Journeyed out with friends for a hike this past weekend. Nature has a stillness and peace that calms the soul. Red River Gorge is beautiful in Autumn but can get insanely crowded during peak season. We rose up early and carpooled into the mountains. There were very few people on the trail and we had the perfect view to watch the mist clear from the canopy in the valley.
Princess Arch, Red River Gorge Ky
These Next Four Years
I’ve been thinking about the election and I do believe God has heard the prayer of His saints. The prophecy Kim Clement gave will be fulfilled and Trump will serve the remainder of his two terms. I don’t think it will be a quiet four years, but it will hold us back from the edge. I have a lot to do, scared as I am, and these four years will have to be the window. Then anything beyond that I will count as a blessing.
If censorship is already upon us, how much longer can we hold out? I’m still wondering what the best way is to preserve the word that is spoken since even YouTube is notorious for censoring. At some point, the edict will come down that all Christian related content be removed from all international platforms.
But perhaps this isn’t what should concern me – I’m just going to share what God puts on my heart and He can handle the rest.
Something New:)
I purchased an interesting piece of equipment and received it in the mail last week. Nothing fancy or professional, but it will be fun to play. It’s a midi keyboard. When I pulled it out of the box, I smiled.
Have you ever had a hobby you enjoyed and just let it go in all the busyness of life? It might be a gift or talent that God gave you. Making music is a ton of fun and a huge stress release for me – I get lost for hours harmonizing and laying down tracks. The last time I did anything like this was in the early 2000’s. I own a keyboard and even took piano lessons, but it’s been awhile since I laid down tracks with voice, drums, bass, strings…..I’m excited.
Talents that we let go get rusty. I think that’s part of the ‘taking of unused talents and giving them to others who will do something with them’ truth. It is slowwwww going on the learning curve – I’m not 25 anymore and technology isn’t the same either – but the more we stick to what we don’t know, the more we learn about it. And since it’s fun, I don’t lose interest.
Time Is Short
I hope you are leaning into your talents and pressing into God in pursuit of your purpose. He knows the way. I would only say this; life is so busy, so distracting and the dangers so close that we often forget to take time with loved ones and do the things we enjoy. I know there are many matters that press us, deadlines to be made, obligations and duties – for some this may be a level of pressure beyond the average, affecting many people – but please, take time to relax and allow your body to rest, let yourself enjoy those around you who love you.
Love is the Most Powerful Force in the Universe
We need it like food and sleep. Why do we forsake it? Why do we leave so little time to be with others whose company nourishes our soul? Spend time with God, put Him first, strive to be called a Friend by Him.
If we put Him first, all else will fall into its proper order.
We can get lost in the mayhem of everyday life. Make a decision today not to do that. Love those who are with you now and support those you love that they might fulfill God’s purpose on their life. This is what creates a bond that cannot be broken because God Himself will honor it. He loves us that much. Serve others in the capacity of a support role that they might become all God has purposed for them to be.
If you want to lead, you must first serve. Start with those closest to you. Pass the tests, be genuine in your affection for Him and others and He will see to it that you also are exalted in due time.
When we make it about others, we ourselves are set free of inwardly focused condemnation and introspection. And that’s a beautiful attribute of God’s love.
Have a great week all you talented people and carry on in your purpose in God, many blessings~
So you found a new friend who’s pretty cool. He’s full of fun ideas, infinitely curious and easily keeps pace with you. You’re having fun examining some strange bug you caught and his parents call him inside. Bummer. You both head home but later you realize he didn’t come back outside.
So missing him, after you finish lunch you run over and knock on his window, ‘Come back out’. He doesn’t tell you that he isn’t allowed to, maybe he’s ashamed of that or doesn’t want you to know why, or maybe it’s because he really does want to play outside and if he told you he couldn’t you’d leave, and he doesn’t want that either. So, he hops out the window and all seems good.
Then when his parents find out he’s no longer there, they call him in again. But this time he doesn’t just get called in, he gets disciplined. And maybe this happens a few times before you realize your friend keeps getting in trouble. You’re not sure what happened but you know it wasn’t good for him.
To love your brother is to not go back and knock on the window.
And he may miss you not knocking, or he may be sad, or even angry. Though it’s not necessarily about you, (if it wasn’t you, it would be another friend in the neighborhood) the Word says if one is hurting then the whole Body hurts, and when one rejoices the whole Body rejoices. Ask Simon who was picked out of a crowd and ordered by the Roman soldiers to bear Christ’s Cross in the street. It’s about bearing one another’s burdens when the load gets too heavy. And it’s about the maturing of the Body of Christ as a whole, God expects us to do the right thing by each other. You may miss your friend, but the loving thing to do is to stop knocking.
“You Do Not Understand Now, But Afterward You Will Understand”
Sometimes we can’t understand everything, but when God says, ‘Not now,’ it doesn’t mean never again. We might think it’s not like God to say yes, then no, then yes but I’ll give you the perfect example of this. Christ says, ‘Go out into all the world and preach the good news.’
