By now you have heard and or read all the speculations and "intervention attempts" evolving the passing of a world "icon". I will not repeat most but elaborate where focus counts. Here is a comment, "elias familyat 6-27-2009
rest in peace with angels are you kidding me he paid off a family so he didnt go to jail" and a response to that comment, "Ms. Tenickaat 6-27-2009
Elias family....My question would be what kind of parent would accept a payoff if something really did happen to their child. It was for money!!! and that's what they got money. They sold their childs innoncence for money. If that had been my child I would have fought tooth and nail to get a so-called pedofile off the streets." and another response from, "mlellabrooklynat 6-27-2009
We thank you sheelam!To " Sage is Great", No one is to judge God's children. Each one of us makes a choice to see the good in the messages we receive from other's. We are all messengers from God and we are all God's children. Michael was able to get God's message out to millions. It is our choice to see what we want or what God wants us to see." I found that here; http://www.spinner.com/2009/06/27/michael-jackson-the-boy-who-brought-me-to-tears/?icid=mainhtmlws-maindl2link3http%3A%2F%2Fwww.spinner.com%2F2009%2F06%2F27%2Fmichael-jackson-the-boy-who-brought-me-to-tears%2F. That's something to think about. He himself said he paid to get it over with. It was too stressful for him to fathom people he trusted taking advantage of him. Some of us have done more gruesome things to cover up or shut up unwarranted slandering. Lied about paternity, killed an eye witness, had an accomplish beat to silence, stole evidence the list goes on. He simply felt o.k. give them what they want so they can let me live. The media however would not cease the assassination. They took a small piece of truth and exploited it to get ratings, sell papers and dethrone "The King of Pop". Envious snakes. We did the same to Marilyn Monroe, Howard Hughes and President Bill Clinton(only he and Hillary didn't hide or die they fought back).
It has always puzzled me why an individuals worth escalated after their passing. The growing concerns and vigils. The obsessive play of past mind you already seen before already argued and scrutinized and or supported rhetoric and lies. Rarely supported. Frankly, I'm saddened that what now appears to be such an interest only heightened the moment it was texts, blogged or headlined that he was rushed to the hospital. He has since given up his dream and lived abroad to escape the rejection and vicious assassinating of who he had become. The world should have spoke out when they were alleging his guilt of pedophilia for which he was acquitted. What was the purpose of him going into debt to clear his name if years later and after his death we would still be "alleging" and speculating? I don't agree with the press saying, "We are trying to get to the bottom of why he died." He died because he had accomplished all that he came to earth to do, he became all he could be and shared his life openly with us. Haven't we done enough to scorn him? Is it necessary? Just mentioning him will sell your materials you don't have to embellish, he embellished his own life by living it caring and entertaining, sharing and protesting for the underprivileged and ailing. Uniting people together for specific causes to assist another to live comfortable. He gave so many children hope and so many parents ease of mind by paying hospital bills. We wonder what happened to his money? People and lawsuits stripping him of his dignity and wealth for greed and enviousness. The people he trusted most let him down and took advantage of his generosity. Of all the words I heard yesterday describing him the two that resonate with me are "humanitarian" and "man-boy". He truly was a child in the shell of a man that society made turned against himself and he attempted to recreate himself to receive the love he gave.
He was only 03 years older than me and only due to his charismatic and electrifying talents can I testify to having "grown up with him". If his father hadn't developed the group to be acknowledged to "signing" level and CBS, Berry Gordy, Diana Ross' assistant, Quincy Jones, President Ronald Reagan, Ed Sullivan and MTV they would have remained "local talent" performing at benefits, proms and church or even "night clubs". He had genuine and as his brother Jermaine definitely pointed out "natural talent". There was no crystal ball, or silver spoon, but hard work and dedication accompanied by a strong family presence and the proper guidance and leadership to develop such an extraordinary being not to mention "nine". From Indiana not Los Angeles or San Francisco, New York or some exotic mention. From deep in the heart of this country we call "united". His rise to fame came right at the height of the civil rights movement and the not so "united" states. There are so many good memories like his music that permitted everyone to relax, to boogie, moonwalk, get down, volunteer and care. The fact that we can take the tabloid clippings and "wacko jacko" comments and resonate on them if you are the type of person that I use to be. See, I couldn't be happy for people and their accomplishments because I was so disgusted with myself for rebelling and defying authority to the point at the age of 15 I felt I could do it on my own. I was no celebrity and it was rough. I survived only because my grandmother like Joe Jackson took the time to nurture, teach and shelter me. I was so sheltered and yet very open to way more than a child should. But who's to say, my life was different from cousins and siblings yet we all survived and as adults most of the rough times were because we thought we knew what was right because we accomplished perhaps a complete hand print for mothers day gift or excelled in sports or whatever made our parents proud and adorning. I have learned since my grandmother passed in 1991 that she was a young mother and there were no books, Internet, and cell phones in the early 1940's when she began parenthood. Just as 20 years later in the early 1960's my mom repeated the pattern. I swore not to have children and that's probably the only promise I made to myself(age 04) and kept. Like Michael was I called myself "eccentric" or "extreme". I seem to either be all for or all against I had to find my inner peace religiously and learn balance. Even that took more than 30 years. What saddens me is that Michael Jackson and his entire family were America's family, because there was the cartoon, Sony and Cher, Ed Sullivan and cereal, toys and games that patterned their style or reflected their persons. We repeatedly saw the family performing especially Michael and Janet. That family changed the way America viewed well, we were African, negro, colored(not to mention the derogatory lables), and thanks to "The God-father" of soul, the late James Brown we adopted "black" with pride. The Jackson's opened doors to what we witness today of the music and film industry. Michael made videos popular and stunned audiences repeatedly with his energetic force of simplicity. It is only fair that he lived eccentric. Just as if he was famous at 11 and worldwide in early 20's it only fitting that the only other direction for him was down. And down from heaven is still among the stars and in the universe. We as society falsely account material gains and minute mistakes as identity. To me identity for all of us is human and the activities that we engage in are experiences of who we are becoming until we leave the flesh body. Remember we are Spirit covered in clay to identify us from the rest of GOD'S CREATION. HE took the time to form us in HIS LIKENESS AND IMAGE. HE spoke everything else into reality. Each of us has all the tool we need to be Michael Jackson, James Brown, Luther Vandross, Eartha Kitt, Sam Cooke or Celine Dion, Liza Minnelli, Mariah Carey, or Jennifer Lopez. They each nurtured their talents and focused to achieve the level of notoriety they possess. Luck is a fancy word that robs GOD of HIS BENEVOLENCE and induces a false since of being. This country has done a lot to harm the natural state of society and produced an element called "fame" or "success" to label and identify who you are. This is a disservice and unjust. We flirt with individuals as long as all seems perfect but show their humanness and we quickly abandon and assassinate.
We all watched many child stars grow up and wrestle with their identities and self worth because we are "fair-weather" fans. There was Dano Plato and River Phoenix. Freddie Prinze Sr. and John Belushi. It use to bother me that they make more money than nurses, teachers and counselors. But when you weigh in the popularity, paparazzi and press, you have to give room for the security and lawyers and courts and staff etc. We snuggle up to their egos built by the press and ignored by fans until they do something that we can't relate or understand. We read all the signs and tabloids and all we wanted was another "hit record" possibly one that mirrored the success of "Thriller" or better. That is a lot of pressure to be burdened with. For one who could guess the level of the public acceptance? We are as fickle as a wooden nickel at a campfire. We t.a.r.n.i.s.h the soul of a person and reduce their Spirit to paranoia, greed, recluse or death. Tarnish=Tantalizing Arrogant Rebellious Narcissism Impersonating Spiritual Humility. We stalk, faint, mimic and muse their existence to frightening levels. We expect that they are a commodity to be harassed, and interrupted repeatedly simply because we pay to be entertained by them. Well they put up with the gruelling tours and stresses that trail concerts and appearances, book signings and commencement speeches. We spend our money on futile things I mean "how-to seminars". We pay enormous registration fees to go and listen to someone tell their story that sounds like yours until it gets to the private planes and Armani suits. Why? Some admit they did not complete college or even high school but for some reason they are being paid and you are selling artifacts of significance to your legendary status to obtain the status they have portrayed to you as success.
Celebrities are committed, determined and focused. They research, practice, volunteer and have hungered and went without before stardom.
I'll list a few that we as society have assassinated; Michael Jackson, Barry Bonds, R. Kelly, Bob Crane, George Michael, Sinead O'Connor, Mel Gibson, Whitney Houston, Michael Vicks and Pete Rose. Each rose to extraordinary heights of fame and acceptance until they "bet on their team", flirted with steroids, got too close to children, burned a picture of the Pope, spoke anti-Semitic or exposed their sexual preferences. We would allow the press and media to tarnish their character by joining the lynching and boycott or slander through gossip and heresy until they either leave the country or become recluse. We wallow in our brewed evil victory until their death and all bets are off we have free canvas to speculate, demoralize and dethrone them.
It shouldn't matter what a person does that may not have been clearly understood by the general public. Frankly we generally have never been Michael Jackson so how would we know what was or was not good for him. He lived, He entertained, He was very generous. He cared about life and the people living it. He made dreams come true, He lived a dream and He died a Legend of Philanthropy, Music, Creativity, Production, Arts, Dance, Lyrics and Film. He lived a life for a country of its own yet, he was misunderstood and scrutinized to rebel against himself. Everything he did was larger than life. Have you ever been able to buy Giraffes, and The Beatles's Music Rights? Sell out tickets hours after print? Make a sick kid smile? In an interview he was stated, "There is a song that I wrote called 'childhood', that is the most honest words I wrote. Then most autobiographical. Listen to it if you want to know who I am?" Then do as he asked in one of his songs, "Leave him alone." To the Jackson family we love all of you and are grateful for your sacrifices and endurances to invite us into a life we could only dream of. Our hearts and Prayers go out to each of you during this difficult time of loss. Keep your heads to the sky...
Friday, June 26, 2009
Thursday, June 25, 2009
Do you have to go to church to be a good Christian?
In the March 01,2008 Ebony Magazine with President Obama on the cover and the title: "In our time are we really witnessing the election of the Nation's first black President?" If you are reading this you know the answer is "yes" we did. Inside the magazine I found an article by the Rev. Clarence L. James. He gives 02 sides of the question and elaborates specific and honest. He begins by addressing the African American individuals because we are confused when it comes to identifying ourselves as part of the make up of society as a whole. He leads you through a historical reason for gathering for worship. After reading the article I was again enlightened to the purpose of what the ramifications of church should be. Previously I blogged about religion and I attempted to separate it from Spiritualism. This is what Rev. James had to say about that behavior of thought, "The first argument comes from a European thought of pattern that compartmentalizes aspects of life and separates the sacred from the secular as if evil owns its part of creation and GOD has HIS. They call for the "the separation of church and state." They separate politics from morality, fertility from sexuality, faith from healing, and prayer from education. Spirituality is not the opposite of religiosity; it is the other side of the coin of holistic humanness. Spirituality is the impulse. Religiosity is the outward manifestation." I humbly accept constructive criticism. I have bounced from congregation to organization and find fault then relent to solidarity, there is no "perfect" church. The church is a hospital and a grave yard. I recently went to a photo shoot at the congregation I'm a member of since April of 2007. I had visited for one full year before joining because I was warring with my flesh about the logistics and restrictions that trail membership to any organization. Not to mention shortly after I joined one of the seniors mentioned he didn't want to see the church grow because he would miss the closeness of a small membership. If I had not taken a break and gotten myself on the path to forgiveness and understanding I would have left then. Thank GOD for HIS WORD and LOVE. I stay because the Pastor really divides the Word properly. I can't fathom that many of the members are stale and old "hearers and not doers". I began to only attend Sunday School and reject the afternoon service which I called "entertainment". I tried the choir and Bible Study and concluded they don't like me. I never seemed to find a place to fit. I was wounded by gossip and then provoked to anger by the ignorance. I've since reduced my visits to once a month to pay my tithes and hope there is change of attitude and well. There are dress codes and language codes and behavior patterns and make up directions. Sometimes you can be overwhelmed with all the jargon. So at the photo shoot, I was met with the same looks and nonchalant conversations as previously noted, provoked by the same players got caught off guard and said something that I shouldn't have and left feeling wounded and depressed because it is just to much work to try to please everyone without harming yourself. I did not use profanity or vulgarity but the looks that were given to be from saying, "maybe I'm trying to smell you" left me sick inside(I was speaking to my mother). I don't socialize with them because I went on several outings and their conversations vex my spirit and tempt me to regress and become dark and evil again. You must know your flesh and not give in. However we must take personal inventory and remember that the Word of GOD says, in the book of Matthew chapter 13 verses 24-30. JESUS was speaking in parables and mentioned this, "The Kingdom of Heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field, but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares(a weed) among the wheat and went his way. But when the grain had sprouted it produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. So the servants of the owner came and said to him, 'Sir, did you not sow good seed to your field? How then does it have tares? He said to them, 'An enemy has done this.' The servants said to him, 'Do you want us then to go and gather them up?' But he said, 'No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, "First gather the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn." ' " Here the purpose of the parable was to teach one point, not to be picked apart to find meaning in all of its details. So the believers and unbelievers must grow together and GOD will separate. I'm learning we are to be helpers one to another. This can not be accomplished by isolation or excluding. Another part of Rev. James article had this to say about people like me.
