I receive a email newsletter from D E Paulk and wanted to share this one with you. This is the kind of message that is what this blog and ministry is all about.
The Love Disconnect by D.E. Paulk
At times we may feel disconnected from God through our sin, disobedience or by ignoring the spirit of God within us. Violating the greater laws of the universe can have a blinding and deadening effect on the senses, the conscience. We can easily slip into unconsciousness or the illusion of separation by our refusal to agree with the way of God. All of us have found ourselves estranged from the path of love and the way of God at one time or another.
However, no matter how disconnected we may feel, it doesn't change God's eternal essence as being love and loving us. Our illusion of being cut off from God's love cannot overpower God's pervading and prevailing love. The sun is always shining and emitting energy. Yet, the earth's rotation, clouds or even an eclipse may create for those of us on the earth the illusion that the sun is not there - not being.
The sun is always the sun and is always there. It is our illusion that tells us otherwise. It is also only and illusion that we are out of the reach of God's love. Illusions can only limit our awareness of God's omnipresent love. Illusions cannot provoke God to un-love us or force God to be anything other than God.
Friday, February 26, 2010
Thursday, February 25, 2010
"Unity in Diversity" by Ian Lawton
Tuesday, February 23, 2010
No Respecter of Persons (Part II)
After meditating on the last post some I had a few more thoughts.
One way to keep us from becoming the same as what we have suffered from is the understanding that we are all a part of each other. When we see the good or divine in another we see the good or divine in ourselves. When we see the evil or sin in another we see a reflection of the evil or sin of ourselves. We can never escape that as human beings we are part of each other. What one does affects the many.
This helps us to look and live from compassion. When I see the weakness whether it be behavior, ignorance or even prejudice I recognize that it could have been me. Judgment or seeing them as the "other" or "those people" is a cop out. Love understands we are all in this life together and our prayer is for forgiveness and restoration. We should pray for others to have a paradigm shift which is what repentance is a change in the way we think and see the world. But this first must begin with us. We cannot live in an us vs them way of life and walk in Love at the same time.
They may not act like our brother, they might not see us as their brother or sister but in truth they are and we should love them like they are.
Love is taking the high road and it does lead to a better way which is the Will of God done here on earth just as it is in Heaven.
One way to keep us from becoming the same as what we have suffered from is the understanding that we are all a part of each other. When we see the good or divine in another we see the good or divine in ourselves. When we see the evil or sin in another we see a reflection of the evil or sin of ourselves. We can never escape that as human beings we are part of each other. What one does affects the many.
This helps us to look and live from compassion. When I see the weakness whether it be behavior, ignorance or even prejudice I recognize that it could have been me. Judgment or seeing them as the "other" or "those people" is a cop out. Love understands we are all in this life together and our prayer is for forgiveness and restoration. We should pray for others to have a paradigm shift which is what repentance is a change in the way we think and see the world. But this first must begin with us. We cannot live in an us vs them way of life and walk in Love at the same time.
They may not act like our brother, they might not see us as their brother or sister but in truth they are and we should love them like they are.
Love is taking the high road and it does lead to a better way which is the Will of God done here on earth just as it is in Heaven.
Monday, February 22, 2010
No respecter of persons.......(warning: this post may cause heart burn....
Alternate Title: Do as I do and not as they Do!
Tonight I was thinking about how I am thankful that God's love and grace is all- inclusive. This is the Good News of the Gospel, the message of Christ. But what about those who have preached a message of exclusiveness or those who by their own beliefs have condemned some of us to Hell. What about the extreme right and fundamentalist. Those who cause anger to rise within me because of their message and ignorance.
The hard to swallow truth is that they are also loved by God and are his children as well. I remember reading a favorite author of mine in the early days of my ministry who said,"It is true the Truth will set you free but first, it will make you miserable." Although they may not recognize me as a child of God, I must recognize them as one. Ouch!