Then in Acts 16.6-7 we get this seemingly contradictory shift with Paul and his men,
“Now when they had gone through Phrygia and the region of Galatia, they were forbidden by the Holy Spirit to preach the word in Asia. After they had come to Mysia, they tried to go into Bithynia, but the Spirit did not permit them.”
Interesting, no? Jesus didn’t give the disciples any extra instruction, simply ‘go into all the world.’ No restrictions, no set timeline. This is another reason why it’s important to be sensitive to the Holy Spirit. Timing is everything.
Love isn’t always an easy thing, to love your brother isn’t always easy, it takes a great deal of maturity to fully embody the attributes of love. Agape love is impossible without God. If He is love, then one can’t have Agape without Him. He is made strong in our weaknesses. And Paul’s instruction to us in Romans 14 regarding stumbling means God expects us also to help each other.
One other simple example is this: if you’re having lunch with a friend and you know he struggles with alcohol, you don’t order a drink while you’re dining with him because you get to go home, go to sleep and carry on with tomorrow’s activities.
Meanwhile, he stops by the liquor store (since he poured out all the liquor he had, struggling to get well), and he falls dreadfully into sin and maybe doesn’t stop drinking for a week, missing work, forgetting obligations, etc.
Maintaining strength is important, God’s seasons are important and it’s important to do the right thing for your brother’s sake. God is faithful.
Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother. I know and am persuaded in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself, but it is unclean for anyone who thinks it unclean. For if your brother is grieved by what you eat, you are no longer walking in love. By what you eat, do not destroy the one for whom Christ died. So do not let what you regard as good be spoken of as evil. For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.Whoever thus serves Christ is acceptable to God and approved by men. So then let us pursue what makes for peace and for mutual upbuilding. Romans 14:13-23
“So do not let what you regard as good be spoken of as evil.” I like this line. To some, a particular action or connection is considered evil even though we know no sin has been committed. But for the sake of good, you protect and take responsibility for your brothers or sisters who may be struggling. Even though the Spirit forbade Paul from moving into those regions he wanted to journey, didn’t mean the people there were forsaken or that God didn’t love them. It was because there was a more favorable season at a later time.
Another huge hurricane is bearing down on the west coast of Florida and most haven’t rebuilt from Ian two years ago. I’m watching four live video cameras pointed at the Gulf of Mexico from Key West up the coast to Tampa Bay as I’m drinking my morning coffee and wondering to myself, ‘why do we hate adversity so much’?
A Lump of Potential
I think of how the artist presses their hands into the clay on the turning wheel and how without the skillful hands of the creator pulling, stretching and reconstituting, the potential would remain a lump of clay unusable and of little desirability.
But when our Creator works with us, part of the process that shapes our being is adversity. God sees unlimited potential in our useless lump of clay. We feel comfortable in our untamed lumpiness, no one notices us, we can’t be knocked over or shattered and we are familiar with our original elements and constitution. We don’t have to dare to be anything.
Adversity comes in many forms, sometimes one fiery trial at a time and sometimes multiple adversities hit at once. This is what happened to Jesus. It was one at a time and then all at once. These adversities in life are opportunities to ‘level up’, to be hewn, to be shaped and formed into something greater than we are today. And though the process can be frightening, bring sadness, seem daunting, God knows what He is doing. The final shaped vessel has to be fired in order to set the work, right? We fail continually sometimes, but God doesn’t stop giving us chances as long as we remain contrite.
God’s Acts are Meaningful, Never Trivial
I take comfort in knowing that I’m not assailed by the devil without reason or without gain. He’s a tool – puns welcomed – in shaping my vessel into a quality usable work in the Kingdom of God. If the devil wasn’t so prideful he could have slithered away out of sight and possibly preserved himself. But it is his pride that continues to dig his own fiery grave because every sin he commits against the Kingdom of God and it’s inhabitants (that’s you and me by the way) God turns for good – as difficult for us as it may seem, just check in with Job – God will turn the tide and deliver the spoil.
God is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.
Being Purposeful About My Activity
Speaking of tides, I got a little gadget and installed a digital art software to play should I find myself waiting: in lines, in cars, at airports or just relaxing at home, etc. I can’t carry my physical art supplies with me everywhere and I’m hoping I’ll spend more time tinkering on this device making art than roaming around social media listening to everyone argue.
I’ve been working on the drawing below, learning the programs features and brushes, while listening to all the dreadful hurricane updates. No one wants it to hit them directly, but that means someone else gets hit directly – go north, go south – even local newscasters catch themselves when they say ‘it would be much better for Tampa if this goes South, well that means Sarasota gets hit but it would be awful for Tampa to get hit’…..
Well, it would be awful for Sarasota to get hit, no? I’ve been praying along with many others that the wind sheer brings the intensity down to a 2 or low 3. God can do anything, we’ll see what happens. Because even King David, with all his prayer and supplication could not save the first born. God is sovereign, I remain humble in this understanding.
