The grass withereth, the flower fadeth:
but the word of our God shall stand for ever (Isaiah, 40:8).
Our lives change when our habits change. Show me an
individual with good habits and I will show you someone who will succeed
because of a disciplined life, character. Character determines destination.
We often hear people talk about the "invisible
people", "they" and "them". "What will they
say?" or "What about them?" Today's young people have no
examples, who are their heroes? The one word not allowed to be used in
speeches, U.S House of Representatives, the word "hypocrisy." Young
people recognize hypocrisy before anything else, in their politicians, their
physicians, their pastors, even their parents. Young people, even less than
their older relatives know that science has been backed into a corner of drugs
packed with chemicals, no cures just treatments, leading to "brain fog."
My early education-life, "sick care" was mostly faith healing. We
live in a world of sociology-psychology. This writer has seen the growth of
psychology. Educators-scientists have pushed mental health into a system of
psycho pathology.
In a world of trauma and dilemma where nutrition is
neglected, vision impulses infiltrated by horror, how are some so thoroughly
addicted-afflicted by the extremism of psychosis-neurosis-pathology, while
others who are exposed to the same life experiences, escape. One third of our
population have cancer, our prisons-court systems filled with crime. How do
some escape? It is the ultimate hidden purposes of God. God is boss, He does
what he pleases. He could have sent 3 million fiery chariots to transfer his
chosen Jewish people from their slave pits in Egypt to the Promised Land IF He
had chosen. He could save eternally, redeem, every person in New
York City or Chicago
if He chose. Our first parents, Adam and Eve chose death instead of life... and
here we are.
103 years ago the greatest ship ever built at that time, the
Titanic (A ship that some said, God could not sink) went to the bottom of the
ocean after striking an iceberg. Even after the ship was tilting, and it took
two and a half hours to sink, many on board thought it would not sink. But, 1,511
went to their death at the bottom of the ocean. Do you think those who survived
could forget the images in their minds of that experience? Do you think that
veterans of war, victims of the Holocaust and other horrors ever lose their
mind's images? Images from their eyesight?
I speak as a totally blind man, blind for many, many years.
When I dream, I see very clearly, so I enjoy dreaming... I see my mother,
father, the home place, the old home church, friends-associates. Any person who
dreams, knows the entanglements of reality with non-reality, even a mix up in
time. We know what it is to go to the brink. We understand, better than most,
Senile Dementia and even Alzheimer's. We know that chemicals, psychotropic
drugs, caustic lifestyles are taking their tolls, first confusion, loss of
memory and finally that long slow death. Those who understand the dream know
what it is like to cross the firewall. Recently, in a confusing dream, I was
talking with a girl whom I had known my entire life. She and I were mascots for
a graduating class when we were about five years of age. Later we were classmates,
she died early, at least 50 years ago. Yet, she was as clear to me as anytime
in life. I actually talked with her about my new great grandchild. We were
talking in an office building where I had done business many years ago. I can
understand the complexities of mental health. We try to "pigeon hole"
our thoughts and activities to certain places-levels (family-friend,
social-political-professional activities, etc). We cannot predict what God is
going to do with our lives, we try to pigeon hole too many things. He has
unexpecteds-surprises for us. If we are intolerant at all, we have personality
disorders. We are supposed to tolerate the unexpecteds, without being psycho
pathological. Such matters as same sex marriage, abortion, "don't
ask-don't tell", a world of lost absolutes... nothing wrong-nothing right,
nothing good-nothing bad.
No matter how bad our lives get, most people, blessed with
life, want to keep living. Men who have seen-experienced the horrors of war,
people who have seen and experienced injustice still desire the personhood of
living. We know pretenders, the genuineness of real people, solid character.
Have you ever thought about his disciples, those who had
lived-walked-talked with him during his entire ministry as his feet nourished
the ground around the Sea
of Galilee. They saw Him take a small boy's lunch and feed
thousands-walk on water during a storm-raise His friend Lazarus from the dead
yet, they were scared-deserted-denied Him during his time of greatest need.
Have you ever thought about Pilate, whose thoughts were mostly with his 15 year
old wife, threatening the Creator of the Universe? Actually asking the
question, "What is truth?" when he was talking with truth (John,
18:38: John, 14:6). IF they had believed, they would have been at his tomb,
awaiting his resurrection. It was at Pentecost, 50 days later, that they
received His Holy Spirit in their lives and they were never the same after
that, ready to suffer anything. Luke hanged from an olive tree, Mark dragged
through the streets of Alexandria, Peter hung
upside down on a cross, Thomas killed by a Hindu sword in India, Bartholomew skinned alive in Armenia, etc.
Like the disciples, you can always tell a spirit filled
life. It cannot be hid, the bed is too short-the blanket too narrow, something
always sticks out. The spirit filled life is the grammar of living. God has the
capacity to start over within us and, in the spirit filled life, sees the
righteousness of Jesus when He looks at us. This is your answer for the
shipwrecks of living. Whatever the "Flotsam-Jetsam" that has washed
up on shore.
This world traveler has seen the tranquility of Bedouins
tribes in the deserts of Africa; the
tranquility of Eskimos (Inuit's) in their villages around the North Pole. Their
mental capacities have not been blasted by the trash of television, modern food
stuffs, irascible aspects of climate changes, addictions, social and
capitalistic progressions. Like those on the Titanic, God does not need us, but
we need Him in every area of our lives, whether shipwrecked or not.
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