Thankfully for all of us, God meets us where we are. He overlooks our ignorance, weakness and sometimes plain stupidity. Now God is committed to our growth and that is why God will not even leave us alone in our prejudice of those who are not inclusive or progressive. Now I am not called to convince them or convert them but I am called to love them. This is the stuff of spiritual growth and maturity, being able to love beyond our own ideas and group and to see God in those who we have a hard time dealing with.
Now for myself as a reformed recovering former pentecostal Charismatic it is easier for me to love those who hold such staunch fundamentalist ideals. It is because of the Love, Grace and PATIENCE of God I came to see and repent (change my way of seeing and thinking). It also helped when I discovered that I was now the type of person who many of my peers considered an abomination and outcast. The truth is in many ways I was the same person, just now more fabulous (sorry, but humor me for that).
I will confess, I still have a hard time with the hatred, prejudice and ignorance of many of my brothers and sisters. But I still recognize that we have a lot in common as well. We are still a work in progress. God has a plan for all of us. God desires to change all of our hearts and minds to cause us to think and love like he does. This is a tall order but we serve a big God, and I will step up first if necessary to have more faith in God's ability to work in both their lives and mine and hopefully we will all become more like Christ.....
Tonight I was thinking about how I am thankful that God's love and grace is all- inclusive. This is the Good News of the Gospel, the message of Christ. But what about those who have preached a message of exclusiveness or those who by their own beliefs have condemned some of us to Hell. What about the extreme right and fundamentalist. Those who cause anger to rise within me because of their message and ignorance.
The hard to swallow truth is that they are also loved by God and are his children as well. I remember reading a favorite author of mine in the early days of my ministry who said,"It is true the Truth will set you free but first, it will make you miserable." Although they may not recognize me as a child of God, I must recognize them as one. Ouch!
Thankfully for all of us, God meets us where we are. He overlooks our ignorance, weakness and sometimes plain stupidity. Now God is committed to our growth and that is why God will not even leave us alone in our prejudice of those who are not inclusive or progressive. Now I am not called to convince them or convert them but I am called to love them. This is the stuff of spiritual growth and maturity, being able to love beyond our own ideas and group and to see God in those who we have a hard time dealing with.
Now for myself as a reformed recovering former pentecostal Charismatic it is easier for me to love those who hold such staunch fundamentalist ideals. It is because of the Love, Grace and PATIENCE of God I came to see and repent (change my way of seeing and thinking). It also helped when I discovered that I was now the type of person who many of my peers considered an abomination and outcast. The truth is in many ways I was the same person, just now more fabulous (sorry, but humor me for that).
I will confess, I still have a hard time with the hatred, prejudice and ignorance of many of my brothers and sisters. But I still recognize that we have a lot in common as well. We are still a work in progress. God has a plan for all of us. God desires to change all of our hearts and minds to cause us to think and love like he does. This is a tall order but we serve a big God, and I will step up first if necessary to have more faith in God's ability to work in both their lives and mine and hopefully we will all become more like Christ.....
Sunday, February 21, 2010
It's all Good!
There are times where I seem to pull away from the mundane things in life and focus on the more spiritual things. I know this is a good spiritual practice and it does help put things namely life into perspective. It also serves to remove attachments to unhealthy or in the least unnecessary things. It also helps me take a fresh look at the relationships in my life.
I think this must have been what Jesus did when he pulled away. This time for me includes prayer, meditation, reading and a lot of soul searching. I think if Christ needed this in the ancient world how much more do we need it in today's rat race of business.
The last two weeks has been just that for me. This time for me does bring a better focus and a peace but it also brings an uneasiness. When you get still and quiet and it is just you and God, a lot of things begin to rise to the surface. Many fear this quiet time, but in the presence of God there is pure love and acceptance. Nothing to fear. God will only point out things that need to change for our betterment. There is no condemnation or guilt, just honesty, transparency and strength for growth.
I am not suggesting it is all comfortable. But it the words of today's youth, It is ALL GOOD!
I think this must have been what Jesus did when he pulled away. This time for me includes prayer, meditation, reading and a lot of soul searching. I think if Christ needed this in the ancient world how much more do we need it in today's rat race of business.
