are. Of how desperately each of us are in need a Savior, and how amazing the grace of God which is extended to each of us through His Son Jesus is! To me the most remarkable part of this story is how faithful God has been to me. How He's shown me through untold small miracles how much I mean to Him. How is it then that I can turn away from what could've been an opportunity to share Christ's love with someone else through simple things or grow weary in serving God because I don't think it's a good fit for me? Things like spending time with people you may find repugnant but who God has put on your heart, or perhaps doing boring, tedious things you may not actually like to do. Who knows, maybe if by our doing these things in a selfless manor hoping for some privilege to share Christ through it we might just find our real place of service. We all want to find our purpose in Gods kingdom and play our part in His great plan. For some it's to be center stage with the white hot spot light and Gods anointment on them, and for others it's to work in the background in a supporting role of some kind.

What most of us don't realize is that it's only through our trusting God and being willing to do whatever He calls us to do in whatever circumstances we find ourselves that we'll ever truly find our way. There comes a point where we have to stop looking at ourselves and start looking only to Him as the source of everything! We don't look down, or back, or anywhere else but to Him! That's when the power of the Lord our God will be seen in a mighty way in our lives and in the lives of those who we're seeking to serve in His name!

Luke 18:9-14
⁹And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others:
¹⁰Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican.
¹¹The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men are, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican.
¹²I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess.
¹³And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as his eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner.
¹⁴I tell you, this man went down to his house justified rather than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.

Just Another Christmas Story

2010-12-11T14:24:00.004-06:00

What's your favorite Christmas story? Perhaps it's one of the many works by Charles Dickens such as A Christmas Carol or The cricket on The Hearth. My personal favorite was always

The Gift of the Magi by O. Henry.

With it's emphasis on man's redemption, the yuletide season serves as a fitting backdrop for so many great stories and novella's. Not only do these works wonderfully entertain us with their irony and drama, but in a classic fashion they remind us of what is yet good in this world by projecting it against what is evil. Speaking to the faint glimmer of hope held within each of us the desired effect is to draw us in. To, through the timeless magic of the story, embolden us to confront our own internal struggles and to realize some similar victory of virtue within ourselves. These stories are about giving and receiving and the triumph of good over evil in mens hearts. They hold out to us the possibility of a different perspective than the cynical one held by so many in this world today. The following is my Christmas story, on the surface it's about how I overcame my own personal obstacles and made it home for Christmas one year but on a deeper level it's also about faith and trust in something much bigger than myself.

Making specific plans when your a truck driver can not only be an exercise in futility, but one of frustration as well. This is due to the fact that as such you're continually at the mercy of a far greater range of un-foreseen happen-stance that can, just like they did in John Steinbecks novel Of Mice and Men, wreck havoc on "even the best laid plans" that one might make. Knowing these things full well, I didn't make a lot of specific plans that year, I simply knew that one way or another I was going to get home by Christmas! The company I drove for at the time routinely shut down on the 21st of December and so on the 20th I was set to deliver my last load of tools to a sale truck in Indiana which would then free me to come back west and stop over at "the house" during the holiday. But after delivering my load and placing a call to my dispatcher (who plays the part of Scrooge in this drama) I was informed that after my drop, I was needed to make a pick up in Kentucky that would have to then be taken back to the warehouse in Kansas without delay.

OOP'S!

As I drove along I reasoned that the natural solution to this dilemma would be to simply call my wife and have her pick me up in K.C. (a 6 hour drive) but after inquiring after such, I was informed that she had to work (3rd shift) every night until Christmas, making it quite impossible for her to come and get me.

OKAY...

Another complication was that I had a bunch of gifts in the truck with me that I'd bought. My only option available seemed to be to call her and have her meet me at a point closest to home on my way back west and drop the gifts off with her thereby freeing me up to then make my way home by whatever means unencumbered. After achieving that objective rather easily, I continued in my duty and returned to the warehouse in Kansas arriving around mid-evening. Resolved to my lack of any other remedy for my predicament I slept for a few hours and before light the next morning I was on my way back the way I had just came toward my home.

How you ask? by what mode or method? on foot my friend...