"People who say they no longer to to church because of the hypocrites are being hypocrites themselves. All have sinned and fall Short of the GLORY of GOD. The church is not a museum for plaster saints but a hospital for dying sinners." And with regards to the significance of the church he had this to say, "We face this crisis in our communities because we have abandoned the spiritual, moral and ecclesiastical ways of our people. The weakness of the church has led to family collapse and community catastrophe. We have abandoned marriage and family to the extent that children are born out of wedlock." He goes on to say, "We look with contempt on education. More of our sons go to prison rather than college. Their most popular entertainment encourages every sort of crininality. They kill one another for sport. Innocent children are murdered every year as "collateral damage". Their comedy is pornography, Schools are an internationally known disaster with hundreds of thousands of teahers leaving the classroom every because they can no longer tolerate being cursed out, threatened, beaten up, sexually harassed and shot by their own students. These are just a few reasons that Christians need to go to church. Only the church retains the moral authority to speak with power to parents, teachers, politicians, policemen and entertainers." He seems to share my grievances about church but he followes his Spirit and denounces the flesh and its need to harm itself. I'm learning. But I had to separate from the congregation to get myself on a path aligned with the Word of GOD and not dwell on the thoughts and wishes of humanity. I must now be visible for the Spirit of THE LORD to be observed through me and hopefully influence and inspire others. Yes, I will be met with tares but I must do as the Apostle Paul wrote in the book of Philippians 03:12-14, "Not that I(Paul) have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which CHRIST JESUS has also laid hold of me. 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 in CHRIST JESUS." I love the character of Paul, he truly relates the humanness of our lives and express GOD as the HEALER. In closing I'll let Paul speak from Philippians 04:08-09, "Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy--meditate on these things. The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me(Paul), these do, and the GOD of PEACE will be with you."
"People who say they no longer to to church because of the hypocrites are being hypocrites themselves. All have sinned and fall Short of the GLORY of GOD. The church is not a museum for plaster saints but a hospital for dying sinners." And with regards to the significance of the church he had this to say, "We face this crisis in our communities because we have abandoned the spiritual, moral and ecclesiastical ways of our people. The weakness of the church has led to family collapse and community catastrophe. We have abandoned marriage and family to the extent that children are born out of wedlock." He goes on to say, "We look with contempt on education. More of our sons go to prison rather than college. Their most popular entertainment encourages every sort of crininality. They kill one another for sport. Innocent children are murdered every year as "collateral damage". Their comedy is pornography, Schools are an internationally known disaster with hundreds of thousands of teahers leaving the classroom every because they can no longer tolerate being cursed out, threatened, beaten up, sexually harassed and shot by their own students. These are just a few reasons that Christians need to go to church. Only the church retains the moral authority to speak with power to parents, teachers, politicians, policemen and entertainers." He seems to share my grievances about church but he followes his Spirit and denounces the flesh and its need to harm itself. I'm learning. But I had to separate from the congregation to get myself on a path aligned with the Word of GOD and not dwell on the thoughts and wishes of humanity. I must now be visible for the Spirit of THE LORD to be observed through me and hopefully influence and inspire others. Yes, I will be met with tares but I must do as the Apostle Paul wrote in the book of Philippians 03:12-14, "Not that I(Paul) have already attained, or am already perfected; but I press on, that I may lay hold of that for which CHRIST JESUS has also laid hold of me. 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 in CHRIST JESUS." I love the character of Paul, he truly relates the humanness of our lives and express GOD as the HEALER. In closing I'll let Paul speak from Philippians 04:08-09, "Finally, brethren, whatever things are true, whatever things are noble, whatever things are just, whatever things are pure, whatever things are lovely, whatever things are of good report, if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy--meditate on these things. The things which you learned and received and heard and saw in me(Paul), these do, and the GOD of PEACE will be with you."
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
FIND WHAT YOU LOVE...
A dear friend and client(transportation) recently shared this speech through email and I just felt it summarized everything I've been trying to get across. In 07 blogs I left "dots" of connection to listening and reinventing you. Read what Steve Jobs has to say and open yourself to learn: Stanford Report, June 14, 2005
"You've got to find what you love", Jobs says
This is the text of the Commencement address by Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple Computer and of Pixar Animation Studios, delivered on June 12, 2005.
"I am honored to be with you today at your commencement from one of the finest universities in the world. I never graduated from college. Truth be told, this is the closest I've ever gotten to a college graduation. Today I want to tell you three stories from my life. That's it. No big deal. Just three stories.
The first story is about connecting the dots.
I dropped out of Reed College after the first 6 months, but then stayed around as a drop-in for another 18 months or so before I really quit. So why did I drop out?
It started before I was born. My biological mother was a young, unwed college graduate student, and she decided to put me up for adoption. She felt very strongly that I should be adopted by college graduates, so everything was all set for me to be adopted at birth by a lawyer and his wife. Except that when I popped out they decided at the last minute that they really wanted a girl. So my parents, who were on a waiting list, got a call in the middle of the night asking: "We have an unexpected baby boy; do you want him?" They said: "Of course." My biological mother later found out that my mother had never graduated from college and that my father had never graduated from high school. She refused to sign the final adoption papers. She only relented a few months later when my parents promised that I would someday go to college.
And 17 years later I did go to college. But I naively chose a college that was almost as expensive as Stanford, and all of my working-class parents' savings were being spent on my college tuition. After six months, I couldn't see the value in it. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life and no idea how college was going to help me figure it out. And here I was spending all of the money my parents had saved their entire life. So I decided to drop out and trust that it would all work out OK. It was pretty scary at the time, but looking back it was one of the best decisions I ever made. The minute I dropped out I could stop taking the required classes that didn't interest me, and begin dropping in on the ones that looked interesting.
It wasn't all romantic. I didn't have a dorm room, so I slept on the floor in friends' rooms, I returned coke bottles for the 5¢ deposits to buy food with, and I would walk the 7 miles across town every Sunday night to get one good meal a week at the Hare Krishna temple. I loved it. And much of what I stumbled into by following my curiosity and intuition turned out to be priceless later on. Let me give you one example:
Reed College at that time offered perhaps the best calligraphy instruction in the country. Throughout the campus every poster, every label on every drawer, was beautifully hand calligraphed. Because I had dropped out and didn't have to take the normal classes, I decided to take a calligraphy class to learn how to do this. I learned about serif and san serif typefaces, about varying the amount of space between different letter combinations, about what makes great typography great. It was beautiful, historical, artistically subtle in a way that science can't capture, and I found it fascinating.
None of this had even a hope of any practical application in my life. But ten years later, when we were designing the first Macintosh computer, it all came back to me. And we designed it all into the Mac. It was the first computer with beautiful typography. If I had never dropped in on that single course in college, the Mac would have never had multiple typefaces or proportionally spaced fonts. And since Windows just copied the Mac, its likely that no personal computer would have them. If I had never dropped out, I would have never dropped in on this calligraphy class, and personal computers might not have the wonderful typography that they do. Of course it was impossible to connect the dots looking forward when I was in college. But it was very, very clear looking backwards ten years later.
Again, you can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.
My second story is about love and loss.
I was lucky — I found what I loved to do early in life. Woz and I started Apple in my parents garage when I was 20. We worked hard, and in 10 years Apple had grown from just the two of us in a garage into a $2 billion company with over 4000 employees. We had just released our finest creation — the Macintosh — a year earlier, and I had just turned 30. And then I got fired. How can you get fired from a company you started? Well, as Apple grew we hired someone who I thought was very talented to run the company with me, and for the first year or so things went well. But then our visions of the future began to diverge and eventually we had a falling out. When we did, our Board of Directors sided with him. So at 30 I was out. And very publicly out. What had been the focus of my entire adult life was gone, and it was devastating.
I really didn't know what to do for a few months. I felt that I had let the previous generation of entrepreneurs down - that I had dropped the baton as it was being passed to me. I met with David Packard and Bob Noyce and tried to apologize for screwing up so badly. I was a very public failure, and I even thought about running away from the valley. But something slowly began to dawn on me — I still loved what I did. The turn of events at Apple had not changed that one bit. I had been rejected, but I was still in love. And so I decided to start over.
I didn't see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. The heaviness of being successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again, less sure about everything. It freed me to enter one of the most creative periods of my life.
During the next five years, I started a company named NeXT, another company named Pixar, and fell in love with an amazing woman who would become my wife. Pixar went on to create the worlds first computer animated feature film, Toy Story, and is now the most successful animation studio in the world. In a remarkable turn of events, Apple bought NeXT, I returned to Apple, and the technology we developed at NeXT is at the heart of Apple's current renaissance. And Laurene and I have a wonderful family together.
I'm pretty sure none of this would have happened if I hadn't been fired from Apple. It was awful tasting medicine, but I guess the patient needed it. Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don't lose faith. I'm convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You've got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don't settle.
My third story is about death.
When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like: "If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you'll most certainly be right." It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: "If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?" And whenever the answer has been "No" for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.
Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything — all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.
About a year ago I was diagnosed with cancer. I had a scan at 7:30 in the morning, and it clearly showed a tumor on my pancreas. I didn't even know what a pancreas was. The doctors told me this was almost certainly a type of cancer that is incurable, and that I should expect to live no longer than three to six months. My doctor advised me to go home and get my affairs in order, which is doctor's code for prepare to die. It means to try to tell your kids everything you thought you'd have the next 10 years to tell them in just a few months. It means to make sure everything is buttoned up so that it will be as easy as possible for your family. It means to say your goodbyes.
I lived with that diagnosis all day. Later that evening I had a biopsy, where they stuck an endoscope down my throat, through my stomach and into my intestines, put a needle into my pancreas and got a few cells from the tumor. I was sedated, but my wife, who was there, told me that when they viewed the cells under a microscope the doctors started crying because it turned out to be a very rare form of pancreatic cancer that is curable with surgery. I had the surgery and I'm fine now.
This was the closest I've been to facing death, and I hope its the closest I get for a few more decades. Having lived through it, I can now say this to you with a bit more certainty than when death was a useful but purely intellectual concept:
No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life's change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true.
Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.
When I was young, there was an amazing publication called The Whole Earth Catalog, which was one of the bibles of my generation. It was created by a fellow named Stewart Brand not far from here in Menlo Park, and he brought it to life with his poetic touch. This was in the late 1960's, before personal computers and desktop publishing, so it was all made with typewriters, scissors, and polaroid cameras. It was sort of like Google in paperback form, 35 years before Google came along: it was idealistic, and overflowing with neat tools and great notions.
Stewart and his team put out several issues of The Whole Earth Catalog, and then when it had run its course, they put out a final issue. It was the mid-1970s, and I was your age. On the back cover of their final issue was a photograph of an early morning country road, the kind you might find yourself hitchhiking on if you were so adventurous. Beneath it were the words: "Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish." It was their farewell message as they signed off. Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. And I have always wished that for myself. And now, as you graduate to begin anew, I wish that for you.
Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. Thank you all very much(Steve Jobs.) ." Wow that's inspiring and honest. The Word of GOD Says, "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be open. Or what man is there among you who is his son asks for bread, will give him stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give hm a serpent? If you then being evil, know how t give good gifts to your children, how much more will your FATHER WHO IS IN HEAVEN GIVE GOOD THINGS to those who ask HIM! Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets(Matthew 07:07-12)." To further explain "These words found in the book of Matthew chapter 07 verses 07-12 and echo the phrase the Law and the Prophets chapter 05 verses 17-20. This was JESUS Speaking and He was rejecting the Pharisees' charge that He was nullifying the law. The Law was both temporary(Galatians 03:19, Ephesians 02:15 and Hebrews 07:12) and eternal(Matthew 05:18, Romans 03:31 and Romans 08:04). The word fulfill meas to "fill out, expand, or complete." It does not mean to bring to an end. JESUS FULFILLS the Law in several ways: 1. HE OBEYED it perfectly and taught its correct meaning (Matthew 05:19 & 20); 2. HE WILL one day fulfill all of the Old Testament types and prophecies; and 3. HE PROVIDES A way of Salvation that meets all the requirements of the Law(Romans 03:21 & 31). One jot or one tittle will by no means pass(Matthew 05:18): JESUS PROVIDES us with one of the strongest affirmations in the Bible of the inerrant of Scripture. It is absolutely trustworthy(Commentating from The Nelson Study Bible). Reread Mr. Jobs speech again if you are not sure of the "dots" being left for you now and if you got it, execute the illumination and live. Though it's 04 years later(they had given him 06 months) and he is again visiting the "shadows of death" he is yet alive and sharing. Our Prayers are with him. Seek what you love and be passionate about it.
"You've got to find what you love", Jobs says
This is the text of the Commencement address by Steve Jobs, CEO of Apple Computer and of Pixar Animation Studios, delivered on June 12, 2005.
"I am honored to be with you today at your commencement from one of the finest universities in the world. I never graduated from college. Truth be told, this is the closest I've ever gotten to a college graduation. Today I want to tell you three stories from my life. That's it. No big deal. Just three stories.
The first story is about connecting the dots.
I dropped out of Reed College after the first 6 months, but then stayed around as a drop-in for another 18 months or so before I really quit. So why did I drop out?
It started before I was born. My biological mother was a young, unwed college graduate student, and she decided to put me up for adoption. She felt very strongly that I should be adopted by college graduates, so everything was all set for me to be adopted at birth by a lawyer and his wife. Except that when I popped out they decided at the last minute that they really wanted a girl. So my parents, who were on a waiting list, got a call in the middle of the night asking: "We have an unexpected baby boy; do you want him?" They said: "Of course." My biological mother later found out that my mother had never graduated from college and that my father had never graduated from high school. She refused to sign the final adoption papers. She only relented a few months later when my parents promised that I would someday go to college.
