Snuggle up to the threshold of heaven.
There make your bed and wait.
Abandon the herd and wait by the East fence.
Lightning will splash on green grass and the lake.
But caring eternal fingers will pluck up those who wait.
Eat sparsely where the grass is dry.
The luscious fields that draw are a ruse.
The beckoning bellows of joy are a lie.
Listen for the voice of your herdsman’s truth.
To the East fence, and stay nearby.
By His Grace
How incredibly wealthy man is, in the things of distraction. And how incredibly impoverished he has become, in the knowledge of the One who is made him.
For decades I was angry at man, because he was so exclusive. They spoke of tolerance and inclusion, but no matter where I turned, there was no such thing to be found among men. So I perceived that they lived in a great and impenetrable lie.
But now a love for God has dawned within my soul, and with proof. He is full of inclusion by His mercy, which is tolerant for my ignorance. I find he is fully trustworthy. I find he is unmistakably true.
And now I find a new source of anger. It causes me boundless frustration, that the great lie of man so willingly disregards what is true.
I was incensed that they would not receive me. Until I realized they would not even receive the Holy One.
Among men what do I have left to lose? They have not taken from me, they have rejected me all together. (In this I do not speak of the body of Christ.) And now, why should this be surprising? For they even reject the One who made them, for the sake of their dear and deep love for distraction.
Bring them a new distraction and they will love you. Offer them eternal life and they despise you. Yes they want to live forever. But I find they are not willing to part with their sins. Not even willing!
Am I wrong for allowing this to frustrate me? Am I amiss for despising the ways of man? Who crucified Jesus?
By His Grace
How easy it would be so slam Elton John for his hatred for truth. He uses his money and “power” (Sir. Really?) to push others around. And now he stands in his pomp to decry a truth, spoken against the sin he loves so very much. It would be so much more peaceful, in this world, if those who say they love freedom would give that same desire of freedom to the One who made them.
How easy to speak of God’s perspective of “unnatural desire for those of the same gender”. But to what end? All I would accomplish is to set myself against the times in which we live (a purposeful pun against Johnny’s own statement). And I have already done that for many years now. And look at how many lives have been changed by my testimony for the Christ of the Living God; only me.
But shall I let the blind and ignorant talk, of the “powerful and rich”, go without response? Why should I? Their power to influence others into sin demands a response.
I do not respect a man because he has money. I do not respect a man because he is poverty stricken. I respect a man who proves he loves the God who made him. I do not respect a man who has the approval of heads of state. I respect a man who proves he has the approval of the Head of All Creation.
No sir, “sir” Johnny, I don’t respect your decry of truth. And you are no lover of freedom. For you purchase the silence of those who stand against you. I believe the proper term for your brand of freedom is called Fascism (authoritarian, or intolerant views or practice). How you love the idea of tolerant behavior, while you crush anyone who does not agree with your sinful life. Not only that, but you would purchase the power, if it existed, to silence the Living God.
I really wanted this to become some kind of encouraging statement. But I find nothing encouraging in today’s acceptance of ungodly behavior.
I guess if there is anything to be called “encouragement” in this article, it is that one man has the guts to stand up and say “NO”.
Related link
http://m.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/31896339
Flatter a man, and nothing ever happens. In effect, you’ve lied to him. You only gave him the strength to stay where he is.
Speak to him about how his pride is condemned, and the chances are pretty good, he will hate you for life. Again you’ve accomplished nothing, but at least you told him the truth. And the “nothing” produced, belongs to him.
Or you could choose the road that most people take. You could simply stick your head in the sand and refuse to help one another see.
There are three approaches to our plight as human beings: flattery, bold truth, or ignorance. If there is another one, somebody has to show it to me.
Most of the time people play in the sandbox together, and refrain from war, by busying themselves with the toys at hand. Until a squabble develops over a certain toy. Then the three approaches come to bear with immediacy.
One of the protagonist will obviously be in the wrong. I’m not saying the other was right. But one of them abandoned his own toy with greed for what lay in the other man’s hand. That’s pretty much the sum of what causes wars in the world.
Now let’s look at the options. Maybe we will flatter the man and say something like, “Wow you’re a good looking and strong fellow. Perhaps you would play with this toy better than me”.
Success! The man gives you I look of filthy distain, grabs your toy, sticks his nose up in the sky, and walks away.
Well maybe you weren’t very successful. Because now you’re sitting there trying to make a sand castle out of dry sand. But at least you live to play another day.
Yeah, you live to play another day. He gets what he wants because your flattery worked. But you have not helped the next poor bloke. In fact you made it worse on the next guy. Now Mr Pompous, the thief, believes he deserves to win. How cool is that? I feel horribly sorry for the subsequent victims.
Now since this is my story, I’m going to inject a lover of ignorance as his next victim. I was going to put a truth teller here. But that doesn’t follow suit with Hollywood’s playbook. And I was afraid you would think it was the end of the story.
Mister pompous looks over and sees the toy in the hand of the one who loves ignorance. (The guy really should have been born an Ostrich. But God decided to withhold the feathers.)
The second Mr Pompous’ shadow darkens the toy, the lover of ignorance finds something immediately more pressing to do. Leaving the toy unattended, as if by mindless action, Pompous gets what he wants.
Bolstered again. “I really do deserve everything!” Just peachy.
But you know who comes next. I only have four people in this story. Two of them have already given up, and one of them is still quite active.
There’s Mr Truth Teller. playing with his toy. He saw what happened to the other two. In his nature, he determined to stand his ground.
Most people would call him an idiot. Because there’s a very good chance he’s going to get buried in the sandbox. But it simply isn’t his nature to care.