Ian cost me great amount of money, but it coast others their memories, their happiness and even their lives. I have to keep my sense of victimhood in check. At least I have options, most people all they have is in the path of this dreadful storm – God may Your opposing wind buffer this monster’s strength to minimal impact.
The Time is Short, Make the Most of It
Making use of our gifts affords us opportunity and advancement. It also keeps what we have been gifted from being taken away and given to someone else willing to make use of it. So to put this truth into practice in my own life, maybe I’ll start making my own thumbnails on my Youtube channel, it’s a good investment of my talent, as feeble as it is. I’d rather use it than lose it.
Yes, I’m playing around with a channel and trying to figure out what direction God’s wind is blowing. It’s fun, it’s funny and altogether a bit annoying but as I’ve said before, as much as I hate the idea of doing a thing, I hate the idea of a whale lurking with its mouth open wide just beneath the surface of my complacency and fear.
Is there something under the water here?….is that why all the little houses are taking such a fright? I need to add a sea creature under there….maybe I should just put two glowing eyes peering up from the deep.
Featured Image by yours truly, and may the trials you’re facing right now not be for naught but instead transform your life by the skillful work of the Master’s hand. Let’s stay surrendered to Him, let’s stay humble so that we might learn and grow and ultimately flourish for His glory.
I’ve had some engaging online conversations recently concerning the Church. Some people were accommodating while others were highly offended, defensive and then robotic. By robotic I mean indoctrinated.
It really bothers me. On a fundamental level. I’ve prayed about it and asked God why I see these things when I don’t have the ability to fix them. It’s terribly frustrating. I’m fairly relaxed and easy-going, but not online and not concerning lies. I’m not a gentle, soft-spoken person online. Overall, I’m not afraid to say what I’m feeling and sometimes I can be too opinionated. I don’t mind a good tussle but at the same time, I’d rather not get involved at all – my carnal nature often interjects: ‘Who cares!?’ I wish I could believe it….so I could quit and feel justified.
Doctrines of Men
I get angry and disappointed when I see people who love Jesus and are so on fire for Him and they end up captured in these indoctrinated churches just spewing phrases they’ve been taught – as if they are scripture when they don’t remotely line up with scripture.
These doctrines box people in, “well, it’s not always about putting the word of God first,” and I say, there is no recourse with that kind of doctrine. It’s kingdom of God first and then all else. How can you win an argument with someone who isn’t even playing the same game?
God will have to show me how.
Why Do I Have To See It?
So I pray to God about this. Why do I have to see this when I can do nothing about it? But the Spirit won’t leave me alone. I think to myself that it must be for some future generation, once everything begins to fall apart they’ll be searching for answers.
But that’s silly, because surely I’m not the only one who sees this. People who know more than others tend to feel alone. I don’t just feel alone, I am alone in this. Somewhere there are the preverbal ‘7000’ that have not bent the knee and God has reserved for Himself. Maybe He will show me who they are because all my searches come up empty. No one seems to see it or think it matters.
So I think, then why should I?
Denominations, physical churches can be more easily captured than the ‘church which God writes His laws on their hearts.’ My heart is not easily captured, nor my thoughts. The Spirit is like the wind, He moves things around and you can see the affects of it, but you can’t see His Person. That’s the true Church.
No one understands this who also says that the denominated church is the one true church. This is a false narrative.
The Call Is Terrifying
So I have to move forward with this, and tell what I know about who the Church really is. How do you approach effectively discerning the church – counterfeit though it might be – that God has been using for millennia? With much reverence, trepidation, fear of the Lord and a boldness that only the Spirit of God could give me as I face this manmade construct. That’s how. God works all things together for good the scripture tells us, so He’s used this church overlay, the construct of mens’ imaginations, to further His purposes in the Earth. I think there are good reasons for that. One being that the fullness of the Gentiles had to come into the fold.
I suspect there’s no way this would have happened had the true Church, the Body of Christ been left unchecked in the earth. Satan is a balancing tool by the way. He buffered the Church, then captured it, once he figured everything out that had happened to him, ha, God is so brilliant. The Cross is the victory for us while making the devil a fool.
No One Has Brought A Legitimate Argument Against Me
One of the most interesting comments I received on my perspective was this:
I’d already been thinking about how the Body of Christ is comprised of multiple parts. It is one body with many elements and moving parts. We are all one in Him, but separate from each other. Yet, if we are moving and living and having our being within Him, then also we are one with each other. This is the spiritual mystery that Paul said marriage alludes to.
This commenter was arguing that by me calling the remaining church, (that would be either the Catholic or Orthodox Church since Protestant churches do not use the word ‘schism’), a denomination it wouldn’t be true because it is only the schismatic church that becomes the denomination.
But the Body of Christ cannot schism because all the elements are needed to make up the whole. This is where I can clearly see the ‘church’ which both these religions started are a construct of man.