And 17 years later I did go to college. But I naively chose a college that was almost as expensive as Stanford, and all of my working-class parents' savings were being spent on my college tuition. After six months, I couldn't see the value in it. I had no idea what I wanted to do with my life and no idea how college was going to help me figure it out. And here I was spending all of the money my parents had saved their entire life. So I decided to drop out and trust that it would all work out OK. It was pretty scary at the time, but looking back it was one of the best decisions I ever made. The minute I dropped out I could stop taking the required classes that didn't interest me, and begin dropping in on the ones that looked interesting.
It wasn't all romantic. I didn't have a dorm room, so I slept on the floor in friends' rooms, I returned coke bottles for the 5¢ deposits to buy food with, and I would walk the 7 miles across town every Sunday night to get one good meal a week at the Hare Krishna temple. I loved it. And much of what I stumbled into by following my curiosity and intuition turned out to be priceless later on. Let me give you one example:
Reed College at that time offered perhaps the best calligraphy instruction in the country. Throughout the campus every poster, every label on every drawer, was beautifully hand calligraphed. Because I had dropped out and didn't have to take the normal classes, I decided to take a calligraphy class to learn how to do this. I learned about serif and san serif typefaces, about varying the amount of space between different letter combinations, about what makes great typography great. It was beautiful, historical, artistically subtle in a way that science can't capture, and I found it fascinating.
None of this had even a hope of any practical application in my life. But ten years later, when we were designing the first Macintosh computer, it all came back to me. And we designed it all into the Mac. It was the first computer with beautiful typography. If I had never dropped in on that single course in college, the Mac would have never had multiple typefaces or proportionally spaced fonts. And since Windows just copied the Mac, its likely that no personal computer would have them. If I had never dropped out, I would have never dropped in on this calligraphy class, and personal computers might not have the wonderful typography that they do. Of course it was impossible to connect the dots looking forward when I was in college. But it was very, very clear looking backwards ten years later.
Again, you can't connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future. You have to trust in something — your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever. This approach has never let me down, and it has made all the difference in my life.
My second story is about love and loss.
I was lucky — I found what I loved to do early in life. Woz and I started Apple in my parents garage when I was 20. We worked hard, and in 10 years Apple had grown from just the two of us in a garage into a $2 billion company with over 4000 employees. We had just released our finest creation — the Macintosh — a year earlier, and I had just turned 30. And then I got fired. How can you get fired from a company you started? Well, as Apple grew we hired someone who I thought was very talented to run the company with me, and for the first year or so things went well. But then our visions of the future began to diverge and eventually we had a falling out. When we did, our Board of Directors sided with him. So at 30 I was out. And very publicly out. What had been the focus of my entire adult life was gone, and it was devastating.
I really didn't know what to do for a few months. I felt that I had let the previous generation of entrepreneurs down - that I had dropped the baton as it was being passed to me. I met with David Packard and Bob Noyce and tried to apologize for screwing up so badly. I was a very public failure, and I even thought about running away from the valley. But something slowly began to dawn on me — I still loved what I did. The turn of events at Apple had not changed that one bit. I had been rejected, but I was still in love. And so I decided to start over.
I didn't see it then, but it turned out that getting fired from Apple was the best thing that could have ever happened to me. The heaviness of being successful was replaced by the lightness of being a beginner again, less sure about everything. It freed me to enter one of the most creative periods of my life.
During the next five years, I started a company named NeXT, another company named Pixar, and fell in love with an amazing woman who would become my wife. Pixar went on to create the worlds first computer animated feature film, Toy Story, and is now the most successful animation studio in the world. In a remarkable turn of events, Apple bought NeXT, I returned to Apple, and the technology we developed at NeXT is at the heart of Apple's current renaissance. And Laurene and I have a wonderful family together.
I'm pretty sure none of this would have happened if I hadn't been fired from Apple. It was awful tasting medicine, but I guess the patient needed it. Sometimes life hits you in the head with a brick. Don't lose faith. I'm convinced that the only thing that kept me going was that I loved what I did. You've got to find what you love. And that is as true for your work as it is for your lovers. Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work. And the only way to do great work is to love what you do. If you haven't found it yet, keep looking. Don't settle. As with all matters of the heart, you'll know when you find it. And, like any great relationship, it just gets better and better as the years roll on. So keep looking until you find it. Don't settle.
My third story is about death.
When I was 17, I read a quote that went something like: "If you live each day as if it was your last, someday you'll most certainly be right." It made an impression on me, and since then, for the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: "If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?" And whenever the answer has been "No" for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.
Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything — all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart.
About a year ago I was diagnosed with cancer. I had a scan at 7:30 in the morning, and it clearly showed a tumor on my pancreas. I didn't even know what a pancreas was. The doctors told me this was almost certainly a type of cancer that is incurable, and that I should expect to live no longer than three to six months. My doctor advised me to go home and get my affairs in order, which is doctor's code for prepare to die. It means to try to tell your kids everything you thought you'd have the next 10 years to tell them in just a few months. It means to make sure everything is buttoned up so that it will be as easy as possible for your family. It means to say your goodbyes.
I lived with that diagnosis all day. Later that evening I had a biopsy, where they stuck an endoscope down my throat, through my stomach and into my intestines, put a needle into my pancreas and got a few cells from the tumor. I was sedated, but my wife, who was there, told me that when they viewed the cells under a microscope the doctors started crying because it turned out to be a very rare form of pancreatic cancer that is curable with surgery. I had the surgery and I'm fine now.
This was the closest I've been to facing death, and I hope its the closest I get for a few more decades. Having lived through it, I can now say this to you with a bit more certainty than when death was a useful but purely intellectual concept:
No one wants to die. Even people who want to go to heaven don't want to die to get there. And yet death is the destination we all share. No one has ever escaped it. And that is as it should be, because Death is very likely the single best invention of Life. It is Life's change agent. It clears out the old to make way for the new. Right now the new is you, but someday not too long from now, you will gradually become the old and be cleared away. Sorry to be so dramatic, but it is quite true.
Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma — which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary.
When I was young, there was an amazing publication called The Whole Earth Catalog, which was one of the bibles of my generation. It was created by a fellow named Stewart Brand not far from here in Menlo Park, and he brought it to life with his poetic touch. This was in the late 1960's, before personal computers and desktop publishing, so it was all made with typewriters, scissors, and polaroid cameras. It was sort of like Google in paperback form, 35 years before Google came along: it was idealistic, and overflowing with neat tools and great notions.
Stewart and his team put out several issues of The Whole Earth Catalog, and then when it had run its course, they put out a final issue. It was the mid-1970s, and I was your age. On the back cover of their final issue was a photograph of an early morning country road, the kind you might find yourself hitchhiking on if you were so adventurous. Beneath it were the words: "Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish." It was their farewell message as they signed off. Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. And I have always wished that for myself. And now, as you graduate to begin anew, I wish that for you.
Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish. Thank you all very much(Steve Jobs.) ." Wow that's inspiring and honest. The Word of GOD Says, "Ask, and it will be given to you; seek, and you will find; knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be open. Or what man is there among you who is his son asks for bread, will give him stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give hm a serpent? If you then being evil, know how t give good gifts to your children, how much more will your FATHER WHO IS IN HEAVEN GIVE GOOD THINGS to those who ask HIM! Therefore, whatever you want men to do to you, do also to them, for this is the Law and the Prophets(Matthew 07:07-12)." To further explain "These words found in the book of Matthew chapter 07 verses 07-12 and echo the phrase the Law and the Prophets chapter 05 verses 17-20. This was JESUS Speaking and He was rejecting the Pharisees' charge that He was nullifying the law. The Law was both temporary(Galatians 03:19, Ephesians 02:15 and Hebrews 07:12) and eternal(Matthew 05:18, Romans 03:31 and Romans 08:04). The word fulfill meas to "fill out, expand, or complete." It does not mean to bring to an end. JESUS FULFILLS the Law in several ways: 1. HE OBEYED it perfectly and taught its correct meaning (Matthew 05:19 & 20); 2. HE WILL one day fulfill all of the Old Testament types and prophecies; and 3. HE PROVIDES A way of Salvation that meets all the requirements of the Law(Romans 03:21 & 31). One jot or one tittle will by no means pass(Matthew 05:18): JESUS PROVIDES us with one of the strongest affirmations in the Bible of the inerrant of Scripture. It is absolutely trustworthy(Commentating from The Nelson Study Bible). Reread Mr. Jobs speech again if you are not sure of the "dots" being left for you now and if you got it, execute the illumination and live. Though it's 04 years later(they had given him 06 months) and he is again visiting the "shadows of death" he is yet alive and sharing. Our Prayers are with him. Seek what you love and be passionate about it.
Tuesday, June 23, 2009
No More D.R.A.M.A.
Inspired by a song by Mary J. Blige and her own story of empowering herself to love herself. I nearly boiled over with passion to correct everyone and fix everything. I could totally appreciate the "change" in Mary's delivery of who she is. Not that I know her personally I don't, I can only identify with the lyrics and rhythm she delivers. Observe the characters throughout the years she has been before the general public and openly criticized. Even I had the audacity to dislike her because of the "haters" and media. Until last year as I was viewing Mtvone and watched her elaborate the videos as they told her story. I was intrigued by the journey to herself and her acceptance of her discovery. Another biography about her found on this site; http://music.aol.com/artist/mary-j-blige/biography/1042847 referring no more drama reads, " When her debut album, What's the 411?, hit the street in 1992, critics and fans alike were floored by its powerful combination of modern R&B with an edgy rap sound that glanced off of the pain and grit of Mary J. Blige's Yonkers, NY, childhood. Called alternately the new Chaka Khan or new Aretha Franklin, Blige had little in common stylistically with either of those artists, but like them, she helped adorn soul music with new textures and flavors that inspired a whole generation of musicians. With her blonde hair, self-preserving slouch, and combat boots, Blige was street-tough and beautiful all at once, and the record company execs who profited off of her early releases did little to dispel the bad-girl image that she earned as she stumbled through the dizzying first days of her career. As she exorcised her personal demons and softened her style to include sleek designer clothes, she remained a hero to thousands of girls growing up in the same kinds of rough places she came from. Blige reinvented her career again and again by shedding the bad habits and bad influences that kept her down; by the time her fourth album, Mary, was released in 1999, she had matured into an expressive singer able to put the full power of her voice behind her music, while still reflecting a strong urban style. With her fifth album, No More Drama, it wasn't just Blige's style that shone through the structures set up for her by songwriters and producers, it was her own vision -- spiritual, emotional, personal, and full of wisdom, it reflected an artist who was comfortable with who she was and how far she had come." The piece ends with "Released in 1997, Share My World marked the beginning of Blige's creative partnerships with Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. The album was another hit for Blige and debuted at number one on the Billboard charts. Critics soured somewhat on its more conventional soul sound, but Blige's fans seemed undaunted. By the time her next studio album, Mary, came out in 1999, the fullness and elegance of her new sound seemed more developed, as Blige exuded a classic soul style aided by material from Elton John and Bernie Taupin, Stevie Wonder, and Lauryn Hill. Mary made it obvious that the ghetto fabulous style and more confrontational aspects of her music were gone, while the emotive power still remained.