He’s not a hero. That’s how people are going to paint him though. He just leans hard on the truth. That’s his home. And he’ll stay in it, even if it burns to the ground. “Bring it on Mr Pompous.”
The shadow arrives, and it’s as if the owner of the toy is blind and deaf. And when the filthy hand reaches to grab, it receives a sharp slap on the wrist. The statement of war is pronounced. And the sandbox gets really quiet.
Mr Truth Teller stands up. If you look real close, you can see his knees shake a little bit. But he sticks his face right into near proximity with Mr Pompous. And then he says something that saves his life.
“You see all these people around us? They lied to you. They told you you deserve to have everything you want. Well I’m going to tell you the truth. This toy belongs to me.
Now you stand in front of me, faced with a dilemma. You can slap me to the ground and take what you want. But those who lied to you are watching.
When you slap me, you just might wake them up. And there’s a whole lot more of them then there is of you. You might want to give that some thought before you raise that greedy hand.”
Then Mr Truth Teller gives Mr Pompous a stern sharp nod, and goes back down to play with his toy. I’m not going to finish the story here by telling you what happened next.
Chaos does what chaos does. You know the odds as well as I. And you fully understand the risk Mr Truth Teller is taking. But you also perceive it is for your good.
There’s a good chance Mr Pompous will back off. There’s also a good chance, that if he strikes Mr Truth Teller, all of you will stand up and pummel him into the sand.
But there are greater odds that he will strike Mr Truth Teller. And you will do nothing in response. One of you might dial 911. But you won’t stand up and get in his face. There’s a reason why those kinds of headlines are sensational. It’s really rare when people do the right thing.
By His Grace
Van Gogh’s work is held in high esteem. But he himself was a drunken, shiftless man. He was violent because no one would give him fame, and he despised humility.
The world is full, in its history, of men who were forced to obscurity, all the while desiring to be first. It is the way of men. And it plays out strong even today.
Van Gogh desired to be considered a great man. But what did he own that was admirable? And I write the words I do, desiring to change the scheme of things. But I will not desire what I cannot have.
I am with man. I am of man’s things. And one might think, that by the words I write, I am a very violent man. If that is so, then my end should be like Van Gogh’s; to dismember some part of my body in a drunken and violent protest.
But no such thing shall happen. And I am no longer a violent man. The Lord himself will sustain me in joy. He will place humility on my forehead and keep it there with great pressure.
This is no personal boast. If the Lord does not build the house, the builder build in vain. But if it is the Lord that builds the house, nothing can shake it.
It is like man to see the wicked things around him and explode in violence. But it is like Christ to see the wicked things around him and respond with truth.
He was not touched by our filthy ways. And those who submit themselves to his leadership will not be touched by it either. Yet they will proclaim in truth. Yet suspicion and gossip will abound in regard to their tendency toward violence.
Rest easy my fellow men. I do not desire your demise. I speak the things I do by the will of the Living God himself; that all men may be wakened to the reality of their own violence, appealing to the Christ to heal them.
By His Grace
How the accusations fly! That anyone who scurries around in society with a big Holy book, should be considered obscene. Whether he speaks the words that are contained in that book with a soft and loving voice, or yells and screams them as he runs, to Man he is worthless and a fool.
In fact you don’t have to say a word to be considered a fool, an obscene man, and a nuisance. Try it someday. Simply take your Bible with you everywhere you go.
If you really want to prove that people hate God, take your Bible with you when you go shopping at all the major department stores. You know precisely what the response will be.
You don’t have to speak a word about God. You don’t have to be seen praying. Just blatantly associate the Bible with your hands. And watch them back off with wide eyes.
Tell me how that’s right! Tell me how it is that you could carry any other book (ANY OTHER) and they would love you. They would pat you on the back and laugh if you carried pornography in your hand. But they will fear you, and deplore your very existence if you lift up the Holy One of God. Or even if they see you associated with his Holy things!
That’s fine. Because that’s the way things are!
I want you to hate me, you people of the world who think you are more righteous than the One who made you. For I can prove that you hate him, by simply carrying his Holy book into your presence.
I don’t hate you. Though that’s how you accuse me. And not only I, but every man who dares to stand in your presence and proclaim that God “ALONE” is good.
For such people blatantly proclaim that everything man is, is unholy. And how deeply we scar your sense of self-righteous pride.
Shall we apologize? Do we need to grovel at your feet and beg you to include us? Some do. But you never receive them back, as if this display of a love for God never happened. They are labeled among man to the end of this place of time.
Are you correct to think you are righteous? You submit that you have good thoughts. Provide proof of the end of your day, that everything you have thought has produced a perfect action or word. My friend if it has not produced holiness, then you did not have good thoughts. At the very best, you had sporadic reasonable intent. What a blight in your eye, to say such a thing about you.
In business you make machines to produce a certain product. If the product that comes out of the machine is faulty, you call the machine broken. Man is a broken machine!
I will not take your time with more words than is appropriate. The volume of this testimony lay in that Holy book that scares you so very much. Its called the Bible.
It’s the repair manual for broken humanity. And in that Holy book there are two sections. The first portion contains intricate descriptions of humanity’s brokenness and need for repair. The second portion, called the “New Testament”, contains the description of the repairman.
It speaks of his training, so that you can know you can trust him. It gives proof that he has repaired many broken machines. And it makes a statement that is deplorable among you. It often makes the statement that he is the singular Master of his singular trade.
The New Testament will highlight obvious failures. And it will tell you what to do when you encounter them.
My friends of flesh, you do not need to repair the machine you currently have. (As if you have the tools to get the job done.) You need an entirely new one. Why should you balk at this? “New” and “fresh” are the buzz words of the day! And the New Testament provides the blueprint to the epitome of “value added” activity.
By His Grace
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