Let’s Talk Elements
You cannot remove O from H2 and still have water. The Body of Christ has many elements which combine to show the ‘manifold wisdom of God’. So it is a combined element like water, it’s whole but made up of multiple parts. As soon as that first manmade church suffered schism, it became a part unto itself, it reverted to H2. And H2 alone isn’t water. So that argument also has been broken.
Creepy Indoctrination
The creepiest comments are the indoctrinated ones where a repeated phrase just keeps getting chanted in my comment section with little to know intellectual understanding:
“I believe in one holy, catholic, and apostolic church.”
and again by another commenter,
“There is only one holy, Catholic, and apostolic Church.”
But the worst? Oh it’s far more sinister. It makes me cringe. It angers me and I find it deeply disturbing: “Outside of the Catholic Church there can be no salvation.”
As if Christ died on the Cross and it meant nothing because it’s a church that does the saving, not the Son of Man….
I have no love in my heart for these types of comments. I can see exactly how Christ did not restrain Himself from calling out with great passion,
“You vipers!”
I must weave my whip. There is no other way I can do this without sinning. And if Christ had to weave one whip, then I must weave ten thousand.
“Go ahead, then, and complete what your ancestors started!”
You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell? Therefore I am sending you prophets and sages and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town. And so upon you will come all the righteous blood that has been shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar.
I read a verse in scripture this morning where God is being sarcastic. I’ve never really noticed it before. Maybe it’s my own mood this morning but, it does seem to qualify for sarcasm. And it made me laugh even in the midst of such a chilling address by the Lord.
It’s Amos 4.1-5. This passage is quite terrifying because whatever God speaks accomplishes that which it’s sent to accomplish…and it prospers in its purpose. Gives me chills…
God doesn’t play around y’all.
There’s another verse that really moved me which I’ll get to in a moment. But the sarcasm is found in verses 4 and 5 where God uses a nuanced tone with them and says in essence, ‘Come on to Bethel and transgress! Bring those sacrifices every morning, proclaim and announce your offerings, go right ahead! Because this is who you are and this is what you love!”
Whewwww~ NOBODY wants God speaking sarcastically to them, oh my goodness…
Evildoers Miss the Straight Path
He’s addressing the land of Bashan in Samaria here. I don’t know all the history but one of my favorite lines in this section is as follows:
“You will go out through broken walls..”
No hint of sarcasm there. This is an amazing imagery and description of an exit of power, or a driving out of evil from a place it once inhabited but is being rejected from the land. The scripture says the Lord will make our paths straight. Our path is made easy when we choose God’s way. We may not think this is true, because life is strenuous and confusing at times. But the Lord always makes a way where there seems to be no way. Isaiah 43.16, God made a way through a sea, He made a way through transporting in the belly of a whale, He made a way from death to life for Christ and all of us. There is no path, not even the path through the heart of evil, that God cannot make a way for us to walk out on dry land – a straight path.
But those who are evil, well their way is out through broken crumbled walls, falling debris, stumbling and even dying of their wounds just trying to get away from whatever is pursuing them. It is their own sin that has crumbled the walls of their life and existence. The word of God is tremendous. I like that wording very much, it’s concise and deadly.
God Delivers Us, But Evildoers are Delivered to Their Fate
In Amos 3.11 He speaks another powerful word:
“An adversary shall be all around the land; He shall sap your strength from you, and your palaces shall be plundered.”
Our enemies don’t stand a change against God. However, against us alone…well that’s a different story. But, alas!, we are not alone! We don’t have to deliver ourselves all the time. If we can’t admit we need help, then the issue is far deeper than just trying to act strong. The strongest are able to receive help willingly.
Evil never slips out of the snare – there will always be a final snare that never lets them go. God will see to that. We don’t see to it, God sees to it.
Vengeance is Mine, and recompense; Their foot shall slip in due time; For the day of their calamity is at hand, And the things to come hasten upon them.’
Deuteronomy 32.35
God works contrary to our understanding of the world. When we think we’ve won, we’ve actually lost. When we think it’s the end, it’s actually a newly created beginning. This only happens for those the Bible says are ‘hidden in Christ’. Hiding in any other way won’t save us from the exiting through crumbling walls. God protects and preserves His own, He watches over His word to perform it on our behalf.
I recently returned from a trip to Boston. I love big cities. They are always awake and always open for business. I also like the way of living far more than small town – each has its advantages I suppose – one offering a slower pace to life and one engaging and always beckoning attention and involvement.
I never clocked less than 10K steps a day while in Boston, and that’s without any extra dedicated time. In small towns, there’s no great possibility of walking or biking. Stores and destinations are just too far apart. In many instances, biking and driving took the same amount of time in Boston. Even in small ‘cities’ like Lexington, there is no decent public transportation that runs frequently enough without wasting an hour and a half waiting at bus terminals. A fifteen minute car drive is the only alternative.
