rachman-unprecedented

A Time for Reflection

2008-01-20T19:44:00.000-06:00

I've never actually been in a kayak, and it has been years since I was in a canoe. The last time I was, the water was no where close to being this perfectly smooth and still. There were probably dozens of guys my age splashing, padding, swimming, and jumping in the water so that it would never smooth out until after we left camp that summer. Oh yeah! And there was that time in Arkansas, going down the river what's its name. I was all grown up that time, with just one other buddy, but the water was still moving too fast to be really smooth and clear. While I'm bragging, I've been white water rafting a couple of times, with folks in, I believe it was New Mexico, but still that is not what I wanted to portray here. When I saw this photo, it put me in mind of being alone on quite waters reflecting on life. Or at least when I'm not being overwhelmed by the beauty of the surrounding area.
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So I'm in the mood to reflect on life. To take a time to think, to reevaluate, and perhaps to make some decisions. Perhaps to make some new goals. Okay, and perhaps a time to be alone with my God. To listen to what He might have to say. It is probably past time. Not only in my overall life, but just for the new year. I've been having a hard time paying attention to the blog of late. Some of you may have noticed. So it is time to give the first fruits of the year back to God. I've waited this long mostly because I had to get inventory out of the way at work first, before going into anything else.
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I'm taking a break from the usual blathering that I do here. I hope that I will take a break from the usual blathering that I do at home (in prayer, as well as the chatter that goes on in my head), and will listen as much or even more than I speak. I was surprised to come across this is Ecclesiastes 5:1 in the New Living Translation this very day: "As you enter the house of God, keep your ears open and your mouth shut." Well, talk about a timely word. So for a few weeks at least I will be AWOL, or let's just say that I'm taking a sabbatical.
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To all of you, till next time, good blogging.
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~ rachman
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Priorities Again?

2008-01-19T18:19:00.000-06:00

Last year around this time I wrote about my priorities for the new year. Increase my time in the Bible, increase my time in prayer, and increase my love walk. Actually as I look back, I think that I did better than I realized at the time. I didn't do as well as I hoped, but better than if I hadn't tried at all. So I guess that 2007 was not a bad year after all. Well now that 2008 has come, I have heard another strategy session from one of my mentors. Let me share a few of his comments:

We all have a subliminal list of priorities and for most people there is one major priority. Money. We all need more of it. Yet the Bible has a completely different approach.

But seek ye first the kingdom of God, and his
righteousness; and all these things (read: money) shall be added unto you.
~ Matthew 6:33

One meaning of "seek" is to pursue and to study it until you understand it. "Righteousness" means right standing with God or doing and being right with God. Jesus is telling me to first study the kingdom until I understand it and how it operates, and also to understand how to be right with God. After doing these things, in fact while I'm in the process of learning His ways, God will add to my life (the things that I need).

Okay that is quite a step of faith, but not one that is completely out of line with believing Romans 12:2 ~ Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect.

(This is all easier said than done, but with God, all things are possible. My, my! This promises to be a challenging year ahead.)

My mentor also mentioned that "how we use our time defines our life." I may need to be busy about my "father's business" this year. Also stated was, "how we spend our time determines the quality of our lives." Yes, I want more quality in my life. So it looks like my first priority this year is to seek the kingdom (of God). That is really quite a bite that I have decided to chew. But like I said before, I will get farther trying than I would if I don't try at all.

Here's to the new year!

~ rachman

Retirement or Higher Education?

2008-01-18T16:57:00.000-06:00

A friend who works with the same company that I do, but now lives in another city, sent me this today. We both have the same dream of leaving that company, so even though neither one of us is really close to retirement age, the idea of leaving in any way possible often comes up.

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They asked a retiree the following questions:

1) How many days are there in a week? Six Saturdays and one Sunday

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2) When is a retiree's bedtime? Three hours after he falls asleep on the couch.

3) How many retirees does it take to change a light bulb? Only one, but it might take all day.

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4) What's the biggest gripe of retirees? There is just not enough time to get everything done.

5) Why don't retirees mind being called Seniors? The term comes with a 10% percent discount.

6) Among retirees what is considered formal attire? Tied shoes.

7) Why do retirees count pennies? They are the only ones who have the time.

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8) What is the common term for someone who enjoys work and refuses to retire? NUTS!

9) Why are retirees so slow to clean out the basement, attic or garage? They know that as soon as they do, one of their adult kids will want to store stuff there.

10) What do retirees call a long lunch? Normal.

11) What is the best way to describe retirement? The never ending Coffee Break.

12) What's the biggest advantage of going back to school as a retiree? If you cut classes, no one calls your parents.

13) Why does a retiree often say he doesn't miss work, but misses the people he used to work with? He is too polite to tell the whole truth.

14) What do you do all week? Monday to Friday; nothing. Saturday and Sunday I rest.

Now to be honest, most of these questions reminded me of being a college student: When is a college student's bedtime? Three hours after he falls asleep on the floor. Why don't college students mind being called kids? Because the term comes with a student discount, student loans, easy student credit cards, little responsibility, and money from home. How many college students does it take to change a light bulb? Only one, but it might take all semester. You get the idea. Any way you think about it; it's hard to change. People are people--from cradle to grave.

~ rachman

Happy New Year, My Friends!

2007-12-31T14:35:00.000-06:00

I want to take just a moment to say to all the netizens that I have met over the last few years (okay, 1 and 1/2 years) that I wish you the very best for the new year! That includes you, Leo and Rob, (I miss hearing from you both, but I trust you are both well) and you, Troyal. (I was never sure if that stood for Troy Al or T. Royal or, maybe, neither. Either way I enjoy your art.) And then there was Rhys, and the blog bloke, and Bobby G. I've learnt from all of you, though not as much as I should have. (What with such a short attention span.) You all produce some great sites.

Then there was the gracious Cergie, proving that all the French are not in the least bit what many Americans say about them. (Come to think of it, that's what the Internet has shown me. That people from all countries are, after all, just people the same as myself, with hopes and dreams.) And I shouldn't leave out Paulo, and Dave, and Elisabeth (Shame on you, Elisabeth. You didn't leave an address to touch base with you, after you left such a sweet comment. But at least you did comment. Thanks again.)

All in all many of you I consider friends who don't ask for money. (Perhaps that is the thing I like best about you.) Although the political and religious debates have also been interesting and challenging. You know who I mean, Mohamed Fadly. I wish you happiness and peace, my friend. And also to you, Scott, Rose, and C.F. All of you I call friends and I am blessed to know you all.

I know I have left out some names, but then you should write more often. That's okay. Time is short. It is almost time to begin again. May you all have more than enough. May you all be blessed in order to bless. May you all find all that you search for. May you all know the reason for your existence and use that existence to its utmost. May you all know the God of Grace, who gave us this time to start over.

~ rachman

The Journey Home

2007-12-30T14:44:00.000-06:00

I read this on the Jewish site called Chabad.Org and thought that it was brilliant, so I offer it here for those who haven't thought about it this way before.

Afterlife is a very rational, natural consequence of the order of things. After all, nothing is ever lost--even the body only transforms into earth. But nothing is lost. The person you are is also never lost. It only returns to its source. If your soul became attached to the material world during its stay here, then it must painfully rip itself away to make the journey back. But if it was only a traveler, connected to its source all along, then its ride home is heavenly.

I hope your journey in 2007 has been an overall good ride.

What Child Is This?

2007-12-20T00:27:00.000-06:00

"What Child Is This?" is a popular Christmas carol that was written in 1865 by William Chatterton Dix. It seems that at the age of twenty-nine, Dix was struck with a near-fatal illness which confined him to his bed for several months. He went into a deep depression during this time, yet out of this near-death experience Dix wrote many hymns, including "What Child is This?" Actually the words were first part of his poem called "The Manger Throne," and only later were three stanzas set to the traditional English melody of "Greensleeves."

The melody which has been around since at least the 16th century has carried the words of many different sentiments. Some sacred and some not. Though it made an appearance as a hymn called "The old year now is fled" in 1642. It is thought that John Stainer may have merged "The Manger Throne" lyrics with the "Greensleeves" melody for a book of Christmas carols in 1867.

"What Child Is This?"

What Child is this who, laid to rest

On Mary's lap is sleeping?

Whom Angels greet with anthems sweet,

While shepherds watch are keeping?
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This, this is Christ the King,

Whom shepherds guard and Angels sing;

Haste, haste, to bring Him laud,

The Babe, the Son of Mary.

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Why lies He in such mean estate,

Where ox and ass are feeding?

Good Christians, fear, for sinners here

The silent Word is pleading.
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Nails, spear shall pierce Him through,

The cross be borne for me, for you.

Hail, hail the Word made flesh,

The Babe, the Son of Mary.

So bring Him incense, gold and myrrh,

Come peasant, king to own Him;

The King of kings salvation brings,

Let loving hearts enthrone Him.
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Raise, raise a song on high,

The virgin sings her lullaby.

Joy, joy for Christ is born,

The Babe, the Son of Mary.

~ rachman

Home of the Brave

2007-12-01T23:54:00.000-06:00

There are times when the brave ones will have to leave their home and enter the battle. Unfortunately, there are also times when brave ones will be required to stay behind to keep the home fires going.

The Turkey Coma

2007-11-22T19:45:00.000-06:00

An essential amino acid, known as tryptophan, is usually blamed for the sleepiness that most Americans experience on Thanksgiving Day. Give me a break! I've had plenty of, oh, let's say turkey sandwiches over the years, which did not make me sleepy. However I did indeed experience that "sinking" feeling in spite of all the football games on tap today. Come on, folks. Let's be real. What really put me in that "turkey coma," was not that six or so ounces of white and dark meat. It was more likely the deviled eggs, the three kinds of stuffed celery sticks, and everything else on the relish plate, which I consume for no other reason except they are there, the hot pepper and corn casserole (this is pretty close to the Mexican border), the traditional green bean casserole, the candied yams, the mashed potatoes, the good ole' southern cornbread dressing, the giblet gravy, the hot bread rolls, the seven or eight desserts (everyone has to have their favorite, but I settled for the chocolate pie, the pecan pie, and the rhubarb and berries pie). I may actually be forgetting something, but it's hard to remember anything about food right now. In spite of all I had, there was still an all time favorite missing in action. The traditional rachman fruit salad. But I doubt anyone alive can make it now, so I'm really not complaining. The point is that maybe we should stop putting all the blame on the turkey.

~ Happy Thanksgiving

Your Own Selfish Pig

2007-11-15T22:50:00.000-06:00

Doing good is not about being nice. You can do nice things all day long for many people, but it may be nothing more than just another vain attempt at making yourself happy. More food for your own ego.

This world was designed so that people would need each other; a place where people could work together. And not just a place where you can "play nice" with each other. This world is meant to give you the opportunity to escape the confines of your own self. A chance to grow.

When you help those who show gratitude, or you lend a hand to those who are on your side, well then you are still within the realms of your own ego and self. Try instead, to help someone you don't want to help. Those you don't agree with politically or socially or even spiritually. Help them and learn to want to help them simply because they are "fellow travellers" on this planet. Some would say because "this is the right thing to do." But that attitude sometimes just takes us back to feeling good about ourselves. Ego again. Just learn to love someone other than your own selfish pig. It certainly takes time, but at some point you may actually become free of yourself.

~ thoughts on a philosophy.

Trick or Treat?

2007-10-31T16:43:00.000-05:00

Happy Halloween!

The dictionary says that October 31 is celebrated in the U.S. by children going door to door while wearing costumes and begging treats and playing pranks. This is also the time of year that the politicians start getting into their costumes and going door to door begging treats and playing pranks. It can be a scary time of year. It is already in full swing to be truthful, but like the kids who wear their costumes early, no one but their mom is really paying that much attention yet. Hang on. The year ahead could be quite a ride.
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~ rachman
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Does God Speak Today?