The last two weeks has been just that for me. This time for me does bring a better focus and a peace but it also brings an uneasiness. When you get still and quiet and it is just you and God, a lot of things begin to rise to the surface. Many fear this quiet time, but in the presence of God there is pure love and acceptance. Nothing to fear. God will only point out things that need to change for our betterment. There is no condemnation or guilt, just honesty, transparency and strength for growth.
I am not suggesting it is all comfortable. But it the words of today's youth, It is ALL GOOD!
Thursday, February 18, 2010
Check it out!!
I invite you to go to Brian McLaren's blog link on the lower right hand side of my page or go directly to his link to read this:
Fr. Richard Rohr gets it right ... on God's perfection
Those of you who have read Chapters 4 and 5 of my new book will understand why I was struck by these words from Richard Rohr in his daily email meditation today: PATH OF DESCENT Question of the Day: How does one incorporate imperfection...
By:Brian D. McLaren
It so blessed me....what a powerful truth!
http://www.brianmclaren.net/archives/blog/fr-richard-rohr-gets-it-right-on-2.html
Fr. Richard Rohr gets it right ... on God's perfection
Those of you who have read Chapters 4 and 5 of my new book will understand why I was struck by these words from Richard Rohr in his daily email meditation today: PATH OF DESCENT Question of the Day: How does one incorporate imperfection...
By:Brian D. McLaren
It so blessed me....what a powerful truth!
http://www.brianmclaren.net/archives/blog/fr-richard-rohr-gets-it-right-on-2.html
Christ In Us
So much of what the church calls faith is more about what we think about Christ. It is more about what we intellectually believe. However it is not the Christ that we say we believe in that makes any difference, but it is the Christ that we allow to work in and through us. This is what real Christianity is about.
It is not the creeds, statements of faith or doctrines that we agree with that change the world, but it is the Christ we give space to in our lives that will bring life, freedom and transformation to this world starting in us and then through us.
What does this kind of living look like? Is this kind of living a demonstration of thunder, lightening and Glory clouds? Is it full of booming voices from heaven? Although I come from a pentecostal/ Charismatic background and we would love the thought of this kind of manifestations, I find that God is more desirous to take the life of an ordinary person doing ordinary things and enable them to make an extraordinary difference.
We see this in the life of Christ, he would preform a miracle and then tell the recipient to tell no one. Because he was not trying to prove anything. God simply is Love and where God is there is freedom, transformation, and redemption. Jesus simply was the personification of the Character of God.
Now God calls the church the " Body of Christ". Which tells me that God desires us to be the vessel of this same Love and presence of God in this world. We are the temple or dwelling place of God. Now if we truly believe this then it is more than a mental concept but a calling to surrender and give place to God to work in and through us. This is not really a sacrifice but an awesome opportunity to see the goodness and generosity of God touch and transform lives.
When I look at all the suffering, troubles, disaster and needs in the world today it would be easy to accept the attitude of many and simply resign to a religion that says it will all be better in the by and by. However, God desires to work through us in love to make a difference in this present world and it is full of opportunities. I believe in change. Not just as a catchy political slogan but I believe that God is able to do a glorious work in the world today through the church. It is Christ in us that is the hope of this glory!
It is not the creeds, statements of faith or doctrines that we agree with that change the world, but it is the Christ we give space to in our lives that will bring life, freedom and transformation to this world starting in us and then through us.
What does this kind of living look like? Is this kind of living a demonstration of thunder, lightening and Glory clouds? Is it full of booming voices from heaven? Although I come from a pentecostal/ Charismatic background and we would love the thought of this kind of manifestations, I find that God is more desirous to take the life of an ordinary person doing ordinary things and enable them to make an extraordinary difference.
We see this in the life of Christ, he would preform a miracle and then tell the recipient to tell no one. Because he was not trying to prove anything. God simply is Love and where God is there is freedom, transformation, and redemption. Jesus simply was the personification of the Character of God.
Now God calls the church the " Body of Christ". Which tells me that God desires us to be the vessel of this same Love and presence of God in this world. We are the temple or dwelling place of God. Now if we truly believe this then it is more than a mental concept but a calling to surrender and give place to God to work in and through us. This is not really a sacrifice but an awesome opportunity to see the goodness and generosity of God touch and transform lives.