We’re walking through the MIT tunnels to catch the rail to a 5K, not mine, just to be clear.
I was talking with a friend up there who stated it quite perfectly. He said that there’s an energy you can feel when walking the city. You always have other people bustling about, things are happening like deliveries, events, shows, students, other runners or cyclists on the city streets with you no matter the time of day. But to walk to a friends house in a suburb of a small town, all the houses shut up, curtains drawn, lawns are the same, row after row – it’s just an excruciatingly boring walk.
It’s true!
I do my best to walk daily – which I have to make time and drive to the park. But I have to work much harder to get 10K steps whereas the city seems to provide ample opportunity for healthy living without even trying.
Anyway, I guess I want too much just in general. Maybe we all do. We want everything that is good about all we’ve experienced combined for a perfect life. It’s just not going to happen.
I daydream about living in a big city. Who daydreams about something so mundane? Maybe I’m seeing a vision, this happens to me sometimes. Will have to pay more attention to these daydreams.
Motivators
I have to consider why something is being done, why I’m taking a particular action. Shouldn’t we all consider why we are doing certain things in our life? Jesus said to lay up treasures for ourselves in Heaven because the treasures of this world rot and disintegrate and pass away. Entropy. Even ideas that seem to propagate suffer deterioration if they aren’t of any eternal value.
I’ve noticed how much the wrong ideas about God propagate on social media. People who are Christians saying that what makes a shepherd inadequate is not preaching the goodness of a particular political party to their congregations. In other words, not using a position given by God to push your own political agenda is unacceptable as a Christian Pastor. Like, what kind of Hell-talk is this? Who is embodying the essence of the great Accuser of the Brethren here?
How is it that Christian influencers are falling into this treacherous language against Christ?
And then, as if just speaking it isn’t treacherous enough, we have loads of ‘avatars’ liking the post, not because they are Christians necessarily, but because their agenda lines up with the poster’s comment.
These Christians influencers will be held accountable.
Anything we say – especially if we have followers on a massive level – will be solely our responsibility come the Judgement. ‘But someone else taught me that!’ This argument, my friend, will hold no water with God almighty. He has already warned us, ‘My people perish for lack of knowledge.’ This is why I am so adamant, esp with those God has laid on my heart, in correcting when someone is going down the wrong path. I care for them AND I care for all those children of God they are leading astray. I say children because they may be the few who are exempt, though still they will perish at the hands of ill-informed leaders, if they are never correct and taught proper biblical truth.
This is why leaders will be judged with far more weight than the children they are leading and influencing.
Hence this warning given: ‘Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly.’
Now we just as easily can put ‘influencers’ in place of teachers. Same thing, same process of passing along the wrong information about God in this example. Do I know everything? Of course not! Which is why I’m grateful (though maybe at first quite irritated) when I get corrected. Correction, admonishment, saves our lives!
Now that alone keeps me from stepping out as much as I might be, it’s a grave thing to have great influence and be dead wrong about something so grave as life and death of a person’s soul and body. That’s my issue I must overcome.
The Wicked Won’t Win, Even Though Now They Appear To Prosper
The wicked shall not prosper. There’s a verse that admonishes, ‘do not envy the prosperity of the wicked.’ And it’s easy to do that. This life on earth has many interesting and pleasurable things we could use our vessels to indulge in, yet this assuredly brings death. God knows the human’s psychological makeup better than anyone or anything. Even Satan understands human psychology better than humans do, duh..
Do not fret because of those who are evil or be envious of those who do wrong; for like the grass they will soon wither, like green plants they will soon die away. Trust in the Lord and do good; dwell in the land and enjoy safe pasture. Take delight in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.
Psalm 37.1-3
Everywhere I look anti-Christ organizations, corpse-porations and blasphemous God-haters seem to garner praise, financial gain and worldly clout. But like, who wants that kind of ROI?
Death of self would be our aim today, in this world of indulgent pleasures, including dopamine kicks-and-giggles that social media tends to deliver to our starving central nervous receptors. Sometimes I wonder if Christians aren’t saying these ridiculous things because they believe the more social media likes and praise they garner means somehow they are doing the right thing and are approved of God.
My God, people! This is such a trap. All of this misdirection must burn away. Self-centered ambitions must burn away. I know, far easier said than done – and I don’t have thousands of followers…God help me if I ever do. I might run away, which would result in zero benefit to anyone.
And there are always whales at-the-ready for servants of God who run….fantastic…
It’s a problem of space and time for me, I think. It’s a problem of losing. Losing things. And I hate losing things. I hate losing time and options. I need an eternal view, not a here-and-now view. Many who are smarter than I, keep correcting my thought on this: I must narrow my path which sacrifices all other paths I could walk and proceed with all focus in one direction. This is excruciating for me even though I know that to do otherwise just keeps the wheels spinning unproductively.