2007-10-25T17:38:00.000-05:00

A friend I used to work with, told me this story just the other day. Some people would say that it is nonsense, but I have found that God does some amazing things if we will just learn to listen and let him work. I don't think that anyone who knows me, would call me naive, but I have chosen to believe the things I hear if they glorify good. I have certainly believed enough of the bad things that I hear, so there is always that choice. But it seems only right that I should learn to believe the good things. Listen and see what you think.

A young man had been to Wednesday Night Bible Study. The Pastor had shared about listening to God and obeying the Lord's voice. The young man couldn't help but wonder, 'Does God still speak to people?' After service, he went out with some friends for coffee and they discussed the message. Several different ones talked about how God had led them in different ways. 'Maybe,' he thought.

It was about ten o'clock when the young man started driving home. Sitting in his car, he just began to pray, 'God...If you still speak to people, speak to me. I will listen. I will do my best to obey.' As he drove down the main street of his town, he had the strangest thought to stop and buy a gallon of milk. He shook his head and said out loud, 'God is that you?' He didn't get a reply and started on toward home. But again, the thought, buy a gallon of milk. The young man thought about Samuel and how he didn't recognize the voice of God, and how little Samuel ran to Eli. 'Okay, God, in case that is you, I will buy the milk.' It didn't seem like too hard a test of obedience. He could always use the milk. He stopped and purchased the gallon of milk and started off toward home.

As he passed Seventh Street, he again felt the urge, 'Turn Down that street.' This is crazy he thought, and drove on past the intersection. Again, he felt that he should turn down Seventh Street. At the next intersection, he turned back and headed down Seventh. Half jokingly, he said out loud, 'Okay, God, I will.' He drove several blocks, when suddenly, he felt like he should stop. He pulled over to the curb and looked around. He was in a semi- commercial area of town. It wasn't the best but it wasn't the worst of neighborhoods either. The businesses were closed and most of the houses looked dark like the people were already in bed. Again, he sensed something, 'Go and give the milk to the people in the house across the street.' The young man looked at the house. It was dark and it looked like the people were either gone or they were already asleep. He started to open the door and then sat back in the car seat. 'Lord, this is insane. Those people are asleep and if I wake them up, they are going to be mad and I will look stupid.' Again, he felt like he should go and give the milk. Finally, he opened the door, 'Okay God, if this is you, I will go to the door and I will give them the milk. If you want me to look like a crazy person, okay. I want to be obedient. I guess that will count for something, but if they don't answer right away, I am out of here.'

He walked across the street and rang the bell. He could hear some noise inside. A man's voice yelled out, 'Who is it? What do you want?' Then the door opened before the young man could get away. The man was standing there in his jeans and T-shirt. He looked like he just got out of bed. He had a strange look on his face and he didn't seem too happy to have some stranger standing on his doorstep. 'What is it?' The young man thrust out the gallon of milk, 'Here, I brought this to you.' The man took the milk and rushed down a hallway. Then from down the hall came a woman carrying the milk toward what was probably the kitchen. The man was following her holding a baby. The baby was crying. The man had tears streaming down his face. The man began speaking and half crying, 'We were just praying. We had some big bills this month and we ran out of money. We didn't have any milk for our baby. I was just praying and asking God to show me how to get some milk.' His wife in the kitchen yelled out, 'I ask God to send an Angel with some. Are you an Angel?' The young man reached into his wallet and pulled out all the money he had on him and put it in the man's hand. He turned and walked back toward his car and the tears were streaming down his face.
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He now knew that God still speaks to people.

~ rachman

Clueless about God?

2007-10-20T23:23:00.000-05:00

Most people are pretty clueless when it comes to knowing about God and what He is going to do. Well...He is pretty "far out there" for a lot of folks, so let's try and get a clue. Take a quick look at what the Bible says about God. First John 4:8 and 4:16 both say that, God is love. If that be the case, then first Corinthians 13:4-8 says this about God.

God endures long and is patient and kind [But, I thought He was supposed to be mean and quick tempered? Guess I was wrong.]; God never is envious nor boils over with jealousy [Yeah, I know--the Old Testament says He is a jealous God. He will not put up with other gods among His people, or those folks who have by their own free will, chosen to follow Him. But let's come back down to earth. The Bible also tells us that He gives us a wife or husband for it's not so good for humans to be alone. He knows that we need other people in our lives; He started the whole thing after all. He gives us children. He puts us in a family. He wants us to be a part of the "body of Christ." Part of a community. He is not jealous of all the other relationships with which He has blessed us], He is not boastful or vainglorious, He does not display Himself haughtily. God is not conceited (arrogant and inflated with pride) [Actually it was the devil, then known as Lucifer, in which the pride and arrogance were found]; He is not rude (unmannerly) and does not act unbecomingly [That's kinda' interesting. In this day and age? Most of us don't even understand the concept of acting unbecomingly in front of other people. Yet the God of the Universe will not embarrass us or make us feel bad or uncomfortable]. God does not insist on His own rights or His own way [Now wait a minute! God does insist on His own way--doesn't He? Actually we would not even be discussing this, if He insisted that we do things His way. It's because we have a choice that we are wondering about this whole thing], for He is not self-seeking [Remember that He wants to be our father if we will let Him. He does try to warn us if we are about to touch the hot stove. May be all those "thou shalt not's" were there to help us and not to cause us to miss out on all the fun. He is seeking our good. But perhaps I digress?]; He is not touchy or fretful or resentful; He takes no account of the evil done to Him (He pays no attention to a suffered wrong) [Even the things said about Him don't really put Him off that much. He can handle it a lot better than we do. No matter how many jokes you have told or have even laughed at, He is not waiting to "get you for that," as that silly old joke from television used to go]. God does not rejoice at injustice and unrighteousness, but He rejoices when right and truth prevail [He really does want equality among the races and between the two sexes]. God bears up under anything and everything that comes, He is ever ready to believe the best of every person [He wants you to do well. He wants good in your life. He did not die for you, just so He could see you suffer in other ways], His hopes are fadeless under all circumstances, and He endures everything (without weakening). God never fails (never fades out or becomes obsolete or comes to an end). [Maybe God is not "so bad" after all.]

~ rachman

No Defeat!

2007-10-12T13:36:00.000-05:00

There’s no such thing as defeat. There’s always another chance. To believe in defeat is to believe that there is something, a certain point in time that did not come from Above. Know that God doesn't have failures. If things appear to worsen, it is only as part of them getting better. We only fall down in order to bounce back even higher.
~ Jewish Wisdom from the Web

Now I don't agree with everything that I read from the Jewish sages or even from the Jewish Internet, but I must admit that I like the gist of this short comment. I believe there is a personal enemy and everything that happens is not from God. But as long as there is breath, there is another chance. And God does indeed not have failures. Things do appear worse before getting better, many times because of that enemy. And lastly when we fall, since God has no failures; we can rise higher than before in, with, and through God.

~ rachman

Turtle Philosophy

2007-10-07T21:55:00.000-05:00

We make the mistake in thinking, "to survive life we can't trust anyone." As a result many adopt the "turtle philosophy." They pull in their head and arms and legs for protection and don't come out again. This sometimes happens metaphorically and sometimes it happens almost literally. Either way it is the turtle philosophy that drives us inside. God hates this mentality. Genesis 2:18(NLT) tells us that the Lord God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone.” Yet we live in a shell and conjure up a fake version of ourselves. We don't even know who we are, since we are meant to exist in relationship to other people.

We live in a performance driven society. When we're not hiding "inside," we perform for the people around us. If we think that we may not perform well, we take performance enhancing drugs to ensure that the job is done right. When we leave a party, a meeting, a sporting event, or even the job we work at every day, if we are still free of the enhancing drugs, we often think, "thank god, that is over," because we have had to perform through out the event or all through the day.

Galatians 1:10 (NLT) Obviously, I’m not trying to win the approval of people, but of God. If pleasing people were my goal, I would not be Christ’s servant.

Like the Apostle Paul, we must become free of people in order to be who we really are. We are called to love people and not perform for them. Only when we're free from people will we move from performance to love. In all our relationships there is no performance needed; only love. When we walk in love, we can move forward unprotected. No we can't move blindly along like the turtle moving blindly across the road through traffic, but neither can we keep pulling in our heads whenever we come upon other people. Nor can we start the performance of yet another "road show." We must learn to be who we are for all to see. Who is inside that shell?

~ rachman

Wednesday's Wisdom

2007-10-03T23:00:00.000-05:00

Each night we lie down and before dosing off to sleep, we forgive ourselves for all our trespasses. We decide to love ourselves unconditionally and we wipe the slate clean of any wrongs that we have committed. We can be most magnanimous and loving toward ourselves.

~God doesn't like inconsistencies~

We are commanded to love others the same way that we love ourselves. We are to forgive others the same way that we forgive ourselves. We are to wipe their slate clean of any wrongs they may have done to us, just as we have done for ourselves.

Should we not forgive others so that we will be forgiven ourselves? Yes, it is easier said than done, but then everything is easier "said" than actually doing it.

I can do all things through Christ which strengtheneth me. ~ Philippians 4:13
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~ rachman

There's Still Time To Start The Future

2007-09-23T23:39:00.000-05:00

Today I sat down with C.T. as he ate his lunch. We laughed about how a co-worker referred to me as his "dad," partly because I always seemed to show up with an extra burger or sandwich or whatever, when he didn't have money for lunch. Being the average eighteen year old boy, with too big an appetite and too little money, he always seemed to think that whatever I had an extra of, was just what he had been craving that day for lunch.

I have been asking myself why I wanted to make sure that this overgrown kid, who was sometimes lazy, most of the time, bullheaded, and all the time, way too sure of himself, was getting enough to eat? I surprised myself when I came up with the answer.

I asked C.T. if I could tell him something honestly. He said, "tell me something honestly," as he was getting his "extra long chili cheese coney" ready to wolf down in two, maybe three bites. I said, "C.T., since I've known you, you have made me wish that I really had a son." He turned and gave me that big beautiful, mouth full of braces, smile. I let him get back to his meal and went back to work.

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I didn’t think too much of it as I was not sure if he really caught the significance of what I had said. I’m not completely sure if I caught the significance of what I had said. A little later he came by where I was working and said, " That comment you made; it makes me very happy." "What comment?" I asked, noncommittally, pretending to be very indifferent. He looked at me seriously and said, "about a son." I nodded, as I quickly glanced down and smiled to myself. "You make me very happy," I said, meaning it, but stupidly hoping no one else would overhear.

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After years of going blindly along, living for myself, I've begun to see all that I have missed out on, by not having a family of my own. I’ve never really wanted children, but why am I thinking about the virtues of parenthood now? Oh my god. God! Is that you? What are you up to?
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At the beginning of the year, I said that there would be all kinds of new challenges ahead. But I never thought that starting a family would be one of them. Now slow down, right now! I did not say I was going to start a family, but the fact that I'm thinking about it... Man, you just never know what's going to happen next.

~ rachman

Celebrate Mondays?

2007-09-10T14:35:00.000-05:00

I came upon this piece of wisdom today, and I thought that it was right on spot. So I decided to share and expound on it just bit, as I have a tendency to do from time to time:

People imagine a place of Godliness as a place for seriousness, a solemn place, a place that fills you with trepidation. [A church sanctuary, as an example.] The fact is, where there is God, there
is joy.

That is why our every moment is a moment to celebrate and fill with joy. [Man, I need to remember that; especially on Monday's.] Because at every moment we are fulfilling our mission of bringing Godliness into this world [I think it would be more accurate for me to say that I should be fulfilling my mission.] Not just the obviously joyful matters, such as meditation, study, prayer and good deeds, [Let me be honest and admit that things like study or meditation or good deeds are not the first things that come to my mind when I think of joyful matters.] but also regular, mundane activities and the ways we earn an income and go about life--all are ways by which we know Him and bring Him into our world. [So be it!]

Wow! I love that. I will have to meditate on that some more to make it a part of my life.

~rachman

~wisdom from http://www.chabad.org/

Despair or Purpose?