When I look at all the suffering, troubles, disaster and needs in the world today it would be easy to accept the attitude of many and simply resign to a religion that says it will all be better in the by and by. However, God desires to work through us in love to make a difference in this present world and it is full of opportunities. I believe in change. Not just as a catchy political slogan but I believe that God is able to do a glorious work in the world today through the church. It is Christ in us that is the hope of this glory!
Truth or Consequences
What do you do when you find that your beliefs and your life put you outside of God's grace and love? This is what religion does for many people. I found myself in just such a place where I spent 36 years trying to be what my religion said I was supposed to be. My religion said people like me was choosing this conflict when in fact, I was fighting it with everything in me. Was this just simply my "cross" or my " thorn in the flesh". These were several ways I tried to justify my battle. However when the depression and anxiety began to take a toll on me, I finally came to a place where I had to finally face the truth, and accept who I was and take a real look at what I thought was truth.
This is where the miracle happened. God did not reject me or cast me out. In fact I felt more of God's presence and acceptance than I ever had. I discovered that God values authenticity and in fact this is what true spirituality is. I also discovered that True Faith is not shakened by real life and is not so "black and white" because Life isn't so "cut and dry".
God did not fail me, but my belief system had. This began a complete reevaluation of my faith and beliefs. I mean if I could have been so wrong about God in this one major issue what else could I be wrong about. This turned out to be one of the greatest blessings of my life.
I found that a lot of my beliefs were not founded on Truth like I thought. I found that a lot of what I believed was religion's way of trying to control and conform people into a neat little cookie cutter version that did not challenge religion's own definition of how life was supposed to look. The only problem was it did not work and if it did not change it was set on destroying the very life and person I was.
Many people find themselves in this predicament. These same people must either reject this anti-life religion or they must rediscover the Truth of who God is.
My life and ministry is dedicated to sharing the good news of who God is and that no one is outside of God's love. A healthy faith does not put you at odds with God but instead is able to face the real life challenges that Life brings and should be founded on love, acceptance and well being.
If your beliefs do not do this someone has sold you a cheap knock-off of real Faith. I know because after 36 years of trying to fit into mine, I discovered it was just such a counterfeit.
I have discovered not to fear the questions in my life.I heard Brian McLaren state, "that faith based on questions produces a quest or journey". When I began asking the tough questions in my life my true quest and journey of Faith began. It is truly an adventure. My faith and beliefs are no longer someone else's prepackaged sterile version of dogmas and creeds but is an evolving, transcending. and living revelation revealed by God on a moment by moment basis,while living Life to the fullest.
Where do you find truth? Is it found in dusty creeds or dogmas? Is it found in someone's commentary and interpretation of ancient text? The answer to this question is simple it is only found in the person of Jesus Christ, He is the Truth, the Life and the Way.John 14:6
If your truth does not have the character, love and grace found in Him, you have a counterfeit. To find Truth outside of Christ has its consequences and no I am not talking about Hell or judgment. Although it can make one's life hell, I know of what I speak because I have lived the hell of self rejection and hatred that religion can cause. The price for blindly accepting this kind of "truth" is way too high and costly.
The church needs to question and evaluate it's departure from the true message of the gospel of Christ. This is why I am thankful to have found progressive Christianity. My faith no longer needs to have all my questions answered. It is content to rest in the amazing Love of God. Faith is about living now! Living faith brings the hope and unseen into the now. If we live life with this kind of faith we will face the challenges of life with God's grace and Love.
This is where the miracle happened. God did not reject me or cast me out. In fact I felt more of God's presence and acceptance than I ever had. I discovered that God values authenticity and in fact this is what true spirituality is. I also discovered that True Faith is not shakened by real life and is not so "black and white" because Life isn't so "cut and dry".
God did not fail me, but my belief system had. This began a complete reevaluation of my faith and beliefs. I mean if I could have been so wrong about God in this one major issue what else could I be wrong about. This turned out to be one of the greatest blessings of my life.
