Wants--Needs--Haves

Everything I once held dear, I count it all as loss!  

Awaken my fellow humans and let's do something about creating 'world peace'.  What is it that's causing these wars around the world?  Power struggles?  Religious freedom, or lack there of?  Economic disasters? Can you think of the cause of each of these?  I hate to over simplify the causes of wars, but sometimes you have to find the common denominator to see the truth.  So what is the consonant purpose of these wars? Well wanting more of everything, of course.  Wanting the unattainable.  Want, want want, need, need need, must have have have....   Behold the words:

"The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want."

Psalm 23:1   

Ever been at a place in life where you gave your everything to a person, a situation, or a relationship; yet you were left disappointed, alone, and sad?  Why is that I wonder.  Did you not do something right?  Did you think you gave it your best but held back?  All I can relay is what I feel is the answer.  This by no means is an all encompassing solution.  Just some ideas on the topic.  So here it goes.

When you try to please a person, you lose yourself in them.  Your identity gets lost in them somehow.  You begin to identify yourself by their accomplishments.  You're affected by their moods, their attitude, their behaviors.  You forget what you used to be like before them and what you would possibly do without them. Once you lose your own self to someone else, you can't expect to walk away and not be disappointed, not feel alone, or not be sad.  Instead of giving your all to a person or a situation, why not try to surrender your everything to God and let Him make your relationship or situation better.  Something to think about at least. 

Back to the wars of the world.  Those leaders that are so motivating with their words and convince many to follow them into battle, what if they were to lead the followers to God.  The true God.  The only God.  What if instead of sacrificing their followers for their own cause, they offer themselves up to God and pray for the betterment of their followers.  What if instead of feeding lies about heaven and hell they speak the truth of God.  What if instead of craving power, they become slaves themselves to God.  Wouldn't that be a wondrous site.  Alas, if it were only that easy.  

There is so much wisdom in scripture if you only take the time to read.  I don't think you even have to be a believer to understand and learn from the true word of God.  He asks us to surrender to His will, and promises us that He will lead our paths.  He asks us to lean on Him and not our own understandings.  He asks us to give Him our troubles because He can bare them.  He tells us to love one another, as He loves us. He asks us to forgive each other, as He has forgiven us. So if our Lord God can love us in our darkest moments and forgive us our worst sins; then who are we not to love and forgive each other?  I suppose that's the question asked over and over throughout history.

         "But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve, whether the gods your ancestors served beyond the Euphrates, 

or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land you are living. 

But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD."

Joshua 24:15

How sins impact us - Wrath/Anger

Wrath is simply defined as, extreme anger. But there really isn't anything simple about the word is there. When you try to look up wrath on Wikipedia, it redirects you to anger and it says; Anger is an emotional response related to one's psychological interpretation of having been threatened. Often it indicates when one's basic boundaries are violated.

What does that mean when you're trying to interpret anger/wrath as a sin? What I should have done when I started writing about the 7 deadly sins was to describe what a sin is. Better late than never, I suppose. A sin is the act of violating God's will. There is much scripture on the topic of wrath and anger.

"So then, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear, slow to speak, slow to wrath; for the wrath of man does not produce the righteousness of God."

James 1:19-20

and

"In your anger do not sin; do not let the sun go down on your wrath."

Ephesians 4:26

and

"He who is slow to wrath has great understanding, But he who is impulsive exalts folly."

Proverbs 14:29

and

"Do not hasten in your spirit to be angry, For anger rests in the bosom of fools."

Ecclesiastes 7:9

and

"Cease from anger, and forsake wrath: Do not fret--it only causes harm."

Psalm 37:8

Scripture aside, consider this real life example of anger.  A couple devoted to each other solely, argue now and then, but remain faithful and true to each other through thick and thin. One is in extreme depression, and the other does what they feel right to provide support.  Day after day, week after week, month after month, years after years, nothing changes.  Correction, the depression gets worse.  As anyone with depression would attest, some days are certainly better than others.  Many of the  better days are spent in laughing and enjoyment, and they thank God for those days.  Yet the heavier burdened days take their toll on the relationship.  The one holding the two together feels deprived and feels taken for granted.  If it isn't this, it is that, always something to make things more complicated, harder, more difficult to handle.  Till one breaks down and gives in to anger/wrath.  Sadly, it would not be a complete story if it was only once they reverted to anger. The person seeks God's guidance and asks for patience.  However baring different situations, or better yet, opportunities God gives to practice the patience, leads to wrath rather than patience and peace. They fail. They try again, and they fail again.  Over and over.  