2007-09-09T16:27:00.000-05:00

Do you ever despair because you have no purpose? It's been said that despair is a cheap excuse for avoiding one’s purpose in life. Well excuse me. This same source then says that a sense of purpose is the best way to avoid despair.

Fine. I'll look for purpose. Let's see...today someone gave me this advice. "What we do today affects tomorrow." That means that what we do today matters. It counts. Great! I was counting on sloughing off the day. Now my whole future rests on what I decide to do with this day. Coprolite! I was planning on taking a nap.

Back to looking for purpose? Well...uh...I know. I really like September. It is the beginning of change this time of year. One season turning into another. The expectation that comes with the new crispness in the air. After a time of rest and rejuvenation through the heat of summer, now it's time for a brand new opportunity ahead. HA! I feel nauseated. Okay, let's be honest. I'm getting a little cynical. I went for the second interview for my "dream job" last week and this week I got the e-mail saying "thanks, but no thanks." I've let myself get a little bummed out. All right, I admit that it might not have been "the" dream job, but I thought of it as the job that occurs during the non-rapid eye movement sleep which usually comes right before the REM sleep of most dreams. Anyway it's time to start over.

There is a place where I can prosper and have a purpose. Finding it is another thing. But then I have found a lost contact in some of the most unexpected places. Usually after a decision that I was not going to quick looking just because it seemed hopeless. I guess I have decided what to do with tomorrow. I will not sleep till noon as originally planned. Quit despairing; back to the pursuit of purpose.

~ rachman

Passion!

2007-08-31T22:47:00.000-05:00

pas·sion (păsh' un) n.

1. A powerful emotion, such as love or joy.

2. a. Ardent love. b. The object of such love or desire.
3. Boundless enthusiasm.

These are just a part of the definition for the word "passion," but they are the parts that I want to think about for just a moment. A mentor of mine was speaking into my life the other day, when he began to tell me about the power source for my life. Or for any person's life for that matter. That power source is your passion. Everyone may have a different passion, but everyone should have one.

Passion produces purpose for your life.

Passion will push you past the problem.

Passion will cause you to expect more, go farther, accomplish greater, and get the best from every day.

Now you will need to watch out for the "passion poisoners." These are the people that will try to undermine your passion. They may not realize what they are doing or they may be quite well aware of what they are doing. It doesn't really matter which one they are, because either one can do damage if you let them.

Keep and guard your heart with all vigilance and above all that you guard, because out of it flow the springs of life (or out of your heart flows your passion). Proverbs 4:23 (paraphrased)

(One word of warning: Guard your heart, but don't fortify it. There are enough walls in the world without building any around the one thing that holds your passions. You want to watch out for those who would poison your passions, but you don't want to keep out the ones who may become your passion.)

As one who has chosen to follow God, and His Son, Jesus, as Lord and Savior, let me say that for me, my passion is becoming, more and more, about knowing and loving God and His people. And speaking of choosing, my mentor mentioned a part about being passionate that I had not expected. He says that passion is not a feeling; it is a choice! What? I thought that passion was something that we just wake up and feel each day. Whether it is passion for a person or for a career or maybe even for God. Not necessarily. We may be passionate about something or someone, but most all of us, if we have lived long enough, have had the experience of waking up one day and not feeling that love or passion anymore. We have to choose that passion again. We have to choose to live with passion each day. Even if we don't think that we have a passion, choose to live with passion. You (and I) will be surprised to discover that we find things that we want to be passionate about. And while we are talking...may I suggest that you choose to find out about the God I know. Just ask Him to become real to you. Let Him show you about a passion you can choose every day for the rest of your life.

~ rachman

Trust is Better Than Hope

2007-08-21T21:16:00.000-05:00

Jewish wisdom says that, "Hope is when there is something to latch on to, some glimmer of a chance. The drowning man, they say, will clutch at any straw to save his life."
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Emily Dickinson said:
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Hope is the thing with feathers
That perches in the soul,
And sings the tune without the words,
And never stops at all,
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And sweetest in the gale is heard;
And sore must be the storm
That could abash the little bird
That kept so many warm.
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I’ve heard it in the chillest land,
And on the strangest sea;
Yet, never, in extremity,
It asked a crumb of me.
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Hope is good, but according to that Jewish wisdom, "trust in God is even when there is nothing in which to hope. The decree is sealed. The sword is drawn over the neck. By all laws of nature there is no way out. But the One who runs the show doesn't need any props."
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~ drawn from Internet wisdom
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Sorrow

2007-08-12T22:40:00.000-05:00

C.S. Lewis wrote in his book, "A Grief Observed" the following paragraph:

I thought I could describe a state; make a map of sorrow. Sorrow, however, turns out to be not a state but a process. It needs not a map but a history, and if I don't stop writing that history at some quite arbitrary point, there's no reason that I should ever stop. There is something new to be chronicled every day. Grief is like a long valley, a winding valley where any bend may reveal a totally new landscape. As I've already noted, not every bend does. Sometimes the surprise is the opposite one; you are presented with exactly the same sort of country you thought you had left behind miles ago. That is when you wonder
whether the valley isn't a circular trench. But it isn't. There are partial recurrences, but the sequence doesn't repeat.

Like all of us do, Mr. Lewis was dealing with grief as best he knew how at the time. But there is one line which I wanted to look at a bit more: "Sorrow, however, turns out to be not a state but a process. It needs not a map but a history, and if I don't stop writing that history at some quite arbitrary point, there's no reason that I should ever stop." I think that's an interesting statement. Grief is an emotion that we have to actively stop at some point or it will continue until it consumes us. I would not try to tell anyone else how long it is right for them to mourn, but if they don't overcome grief and sorrow, at some point it will overcome them. No one would really want to be like the renowned Queen Victoria, who worn black the last 40 years of her life.

~ rachman

A Butterfly at Last!

2007-08-05T22:38:00.000-05:00

I attended a memorial service for the daughter of a dear friend of mine yesterday. It was not as sad as I had expected it to be, as the young woman had died quite suddenly; but rather it was truly a celebration of life. My friend, the mother of Wendy, spoke after the eulogy, and comforted us; though we were there to comfort her. She spoke about the joy her daughter had always brought her. She talked about the love and devotion Wendy had for her two young sons as well as for her husband. She talked about her daughter's love for God and the trust she had in Him. She also told about Wendy's love of butterflies. I want to share the poem which was read during the service in remembrance of a beautiful and joyful young woman:

Transformation by Kristi A. Dyer, MD, MS

For years I remained hidden from view afraid to show myself or my true

colors.

Cloaked.

Concealed

I ENDURED.

Waiting for the spring with the sunlight the signal to emerge.

Slowly.

Cautiously

I began to unfold my wings, finding the courage

discovering my strength.

In awe I marvel at the array.

Deepest sapphire blue.

Renewing amethyst violet.

Tranquil aquamarine.

Iridescent blushing rose.

Sparkling.

Radiant.

I TAKE FLIGHT.

~ In Memoriam, W.K.F.J.

Integrity

2007-08-01T22:51:00.000-05:00

Just a thought for the day:

A good barometer to determine whether something will be of benefit materially, is whether it is the proper thing to do spiritually. A business venture that implies breaking your moral principles will also be detrimental materially. At times, we experience tremendous pressure when our ethics seem to stand in the way of success--but this is only an illusion. The spiritual and the material are in conflict only to our subjective eyes. In fact, they work in harmony as one.

~internet wisdom

Origins

2007-07-21T21:45:00.000-05:00

I read this the other day, and while I doubt that it is really true, I did find it amusing:
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As most of you know, New Orleans residents are challenged often with the task of tracing home titles back potentially hundreds of years. With a community rich with history stretching back over two centuries, houses have been passed along through generations of family, making it quite difficult to establish ownership. Thus a New Orleans attorney, who sought an FHA loan for a client, wrote to the government agency. He was told the loan would be granted, if he could prove satisfactory title to a parcel of property being offered as collateral. The title to the property dated back to 1803, which took the lawyer three months to track down.

After sending the information to the FHA, he received the following reply: "Upon review of your letter adjoining your client's loan application, we note that the request is supported by an Abstract of Title. While we compliment the able manner in which you have prepared and presented the application, we must point out that you have only cleared title to the proposed collateral property back to 1803. Before final approval can be accorded, it will be necessary to clear the title back to its origin."

Annoyed, the lawyer responded as follows: "Your letter regarding title in Case No. 189156 has been received. I note that you wish to have title extended further than the 194 years covered by the present application. I was unaware that any educated person in this country, particularly those working in the property area, would not know that Louisiana was purchased, by the U.S. , from France in 1803, the year of origin identified in our application.

For the edification of uninformed FHA bureaucrats, the title to the land prior to U.S. ownership was obtained from France, which had acquired it by Right of Conquest from Spain. The land came into the possession of Spain by Right of Discovery made in the year 1492 by a sea captain named Christopher Columbus, who had been granted the privilege of seeking a new route to India by the Spanish monarch, Isabella.

The good queen, Isabella, being a pious woman and almost as careful about titles as the FHA, took the precaution of securing the blessing of the Pope before she sold her jewels to finance Columbus’ expedition.

Now the Pope, as I'm sure you may know, is the emissary of Jesus Christ, the Son of God; and God, it is commonly accepted, created this world. Therefore, I believe it is safe to presume that God also made that part of the world called Louisiana. God, therefore, would be the owner of origin and His origins date back, to before the beginning of time, the world as we know it AND the FHA.
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I hope you find God's original claim to be satisfactory. Now, may we have our damn loan?"

The loan was approved.

Monday's Blessing!

2007-07-16T11:41:00.000-05:00

The power of one sentence!

God is going to shift things around for you today and let things work in your favor.

Meditate it--believe it.

Awww--How Sweet

2007-07-15T16:16:00.000-05:00

When I first read this one night, I thought, "Awww, how sweet." I posted it immediately and reread it the next day and thought, "How maudlin." It may all depend on your state of mind when you read it. Judge for your self:

THE POSTAL SERVICE NO ONE HEARS ABOUT

Our 14 year old dog, Abbey, died last month. The day after she died, my 4 year old daughter Meredith was crying and talking about how much she missed Abbey. She asked if we could write a letter to God so that when Abbey got to Heaven, God would recognize her. She dictated and I wrote:

Dear God,

Will you please take special care of our dog, Abbey? She died yesterday and is in heaven. We miss her very much. We are happy that you let us have her as our dog even though she got sick. I hope that you will play with her. She liked to play with balls and swim before she got sick. I am sending some pictures of her so that when you see her in heaven you will know she is our special dog. But I really do miss her.

Love,

Meredith Claire

P.S. Mommy wrote the words after I told them to her.

We put that in an envelope with two pictures of Abbey, and addressed it to God in Heaven. We put our return address on it. Then Meredith stuck some stamps on the front (because, as she said, it may take lots of stamps to get a letter all the way to heaven) and that afternoon I let her drop it into the letter box at the post office.

For a few days, she would ask if God had gotten the letter yet. I told her that I thought He had. Yesterday there was a package wrapped in gold paper on our front porch. Curious, I went to look at it. It had a gold star card on the front that said "To Meredith" in an unfamiliar hand. Meredith took it in and opened it. Inside was a book by Mr. Rogers, "When a Pet Dies". Taped to the inside front cover was the letter we had written to God, in its opened envelope (which was marked Return to Sender: Insufficient address). On the opposite page, one of the pictures of Abbey was taped under the words "For Meredith" we turned to the back cover, and there was the other picture of Abbey, and this handwritten note on pink paper:

Dear Meredith,

I know that you will be happy to know that Abbey arrived safely and soundly in Heaven! Having the pictures you sent to me was such a big help. I recognized Abbey right away. You know, Meredith, she isn't sick anymore. Her spirit is here with me--just like she stays in your heart--young and running and playing. Abbey loved being your dog, you know.

