The struggle, the journey: mind, yours and ours

Well, I have to tell you I am going to take you on this journey. The  
reason for my blog - to provide a space where I could talk about my  
struggle. I know you are wondering what struggle? The struggle of  
accepting the duality of man, me, and the call upon my life. As one R  
and B singer stated ' we all got a calling' but they are all different..See we all have the capacity to love, be love and live a successful and accomplish life. We don't because we don't accept our calling upon our life.
You know thing we know we are meant to do but deny because man does  
not see the best in us, so we run from it to, rather than embracing  
it. See owning our calling allows us to come to peace with our truth.  
Jesus did; he knew he was as much man, as he was God; thus prayed and  
embraced it, in spite of popular opinion or accepted truth of the  
times. He did it with confidence. We cannot, I realized because we are  
afraid of not being the thing we want or wanting what was never meant  
for us to have or be. All parts, roles God assigned to each of us, were  
assigned because He knows what we can bear, he knows what he fashioned  
us for. So, he made our truth to fit each of us. But it is a process embracing our duality, the ying/yang, earthly/heavenly, etc. The process  
requires faith, trust and obeying. Something we partially do, then  
wonder why I did not get the desired outcome. We are given the perfect  
model, example to follow but we are too occupied, distracted, by what  
we don't know how to dig indepth in what we do know about Jesus that we  
miss out on living a balance and peace with self...

We do not get the duality, and getting it makes the difference... See  
our differences, imperfection allows for God divinity to manifest. How  
can we love in spite of, if there is nothing that put us thru the pain  
of doing it? How can we seek to save and share and not condemn, if we  
had no one to judge and we want to not share with? See, God so loved  
the world he gave, and Jesus came to save, not condemn. Embracing our  
duality makes it possible for us to see and run toward our truth, rather  
than run away from it... John 13;15...To be continue..

Who are you really saying no to?

Who are you really saying no to, when you tell some no? We all need to be careful with our willingness to say ‘no’ to a request. As we entertain angels unaware, we may also be saying ‘no’ to God unaware. The person requesting is the vehicle or instrument being used. Having faith that allows trust and obedience is its own end, not merely a means to an end. A Christian ceases to be true to their faith if s/he becomes the tool of our chosen religion like the Pharisees or Sadducees, which lives no room for grace, mercy, or the miraculous; in the words of Socrates 'to follow the argument where it leads' to find God’s truth. When we begin to align ourselves with any sectional interest that does allow not for this – God ways are not our ways. We begin to put a wedge between us and God because he is not found in what we know, what we think is easy (although it can be), or what makes sense to us. See, a Christian is characterized by the spirit of god-love we are willing to carry in our life, share with others, or willingness to ‘stand.’ The Christian is not merely to add and revise facts in traditions, rituals, or rites of passages before us in our churches of an accepted framework, but to be ever examining and modifying the framework itself; God’s word is multidimensional. Seeking God, and saying more than ‘no’ but finding the balance when to say ‘yes.’ This can only be found when we do not run from or ignore the daily battle of being so accustomed to God’s voice, we think, we do not hear Him and walk away from with our proud ‘no.’ Not knowing what we have just lost because we would not do the new thing, to get a better thing.

See it is the business of all Christians in/out of facilities, company or environment to provide and bring the atmosphere which is most conducive to faith growth. It is an atmosphere where grace and mercy abides, prevails, and extends to others as we see, feel, ‘you care’ and it is not just surface rhetoric but a touch that reaches essence…But it cannot happen when we are infatuated with our ‘no.’ We must be mindful there are some spiritual side effects when we tell God ‘no’; many of which we do not want to endure. However, the cost of disobedience and being willful because of freewill is high...Although, I know the powerhouses of the religious community and our all learned co-laborers in Christ, can be intimidating at times and sometimes may seem omnipotent from the outside looking in, but they can collapse with remarkable speed when scrutinized from a God-center perspective because they have gotten too accustom to the voice of God, they think might know. Yet, when we all walk in a covenant relationship with God positions no matter, for then likes speaks to like; Christians…Now, if we desire to live, we must desire to die to the spirit and be made whole my God words. Then, the balance we seek by saying ‘no’ or ‘yes’, we shall know, and discern between just man and God. Know total surrendering as a Christian is choice, where gain is found in giving, letting go…Mark 8:34-37 ‘And He summoned the crowd with His disciples, and said to them, "If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me. "For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake and the gospel's will save it.”For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world, and forfeit his soul? "For what will a man give in exchange for his soul? … (NASB)…Seasons everywhere…I feel blessings in the air, those the seeds you sown… it’s time to come into your own…Seasons...walk into your seasons…Season by Donald Lawrence…we have to sow, to reap...think about it….Who are you really saying ‘no’…