What frail creatures we are.  How we try to do right, and are faced with such challenges that make us sin. That furthers us away from each other, and especially God.  It is not the fault of partner who has a chemical imbalance that causes them to be unwell.  At the same time, it is not the fault of the partner who does what they can to help.  The fault lies in giving into the temptations the devil presents each.  People, I cannot stress enough that we must pay attention to how the devil works.  You may have heard the phrase, God works in mysterious ways.  But remember this one that, the devil works in mischievous ways.  He uses trickery to make you believe things that aren't true.  If something is on your mind that you're struggling with, he makes it worse by telling you it's bigger than what it is, or it's more than what it is.  Don't give in to the devil my friends.  I unfortunately am not above any other and have indeed given in to him myself, though I try not to.  I shall keep trying to fight him, as it's a daily battle.  Remind yourselves of God's promise to us.  Remember to put Him above all else and let him guide your ways.  Let Him lead you away from sin.  Though I am a believer I too strife with this.  It isn't easy and anyone that tells you otherwise isn't being honest.  Recognize that wrath/anger only leads to hurt feelings and hurt relationships.  Therefore do not turn a blind eye to the wrath inside yourselves.  Learn to address it and control it.  Pray to God for patience, understanding, forgiveness, compassion, and for His blessings on you.  For it is written: 

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; 

In all your ways submit to Him and He will make your paths straight."

Proverbs 3:5-6          

How sins impact us - Pride

  Pride is an inwardly directed emotion that carries two common meanings. With a negative connotation, pride refers to an inflated sense of one's personal status or accomplishments, often used synonymously with hubris.  With a positive connotation, pride refers to a satisfied sense of attachment toward one's own or another's choices and actions, or toward a whole group of people, and is a product of praise, independent self-reflection, or a fulfilled feeling of belonging (Wikipedia).  

Since this blog is talking about sins, I will focus my energy on the negative connotation of the word pride.  Ever known people who's pride is everything to them?  Above their family, above their children, literally above all, including God?  They kill to protect their pride.  Lest they do not know that whatever it is they are proud of, whatever it is that has given them such pride comes from God. Yet who is not accusable of this sin?  I am egregiously guilty myself.  Not as much as I once was, but still guilty nonetheless.  What we have to remember is that when we start worshiping ourselves, money, status or position, we are walking away from God.  As in the state of worshiping these things, we create idol gods who cannot provide us with anything but shallowness and emptiness.  We are taken by ourselves and led away from what matters.
  
For God says; 'I designed you to enjoy Me above all else.  You find the deepest fulfillment of your heart in Me alone. Fearful, anxious thoughts melt away in the Light of My Presence.  When you turn away from Me, you are vulnerable to the darkness that is always at work in the world.  Don't be surprised how easily you sin when you forget to cling to My hand.'  

Interpreted from Psalm 62: 5-6 which reads:

"Yes, my soul, find rest in God; my hope comes from Him.

6 

Truly He is my rock and my salvation;

    He is my fortress, I will not be shaken."      

and also from Isaiah 41:10 which reads:

"So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand."

Every single day I pray for humility as I know one of my greatest weakness is pride.  To me it's interesting to watch individuals who have lost everything they held most dear in this world, but have yet to lose their pride. With nothing left, they walk without humility and take what is given.  I wonder to myself if they thank God for what they are given out of selflessness by others.  As I've said before, surrender to God and you will be given His grace and His bounties.  For that is what one should be proud of!  The bible says;

'But He gives more grace.  Therefore He says: "God resists the proud, but gives grace to the humble." Therefore submit to God.  Resist the devil and he will flee from you.  

Humble yourselves in the sight of the Lord, and He will lift you up.'

James 4: 6-7, 10

I have read somewhere that a giving hand is better than a taking hand.  So give openly my people.  Do not hold onto your worldly wealth and do not take pride in it. As you are but a Sheppard, taking care of His world, His earth, His wealth, His belonging, and His people.  Whatever you have in this world, you cannot take with you to the next.  So then what makes you so proud?  Shouldn't the pride be His alone?  And if so, then shouldn't we bring praise to Him so that His name and His glory is placed above our own pride? Nothing we have is ours to keep.  What we have today could be gone tomorrow.  But God was, God is, and God forever will be.  Humble yourselves my dear friends.  As only humility brings us closer to what we need to be proud of; God's endless love for us!  

  

Receiving our Lord's peace in time of trial -

The peace I felt was indescribable.  I woke up this morning at 4 am, faced with a very troubling situation.  After praying while crying heavily for some time, I gathered myself up and took to the road.  Driving hither and thither, looking every which way, I drove and I prayed.  I gave my body, mind and soul to the Lord and asked for His guidance, His wisdom, His strength for me to deal with what it was I was faced with.  I surrendered to His will and simply prayed.  I made a few probing calls and then continued driving and praying from the depth of my soul.  Then as if all the burden, weight, and pain from my body was lifted off.  I felt internal peace!  I am not using these words sparsely here. With all honesty I cannot explain what phenomenon occurred in that moment, in that car; but it relieved me of my tension, my stress, my anxiousness, and my worry.  I knew God my Lord had heard me and all was going to be well.  I was to leave it to Him to resolve and carry on my day with Him by my side.  Soon after I resolved to this, I offered a fast for the day to my Lord for his blessing, mercy and love.  To give thanks for His presence in my life.  I came home and laid on my bed and prayed some more.  My God, the Lord Almighty answered my prayers, as alas, I received the call I had been waiting for.  Thank you God!  THOU ART GREAT!!!  