That power also helped carry the more modern-sounding 2001 release No More Drama, a deeply personal album that remained a collective effort musically yet reflected more of Blige's songwriting than any of her previous efforts. The Mary J. Blige on No More Drama seemed miles away from the flashy kid on What's the 411?, yet it was still possible to see the path through her music that produced an older, wiser, but still expressive artist. In 2003 she was reunited with P. Diddy, who produced the majority of that year's patchy Love and Life album. The Breakthrough followed two years later and was a tremendous success, spawning a handful of major singles. By the December 2006 release of Reflections (A Retrospective), The Breakthrough's lead single, "Be Without You," had spent nearly a year on the R&B chart, while the album's fifth single, "Take Me as I Am," had been on the same chart for over four months. A year later Blige came out with her eight studio album, Growing Pains, whose single "Work That" was featured on an iTunes commercial. ~ Stacia Proefrock, All Music Guide." Just wanted to emphasize what the drama means to me. I began using acronyms to redefine circumstance and situations. After watching Mary again June 19, 2009, I decided D=depressive and R=rhetoric A=against M=my A=abilities. No more depressive rhetoric against my abilities. I really appreciate this new code of identification(personally). Rhetoric is what accusations and judgemental comments are. Yet, words are powerful and we should be careful as not to wound an individual or depreciate their character. We are all becoming or overcoming and each has a specific need of realization. Three people can observe the same train wreck yet each will give a different interpretation of the event. Because we tend to gravitate toward what is familiar and denounce or fear what we have not yet learned. We make comments like, "silver spoon" , "ghetto", "thugs" and "hoodlums" just to name a few of the labels we give to one another and permanently scar or build. I look back on my life and revisit some of the poems I wrote and I can hardly believe it is the same person. I mean I was devoid of life and happiness. I was full of s.h.i.t., simple humor interpreting truths. My reality was fictional and so profound that it repeatedly clouded what was real and what was false. Delusional and dark. There was a time I seized for four years and I excepted that as my reality and modified my activities to minimal. People interacted and communicated with me and no one felt the need to explain that I was speaking from a tunnel of unrealistic and diluted opinions. I functioned as a child and did not take responsibility for anything that led me to that state of mind. It was everyone but my fault. I wore strange styles, bleached and cut my hair drastically. I wore mixed matched shoes(actually same style different colors). I dressed to invoke a fight or argument. When people would point out that I had on "mixed-matched", I'd reply, "and I have another pair exactly like these at home". I did not work because I could not lift myself from the deep pity I had thrown myself into. Thank GOD, I attracted men that looked for a problem to fix. I was a good housekeeper but a lousy companion. Being home with nothing to do all day but conjure up the next argument began to really take a toll on my life. GOD had to pull my coat and tell me that HE WOULD REQUIRE JUSTICE from me despite my decision to be irresponsible. I could not con HIM. I could not hide from HIM and I needed to reevaluate and redesign myself. I could see what was wrong and knew how to fix everyone and I was the one really b.r.o.k.e, believing rhetoric over kind energy. I was a wordy person and loved to catch you off guard. I hated weak and despised strong. Double-minded(read, r u kidding me) and unable to see my own ignorance. I remained in this state of depression and self-destruction for more than half my life. Of the almost 47 years I have only spent the last 17 listening to GOD and trying to abide by my Spirit and not my flesh. The night JESUS was accosted in the Garden of Gethsemane HE had asked the 11 of the twelve men HE had spent the last 03 years teaching and healing and feeding, to watch for HIM while HE went to PRAY. The book of Matthew 26:40 & 41 records, "Then HE(JESUS) ame to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, 'What! Could you not watch with ME for one hour? Watch and Pray, lest you enter into temptation. The Spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." The Apostle Paul speaking to the church in the book of Galatians 05:16 & 17 reads , "Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish." O.k. so within your own body is a spiritual war. No one has to instigate or influence, you are fighting against the good of yourself. That's frightening if you are not aware of it and it could lead to false securities and dependencies of drugs and ignorance. I refer often to Scripture because through the years I have evidence of it's word. You must deny your flesh to invite your Spirit to lead. Otherwise Romans 03:23-26, "For there is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the GLORY OF GOD, being Justified freely by HIS GRACE through the Redemption that is in CHRIST JESUS, Whom GOD SET FORTH as a propitiation(appease or consilate) by HIS BLOOD, through faith, to demonstrate HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS, because HIS forbearance GOD had passed over the sins that were previously comtted, to demonstrate at the present time HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS, that HE(GOD) might be Just and the Justifier of the one who his faith in JESUS." Again and again The Bible specifies equality. Sin entered through temptation in the Garden of Eden(Genesis 03:01-07) and Salvation through temptation in the last Garden. We all go through life experiencing relationships and breakups and most of the time neglect to take self-inventory and realign with GOD then keep your flesh under subjection to Righteouness. Mary had to live the life she experienced to be able to assist others to reject the drama. She overcame to tell her story through song and her music. We relate to rhythm and gravitate to words of expression and artist captivate what we struggle with and present short-films(videos) to assist our growth and illumination. I'm grateful to Mary for "No More Drama and Just Fine". If you have not heard the songs check them out and listen for your cue to live and let live. Look for future acronyms.
That power also helped carry the more modern-sounding 2001 release No More Drama, a deeply personal album that remained a collective effort musically yet reflected more of Blige's songwriting than any of her previous efforts. The Mary J. Blige on No More Drama seemed miles away from the flashy kid on What's the 411?, yet it was still possible to see the path through her music that produced an older, wiser, but still expressive artist. In 2003 she was reunited with P. Diddy, who produced the majority of that year's patchy Love and Life album. The Breakthrough followed two years later and was a tremendous success, spawning a handful of major singles. By the December 2006 release of Reflections (A Retrospective), The Breakthrough's lead single, "Be Without You," had spent nearly a year on the R&B chart, while the album's fifth single, "Take Me as I Am," had been on the same chart for over four months. A year later Blige came out with her eight studio album, Growing Pains, whose single "Work That" was featured on an iTunes commercial. ~ Stacia Proefrock, All Music Guide." Just wanted to emphasize what the drama means to me. I began using acronyms to redefine circumstance and situations. After watching Mary again June 19, 2009, I decided D=depressive and R=rhetoric A=against M=my A=abilities. No more depressive rhetoric against my abilities. I really appreciate this new code of identification(personally). Rhetoric is what accusations and judgemental comments are. Yet, words are powerful and we should be careful as not to wound an individual or depreciate their character. We are all becoming or overcoming and each has a specific need of realization. Three people can observe the same train wreck yet each will give a different interpretation of the event. Because we tend to gravitate toward what is familiar and denounce or fear what we have not yet learned. We make comments like, "silver spoon" , "ghetto", "thugs" and "hoodlums" just to name a few of the labels we give to one another and permanently scar or build. I look back on my life and revisit some of the poems I wrote and I can hardly believe it is the same person. I mean I was devoid of life and happiness. I was full of s.h.i.t., simple humor interpreting truths. My reality was fictional and so profound that it repeatedly clouded what was real and what was false. Delusional and dark. There was a time I seized for four years and I excepted that as my reality and modified my activities to minimal. People interacted and communicated with me and no one felt the need to explain that I was speaking from a tunnel of unrealistic and diluted opinions. I functioned as a child and did not take responsibility for anything that led me to that state of mind. It was everyone but my fault. I wore strange styles, bleached and cut my hair drastically. I wore mixed matched shoes(actually same style different colors). I dressed to invoke a fight or argument. When people would point out that I had on "mixed-matched", I'd reply, "and I have another pair exactly like these at home". I did not work because I could not lift myself from the deep pity I had thrown myself into. Thank GOD, I attracted men that looked for a problem to fix. I was a good housekeeper but a lousy companion. Being home with nothing to do all day but conjure up the next argument began to really take a toll on my life. GOD had to pull my coat and tell me that HE WOULD REQUIRE JUSTICE from me despite my decision to be irresponsible. I could not con HIM. I could not hide from HIM and I needed to reevaluate and redesign myself. I could see what was wrong and knew how to fix everyone and I was the one really b.r.o.k.e, believing rhetoric over kind energy. I was a wordy person and loved to catch you off guard. I hated weak and despised strong. Double-minded(read, r u kidding me) and unable to see my own ignorance. I remained in this state of depression and self-destruction for more than half my life. Of the almost 47 years I have only spent the last 17 listening to GOD and trying to abide by my Spirit and not my flesh. The night JESUS was accosted in the Garden of Gethsemane HE had asked the 11 of the twelve men HE had spent the last 03 years teaching and healing and feeding, to watch for HIM while HE went to PRAY. The book of Matthew 26:40 & 41 records, "Then HE(JESUS) ame to the disciples and found them sleeping, and said to Peter, 'What! Could you not watch with ME for one hour? Watch and Pray, lest you enter into temptation. The Spirit indeed is willing, but the flesh is weak." The Apostle Paul speaking to the church in the book of Galatians 05:16 & 17 reads , "Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish." O.k. so within your own body is a spiritual war. No one has to instigate or influence, you are fighting against the good of yourself. That's frightening if you are not aware of it and it could lead to false securities and dependencies of drugs and ignorance. I refer often to Scripture because through the years I have evidence of it's word. You must deny your flesh to invite your Spirit to lead. Otherwise Romans 03:23-26, "For there is no difference, for all have sinned and fall short of the GLORY OF GOD, being Justified freely by HIS GRACE through the Redemption that is in CHRIST JESUS, Whom GOD SET FORTH as a propitiation(appease or consilate) by HIS BLOOD, through faith, to demonstrate HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS, because HIS forbearance GOD had passed over the sins that were previously comtted, to demonstrate at the present time HIS RIGHTEOUSNESS, that HE(GOD) might be Just and the Justifier of the one who his faith in JESUS." Again and again The Bible specifies equality. Sin entered through temptation in the Garden of Eden(Genesis 03:01-07) and Salvation through temptation in the last Garden. We all go through life experiencing relationships and breakups and most of the time neglect to take self-inventory and realign with GOD then keep your flesh under subjection to Righteouness. Mary had to live the life she experienced to be able to assist others to reject the drama. She overcame to tell her story through song and her music. We relate to rhythm and gravitate to words of expression and artist captivate what we struggle with and present short-films(videos) to assist our growth and illumination. I'm grateful to Mary for "No More Drama and Just Fine". If you have not heard the songs check them out and listen for your cue to live and let live. Look for future acronyms.
Thursday, June 11, 2009
R U Kidding me? Perceptions and Lies
The News of the day or any Media embossed topic or article generally influence the direction of our views to any particular picture or thought. Take this article for example by : Howard Arenstein , CBS News;
(June 10) - Israeli TV newscasters Tuesday night interpreted a photo taken Monday in the Oval Office of President Obama talking on the phone with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as an "insult" to Israel.
They saw the incident as somewhat akin to an incident last year, when the Iraqi reporter threw a shoe at President Bush in Baghdad. Some Israeli newscasters are crying foul over this photo of President Barack Obama, snapped in the Oval Office on Monday as he spoke on the phone with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The journalists on Tuesday called the image insulting, since in many parts of the region, it is considered an insult to show someone the sole of your shoe. Netanyahu is making a speech Sunday, in part as a response to Mr. Obama's address to the Arab world last week in Cairo.
Israel's Channel One TV reported that Netanyahu was told Tuesday by an "American official" in Jerusalem that, "We are going to change the world. Please, don't interfere." The report said Netanyahu's aides interpreted this as a "threat."
Netanyahu met with George Mitchell today for four hours in Jerusalem. The State Department announced this afternoon that Mitchell will be stopping in Beirut and Damascus when he finishes his visits to Israel and the Palestinian Authority. Skip over this content REPORT!
rate this comment
TamNuc
09:16 AMJun 11 2009
with all the wrong Obama is doing and planning and working on, why is his asinine photo the topic of conversation here????? HEY, HAVE YOU IDIOTS WHO VOTED FOR HIM STOPPED DRINKING YOUR KOOL-AID YET AND SEEN REALITY FOR WHAT IT REALLY IS????????? (Your right to vote should be revoked - you've destroyed our country and everything it stood for!)
09:16 AMJun 11 2009
outlookinvest2....... are you crazy???? If any part of what Obama is trying to do fails, the entire country will suffer. Just like we did when Bush was in office. Both Presidents are human, both have issues. But how Anti-social, and anti-American of you to wish bad times on the entire country. Get a life you politically constipated bafoon.
Amilsarfraz
09:16 AMJun 11 2009
What a stupid thing to argue about! There was obviously no insult meant. Can we get over it and talk about the real issues? People are dying on both sides. The media should be ashamed for even reporting this. LynnWSafford
09:16 AMJun 11 2009
He is such an arrogant jerk, I know where a lot of us would like to tell him where he can take those shoes of his and shove them....... SailorGA
09:16 AMJun 11 2009
I've read posts about Obama's saying he's smart because he graduated suma cum laude and went to Harvard law school. The bottom line is you can have all the knowledge in the world, but without the COMMON SENSE TO APPLY IT, you get STUPID! abiogenesis35
09:16 AMJun 11 2009
This is what as known as being played. There are some groups that are very good at influence operations and unfortunately many in the U.S. fall for it every time. "The Megaphone desktop tool is a Windows "action alert" tool developed by Give Israel Your United Support (GIYUS) and distributed by World Union of Jewish Students, World Jewish Congress, The Jewish Agency for Israel, World Zionist Organization, StandWithUs, Hasbara fellowships, HonestReporting, and other pro-Israel public relations, media watchdog, or activism organizations. The tool delivers real-time alerts about key articles, videos, blogs, and surveys related to Israel or the Arab-Israeli conflict, especially those perceived by GIYUS to be highly critical of Israel, so that users can vote or add comments expressing their support of Israel." Blindskeeter
09:16 AMJun 11 2009
Its the Republicans that can't handle it. Nothing more, nothing less. LADDER9A
09:16 AMJun 11 2009
OK, and we're supposed to reason with people that can see your shoes through the phone now !? Get a grip psycho's Advantaserve
09:16 AMJun 11 2009
LABOURINGSWORD 09:13 AMJun 11 2009 America....love it or leave it. And show some respect for the President====================Respect is earned!!!! He is a sorry scumbag lieing peice of socialist sht!!!!!!!!! "
FEED
Wow, the last comment was heated. Now we can take this in many directions. The fact that it was plastered on a public magazine prior to his election victory and was not speaking from the White House or to Netanyahu. Another site that used this picture to address the nation: erikcanady.com/money-mindest/obamas-shoes-tell-it-allyes-we-di... Here Mr Canady takes the reader in more positive direction..,
"Obama’s Shoes Tell It All…Yes We Did! But Now what?
By Erik Canady on November 5th, 2008
Yes We Did …if you look at the picture that I have posted here, you’ll see Obama’s shoes tell the entire story. This man raised 100’s millions of dollars but his shoes show the work that he put in to become the 44th President of the United States of America.
This is a proud day for America. As the main promoter and distributor of this thing called democracy, Americans showed the world that we are still innovators of the world. The people have spoken and elected America’s first African American President.
Whew…As an African American male, that is a mouth full. Like many of my generation (Gen X), my parents were a part of American history where they were not able to participate in the electoral process. My father, who is from the North Carolina, was groomed in the era where America had separate bathrooms, schools and water fountains for African Americans.