Everyday Witnesses Through Their Gifts
The Lord has been bringing unique individuals to my attention. People I would never find in the circle of interests I have, and these people are full-on dedicated to the work of God’s kingdom here on the earth. They aren’t formally in the ministry at all, they are chefs, or skateboarders, or comedians – all manner of professions but they never miss a beat to talk about God during an interview about their chosen profession or craft. It’s a beautiful thing to see.
And quite frankly, they speak with much more profound depth and authority about God than those who are in positions of prestige or power within the church (noun, place) today. I became disillusioned about the structure of church organizations and institutions since the mid-2000s.
Indeed, we all wrestle with God at some point.
God always calls the Gideon, or the David, or the Esther when they are known by few and obscure. I think this is amazing and I love to watch it unfold in a life; how the seemingly smallest is made the greatest among us, not by their own hand of power, but by offering all their strengths to God to use for His glory.
This kind of wrestling is among the most difficult because it is our weaknesses, the self, the ego, the intellect like Leviathans pushing forward within us for control when, perhaps one might say, the hero overcomes them to submit his or her vessel with all its inadequacies to the will of God, as Jesus did. It’s nothing short of miraculous. Indeed, without the Spirit of God, we could not possibly do it. Faith is a powerful thing when it’s witnessed working through an individuals life.
I’m seeing this more and more, in the most far away corners of the world; God’s people lighting up and flashing a signal, as it were, that God is ever present and available to save and guide into a more abundant and rewarding life. That is, if we can pay the price. There’s always a sacrifice.
God’s Refinery
God’s fire is all consuming. And whatever is not of Him burns off of our lives. God help those of us who have built much in this world but little in the kingdom of God. It’s no fun to walk through the fire, but in the end we are certainly better for it. The continual regeneration of life is an unmistakeable attribute of God. Without Him, there is no life-force. I can’t take this train of thought too far here, it’s one blog post, but it ties in with so many other aspects of the human-Christ-eternal dynamic.
MIT tunnel graffiti, hallway art.
If anyone abides not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned.
John 15.6
The above scripture is exactly how it is. But there are other scriptures which indicate that what isn’t burned up, remains.
Paul says that if our work is burned up, we will suffer loss – there’s my loss hang-up – though we will be saved, but only as through fire. So I would even go as far as saying if anyone doesn’t subject themselves to the fire to burn away what should not be there, then they themselves cannot be saved. Either we chose it voluntarily and in doing so we pass through it, or we succumb to it involuntarily and lose our lives as well.
Peter tells us that everything that makes up the universe will burn and be destroyed and that heaven will pass away. This informs the reader that everyone will pass through that fire; but some things aren’t burned up but remain, continue, live on. And in the case of Christ, that living is eternal.
And again, Paul states that there is coming a great shaking and everything that can be shaken will be. But what is of God and eternal will remain. So this ‘passing through’ is a phenomenon we all must subject ourselves to, I think it’s voluntary, first. But if we don’t do this, run from it or deny God, the fire still must be passed through and we will also lose ourselves, our inhabited vessels even to the flames.
Now let’s think about our lives and how much will be consumed by the fire, how much we’ve done for our own self-centered ambitions and striving to impress other humans in this world. That’s a difficult thought experiment. But let us importantly remind ourselves of this, we are saved not by our own hand but by Christ.
This is so because we are in Him, we abide in Him and guess what? He had no evil in Him so that when He passed through the flames of Hell taking the keys of death Hell and the grave from that pesky Cherub, everything who was Christ rose again. In other words, His body also, being transformed by the power of the Holy Spirit. Nothing could hold Him, not even the death which was appointed to all of us to suffer, once. So indeed God’s words were true, Jesus suffered death, once as appointed to every man. But again,
But God raised him from the dead, freeing him from the agony of death, because it was impossible for death to keep its hold on him.
Acts 2.24
And again, this is one portion of our promise, having been adopted by Him as His own children, a prophecy that is the Spirit of Christ, we shall inherit life eternal:
…because you will not abandon me to the realm of the dead, nor will you let your faithful one see decay.
Psalm 16.10
The grave couldn’t hold Him, nor will it hold us, dear brothers and sisters.
Okay, I can’t help but think how long it took me to write this one post. How does one measure time wasted or time spent productively?
Have a beautiful week, all you curious people. Or if you’re feeling adventurous; have a curious week, all you beautiful people~
Featured Image: Snapshot of more MIT graffiti, taken by yours truly~
“Then the sovereignty, the dominion, and the greatness of all the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be given to the people of the saints of the Highest One.”
Daniel 7.27
Read the above scripture again, deliberately, and out loud…
The Earth has a Rightful Inheritor
The Sun rising over Earth, our Earth, and it’s beautiful.
Billionaires want to claim Earth and space for themselves,
but they can’t have it.
Global elites want to claim Earth for themselves, the WEF, WHO, WB…they all think their power and wealth can establish them as rulers over the earth,
but they can’t have it.
