Four Words ~ Faith

Greetings Dear Reader,

The ultimate task of asking for the Father’s will to be done is to have faith.  Faith, belief, and trust are required in all our transactions with the Father.  He wants us to have the faith that small children have in their Fathers.

It is in this faith that we find our way.  The just live by faith.  Without faith it is impossible to please the Father.  We are redeemed by grace through faith.  If we just focused on the ways in which the Word tells us to have faith we could muster an excellent understating of why wanting the Father’s will to be done is logical and wise.

It is in belief that we have the courage to want his will over the things that seem wise or obvious to us.  When we believe we do.  My Grandfather always said, “You do what you believe.  Everything else is just religious talk.”  If I am not kind to others then I dare not speak of the kindness of Christ.  If I am not willing to love others then I must not tell them that God loves them.  The fact is that I must do what I believe of my belief is dead and not focused on the living God.

It is in trusting him that we find the freedom to forgive and love others without reservation.  It is in trust that we can say that we wish the Father’s will to be done here as it is above.  I must desire for the two worlds, ours and the Father’s kingdom to come to be one.  I must long for this.  It is easy because I do.  I want this so much.

I become weary of the struggle with sin.  I see the unkindness in the world and it hurts me.  I see my own failures and long to be free of the things that drive me to fail.  I want every thought to be loving and kind.  I want to never be selfish or self-serving. 

I have faith that the Father wants this.  I believe that he is working to get things back to good.  I trust that his will will be done.  Without this I have no hope.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Holy Week ~ Worth Dying For – Second Night in Bethany

Greetings Dear Reader,

Even in a nation that supposedly is a Theocracy Jesus feels the need to rebuke people for their unbelief.  As he returns to Bethany having cleansed the temple and rebuked his chosen people for their unbelief I wonder how he felt. 

Did he still, in the moment, see the people as worth dying for?  The resounding answer is yes.  He still held his love for us and our redemption above his own life.  He still would rather die than live without us.

The pain in the moment for Christ is always our lack of faith.  It is THE engine that can drive us home.  It is in faith that we find all that we need to show the love required of us. It is not in our strength that we find rest and peace.  It is in belief that Christ will do all that he says.  Without faith it is impossible to please God. 

So as we rest on the Monday evening we consider the rest that our Carpenter Saviour takes again in Bethany.  He has days and steps and pain yet to endure.  It is impossible to rest, or travel, or stay awake with him unless we believe.  I will not rest on unbelief. 

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

I’d Rather be a Fool ~ Closing – The Fool on the Hill

Greetings Dear Reader,

As I turn my attention fully to Holy Week I do so having gained greatly from this series of thoughts.  In a world where my faith is being thought less relevant and more obsolete I will be thought foolish for it. 

I am OK with that.  I think that over the centuries the failure of the church to truly consistently live the Gospel has contributed to this.  I think that the Gospel appears foolish from the outside.  It is one of those situations where believing is seeing.  I realize that even that sounds foolish. 

I choose to follow the Fool on the Hill.  He went there for me so that I could follow him.  One of his followers, Peter said that we become fools for his sake.  Jesus holds out a cross and a crown but we have to take them in that order.  It is in Christ that we find that foolishness is wise.  It is in him that we see that being a fool for the sake of love is a price worth paying.  I invite you Dear Reader to come be a fool as well.