I sat in front of the television and watched footage from Greece, Africa, Japan, and Australia as their citizens were jumping in jubilation for OUR new President elect Barack Obama. As I watch this, I began to take pride in the fact that America is special."
Obama’s Shoes Tell It All…Yes We Did! But Now what?
Well, like I began if you listen to anything without the protection of your spirit you leave yourself vulnerable and manipulative. It is o.k. to gather information and research or reject the right to determine the relevance a situation brings to your intellect. Remember you are here to experience and conclude your eternity by choosing wise. Establish who you are and you can enjoy the experiences you are privy to by association. Learn to appreciate every opportunity to obtain growth and maturity of knowledge and wisdom. Your life is your canvas and you are the artist. GOD INITIATE A PLAN and our ancestors chose to go solo and believe the "hype" of an enemy to GOD AND HIS PLANS. We do not have to remain in the dark or doomed to ignorance. Experience, observe and execute sound judgment utilizing the tools GOD GAVE TO each of us and we chose to become or not become wise. Thinking about how to denounce Howard Arenstein's comment, I had to take inventory of my own actions and concluded he just expressed the level of his appreciation for the opportunity to experience just as I am now. I passionately held contempt for an individual just because his view was altered from mine. However, he found an outlet of expression and chose to elaborate that particular audience just as I hope someone appreciates what I have do say. Don't we all. Having aborted my mission to cloud anyone's orbit with anger and resentment, I'll just offer a few other points of orchestrating your life to compliment your passions and weaknesses. With a clear foundation of your persona you leave little room for instability. See the Word of GOD says, "If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of GOD, WHO GIVES to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be GIVEN to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from THE LORD; he is a double-minded man(James 04:08), unstable in all his ways(James 01:05-09). This is not to say one can not "change" their mind as I did starting this piece, but if you are easily led astray your foundation is destructable(Hebrews03:04-12, Colossians 02:06-10, Galations 01:11-17). Or in the book of Proverbs 14:01, "The wise woman builds her house, but the foolish pulls it down with her hands." The book of Proverbs gives many dealings about wisdom chapter 08:entirely through chapter 14. Now I'm Spiritual and The Holy Bible happens to be an instructional manual for humanity gathered from HOLY men INSPIRED by GOD(2. Peter 02:19-21). Religion is another interpretation to GOD'S UNADULTERATED WORD. The various sects and organizations provide proof that humanity is the cause of humans troubles, not THE GOD that CREATED THEM. HE merely GAVE us TOOLS(PRAYER AND FAITH) to GOVERN our choices. The final decision is our own. Don't fall for anything get stability have a view of your own.
(June 10) - Israeli TV newscasters Tuesday night interpreted a photo taken Monday in the Oval Office of President Obama talking on the phone with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu as an "insult" to Israel.
They saw the incident as somewhat akin to an incident last year, when the Iraqi reporter threw a shoe at President Bush in Baghdad. Some Israeli newscasters are crying foul over this photo of President Barack Obama, snapped in the Oval Office on Monday as he spoke on the phone with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. The journalists on Tuesday called the image insulting, since in many parts of the region, it is considered an insult to show someone the sole of your shoe. Netanyahu is making a speech Sunday, in part as a response to Mr. Obama's address to the Arab world last week in Cairo.
Israel's Channel One TV reported that Netanyahu was told Tuesday by an "American official" in Jerusalem that, "We are going to change the world. Please, don't interfere." The report said Netanyahu's aides interpreted this as a "threat."
Netanyahu met with George Mitchell today for four hours in Jerusalem. The State Department announced this afternoon that Mitchell will be stopping in Beirut and Damascus when he finishes his visits to Israel and the Palestinian Authority. Skip over this content REPORT!
rate this comment
TamNuc
09:16 AMJun 11 2009
with all the wrong Obama is doing and planning and working on, why is his asinine photo the topic of conversation here????? HEY, HAVE YOU IDIOTS WHO VOTED FOR HIM STOPPED DRINKING YOUR KOOL-AID YET AND SEEN REALITY FOR WHAT IT REALLY IS????????? (Your right to vote should be revoked - you've destroyed our country and everything it stood for!)
09:16 AMJun 11 2009
outlookinvest2....... are you crazy???? If any part of what Obama is trying to do fails, the entire country will suffer. Just like we did when Bush was in office. Both Presidents are human, both have issues. But how Anti-social, and anti-American of you to wish bad times on the entire country. Get a life you politically constipated bafoon.
Amilsarfraz
09:16 AMJun 11 2009
What a stupid thing to argue about! There was obviously no insult meant. Can we get over it and talk about the real issues? People are dying on both sides. The media should be ashamed for even reporting this. LynnWSafford
09:16 AMJun 11 2009
He is such an arrogant jerk, I know where a lot of us would like to tell him where he can take those shoes of his and shove them....... SailorGA
09:16 AMJun 11 2009
I've read posts about Obama's saying he's smart because he graduated suma cum laude and went to Harvard law school. The bottom line is you can have all the knowledge in the world, but without the COMMON SENSE TO APPLY IT, you get STUPID! abiogenesis35
09:16 AMJun 11 2009
This is what as known as being played. There are some groups that are very good at influence operations and unfortunately many in the U.S. fall for it every time. "The Megaphone desktop tool is a Windows "action alert" tool developed by Give Israel Your United Support (GIYUS) and distributed by World Union of Jewish Students, World Jewish Congress, The Jewish Agency for Israel, World Zionist Organization, StandWithUs, Hasbara fellowships, HonestReporting, and other pro-Israel public relations, media watchdog, or activism organizations. The tool delivers real-time alerts about key articles, videos, blogs, and surveys related to Israel or the Arab-Israeli conflict, especially those perceived by GIYUS to be highly critical of Israel, so that users can vote or add comments expressing their support of Israel." Blindskeeter
09:16 AMJun 11 2009
Its the Republicans that can't handle it. Nothing more, nothing less. LADDER9A
09:16 AMJun 11 2009
OK, and we're supposed to reason with people that can see your shoes through the phone now !? Get a grip psycho's Advantaserve
09:16 AMJun 11 2009
LABOURINGSWORD 09:13 AMJun 11 2009 America....love it or leave it. And show some respect for the President====================Respect is earned!!!! He is a sorry scumbag lieing peice of socialist sht!!!!!!!!! "
FEED
Wow, the last comment was heated. Now we can take this in many directions. The fact that it was plastered on a public magazine prior to his election victory and was not speaking from the White House or to Netanyahu. Another site that used this picture to address the nation: erikcanady.com/money-mindest/obamas-shoes-tell-it-allyes-we-di... Here Mr Canady takes the reader in more positive direction..,
"Obama’s Shoes Tell It All…Yes We Did! But Now what?
By Erik Canady on November 5th, 2008
Yes We Did …if you look at the picture that I have posted here, you’ll see Obama’s shoes tell the entire story. This man raised 100’s millions of dollars but his shoes show the work that he put in to become the 44th President of the United States of America.
This is a proud day for America. As the main promoter and distributor of this thing called democracy, Americans showed the world that we are still innovators of the world. The people have spoken and elected America’s first African American President.
Whew…As an African American male, that is a mouth full. Like many of my generation (Gen X), my parents were a part of American history where they were not able to participate in the electoral process. My father, who is from the North Carolina, was groomed in the era where America had separate bathrooms, schools and water fountains for African Americans.
I sat in front of the television and watched footage from Greece, Africa, Japan, and Australia as their citizens were jumping in jubilation for OUR new President elect Barack Obama. As I watch this, I began to take pride in the fact that America is special."
Obama’s Shoes Tell It All…Yes We Did! But Now what?
Well, like I began if you listen to anything without the protection of your spirit you leave yourself vulnerable and manipulative. It is o.k. to gather information and research or reject the right to determine the relevance a situation brings to your intellect. Remember you are here to experience and conclude your eternity by choosing wise. Establish who you are and you can enjoy the experiences you are privy to by association. Learn to appreciate every opportunity to obtain growth and maturity of knowledge and wisdom. Your life is your canvas and you are the artist. GOD INITIATE A PLAN and our ancestors chose to go solo and believe the "hype" of an enemy to GOD AND HIS PLANS. We do not have to remain in the dark or doomed to ignorance. Experience, observe and execute sound judgment utilizing the tools GOD GAVE TO each of us and we chose to become or not become wise. Thinking about how to denounce Howard Arenstein's comment, I had to take inventory of my own actions and concluded he just expressed the level of his appreciation for the opportunity to experience just as I am now. I passionately held contempt for an individual just because his view was altered from mine. However, he found an outlet of expression and chose to elaborate that particular audience just as I hope someone appreciates what I have do say. Don't we all. Having aborted my mission to cloud anyone's orbit with anger and resentment, I'll just offer a few other points of orchestrating your life to compliment your passions and weaknesses. With a clear foundation of your persona you leave little room for instability. See the Word of GOD says, "If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of GOD, WHO GIVES to all liberally and without reproach, and it will be GIVEN to him. But let him ask in faith, with no doubting, for he who doubts is like a wave of the sea driven and tossed by the wind. For let not that man suppose that he will receive anything from THE LORD; he is a double-minded man(James 04:08), unstable in all his ways(James 01:05-09). This is not to say one can not "change" their mind as I did starting this piece, but if you are easily led astray your foundation is destructable(Hebrews03:04-12, Colossians 02:06-10, Galations 01:11-17). Or in the book of Proverbs 14:01, "The wise woman builds her house, but the foolish pulls it down with her hands." The book of Proverbs gives many dealings about wisdom chapter 08:entirely through chapter 14. Now I'm Spiritual and The Holy Bible happens to be an instructional manual for humanity gathered from HOLY men INSPIRED by GOD(2. Peter 02:19-21). Religion is another interpretation to GOD'S UNADULTERATED WORD. The various sects and organizations provide proof that humanity is the cause of humans troubles, not THE GOD that CREATED THEM. HE merely GAVE us TOOLS(PRAYER AND FAITH) to GOVERN our choices. The final decision is our own. Don't fall for anything get stability have a view of your own.
Wednesday, June 10, 2009
Marriage, honorable and undefiled..,
The Bible happens to be the only book with any definitive indication of how life, earth, heaven, death, and the universe began.
Theories and allegations from gathered opinions and research claim to know the history of Creation. Only The Bibles account rings closest to truth than the "big-bangs" and evolutional consequences.
Someone had to set the stage for consequences or they would just be ideas. Consequences are logical conclusions so the beginning had to have initiated the actions, and decisions follow commandments or formats of legalities and rules.
Sin entered into our existence because mankind consciously chose to disobey GOD. Since the fall of mankind in the Garden of Eden, mankind has struggled to live the Life intended for him. It began with the Judgment,
"So THE LORD said To the serpent(more cunning than any beast of the field which THE LORD GOD HAD MADE):
Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all cattle, and more than every beast of the field; on your belly you shall go, and you shall eat dust all the days of your life and I(GOD) will PUT enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed;
He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel(Genesis 3:14-15)."
So snakes use to walk upright and the position of man over woman was a demotion of status from GOD. Consequence? These choices to defy THE CREATOR of them all ushered the situations and controversies we find ourselves in today in 2011.
To the woman HE said;
"I Will GREATLY MULTIPLY your sorrow and your conception; in pain you shall bring forth children; Your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule(govern over 1 Corinthians 11:03) you(Genesis 3:16)."
Before they were "equal" they had no need for status because they had no idea what it was. We have abused "the knowledge of good and evil", and redundantly long for the Relationships "Intended" by our CREATOR.
Unable to satisfy that missing euphoria we settle for copies and repeatedly destroy nature and life as it was CREATED.
Cloning, abortion, immorality, wars the lists goes on.
I searched the web to see what it had to offer in reference to the title of this article I typed "marriage" and the first link was to Divorce Lawyers information for S.F., Oakland and San Jose, Ca. a phone number 1(800) 941-6730.
Divorce and Family Attorneys, 3rd Planning a Wedding:Wikipedia and one I really enjoyed The Starting place for exploring marriage and marriage issues- http://www.marriage.about.com/biopage.htm and a link from there to http://www.savingmymarriagenow.com/ are sites guided by a couple Bob an Sheri Stritof married over 40 years divorced and remarried. They have presented workshops for 30 years. Have a look. There was http://www.marriagebuilders.com/ with information by Dr. Willard F. Harley Jr. and lastly a Legal Information Institution- http://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/marriage Where I found, " Marriage: an overview
In the English common law tradition, from which our legal doctrines and concepts have developed, a marriage was a contract based upon a voluntary private agreement by a man and a woman to become husband and wife. Marriage was viewed as the basis of the family unit and vital to the preservation of morals and civilization. Traditionally, the husband had a duty to provide a safe house, pay for necessities such as food and clothing, and live in the house. The wife's obligations were maintaining a home, living in the home, having sexual relations with her husband, and rearing the couple's children. Today the underlying concept that marriage is a legal contract still remains but due to changes in society the legal obligations are not the same.
Marriage is chiefly regulated by the states. The Supreme Court has held that states are permitted to reasonably regulate the institution by prescribing who is allowed to marry, and how the marriage can be dissolved. Entering into a marriage changes the legal status of both parties and gives both husband and wife new rights and obligations. One power that the states do not have, however, is that of prohibiting marriage in the absence of a valid reason. For example, prohibiting interracial marriage is not allowed for lack of a valid reason and because it was deemed to violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution.
