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.