I found that a lot of my beliefs were not founded on Truth like I thought. I found that a lot of what I believed was religion's way of trying to control and conform people into a neat little cookie cutter version that did not challenge religion's own definition of how life was supposed to look. The only problem was it did not work and if it did not change it was set on destroying the very life and person I was.
Many people find themselves in this predicament. These same people must either reject this anti-life religion or they must rediscover the Truth of who God is.
My life and ministry is dedicated to sharing the good news of who God is and that no one is outside of God's love. A healthy faith does not put you at odds with God but instead is able to face the real life challenges that Life brings and should be founded on love, acceptance and well being.
If your beliefs do not do this someone has sold you a cheap knock-off of real Faith. I know because after 36 years of trying to fit into mine, I discovered it was just such a counterfeit.
I have discovered not to fear the questions in my life.I heard Brian McLaren state, "that faith based on questions produces a quest or journey". When I began asking the tough questions in my life my true quest and journey of Faith began. It is truly an adventure. My faith and beliefs are no longer someone else's prepackaged sterile version of dogmas and creeds but is an evolving, transcending. and living revelation revealed by God on a moment by moment basis,while living Life to the fullest.
Where do you find truth? Is it found in dusty creeds or dogmas? Is it found in someone's commentary and interpretation of ancient text? The answer to this question is simple it is only found in the person of Jesus Christ, He is the Truth, the Life and the Way.John 14:6
If your truth does not have the character, love and grace found in Him, you have a counterfeit. To find Truth outside of Christ has its consequences and no I am not talking about Hell or judgment. Although it can make one's life hell, I know of what I speak because I have lived the hell of self rejection and hatred that religion can cause. The price for blindly accepting this kind of "truth" is way too high and costly.
The church needs to question and evaluate it's departure from the true message of the gospel of Christ. This is why I am thankful to have found progressive Christianity. My faith no longer needs to have all my questions answered. It is content to rest in the amazing Love of God. Faith is about living now! Living faith brings the hope and unseen into the now. If we live life with this kind of faith we will face the challenges of life with God's grace and Love.
Tuesday, February 16, 2010
How do you see God?
Tonight I was in a conversation that disturbed me a bit. The discussion was around how God would judge some people who discovered that their life was "wrong". Now in all fairness these Christians were more merciful and gracious than most I know. However I couldn't help but not recognize the God they described. There was a time when I saw God as they did but not anymore.
How do you see God? Do you see God as a judge who although loves the world is committed to justice and will send all to Hell who do not conform to the written Word of God?
Maybe part of the problem is the way we define judgment. Judgment and justice in it's truest sense is a setting things right. It is about restoring, reconciling, and redeeming not about punishment. Punishment does not set things right, if it did the prisons of America would be turning out an abundance of Righteous people who would cause our nation to be swept up in a whirlwind of redemption and revival of justice.
Faith or religion that is built on fear and punishment is not a faith at all. Is faith a system of beliefs or the way we live our lives? If it is a system of beliefs then anyone who lives contrary to what we believe must be wrong or must be the devil, because if we believe anything less we would have to consider maybe we are wrong.
But if faith is about how we live our lives then it is also about growth and change. Brian Mclaren said, " statements produce only states, but questions produce Quests."
Our faith should be a journey not about some state of being or about some "some day".So much of religion puts living off until the afterlife. So our view of God, our faith and the way we live is all about the future. But Hebrews 11:1 say, " NOW Faith is.........".
God is a God of Love. God desires to liberate, create, and reconcile right now in the lives of all. The Bible is a book of stories that give witness to God moving in the lives of people for these ends.
Now you might ask, what about the times in scripture where God is Violent, full of Wrath. The Bible was written by men who were limited by what their perspective of God was. It is literature (inspired though it is) through their eyes.
