WORTHY WORDS TO BE SHARED

There are way too many worthless and wrong words floating all around the air waves today.  Time was people would read the news and ponder it for awhile and except for some who took the time to write an op-ed piece in response to it, most would keep their response and opinions to themselves or they shared them with their friends over coffee where there could be a dialogue and blending of ideas.

Now people can hear or read something and have a reaction and response posted and read by hundreds if not thousands of people, all in five or ten minutes.  They take no time to ponder what was said or research the information to enhance it or find the truth.  It’s just formulated and develops into an opinion and it is published, which for many give it creditability, so it is reposted again and again. 

Over time opinions become doctrine and edicts for others to heed and adopt, and if they don’t they quickly become the opposition, the enemy and the wars break out with everyone telling everyone else what they should believe and what they should do.  This only increases the words which increase the chaos and the beat goes on. 

The unintended consequence for all of this is that a culture of like, unlike, comment, or share has been developed with no regard for truth and no responsibility for untruth; a culture living on fast brain food and fast information with no concern for nutrition or well being, just empty words falsely filling our minds like empty calories falsely filling our bellies.

This is not limited to social media but extends to our bookstores and libraries as well, which find their way into schools.  We have books upon books pushing and selling this idea and that idea on how to think and how to act; giving us new ideas so we can get rid of all the old ideas that we have been building on for years.  Foundations and traditions be damned; be “progressive and ascribe to this new and better idea.  Testing and proving be damned; try this, you’ll like it! 

Instant change and instant growth is a magician’s trick; an illusion to the eye and a delusion to the mind.  Good change and growth takes time and seasoning to ripen and mature into substantial fruit.  Thoughts and ideas take reflection and pondering to ripen and mature into a sustainable reality.

A progressive thought process is just that, a process.  That process takes time to look at new ideas and observe results or consequences before being put into action.  The Native Americans looked down the line 7 generations before making hard decisions.  They had that concept down pat before the “progressive action people of sophistication” came and instantly wiped out these “traditional, unsophisticated, ignorant savages”.  This is a pattern that has been going on in other countries as well.  A lot of the difficulties in the Middle East now go back to the same hubris of foreigners coming in and “saving” the poor ignorant inhabitants from themselves.  As Dr. Phil would say, “How is all that working out for you?”

I don’t like labels but if I had to label myself I would say I am a Progressive thinker but a Traditionalist activist.  The old and ancient ways are to be respected and built on, not immediately dismissed and discarded.  The old ways have been thought out and tried.  Yes, they may need some adjustments but they don’t need to be simply eradicated. 

In the circle of life all things matter; the old is incorporated into the new, making it whole and more sustainable.  Our words need to be withheld until they are weighted with reflection and truth.   Then they are worthy to be shared and heard.

GIVE GOD A CHANCE

GIVE GOD A CHANCE

THOUGHTS FROM THIS WEEK OF VIOLENCE

I believe that Jesus is weeping over our nation just as he wept over Jerusalem.  We are like sheep without a Shepherd.  We have done away with the prophets who warned about the consequences of a Godless society.  We have become our own gods and determiners of our own destiny.  We think we are wise but we are fools.  Now we have a world spinning out of control and we seem shocked and wonder why.  Now we do what we always do and try to fix it.  Enough is enough.

America is now an armed citizenry.  America is now informed by citizen journalist.  America is now in the hands of the lowest common denominator.  We have been in the process of Dumbing down; and we are there.  I kept asking myself, where are leaders that can be looked to?  Then I realized I was asking the wrong question.  Now I am asking where are the followers?

If ever there was a time of “Too many chiefs and not enough Indians” this is it.  There is no one “in charge” because we all are in charge”, or so we think.  When all are in charge then no one is in charge and I can hear Dr. Phil now saying, “So how is that working for you?”  Well Dr. Phil…it isn’t.

I am from the 60’s and I have heard over and over that we were all against authority.  That is an unfair and an untrue statement.  The folks I hung around with weren’t against authority…we were against bad authority, which is pretty much what we were surrounded with in those days.  Now I find myself asking the question, which is worse, bad authority of no authority.  This past week I was answering no authority is worse.  That only brings chaos that is unmanageable and makes every person in this country unsafe.

Our armed citizenry and citizen journalist simply pop up into a position of self imposed authority.  It is unwarranted authority without training, expertise, responsibility, or accountability.  It is dangerous and it needs to recognized, contained, and controlled.  Now any little dispute between people who disagree can turn into a massacre.  People can claim to be and put themselves in the position of being judge and jury and executioner of justice.  It needs to stop and it needs to stop now or this nation will implode and destroy itself with no enemy in sight.