Now, look at the words in the scripture I decided to post here.  Does my experience this morning not reflect those words exactly?  When will people of this earth realize the power of our Lord? When will they open their eyes to His wonders?  When will they embrace His grace? For those that have never felt such a feeling, I ask, what are you waiting for?  Why are you longing for anything?  Why do you worry? For the Lord our God has said; 

"Therefore I say to you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat or what you will drink; nor about your body, what you will put on.  Is not life more than food and the body more than clothing?  Look at the birds of the air, for they neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns; yet your heavenly Father feeds them.  Are you not of more value than they?  

Which of you by worrying can add one cubit to his stature?  

So why do you worry about clothing?  Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they neither toil nor spin; and yet I say to you that even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.  Now if God so clothes the grass of the field, which today is, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, will He not much more clothe you, O you of little faith?  

Therefore do not worry, saying, 'What shall we eat?' or 'What shall we drink?' or 'What shall we wear?' For after all these things the Gentiles seek. 

For your heavenly Father knows that you need all these things." 

Matthew 6:25-32           

Seek Him.  Worship Him.  Praise Him. Turn to Him.  Do not stay in your worried states.  Do not be dismayed.  Do not remain in anger.  Certainly do not hate each other.  For that is not our purpose.  For His guidance for each of us is unique.  Let Him prepare you for the days that await you and point you in the right direction.  He is with you continually, so don't be intimidated by fear.  Though it stalks you, it cannot harm you, as long as you cling to His hand and keep your eyes on Him.  He speaks to us constantly, perhaps not in words but He speaks in faces and voices of loved ones, and softly in the depths of your spirit.  You can find Him in each moment, when you have eyes that see and ears that hear.  Simply ask His spirit to sharpen your spiritual eyesight and hearing.  

My dear people, don't just read these words.  Feel them inside of you.  Let them take hold of you.  Let them work within you to restore you.  Feel His forgiveness.  Feel His love for His people.  Feel His strength become yours.  Let Him lead you.  Surrender to His will.  You will be surprised by how very easy it becomes.  Thank you Lord for Your reassurance, Your presence, Your love, Your mercy and Your forgiveness.  Thank you my dear Lord for Your peace within me.  

How sins impact us - Lust

Lust is an emotion or feeling of intense desire in the body. The lust can take any form such as the lust for knowledge, the lust for sex or the lust for power. It can take such mundane forms as the lust for food as distinct from the need for food. Lust is a powerful psychological force producing intense wanting for an object, or circumstance, fulfilling the emotion. (Wikipedia)

I want to write a piece on each of the sins; starting with lust, to bring light to where certain actions of ours are derived from.  We have the definition of lust from a known source, let's take it apart now.  Why do you believe lust was categorized as a sin originally?  Why is having an intense desire for worldly things a sin?  Is it only a sin if you're lusting for a person, or also for things?  What happens if you are unable to attain that which you intensely desire?  

Consider the following scenario:  A child is in a checkout line at the local grocery store with you and sees a candy he really wants.  He asks for it, and you reply with a no.  The child more often then not, gets upset and begins to throw a temper tantrum.  Right?  This is not necessarily a bad reflection on your parenting; as children learn to find situations to do these acts in, situations where they feel you are unable to discipline them in front of strangers.  Back to the scenario. Whatever causes the child to act as thus is the same reason why we as adults behave the way we do when we do not get what it is we desire.  The only difference being, that the child is unaware of lust and is acting on impulse, and adults are aware of such a sin and chose to lust.  Unfortunately some of us lack self control and act on our lustful desires.  Lust is a sin because it takes us away from God and His plans for us.  

By the time we are an adult, we have certain values and morals instilled in us from our parents or other influences from our childhood.  This is the case whether we were brought up in a religious household or not, as all parents take it upon themselves to decide which values and morals to give importance to and what they feel isn't worth it. Perhaps there are those in the world that were never taught that lust is a sin.  Reality in my opinion is that we simply chose to remember certain morals and forget others.  Surely lusting after certain foods can't be that bad.  Or lusting after a promotion you so deserve.  Maybe even lusting after that women that lives in the neighborhood.  What's the worse that can happen?  The wrath of God you fools!!  Okay now with all seriousness, the worse that can happen is not what one should think about.  What one should remember is that you will need to answer for all your actions on this earth, to God in the afterlife.  So as long as you are prepared to do so without shame, then...  But who amongst you denies that little voice in your head that tells you right from wrong.  That same voice you drown away with your justifications.  That's the voice of the Holy Spirit, guiding you away from sin.  The justification comes from Lucifer, aka the devil.  For it is written: 

"Let no one say when he is tempted, 'I am tempted by God'; for God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does He Himself tempt anyone.  