A holy makeover

A holy makeover, it teaches us ‘what not to wear’ not just on the outer parts but also on the inside parts. See ‘a God change’ we seek as Christian but we do not always respond to God’s with a teachable heart and surrendered mind. Even though, great is his mercy toward us as he provides for us, even when we do not see it. What we offer, whether we realize it or not, is a willful-know-all approach that always ends up doubling our trouble. All because we, do not want to do the things God tells us we need to do, to get what we seek; a closer relationship with Him. We have not really got it yet, in order to get a different outcome, we must come with a different approach and willing spirit; do what we have never done, to get what we have never gotten...Oswald chambers states- God will never reveal more truth about himself until you have obeyed what you know already.. Or in real talk, I will not give you more, than you can bear. We humans have a different approach, and this is the reason we do not understand God ways. We believe in piling it on, and let him/her get it all at once because it is all connected. But God does not operate like this, and neither should we. See Christ death on the cross was not more insurance for our Ticket to heaven, but a culmination of an exercise in obedience and trust in untangling us from the madness we are caught up in on earth. Showing us, in living color, how we too should follow the Father, and demonstrating how it is not always easy, without a struggle, not all friends will understand, and at the final phase you have to walk alone. So I ask you, how many of us have ever had any kind of makeover that did not require surrendering and putting ourselves in someone else hands; letting go? None, yes, no makeovers were ever done this way, if we are honest without surrendering ourselves to someone else. Why would God desire any less from us? I think not…We have to do more than hear, but put into practice and do, what is being told. For the holy makeover, we can no longer just repeat and direct others, but we must act on them, and have them work on ‘self’.
We all must go to our mount of transfiguration that befits us, in our times, in order to change and achieve the Holy makeover of God. We must be born again; heard this before I am sure. But there is a twist here, we must realize it is not quick fix, flash in the pants, once save always and do nothing to act, or a fleeting assignment without residual affects because it is not. Remember Jesus, came to save not condemn, to find and embrace the disenfranchised, and make whole the broken…This can only come to pass in our lives through transformation. Do you ever wonder why it is so are hard to do, when it comes to our savior? But the new trends, fashion, slang, or style is easy? It is short lived, and it is not lifestyle change required, thus, it is easy. Holy makeovers are not, and have an emotional, psychological, spiritual, and mental impact that baffles. No, no one wants any parts of it, just the good things that come from it. Yet, the holy makeovers as we see in the bible from the Old to the New Testament, from Moses to Paul, all had to go through to get to, and it was not easy or without struggles. God loves us so much, he sent his son to endure the greatest of the hardship to let us know, He understands. Why Holy makeovers are necessary, well with one transfiguration a world was change forever all because He obeyed and trusted. What do you think would happen, if we all did our part in the quest? Let go, let God, trust and obey; yeah you have to do both…. 2 Cor. 3:18 – ‘But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as from the Lord, the Spirit’ (NASB)…think about it….

Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me

Psalm 23:4-Even though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I fear no evil, for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff, they comfort me. (NASB). Now many of us as both a child and an adult either heard or recited this verse when we hear Psalm 23. I wonder if we ever deconstructed or answered this question - what is a rod and staff? Well it is interesting to think about because we mature in the word, we must go deeper into the word…smiling. Rod is define in its many definitions as discipline and punishment, while among staff many definitions, it means to carried as a symbol authority or office, and use to lean on for support. Well, if you read Psalm 94:12-13 -Blessed is the man whom You chasten, O LORD, And whom You teach out of Your law; That You may grant him relief from the days of adversity, Until a pit is dug for the wicked. Meaning God discipline us, and we are blessed for it, as we receive relief from adversity because He is the authority. Makes you stop and think a little differently about God’s hand. We forget a loving God likening unto a loving parent disciplines his children for their good, because of His love and desire for our joy. God’s discipline does not leave us bitter, only better with an improved disposition in spite of the pain and tears shed. For me, I look at the verse differently. I do see God providing the rod and staff to keep us in line as we walk on this journey for discipline and support for us, and remains the only authority to follow. See, us walking through the valley; represent us at a low point in our life. We tend to act more from an emotional driven focus or state, rather than any other time in our life. The rod and the staff keeps on the divine path, so we do not let the fear evil that comes upon us, or surround us overtake us, we do not succumb. However, we do not always appreciate the rod and staff of God in our life. We wrestle with it, we question why, and seek to find another way, as if it was, not realizing as a parent rears a child to become a responsible person so does our Father in Heaven. A person of integrity, accountability, and love, the parent seeks to instill into the child, and it never stops...smiling…Would our Father, do no less for us by providing a rod, correction, discipline, and the staff, support and a shoulder to lean on so we would we would not be afraid as we traverse this Christian journey? I think not…smiling…Having our Father present with the rod and staff allows us to do more than just repeat or apply his word to others, but also to act on them and have them work ‘self’. Without the rod and staff of God in our life, we shall surely fail as we lose sight of the righteous, the truthful, and the godliness… Your rod and staff, they comfort me…Think about it; I have and am blessed for taking this journey into learning more about God words and better understand why those simple verse are repeat so much...