I am from the 60’s but I am also from the 70’s.  In the 70’s a great move of God happened on this nation and quickly went viral to the world.  The Jesus Movement was a move of God that offered folks the true Authority that was being sought in the 60’s.  Many of those who tried all the other ways such as free love, drugs, and Eastern gurus were being confronted by Jesus Christ in an unprecedented way that even the established churches took notice of.  God offered an Authority that was steadfast, faithful, all loving, and substantial.  God offered an Authority that was worthy to be followed.  Jesus had the answers for the world at that time and people began listening and obeying.  He created us and knew what was good for us and encouraged us to walk in those ways of love, non violence, non oppression, and true justice.  He provide the solutions to all our problems, not by putting band aids on the surface hurt, but going right to the heart of the problem…heart surgery.  I along with many experienced this first hand and can testify that it works…and is the only solution that is sustainable.  It is the only solution that will save us from ourselves.

At this point in our history we have a lot to lose if we don’t fix this mess.

I believe it is at least worth a try.

LIVING OUT MY BIRTHRIGHT

There is never a moment when I am apart from God.  He is the very Life within me. God breathed live in the human being.  God deals personally with every human being, which is absolutely amazing when I think of how many of us there are, have been, and are still to come.  John writes of Jesus that “He was LIFE and the LIFE was the light of men.”  When I look into a child’s eyes, especially a baby, I see that light, still as bright as if it was straight from God’s Presence and glory.  It is so clear to me that the life of God is within them as they innocently come into this world.  The Spirit shines out onto everything and it is sacred, as all life is.

I was born innocent, but eventually the dust of time, circumstances, and events grows thick and settles onto this flesh I am contained in.  The Spirit is still there but gets covered over and somehow that connection is interfered with by the things of the world.  I forgot where I came from and wondered around trying to find something I knew I was a part of and usually carried my search into all the wrong places.  God searches for his lost sheep and when he finds them the Spirit without quickens the Spirit within and they make the connection once again. “To all who did receive him, and believe in his name, he gave the right to become children of God.”  It is my personal choice to accept this original birthright, squander it, or reject it altogether.  When I choose to accept it I commit myself to live out the responsibilities that come with it.  On Palm Sunday, 15 April 1973 I chose to accept it.  At times I squandered that birthright just as the Prodigal son did in Jesus’ parable.  Thankfully, like that son, I found my way back, returning in repentance, and finding my Father’s open arms welcoming me home; no condemnation, just celebration.

God will not force himself on anyone.  Paul tells what happens when people reject their birthright, when they reject God.  “God gave them up to the lust of their hearts; God gave them up to dishonorable passions; God gave them up to a debased mind.”  God gave them up to the life they wanted to live, doing what they wanted to do.  God gave up His Son to give us life.  But He will not force Himself on anyone who chooses not to receive, believe, and accept that Life.  Out of love He accepts the choice made to live one’s own life, just as the father in the parable let his son go. But the cost is great if one is not repentant and return to the Father.  The spirit is diminished and dies.  I believe this grieves God’s heart.

I know how I feel when I look into the eyes of someone I love and care about and they say to me, “Frankly, I don’t care what you or anyone else thinks.  I am doing what I want to do; it is my path to walk and I choose the path I want.”  It grieves my heart because in their eyes I see only darkness and a void emptiness.  The light is gone, extinguished by their own breath.

It is God’s business to determine the final condemnation and judgment for this refusal of the birthright.  But I know there is no celebration in the Father’s house for any lost soul.

I, like everyone, am God breathed; but I am far from perfect.  But I believe that God isn’t as concerned about perfection as He is about presence.  He created us to be with Him, to dwell with Him, and commune with Him.  How can anyone choose anything else?

COMPOSTING WORDS IN SOLITUDE & SILENCE

I don’t want my words to be just my opinions, built upon my prejudices and preferences.  I don’t want my words to be a recitation and regurgitation of the opinions of others.  I want my words to come from deep within, where my experiences and knowledge have been composted with the energy and heat of the Spirit of Truth that resides there.  When I submit to that process I can be sure that my words will be true and that they will be few.  One true word can do much more than many opinions or recitations, just as one apple seed can produce many more apples.

God created the whole world with three words; “Let there be light.”  God redeemed the people of the world with one Word; Jesus Christ, His Son.