But each one is tempted when he is drawn away by his own desires and enticed." 

James 1:13-14 

As mentioned in many of my previous writings that things aren't easy or simple.  If they were then earth would certainly have peace as everyone would be easily able to battle sin.  It is the job of the devil to lead us astray.  It is up to us to be stronger willed than the devil.  Lust is extremely dangerous as it comes across innocent enough.  Psalms 23:1 says, "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want."  So if you allow God to fill your heart with His love, mercy and joy, then you can fight the worldly temptations.  Then what you have left after overcoming lust is the goodness of God!  That food you so desire, you don't want it because you are hungry.  You want/desire it because it is tempting you.  That promotion you so deserve will come to you when the time is right, and only God knows when that is.  And that woman you lust after is the wife of your neighbor.  Remember your commandments from God; Thou shalt not covet.

My dear people, always listen to the little voice in your head, unless of course the voice is of the devil.  How do you tell it apart?  You tell is apart by knowing in your heart, body, mind and soul that God only wants what's best for you and He will not tempt you.  So if the voice is urging you towards something you do not need, it isn't from God.  May our Lord, God Almighty give you the strength to fight the devils war he lashes against you daily, so that you may not lust.  Amen.    

"Sin shall not have dominion over you, for you are not under law but under grace." 

Romans 6:14

For the One who gave it all!

I stand, my arms wide and heart abandoned.  In awe, of the One who gave it all.
I stand, my soul Lord to You surrendered.  All I am is Yours!

A father is a person who doesn't officially give birth to you, but definitely has a big part in creating you.  So when you think about it, even those that don't follow Christianity, you have to believe that God our Lord is our Creator and our Father.  If He hadn't made humanity, we wouldn't be here. The absolute beauty of our Lord God is that, even though we are not worthy, He loves us, each and every one.  He is our maker, He is our salvation, and He is our Father.

Consider how very lucky we are.  Us, the broken, the weak, the disheartened and the tortured.  Yes, we are lucky to have a God so loving and so merciful.  Though He made us all, and there are approximately 7 billion of us here on earth, He knows us all individually.  He knows every hair on our bodies.  He took time to create us in His image.  He gave us life because He loves us.  We commit sins and He forgives.  He wants to build a relationship with us, so he sent us Christ, his beloved.  Does anyone know a father so true to his word than our Lord?  He promises us that:

"Fear not for I am with you; Be not dismayed for I am your God.  

I will strengthen you, yes I will help you.  

I will uphold you with My righteous right hand." 

Isaiah 41:10

The truth is, we are afraid of the love and mercy He bestows on us, and we are not willing to accept it.  Perhaps our sins are so deep and ugly that we are lost in our shame.  Remember though!  When God created Adam and Eve and gave them the garden of Eden, He was so close to His creation, man, and there was nothing between them.  All was open, all was free.  He gave man dominion over earth.  It was only when man committed sin is when shame came along.  Still, our God is so mighty that he rid us of our damnation, our shame, our fears, our worries and our sins, by accepting Christ's sacrifice and prayer for us.  Christ has risen and we are forgiven.  Hallelujah!

Our Lord, our Father, our everything, blesses us daily.  He loves us so that He gives us opportunities after opportunities to improve ourselves.  To lead better lives.  To be righteous.  To be truly worthy of His grace.  It is by His grace we are all here today.  It is His grace that provides for us.  It is His grace that heals us.  It is His grace that enables us to live the lives we do.  How great is our God!  There are those amongst us, who didn't have a proper upbringing.  Those that didn't have an earthly father to look up to.  A father to teach them.  A father to guide them.  But I ask those of you, why are you sad?  Is your Father in heaven not enough for you?  Did He not stay with you in nights you were alone and fearful?  Did He not comfort you in your time of need?  Did He not, day after day, provide and take care of you?  He is the one we need to look up to.  He is the one we need to learn from.  And he is the one we need to be guided by.  Do not forget, our God has never abandoned us and never will.  He is and forever will be our Lord, our Savior, our Father, our everything.  I will end with another promise from our Father in heaven:

"When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;

and through the rivers, they shall not overflow you.

When you walk through the fire, you shall not be burned, nor shall the flame scorch you.

Isaiah 43:2            

Baby steps...