Nowhere are we told to gain our perspective of God from this one source. In fact only Christ is said to be the total revelation of who God is.Hebrews 1:1-3, Colossians 1:15
How has the church come from a group of people who followed Christ to now a group who worship the Bible in the place of Christ. Don't get me wrong, I love the Bible and I believe it is a gift from God to inspire, teach and reveal things about God to us. However, my faith is in Christ, and it is He that I follow. The Holy Spirit guides me into all truth. The Bible is just one tool he may use to speak to me.
If you view the Bible as a literal law book or as Brian Mclaren puts it a "Constitution" than I am afraid you will be disappointed and find many inconsistencies in your faith.Your faith will be about legalities, judgments,and will always leave someone on the wrong side of God and Heaven.It will always be a cut and dry one way or another proposition. it will never speak to the gray, messier harder parts of life. The Bible was never meant to govern every aspect of life, if it could then God would have simply given Moses the Bible and there would have been no need of a Savior.
However if you understand the Bible as a inspired set of books that tell a story and give witness of God's redemptive, restorative love and reconciliation, then your faith will be inspired and invigorated by this same love and you will know that God is a God of Love and who will go very very far to restore, redeem and rescue the life of even one who has gone astray.
Which one of these perspectives of God match's the example of Christ? That is the one that should be your perspective of who God is.
This post is inspired by my reading Brian McLaren's book "A New Kind of Christianity". I highly recommend this book if you want your faith transformed. However if you are happy with the regular packaged faith and religion this book is probably not for you. It is not about who is right or who is wrong. It is about what works here and now. I believe faith is about how we live our lives now and if we get that right, the afterlife will simply be a reward for a life well lived. Jesus said, " I have come that you may have Life and that life lived to the full". Eternal Life begins now not in Heaven, or maybe I should say the Kingdom of God is at hand now, not later....this is the gospel and the message Jesus preached.
How do you see God? Do you see God as a judge who although loves the world is committed to justice and will send all to Hell who do not conform to the written Word of God?
Maybe part of the problem is the way we define judgment. Judgment and justice in it's truest sense is a setting things right. It is about restoring, reconciling, and redeeming not about punishment. Punishment does not set things right, if it did the prisons of America would be turning out an abundance of Righteous people who would cause our nation to be swept up in a whirlwind of redemption and revival of justice.
Faith or religion that is built on fear and punishment is not a faith at all. Is faith a system of beliefs or the way we live our lives? If it is a system of beliefs then anyone who lives contrary to what we believe must be wrong or must be the devil, because if we believe anything less we would have to consider maybe we are wrong.
But if faith is about how we live our lives then it is also about growth and change. Brian Mclaren said, " statements produce only states, but questions produce Quests."
Our faith should be a journey not about some state of being or about some "some day".So much of religion puts living off until the afterlife. So our view of God, our faith and the way we live is all about the future. But Hebrews 11:1 say, " NOW Faith is.........".
God is a God of Love. God desires to liberate, create, and reconcile right now in the lives of all. The Bible is a book of stories that give witness to God moving in the lives of people for these ends.
Now you might ask, what about the times in scripture where God is Violent, full of Wrath. The Bible was written by men who were limited by what their perspective of God was. It is literature (inspired though it is) through their eyes.
Nowhere are we told to gain our perspective of God from this one source. In fact only Christ is said to be the total revelation of who God is.Hebrews 1:1-3, Colossians 1:15
How has the church come from a group of people who followed Christ to now a group who worship the Bible in the place of Christ. Don't get me wrong, I love the Bible and I believe it is a gift from God to inspire, teach and reveal things about God to us. However, my faith is in Christ, and it is He that I follow. The Holy Spirit guides me into all truth. The Bible is just one tool he may use to speak to me.
If you view the Bible as a literal law book or as Brian Mclaren puts it a "Constitution" than I am afraid you will be disappointed and find many inconsistencies in your faith.Your faith will be about legalities, judgments,and will always leave someone on the wrong side of God and Heaven.It will always be a cut and dry one way or another proposition. it will never speak to the gray, messier harder parts of life. The Bible was never meant to govern every aspect of life, if it could then God would have simply given Moses the Bible and there would have been no need of a Savior.