Jesus was a man of few words, as was His Father. Their recorded words fill up one fairly small book, in comparison to the multitude of commentaries and books written about them and their words; a drop in the bucket, but those words fill the earth with life.  Their words are seeded with authority and have the power to transform lives.  The other words are read and relegated to their homes on book shelves, lifeless and gathering dust.

Don’t get me wrong; I love to read and study these books.  Over the years I have devoured many of them with great enjoyment.  But they are limited in their scope; they simply fill my head with information, some good, some garbage; they lack the power in the words that God speaks; the power to inspire and transform my life.  While they are beautiful for a season, they become like the fallen leaves and dead debris that gathers on the ground during fall.  In themselves they are worthless, but composted, broken down, and worked on by the Spirit of Truth they become fuel for new growth.

Solitude and silence are my compost pile.  They are the place I bring my experiences, my thoughts, and my knowledge to.  They break down deep within me to be worked on by the energy and heat of the Spirit of Truth and will then be the words I can speak; words that like seeds will be scattered to produce good fruit in the lives of those who hear and who read them.  That is my honest intention; that is my hope.

PREPARING A PLACE FOR US

For five years I worked on the Operations Team at Pendle Hill, a Quaker Retreat Center in Wallingford, Pennsylvania.  The mission of that Team was to provide “radical hospitality” to the people who visited there for rest, reflection, and workshops.  We prepared the space where people could be free from providing basic necessities of their physical lives and focus on meeting their spiritual needs with little or no distractions.  We cooked their meals, cleaned their rooms, and made them as comfortable as possible.  We worked hard so they didn’t have to; we ran quickly so they could walk slowly.

I loved my job.  I worked with and met some truly wonderful and amazing people who influenced my life and provided some wonderful memories.  One of the greatest lessons I learned was the importance of preparation. This lesson has done me well in my personal life, physically, mentally, and spiritually.

Preparation for anything I do is the key to its success.  It is the process of building a good foundation from which to safely build everything I do on.  It generally takes the most time, attention, and work; it generally is the work that is unnoticed, unacknowledged, and unappreciated.  The house cleaners, sou chefs, cooks, and maintenance people remain hidden in the background, behind closed doors; or in Downton Abby language, downstairs from the upstairs.  Of course, this is true in other places as well.  The training an athlete does, the drudgery of playing scales a musician does, the hours of study a student does seems insignificant to the trophy won, the concert performed, or the degree earned.

The person I am in my mind, soul, and spirit, is the result of preparation.  Just as a garden will remain barren if the soil isn’t cultivated and the seeds are not sown, so I must work to prepare a life to my liking.  I cannot reap what I do not sow.

As I grow older I become more reflective of my years that have past by me.  At times I can feel worthless because of my inability to do as much as I could when I was younger.  But if I look again with a perspective of seasonal living, I see that now is what I prepared for; the days I walked quickly allow me now to be fulfilled by walking slowly.  Years of conquest of every idea about God have now led to a greater sense of communion; years of exploration have now led to enjoyment; years of filling have now led to fulfillment; years of struggle have led to simplicity; years of preparation have led to Presence, both with God and with my true self.

I see God as One who honors preparation.  In the beginning He prepared a place for me to live; His creation.  When I got lost God prepared a way back to Him; the crucifixion of His Son.  In the end He will do something new, something Jesus left this earth with the promise to prepare a place for me to dwell with him forever. 

I love to wonder about what kind of a place he is preparing.

GOD WORKS IN MIGHTY & MYSTERIOUS WAYS

When Jesus was born it was in a stable because there was no room in the Inn.  Angels heralded his birth which brought shepherds to see him.  A star in the sky led wise men from the East to come to see him.  Other than those announcements no one would have known the Word of God had come to earth. After the invited guests left he went into obscurity; unknown, no one special, just a good boy who followed his father’s trade as a carpenter, waiting for his appointed time to come.

When Jesus died it was on a cross, nothing out of the ordinary for those who had disobeyed the rules of the day.  He did not die in obscurity or unknown.  He had left his mark on people across the spectrum of society. Pilot, the ruler of Rome, publicly acknowledged him as King of the Jews on the sign he put upon the cross.  A Centurial in the army acknowledged him as the Son of God as he watched him die.  Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews who had met with him early in Jesus ministry, now had become a follower assisted   Joseph of Arimathea, also a Pharisee and member of the council, a good and righteous man who had now become one of his disciples.  These two men fearlessly and in public went to Pilot and secured his assistance to give Jesus a proper burial.  And of course the women who had followed him, one from birth to death had remained fearlessly loyal in his presence.