I took off walking with only a rolled up rain poncho and a black magic marker to make my destination signs with. I had to walk about 10 miles on 207th st. which is a gravel road before I came to hyw 69 at Stanley Ks. I scrambled up an embankment to the 4 lane road and within minutes was offered a ride with an older gentleman who took me to Harrissonville Mo. Next, I was given a ride from the 7/71 jct. on the back of a 1 ton flatbed all the way to Spfd, Mo. It was a very cold ride but despite my discomfort, I was most content, quite thankful even...imagine that!

Soon I arrived in Spfd at the I-44/13 junction, my new friends were headed into town and so I hopped off there. I was rather numb in my legs from the cold and so my walking was with a stiff limp. I hobbled over to the nearby McDonald's for the days first "nourishment" of any kind and upon returning to my journey couldn't help but notice how many people were crowding the ramps of the highway that day, panhandlers holding signs each pleading their case for charity. I remember I felt some embarrassment at that because I was afraid I would be mistaken for such because of my cardboard sign that read,"hyw 60 east" but I had come much too far to let such a baseless reluctance dissuade me.

It was nearly midday now and I had made it close to half way home! In the waning hours of that late December afternoon what I remember the most was walking what seemed like great distances on the snow covered frozen shoulder of the highway, hands and feet stinging from the lack of circulation in them, feeling the blasts of frigid air pushing me back and then swirling around me as the endless convoy's of the freight trucks blasted by. Under these circumstances,one must also steel themselves to the thousand's of curious stares fixed upon them by passing motorists, each with questioning eye's which at times seemed to ask,

"What are you doing out here?'

But the Lord was with me...and after several warm comfortable rides I traveled the remaining 150 miles. By 4:30 that afternoon I was on the phone to my stunned wife asking her to drive the short distance into town and pick me up! As I think back I'm still amazed by many aspects of what occurred that day. I'm amazed at the kindness of strangers who perhaps disregarded their better judgement in giving me a lift that day. I'm amazed at my own tenacity that I would even attempt such a thing. Being put in the position I was, what was most essential to me was my faith and trust in God, that he was with me and that he would make my way if only I would just continue to put one foot in front of the other quite literallywalking in faith! My feeling was that for every step I took after Him, He took two towards me! It was as if he longed to express his love for me and show me that no detail is too small to escape his notice and that nothing can separate me from his love and care...Several years have passed since then, but just like so many other times in my life before and since when I needed Him, my heavenly Father was always there!

No matter what season it is, can a man have any more comfort than that?

tidings of comfort and joy, comfort and joy...

After A Fashion...

2010-12-01T08:27:00.001-06:00

Chasing after fashion trends is something we Americans do like no one else! We go to great lengths to express our status and identity through any number of vehicles such as cars, clothing, and even our religion! One flagrant example of this fashion victim mentality I've noticed is the practice of young adolescent males wearing their jeans pulled down over their boxer shorts...

"What's the harm in it" I protested to myself...don't you remember? You certainly had your share of "youthful quirks" that were certainly much worse! Recently I've began to notice I felt the same about other fashion statements I saw happening around me and so I started digging for the common element 'd offence. In my attempt to sort out my feelings regarding the latest hip-hop urban dress styles, the first thing I made note of was that I didn't really care that the young black men did it. I realized that my annoyance instead had to do with the young white adolescents who were doing it. Upon further analysis I surmised that my feelings were a product of my disappointment with a people who because of some cultural funk deficit became imitators of those who they perceived to be flush with the fashion.

I decided to look up the root word of fashion which I understood to be "fash" and upon doing so was gratified to discover that it's definition (please click the link) quite accurately described the overall effect all of this fashion had on me. Although it may not technically be the root of the word fashion I found myself intrigued at the insightful comparison's it's definition invited, I'm yet to be fully convinced there isn't an actual connection between them somewhere.

How curious it is to me that the key to the success of any fashion trend lies in it's ability to evoke strong and yet divergent reactions in people. It hardly matters if that reaction is one of love or hate, the only reaction it can't abide is one of indifference. Controversy is critical to fashion! I can't think of any truly great iconic fashion trend that didn't divide people. Remember long hair? How about "mini and micro" short skirts? Another curiosity is that it's typically young people who're the most fertile ground for cultivating these phenomenon however I suspect that regardless of a persons age theres still an element of rebellion at the core of these behaviors.