All states limit people to one living husband or wife at a time and will not issue marriage licenses to anyone with a living spouse. Once an individual is married, the person must be legally released from the relationship by either death, divorce, or annulment before he or she may remarry. Other limitations on individuals include age and close relationship. Limitations that some but not all states prescribe are: the requirements of blood tests, good mental capacity, and being of opposite sex.
In 1996, President Clinton signed into law the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which, for federal purposes, defined marriage as "only a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife" (1 U.S.C. § 7). DOMA further provided that "No State, territory, or possession of the United States, or Indian tribe, shall be required to give effect to any public act, record, or judicial proceeding of any other State, territory, possession, or tribe respecting a relationship between persons of the same sex that is treated as a marriage under the laws of such other State, territory, possession, or tribe, or a right or claim arising from such relationship" (28 U.S.C. § 1738C). (See Conflict of laws, Constitutional law) ".
Clearly the diverse and separate changes reflect "societies" opinions and confusions to what GOD had ordained for marriage even when the book of Leviticus chapter 19: outlines specifics of Moral and Ceremonial Laws as GOD ordained.
The next chapter 20: Explains the Penalties for breaking such Laws.
The entire book records Chapters as guidelines for Living THE WAY GOD ORDAINED.
Mind you life was abundant during this time as there was already the flood, the tower of Babel and the exodus so there was population of cultures and ritualistic living. GOD, However, CHOSE TO SET ASIDE A NATION TO BE GOVERNED BY HIMSELF wanting to Recapture the lost Paradise called Eden.
Hoping that HIS CREATION would choose HIM AND HIS DESIGN for their way of living but... Those people HE HAD LEAD and LOVED chose to be governed with Kings and Queens like the other nations(the book of 1. Samuel 08:04-22).
Like Adam and Eve freedom of choice ushered a variance of experiences.
This Freedom permitted us the decisions that have introduced calamities, death, disease, fear, wars and rumors of war(Matthew chapter 24),
destroyed the close Relationship we once had WITH GOD.
Caused The Crucifixion of THE MESSIAH to Reconcile and Restore Communication direct as opposed to needing a Priest in the temple(We also destroyed that rite).
GOD'S GRACE AND MERCY still PROVIDE AND PROTECT us in spite of our constant rejection of HIS WILL for us. Parents how would you like someone else telling you what you can and cannot do with your child(creation)? Or non parents someone orchestrating your decisions regarding your earthly possessions? GOD CREATED EVERYTHING real, earth, heavens, sky, universe(and man procreated bombs, guns, toxic poisons,and disease) including ANGELS( Genesis 16:07, Job 04:18, Gabriel-the book of Daniel 08:16-27 and Lucifer, Isaiah 14:12=Satan, the devil, that old dragon, Bel, Beelzebub or whatever you call the "adversary" of GOD) and man procreated bombs, guns, toxic poisons,and disease. His(Satan's) pride caused him to get expelled from HEAVEN and to introduce sin(rebellion of GOD'S COMMANDS)in Scripture Satan's fall is mentioned in (the book of Matthew 12:25-30, John 12:31, 2. Corinthians 04, :04, Revelations 20:07) I get carried away with THE WORD. Unlike the belief of some it does not "contradict" itself, our interpretations change as our evolving the "knowledge" we "inherited" from our parents Adam(man) and Eve(woman). It said, "the tree of the knowledge of good and evil(Genesis 02:16 &17)". Not an "apple" not a "woman" not an "orange" or any of the other interpretations given to highlight agenda's of a doctrine not THE WORD OF GOD. Wow, okay so regarding marriage, in the book of Genesis chapter 02:18-25 GOD observes the "loneliness of man" and CREATES a "helper comparable to him". So GOD out of the ground(dust) CREATED ANIMALS and bought them to the man to see what he(Adam) would call them, and whatever name he gave to every living creature that was its name. But there was not found a helper comparable to him. So GOD PERFORMED THE 1ST SURGERY AND ANESTHETIC on Adam(man) taking a rib from his side and forming Eve(woman) what Adam called her as being "bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh" . Genesis 02"24 &25 records, "Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And they were both naked, the man and his wife and were not ashamed." The Commentating to my Nelson's Study Bible(unless specified) regarding verses 24, 24 says, " In marriage, a man is to leave his family join his wife, and unite with her. Though this process establishes a new home distinct from his parents', it does not sever all ties with the extend family. In the Biblical period, extended families were quite close and interdependent. The words be joined speak of both a physical embrace and a more general aspects of marital bonding. In marriage, man and woman are a "we", not just a "me and you". One flesh suggests both a physical, sexual bonding and a lifelong relationship. There are still two persons, but together they are as one( Ephesian 05:31, 1. Corinthians 06:16). In the New Testament, JESUS refers to this text as the Foundation of the Biblical view of marriage(Matthew 19:05). Because the man and the woman knew only good, they were not ashamed even though they were both naked. They were comfortable in their physical bodies, in their sexuality, in their relationship, and in their work-with no wrongdoing. The wording of verses 24/25 suggests the couple experienced sexual relations in the garden as a part of their GOD-INTENDED experience. At 04:01 we first read of procreation, not necessarily the couple's first sexual experience together. The 1st sin was not lying about whose fault it was that they felt shame after eating of the tree of knowledge but that they disobeyed GOD by eating then lied. The book of Romans chapter 05:12 mentions Adam's sin rather than Eve. Hebrews chapter 13:04 records "Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled; but fornicators and adulterers GOD WILL JUDGE." See GOD GAVE the COMMAND to Adam first. The Old Testament is full of relationships good-Abraham/Sarah, bad-Jacob/Leah, interracial-Moses/Midianite, "baby-daddy drama"-Abraham/Sarah, Hagar, "baby-mama drama-Isaac/Rebekah, and "immoral"-Sodom/Gomorrah, "polygamy"-Abraham, Lamech, Jacob, celibacy-Apostle Paul, barrenness(no children)-Eli/Hannah, Abram/Sarai, multiple children-Jacob/Leah/Rebekah. Full of recorded consequences for rebellion, the fall of man in the Garden, the flood, the tower of Babel, Moses and the Land Of Canaan, and countless others with further research, The Apocrypha, The Dead Sea Scrolls, The lost books of the Bible and various lost Gospels, Thomas, Judas, Enoch, The Qu'ran, the list goes on but with all of the fore mentioned materials and documentations they edify THE WORD OF GOD. We cause conflict and division by our finite limitations to GOD INFINITE PURPOSE. The controversy of "same-sex" marriage.., I am for "equal rights" where those rights apply. See, I told you my relationship history. I also lived moral, immoral, in sin, engulfed with sin, sold my soul to the devil for freedom and wound up in a four-year prison of darkness and seizures for abusing THE WORD OF GOD to justify my decisions. I was a whore of religion like prostitutes of immoral relations. I gave my interpretations regarding marriage that repeatedly changed to compliment circumstances and justify my revolving beliefs. I lived with men that I was not married to as though I was. Late in the year 1992 GOD began to DISCIPLINE me and starting me to respecting my body and the men I was abusing it with, defiling their lives because I knew I was sinning and often used GOD'S WORD to lie about my situations. I preyed(sought them like hunting) on the weakness of everybody. I took advantage of men to appease my guilt and shame. GOD TOLD ME I had to stop it and be Accountable for my own actions and decisions. Stop playing the victim. It took from 1992 until 2005 for me to really understand the Sacral of marriage. Throughout Scripture GOD IDENTIFIES HIS LOVE as the union of marriage between HIS CREATED AND HIMSELF. A UNION that was innocent, flawless and without shame until that dreadful day Eve was wandering without the support of her husband and was deceived into choosing the knowledge of good and evil over life. See the tree of Life was in the same vicinity and garden. Man chose knowledge over life. GOD SECLUDED THE TREE OF LIFE to prevent man from eternal sin(Genesis 03:22-24). Then put on flesh(John 01:01-18) to Reunite humanity to DEITY and grant ACCESS through PRAYER AND REPENTANCE. The man I'm currently married to I lived with in sin and justifying it, I was so-called "Christian" and he an "Orthodox Muslim". We both knew the nature of our actions and chose to defy our religions to be together in sin. Neither religion forbade marriage, I wouldn't marry him because it would upset my former husband. I used every excuse available, our religion(misquoting 2. Corinthians 06:14), our culture(the shaving of the baby's head at birth), "oh we are married inside", "been there done that" and hosts of other cliche's and quotes. I married him when I began to observe my friends dying and going through drama at the hospitals and in funeral homes. All the legalities and laws that erupted family relations after the deaths of one half of the couple and there was no will or written testimony left to distribute, manage, release or govern the estates, properties, the remains of the deceased, the placing of the descendants, the hospital visitation. I felt I could no longer live without the protection to honor my status after his death. I could not afford to be locked out of events involving him as I was in 2006 when the man I married legally twice died and I had no rights not even to view him, which made me glad I'm legally married now, last Thanksgiving my husband had a medical emergency and I was comfortable with his family rather than ashamed because of our condition before marriage. I did not disrupt traffic, deface properties, flood the courts with preventable cases or divide a City or State to flaunt my prerogative and action but swallowed my pride and false sense of needs and joined the rest of society to be awarded benefits and rights reserved for husband and wives. I have absolutely nothing against any one's decision to be whatever they choose, just an offense to others invading and denouncing my decision and rights because it conflicts or deviates theirs. Marriage is a union between man and woman.
To permit certain rights due to the decision to redefine "union" should be edited to identify a union of the minority not the majority.
Let them create their unions but call it something other than what has proved accepted. Domestic Partners, Domestic Relative, Chosen Family, whatever just don't highjack what identifies the beliefs of most, to patronize the few that choose untraditional unions, okay call it "untradition",
A union of love and decisions. That then gives it it's specialty.
It doesn't redefine what has been since time. It again puzzels me that we can become so involved with issues that only reign to divide rather than unite.
The Equal Rights thing should never have been contested for anyone, "equality to vote, interacial marriage, equality of rights to live in safe enviroments" but the right to claim yourself married is to those that fit the claim.
I don't want to be a man that's why Adam said "Wo". He put brakes on the overbearing maleism to express my feminenity. I'm not anti-gay, I accept everything and everybody within the boundaries of love and respect.
Our experiences are our own. Choose wisely.
I didn't chose to be who I am, I chose to identify who I am after I was.
GOD DOES NOT make mistakes, HE KNOWS WHAT HE WANTS, HE LOVES us too much to force us to obey HE GAVE US CHOICE.
There should be no disrespect for anything or anyone with equality for all.
Respect every man, woman and child and there is no division just a variety of cultures, opinions, rituals, doctrines and harmony.
No one is superior we are all equal, but you must leave room for consequenes to your decisions.
Theories and allegations from gathered opinions and research claim to know the history of Creation. Only The Bibles account rings closest to truth than the "big-bangs" and evolutional consequences.
Someone had to set the stage for consequences or they would just be ideas. Consequences are logical conclusions so the beginning had to have initiated the actions, and decisions follow commandments or formats of legalities and rules.
Sin entered into our existence because mankind consciously chose to disobey GOD. Since the fall of mankind in the Garden of Eden, mankind has struggled to live the Life intended for him. It began with the Judgment,
"So THE LORD said To the serpent(more cunning than any beast of the field which THE LORD GOD HAD MADE):
Because you have done this, you are cursed more than all cattle, and more than every beast of the field; on your belly you shall go, and you shall eat dust all the days of your life and I(GOD) will PUT enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed and her Seed;
He shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise His heel(Genesis 3:14-15)."
So snakes use to walk upright and the position of man over woman was a demotion of status from GOD. Consequence? These choices to defy THE CREATOR of them all ushered the situations and controversies we find ourselves in today in 2011.
To the woman HE said;
"I Will GREATLY MULTIPLY your sorrow and your conception; in pain you shall bring forth children; Your desire shall be for your husband, and he shall rule(govern over 1 Corinthians 11:03) you(Genesis 3:16)."
Before they were "equal" they had no need for status because they had no idea what it was. We have abused "the knowledge of good and evil", and redundantly long for the Relationships "Intended" by our CREATOR.
Unable to satisfy that missing euphoria we settle for copies and repeatedly destroy nature and life as it was CREATED.
Cloning, abortion, immorality, wars the lists goes on.
I searched the web to see what it had to offer in reference to the title of this article I typed "marriage" and the first link was to Divorce Lawyers information for S.F., Oakland and San Jose, Ca. a phone number 1(800) 941-6730.
Divorce and Family Attorneys, 3rd Planning a Wedding:Wikipedia and one I really enjoyed The Starting place for exploring marriage and marriage issues- http://www.marriage.about.com/biopage.htm and a link from there to http://www.savingmymarriagenow.com/ are sites guided by a couple Bob an Sheri Stritof married over 40 years divorced and remarried. They have presented workshops for 30 years. Have a look. There was http://www.marriagebuilders.com/ with information by Dr. Willard F. Harley Jr. and lastly a Legal Information Institution- http://www.law.cornell.edu/wex/marriage Where I found, " Marriage: an overview
In the English common law tradition, from which our legal doctrines and concepts have developed, a marriage was a contract based upon a voluntary private agreement by a man and a woman to become husband and wife. Marriage was viewed as the basis of the family unit and vital to the preservation of morals and civilization. Traditionally, the husband had a duty to provide a safe house, pay for necessities such as food and clothing, and live in the house. The wife's obligations were maintaining a home, living in the home, having sexual relations with her husband, and rearing the couple's children. Today the underlying concept that marriage is a legal contract still remains but due to changes in society the legal obligations are not the same.
