finding the beauty in the storm

I've not been a regular church attender for a couple of years, due mostly to hearing issues, then falling to laziness. Along the way, however, my communication with God, has been profound. I find Him every minute of the day, looking over my shoulder, pinging me when I'm weak, encouraging me when I'm faithful. He never wavers.

This recent discrimination by elected officials against church attendance has been interesting to watch. I'll let you have your opinions, pro or con, that's not my point of this essay.

The beauty I've found has been in Zoom, and YouTube, I can now go to church wherever i desire, or not at all. A plethora of services have opened online, and the choices of style, wisdom, teaching, and foundational exposition has been fun, enjoyable, on my dime, and in my time. I'm liking it.

I do miss seeing my church family, but even there, after a two year absence, I'm reconnected with old and new family. I'm smiling.

I'm getting fed, which is the single purpose of the Christian "church", to awaken, prepare, and make disciples. I have no idea what other religions serve up in church, and really don't care. The purpose of "church", to me, is to loosen, not bind. I'm loose, and four walls are not essential to my faith.

That being said, I am strongly opposed to elected officials determined to define "essential". That's not their job, or their privilege, and, in this case, is a direct infringement on the First Amendment.

I've found beauty and spiritual feeding in the absence of four walls, but that's me. You may be otherwise inclined, seeking the freedom to "run and hug" in a church building, and I say, "Go for it!" , contact your elected officials individually, and make your voice heard. They might actually listen to a ground swell.

Reading "The Pursuit of God", by A.W. Tozer, has been refreshing and beautifully enlightening.

Look, seek, blend, bend, hearken your ear to truth and wisdom, found all over the planet.
Get loose, and seek beauty.

God loves you. I love you.

squeaky wheels

A movement started in the 70s with "the loudest squeak gets the grease".  The "feminists" and "gay rights" protests marched and shouted, and conformity began shifting, steadily, to deaden the noise.  The smallest segment of societies became the loudest and "political correctness" started to take speed.

Television and entertainment culture shifted to include all manners of perversion as normative.  The wave to silence morality grew to drown out what was once considered "right thinking".

In the eighties, MTV captured the minds of a generation, and the wave grew, in the nineties, the internet exploded  to offer overwhelming amounts of immoral and "free thinking" to the masses, cheap, unstoppable,  and ubiquitous.

By 2000 everyone, everywhere had the ability to immerse themselves in whatever manner of "comfort thinking"  they desired the minds of two generations were captured to the idea that "right and wrong" we're relative to the individual.  Those generations now "lead" us, and here we are.  It started with the removal of God from the educational systems in America, was followed with Roe v Wade", and now the minds of Americans have become individualistic and everyone screams for attention instead of listening to wisdom,  "I'm right and you're wrong".

In the 60s  God was removed from the educational systems and the marketplace , in the 70s we demanded a twisted version of "freedom" to protest an immoral war, and now we are getting what we demanded then, the freedom to "be" individuals without restraint.  And all along the way, our minds became enslaved.

Those  with "the power" are determined to keep it.  They have the generational masses trained, and an army of individuals, shouting down anyone who raises a voice to protest the insanity., Censorship through the cheapest, most effective tool ever devised, social media.

"For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables."  — 2 Timothy 4:3-4 KJV

That time has long been with us.

daily bible reading

Long ago I learned an easy Bible reading plan that preceded in depth study, and avoided confusion for new learners.

There are 31 Proverbs, one for each day of the month; start there with the Proverbs of the day.

There are 150 Psalms, follow your Proverbs reading with Psalm of the Day, then add 30, then 30 again, then 30 again and again.

First, pray and ask God to show you something. Let Him guide your thoughts.

Example: Today read Proverbs 6, Psalm 6, 36, 66, 96, 126

Somewhere in there, The Holy Spirit will likely stop you and show you a particular verse for deeper meditation. Let that verse guide your thoughts for today. Mark your Bible (underline, highlight, book mark, etc.) when you see something you want to come back to later for deeper study.

“My son, obey your father’s commands, and don’t neglect your mother’s instruction. Keep their words always in your heart. Tie them around your neck. When you walk, their counsel will lead you. When you sleep, they will protect you. When you wake up, they will advise you. For their command is a lamp and their instruction a light; their corrective discipline is the way to life.”
‭‭Proverbs‬ ‭6:20-23‬ ‭NLT‬‬

Have a thoughtful day! 😊