God’s Own Fool – Michael Card

Seems I've imagined Him all of my life

As the wisest of all of mankind

But if God's Holy wisdom is foolish to men

He must have seemed out of His mind

For even His family said He was mad

And the priests said a demon's to blame

But God in the form of this angry young man

Could not have seemed perfectly sane

When we in our foolishness thought we were wise

He played the fool and He opened our eyes

When we in our weakness believed we were strong

He became helpless to show we were wrong

And so we follow God's own fool

For only the foolish can tell-

Believe the unbelievable

And come be a fool as well

So come lose your life for a carpenter's son

For a madman who died for a dream

And you'll have the faith His first followers had

And you'll feel the weight of the beam

So surrender the hunger to say you must know

Have the courage to say I believe

For the power of paradox opens your eyes

And blinds those who say they can see

When we in our foolishness thought we were wise

He played the fool and He opened our eyes

When we in our weakness believed we were strong

He became helpless to show we were wrong

And so we follow God's own fool

For only the foolish can tell-

Believe the unbelievable

And come be a fool as well

So we follow God's own Fool

For only the foolish can tell

Believe the unbelievable,

And come be a fool as well

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

I’d Rather be a Fool ~ The No Win Scenario

Greetings Dear Reader,

“I don’t believe in the no win scenario.”   This line, uttered by Captain Kirk in Star Trek II is one that I echo almost daily.  In fact, most of my efforts have traversed from wanting to win, always, to wanting to create win-win whenever possible.

We too often think of the Father and a jealous judge.  We forget that the greatest commandment is love.  We forget that the Lord is unwilling for anyone to perish.  We forget that Jesus promised to draw all men unto himself.  We do not put this into the equation.

When Jesus said that he would “draw all” to himself he literally was saying that he would “invite, pull, and draw everyone individually and collectively to his side”.   The Lord is unwilling that any should perish.  Should the God of the Universe not get his will? 

I realize that to some of you I am sounding a bit heretical.  I am actually just looking for the win-win.  We take so many things that Jesus said literally but not the ones that we use to condemn and control.  Why is this statement not the answer?  I do not believe in the no win scenario when it comes to God. 

It is in this that I may be the most foolish.  Instead of judging the Father as unjust or cruel I see him as the ultimate finder of ways.  He found a way to redeem us.  He found a way to love us even when we hate him.  The entire process has been to make things good again.  I would rather be a fool than think he cannot eventually find a way for everyone. 

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

I’d Rather be a Fool ~ That Which Endures

Greetings Dear Reader,

Faith and hope are required for the journey.  They are the fuel that allows us to love. It is love that is required of us.  It is love that we are to give and accept.  It is love that moves all that is good.

It may be that we have become so jaded that we do not allow ourselves to be loved.  We put on a hardened shell.  We arm and armor ourselves against the pain of love lost and betrayed.  We carry the scars from trying to love and being hurt by it.  We put so much at risk when we try to love others.

It is also true that loving is the only way to survive.  It may sound oxymoronic but it is true.  We need to love even those who hate us.  We need to love everyone.  We cannot do this though unless we first secure our love in the Father.  This is why it is the first commandment.  Our love for others must be fueled by our love for the Father.

I realize that some of you only tolerate this from me.  I realize Dear Reader that some of you think my faith is foolish.  I am not offended by that.  I would challenge you to ignore theology and the practices of most Christian sects.  Instead I would ask that you really investigate the message of the Gospel.   It is love that fuels the story.  It is love that is the quest. 

The Farther loves us and wants to woo us back to himself.  He wants to be chosen.  Do not think for a moment that there is any other motive in all that is built upon the command to love.  It is foolish to think there is anything more vital to the Father.

As for me, I renew each day my commitment to love others.  I have to do it daily. Sometimes I have to do it every moment.  I draw from the depth of God’s love for me to love others.  If that is foolish then I would rather be a fool.

Could it Be – Michael Card

In the ebb and flow of living

As we wander through the years

We're told to listen to a voice

We can't here with our ears

They say to live by something

That you can't see with your eyes

Is there really any purpose

To this foolish exercise?

Could it be, You make Your presence known So often by Your absence?

Could it be that questions tell us more Than answers ever do?

Could it be that You would really rather die Than live without us?

Could it be the only answer that means anything Is You?

In our words and in our silence

In our pride and in our shame

To the genius and the scholar

To the foolish and insane

To the ones who care to seek You

To the ones who never will

You are the only answer even still

Could it be, You make Your presence known so often by Your absence?

Could it be that questions tell us more than answers ever do?

Could it be that You would really rather die than live without us?

Could it be the only answer that means anything is You?

It's a question you can't answer

An answer you cannot express

That the gentle Man of Sorrows

Is the source of happiness

You'll never solve the mystery of this magnetic man

For you must believe to understand

Could it be, You make Your presence known so often by Your absence?

Could it be that questions tell us more than answers ever do?

Could it be that You would really rather die than live without us?