However if you understand the Bible as a inspired set of books that tell a story and give witness of God's redemptive, restorative love and reconciliation, then your faith will be inspired and invigorated by this same love and you will know that God is a God of Love and who will go very very far to restore, redeem and rescue the life of even one who has gone astray.
Which one of these perspectives of God match's the example of Christ? That is the one that should be your perspective of who God is.
This post is inspired by my reading Brian McLaren's book "A New Kind of Christianity". I highly recommend this book if you want your faith transformed. However if you are happy with the regular packaged faith and religion this book is probably not for you. It is not about who is right or who is wrong. It is about what works here and now. I believe faith is about how we live our lives now and if we get that right, the afterlife will simply be a reward for a life well lived. Jesus said, " I have come that you may have Life and that life lived to the full". Eternal Life begins now not in Heaven, or maybe I should say the Kingdom of God is at hand now, not later....this is the gospel and the message Jesus preached.
Friday, February 12, 2010
A New Kind of Christianity...
I am reading Brian McLaren's newest book "A New Kind of Christianity".I get why he chose that title but it is only new to most of us because we have been so brainwashed to accept the "Old" version that has so departed the original intent of Christ. Christianity is not a religion but a way of life and a relationship with God, ourselves and others. It is the Way of Life that God intends for all. My prayer is that the Church rediscover the power of Love in Christ and we get about the business of the "Good News". I have included a Video from YouTube that Brian posted on his page. Let it's message sink in......
Sunday, February 7, 2010
More than.....
I have been reading a book by Frank Schaeffer called "Patience with God". I have found it to be very well written although very academic for the lay reader. But very worth the time.
Religion as well as science attempt to define life and/or the mysteries of life. Although this serves a useful purpose neither can contain the awe or fullness of Life and it's mysteries. If you subscribe to either exclusivly you are limited in your understanding.
For myself life and it's mysteries proceed from God. Now for the athiest or agnostic this could create a challenge, however there are things most would say they believe in that I call God.
Love, beauty, goodness, justice are a few examples.
However although I am a person of faith my definition of God goes far beyond that of the simply religious. For instance God is more than any religious text although I enjoy reading scripture I understand that no book can define God or the mysteries of life. No creed, dogma or tenants of religion can capsulized God.
Recently I have been talking to a dear friend of mine who defines himself as agnostic. We have really challenged each other and enjoyed our chats. I do not seek to change him or convert him to religion. God knows the world has enough religious people. I only desire to help him recongnize the seeker in all of us as we respond to the majesty of life and to embrace true spirituality that is found in Love and forgiveness.
I know for myself God has been revealed to me in places that religion would not think to look. I am not ready to throw out religion because it does provide a good service and starting place for many the same as I enjoy science because it does the same I just invite all people no matter which label you subscribe to open your hearts and minds to realize there is so much more to life and it's mysteries.
- Posted using BlogPress from my iPhone
Religion as well as science attempt to define life and/or the mysteries of life. Although this serves a useful purpose neither can contain the awe or fullness of Life and it's mysteries. If you subscribe to either exclusivly you are limited in your understanding.
For myself life and it's mysteries proceed from God. Now for the athiest or agnostic this could create a challenge, however there are things most would say they believe in that I call God.
Love, beauty, goodness, justice are a few examples.
However although I am a person of faith my definition of God goes far beyond that of the simply religious. For instance God is more than any religious text although I enjoy reading scripture I understand that no book can define God or the mysteries of life. No creed, dogma or tenants of religion can capsulized God.
Recently I have been talking to a dear friend of mine who defines himself as agnostic. We have really challenged each other and enjoyed our chats. I do not seek to change him or convert him to religion. God knows the world has enough religious people. I only desire to help him recongnize the seeker in all of us as we respond to the majesty of life and to embrace true spirituality that is found in Love and forgiveness.
I know for myself God has been revealed to me in places that religion would not think to look. I am not ready to throw out religion because it does provide a good service and starting place for many the same as I enjoy science because it does the same I just invite all people no matter which label you subscribe to open your hearts and minds to realize there is so much more to life and it's mysteries.
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