None of us are like the prophets of the old testament that can in an instant; part seas, move mountains or survive being swallowed by a whale and live to tell the tale.  We more than likely take time to accomplish any set task, whether it be as small as taking the trash out or changing the world.  I don't know if the following reference will be understood, but it's very relevant.

 

So how do we accomplish such unimaginable tasks then?  Is it even possible?  There are so many obstacles in the way to our goals.  Right you are- there are a lot of hurdles we have to jump over to get to the end goal.  But it can be done.  Having the right mindset and attitude is what will help.  Assuming you will fail before you even begin will not help.  Duh!

Taking small measurable steps in the right direction is where to begin.  Can't say this enough, even if you're tired of hearing it.  Start with yourself.  Did you notice the word "measurable"?  You need to be able to set goals that you not only can accomplish, but are measured in some way.  For example:  

Goal:  Today I will not complain.  

Measure:  I did not complain as often, as I only complained twice.

Next day goal:  Today I will not complain at all.

Measure:  Well I only complained once.

Following day goal:  If I complain today I will need to put a dollar in the jar.

Measure:  I did not complain today!  

----

Goal:  Today I will not gossip.

Measure: Well that didn't work as I gossiped all day...

Next day goal:  Today I will try harder not to gossip.

Measure:  Hmm...I did better but need more work in this field.

Following day goal:  Today I must not gossip.

Measure:  Alright, I only gossiped once today.

Consequent day goal:  Today if I gossip I have to place two dollars in the jar.

Measure:  Hey looky here, I didn't gossip at all today!

----

Note:  It isn't ideal to assume that you will accomplish the goals you set for yourself if you put a condition that you have to put money in a jar if you don't.  As you may not have the money, or better yet, stop carrying money and use that as an excuse.  The examples are meant to bring some humor into the situation.  

Now, with all seriousness.  Nothing in this world would be accomplished if everyone said, it simply cannot be done.  Any goal, project or idea has to start from somewhere.  Einstein coming up with the theory of relativity, or Da Vinci creating the Mona Lisa, or even America's forefathers getting the Declaration of Independence ratified.  It started with a belief in something that did not exist.  

 

So why can't you help me accomplish my mission of creating peace in the world.  Make goals for yourself to accomplish.  Make goals for your children to accomplish.  Start somewhere.  Grow and expand from there.  Ask for God's guidance.  If for whatever reason you don't believe in God, ask the ninja warrior for guidance then.  But do it.  Pray on your goals.  Hold yourself accountable for them.  Reset the goal to better yourself.  Say hi to someone that may need just that simply acknowledgment.  Smile at someone who looks like they are having a bad day.  Hug your loved ones.  Kiss your children.  BE HAPPY!!!  Yes, it is really that simple.  Try it and you may just surprise yourself.  If you start with baby steps, you will astonish yourself and those around you as to how many seas you can part, mountains you can move, and whales you can survive...   May God help you in your endeavors.  Amen!      

 

Trickle down effect...

There is just one person in this world that you can change.  You know who that person is?  For those that said, yourself, bravo!  That is correct.  No matter how much you want to change those that you love, you simply can't.  Sometimes we make ourselves believe that we have indeed accomplished the miracle of changing someone, but when you start believing that please remind yourself, that you may have had an influence, however the change you see is their own efforts.  And if you ever argue no, it's not them it is "I", then just wait a while; as that person will revert back to their original self eventually.  I by no means am trying to be negative in this blog.  I am simply sharing something we all deal with...

What does change have to do with the subject of today's blog?  Well since change can only occur within ourselves, therefore change in society can only occur with one person at a time becoming a better person.  Remember my blog where I said, be the change you want to see in the world.  I want to dig a bit deeper into that today.  Let me present you all with a scenario that I have a feeling many would be able to relate to in one way or another:

  A minor argument occurs over unclean dishes between two people living in the same household.  One says, I did rinse the bowl before putting it in the dishwasher, while the other tries to show how the bowl still has stains on it, indicating that it was not rinsed properly.  This minor argument escalates as one or both of the parties get frustrated with the other because they aren't conceding to their point of view.  Perhaps voices are raised, unfortunate things are said about prior similar incidents, and one if not both parties recede to their corners of the house to cool off (mostly to not be around the other person).  Not much is said to each other after that for the rest of the night.  Morning comes, and the two still haven't exchanged words.  One or both get ready and go to work, still failing to resolve the issue from the previous night.
  At work things are going well.  Everything moving along smoothly and the incident over the dishes is out of sight and out of mind, right?  It is until you go to heat up your lunch and find the microwave dirty, and it all comes rushing back and spills over into work.  You get extremely upset at whoever last used the microwave and didn't wipe it down.  Your voice escalates and you're saying that you simply can't catch a break.  How things are dirty at home and at work too...and everyone is looking at you and wondering what's going on.  After some time you realize what you are doing and leave the cafeteria and go to your office to hide out.  