Could it be the only answer that means anything is You?

Could it be the only answer that means anything is You?

  

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

I’d Rather be a Fool ~ Faith and Hope

Greetings Dear Reader,

I have often walked through my reasoning for having faith and hope.  I will not review that here.  The reasons for the faith and hope in me are reasons that I hold fast.  It is true, however, that others see my faith and hope as foolish. 

The beginning of this part of the journey centers on someone telling me the following Christ is an obsolete way to live.  The person actually laughed at me and communicated that he was surprised that I still believed.  He cited my intelligence as the reason that I should not hold such a foolish position.

I felt no anger at this person.  I felt great sadness.  This person used to have faith.  They used to have hope.  The hardness of life gave him cause to walk away from the very thing that sustains us through the hardness of life.  It is my faith and hope that sustains me through loss, loneliness, and longing. 

It in following Christ that I find the hard ground on which to stand.  I will not always need these things.  I will not always have to believe.  I will not always have to hope.  These are substance for the journey not the substance of the destination.  These are what uphold us when life is hard, harsh, and horrible.  It is in faith that I find the will to keep moving.  It is in hope that I find the will to see the horizon and move toward it.

I would rather have hope and faith and be thought a fool than live a life without it.  The darkness was so much darker before I had faith.  It is in faith and hope that I find life.  If that is foolish then let it be so. 

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

I’d Rather be a Fool ~ Than Hate Anyone

Greetings Dear Reader,

Sometimes the weight of all the hatred in the world seems to land right on top of me.  It is not that I feel hated but rather that it is that there is so much hatred where there could be love and kindness.

I know someone who claims to follow Christ but is constantly spewing venom about others.  There is rarely a positive comment to be made concerning anything.   I often wonder what pain the hatred hides.  Perhaps that is the key.

I would rather foolishly look for what can heal anger and hatred than hate in return.  It is not my place to point fingers and put hatred into the world.  It is my obligation to love at any cost.  This does not mean that I have to allow abuse or hatred.  It is that I cannot hate in return.  It is that I must love beyond the hatred.

One can learn to see past the hatred to the person beyond.  One can choose to love that person no matter how he or she behaves.  This does not mean that you can be friends with the person.  It does not mean that you put yourself in danger with that person.  It means that you love that person.

I would rather be thought a fool for finding a way to love someone than join the crowd calling for hatred and rejection.  I would rather be called a fool for loving others than being the one who gains ground through hatred.  I would rather be a fool than in the crowd calling for blood.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

I’d Rather be a Fool ~ A Single Path

Greetings Dear Reader,

This is one of those things about my faith that sounds foolish and is hard to accept.  I must accept it even if I do not understand how things will be worked out in the end.  Then again there are many things I do not understand that I have to accept.  I do not understand gravity but am well aware of the consequences of ignoring it. 

Jesus clearly declares that no one gets to the Father except through following him.  No one who rejects Jesus can get to the Father.  I realize how narrow this is.  The fist command is in step with this.  We are to love the Lord God with all our heart, minds, soul, and strength.  The part that makes it hard is the way followers have and do treat this.

We are to use this narrow way to combat evil.  The problem is that we forget to adopt the way in humility.  Instead we follow form a position of pride and superiority.  In fighting evil we become evil in our methods.  In following the way we use the way to limit our love and care of others.

We demand that others accept this truth without living out the completion of our obligation to that truth.  I am to love my neighbor no matter who that neighbor may be or what he may believe.  The arrogance of the one way stance is only mitigated by love and compassion for all of those outside of that way.

I am not sure how the Father has things worked out.  I am sure that he does.  I am positive that following Christ is where we will find the truth.  We do, however, have to live all of that truth.  We must embrace the parts that seem “unfair” or limiting.  I would rather be a fool that ignore the words of Christ out of convivence. 

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

I’d Rather be a Fool ~ Opening Thoughts

Greetings Dear Reader,

I was destroyed a little today.  I went to see the live actor version of the movie Beauty and the Beast.  It was marvelous.  It was beautiful and beastly all at once.  They added a couple of amazing songs.  One of them ravaged my heart.