Since we don't need our bodies in heaven, I don't have any pockets! So I can't keep your beautiful letter. I am sending it to you with the pictures so that you will have this book to keep and remember Abbey. One of my angels is taking care of this for me. I hope the little book helps. Thank you for the beautiful letter. Thank your mother for sending it. What a wonderful mother you have! I picked her especially for you. I send my blessings every day and remember that I love you very much.

By the way, I am in heaven but wherever there is love, I am there also.

Love,

God

& the special angel who wrote this after God told her the words.

If Cell Phones Were Bibles...

2007-07-14T23:24:00.000-05:00

A friend of mine, a lady of intelligence and spiritual discernment, shared this with me today, and I thought that I would share it with the rest of you.

She was wondering what would happen if we treated our Bible like we treat our cell phone?

"Huh?" I thought. "You mean like dropping it on hard floors or forgetting where we set it down the last time?"
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Well no, but what if we carried our Bible, like our cell phone, around in our purses or pockets?
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What if we flipped through it several times a day? Or several times an hour?
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What if we turned back to go get it when we go off with out it?
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What if we used it to receive messages from the text?
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What if we treated it like we couldn't live without it?
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What if we gave it to kids as gifts?
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What if we used it when we traveled?
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What if we used it in case of emergency?

What if we considered it the most important thing we carried?

"Hmmm? This is something to make you go...uh....where is my Bible?"
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Oh, and one more thing. Unlike our cell phone, we don't have to worry about our Bible being disconnected because Jesus already paid the bill.
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"Wow--you're right. I never thought of that."

Makes you stop and think "where are my priorities?"
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"And no dropped calls!"

~ rachman

Old Geezers?

2007-07-07T22:46:00.000-05:00

This is one of those things I got in the email, and since it was right after the fourth, I decided to pass it along. My apologies if you have already read it.

"Old Geezers" - slang for elderly men - are easy to spot.

At sporting events, during the playing of the National Anthem, they hold their caps over their hearts and sing without embarrassment. They know the words and believe in them.

They remember World War I, the Depression, the Second World War, Pearl Harbor, Guadalcanal, Normandy, and Hitler. They remember the Atomic Age, the Korean War, The Cold War, The Jet age, and the Moon Landing, not to mention Vietnam.

If you bump into an Old Geezer on the sidewalk, he'll apologize; pass an Old Geezer on the street, he'll nod or tip his cap to a lady.

Old Geezers trust strangers and are courtly to women. They hold the door open for the next person and always, when walking, make sure the lady is on the inside for protection.

Old Geezers are embarrassed if someone curses in front of women and children, and they don't like violence and filth on TV and in the movies.

Old Geezers have moral courage. Old Geezers seldom brag unless it's about their grandchildren in Little League or music recitals.

It's the Old Geezers who know our great country is protected, not just by politicians or police, but mainly by the young men and women in the military serving their country in foreign lands; just as they did, without a thought, except to do a good job, the best you can, and to get back home to their loved ones.

This country needs Old Geezers with their decent values and commonsense. We need them now more than ever!

Thank God for Old Geezers.

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~happy 07-07-07

Happy Fourth of July, America

2007-07-04T01:25:00.000-05:00

freefoto.com

Believe

2007-06-30T22:22:00.000-05:00

I sometimes get mental assent or mental agreement confused with true belief. Then just today I was reading a little book which helped me realize what true belief is. The word "belief" is made up of two old Anglo-Saxon words: "be," which simply means to live or exist; and "lifan," which conveys the thought of agreement or accordance. To believe literally means "to live in agreement with" anything. In other words belief is not merely accepting something mentally, but rather belief leads us into action. Yes, I mentally accept the fact that God exists, and even that Jesus was raised from the dead, but I also live in agreement with the stated fact that, "Jesus died for me! Jesus rose victorious over death, hell, and the grave--and He did that for me! Jesus conquered Satan for me! Therefore I am free and will live forever with the Lord of lords."
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When the resurrection of Jesus becomes more than a doctrine, creed, or theory to you--when you live in agreement with what Jesus did for you--when it has become a reality to you, then you too will live.
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~ rachman
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Happy Birthday!

2007-06-29T00:31:00.000-05:00

Why do you celebrate your birthday? In your mother’s womb, you were comfortable, warm and cared for. Then, you left. It was an ordeal, a trauma. The world you entered was cold and harsh. The mere act of living became a struggle. You cried. Yet, every year you celebrate that day. Because the day you were born was the day you became your own entity. No longer an extension of someone else. A proactive force in the world. So, celebrate your birthday. And take time to think: What have I given the world that was not given to me?
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Happy Birthday, little blog!
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~ rachman
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Tag! You're It!

2007-06-28T00:43:00.000-05:00

I've been tagged again, and since it has been awhile, I guess I'll play along. Sometimes I don't think I have the time for these things, but then "hey," I can get too serious really fast. So it's probably time for a little digression.
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This is the one where I come up with "8 fascinating, compelling, startling, or secrets things" about myself and then choose to post them on my very own blog for all the world to see. (Do people think that if I have kept these things secret for years, that since they asked me nicely, I will suddenly blab them all over the Internet. Come on!) Okay, since it is no one's business who or what is stuffed in the crawlspace under the flooring of the house, that leaves me with "fascinating, compelling, or startling." (Well, that should be easy. Yeah, right! If I were fascinating, I wouldn't be here at the computer tonight, now would I?) Okay then, how about compelling or startling? Well I guess that could equate with mildly interesting, so I suppose I could come up with something that is a little like self disclosure:

I once gave mouth to mouth resuscitation to a friend who had collapsed while exercising, but the fellow still died.
I lived a double life for about eight years (when I decided to follow God and live just one).
I dealt with depression for several years until one night I finally asked God to take my life, because I couldn't comprehend the thought of having to get up the next day and start all over again. (God chose not to take my life, but He did deliver me from depression some time later. It is up to me to maintain that state of deliverance.)
I was once considering suicide, but God delivered me from that deception as well.
I drove a truck across America during a six-week long business trip. (Well, maybe it was just half way across, but I did have to meander my way there and then back again. And no, it was not an 18-wheeler; more like an 18-foot bobtail, as we used to call it. But as a 22-year old flat-lander, I still got a little freaked out going down some of those mountain curves somewhere near Chattanooga.)
I was the sole caregiver for a family member with Alzheimer's disease.
I love having both dogs and cats as pets, but my last pet was a cat. (Uhmmm? That may not be compelling or startling, but it will have to do.)
It once took me, and a few others, about 15 hours to take a one-hour flight from Dallas to Little Rock. (It was less extreme than an episode of "Lost," but still a little reminiscent of "Planes, Trains, and Automobiles."

This has taken me all most a week to come up with eight things I didn't mind sharing, but I figured they should be something I hadn't already talked about. It has been interesting for me to come up with this stuff, and get rid of the rest that should stay under the floor boards. Now I have to find and tag eight other bloggers. Equally as hard. Floyd at Clay Feet tagged me, and as he commented, some of these folks may never see this blog, but then that is their business and not mine. Now it's your turn GhostRose, Captain Craft, Rob(mmmm), Leo, Rhys, French Trader, Be Your Best, Yak Attack.

~rachman

Say You're an Astronaut

2007-06-26T15:52:00.000-05:00

You are an astronaut, far beyond the earth on a very long journey. Let’s say you get fed up with the constant barrage of instructions coming in on your radio from home base. So you shut it off. With no regrets. And you relax, enjoying the awesome scenery out the window. And time flies by.
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But eventually, you realize you have no clue where you are. Or how to get back to where you want to be. And you remember that you had a mission, but you can’t quite get straight exactly what it was. You panic.
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Finally, you remember the radio. You reactivate it. You hold the hand piece and call, “Home base? Astronaut calling home base! Answer me!!” A faint reply is heard. It is the sweetest sound you’ve ever come by. Now you can get back on course.
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Mankind, too, was given a mission. [Isn't it time you got back on course.]
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~ that wisdom from the web
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Happiness, a Mirage?

2007-06-19T19:44:00.000-05:00

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.

These words from the U.S. Declaration of Independence are indeed noble words and words that I hold in great esteem. However this statement doesn't give us a clue as to how we are to achieve happiness. It merely says that we have a right to go for it! Most people do chase after happiness, by all kinds of methods. Some attempt to find the right career or the perfect mate. Others pursue money or power or fame--or all three. Some have a great passion which calls to them: "come create," "come discover," "come explore!" Most all of us have probably thought that there is something tangible out there which will make us happy.

The reality is that as soon as we get our career or our mate, we realize that they do not fulfill us, and that we must look for another one. We may acquire the money, power, and fame only to decide that they are hollow and without meaning. If we follow our great passions, we discover that they merely consume us, but never satisfy us. As soon as we reach the happiness we have pursued, then like a mirage, it disappears and is seen farther down the road ahead of us.

Most of us have experienced the "perfect moment," when everything seems to be going our way. This is the day when the kids are both healthy and content. The job is going along smoothly and the boss thinks you're great. There's money in the bank and the bills are paid. That perfect mate has prepared your favorite meal, sent the kids to the neighbors, and now wants to make your evening a night to remember. But have you ever in your life, had two such days in succession. People and circumstances never line up this way again. If the perfect moment of happiness is your goal, you will be perpetually frustrated. Happiness cannot be the goal.

Matthew 6:33 (Amplified)~ But seek (aim at and strive after) first of all His kingdom and His righteousness (His way of doing and being right), and then all these things taken together will be given you besides.
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When we seek God first, then happiness is no longer our goal--God becomes our goal. It's when you put God first in your life that the need for happiness will be met. You see you cannot go to happiness--happiness must come to you. "Seek God first, and happiness will be given to you as well."

~ rachman

Peek-A-Boo

2007-06-10T21:52:00.000-05:00

Everywhere in the world, parents play peek-a-boo with their children. It is a major discovery of life, a cornerstone in human development: To realize that something is there even when you cannot see it, that the world is not defined by your subjective perception, that there is something that absolutely is--whether you know of it or not. All our life, all of the world, is God playing with us that same game. He peeks with a miracle and then hides behind nature. Eventually, we look behind nature to find Him there.
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~ wisdom from the web

Just a reminder, to some of my friends, that while you may not see God, or even believe in Him, He is still there waiting for you to find Him.

~ rachman

Top Five People Needs

2007-06-06T22:26:00.000-05:00

I said that I would list the next five relational needs of the top ten a few days ago. If you missed the first five, just look below and read up from there. I'm not sure that every one of these is in the exact order of importance, but I do think that they all hold great importance in creating, developing, and maintaining great and lasting relationships. All kinds of relationships. Co-workers. Neighbors. Lovers. Business partners. Family members. The only "need" that I can imagine anyone taking exception over, would be from the first list. Namely, affection. Even affection, if used along with respect for the other person, may mean nothing more than a warm handshake and a kind word. So all these needs have to be applied while remembering the great command: love God and love people. Let's take a look at the top five people needs.
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5) We all have the need for appreciation. 1 Cor. 11:2 (Amp.) ~ I appreciate and commend you because you always remember me in everything... ~ This comment is from the great apostle of the Christian church, St. Paul. Even he has needs and he gratefully acknowledges those who remember him. In this age of entitlement, few people remember to say "thanks." As a result many feel unappreciated and in fact most probably are unappreciated. We will never know how far a little appreciation will go, until we sow a little of it into other people's lives.
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4) We all have the need for acceptance. Romans 15:7 ~ Therefore, accept each other just as Christ has accepted you so that God will be given glory. ~ Everyone has experienced rejection at one time and more likely many different times. That is what growing up and dealing with peer pressure is all about. Whether you're 14 or 40, everyone wants to be accepted. To be given acceptance without feeling that we have to fit into another person's mold--that is a gift.
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3) We all have the need for attention. 1 Cor. 12:25 (Amp.) ~ So that there should be no division or discord...but the members all alike should have a mutual interest in [read: all should pay attention to] and care for one another. ~ Anyone who is around children knows that they want attention. As we age the desire may be covered up, but it never goes away. If you ever visit a nursing home for the elderly, you will soon know how true that is. I'm the first to admit that life is busy, but if we don't have time for people, we don't have time for life. Spend time with people and listen to them. Listen not to reply; listen to understand.
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2) We all have the need for comfort. Matthew 5:4 ~ God blesses those who mourn, for they will be comforted. ~ We will all need comfort sooner or later. It may be after the death of a loved one or after the death of a dream. There are different levels to be sure, but comfort, like support, can only be given if you are there to give it. Don't be afraid to go and offer it. No, they may not always be ready to receive it, but most of the time, they will. Yes, showing love can be scary, but withholding it can be even scarier.
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1) We all have the need for security. 1 John 4:18 (Message) ~ There is no room in love for fear. Well-formed love banishes fear. Since fear is crippling, a fearful life—fear of death, fear of judgment—is one not yet fully formed in love. ~ To give people security, you will have to give them love. If children feel loved, they feel secure and safe. It doesn't matter if their college fund is growing or not. If friends, lovers, business partners, or neighbors are all given security, or a feeling of safety around you, because they know you won't turn on them, betray them, cheat them, or steal from them, then they will feel loved and respected even if other things are not perfect.
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To a degree we are all called to meet the emotional needs of others. Not everyone to be sure, but the ones we come across in our daily lives, yes. Remember the great command? Love God; love others. When we give appreciation, acceptance, attention, comfort, and security to others, we are loving them. As I mentioned before, meet these needs in the lives of others, and they will begin to be met in your own life as well.
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~ rachman
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Top Ten People Needs

2007-06-01T16:21:00.000-05:00

Our spiritual life is a reflection of our relationships. We can't separate the two. God created us to spend time with others. We are not made to be a recluse. "People who need people," as Miss Streisand sang it, "are the luckiest people in the world." Some very religious people think that they only need God, but God intended something much better. Yes, we are to be part of something bigger than ourselves, but also a part of something very physical down here on earth. Since we chose to not stay with Him in Paradise, He chose to come down to earth, in the form of a man, and stay with us. He knows first hand what human flesh needs, because God, the Son, now lives in flesh. You think maybe God can tell us what we need in our relationships? Take a look at the top ten:

10) We all have the need for approval. Matthew 3:17 ~ And a voice from heaven said, “This is my dearly loved Son, who brings me great joy.” ~ If all fathers gave their sons (and daughters) that blessing, we would have fewer problems in the world today. However since we can't change the past, start planting this "seed" into the future of others. Instead of going around seeking approval, sow approval into the lives of others. It will come back home to you as well. Ecclesiastes 11:1 ~ Cast your bread upon the waters, for after many days you will find it again.

9) We all have the need for respect. 1 Peter 2:17 ~ Respect everyone, and love your Christian brothers and sisters. Fear God, and respect the king. ~ One of the best ways to show respect to others is to eliminate all prejudice. Who am I to judge you anyway? Once I quit judging you, it's easy to respect you.

8) We all have the need for affection. Romans 16:16 ~ Greet each other in Christian love. (With a holy kiss.) All the churches of Christ send you their greetings. ~ Everyone has a different comfort level for this sort of thing, so respect for other's feelings comes into play with this one. All the relational needs seem to work together quite well. There was a time when I wanted to hug my own father, but didn't. Pride? Fear? Uncertainty? All these things were involved, but now that it is too late, I know that it was all foolishness. Take me as an example and don't be a fool any longer.

7) We all have the need for encouragement. First Thessalonians 5:11 ~ So encourage each other and build each other up, just as you are already doing. ~ Unfortunately in the world in which we live, we're not already doing this. All the same, Jesus, in his time, went around giving people what they needed: healing, deliverance, love, forgiveness, answers, instruction. All these things encourage and build up. We may not think we can do as much, but we could surely do more than we have been. And to paraphrase Jesus, he said we would do greater works than he had done. Whoa! Let's just start out by encouraging.

6) We all have the need for support. Galatians 6:2 ~ Stoop down and reach out to those who are oppressed. Share their burdens, and so complete Christ's law. ~ Wow! How many of us would not have liked to have had someone do that at one time or another for us. Well it's time that we did it for someone else, and after many days we will find it happening to us as well.

As this is going a bit longer than I planned, numbers, five through one, will come in a few days. Until then sow some approval, respect, affection, encouragement, and support into the hungry soil of people's lives. Then just wait a little while and see what comes up.

~ rachman

Keep the Light Burning!

2007-05-17T14:40:00.000-05:00

Back in the middle of the last century, on the New England coast, there was a lighthouse keeper who was known for his kind nature and good heart. Local fishermen and the like who got into trouble and ran out of fuel along the coast, knew that they could go to the lighthouse keeper and he would give them the extra fuel they needed for whatever they could pay or even if they couldn't pay. The keeper of the lighthouse hated to turn anyone away, and as the current high fuel prices were unheard of then, he was able to show his love for any man who was in trouble. This was a time and place many people cannot imagine and few really remember.
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A time came when a great storm blew over the lighthouse and its surrounding coast. The keeper's light was needed to keep the ships safe which were passing by to reach the harbor. But the power to the lighthouse failed and the light went out. The keeper ran down to the base of the tower to start the emergency generator, which started up without a hitch and ran for hours, keeping everything safe. But long before dawn arrived or the storm abated, the generator, which ran on gasoline, ran dry and stopped. A great ship was unable to reach safe harbor and there was a terrible loss of life.
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There was a hearing and a county magistrate ruled that the lighthouse keeper was responsible. There was a great outcry from all who knew the keeper. Everyone agreed that he was a good man who was kind to everyone he met. The magistrate listened to the testimonies, but ruled against the keeper of the lighthouse, not because he wasn't a good man, but because he neglected his number one responsibility. He forgot the most important thing in his life--his primary purpose was to keep the light burning.
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What is the number one responsibility in your life? We all have to ask that question of ourselves from time to time. For some it might be, "am I being the husband that I should be?" Or, "am I being the father my children need?" What about the "employee my boss wants?" This might seem a little petty to some, but it all depends on where you are. I have to go back one more step in the responsibility chain and ask you, "what is your relationship with God?" If you are a Christian, when was the last time you asked, "God, what do you want me to do with my life? Am I keeping the light burning?" If you are not a Christian, when was the last time you asked, "God, what do you want me to do with my life? And what can you do with my life?" Our relationship with God is ultimately our number one responsibility. Everything stems from that relationship. He is the light. Keep the light burning.
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If you don't have a relationship with God, let me introduce you to the God who is alive. A God with whom you can work out your own salvation. You don't have to line up with my preconceived ideas. You work it out with God. He will listen to you, and care for you, and love you. If there are problems, He will work with you to solve them. He can handle it. There is no substitute for a first hand relationship--a first hand faith. You must know Jesus Christ as your personal savior to have that relationship. You see God took responsibility and made a way for you to come to him without a lot of ritual. Ask God, "what do you want me to do with my life?" The number one thing is to get to know Him in a personal way. You've always wanted someone to really know you. Here is your chance. The most exiting person in the universe wants to really know you. It doesn't matter how good and kind you are or how grossly wicked you think you are. With God's grace, you can begin to really live.
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For those who are too shy to start a conversation with God, let me start you out. Say these words out loud: Dear God, there are things that I don't understand. I have questions about life and about death. I have questions about how to live my life. But you have answers, so I come to you in the name of Jesus. Your word tells me that whoever comes to you, you will never reject. Thank you for not rejecting me.
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Your word also says that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved. And if I confess with my mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in my heart that God raised him from the dead, I will be saved. You said my salvation would be the result of Your Holy Spirit giving me new birth by coming to live in me.
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Okay, God, I take You at Your word. I confess that Jesus is Lord. The Lord of my life. And I believe in my heart that You raised Him from the dead. Thank you for coming into my heart to live in me. You are the light within me. And I am saved. Thank you, my Lord.
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.If you have questions or comments, email me.

Exposing the Light!

2007-05-08T22:01:00.000-05:00

All the world's problems stem from light being withheld. Our job then, is to correct this. Wherever we find light, we must rip away its casings, exposing it to all, letting it shine forth to the darkest ends of the earth. Especially the light you yourself hold.

~ wisdom from the web

Inner Peace?

2007-04-27T00:37:00.000-05:00

I received this message from a friend and I'm sure it's a joke, but you can't help but wonder:

"Rachman, I am passing this on to you because it definitely works, and we could all use a little more calmness in our lives.

"By following the simple advice I heard on the Dr. Phil show, you or anyone you know can find inner peace. Dr. Phil proclaimed, 'The way to achieve inner peace is to finish all the things you have started and have never finished.' So, last night I looked around my house to find all the things I had started and hadn't finished. Then before leaving the house this morning, I finished off a bottle of Merlot, a bottle of Jack Daniels , a bottle of Bailey's Irish Cream, a bottle of Kahlua, a package of Oreo's, the remainder of my old Prozac prescription, the rest of the cheesecake, some Doritos, the last of the pizza and a box of chocolates.

"You have no idea how fabulous I feel. Please pass this on to all those whom you think might be in need of inner peace."

I guess you could give it a try. What have you got to lose. But I might have some better suggestions.

~ rachman

Heaven On Earth

2007-04-22T22:42:00.000-05:00

When it all began, Heaven was here on Earth. The physical plane, more than any of the higher spiritual worlds, was the place where the Divine Presence yearned to be. But Man, step by step, banished the Divine Presence from its home , with a tree of knowledge, with a man who murdered his brother, with all those things that human beings do. Since Man chased it away, only Man can bring it back. And this began with Abraham, who proclaimed Oneness for all the world. And it ends with us. Our generation will bring Heaven back down to Earth.
~ a bit of Jewish wisdom

While there is wisdom in the lines above, I disagree with some important points. This world was created to be a place like heaven to be sure. Human kind did indeed banish God from His home away from home. However it was not step by step, but rather by one giant act of treason. When man did those things which human beings do, he made the enemy his new god, and a cruel god he is. When people wonder why God lets evil have its way with us, it is because the god of this world is not the God of love.

Now it is true that the long road back to the God of love, the God of the Universe, the Divine Presence, was begun by way of Abraham, however the journey could not be undertaken by man himself. (When one switches gods, to a cruel god, you don't switch back if you decide you don't like it.) Rather it was the Divine Presence who did the traveling if you will. This God of love did work His way through Abraham, the father of our faith, and then through the Jewish nation, who gave us the very words of God. And Jesus, the God-man, was the "Word of God," Himself (Revelation 19:13). You see the stumbling block to the faith of some is the cornerstone of mine. This Jesus provides the way back to the Divine Presence, our creator God, who continues to give us choices, even when our choices may not be for the best. But the fellow above is right that it all ends or comes down to us.

Our generation will bring Heaven back down to Earth. Through Jesus, the Word of God, Himself, each generation, and more specifically, our generation, can have Heaven on Earth today.
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~ rachman
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Men, She Said

2007-04-15T22:08:00.000-05:00

A woman I used to work with sent me an email with the following list. I'm pretty sure it was because she thinks I have a good sense humor. I usually do so I will share it with you, in case you miss it as it makes its rounds.

1) Men, she said, are like laxatives because they irritate the crap out of you.

2) Men, she said, are like bananas because the older they get, the less firm they are.

3) Men, she said, are like the weather because nothing can be done to change them.

4) Men, she said, are like blenders because you think you need one, but you're not quite sure why.

5) Men, she said, are like chocolate bars because they can be sweet and smooth, but they usually head right for your hips.

6) Men, she said, are like commercials because you can't believe a word they say.

7) Men, she said, are like department stores because their clothes are always ½ off.

8) Men, she said, are like government bonds because they take soooooooo long to mature.

9) Men, she said, are like mascara because they usually run at the first sign of emotion.

10) Men, she said, are like popcorn because they satisfy you, but only for a little while.

11) Men, she said, are like lava lamps because they are fun to look at, but they are not very bright.

12) Men, she said, are like parking spots because all the good ones are taken, and the rest are handicapped.

~ I saw a list for women, and if I can find it I'll post it later--and send it to my former co-worker of course.

He is Risen!

2007-04-08T00:03:00.000-05:00

Then the angel spoke to the women. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I know you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He isn’t here! He is risen from the dead, just as he said would happen. Come, see where his body was lying. And now, go quickly and tell his disciples that he has risen from the dead, and he is going ahead of you to Galilee. You will see him there. Remember what I have told you.”

I wish you all a joyous Resurrection Sunday.

~ Matthew 28:5-7

~photo by Ian Britton

Where Have You Been All My Life?

2007-04-02T22:49:00.000-05:00

from Longfellow’s "Endymion"

"…O drooping souls, whose destinies
Are fraught with fear and pain,
Ye shall be loved again!
No one is so accursed by fate,
No one so utterly desolate,
But some heart, though unknown,
Responds unto his own.
Responds, as if with unseen wings,
An angel touched its quivering strings;
And whispers, in its song,
‘Where hast thou stayed so long?’…"

A reminder, gentle reader, that there is someone for everyone! Someone who comes along and says "Where have you been all my life?" To spring, to new beginnings, to life!
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~ rachman
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Spring at Last!

2007-03-29T22:04:00.000-05:00

Spring is an exciting time. Many things are happening, or are about to happen. Of course it can also be a little too exciting in this part of the country, as the often colliding forces of nature have produced frightening thunderstorms, baseball-sized hailstones, wind storms, and tornadoes. This year has been no different only earlier. Aah, spring when a young man's fancy...

"In the spring a young man’s fancy lightly turns to thoughts of love." Spring is the season for love and this line is from the poem, “Locksley Hall,” by Alfred, Lord Tennyson. I wish I were in love again this spring, but then I say that every spring. I suppose that spring, at least for me, brings back renewed longings. Renewed feelings. Thoughts of...oh my god! April 15th, tax day, is just a few days away.

I always do my taxes early. (The afternoon of April 15th at the latest.) But to be honest, I think I like the deadline. I used to enjoy seeing all my "last-minute" friends in line at the post office on the 15th, as we made sure that our paper work, even if it was just an extension, was postmarked on that infamous date. (We didn't want Uncle Sam to get our money any sooner than necessary either.) Now that so many do their taxes online, the "holiday" seems to have lost its festive quality. No matter. Traditions must be upheld. I still have seventeen days left. Plenty of time! Aah spring! I may find love yet, or at least brush up on my poetry. Oh yeah, and find my rain coat while I check out the threatening afternoon skies.

~ rachman

The Cosmic Mind

2007-03-25T00:01:00.000-05:00

The challenge is to keep the Cosmic Mind engaged. He needs to see things that interest Him happening down here. Just an everyday world going about its everyday stuff gets dull after a while. On the other hand, angels singing His praises all day can also get rather tedious. But an earthly being doing a Godly act -- now that's something to wake up about.
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~ wisdom from the web
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Forget Garbo. No One Wants to be Alone!

2007-03-19T20:03:00.000-05:00

You are a member of God's very own family and you belong in God's household with every other Christian. ~ Ephesians 2:19

If you have made Jesus your Lord, then this verse applies to you. You are part of the "church," and the church is one of God's greatest ideas. When the New Testament refers to the church, it sometimes means the "universal church," but it is usually speaking foremost to a local body of believers. The church is a family and God expects you to be a member of the family. Every believer needs a church family, and in fact, a Christian without a church family, is an orphan alone in the world without help or support in the time of need.

Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. ~ Romans 12:4-5 (NIV)

I became a Christian by committing my life to Christ. I became a member of a church family by committing myself to other Christians. Membership is a commitment to other people, and in the truest sense I belong to them and they belong to me. The word "belong" means "to be appropriate, or suitable. To be in an appropriate situation or environment. And to be a member or a part of something else." For me not to be a member of a local body of believers would mean that I am not living appropriately. That I am not in an environment which is suitable to my needs. And that I am not a part of something or anything greater than myself. I would become very self-centered. This would be an emotionally unhealthy time as well as a lonely time.
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It would also be an unproductive time. Commitment is a spiritual force that enables you to produce more. It is a fact that married men earn more than single men. It is not just that married men need to produce more, but it is the synergistic effect from two people joining together that produces more. So it is with a commitment within the body of Christ. Commitment is a spiritual force that enables your faith to produce more.

Finally, all of you should be of one mind. Sympathize with each other. Love each other as brothers and sisters. Be tenderhearted, and keep a humble attitude. ~ 1 Peter 3:8 (NLT)

You become what you're committed to. You become one mind. If you have been led by God to the body where you belong, then put down roots and stay there. Sympathize with each other. Learn to love each other. You will become more than you would have ever done on your own.
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The way that you stay committed to each other, that you learn to love each other, and to sympathize with each other is two fold: keep a tender heart toward your family and keep a humble attitude toward yourself. Neither you nor your family will be perfect, but you will be "one big happy family."
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~ a strategy session with my mentor
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Darkness & Freedom

2007-03-17T01:06:00.000-05:00

Free choice lies at God's essence, for He alone is a truly free agent. From His essence, He breathes into Man's nostrils and Man too becomes free to choose his destiny. And in that choice lies the Essence. The darkness, the confusion, the possibility of evil then has a purpose of its own--and that is to be the stage to Man's free choice, to allow God's essence to enter. And if a person would choose evil? Would God's essence then be revealed? No. For in evil alone there is no light, and without light nothing is revealed. Only when the choice is to do good, then light comes and reveals the essential truth of the darkness.

~ ancient wisdom

Fruit of Your Mouth

2007-03-10T16:49:00.000-06:00

A man's belly shall be satisfied with the fruit of his mouth; and with the increase of his lips shall he be filled. ~ Proverbs 18:20

For assuredly, I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be removed and be cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that those things he says will be done, he will have whatever he says. ~ Matthew 11:23

You don't get saved, healed, delivered, or get answers to prayer simply because you believe. Most people think this is the case, but it is not what the Bible teaches. Jesus doesn't end Mark 11:23 by saying that you can have whatever you believe. He ends that verse by saying that the man "will have whatever he says."

For the literary types in the crowd, W. Somerset Maugham made the same mistake in his novel, Of Human Bondage. The lead character from the book, Philip Carey, a young boy with a club foot, prays after reading this verse from Mark, eleven, that he would be healed of the ailment. When he is not healed by a certain date, he loses his faith. It would be hard to have more faith than a child, but his understanding of scripture was limited, as was Mr. Maugham's.

Faith is always expressed in words. The words that you speak--not just on Sunday or in prayer, but the words you speak everyday at home and on the job--determine what you have in life.

Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit. ~ Proverbs 18:21

So if you are having some problems that you can't seem to "get a handle" on, perhaps you should take a look at the words that have been coming out of your mouth lately. Words can bless or words can curse. If we are not careful we can curse ourselves as well as those around us. Look at your words. See if you can turn things around.

Whoever guards his mouth and tongue keeps his soul from troubles. ~ Proverbs 21:23

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~ rachman
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Potential vs. Fear

2007-03-07T00:40:00.000-06:00

Just as the olive yields light only when it is pounded, so are man's greatest potentials realized only under the pressure of adversity. ~ The Talmud

This picture of three Jewish students in one of the ghettos of Eastern Europe, was taken by Roman Vishniac, just prior to the Holocaust, around 1938. Their potential would never be realized because they lived, not just under adversity, but under a regime of fear. Nothing stops potential faster than fear, whether it is the potential of the oppressed or of the oppressor.

~ rachman

Stirred; Not Shaken

2007-03-04T23:37:00.000-06:00

Came across this the other day and thought that it was "way cool!" Well, anyway, I thought that it was extremely accurate. All right, put it this way: as far as the beauty part goes...let's just say that it's a rugged beauty. In any case it made me want to check and see if I had any vermouth.

How to make a rachman

Ingredients:

3 parts friendliness

3 parts courage

3 parts beauty

Method:
Stir together in a glass tumbler with a salted rim. Add a little curiosity if desired!

Personality cocktail
From Go-Quiz.com

Words, Words, Words

2007-03-04T01:25:00.000-06:00

I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned."
Matthew 12:36-37

Words are a lot more important than most people realize. Words can make us or break us. A man named Job, once said to his "friends," How long will you torture me? How long will you try to crush (or break) me with your words? ~Job 19:2 (NLT) Everyone has heard the old line that goes, "sticks and stones may break my bones, but names will never hurt me." We use this logic to soothe the hurt feelings of little children, but the reality is that words can and do break us.

The importance we give to the individual speaking determines the credence we give to their words. Children often are the product of their parents' words. Young people can be the product of their friends' words, if there is no other voice speaking into their lives. As adults today we are the product of the words we spoke yesterday. If we don't like our life today, we need to change the words we are speaking for a better life tomorrow.

Words make us or break us. Words strengthen us or weaken us. According to the wisdom of the Bible, words can destroy us, or words can cause us to be full of life, happiness, and health. In Mark 11:23, Jesus said that "we will have whatever we say." This phrase could be spoken like this: We will have the WORDS that we speak. What words have you been speaking of late? When you have that inner dialogue running in your head, what words are spoken? When you speak out loud about yourself, is it just the old garbage others have told you in the past or is it something new.

If we want something new to say, we must make Jesus the Lord of our lives, and let His words become more important than those old words spoken by parents or friends, or even the current words coming from a spouse or from our own heads every minute of the day. Jesus said, "I came that [you] may have and enjoy life, and have it in abundance (to the full, till it overflows). (John 10:10) That's pretty powerful. Instead of making up "confessions" or "affirmations" that we might be able to believe or we might not, let's take a look at what God has said about us. God said "my purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life." (John 10:10) Some folks are afraid of what God may want for us, but if words mean anything, and they do, then we know what God wants for us. We must meditate on those words and then speak them out of our mouths. We will have the words that we speak.

~ rachman

The Clothes We Wear

2007-02-28T23:25:00.000-06:00

We dress ourselves in the words we speak, in the things we do. But one suit we wear has a life of its own. It is sewn together not of fabric, but of words and images and sounds. Nobody else can see them, no one else knows for sure what they are up to; but you hear them day and night, chattering, buzzing, playing their games in the courtyard of your mind. Leave your thoughts to play on their own and they will take you for a ride to places you never wanted to see. Grab the reins, master them, direct them, flex your mind and they will follow. Provide them a script and they will play along. But do something, because, after all, you are dressed up within them.

~ dancer from Peru

~ wisdom from the web: http://www.chabad.org

The Bible: Getting to Know You!

2007-02-26T00:34:00.000-06:00

How do friendships get started? Usually with a little bit of small talk. From there, over time, the conversations can get a bit deeper. Some get too deep too fast. Others may never get deep at all and there are some folks who really prefer it that way. Everyone should rightfully be allowed to be different, but everyone has to communicate at some level in order to know others and then by them be known.

I was talking to a fellow the other day who was quite a "name-dropper." I heard how well he knew his neighbors, Julia Roberts and Donald Rumsfeld for example. It was true, I'm sure, or else he could have come up with bigger and better names than that. Now that I think about it, an old friend of mine used to talk all the time about the people with whom he had dined, drunk, and slept. The list was pretty impressive as I recall. He was even in line to the throne of England, or so he said, but he admitted that about 64 people would have to come to an early demise for his dreams to ever be realized. The point is that everyone wants to be connected to other people. If the other people are important "others," well that never seems to hurt either.

So what was God's idea in giving us a Bible? The title of this post is about the Bible, remember? Was the Bible a set of rules? Yes, that was a part. Was it an instruction manual for life? Yes, that is true as well. Was it just ancient nonsense as some think? Or was it Holy Writ? Both really. One definition of holy writ would be "the writing derived from a divine power." And the Bible definitely speaks about some of the ancient nonsense that has gone on before us. What's the Bible really all about? In one man's opinion, okay, this man specifically. Me. I think that the Bible is mostly just God talking about Himself. Talking to us, if we will listen, and giving us a chance to get to know Him a little better. That's how everyone gets to know the people around them. By talking to them. Who doesn't want to know and be known by those we really care about. If we are made in God's image, we should not be surprised that God also wants to be known by those He really cares about. By us. You and me.