So what just happened here?  Anyone want to take a guess?  This my friends is referred to as the trickle down effect.  Well at least one translation of the phrase.  Simply put, one thing leads to another to another, trickling all the way down until one person explodes in the most inopportune time and place.
Solution(s)?  There are a few actually:

1. Letting things go and moving on
2. Forgiving the other for their mistake.  We are all human and we all mess up
3. Picking your battles wisely

Again, why is this important?  Think about it.  If we hold on to such trivial arguments and have them stored away in our memory bank for later use, and certainly bring it up in a similar argument saying, '...you did this just last month...when will you learn?'  Then how will you ever be able to live the lives that are supposed to be examples for others?  How are you possibly going to be the change you want to see in the world?  It is so very easy to judge the people who are committing such heinous crimes as murder, rape, abuse and torture because they must just be out of their mind.  Do you really think you are in your right mind when you start going off at work about a dirty microwave??  It all stems from somewhere...something small.  So many conclusions can be drawn about criminals, their behaviors, and why it is they do what they do.  You probably have heard them as well.  Analysts saying, '...that guy who raped all these older women was abused as a child and it took a hold over his mind...' or, '...well this guy's home was burnt down by terrorists when he was a child, so he decided to take revenge and burn down the whole village...' perhaps, '...this kid was bullied at school so we can see why he brought a gun to school to shoot so many other kids...'  Such examples of justifying bad behavior are everywhere.

But it is not OK!  Any bad behavior should not be justified.  Since bad behavior stems from something that triggers old memories (most of the time, but not always), let's please keep the following in mind:

"Do not remember the former things, 

Nor consider the things of old.

Behold, I will do a new thing, 

Now it shall spring forth;

Shall you not know it?

I will even make a road in the wilderness

And rivers in the desert.

ISAIAH 43:18-19

or     

"Brethren, I do not count myself to have apprehended, but one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind and reaching forward to those things which are ahead, I press toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God..."

PHILIPPIANS 3:13-14

or

"Be ye angry, and sin not: let not the sun go down upon your wrath"

EPHESIANS 4:26

and

"If you forgive men their trespass, your God will also forgive you.  But if you do not forgive men their trespass, neither will God forgive your trespasses."

MATTHEW 6:14-15

People:  You do not have to be a believer in God to understand that we are the solution to the world's problems!  We have to amend our own ways, our thoughts, our anger, our resentments, our fears and our pride.  If you aren't getting your way in an argument, ask yourself will this be worth it tomorrow?  More often then not the answer is no.  So why not end it right then and there.  Is it because your pride will be hurt?  Would you rather be left with your pride or the people you care and cherish?  Build stronger and healthier relationships with each other.  Be God's representatives in this world of ours.  Show those bitter people causing such turmoils that there is still humanity left in this world.  There is still love and forgiveness left on our earth.  Let them see us and question their own morals and values.  Let them see the word of the true God through us!  Let's definitely stop the trickle down effect...please.  

To reiterate, it all starts from within us.  So evaluate yourselves and then decide what is important and what is not worth hurting others over.  Trust God to do the rest, as He surely will transform you and make you anew.  That is His promise to us, if only we give our lives to Him.  May He work within us all and make us all the people He knows we can be.  Amen.  

Devil's Trap!

Do you feel it?  The snares tightening around your body, pulling you into the darkness?  Does it feel hot and scary, or does it feel welcoming?  How you answer that last question says a great deal about your morals and values.

I am going to write under the assumption that everyone has heard the story about the Garden of Eden.  Specifically referring to when the devil as the snake spoke to Eve and put doubt in her mind.  The doubt that most people everyday are challenged with.  The doubt that should be the greatest sin of all.  The doubt that God isn't the all powerful or the all knowing.  The feeling that me, myself and I can be just as good as God...  yeah that doubt.  The devil encouraged Eve to think that she too can have the knowledge, wisdom, and truth, that God posses.  If only she betrayed God's word and ate from the tree of knowledge.  Does anyone remember what happened after?  That's right, humanity was doomed!  As soon as Eve took a bite of the apple from the tree of knowledge, her eyes were opened to an extent she hadn't experienced before and for the first time, she saw her nakedness and felt embarrassed.

That's what the devil does.  He deceives us all and entraps us in ways we would think innocent at the time.  "...oh what's the worse that can happen if I take a bite of this juicy apple...",  or "...it's okay to steal this because you are in need of it...", maybe "...I know cheating on my wife is wrong, but she doesn't love me the way she used to..."  So many examples can be given of his trickery if we only paid attention.

How do we prevent ourselves from falling into the trap though?  I don't have all the answers people. However I do know some things that I would love to share with you.