Marriage is chiefly regulated by the states. The Supreme Court has held that states are permitted to reasonably regulate the institution by prescribing who is allowed to marry, and how the marriage can be dissolved. Entering into a marriage changes the legal status of both parties and gives both husband and wife new rights and obligations. One power that the states do not have, however, is that of prohibiting marriage in the absence of a valid reason. For example, prohibiting interracial marriage is not allowed for lack of a valid reason and because it was deemed to violate the Equal Protection Clause of the Constitution.
All states limit people to one living husband or wife at a time and will not issue marriage licenses to anyone with a living spouse. Once an individual is married, the person must be legally released from the relationship by either death, divorce, or annulment before he or she may remarry. Other limitations on individuals include age and close relationship. Limitations that some but not all states prescribe are: the requirements of blood tests, good mental capacity, and being of opposite sex.
In 1996, President Clinton signed into law the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which, for federal purposes, defined marriage as "only a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife" (1 U.S.C. § 7). DOMA further provided that "No State, territory, or possession of the United States, or Indian tribe, shall be required to give effect to any public act, record, or judicial proceeding of any other State, territory, possession, or tribe respecting a relationship between persons of the same sex that is treated as a marriage under the laws of such other State, territory, possession, or tribe, or a right or claim arising from such relationship" (28 U.S.C. § 1738C). (See Conflict of laws, Constitutional law) ".
Clearly the diverse and separate changes reflect "societies" opinions and confusions to what GOD had ordained for marriage even when the book of Leviticus chapter 19: outlines specifics of Moral and Ceremonial Laws as GOD ordained.
The next chapter 20: Explains the Penalties for breaking such Laws.
The entire book records Chapters as guidelines for Living THE WAY GOD ORDAINED.
Mind you life was abundant during this time as there was already the flood, the tower of Babel and the exodus so there was population of cultures and ritualistic living. GOD, However, CHOSE TO SET ASIDE A NATION TO BE GOVERNED BY HIMSELF wanting to Recapture the lost Paradise called Eden.
Hoping that HIS CREATION would choose HIM AND HIS DESIGN for their way of living but... Those people HE HAD LEAD and LOVED chose to be governed with Kings and Queens like the other nations(the book of 1. Samuel 08:04-22).
Like Adam and Eve freedom of choice ushered a variance of experiences.
This Freedom permitted us the decisions that have introduced calamities, death, disease, fear, wars and rumors of war(Matthew chapter 24),
destroyed the close Relationship we once had WITH GOD.
Caused The Crucifixion of THE MESSIAH to Reconcile and Restore Communication direct as opposed to needing a Priest in the temple(We also destroyed that rite).
GOD'S GRACE AND MERCY still PROVIDE AND PROTECT us in spite of our constant rejection of HIS WILL for us. Parents how would you like someone else telling you what you can and cannot do with your child(creation)? Or non parents someone orchestrating your decisions regarding your earthly possessions? GOD CREATED EVERYTHING real, earth, heavens, sky, universe(and man procreated bombs, guns, toxic poisons,and disease) including ANGELS( Genesis 16:07, Job 04:18, Gabriel-the book of Daniel 08:16-27 and Lucifer, Isaiah 14:12=Satan, the devil, that old dragon, Bel, Beelzebub or whatever you call the "adversary" of GOD) and man procreated bombs, guns, toxic poisons,and disease. His(Satan's) pride caused him to get expelled from HEAVEN and to introduce sin(rebellion of GOD'S COMMANDS)in Scripture Satan's fall is mentioned in (the book of Matthew 12:25-30, John 12:31, 2. Corinthians 04, :04, Revelations 20:07) I get carried away with THE WORD. Unlike the belief of some it does not "contradict" itself, our interpretations change as our evolving the "knowledge" we "inherited" from our parents Adam(man) and Eve(woman). It said, "the tree of the knowledge of good and evil(Genesis 02:16 &17)". Not an "apple" not a "woman" not an "orange" or any of the other interpretations given to highlight agenda's of a doctrine not THE WORD OF GOD. Wow, okay so regarding marriage, in the book of Genesis chapter 02:18-25 GOD observes the "loneliness of man" and CREATES a "helper comparable to him". So GOD out of the ground(dust) CREATED ANIMALS and bought them to the man to see what he(Adam) would call them, and whatever name he gave to every living creature that was its name. But there was not found a helper comparable to him. So GOD PERFORMED THE 1ST SURGERY AND ANESTHETIC on Adam(man) taking a rib from his side and forming Eve(woman) what Adam called her as being "bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh" . Genesis 02"24 &25 records, "Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And they were both naked, the man and his wife and were not ashamed." The Commentating to my Nelson's Study Bible(unless specified) regarding verses 24, 24 says, " In marriage, a man is to leave his family join his wife, and unite with her. Though this process establishes a new home distinct from his parents', it does not sever all ties with the extend family. In the Biblical period, extended families were quite close and interdependent. The words be joined speak of both a physical embrace and a more general aspects of marital bonding. In marriage, man and woman are a "we", not just a "me and you". One flesh suggests both a physical, sexual bonding and a lifelong relationship. There are still two persons, but together they are as one( Ephesian 05:31, 1. Corinthians 06:16). In the New Testament, JESUS refers to this text as the Foundation of the Biblical view of marriage(Matthew 19:05). Because the man and the woman knew only good, they were not ashamed even though they were both naked. They were comfortable in their physical bodies, in their sexuality, in their relationship, and in their work-with no wrongdoing. The wording of verses 24/25 suggests the couple experienced sexual relations in the garden as a part of their GOD-INTENDED experience. At 04:01 we first read of procreation, not necessarily the couple's first sexual experience together. The 1st sin was not lying about whose fault it was that they felt shame after eating of the tree of knowledge but that they disobeyed GOD by eating then lied. The book of Romans chapter 05:12 mentions Adam's sin rather than Eve. Hebrews chapter 13:04 records "Marriage is honorable among all, and the bed undefiled; but fornicators and adulterers GOD WILL JUDGE." See GOD GAVE the COMMAND to Adam first. The Old Testament is full of relationships good-Abraham/Sarah, bad-Jacob/Leah, interracial-Moses/Midianite, "baby-daddy drama"-Abraham/Sarah, Hagar, "baby-mama drama-Isaac/Rebekah, and "immoral"-Sodom/Gomorrah, "polygamy"-Abraham, Lamech, Jacob, celibacy-Apostle Paul, barrenness(no children)-Eli/Hannah, Abram/Sarai, multiple children-Jacob/Leah/Rebekah. Full of recorded consequences for rebellion, the fall of man in the Garden, the flood, the tower of Babel, Moses and the Land Of Canaan, and countless others with further research, The Apocrypha, The Dead Sea Scrolls, The lost books of the Bible and various lost Gospels, Thomas, Judas, Enoch, The Qu'ran, the list goes on but with all of the fore mentioned materials and documentations they edify THE WORD OF GOD. We cause conflict and division by our finite limitations to GOD INFINITE PURPOSE. The controversy of "same-sex" marriage.., I am for "equal rights" where those rights apply. See, I told you my relationship history. I also lived moral, immoral, in sin, engulfed with sin, sold my soul to the devil for freedom and wound up in a four-year prison of darkness and seizures for abusing THE WORD OF GOD to justify my decisions. I was a whore of religion like prostitutes of immoral relations. I gave my interpretations regarding marriage that repeatedly changed to compliment circumstances and justify my revolving beliefs. I lived with men that I was not married to as though I was. Late in the year 1992 GOD began to DISCIPLINE me and starting me to respecting my body and the men I was abusing it with, defiling their lives because I knew I was sinning and often used GOD'S WORD to lie about my situations. I preyed(sought them like hunting) on the weakness of everybody. I took advantage of men to appease my guilt and shame. GOD TOLD ME I had to stop it and be Accountable for my own actions and decisions. Stop playing the victim. It took from 1992 until 2005 for me to really understand the Sacral of marriage. Throughout Scripture GOD IDENTIFIES HIS LOVE as the union of marriage between HIS CREATED AND HIMSELF. A UNION that was innocent, flawless and without shame until that dreadful day Eve was wandering without the support of her husband and was deceived into choosing the knowledge of good and evil over life. See the tree of Life was in the same vicinity and garden. Man chose knowledge over life. GOD SECLUDED THE TREE OF LIFE to prevent man from eternal sin(Genesis 03:22-24). Then put on flesh(John 01:01-18) to Reunite humanity to DEITY and grant ACCESS through PRAYER AND REPENTANCE. The man I'm currently married to I lived with in sin and justifying it, I was so-called "Christian" and he an "Orthodox Muslim". We both knew the nature of our actions and chose to defy our religions to be together in sin. Neither religion forbade marriage, I wouldn't marry him because it would upset my former husband. I used every excuse available, our religion(misquoting 2. Corinthians 06:14), our culture(the shaving of the baby's head at birth), "oh we are married inside", "been there done that" and hosts of other cliche's and quotes. I married him when I began to observe my friends dying and going through drama at the hospitals and in funeral homes. All the legalities and laws that erupted family relations after the deaths of one half of the couple and there was no will or written testimony left to distribute, manage, release or govern the estates, properties, the remains of the deceased, the placing of the descendants, the hospital visitation. I felt I could no longer live without the protection to honor my status after his death. I could not afford to be locked out of events involving him as I was in 2006 when the man I married legally twice died and I had no rights not even to view him, which made me glad I'm legally married now, last Thanksgiving my husband had a medical emergency and I was comfortable with his family rather than ashamed because of our condition before marriage. I did not disrupt traffic, deface properties, flood the courts with preventable cases or divide a City or State to flaunt my prerogative and action but swallowed my pride and false sense of needs and joined the rest of society to be awarded benefits and rights reserved for husband and wives. I have absolutely nothing against any one's decision to be whatever they choose, just an offense to others invading and denouncing my decision and rights because it conflicts or deviates theirs. Marriage is a union between man and woman.
To permit certain rights due to the decision to redefine "union" should be edited to identify a union of the minority not the majority.
Let them create their unions but call it something other than what has proved accepted. Domestic Partners, Domestic Relative, Chosen Family, whatever just don't highjack what identifies the beliefs of most, to patronize the few that choose untraditional unions, okay call it "untradition",
A union of love and decisions. That then gives it it's specialty.
It doesn't redefine what has been since time. It again puzzels me that we can become so involved with issues that only reign to divide rather than unite.
The Equal Rights thing should never have been contested for anyone, "equality to vote, interacial marriage, equality of rights to live in safe enviroments" but the right to claim yourself married is to those that fit the claim.
I don't want to be a man that's why Adam said "Wo". He put brakes on the overbearing maleism to express my feminenity. I'm not anti-gay, I accept everything and everybody within the boundaries of love and respect.
Our experiences are our own. Choose wisely.
I didn't chose to be who I am, I chose to identify who I am after I was.
GOD DOES NOT make mistakes, HE KNOWS WHAT HE WANTS, HE LOVES us too much to force us to obey HE GAVE US CHOICE.
There should be no disrespect for anything or anyone with equality for all.
Respect every man, woman and child and there is no division just a variety of cultures, opinions, rituals, doctrines and harmony.
No one is superior we are all equal, but you must leave room for consequenes to your decisions.
Sunday, June 7, 2009
I AM...GOD'S NAME
Living in Burlingame for 12 years(from 1993-2005) permitted me to settle in my spirit wounded from the many doctrines(joined numerous organizations, churces and congregations) and begin to seek GOD for myself. I had abused The Name of GOD and the body HE CREATED to house The Spirit HE DESIGNED me.
Late one night in November of 1992 and after repeatedly having seizures for 04 years and not able to control them or identify symptoms prior to one. I watched Pastor Arnold Murray Sr. of The Shepherds Chapel in Arizona. He did not give me stories about one scripture that appeared to coincide with the Scripture. He read chapter by chapter and verse by verse. Taking the time to reference Scriptures and a Strong's Exhaustive Concordance to research and define each lesson. That moment began my current journey to reconciling and submitting to The Will of GOD.
I joined another type of congregation in April of 1993, Millbrae Bible School and was lead through Scripture with Scripture and not commentary or preconceived interpretations. The Pastor openly rebuked me one night in Bible Study for saying, "Jesus held a revival in the grave". I was so hurt because I thought I knew everything about the bible since I had been reading it all my life. I had vowed not to return to that place again because they were picking on me. Well, because I had spent months studying with Pastor Murray, I knew that "interpretations and commentaries are others view on a particular subject and depending on their agenda it could destroy the truth.
I called at least 09 supposedly well rehearsed religious individuals Pastors, Missionaries, Sunday School teachers, Bible Scholars and those I'd heard "preach" that sermon. Several months later only the scholar got back to me and she admitted she could not find anything to support that claim but in searching that discovered that most of the things attributed to having been done "in the grave" were actually performed while JESUS Body yet hung on the cross(Luke chapter 23:44-50). It always puzzles me as to why none of the others returned with answers and again I began to doubt myself.
I had to relearn everything I had previously believed. Murray set the path to truth by giving me the tools to learn with. The Bible, a concordance(dictionary of Bible words), A Renewed mind by Repentance and transformation of spirit and a zeal to learn. Millbrae Bible School instructed me to search Scripture and examine it with related Scripture not theory and heresy. Life's situations and circumstances have permitted me a canvas to observe what I've learned and to test the Commands, Prophecies, Curses, Blessings, and consequences of idolatry and rebellion against GOD.