If God really wants to be known by those people He created, why doesn't He just come down here and make Himself known to us? H-e-l-l-o! He did just that. But that was 2000 years ago. Are we so egotistical that we think He has to do it every day? That's why He wrote that book. To give us a clue! Get a clue. Read the book. Get to know Him. He is the most important "other" you will ever meet.

“Be still, and know that I am God!” Psalm
46:10

...you will grow as you learn to know God better
and better.
Colossians 1:10 (NLT)

~ rachman

The Power of One!

2007-02-18T21:50:00.000-06:00

Anyone who thinks that one "small insignificant" person can't accomplish great things and move other people to action, has never spent the night in a tent with one small mosquito.

One lone individual, and God, can change himself, his family, his neighborhood, his city, his nation, and his world.

~ rachman
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How Big is Your Faith?

2007-02-11T16:57:00.000-06:00

I've been told that every spiritual journey will include a natural journey. And the natural will always come before the spiritual. That is to say, that we have to take the first steps in the natural before the spiritual steps can take place.

1 Corinthians 15:46 (NIV) The spiritual did not come first, but the natural, and after that the spiritual.

This verse is referring to the first and last Adam, but since God has put us (a spiritual being) in this natural universe (a physical body inhabiting a celestial sphere), we have to start any spiritual walk by using our physical legs.

I was looking for the steps I needed to take in this new year, when I heard a young man, one of my mentors, say just what I was needing to hear. To have great faith I will have to do some things in the natural. He gave me a simple plan. The way he put it, first all I need to do is increase my Word intake. To put it another way, I need to get more of the Word of God into my inner man. Wait this is not simple; this is hard. This takes time. This takes effort. Oh, all right, it isn't backbreaking work, but it means not watching as many "Lost" episodes. Good grief!

Next he said I need to increase my prayer life. All I have to do, he said, is return God's words to Him. Pray what I see in the Bible in other words. Crikey! More time. There goes "Criminal Minds" and "NCIS."

I thought he was finished when he came up with one thing more to make a little triad (these guys love three's). Again in his words, I need to increase my "love walk." He said I wasn't just building (living) for me, I was living (building) for others. Well finally something that doesn't require me to give up my life. All I have to do is love that jerk upstairs who plays his stereo too loud. Or maybe that inconsiderate boob who always tries to get my parking place. What about those guys across the hall who look weird. Then there's the smelly guy at work who thinks all the customers are his. Okay this may be harder than I thought.

To have great faith:

increase your word intake
increase your prayer life
increase your love walk

These are not goals as such. If I tried to quantify the first two parts, I would just turn them into rituals and never get anywhere. As for the third part, I know of no logically way that I could measure it. So they will have to become priorities. My top three priorities. I knew this year would have some great challenges, but I forgot that challenges are not always easy to deal with.

~rachman

What are You Afraid of?

2007-01-22T23:14:00.000-06:00

It has been said that every generation "thinks" it lives in a time unlike all others. Perhaps we do all like to think that our own age is a special time which no one else has faced before. Certainly every generation has it own challenges, or as one of my mentors likes to say, "each generation has its own giants to fight." One of the giants that many people fight today is fear. Fear of the unknown. Fear of terrorists. Fear of disease. Fear of death. Fear of living. There are many people who spend their lives in fear. Unfortunately for many people the giants are winning.

There have been times when I have fought against fear. Fear can keep me from leaving the house for days at a time. In my case it is not the fear of people per se, but the fear of certain things that I know I need to accomplish. So rather than getting out there in the world and succeeding (or failing) I stay in the house. While I'm not actually hiding under the covers of the bed, I might as well be.

Sometimes I need to meditate on the ancient wisdom I say I believe, in order to get myself moving. It works if I don't wait too late to begin. If I do wait, then I just have to start all over the next day. That's probably why some cultures say the day really starts the evening before. That way when I get up the next day I'm ready to begin.

This is one of the texts that I meditate:

Those who live in the shelter of the Most High will find rest in the shadow of the Almighty.

This I declare about the Lord: He alone is my refuge, my place of safety; he is my God, and I trust him. For he will rescue me from every trap and protect me from deadly disease. He will cover me with his feathers. He will shelter me with his wings. His faithful promises are my armor and protection. I will not be afraid of the terrors of the night, nor the arrow that flies in the day. I will not dread the disease that stalks in darkness, nor the disaster that strikes at midday. Though a thousand fall at my side, though ten thousand are dying around me, these evils will not touch me. I just open my eyes, and see how the wicked are rewarded. If I make the Lord my refuge, if I make the Most High my shelter, no evil will conquer me; no plague will come near my home. For he will order his angels to protect me wherever I go. They will hold me up with their hands so I won't even hurt my foot on a stone. I will trample upon lions and cobras; I will crush fierce lions and serpents under my feet!

The Lord says, "I will rescue those who love me. I will protect those who trust in my name. When they call on me, I will answer; I will be with them in trouble. I will rescue and honor them. I will reward them with a long life and give them my salvation."

~psalm 91
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I Have a Dream

2007-01-15T22:20:00.000-06:00

I am happy to join with you today in what will go down in history as the greatest demonstration for freedom in the history of our nation...

Thus began the "I Have a Dream" speech of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. After reading the entire speech I felt that I needed to print the entire thing in order to do it justice. Probably most have heard parts, if not all, of the speech before. However the average man, if I by way of example fit that category, is so mesmerized by the cadence of the black minister's speech pattern, I doubt the average man ever fully receives the impact or the full meaning of his words. I wept as I read them. If you have a desire to hear those words (the first and best way of experiencing them) or read them (for me a necessity to understand all that he has just expressed), then you can check out this site.

I will quote just a point or two from the speech for those who doubt the integrity or greatness of the man who was Dr. King:

...there is something that I must say to my people, who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice: In the process of gaining our rightful place, we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again, we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force...

(The magnanimity of this statement goes beyond man's natural ability. I believe it comes from God Himself.)

The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. And they have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom.
We cannot walk alone.

(None of us can go alone. If one group of people is enslaved, then mankind is enslaved. If one is set free, then we are all set free. And rejoice.)

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal." ...the sons of former slaves and the sons of former slave owners will be able to sit down together at the table of brotherhood...

(My family "owned" other human beings at one time. I was actually proud of this fact once. I'm amazed at the arrogance and depravity. Not my ancestors, but my own. And some think that we don't need redemption.)

I have a dream today!
...one day right there in Alabama little black boys and black girls will be able to join hands with little white boys and white girls as sisters and brothers.
I have a dream today!
"and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed and all flesh shall see it together."
This is our hope, and this is the faith that I go back to the South with...
With this faith, we will be able to work together, to pray together, to struggle together, to go to jail together, to stand up for freedom together, knowing that we will be free one day...when we allow freedom ring, when we let it ring from every village and every hamlet, from every state and every city, we will be able to speed up that day when all of God's children, black men and white men, Jews and Gentiles, Protestants and Catholics, will be able to join hands and sing in the words of the old Negro spiritual:
Free at last! Free at last!
Thank God Almighty, we are free at last!

~ to the memory of a great man of God
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Money Makes the World go Around

2007-01-12T03:44:00.000-06:00

I read a story on the internet, some six, seven or more years ago, about a presentation given by the speaker of some kind of motivational seminar. It used money as a parallel for our lives. As is sometimes the way of things found on the web, there were no names or substantiating facts given to back up anything. Nevertheless I was quite impressed by the story. So much so that I remembered it and some how made the story my own. If you don't want me to use it, then why do you tell it to me?

I was working with a beautiful young woman with red hair a few years back. Now to me red heads are either beautiful or let's say they were made with someone else in mind. (There is someone made for everyone I've been told.) This woman was not only beautiful, but very capable and talented. We were both working in sales, so I know she was very successful. Thank god we worked in different departments, so I didn't feel threatened.

Everyone it seems, comes from some kind of dysfuctional background. In the case of my lovely red head, (I say "my" only in the sense that I was fortunate enough to work with her,) she had come from quite a bit of emotional abuse back up the line somewhere. She had then added to the problems by trying to numb the pain with alcohol and drugs. Consequently she somehow had the idea that she had very little value. Even though she had been clean and sober for a few years now, she couldn't see that she was something amazing. It was one of those cases where anyone who knew her saw value, but she seemed to think there was none there. It may be this way in every case, but this is the one that I was made aware of.

Over time we grew close enough to share with each other all kinds of emotional baggage. I don't know why, but we felt safe with each other. I'd like to say that it evolved into something more than just friends, but then I would be lying. (But then how would you ever know for sure. Yeah, we had a hot lecherous affair. All right I'm lying again. I've never been a good liar. Okay, we were just friends, blast it!) To continue, we were able to talk freely with each other.

One day at work, as we were talking, she repeated an often used comment. One which revealed yet again, her lack of self worth. (This is where the money story comes in. Remember we were talking about a money story.) I reached into my pocket to find a $20 bill, like the one I heard about in the story. Unfortunately I didn't have any bills that big. In fact I didn't even have a ten or a fiver. But there was a relatively new looking $1 bill left over from the change at lunch. It will have to do. "I want to give you this money," I said. "I don't want your money," she said. Okay, this was not working. I'll have to explain a bit first. "Okay, you don't have to take my money, but imagine, if you will, that you came across this money somewhere. You know that you are not taking anyone's money away from them. But there it is waiting on you. Would you want to pick it up and keep it?" "Well, sure. It's money," she said. I took the new looking bill and proceeded to crumple it up and then asked, "Do you still want it?" She nodded her head "yes," wondering where I was going with this. I said, "What if I do this?" I dropped the bill on the ground and started to grind it into the floor with my shoe. Then I picked it up, though it was now crumpled and dirty, and asked, "Now, do you still want it?" "Well, of course," she said, "it's money." So I said with as much love as I knew how to give, "I want you to remember something. No matter what I did to the money, you still wanted it because it did not decrease in value. It was still worth whatever denomination it was. Whether $1 or one million. You are just like that bill. It doesn't matter what others do to you or even what you do to yourself, you still have value.

"We do not decrease in value by the decisions we make or by what others do to us or by the circumstances that come our way. We may feel as though we are worthless, but it doesn't change anything.

"You will never lose your value. You are special--don't ever forget that."

One thing I neglected to tell the lovely red head, I now add on for you. The worth of our lives comes not in what we do or who we know, but by who we are and whose we are. If we belong to God, then He is the one who gives us value and worth.

~ rachman
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A Cup of Coffee

2007-01-06T01:45:00.000-06:00

I got one of those emails the other day. You know the ones. I almost never pass them on as I hate getting them. In fact I remember receiving it once before, but it struck me this time as having value. So in light of the new year, I will paraphrase for you.

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and the 2 cups of coffee.

Take a very large, empty mayonnaise jar and fill it with golf balls. Ask yourself if the jar is full. It looks full so yes, the answer has to be full. Now pick up a box of pebbles and pour them into the jar. Shake the jar lightly until the pebbles roll into the open areas between the golf balls. Ask again if the jar is full. You're beginning to catch on, but basically you figure that yes, it's full. Now pick up a box of sand and pour it into the jar. Of course, the sand fills up everything else. Ask yourself once more if the jar is full. Yes, now it is full. Wait. Now come up with two cups of coffee and pour both of them into the jar. The coffee is easily absorbed into the jar of sand, pebbles, and golf balls.

Now, imagine that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things--your family, your children, your health, your friends and your favorite passions--and if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter like your job, your house and your car.

The sand is everything else--the small stuff.