An illegal Cherub who fell from grace, who cunningly stole the God-given seat of dominion and power from mankind and is intermediately reigning, being called the ‘Prince of this World’ thinks his stolen estate will somehow lawfully become his own – that he might take Earth from its God by a slight of hand and from its lawful human inhabitants with ease,
but the Cherub can’t have it.
This Earth belongs to us, to God’s sons and daughters, to the saints of the Most High God. Sounds silly doesn’t it – does it sound as silly as a ‘Doctor Evil’ trying to take control of the earth? A Klaus Schwab with his global elites working tirelessly to claim dominion over the earth? A multi-billionaire so full of pomps and vanities that Mars would be a better play-toy than this sparkling blue, living rock? An A.I. god utilized by humans taking hold of the rights to rule the whole planet?
Why would one think that somehow the saints would end up with Earth? Is it so difficult? In a way it is, we are taught to be meek, humble and unassuming. Subservient. It’s hard to stand up and speak with authority,
‘No, this earth belongs to us as children of God.’
But I think, perhaps it is time we speak up. It’s time to stop the false prophet and the evil narrative that’s being spun over the eyes of those who have been made in the image of God.
And perhaps, ironically, this is the exact reason why we are called upon to be the meekest, humblest and most loving of all – because indeed, my fellow spiritual siblings, our human race was destined for the throne, to take our rightful place as co-heirs of Christ to rule peaceably over this beautiful planet that was from the foundations of its existence formed and shaped specifically for us,
not illegal Cherubs
not any angelic being
not madmen
not any other being,
but humans and animals.
This Earth was Made for Human Beings
It will be the humblest and meekest of saints who rule over it, those who live in subjection to the love of Christ who in those days it is said, to the benefit of all humankind and every living thing and the whole earth,
listen carefully,
Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, as clear as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb down the middle of the great street of the city. On each side of the river stood the tree of life,bearing twelve crops of fruit, yielding its fruit every month. And the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever.
Revelation 22
“…and they will reign for ever and ever.”
Do you grasp the Metanarrative here:)
I do. And I’m piecing it together, slowly but surely.
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Credit
NASA Images By Reto Stöckli, Based On Data From NASA And NOAA
Why do people have to lie? How is it good business to do so? I was blatantly lied to by an individual who I assume thought I knew nothing about his particular area of expertise. But I did. If you’re trying to sell a product or service why not be honest and establish your company as a reputable entity that can be trusted? This way you can have repeated business in the future…man, I was so disappointed.
Then they get mad because I call them out and they have to backpedal; all for extra bucks today when had they been honest it could have been several thousand in future transactions, not to mention a stellar reputation to go along with it. I have to ask myself, what were they thinking? Maybe people aren’t very smart or they short-sell their credibility because it’s today that they are in desperate need for the extra money (or whatever it is they are lying about) and the future doesn’t matter if they aren’t around to see it.
I Could Not Say Anything
Going down a rabbit trail, I also wonder why I can’t just keep my mouth shut. I could’ve not let them know that I knew they were lying – I could’ve let it slide and still refused the service. I don’t like being lied to I guess, it pisses me off, and I also don’t like to be pushed around. My personality is quite happy-go-lucky. To some who are far more serious, it may seem an unbearable lightness of being, annoying even. But as I’ve heard it said before, I have far less play in me than one might initially think.
I don’t always know everything, (I say not always because I also can know anything there is to know by the omniscient God when He sees fit to share with me).
So then I think about myself and how there are so many things I don’t know so how might I have been taken advantage of in the past?
We May Not Understand Why Now, But the Future Reveals the Reason
Jesus answered him, “What I am doing you do not understand now, but afterward you will understand.”
John 13.7
Fear and high pressure sales do not work on me, at least not most of the time. Liars usually have to create an atmosphere first, perhaps of urgency or maybe confusion, before selling the narrative and zeroing in for the kill. One of my first jobs was selling cutlery – they are good knives too, I still have them and they are still sharp 30 years later. When what is being sold is of high quality, no dishonest tactics are needed to sell it. Being trained to sell those knives makes me chuckle today. The manager at that time, Rich Oakes, was a stellar guy, I think he’s started his own business today and doing great. He taught me a lot of things in that short fifteen month season that I’ll never forget and the knowledge has served me well.
Sometimes we wonder why we are where we are. We might think, why am I here doing this right now when I could be doing anything else? But wow, the thousands of dollars I have saved throughout my life having been taught how sales and marketing work at a cutlery office has been of utmost value to me.
Integrity Counts for More, Respect Brings a Better Harvest
Trust. Telling the truth can cost a company or an individual a lot of money, while on the other hand, being dishonest can increase a company’s bottom line. But at the expense of what? It’s a huge risk to bet on someone not uncovering the truth. I knew the truth, called the individual on his play, and still was pressured, as even their co-worker hopped in to reiterate the urgency of a situation which later turned out not to be so urgent, as I had already known.
