The righteousness of God= When God assumes the full responsibility of making all things right apart from man, and this is accomplished through his son Jesus Christ. And all we get to do is leap for joy. Our hearts are continually being amazed at his goodness. This righteousness is revealed in the gospel. We’ve become the righteousness of God, and it’s all his doing.
David Williams

Are there certain places in your mind
(Hey, it’s just me again, don’t worry.)
Certain private places where things just simply are accepted as
“The way things are”?
You see God everywhere …
In everything …
Well, … almost!
I want to tell you, if I may …
That’s Not Good Enough!!!

It’s those little places, little spaces,
That you wanna clear out
‘Coz they loom large
At the wrong-est time
Here’s what you can do:

‘See’ God right there
In that scary place
INSTEAD OF
What your frightened mind believes
Because in fact
The Spiritual truth is
The Way Things Really Are!!!

May I say a few words of encouragement to the Gay community?
Please trust me when I say that I hate religion but I love God.
Please trust me when I say that this is not about preaching (as if I had some special connection that you don’t have).
The exact opposite is what I’m trying to convey.
You have every right to an intimate relation with God that any so-called straight person has.
God – that Being that we all call out to when we’ve got our back to the wall – He created you and He loves you.
Not everyone knows this. Some people think that they’re out of the loop because religion has brainwashed them into thinking so.
I am not here to moralize to you: I honestly don’t believe that the way to connect with Him who loves us more than anything else has a list of rules or morals that need to be met.
God is very, very accessible to you.
Let’s give Him a try right now, okay?
So, what do we need to do? Read? Pray? Think? Visit?
Nothing. Nothing. Nothing. Nothing.
It’s all about simply becoming aware.
Just for the sake of clarity, remember that God loves you soooo much that He sent His only Son, Jesus, to reach out to us. I only brought that up because I’m not talking about many gods, but the one God who created the universe … and … us!
So, how do we become aware?
Right here, right now, let’s connect … I mean, let’s become fully aware of God’s (Jesus’) presence.
Let everything else go right now. Be aware that the Creator of the universe is right here.
“Right where?” you ask. Sweetheart, He is within you.
Do you feel Him there? A little?
You’ll feel Him more and more with practice.
Are your eyes a little moist? Well, so are His.
That’s how much He loves you.

One can “see” God and His advancing kingdom so much better when s/he closes the eyes and allows spiritual (God-directed) imagination to happen.

Seeing beyond the so-called here and now to where heaven and earth meet … there’s nothing quite like it! Literally seeing another’s good as MORE important than our own … this is where Jesus smiles, the “enemy” joyfully surrenders … and not one person remains unblessed.

From Christ began the union of the Divine with the human nature in order that the human, by communion with the Divine, might rise and also become Divine.
Jersak and Hardin,
Stricken by God?, 49
Origen, third century

HAVE YOU EVER
Done everything exactly right … ?
You know it was right because
God had told you what to do,
How to do it,
Why and when to do it
And He told you
“Go ahead, do it afraid,
Just do it
Now!”
So you stepped out
And, as God’s representative,
You said what needed to be said.
And, BOOM !!
You got blasted for it,
Raked over the coals,
Insulted for your vocabulary,
Insulted for your audacity,
Insulted for your conviction,
Insulted for your obedience,
On and on, ad nauseum!
You had been out there supporting
But took the brunt of the punishment.
My question for you is this:
How long did it take you then
To wake up and realize
You had just stood up
For God?
How long did it take you
To hear
“Well done good and faithful servant!”
And smile?

…..WHO/WHAT ARE YOU?
…..(by Dr. Robin Starbuck)
Go along with me on this one. Please make a list either on paper, on your computer or even in your head. It’s not a trick and nobody will ever observe it. Who or what are you? A Republican/ Democrat? a father, a mother, a child, a singer, a dancer, a baseball player? a victim, a victor? a soccer mom, a secretary? a businessman,…? who are you? Done yet?
Now what was atop the list? I know, I know, I didn’t say that the order was of any importance; but, actually one point was critically important: if you had said first and foremost “I am a Christian,” the whole rest of your life would have been impacted.
NOW HERE COMES THE R.E.A.L.L.Y. IMPORTANT PART: if you bring to Christianity Your preferences, Your demands, Your requirements, you are doing a huge injustice to yourself and to Christianity as a whole. For example, if I say “I don’t accept this or that aspect of Christianity” because it doesn’t fit my political, socio-economic or cultural upbringing, then I am one of the gazillions of people throughout time who is trying to redefine Christianity, shaking loose the stuff that I don’t want and vying heavily for stuff that I would like to see added to the admixture. By failing to generalize or universalize my personal leanings to fit Christ’s mandate, I am … get this … working on the side of the so-called “devil”!
True Christianity can heal the world of every ill that man is heir to – but not by meddling with the blueprint!
One thing that I can say that could really cheer you up, though, is that you can go into your private place with God and ask to have His divine Plan revealed to you in a way that you can understand and appreciate. God doesn’t want to withhold any of His goodness and perfect love from you.

A life lived in protest to a thing is a life still controlled by the thing it protests. This feels like freedom, but it’s an illusory freedom that can only exist in a universe where that which antagonizes you, and that you therefore protest, is still in control.

Real freedom is discovering a universe that exists outside of the thing you once protested’s control, and ultimately lies in realizing that said thing does not actually exist. One can, from the outside, be an advocate for those still inside, but their lives are no longer controlled by that system. One can even reenter the system as an alien and stranger in order to rescue those calling it home without coming back under its tyranny.

There is a massive difference between these two ways of being.

If I protest toxic religion from within its walls, my protest is more or less a way of dealing with my chains. I’m not truly free, for even my protest is a sign of my enslavement. Real freedom is realizing there is a world beyond, finding it, and then having the ability to come and go from my old world as I please, and then only with the intent of helping those still stuck inside of it.

I often look back and see that some of my most passionate cries against religion were just my enslaved groanings. I still lift up my voice, and still cry aloud against the evils of certain systems, but there is a difference within these days.

As I’ve said before, freedom comes in layers, so never settle for the layer you find yourself in.
~ Jeff Turner

Faith for walking on water starts with realizing you do not have to try to get out of the boat but understanding that all the Faith of God is already in you! In the beginning God gave us Total Dominion over the earth. If we are always trying to see whether or not it is true instead of simply believing what God already said, then we will fail. His Faith is our Faith; we do not wait for it to grow; we use it!
~ Tim Heart

Tim Heart: All the faith of God is already in you!

I urge anyone reading this to ponder it very deeply. Truth is true even if no one ‘gets it’! RJS

Buddhism says “do the eight-fold path”
Islam says “do the five pillars and live a righteous life”
Hinduism says “adhere to the four yogas”
Judaism says “live by the Law of Moses”
Mormonism says “get baptized and fulfill the church ordinances”
The Watchtower says “serve and obey Jehovah for assurance of salvation”
Roman Catholicism says “do the seven sacraments”
Protestant legalism says “make Jesus Lord of your life and promise to turn from sin”

Jesus says “DONE”. Just believe and receive….”

[If the work of Jesus is finished, why is there a need to believe and receive?
There was an urgent need for belief when the country was in imminent danger at the time of Jesus and the apostles’ preaching before the utter destruction of Jerusalem. But what is the imminent danger now?]

Simon Yap