You see if you have not figured it out I am a romantic.  I have always loved this redemption story; even the original one that is quite different from the Disney version.  I know that I am a beast.  I know that I am hard to love.  I tried when I was very young to shut my heart off from love but failed.

Then I learned how to love.  It has been a beautiful curse every day since.  I love others deeply.  I am also flawed in many ways and apparently not worth the cost of reaming with when it is hard.  This is not self-pity or self-deprecation.  It is an open repetition of what those who love me have told me.

Still when I love I never stop loving.  I deal in hope and grace as often as possible.  Those that I have loved the most have judged me the most harshly.  I have healed from much of it.  I was even thinking I could “move on” from some of it.  Then this song ravaged me in a filled theatre. 

As I work through what a fool I am and the fool I am to be as a Christ follower I wonder how my tattered heart fits into it.  I am preparing for Holy Week.  Part of that is seeing that I am a fool to carry unrequited love but that foolishness is never wasted.  It is a glimmer of what Christ does for us. 

As I consider the foolishness of loving others please walk with me Dear Reader.  I need to lean on you a bit at moments and I need you to see that I love you even when you find me unworthy.  It is a tale as old as time.  It is all true.  Loving is such a very dangerous thing and the folly of fools.  I would, however, rather be a fool.

Evermore – Beauty and The Beast 2017

I was the one who had it all

I was the master of my fate

I never needed anybody in my life

I learned the truth too late

I'll never shake away the pain

I close my eyes but she's still there

I let her steal into my melancholy heart

It's more than I can bear

Now I know she'll never leave me

Even as she runs away

She will still torment me, calm me, hurt me

Move me, come what may

Wasting in my lonely tower

Waiting by an open door

I'll fool myself she'll walk right in

And be with me for evermore

I rage against the trials of love

I curse the fading of the light

Though she's already flown so far beyond my reach

She's never out of sight

Now I know she'll never leave me

Even as she fades from view

She will still inpire me, be a part of

Everything I do

Wasting in my lonely tower

Waiting by an open door

I'll fool myself she'll walk right in

And as the long, long nights begin

I'll think of all that might have been

Waiting here for evermore!

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Great Expectations – Belief Matters

Greetings Dear Reader,

Last summer I had the privilege to take a friend to his first baseball game.  He is Brazilian and was completely unaware of rules of the game.  It was a great evening and my natural desire to teach was quite satiated. 

I did not expect my friend to understand the game or to know all the national and local rituals associated with the game.  It struck me that we do the opposite to those who do not know Christ.  We expect people who do not believe to act as we are supposed to act.  We even do this when we are not acting that way.  It could be that expecting those who do not follow Christ to act like those who do is in itself a failure to follow Christ.

This expectation leads to failure to show the love and compassion that is supposed to be our way of life.  Everyone who follows Christ is supposed to be known by love.  It is a failure to love to place my values as an expectation on anyone else. 

The Church should be in the lead in providing for the needs of others and instead we argue over morals and values.  What would be the impact if we just met the needs of others?  We should be the example of living out this difference.

Everyone who follows Christ is responsible to be good to those who do not.  When we do not do this we place unjust expectations on those who do not follow Christ.  This leads to a poor example and hurts our ability to be heard.  We do not show the love of Christ when we do this.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Figuring Out God – Closing Thoughts

Greetings Dear Reader,

"No eye has seen, no ear has heard, and no mind has imagined the things that God has prepared for those who love him."

The most important thing to figuring out God is to proceed from the assumption that he is beyond our figuring.  You cannot plumb the depths of who God is.  This is not an attempt to be mysterious or to dismiss reason.  Both mystery and reason are involved in knowing God. 

There is a limit to what the finite can know about the infinite.  Eventually we will know to the depth we are known.  For now, however, we must not assume that we know who God is.  We can know some things about him within the scope of our humanity. 

Whether it is the good or the bad the assumptions we make about God are limited.  We do not know.  We can surmise.  We can trust and follow.  We cannot on see it all.  We can have confidence.  We can believe.  “Lord I believe, please help my unbelief.” 

What we are promised is that we will find God if we seek him with all our hearts.  After all it is the heart he is after. All of his interactions with us are predicated on his love for us.  If we love him back it can all be sorted out.  Like any noble suiter, however, he does not force us. 

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Figuring Out God – In Disguise

Greetings Dear Reader,

God hides himself.  He does so because he wants us to have faith.   I get that this is a challenge for many.  I cannot explain why God set things up this way but he has.  One of the things this affords him is the opportunity to hide and see how we interact with him.

Jesus made it clear that how we treat others is how we treat him.  Whomever we think of as least of his brothers are worthy of our compassion and kindness.  We are supposed to treat strangers well.  We are required to tend to their needs.

God does not need anything.  He loves people who do.  He counts on his followers to care for them.  If we want to understand who God is then we must realize that he can be seen in those in need.

The compassion we show is vital to understanding God.  Realizing where they are and their needs helps us realize who we are relative to him.  We can do nothing for ourselves relative to our souls.  If I hope to see God clearly I must see him in the people how have the deepest needs.

I cannot hope to figure who God is without obeying his command to see him in those in need.

Distressing Disguise – Michael Card

He is in the pain, He is in the need

He is in the poor, we are told to feed

Though He was rich, for us He became poor

How could He give so much, what was it for?

In His distressing disguise

He waits for us to surmise

That we rob our brothers by all that we own

And that's not the way He has shown

Every time a faithful servant serves

A brother that's in need

What happens at that moment is a miracle indeed

As they look to one another in an instant it is clear

Only Jesus is visible for they've both disappeared

He is in the hand that reaches out to give

He is in the touch that causes men to live

So speak with your life now as well as your tongue

Shelter the homeless, take care of the young

In His distressing disguise

He hopes that we'll realize

That when we take care of the poorest of them

We've really done it to Him

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Figuring Out God – All Out of Wine

Greetings Dear Reader,

Weddings have been large celebrations for thousands of years.  They one of the primary things we do that involve feasting and family.  They have been grand on the political scale, uniting nations.  They have always involved uniting families on some level.  They almost always have good food and good libations.

By the door in many first century Jewish households were large jars.  They were ceremonial jars reserved for the washing of the dead.  Jesus is at a wedding that has run out of wine.  He is on the verge of going public with his hidden identity.  His mother, in typical mother fashion, volunteers him to solve the problem.

He instructs the servants to fill the jars intended for washing the dead with fresh water.  This violates so very many traditional mores.  The servants do as instructed.  He instructs them to take what is in the jars intended for death water to the head of the feast.  The new wine is served to the guests and they are amazed at is quality.

Jesus turned water into wine.  Christ followers have been trying to turn it back into grape juice for two thousand years.  We think we have God figured out concerning alcohol.  We do not.  What matters more here is that Jesus does do the unexpected.

I feel as if the world is out of wine.  We spend more time washing the dead than in true celebration.  God has decided to bring life from death.  The water meant for washing the dead becomes the best wine of the celebration.  If we figure anything out about God is that he makes life and will not be denied.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Figuring Out God – The Walking Dead

Greetings Dear Reader,

We all have those moments when we are interrupted in our travel by a funeral procession.  They do not seem as common as they were when I was younger.  Still you are stopped in your progress.

In the first century world people were carried through town to the place of burial on a funeral bed.  There would be a loud group of mourners.  The people in procession would wail and lament.  This was common.  Jesus must have witnessed it often.  In some cases he acted.

Luke 7:11 – 16   Soon afterward, Jesus went to a city called Nain. His disciples and a large crowd went with him.  As he came near the entrance to the city, he met a funeral procession. The dead man was a widow's only child. A large crowd from the city was with her.  When the Lord saw her, he felt sorry for her. He said to her, "Don't cry."  He went up to the open coffin, took hold of it, and the men who were carrying it stopped. He said, "Young man, I'm telling you to come back to life!"  The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother. Everyone was struck with reverence and praised God. They said, "A great prophet has appeared among us," and "God has taken care of his people."

When Death comes to collect us it is a one sided conversation with no reversal.  That is what we expect.  We do not expect a carpenter who is also an itinerant preacher to interrupt.  We do not anticipate a reprieve from death of a loved one. 

Jesus would sometimes do the unexpected and raise the dead.  After all on the grand scale Jesus’ mission was to give us all a reprieve from death.  His family thought that they had him figured out when they sent for him to cure a sick Lazarus.  They did not understand when he waited until Lazarus was dead.  They gave up hope when he did not act as anticipated.  He chose to have the walking dead explain it to them.

When we think we have God figured out we give up hope.  It is in his nature to do beyond what we think he will do. Faith is what manufactures hope.  Jesus is the ultimate definition of turning death into a fighting chance to live.  The death of people, goals, and dreams are all within his wheelhouse.  I must live that way.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Figuring Out God – Judgement

Greetings Dear Reader,

There are things which God reserves for himself.  One of them is judgement of others.  I have to discern between right and wrong.  I have to assess what is in front of me to make wise choices.  I am not allowed to judge others or condemn them. 

There is nothing that allows me to determine someone else’s standing with God.  I may ask.  I may ponder and pray.  I may observe but God reserves to himself the right to judge us. 

Within that reservation is the balance of justice, love, grace, and mercy.  The comparison is his righteousness and holiness.  This means we all come up short.  We are all guilty before him.  The laws of God are just teachers to show us our need for him.  They are hammers for us to use on each other.

In an effort to figure out God one must realize that he will judge us as he sees fit.  We are not given a choice on that count.  We are given a way to circumvent whatever penalty is due from our failures.  God wants to deal with us in love, grace, and mercy.  First we need to see that we need it.

I must not judge.  God will.  I may be honest about how I feel concerning someone else’s condition but if that does not motivate me to love and compassion I am doing it wrong.  When I see someone overtaken by wrong I am supposed to restore them in love.  If I am judging and condemning then I cannot do that. 

If we want to understand God we cannot deny him the right to judge us as he sees fit.  We cannot act as judge on his behalf.  I must also remember that I will be judged by the standards that I use to judge others.  That alone should motivate me to great grace and mercy.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Figuring Out God – What He Hates

Greetings Dear Reader,

We put God into a box when we fail to understand that even though there are things that he hates he does not hate people.  When we say that God hates any group of people we are putting God into a box which is not his.  He does not fit and will not abide.

In short God does not hate:

Gay people

Racists

Prostitutes

Tax Collectors

Politicians

Bronies

There are some things that God hates:

Lust (not just for sex)

Gluttony

Greed

Sloth

Wrath

Envy

Pride

God hates these things because they cause us to damage each other and ourselves.  He wants things to be good.  This definition of God excludes using each other, hurting others, and not caring for each other’s needs.  When we do the things we hate we exclude God.

It is vital that we not assign hatred of any people or people group to God.  If God disallows me to hate anyone then if follows that he does not hate anyone.   If someone claiming to follow Christ says we are to hate anyone they do not speak for me. 

If we put God in the box of hating someone we remove his love for them.  He would not command us to love each other, as neighbors or enemies if he did not do the same.  He loves the worst person you can think of just as much as he loves you. 

In attempting figure out God I must not fail to proceed from the place where he loves everyone.  He hates only wrong.  I cannot assign hatred of others to God and be an honest follower.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Figuring Out God – A Loving God

Greetings Dear Reader,

One of the things I often hear is what a loving God would or would not do.  We put our own standards on God and decide how he will behave based on those standards.  Putting God in this box presumes so much.

We must presume that God’s standards are equal to ours.  We also presume that we have the same level of knowledge of all the things involved in how God is acting.  We assume that his ways are our ways when he has clearly said that they are not.  “’For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the Lord.  ‘As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.’”

God loves us.  He declares this as well.  We cannot manipulate his standards into aligning with ours.  We too often blame him for the consequences of our own actions.  We want him to align the world to what our vision of right and wrong is. 

We do not have God’s love figured out.  We know it is there, unconditional, and eternal.  How it works out juxtaposed to the problem of evil and the tragedies in human lives is not always clear.  That does not give us leave to define things for him.  We do not have it figured out.

I must have faith that God loves me.  I cannot pigeonhole the character of God and the demand that he express his love by my standards.  I have done this in the past with people and it just does not work.  I cannot imagine it working with someone so far beyond my comprehension. 

God loves me.  I have not figured out how that works in every area my life but I know it does.  Once again I come back to the fact that I must follow in faith and attempt to love others whilst I work out God’s love for me. 

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Figuring Out God – A Sense of Humor

Greetings Dear Reader,

When I ponder certain situations I cannot help but laugh.  Jesus has five thousand people with him in the country.  There is not fast food available.   There are no diners or taco stands.  There are five thousand hungry people.

The apostles have been with Jesus for some time.  They have seen him turn water to wine.  He is mourning the death of his cousin.  He has just spent the day healing the sick.  Please take a moment to get that firmly in your mind. 

Jesus is healing sick people on the spot.  He is caring for the lives of others whilst dealing with the beheading of his cousin John.  His disciples are witness to this and he has already explained to them that they can do as he does. 

The day is wearing on and the people are hungry.  His followers tell him to send them away to the villages to buy food.  Again, no pizza delivery or vendors selling food “On a Stick” are an option.   The response holds so much that we overlook. 

Jesus says to them, “You give them something to eat.”  Jesus wants them to act.  He is telling them to provide for his followers.  The disciples do not get it.  They ask him if he wishes for them to go buy food.  They are concerned that it will cost too much.  I can picture the face palm. 

I can picture the moment so easily and it makes me smile.  Jesus asks them what they have.  The answer is simple.  They have five loaves of bread (picture flat bread here such as Nan or a pita. {I want to launch into a myriad of Nan puns here but I will spare you out of my deep love for you Dear Reader.  Besides they would be Nan-Sequential to my point here}).  They have two fish as well.

Jesus, in a moment of glorious humor tells them to sit the people in groups.  He already knows what he will do but they have lost site of the possible.  They have forgotten the potential promised in the things they have witnessed all day. 

Jesus feeds them all by dividing the loaves and fishes.  He does not make tuna fish.  He does not spend a penny.  Do we think of God as having a sense of humor?  Do we ponder that we can see God as laughing, joking, and dare I say making a bad pun or two.

When we attempt to see who God is we must remember that all of our good traits are created by him.  I hear God in good laughter.  I am sure he has played a joke or two on me.  If I fail to see God’s sense of humor then I will not know him in full.

I want to continue to discover the good things about this God who so many think they have figured out.  Beginning with laughter is a great start.  It grounds to the fact that the human condition is one that God chose to experience so that I could better relate to him.

Know You In The Now – Michael Card

Echo of history

A light so many strain to see

The One we talk so much about

But rarely ever live it out

Could You tell me why

Was it for this You came and died

A once a week observance

When we coldly mouth Your words

Lord I long to see

Your presence in reality

But I don't know how

Let me know You in the now

We should confess

We lose You in our busyness

We've made You in our image

So our faith's idolatry

Lord, deliver me

Break my heart so I can see

All the ways You dwell in us

That You're alive in me

Lord I long to see

Your presence in reality

But I don't know how

Let me know You in the now

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

Figuring Out God – Opening Thoughts

Greetings Dear Reader,

We ponder God whether we believe in him or not.  It requires thinking to get to the place where we choose to believe or not believe.  I have met people who have said on the subject that they have not thought about it. 

It takes me back sometimes when I think I have God figured out.  I really do not want to have God figured out or understood or boxed up in any way.  I want to know him.  I want an intimate relationship that defines who I am.  I do not, however, want to ever think I have plumed the depth of who God is.

I often think that one of the mistakes we make with people is thinking we have them figured out.  We limit who a person is or can be by our failing to see the intricacies of others.  We put people in a box based on past behavior.

We do the same to God.  We decide who he is and how he does things.  We choose how he thinks and will act.  We assume that our view is the view.  I think that God likes to surprise us.  I think that he is so much more than we can imagine. 

I want to ponder this for a bit as I walk.  I need a bigger view.  I need an ever expanding one if I am to journey well.  Let me know what you are thinking Dear Reader as we discuss this.

Wishing you joy in the journey,

Aramis Thorn

Mat 13:52 So Jesus said to them, "That is why every writer who has become a disciple of Christ’s rule of the universe is like a home owner. He liberally hands out new and old things from his great treasure store.”

(͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)