Even the lack of what's typically considered fashion is a fashion. Amish people wear clothes that they make themselves that are mostly blue and black, do they have to do that? No! They make pretty good money around here, and so I'm pretty sure they could afford to buy well made modest clothing but they simply choose not to, at least in part I believe, so that they stand out from other people. All of this is done in the name of their religious beliefs and customs.

What about people who have incorporated Jewish traditions such as the observance of the festivals etc...into their Christian expression of faith? This is another topic I have feelings about similar to the other's I've mentioned. In my research regarding this matter I talked to Jews, messianic Jews or Judeo-Christians and "Christians" who perhaps see themselves as being more Jewish than Christian, to gain their insights. I read some of the works of Saint John Chrysostom (c.347-407) who wrote some very specific homilies which I saw as being both enlightening and freightening. I was directed to the works of Stan Telchin, whosomehow managed to inspire practically every Messianic Jewish Leader in this country to band together against him and the ideas expressed in his book entitled,

"Some Messianic Jews say: 'Messianic Judaism is not Christianity.'"

A Loving Call To Unity

Starting with the title it was a bit confusing to me, But it seemed to clear quickly. Here's an excerpt from the forward.

"It is true that if one is a Jew,then he or she cannot be a Gentile. And if one is a Gentile, he or she cannot be a Jew. But you can certainly be a Jew and a Christian at the same time. This is what I am!"

I think that somehow the answer to all my questions and the explanation of the root cause of my feelings on the subject lie within this statement. Could it be that my unsettled feelings have to do with my perception of Christians who seemed more concerned with being "Torah observant" than they are with being Christ centered? I've no doubt that this is a far more complex issue than is the juxtaposition of someones trousers and their undergarments, but in another way perhaps it's not. None of us can be what we aren't, but whether the goal is simply to be cool posing as someone other than yourself, or to have a relationship with our heavenly Father, in either case theres no need for any act! All of us have the same access to the Father through Christ and we're definitely not fooling Him! The most important thing that any of us can do is to know who we are in Christ instead of trying to be something other than we truly are or being someone else that's an imitation, that's merely...

Seeking The Kingdom

Are You Serious?

Philippians 3:9

Romans 7:14-16

Galatians 5:22

1 John 4:8

Are You Serious?

Truth Incorporated

Is That You?

Learning To Dance

Isaiah 54:17

John 10:10

Genesis 50:20

Romans 8:28

The Sacrifice of Praise!

John 14:12

1 Peter 2:24

Luke 10:8-9

Matthew 4:23

Genesis 1:31

1 Peter 2:5 Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.

1 Peter 2:5

Everyone's A Winner!

EVEN YOU!

Bless This Mess!

Emmanuel עמנואל, “God is with us” Part III

Hebrews 11:1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.

Emmanuel עמנואל, “God is with us” Part II

Emmanuel עמנואל, "God is with us" (part 1)

He loves me!

God...You're my rock,and you ROCK!

I Think You Know

2 Peter 3:3-4

James 3:15-17

"Isn't it getting hot in here?"

The Presentation

How Do I Know?

Into The Mystic?

Get Closer

John 17:21-23

In His Presence!

I AM THE GREAT AND POWERFUL OZ!

Scratch That Itch!

1 Corinthians 13:7

Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.

Romans 12:21

2 Timothy 4:3

1 Corinthians 8:9

How Dare You?

It's Only Money!

1 Timothy 6:10 For the love of money is the root of all evil: which while some coveted after, they have erred from the faith, and pierced themselves through with many sorrows.

Sick and Tired...

The American Nightmare

Would You Believe?

Look At Yourself...

Matthew 6:3-6

3But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth:

Luke 18:9-14

Just Another Christmas Story

OOP'S!

OKAY...

After A Fashion...

After a fashion!

1 Peter 2:5

Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ.

³But when thou doest alms, let not thy left hand know what thy right hand doeth: