Second Thoughts ~ Anne’s Question(s) Part IV – Love in the Time of Robots

Greetings Dear Reader,

This response will be brief as belaboring it would dull the point.  We all have a list of the evils that God would “prevent” if we doubt his existence and want to put him to the test.  Fill in the bland:  “A loving and just God would never allow ___________ .”  Whatever you choose, we will not agree on everything. 

If God agrees with you but not with me is he still just and loving?  What if he prevented the things on my list but not yours?  If we make an honest list would it not include everything that is not loving and just?  That is just one side of the coin.

Have you ever made your child give someone a hug that they did not want to hug?  Everything about their body language screams that they are not doing it in love.  God basis for everything is love.  He does not force us to love him back.  He does not turn us into robots who obey his every whim. 

Instead he loves us, even when we hate him or deny his existence.  He asks us to love him back and to love every other member of his creation.  In light of that he gives us free will and we choose to do evil and then blame him for allowing it.  We cannot say that we do not want God to force us to love him and say that free will is not a good explanation for evil in the world. 

I promised that I would not give simplistic answers and think I am keeping that promise.  Free will as an explanation for the reality of God is not simple.  It takes complex thought to see that the Father is such vast control of the universe that he has planned his response to every single choice we make.  Not only does he allow us to choose but has a remedy for all of our evil choices.  We simply do not have the perspective yet to see it.

Besides, if we were all evil robots would they not have to send someone to fight us?  And just to lighten things up a bit...

Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots Part 1 – The Flaming Lips

Her name is Yoshimi
She's a black belt in karate
Working for the city
She has to discipline her body

'Cause she knows that it's demanding
To defeat those evil machines
I know she can beat them

Oh Yoshimi they don't believe me
But you won't let those robots eat me

Yoshimi they don't believe me
But you won't let those robots defeat me

Those evil-natured robots
They're programmed to destroy us
She's gotta be strong to fight them
So she's taking lots of vitamins

'Cause she knows that it'd be tragic
If those evil robots win
I know she can beat them

Oh Yoshimi they don't believe me
But you won't let those robots defeat me
Yoshimi they don't believe me
But you won't let those robots eat me
Yoshimi

'Cause she knows that it'd be tragic
If those evil robots win
I know she can beat them

Oh Yoshimi they don't believe me
But you won't let those robots defeat me
Yoshimi they don't believe me
But you won't let those robots eat me
Yoshimi they don't believe me
But you won't let those robots defeat me
Yoshimi they don't believe me
But you won't let those robots eat
Yoshimi

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 ͡°)

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Second Thoughts ~ Anne’s Question(s) Part III

Greetings Dear Reader,

As I approach this for the third evening this week, I do so with a heavy heart.  The conjunction of dealing with this part of the topic and my current distress walk hand-in-hand to remind me just how far we are from what we could be as humans.  I am going to do my best to stay objective and kind but I will ask for a little forbearance in advance please.

When we ask if God is responsible for the evil that men do, we first have to identify what evil is.  In her question Anne gives us clear idea of what she sees as evil.  I do not disagree with I am simply making sure that we all remember the foundation of our journey together.  Here are Anne’s words again:

This is something that I don’t understand: what about all the truly horrible things in life? I mean things like wars, terrorism, exterminations, children dying, people and animals being tortured to death, you name it. How do you account for all that in respect to God?

In attempting to draw a line of responsibility for evil, we need to clearly define what evil is.  I am not playing with words here.  I have friends who think that rooting for the wrong sports team is evil.  Whilst this is a humorous example, it makes the point.  Evil, if left to subjective definition, is hard to define.  Here is something else that Anne posted that I feel is important to this thread.

Thank you, I appreciate your honest and open response. And to continue with complete honesty, as much as I want kindness to guide me more and more, loving my enemies is not something that I am capable of or even willing to do. For example, I could not love or respect a terrorist, and by that I mean someone who is willing to commit mass murder and is himself driven by hate and intent on inflicting pain. I could not love or respect someone who abuses children, the elderly, animals... No abuse of anyone really, but of course my thoughts first go to the most innocent of us. You, and anyone who follows me, also knows that I cannot love or respect our current president. And I even have no desire to change on these things. These are some of my limits.

This puts an important light on how we define evil.  Jesus said that we are required to love our enemies.  We are even told that if our enemy is hungry we are to feed him.  What I am getting at is the idea that we judge some people as unworthy of our love.  We may be angry at someone and withhold our love from them or we may see him or her as evil and judge that person as undeserving of love from anyone.

The difficulty with this as I see it is that if everyone chooses an individual standard for who is worthy of love then there will be justification for hating everyone.  Your standard of worthiness may not match mine.  You may be willing to withhold your love simply because you do not like something.  I am not saying that horrendous things that Anne said are not evil.  I am saying that the problem of evil cannot be addressed without an objective standard of who is and is not worthy of love.

If, therefore, we are going to have an objective standard then I submit that it must not be set by humans.  We will always find a way to now show love to someone.  It is what we do.  If, however, as I have written over and over again, we are going to love it must be unconditionally held, delivered, applied, and demonstrated.

Pause on this for a moment.  At what point of withholding love from someone else do we pass from being good to being evil?  Where is the line.  Again, if it is not drawn by God then it is elusive and inconsistent.  I cannot claim that someone is unworthy of love because of his or her actions making myself unworthy of love in the eyes of someone else.  If I say “but I am right and they are wrong” are they not going to say the same thing?

I am required not only to love everyone (friends, neighbors, family, strangers, enemies), I am also required to show them love through my thoughts, words, and actions toward them, no matter what it costs me.  I fail at this but it is still the standard.  I cannot say that I am a good person if it is not.

In light of this we need to understand that the summation must be that it is evil to fail to show love to everyone.  Withholding love or proclaiming anyone unworthy of love is an evil act on our part.  I will stop there for now because this is very weighty to consider.

Tomorrow we will begin to address the actual question of why God then allows evil to exist.  Stay with me and try to love me if you can Dear Reader. 

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 ͡°)

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Second Thoughts ~ Anne’s Question(s) Part II

Greetings Dear Reader,

Anne has asked a question with which philosophers have wrestled since there were philosophers.  Let me say first, there is not a simple or easy answer.  There is an answer but it does not satisfy the human mind disinclined to faith.  I will not gloss over this but I must have more brevity than I would want to have.

If you want to do a deep dive on this try reading Confronting the Problem(s) of Evil

Biblical, Philosophical, and Emotional Reflections on a Perpetual Question by Joe Rigney.  It is well worth the time it takes to walk through his approach to this topic.  Here I would like to remind everyone of the first part of Anne’s questions:

This is something that I don’t understand: what about all the truly horrible things in life? I mean things like wars, terrorism, exterminations, children dying, people and animals being tortured to death, you name it. How do you account for all that in respect to God?

I am not going to take the path that I too often see where one tries to “justify” things based on the necessity for faith in God’s sovereignty.  I do believe that God is sovereign and that he is in control of all things.  I do believe that he has a universe that is unfolding as it should.  I believe that one of the problems is that we have too small a view of God.

I am not trying to play the “mysterious ways” card here.  My brother explained it quite well this way.  His younger son cut one of his fingers badly when he was quite small.  He cut it lengthwise from base to almost the tip.  At the time the injury was devastating and the worst thing imaginable to the small boy.  Today he does not remember the pain or the suffering.  We who are parents have all seen this play out. 

To the child the injury is all-consuming and I have seen my own children reject my help when they were small.  We cry out over the ills of the world from our perspective but do we really try to see them from God’s?  All of our current ills are part of the preparation for what is to come.  We are offered the opportunity to love each other now but eventually we will anyway. 

It is only part of the answer, but I truly think that when we either reject or accuse God based on the hurt we experience or see we are looking too small.  I do not view God as simply allowing things that are wrong in our eyes.  I think that we need to adopt an understanding that though God is not responsible for the existence of evil he is accountable for it. 

Before those who share my faith burn me in effigy or reality I am not saying that God is to blame but, rather, that he takes accountability for our sin.  He does this by loving us beyond the evil we do.  He does this by having an ultimate response in place for all that is evil in the world.  His response is to promise that “all things will be made new again,” that he will “judge and repay,” and that he “is not willing that any should perish.”  The entire process is to get things back to the “good” state that existed after creation and before we defied God. 

Another part of my brother’s response that is important here is the understanding that this life is not the life.  This world is not the destination.  We will talk about the nature of evil tomorrow but for now I would like you to dwell on this question Dear Reader:  Do you remember being in the womb or being born?  You see, we are in the gestation process for the life that is promised us. 

Please just remember that I am laying a slow foundation here.  Think through this a bit and tomorrow we will talk about evil proper.  For now, though, if there is any possibility that there is a God, then he is either all good or all evil.  I do not think an evil god would be able to give us good things.  I do think that a sovereign good God can allow us to create evil with our free will and have a plan in place to make even our worst work out for good.

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 ͡°)

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Second Thoughts ~ Anne’s Question(s)

Greetings Dear Reader,

The other day my closest friend posted the following ~ “Wond’ring aloud: Do we really acknowledge that every good thing in our lives comes from God?”

Our mutual friend Anne, whom we both love and respect politely asked the following:

Michael, I think you know that I am agnostic but spiritual, and I value and respect life in all its forms, the earth, nature and animals. I respect all religions, cultures, and people’s right to believe what they believe. I cannot stand for hate or extremism in the name of religion in any camp. I cannot stand for cruelty. I am asking this respectfully. This is something that I don’t understand: what about all the truly horrible things in life? I mean thinks like wars, terrorism, exterminations, children dying, people and animals being tortured to death, you name it. How do you account for all that in respect to God? If prayers worked, why would we continue to have such atrocities in the world? Why would you pray for mundane, personal things and say how good God is because he answered a personal prayer. What about the truly important things? Why would God allow such cruelty to endure but care about little personal things in life? Again, I am being genuine and asking this with respect. How can we say God is good when we see a beautiful sunset for example and ignore all the evil and pain in this world? Where is God for these truly important things? I know you can answer about man’s free will or the Devil or God working in mysterious ways. But then why would God bother about little personal things but not major bad things? I really do not understand how this disconnect can be overlooked.

It would be disrespectful and dishonest to attempt to answer Anne passingly or without honest reflection.  We will discuss this and post responses here over the next few evenings. 

First let me respond to the things with which I completely agree.  Respect for life and other humans is vital to anyone who claims to believe that there is a God.  If anyone claims to follow Christ as I do, then respect for life and treating all humans with love is required.   Any hatred or violence associated with Jesus is a false representation of his teachings.  As a foundation to this discussion, one must accept that Jesus makes a few ground rules that we must agree upon to answer the harder calls in Anne’s query.

Jesus made it clear that if we say that we follow him then we must love our neighbors, our enemies, and treat them all with kindness, respect, and generosity.  Notice that Anne does this very well in her questions.  There is no disrespect in her honest desire to understand the way this is all reconcilable.  In fact, I would say that her questions reveal integrity and a desire for the truth. 

As we walk through this together please understand that I do not have all the answers.  For a deep dive on this I would recommend the book, Is God a Moral Monster by Paul Copan.  The problem of evil is one with which we must deal if we are going to be honest about God and his relationship to man. 

I am not going to offer any answers that are new or have not been addressed.  What I will do if offer a loving gentle response to hard questions about faith and following.  If you choose to participate in the discussion, please be aware no unkindness or harshness will be tolerated.  If you post a derisive comment it will be deleted.  If you treat anyone in the conversation with disrespect you will be removed from the conversation.

Those of you who share my faith, please pray that my responses are humble and kind.  Pray that I represent the truth well.  Thank you Anne for beginning this dialogue.

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 ͡°)

Contacts for Aramis Thorn:

Support Page on Patreon: www.patreon.com/aramisthorn

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Second Thoughts ~ Avengers Infinity War

Greetings Dear Reader,

Sometimes I will end the day with thoughts that are important to get out.  Usually I just write them and put them in my journal folder.  I have chosen that on occasion I will share them with you, Dear Reader.

NO SPOILERS YET

I successfully avoided spoilers when I was forced to wait a week to see the Avengers new movie.  My brother did offer that I would love Peter Dinklage in his role.  I will say no more than that prior to a spoiler alert.

What I will say is that this was an excellent film.  It is also long, so go easy on the 64 OZ Coke.  You may wish to make sure you have snacks if you drama-eat.  I would also choose a comfortable theatre.  The movie keeps building to the very end.

There is humor, tension, shock, and sadness.  It is a well told story filled with all of the right questions about what we value and why.  I would also recommend seeing it with someone.  You will have things to discuss afterward.  Please take care not to spoil it for anyone else.

SPOILERS FOLLOW:  YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED

I find that the premise of this film raises many spiritual questions.  Given the vastness of the Marvel Universe there seems to be a question for me that is loudly begged.  Captain Rogers believes in the same God that I do as evidenced in the first Avengers movie.  That God, the God, is, however, left out of the story here.  Or is he?  

It seems to me that the ability of Thanos to destroy half of all lives in the universe is just a broader example of God allowing free will to play itself out.  In the end he snaps his fingers and kills half of all life.  There is even a web site (www.didthanoskill.me ) that will tell you if you were spared or killed.  For the record I survived.

If all sentient beings have free will and are subject to the nature of sin then it reasons that beings of great power would do evil on a cosmic scale.  It saddens but does not surprise me.  Ultimately, we are subject to the sovereignty of God.  We are free to do evil or good.  We all will face the same God that will judge us not on our deeds but our faith.

This story brings to light the potential of evil to prevail even in the presence of great good.  What it reminds me of is that ultimately good will win.  It does seem in Infinity War and in my world that good has lost for now but not, well, for good.

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 ͡°)

Four Words ~ Good

Greetings Dear Reader,

Hillary Scott’s song Thy Will Be Done  juxtaposes the pain of a situation with the need to understand that the Father’s will must be done even when we do not understand.  When understanding fails we must stand on faith.  We must want the Father’s will no matter how difficult it is to get there.

We must recognize that God is good even when we do not feel good.  The situation must not determine what we think of the Father.  As a father who has failed at times I understand how it feels to be judged wanting by your children.  This can only be an inkling of what the Father must feel when his every move is to show us his love for us.  He has never failed us and yet we fail to trust him and follow his Son.

When I doubt the Father’s goodness I fight against what he allows.  I run in directions that are not part of the journey home.  I hinder my progress in getting back to good.  I make the journey more difficult than it must be for me.  God is good.  He is good indeed.

I may never understand how my shattered heart is a part of the plan.  I need to cling to the reality that the Father is good and that it is that goodness that I can count on.  I do not always need to understand to honestly say “Thy will be done.”

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 ͡°)

Be The Reason… - Someone Believes There is Good

Greetings Dear Reader,

We need to keep in mind that in the beginning all things were good.   We messed it up.  We created the things that are not good.  We are the reason that good is sparser than it should be.

The difficulty is that it is that the bad in the world wears away at us.  It drags us down.  It dogs our spirit.  It haunts our attempts to do good.  It steals us of belief that there is good.

Whether it is in small things or great we can do good.  Sacrificing something for the benefit of others can be great good.  The cumulative acts of daily being good to others can be just as powerful.  The truth is we may never know the impact.  It is in the doing of the good that we create belief that there is good; even if it is only within ourselves.

I must be good to others.  I must be good to the gas attendant no matter how surly he is.  I must be good to my coworkers.  I must be good to strangers.  I must show that there is good by being good to others.

I might be the only good someone sees in a day.  This is not a point of pride.  It is a point of opportunity.  It is a chance to be the bright spot.  It is my privilege to do any good.  It is my chance to make a small difference that might grow into something great.  Whatever I do I must do good.

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 ͡°)

Forgetting Who God Is – Closing Thoughts

Greetings Dear Reader,

God is so much more than I can pack into my meager scribblings.  I want to remember who he is daily.  I want to remember who he is in every moment.  I do not want to mistake the gift of free will for absenteeism or silence.

My life is a journey back to God.  We are all on the same journey whether we wish it or not.  Our lives belong to God whether we acknowledge him or not.  The internal war is to follow or merely arrive in his presence.  I do not wish to merely arrive.

God does not force us to him.  He draws us.  He does not demand our companionship.  He asks for it.  When we reject, deny, and disbelieve we are pursuing things for which we were never created.  We try to justify this by dismissing God, our creation, and the very value of human life.  We disavow the supernatural and miraculous. 

If we relegate God to the place of the puerile and uniformed it is much easier to ignore his constant call.  We can be dismissive of those who represent Christ honestly and humbly.  We can treat faith as a matter for children and the uniformed.

I, however, am required to love.  I am required to follow in faith and believe that God is who he says he is.  I believe he is so much more than we can grasp.  He is so far beyond who I dream him to be for my sake.  I must remember daily that he is who he claims to be and not some fairytale. 

It will become dangerous to believe.  Sometimes it feels like it already is.  I can no longer count on following Christ as a guide for the world in which I live both universally and locally.  I can only commit my heart to love for and faith in the God who is there.  I can be assured that God is with me.  I can count on him to show me my errors and enhance my good.  When the whole world turned against God he required his followers to love him, each other, their enemies.  Everything else is built on this.  That is who God is.

Lovers in a Dangerous Time – Bruce Cockburn

Don't the hours grow shorter as the days go by

You never get to stop and open our eyes

One minute you're waiting for the sky to fall

The next you're dazzled by the beauty of it all

Lovers in a dangerous time

Lovers in a dangerous time

These fragile bodies of touch and taste

This fragrant skin this hair like lace

Spirits open to the thrust of grace

Never a breath you can afford to waste

Lovers in a dangerous time

Lovers in a dangerous time

Lovers in a dangerous time

Lovers in a dangerous time

Lovers in a dangerous time

When you're lovers in a dangerous time

Sometimes you're made to feel as if your love's a crime

Nothing worth having comes without some kind of fight

Got to kick at the darkness 'til it bleeds daylight

When you're lovers in a dangerous time

Lovers in a dangerous time

Lovers in a dangerous time

Lovers in a dangerous time

Lovers in a dangerous time

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 ͡°)

Forgetting Who God Is – With Us

Greetings Dear Reader,

Sometimes when my Daughter has nightmares she just needs to be reminded that she is not alone.  She needs reassurance that she is in a safe home and not in danger.  She does not even need to wake up sometimes to be reassured.  My soft voice as a response to her cries in the night can be enough.  Reassured that she is not alone and safe can sooth her back to sleep.

God claims that he is with us.  Again, this is something that doer require my belief to be true.  Whether it is natural revelation, specific revelation, or both God has shown himself to us and assured us that he is present always.

We choose whether or not we will have faith in this.  Instead of choosing it based on who God claims to be for us we choose based on human circumstance, knowledge, and experience.  We avoid faith because we do not like needing faith.  It goes against our need to control things.  Faith requires a letting go of control.  Faith must be coupled with yielding to the object of our faith.

This understanding is vital to our ability to embrace that God is with us.  The incarnation is the ultimate statement that God is with us.  The presence of the Holy Spirit is the ongoing allegiance to that commitment.  God gave us his very best to show us he wanted to be with us.  

I must live my journey in faith that this will always be true.  I must step into every moment looking for and embracing the presence of Christ.  It through this that I will find the strength to do what is right.  I will gain the power to love selflessly and unconditionally.  It is only through this that I can become what God has designed me to be.  “Understand that I am with you, even to the end of the age.”

Immanuel – Michael Card

A sign shall be given a virgin will conceive

A human baby bearing undiminished deity

The glory of the nations a light for all to see

That hope for all who will embrace His warm reality

Immanuel our God is with us

And if God is with us who could stand against us

Our God is with us

Immanuel

For all those who live in the shadow of death

A glorious light has dawned

For all those who stumble in the darkness

Behold your light has come

Immanuel our God is with us

And if God is with us who could stand against us

Our God is with us

Immanuel

So what will be Your answer? Will You hear the call?

Of Him who did not spare His son but gave Him for us all

On earth there is no power there is no depth or height

That could ever separate us from the love of God in Christ

Immanuel our God is with us

And if God is with us who could stand against us

Our God is with us

Immanuel

Immanuel our God is with us

And if God is with us who could stand against us

Our God is with us

Immanuel

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 ͡°)

Forgetting Who God Is – Now Here/Nowhere

Greetings Dear Reader,

Recently several people felt the need to assure that I saw “story” in The Onion about God failing to write a new book.  It was one of the many things I have seen lately that posits the question of his silence. 

As I have been diving deep into the study of the letter Paul wrote to the Romans I have been reminded just how present God always is.  I am reminded that creation, moral law, and our own inner workings declare that God is there.  We have confused subtlety with silence.

I wonder how many other relationships we expect to work when we demand that the other person communicate with us on our terms.  We insist that God be what we wish him to be.  We demand that God speak our moral perspective instead of obediently speaking his. 

We deny his power and presence and use his image for our own purposes.  This is the true definition of taking God’s name in vain.  I must assure that whenever I think of God it is as he wishes to be thought of.  I must assure that I follow the Christ who is there not the image I wish him to be for my own purposes.

If I listen, he is speaking.  I if believe I will see.

My God – Jethro Tull

Ian Anderson - Lead vocals, flute, acoustic guitar

Martin Barre - Lead guitar, recorder

Jeffrey Hammond-Hammond - Bass, recorder

John Evan - Piano

Clive Bunker - Drums

Lyrics:

People, what have you done?

Locked him in his golden cage, golden cage

Made him bend to your religion

Him resurrected from the grave, from the grave

He is the God of nothing

If that's all that you can see

You are the God of everything

He's inside you and me

So lean upon him gently

And don't call on him to save you

From your social graces

And the sins you used to waive, you used to waive

From the bloody church of England

In chains of history

Requests your earthly presence

At the vicarage for tea

And the graven image you know who

With his plastic crucifix, he's got him fixed

Confuses me as to who and where and why?

As to how he gets his kicks, he gets his kicks

Confessing to the endless sin

The endless whining sounds

You'll be praying till next Thursday

To all the gods that you can count.

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 ͡°)

Forgetting Who God Is – Merciful

Greetings Dear Reader,

When my younger Son, Bezel was four he decided that the sugar bowl was his personal candy dish.  The first time I caught him eating the sugar I warned him that he should not do it.  The second time I caught I chose to teach him about mercy.  I sat him down and explained was that mercy was not getting the punishment we deserve from the person who has the right to issue that punishment.   The third time I caught him raiding the sugar he looked at me, smiled, and said, “Dad, I think I need to learn more about mercy.”

Mercy is defined as showing compassion and forgiveness to one over whom you have the power to punish or harm.  Whether we accept it or not we are all guilty before God of rejecting him and failing to love him as we should.  We do not understand the level of mercy we need.  We do not understand the level of mercy we are already shown.

Once again this is something which we have left behind in our journey away from and understanding of who God is.  As I journey back to God I see his mercy and the need for it.  It begins with an understanding of the depth of my failure to love him with all my heart. 

He extends mercy to us so that we can find our way back to him.  He gives us that way and an example to follow through Jesus.  I am not sure how all of this will work its way out in my life.  I do know that by faith it will. 

I do not just walk in faith.  I walk in the renewed mercy of God.  He may need to renew it every morning, every hour, or in my case every second.  He does.  He wants me every moment just like I am.  He is merciful to me just as I am.

Come As You Are – Crowder

Come out of sadness

From wherever you’ve been

Come broken hearted

Let rescue begin

Come find your mercy

Oh sinner come kneel

Earth has no sorrow

That heaven can’t heal

Earth has no sorrow

That heaven can’t heal

So lay down your burdens

Lay down your shame

All who are broken

Lift up your face

Oh wanderer come home

You’re not too far

So lay down your hurt

Lay down your heart

Come as you are

There’s hope for the hopeless

And all those who’ve strayed

Come sit at the table

Come taste the grace

There’s rest for the weary

Rest that endures

Earth has no sorrow

That heaven can’t cure

So lay down your burdens

Lay down your shame

All who are broken

Lift up your face

Oh wanderer come home

You’re not too far

So lay down your hurt

Lay down your heart

Come as you are

Come as you are

Fall in his arms

Come as you are

There’s joy for the morning

Oh sinner be still

Earth has no sorrow

That heaven can’t heal

Earth has no sorrow

That heaven can’t heal

So lay down your burdens

Lay down your shame

All who are broken

Lift up your face

Oh wanderer come home

You’re not too far

So lay down your hurt

Lay down your heart

Come as you are

Come as you are

Come as you are

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.”

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Forgetting Who God Is – Unchanging

Greetings Dear Reader,

We are mercurial in our opinions, moods, and loyalties.  We do not believe we are but it is true none-the-less.  We change our minds about things we have committed to do.  We have mood swings and mood tsunamis.  We put our wants above the things to which we have pledged our lives and loyalties.

God does not change.  He is the constant in the chaos.  He is our fulcrum and lever in the void.  His love for us is unchanging.  His desire to return things to good is unwavering.  His passion to redeem all that he created is immeasurable.  He gives us an inkling to that measure in his Son, Jesus. 

What we see in Christ is the God who was willing to travel to us when we could not travel to him.  We see the unwavering love and commitment of one who wishes for us to have all that we are created to have.

When we waiver on the things that show God’s love for us we represent a wavering God.  Since he asks us to follow in faith this cannot be the way he is represented.  He does not change and his compassion does not fail.  We see new aspects of his love and care daily but we ignore them.

I must see him in every moment.  I must see his consistency and compassion in every small thing.  I must acknowledge that God is unchanging in all my choices of faith and then he will direct my path.  The journey involves a guide who is constant, present, and communicating.  He is mine and I am his.  In every age it has been thus and so shall it ever be.

El Shaddai – Michael Card

El Shaddai, el Shaddai,

El-elyon na adonia,

Age to age you're still the same,

By the power of the name.

El Shaddai, el Shaddai,

Erkamka na adonai,

We will praise and lift you high,

El Shaddai.

Through your love and through the ram,

You saved the son of Abraham;

Through the power of your hand,

Turned the sea into dry land.

To the outcast on her knees,

You were the God who really sees,

And by your might,

You set your children free.

El Shaddai, el Shaddai,

El-elyon na adonia,

Age to age you're still the same,

By the power of the name.

El Shaddai, el Shaddai,

Erkamka na adonai,

We will praise and lift you high,

El Shaddai.

Through the years you've made it clear,

That the time of Christ was near,

Though the people couldn't see

What messiah ought to be.

Though your word contained the plan,

They just could not understand

Your most awesome work was done

Through the frailty of your son.

El Shaddai, el Shaddai,

El-elyon na adonai,

Age to age you're still the same,

By the power of the name.

El Shaddai, el Shaddai,

Erkamka na adonai,

I will praise yo 'till I die,

El Shaddai.

El Shaddai, el Shaddai,

El-elyon na adonai,

Age to age you're still the same,

By the power of the name.