1. First of them being, BELIEVE/TRUST IN GOD!  If we put God before everything and believe in His word then it becomes harder for the devil to make a home in our hearts.  Remind yourselves that the devil fears God.  
2. Second, rid yourselves of negativity, malice, anger, resentment, and other such ill feelings.  If your heart is clear of these, it would become difficult for the devil to take hold of your mind.  
3. Third, when you do start getting the above mentioned thoughts or feelings, remind yourself of #1 and know that it is the devil at work, making his way in.
4. DO NOT UNDERESTIMATE WHAT HE, THE DEVIL IS CAPABLE OF.  He will disguise himself in any shape or form to earn your trust.        

It's not as easy as this sounds.  Don't things always seem simpler when read in instructions, but when you go to apply what it is you learned, all of the sudden you find yourself perspiring, nervous, and anxious.  Just try your best to remember #1, and take a deep breath in of God's goodness followed by a long breath out of the devil's ugliness.

PEACE!?!

The dictionary defines peace as: the freedom from disturbance; quiet and tranquility or as, the freedom from or the cessation of war or violence.  Here is something that may come as a surprise to most.  The term Islam means peace.  Yeah, weird no?  As those that claim to be following the Islamic religion, are the ones creating the world's wars.  Whether it be in Afghanistan, Egypt, Pakistan, or other third world countries where terrorism is rampant by the "jihadi Muslims" and/or the "taliban Muslims".

Ever look up these two words?  Well let me tell you their definitions.

  "Jihad" means the spiritual struggle within oneself against sin, and or, striving in the way of God.  Let me go a bit further.  Mohammed as a prophet of Islam raged jihadi wars against the nonbelievers in his time, yes. That sort of jihad is considered the lessor jihad and is a struggle against the enemies of Islam.  But there is no where in the original teachings of this religion where it says to kill, torture and terrorize, those that don't believe what you do.  Over the years so many modifications have been made to how the message in the quran is interpreted and or carried out.  People add what they like, take out what they don't, and simply ignore other parts.    

  "Taliban's" literal meaning is the student of Islam.  Actually the word talib means student and from that word the extremists derived the word taliban, which in essence should  be a group of students.  That really isn't the case now is it?
----

Alright, so we have the word Islam = peace, the word jihad = striving in the way of God, and the word taliban = group of students of Islam.  How did these crazy extremists change these three peaceful  words into political movements, wars, terrorism and other horrid things?  If prophet Mohammed was alive to see this, he would be so ashamed of what his people have become and what they have made of the religion he preached.

So what's the point of all this?  So glad you asked.  The point is, don't judge each other people!  I read a great quote somewhere once that completely applies here.  "Don't judge others because they sin differently then you".  We all are sinners and we all need God's love and forgiveness.  Nothing gives us the right to kill another because they believe something different from us.  Search within yourselves folks.  Find the hidden menace asking you to be mad, asking you to be vial, asking you to yell and scream, asking you to hit or hurt, asking you to abuse and torture, and asking you to kill; and pose this question to yourself, why am I doing this?  If you can honestly answer that question, you have a chance at redemption.  But know that God's redemption must be sought and then you must ask for forgiveness.  However, only asking for forgiveness is not enough!  After sincerely asking for forgiveness, you must amend your lives to represent a life that God Almighty would be pleased with.  A life worth living!  Only then will you truly have redemption and salvation.

Peace - The end goal is peace within us, around us, in our lives, in those we know and those we haven't met yet.  No matter what change you want to see around you, it all starts within us.

So, why don't you be the change you want to see in the world!!!    

disclaimer - I don't associate myself with the Islamic religion.  I grew up with it and have read up on the topic.  I strongly disagree with what they preach and what the religion has become.    

A prayer for all - In light of recent hate killings

We can close our eyes to those that are in need, are hurt, in pain, diseased, abused, or tortured, but that doesn't make them go away.  Nor does it make their brokenness heal.  Ever wonder where hatred starts from?  Hatred starts from within us.  Each and every one of us has hatred inside us towards something or someone.  Whether it be someone that caused us pain, or someone that hurt someone we love.  I have heard so much that hatred is a strong word and most people just strongly dislike others.  Is that really so though?  Does strongly disliking someone, who they are, or what they stand for, cause a person to kill them?  I believe that comes from hatred.  A deep rooted, ill intentioned, down in your bones type of hatred that cannot be explained or understood.  I remember in college I had to prepare a debate on pro death sentence.  My stance was of, an eye for an eye; as in if someone kills my loved one, then they too must die to pay for the loss and emptiness it caused. But does that fill the emptiness inside? 