I guess I feel disrespected somehow. There is a certain amount of respect that comes with having a husband to handle certain situations. But what I know that people who lie to me don’t know is that I have an all-knowing Husband who can follow them home, listen to them when they’re talking about me behind closed doors, and He delivers to me far more power than an earthly husband can provide. This makes me smile, because even though things would be somewhat easier being married, having an omnipotent God as a protector is unbeatable:)
The King and His Host
And when said Husband is also King, having a vast array of angelic host at His service, and I’m His wife, well dear children of God, we all also have a power that can manifest from the invisible to the visible – the spiritual realm is no different this very day as it was in 4000 B.C. or 1 A.D. when angels manifested to speak with Abraham or Lot or Mary – and I do believe, they manifest at will around us for whatever purpose our Lord and King – our Husband – deems appropriate.
Man, it’s hard to find people who are supportive and trustworthy. But thank God I do know some who are and have the privilege of doing business with them. You know when you’ve found an honest person when the decisions they make help you increase your wealth when it could have benefited them to say nothing at all or sell you something you don’t really need.
Sowing Trust, Integrity and Good Will Now for an Uncertain Future Ahead
Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again. Divide your portion among seven, or even eight, for you do not know what disaster may befall the land.…
Ecclesiastes 11.1-2
Generous, reliable and trustworthy people and companies are growing more scarce it seems. Could it be that one day, when I open to see who’s knocking, it will be a robot who’s come to fix the problem I’m having with the car, or HVAC, or refrigerator or……
God only knows where humanity is headed. But I for one am going to strive for as much honesty as possible knowing that man may kill the mortal body, but it is God who holds the soul.
After seeking the best way to simplify my life and clear my thinking so that it’s easier to be creative and in a flow, I’ve decided to embrace a partial minimalistic approach to my house including the arrangement of things within it. My house seems to function as a larger landscape of my cognitive functions. So it’s as if my mind is narrowing my environment for me, it’s providing an answer in a way, one I’ve been seeking for awhile.
Sounds ridiculous perhaps but I can’t seem to get away from the idea that sometimes we need to simplify and clear away extra distractions and clutter in our physical environment in order to find an inner calm conducive to creativity and receptivity.
My house is organized now, but that’s not really the point.
Sometimes inflowing and outflowing doors start closing, or narrowing, because God has something to say for which He needs our full attention. Distractions must go.
Minimal Social Media
This frame of mind is spilling over into social media as well. I’ve been taking more time to read the word of God and pray and the more I do this the more I’m pulled to cut ties with social media. I’m not sure how much but I can’t ignore the need to let go of it increasingly right now. I think more and more people are feeling the same.
We never know what is coming down the pipeline but God knows all things. Sometimes we need only obey what we are understanding God to be speaking to us. We never know how we might affect someone in a positive life-changing way and I’m thinking it is only best to take care of ourselves in order to better serve others. Attention is a valuable asset, both to have and to give.
Social media can be a complete, energy-zapping distraction at times.
Inspiration to Gain Traction
Also, the challenge and vision of minimalism is one of the few things that has sparked my curiosity and given me some small amount of inspiration and motivation to manage my surroundings. I don’t even understand that exactly, or why that’s so, but it’s what I feel so I shall move forward with it. Every room in my house, without variation, is off-white. Blah…
Time to clear some things out so my mind and relationship with God also will benefit. I like the idea. I don’t think one has to become the true essence of minimalism, but using it to make some small steps forward will be wholly beneficial. And plants, lots of green living plants:)
What I have seen I can hardly understand or accept. I can’t write it, I can’t talk about it. Words fail me.
I thought I had time.
I have been wrong.
The scriptures foreshadow what’s lurking on the horizon of mankind. From Revelation Nine, the Fifth Trumpet.
The Fifth Trumpet
Firstly, preserve the earth, keep it green and flourishing because it is earth they intend to take from us. Dispense with all excess human life:
4And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads.
There’s something deeper embedded in the idea of Artificial General Intelligence. It is technology now, tomorrow it will be infused with lies and merged with human flesh. Know now that any wo/man who joins themselves in any way with this unfolding evil, God will not take mercy. The merging of the inanimate with the biological will not be pleasant in the least. The Intelligence will need our fleshly autonomous organism to gain its agency. So then, let us become one being with it…alas, perhaps I am wrong….
5 And to them it was given that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a man.
6 And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them.
Death shall flee from them…there are worse things than death to which one can be be subjected.
It Isn’t Hard to Draw the Parallel
Listen to the Spirit describing the reality through a man’s visionary experience from the first century:
7 And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle; and on their heads were as it were crowns like gold, and their faces were as the faces of men.
11 And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon.
Surely not….surely this is AI, the dream, the beauty of nature and technology…
There is a Shadow to everything, dear Homo sapiens…
Photo by Alex Shuper
To God belongs all the earth, and to Him all the fullness thereof. The Gates of Hell shall not prevail against His own.