El Shaddai, el Shaddai,

Erkamka na adonai,

I will praise you 'till I die.

El Shaddai.

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 ͡°)

Forgetting Who God Is – Love

Greetings Dear Reader,

Let me say this without reservation:  God does not hate anyone.  No matter what anyone may say to you God does not hate you.  He does not hate gay people.  He does not hate any race of people.  He does not hate the people who do things Christ followers think are wrong.

He does hate some activities.  So do we.  When we proceed from the assumption that God hates anyone we create a barrier to faith for them.  We must proceed from the truth that God’s love transcends every barrier.  He loves everyone. 

We put requirements and standards on God based on our definition of what love is.  It is God that gave us the power to love.  It is God that defines love.  It is by his definition that we learn what love is.

The failure of Christ followers to live out the love of God in the lives of others makes seeing this difficult.  It is there.  It is available to anyone willing to accept it.  So many people who accept that God hates anyone have not worked through what God has to say about love. 

Jesus gave us two commandments to follow:  Love God with all your being and love your neighbor.  He also told us to love our enemies.  He did not tell us to hate anyone.  We are to avoid sin.  We are to hate sin.  We are to love every life that exists.

If I do not live out this in every encounter with every human then I dare not think that I am following Christ.  As I prepare my heart for Advent I must focus on the purpose for the incarnation.  “God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son, the WHOSOEVER (anyone, anywhere, anytime) believes in him will not perish but have everlasting life.”

 I must love always.  I must love in a way that with what meager ability I possess I reflect God’s love for the world.  Jesus is God’s final word on the matter.

The Final Word – Michael Card

You and me we use so very many clumsy words.

The noise of what we often say is not worth being heard.

When the Father's wisdom wanted to communicate His love,

He spoke it in one final perfect Word.

He spoke the incarnation, and then so was born a Son.

His final word was Jesus, He needed no other one.

Spoke flesh and blood so He could bleed and make a way Divine.

And so was born a baby who would die to make it mine.

And so the Father's fondest took on flesh and bone.

He spoke the living luminous word, at once His will was done.

And so the transformation that in man had been unheard,

Took place in God the Father as he spoke that final Word.

He spoke the incarnation, and then so was born a Son.

His final word was Jesus, He needed no other one.

Spoke flesh and blood so He could bleed and make a way Divine.

And so was born a baby who would die to make it mine.

And so the Light became alive and manna became Man.

Eternity stepped into time so we could understand.

He spoke the incarnation, and then so was born a Son.

His final word was Jesus, He needed no other one.

Spoke flesh and blood so He could bleed and make a way Divine.

And so was born a baby who would die to make it mine.

And so was born a baby who would die to make it mine.

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 ͡°)

Forgetting Who God Is – Opening Thoughts

Greetings Dear Reader,

We often hear about a person before we meet them.  How someone else characterizes an individual is going to be limited to his or her perspective.  It will be coloured by opinion, background, culture, and education.   People will front load their opinions of others.

So much of our view of God gets front loaded before we really know him.  We fail to give the opportunity to be who he is.  We fail to see him for what he wants to be for us.  There are those who do not believe in him who mock him.  There are those who misrepresent him who claim to be his followers. 

As a part of my preparation for advent I want to revisit some of my thoughts on who God is.  I think we are so inundated with what culture says God is that we forget to listen to who he says he is.  We do not get to know him.

As I walk through this I will attempt to lay aside the filters of culture and presupposition.  Rather I will try to establish the presuppositions that God wishes us to have.  Walk with for a bit.  Perhaps your thoughts can help clarify mine. 

I Will Bring You Home – Michael Card

Though you are homeless

Though you're alone I will be your home

Whatever's the matter, whatever's been done

I will be your home

I will be your home

I will be your home

In this fearful fallen place

I will be your home

When time reaches fullness

When I move my hand I will bring you home

Home to your own place in a beautiful land

I will bring you home

I will bring you home

I will bring you home

From this fearful fallen place

I will bring you home

I will bring you home

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 ͡°)