Jesus touched individuals, relating to them face to face.  A small group of individuals who loved Jesus and faithfully followed him would grow into a worldwide acknowledgement of this man who died for all their sins.  The seeds he planted in a few would grow into multitudes.  He came to earth as nothing out of the ordinary, taking the form of a servant, being born into the likeness of men. (Philippians 2:5-8)  He left earth a victor over sin and death.  He will come again as the one who is glorified and sits on the throne of God in His kingdom.  He is returning, not to stay, but to come for those who receive him and believe in his name, to take those who are children of God to the place that he has prepared; where there is always room in the Inn for whosoever will come; where his Father dwells, and rules over His creation as it was from the beginning and now shall ever shall be.

There are life lessons in the events of those days that changed the world.

One was for his disciples, the ten who had abandoned and deserted him in his hour of need; who ran and hid in fear.  After all those years of being with and learning from their Master, the disciples were helpless, powerless, and useless at his death.  Their pride and arrogance was finally broken.  They now knew experientially that without him, they are nothing.  Finally they became who they were meant to be and would be able to do the work that God through His Spirit would lead them to do; the work Jesus had trained them to do, but could only be done by broken men.  They had now been crucified with Christ.  It will be no longer they who live, but Christ who lives in them.  That lesson is for all who follow Jesus as well, as Paul points out in Galatians 2:20.

Another lesson for all who follow Jesus is that one should never despise small and seemingly insignificant moments and events; they have the potential to grow like the mustard seed or spread like leaven.  One quiet word, one small deed; one may never know what great and abundant fruit they may bare; so be faithful and hopeful, always aware that it is God’s Spirit working, and His Spirit works in mighty and mysterious ways.

IN OUR SENSE OF LIBERTY DO WE TAKE TOO MANY LIBERTIES?

Something is lost in this day and age; the concept of solemnity, in life and in Religion.  In the quest to be all to all we can be, we have dummied down and become frivolous with things that once were held in high esteem.  This thought came to me as I was reading about the events in France this past week around the Charlie Hebda incident.  There was something missing in the response to that horrible and tragic event that has been working in my mind.

I don’t consider myself a prude.  I enjoy fun and lightheartedness as much as most people.  I believe in free speech.  I don’t condone killing people as an answer to anything. So what has been nagging me about the overwhelming response to this event is that my conscience may be troubled abit about stepping over a line of decency in my actions in the past.  Have I considered something as fun that indeed was frivolous that has tied to it a lack of respect?

The response I observed was a support of publicly printing anything under the guise of free speech.  I also observed a failure to understand how serious some people take their Religion.  I also saw how disrespectful people can be, to Religion and to people in high office.  It is like being rude and being disrespectful in what we print and in what we say are ok, no matter what.  I don’t believe that and have to look at my behavior and change it if I fall into that trap.

The lesson I want to learn from this; being disrespectful of anyone’s  Religion is not ok, ever.  Let’s take Religion off the table of entertainment, especially satire magazines, sit coms, and talk shows known for their no holds barred attitudes.  With free speech comes responsibility; with responsibility comes respect of things considered solemn to people.  I am often offended at the treatment of God and Jesus in these arenas but I don’t want to appear to be a prude.  Well, maybe I am and maybe it’s time to admit to that.  I want to bring the solemnity back to Religion because it has gone way over board into frivolity and I don’t think that is helpful to anyone.

It is important to study and be aware of the Religion of others and be respectful of them.  Religion is dealing with the inner being of a person and with the God of the universe.  That should bring sobriety to our thoughts and actions, not frivolity.  My Religion involves joy, happiness, lightheartedness, and a childlike attitude; but not at the expense of the holiness of God and Jesus.  I believe the same is true of most Religions and especially the Religions of the Middle East.  So I need to pay attention to that.

I think we Americans in our sense of Liberty take too many liberties.  We are not free to disrespect others.  We are not free to write or say hateful or hurtful things to or about others.  We need to use discernment in our words about our government officials, whether we agree with them or not.  I took issue about the responses of many to the fact that President Obama did not go to the demonstration march.  There was so much disdain and meanness in what I heard and read about this.  Personally I am glad he did not go into a situation where there was a clear and present danger.  Call me over cautious but that situation could have turned on a dime in a second.

All in all this world has become a dangerous place to live and I think it would behoove us to not add to the danger by being disrespectful and frivolous with our words and actions.  We are at a point where everyone loses as the violence in the world increases.  If it means not printing or saying something that could be hurtful or disrespectful of others, it seems like a small step that could help be a solution to the problem.