I began to put together studies of topics that people would argue in my presence or when family members would call me with their dramas. For over 10 years an elder cousin described what I was doing, "your ears are garbage cans and your mind has become a city dump" she said in one conversation about "trials".
I examined every conversation(I had actually taped many) to answer them with Scriptures and came up with Bible Studies. This is one and I searched online to see what others thought of GOD. I will include those addresses near the end of this written in January of 2003 and revised today.
Praising The ALMIGHTY GOD of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph and Moses for the Gift of Life. As we journey through time in this capacity of our existence I'm inclined to believe that our purpose in life is to love and honor The Lord GOD with all that is within us. Simple thanks and words of Worship are all that's asked of us. Repent and be Baptised(Acts 02:38), and respect. Reality is what permitted Job to settle out of court and except that GOD IS and HE has all Rights and Authority Concerning us(the book of Job 40:03-05). We are mere dirt and water, clay at its best. The Bible records that GOD BREATHED THE BREATH OF LIFE INTO the nostrils of the ART HE'D CREATED and man(Adam-the name of the piece) became a Living Soul(Genesis 02:07). There is a sect of GOD'S CREATION claiming they believe not Darwin or Einstein's theories but that "aliens" cloned humans and that's our origin. That is the most ridiculous mention of knowledge I've ever read. The Webster's New World Dictionary defines clones as-all the descendants derived asexually from a single individual. The "individual" would have to have been human to clone right? That's all I have to say about that. Until GOD breathed into the nostrils of HIS CREATION made of materials HE DEEMED Good, the dictionary defines soul-the part of one's being that is thought of as the center of feeling, thinking, will, etc., apart from the body: in some religions the soul is believed to go on after death. I'm definite man was not cloned by aliens, just as I'd dismissed the evolution theory. Max Lucado an inspirational author and teacher of The Bible wrote in The Inspirational Study Bible: Life's Lesson for the book of Isaiah chapter 40:01-chapter 41:29, the format is as such..,
Late one night in November of 1992 and after repeatedly having seizures for 04 years and not able to control them or identify symptoms prior to one. I watched Pastor Arnold Murray Sr. of The Shepherds Chapel in Arizona. He did not give me stories about one scripture that appeared to coincide with the Scripture. He read chapter by chapter and verse by verse. Taking the time to reference Scriptures and a Strong's Exhaustive Concordance to research and define each lesson. That moment began my current journey to reconciling and submitting to The Will of GOD.
I joined another type of congregation in April of 1993, Millbrae Bible School and was lead through Scripture with Scripture and not commentary or preconceived interpretations. The Pastor openly rebuked me one night in Bible Study for saying, "Jesus held a revival in the grave". I was so hurt because I thought I knew everything about the bible since I had been reading it all my life. I had vowed not to return to that place again because they were picking on me. Well, because I had spent months studying with Pastor Murray, I knew that "interpretations and commentaries are others view on a particular subject and depending on their agenda it could destroy the truth.
I called at least 09 supposedly well rehearsed religious individuals Pastors, Missionaries, Sunday School teachers, Bible Scholars and those I'd heard "preach" that sermon. Several months later only the scholar got back to me and she admitted she could not find anything to support that claim but in searching that discovered that most of the things attributed to having been done "in the grave" were actually performed while JESUS Body yet hung on the cross(Luke chapter 23:44-50). It always puzzles me as to why none of the others returned with answers and again I began to doubt myself.
I had to relearn everything I had previously believed. Murray set the path to truth by giving me the tools to learn with. The Bible, a concordance(dictionary of Bible words), A Renewed mind by Repentance and transformation of spirit and a zeal to learn. Millbrae Bible School instructed me to search Scripture and examine it with related Scripture not theory and heresy. Life's situations and circumstances have permitted me a canvas to observe what I've learned and to test the Commands, Prophecies, Curses, Blessings, and consequences of idolatry and rebellion against GOD.
I began to put together studies of topics that people would argue in my presence or when family members would call me with their dramas. For over 10 years an elder cousin described what I was doing, "your ears are garbage cans and your mind has become a city dump" she said in one conversation about "trials".
I examined every conversation(I had actually taped many) to answer them with Scriptures and came up with Bible Studies. This is one and I searched online to see what others thought of GOD. I will include those addresses near the end of this written in January of 2003 and revised today.
Praising The ALMIGHTY GOD of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph and Moses for the Gift of Life. As we journey through time in this capacity of our existence I'm inclined to believe that our purpose in life is to love and honor The Lord GOD with all that is within us. Simple thanks and words of Worship are all that's asked of us. Repent and be Baptised(Acts 02:38), and respect. Reality is what permitted Job to settle out of court and except that GOD IS and HE has all Rights and Authority Concerning us(the book of Job 40:03-05). We are mere dirt and water, clay at its best. The Bible records that GOD BREATHED THE BREATH OF LIFE INTO the nostrils of the ART HE'D CREATED and man(Adam-the name of the piece) became a Living Soul(Genesis 02:07). There is a sect of GOD'S CREATION claiming they believe not Darwin or Einstein's theories but that "aliens" cloned humans and that's our origin. That is the most ridiculous mention of knowledge I've ever read. The Webster's New World Dictionary defines clones as-all the descendants derived asexually from a single individual. The "individual" would have to have been human to clone right? That's all I have to say about that. Until GOD breathed into the nostrils of HIS CREATION made of materials HE DEEMED Good, the dictionary defines soul-the part of one's being that is thought of as the center of feeling, thinking, will, etc., apart from the body: in some religions the soul is believed to go on after death. I'm definite man was not cloned by aliens, just as I'd dismissed the evolution theory. Max Lucado an inspirational author and teacher of The Bible wrote in The Inspirational Study Bible: Life's Lesson for the book of Isaiah chapter 40:01-chapter 41:29, the format is as such..,
"Situation: GOD Promised to remain Faithful to HIS People. The Jews felt that GOD had Ignored them, but GOD would Rescue them from captivity. Observation: Because HE is PERFECT, ALL POWERFUL, AND KNOWS EVERYTHING. GOD TRANSCENDS nature. Mysteriously, thought, HE still CONCERNS HIMSELF with our lives. Inspiration: GOD is always FIRST, and GOD will surely be LAST. To say this is not to draw GOD downward into the stream of flux and flow of the world. HE stands ABOVE HIS OWN CREATION and outside of time HE makes free use of time-words when referring to HIMSELF. So HE says that HE is THE ALPHA AND OMEGA, the Beginning and the Ending, the First and the Last. man in the plan of GOD has been granted considerable say; but never is he permitted to utter the first or the last word. That is the prerogative of THE DEITY, and one which HE will never surrender to HIS Creatures. Man has no say about the time or place of his birth; GOD DEMONSTRATES THAT without consulting the man himself. One day the little man finds himself in consciousness and accepts the fact that he is. There his volitional life begins. Before that he had nothing to say about anything. After that he struts and boasts and utters his defiant proclamations of individual freedom, and encouraged by the sound of his own voice he may declare his Independence of GOD and call himself an "atheist" or an "agnostic." Have your fun, little man; you are only chattering in the interim between first and last; you had no voice at the first and you will have none at the last. GOD Reserves the Right to take up at the last where HE Began at the First, an you are in the HANDS OF GOD whether you will or not. This knowledge should humble us and encourage us, too. It should humble us when we remember how frail we are, how utterly dependant on GOD; and it should encourage us to know that when everything else has passed we may still have GOD no less surely than before." (from The Root of Righteousness by A.W. Tozer). Application: Is anything in your life guaranteed? Is your career unshakable, your family immortal, your money eternal? Do not base your comfort and enjoyment on what would be gone tomorrow. Only GOD and HIS WORD WILL LAST for ever-let these be the basis of everything in your life. Exploration: waiting-Isaiah 52:10; 2. Corinthians 04:01; Hebrews 12:-1-03. Thanks Max Lucado and A. W. Tozer for your contributions toward spiritual knowledge of Scripture. Always, Fatima B. I love the LORD, however, I'm often repenting for anger, resentment and complaining. I repeatedly have to remind myself to be grateful, to learn the importance of Praise and the power of Worship. Praise is Thanksgiving and Worship is Honor. For those stuck in religion mode(attempting to steal into Heaven for ignorance of Scripture) and missing a true Relationship with GOD(limiting yourselves to experiences and information by separating as Superior), HE only wants us to accept who we are and have enough faith to know that HE WILL PROTECT, GUIDE AND HEAL if you let HIM. HE is not concerned with which way you kneel or what you call HIM. In the book of Exodus chapter 03:12-15, a conversation between GOD and Moses prompted the title of this blog, Then Moses said to GOD, "indeed, when I come to the children of Israel and say to them, 'The God of your father has sent me to you', and they say to me 'what is His name?' What shall I say to them?' And GOD said to Moses, "I AM WHO I AM!" And HE said, "Thus you shall say to the children of Israel, I AM has sent me to you." Moreover GOD said to Moses, "Thus you shall say to the children of Israel: 'The LORD GOD of your fathers, the GOD of Abraham, the GOD of Isaac, and the GOD of Jacob, has sent me to you, This is MY NAME forever, and this is MY MEMORIAL to all generations.' " The commentating in my Nelson's Study Bible shed light to Exodus 03:14.., I AM WHO I AM: The One Who spoke to Moses declared HIMSELF to be THE ETERNAL ONE-UNCAUSED AND INDEPENDENT. Only THE CREATOR OF ALL THINGS CAN CALL HIMSELF THE I AM in the ABSOLUTE SENSE; all other creatures are in Debt to HIM for their existence. but in addition, GOD THE CREATOR DECLARES HIS RELATIONSHIP with the people of Israel. The future tense of the Hebrew verb related to GOD'S NAME is used in verse 12: THE I AM will be with HIS people. Thus GOD DECLARES HIS COVENANT RELATIONSHIP with Israel with HIS NAME. Many refer to THE I AM as the covenants NAME OF GOD. Commentating for verse 15: THE LORD: This represents the Hebrew Name YAHWEH. The Hebrew word meaning "I AM" used in verse 14 is very similar. Translations into English often use LORD in small capitals to represent GOD'S NAME, YAHWEH, GOD does not merely DECLARE HIS ABSOLUTE EXISTENCE, HE DECLARES HIS RELATIONSHIP TO HIS people. HE IS THE GOD WHO MADE AN ETERNAL COVENANT with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob(verse 06). As in other significant passages in the Old Testament(Genesis 22:11-18), repetition and restatement are used for emphasis. Here they indicate the paramount importance of THE DIVINE NAME. In my search online for GOD, I obtained information to various websites some with names that tend to have nothing to do with a god, http://www.americanbrokeracademy.com/ a 05 day intensive course. Become a freight broker. This was listed #02, #01 was 2008 God's Final witness@ http://www.the-end.com/ which is the book of an author Ronald Weinland of the Church of God. #03, Easy to Be a Christian @ http://www.changedives.org/ what it means to follow Jesus. Lessons of Faith 4 to days world. Under names of God I obtained as #01 again God's final witness site listed, Free Names of God Chart @ http://www.rose-publishing.com/ for charts showing biblical names of God and their meanings. http://www.smilegodloveyou.org/names.html please check this one out, http://www.allaboutgod.com/names-of-god.htm and http://www.hebrew4christians.net/Names_of_G-d/names_of_g-d.htm from this site follow the link to "what about the name Jesus:" Throughout my life there have been times I would operate Faith and impatiently turn to doubt. Scripture defines Faith as "things hoped for but not seen(Hebrews 11;01-04, Romans 08:24)." Doubt is failure to trust. I challenge my Faith allowing myself to trust GOD, then time will usher in questions and anxiety and before you know it, I'm trying to fix that I've given to GOD. In the end, I make a mess and have to wait longer for GOD to undo what I have done before HE can have HIS WAY. Religion limits total obedience and can distract you or make you afraid to know GOD, because they offer false security and temporary services. Spirituality permits you the opportunity to seek GOD and learn to trust HIM. I'm not denouncing religion, just pointing out that it is what it is(any specific system of belief, worship etc.), all of it. If we all serve the same GOD why are we disputing and killing over "material" things and reputation? In the 38th chapter of Isaiah, Hezekiah was given an extension to live because he understood that it was GOD who held the key to unlock mystery. Chapter 40:18-31 presents GOD OF SCRIPTURE AS INCOMPARABLE; there is no one else like HIM. " It is HE WHO SITS ABOVE the circle of the earth, And its inhabitants are like grasshoppers, Who stretches out the Heavens like a curtain, And spreads them out like a tent to dwell in." I share my findings to allow us all the opportunity to challenge heresy with search for truth not denomination. Seek GOD for yourself, you will find that HE IS LOVE AND LOVE IS HE, love should unite and not divide. Search GOD with reference of your own experiences and try pleasing HIM. It only takes acknowledgement and repentance... Father, ALMIGHTY, I know that I'm a sinner by inheritance(the fall of man in the garden of Eden the book of Romans 05:18-21) and I repent of my sins(sin loses its threat when compared to the Super Abounding GRACE OF GOD, Romans 07:04-07), I believe that YOU SENT JESUS to die for me and accept HIM as my personal Savior(John 04:42 and 1. John 04:14 from hell and eternal death). Come into my life and lead, guide and direct my paths. I thank YOU for all YOU have done in the NAME OF JESUS, Amen.
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