Think about it please. When hate originates, it comes from somewhere inside of us. It is so consuming that we lose ourselves in it. We take on personalities of others with like minds and thoughts. We disassociate ourselves from those that love and care about us. Yet we blame them (our loved ones) for not understanding. We tell ourselves stories about no one knowing our pain and what it is we have gone through and or are going through. Which feeds into our hatred. The hatred grows. Unfortunately hate grows and grows unless it is checked at some point or is acknowledged and worked on. Unless it is controlled and monitored. We may scoff at the thought of “anger management” but why? Why is that funny to us? Doesn't most anger come from hate? Please note, I am not making a blanket statement here saying everything or nothing, all or none, and so on. I am suggesting that most of our anger develops from a sort of hate we have. It could be for a thing, a person, a type of people, a type of belief or religion, a race, a sexuality, and on and on... Are those individuals not just like us? Do they not bleed red?  We may not understand them, agree with them, respect their perspectives or ideologies, but why hate them? Do we think about how much energy we lose in the process of hate? Having an idea take over our mind and body that only gets worse. Sadly enough I think some of us are simple minded enough to just go along with other people's ideas of hate. We are so in need of belonging that we are even willing to belong to something that screams hatred without giving it a second thought.

...hey you should come along to our rally against ______. Or perhaps.... do you know such and such believe this and you can't possibly be friends with them. Maybe even... if you join our movement against _______, you will be guaranteed a spot in heaven....

Is our need to be a part of something or to be accepted so strong that we would kill for it? Be able to consume so much anger and hatred to actually pull the trigger? For those of you sitting there shaking your heads while reading this, believe me: It happens every single day! More recently than others, a cardiologist from Ohio who went on a volunteer mission to a country in Asia (not even worth mentioning), was shot 11 times in front of his wife and his two year old son because he believed in a religion that so many others disagreed with and certainly disapproved of. He was on his way to a cemetery to pay his respect to the departed and became one himself. It seemed to have been a planned execution as two men on motorcycles awaited his arrival at the cemetery with guns in hand. So you tell me, is that not hatred? Do people even comprehend this part of themselves? Or is it that we develop multiple personalities at some point in our lives, and are able to block certain parts of what we do out of others. Where is the accountability? Where is the conscience mind? To be able to plan a murder, and carry it out, what exactly does it require? Will power? Drive? Motivation? Belief? ...or hatred so strong that is has a bit of all of these feelings.

My heart aches for those all around the world suffering daily from persecution based on hatred. I too am guilty. That's called honesty! I too am guilty of poking fun at, thinking little of, and just plain not liking others for one reason or another. Whether it be their clothes, how much money they have, the jobs they hold, what their lives are like... If we are truly honest with ourselves, aren't we all susceptible to this? Ever think about why the seven deadly sins are called that? Pride, Envy, Gluttony, Lust, Anger, Greed, and Sloth... Which of these sins causes one to kill? One, some or all? Which one caused the two gunmen to shoot dead an unarmed man visiting a cemetery with his wife and child?

I am simply trying to awaken our minds people. We, as in you and me, that person or this person, us together can try to make a difference. Because it all starts from within us. If we commit to ourselves to changing the way we think, then we can slowly work our way out to those close to us, who in return can work on those they are close to and so on... Isn't that the true message of our God Almighty? To spread the truth of God and His love and His mercy, and His grace, and not this hate that is all around us.

Here is my prayer for those that are in need...and it certainly includes you.

My dear Lord, please help us as we are nothing without You. Lord, You have placed us on this earth and have given us so much. Every day is a day to be thankful for. Yet there are those amongst us that listen to the devil. As always the devil is amongst us and many of us are so weak that we cannot and sometimes do not fight him. He takes over our minds and bodies and we submit willingly. Lord today I ask for Your strength! My Lord I ask that You give us Your wisdom, Your knowledge, Your understanding of what is right and what is wrong. Lord I ask that You be with us every step of the way, encouraging us on towards the right path. I ask Lord that You recover our souls and restore us from the inside out. Lord only You have the power to heal. So I ask Lord, for You to touch us all and heal us from our sickness of 'pride', 'envy', 'gluttony', 'lust', 'anger', 'greed', and 'sloth'. Lord these sins consume us. I ask that You restore us to the state You are most pleased with. Fill our hearts with Your love, and Your forgiveness Lord. Lord I specifically pray over those that have committed the sin of murder against the innocent. Lord I ask You to show them the light. I ask Lord for You to work within them so that they are so ashamed of what it is they have done and bring themselves to justice of Your law. Lord, let Your will be done on them. Let them know Lord, that You alone are God and Your grace is ENOUGH! Lord I ask that you humble us all and give us peace and comfort. Lord, bless us and keep us. Please heal us and restore us. Protect us and provide for us. Let us know that we will never be alone. That You are always with us, through the good times and bad. Let us feel Your presence within us and all around us. Let us always turn to You when we are in need, and let us all take solace in You my Lord. Amen!