If you put the sand into the jar first, there is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff you will never have room for the things that are important to you. Pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Take time to get exercise and care for yourself. Take your beloved out to dinner. Indulge your passion for music, golf, books, time in the kitchen, or whatever it may be. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the disposal. Take care of the golf balls first--the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.

Now what does the coffee represent. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem to be, there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.

I realize that this is one of the things that I have been doing wrong. In thinking that I'm getting things done, I've just been bothering with the small stuff. It looks like I have my first goal or (ugh) resolution for the new year:

~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ prioritize ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~

~ rachman
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A Meditation

2007-01-04T00:09:00.000-06:00

When darkness overtakes the godly, light will come bursting in.

Psalm 112:4 (NLT)
photo: Dave's Pics
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Snow, Snow, Everywhere

2007-01-03T00:24:00.000-06:00

Why doesn't snow look like this in real life--well at least in my life? Okay, maybe it does sometimes, but it's like youth. The picture changes so quickly that you forget it was ever that pure, that beautiful, or that innocent. Oh well. It's a new year. And it is only getting better. As I was sharing with a friend, the year ahead will have many challenges. I made lots of blunders last year, but that year is behind us now. We have an opportunity to begin again. The old has gone and the new has come.

Should auld (old) acquaintance be forgot,
And never brought to mind?
Should auld acquaintance be forgot,
And days of auld lang syne (old long since=good old days)?

Of course the "old long since" should not be forgotten, but let's not live there. Our old behavior does not determine our future behavior. And there is a great future ahead. No matter if your are starting out for the first time or the second--or say, even the fiftieth. Our best days are still ahead of us and we have a brand new year to begin again.

~ rachman
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Open The Door!

2006-12-31T00:24:00.000-06:00

The year ahead of us is like a door, beyond which is great opportunity. In the past many doors have been slammed in our faces. Some doors we simply did not know how to unlock. Many we were too afraid to open. Yet others we may have kicked in and then didn't know how to deal with whatever we found there. As a result many of us have become fearful or have given up.

What's the biggest door in your life? For many it is a financial door. For others it may be the door leading to their health. Or perhaps it is an emotional door. It could be a door that keeps you from having the relationships for which you have longed. Whatever it is most of us have a door that needs to be opened.

This new year open your door. It lies before you waiting. The God of the Universe has said: I call heaven and earth to record this day against you, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and cursing: therefore choose life, that both thou and thy seed may live.

What are we waiting for? Open your door and walk in. It holds your future.

~ rachman
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In Memoriam P.G.

2006-12-29T21:24:00.000-06:00

I knew something was wrong when I had not received her Christmas card by the 23th. I called but only got twenty-plus rings. I thought that maybe it was a sign of something good. I knew better, but what else was there to do. I called again today and was told by a recording that the number was not a working number. As it had worked for the last twenty or more years, I got on the internet and found the obituary. I thought I was being a little hasty at first, but before I had time to change my mind and go another route, there it was.

She was one of the most loving persons I had ever known. Yet I suspect that she was also one of the loneliest. I love you P.G.

I will need to call my sister tomorrow and tell her. They were really the ones who had first become friends years ago. Some how P.G. then became part of our family. My mother thought of her as one of her own daughters. Now, I don't know what kind of response I will get from my sister, indifference I suspect, as their friendship became quite strained a long time back. I always wondered if it was because my sister was jealous of the affection shown to "the outsider." It is not really any of my business I know. I just believe that my sister will want to know so she can grieve in her own way.

She, the one who is now gone, had become like another sister to me. She always remembered my birthday and never forgot me at Christmas time. When I was younger I wondered why she always remembered. Later I think I began to realize that she truly wanted to be a part of our happy family. Perhaps any happy family. As I said she was the most loving person I had ever know, but I think that may be she was just too afraid to be a part of the world. Her fears and perhaps her circumstances kept her from having a family of her own. Once her mother was gone, and with no brothers or sisters of her own, she was truly alone. Now I will not try to make excuses for her. After all that is all done with now. But I can't keep from weeping abit at the thought that she was a terribly lonely person. Yes, I do wish I had called her a little more often.

I hope that you are at peace now, my sister. I hope that you now have all the love you longed for here on this sphere. I miss hearing your voice and your kind words. I miss your lovely face. I miss your gentle spirit, P.G.

I don't know why some people don't seem to connect, but I know that some don't. I see it in myself at times. Sometimes I'm the life of the party and other times I can't seem to open my mouth and speak. Why the differences at different times? I'm not sure. Our many little feelings of insecurity I suppose. But I know that we all need to make the most of every opportunity. If some don't work out--that's fine, as long as some of them do. Don't give up. Keep reaching out to world with love, for love.

On Mother's Day, P.G. would call me and ask if I would be agreeable to her sending my mother flowers. Of course I didn't mind. I regret that I never sent flowers, if my memory is correct, to my now long lost "sister." I suspect that she never received enough of them in life, but I now resolve to send them to my real sister who, though miles away, still needs to be reminded that I love her.

P.G. you have shown me some things I needed to know. I hope I can be as loving as you always were to me. I also promise to reach out in love and not give up or hold back, just because one person said no. They still need that love and so do I. Oh yes, and I also hope, P.G., that you now have lots of flowers.

~ rachman
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Who Are You Afraid Of?

2006-12-29T00:34:00.000-06:00

I am trusting you, O Lord, saying, “You are my God!”

My future is in your hands...Let your favor shine on (me), your servant.

My heart is confident in you, O God; my heart is confident. No wonder I can sing your praises!

For your unfailing love is as high as the heavens. Your faithfulness reaches to the clouds. Psalm 31: 14, 16; 57: 7, 10

And I am convinced that nothing can ever separate us from God’s love. Neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither our fears for today nor our worries about tomorrow—not even the powers of hell can separate us from God’s love. Romans 8:38

Be on guard. Stand firm in the faith. Be courageous. Be strong. 1 Corinthians 16:13

For God has not given us a spirit of fear and timidity, but of power, love, and self-discipline. 2 Timothy 1:7

So we can say with confidence,“The Lord is my helper,so I will have no fear.What can mere people do to me?” Hebrews 13:6

Such love has no fear, because perfect love expels all fear.
1 John 4:18

And from the throne came a voice that said,“Praise our God, all his servants, all who fear him, from the least to the greatest.”
Revelation 19:5 (NLT)

I will now fear no one except God Himself.
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~ rachman
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O Holy Night

2006-12-20T20:55:00.000-06:00

O Holy Night. The stars are brightly shining. It is the night of our dear Savior's birth. Long lay the world in sin and error pining. 'Til He appeared and the soul felt its worth. A thrill of hope, the weary world rejoices. For yonder breaks a new and glorious morn! Fall on your knees, O hear the angels' voices! O night divine, O night when Christ was born.

Led by the light of faith serenely beaming, with glowing hearts by His cradle we stand. So led by light of a star sweetly gleaming, here came the wise men from Orient land. The King of kings lay thus in lowly manger, in all our trials born to be our Friend! He knows our need; to our weakness is no stranger. Behold your King; before Him lowly bend!

Truly He taught us to love one another; His law is love and His Gospel is peace. Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother. And in His Name all oppression shall cease. Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we, let all within us praise His holy Name! Christ is the Lord! O praise His name forever! His power and glory evermore proclaim!

~ lyics by Placide Cappeau
~ English translation by John Sullivan Dwight
~ photo by FreeFoto.com
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Christmas at Last!

2006-12-16T23:05:00.000-06:00

The reason I celebrate my birthday in September, is because that is when my parents told me it was. As a kid I didn't really have a clue as to when my birthday was except that in the middle of every September, my parents gave me a cake or a party or presents or all three. That was enough for me. Today a great part of the world is preparing to celebrate the birth of a king, not because we know for a fact that it took place on December 25, but because someone at some time decided that we would celebrate this birth every December. So enjoy it.

Many complain that Christmas is too commercialized, or too expensive, or too secularized (or pagan), or just too crass, or too whatever else you might want to come up with. Well who decides what kind of birthday you will have. For the most part you do. If Christmas is not what you want it to be, you are the one who has to change it. The original circumstances of what we call Christmas were quite simple and humble. If we desire to simplify things, then by all means, do so. We would then start to remember the reason we were celebrating in the first place.

Christmas, if you recall, means "Christ's festival" or "celebration of the anointed one." A celebration is a time when we overeat. It is a time when we gather together with family and friends and enjoy one another's company, in whatever ways we know to do it. It's a time when we may give gifts to one another or send written greetings. We do these same things on birthdays, national holidays, weddings, and so forth. Let's face it, people are always looking for ways to party about something. So why are we surprised that something like Christmas has become what it is. It's up to us to remember what we are celebrating. (Reminder: We are celebrating the advent, [or the arrival] of the King back into the earth.)

So as the time approaches, try to leave off the fretting about the way others are celebrating and think about how you are celebrating. If you can't get it all done, remember the holiday (holy day) was made for you to enjoy. You were not made to make the holiday a perfect fantasy. Go see the "Nutcracker" and get that out of your system. Watch your favorite old movie, shed a tear, and then go live your life with your family or friends in the here and now. And as you do these things, remember that the King has returned. Make Him a part of the days ahead.
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~ rachman
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Spirit Beings

2006-12-15T22:55:00.000-06:00

I am not a human being having a spiritual experience;

I am a spiritual being having a human experience.

~ rachman

Dedications

2006-12-09T00:58:00.000-06:00

I decided to take a break from this blog back in October. No, that's not true. I didn't decide, but rather I sensed that God wanted me to take a break from the ole' weblog for a time. Does that sound a little egocentric? That God was talking to me about my blog? Or does it just sound wacky? That I was hearing God talk at all? Well, first I will say that there was some ego involved, because I didn't want to stop blogging after just getting started. And remember I said that I "sensed" that God wanted me to lay off for awhile. We have all sensed that we needed to do this or that at one time or another. I happen to believe that God can and will communicate with us if we will learn to listen. So yes, I surmised that God was talking to me about my blog. If this hearing from God part bothers you, I guess you might as well move on or get used to it. Or you might try listening a bit more. Either way that's who I am. It took me this long to get as wacky as I am and I'm only going to get worse as time goes on.

When I started blogging it was because I felt the need to add my "two cents worth" to the blogosphere. In fact while I'm being egocentric, let me quote myself from six months ago:

June 29, 2006:
One reason I was prompted to start a web log (well, one of several) was I noticed that many of the blogs I read were by folks who seemed to hold a different world view from the one I hold. Now some blogs were really good and even down right hilarious, but beyond the humor there was a vast difference in core beliefs...What I mean is whether "religion" is good or bad. Is God good or bad? Is there a God? Other blogs...left me sad and depressed. I think because the blogger seemed to be sad and depressed. I know we all have felt this way at one time or another, and people tend to journal, express emotions, listen to sad music, talk to friends, or blog when they are dealing with these oppressive feelings. What bothers me is the "numbers" of these bloggers who describe themselves as atheists, agnostics, or people who want to be free from the restraints of religion. (Actually being free from religion is a good and proper goal in my book. As one of my mentors says, "it's not about religion, it's about relationship.") Anyway, I realize that's life. That's people. Ergo, that's blogs. Nonetheless I decided that if these humorous and sad people all felt inclined to write, then maybe it was my turn to do the same. (Perhaps I had missed the memo. My boss, Cindy, sometimes complains that I have.) If their blogs had influenced me, one of the millions, who happened to chance upon their site, then why shouldn't I be an influence on whoever chances upon my site and cares enough to linger. So I dedicate this little blog to those who made me laugh and to those who made me sigh. And then they made me think.

Those were my thoughts when I began this experiment in reaching out to the world in this new millennium. As time went by I discovered several different things about me and about blogging. For one I enjoyed being able to share my views without having anyone interrupt me before I finished my thought. In real time I'm not good at sharing my own thoughts with others though I think that I'm a pretty good listener. As a result I know many people quite well, but I have realized that few people know me. So I'm not blaming anyone else, but a blog is the place to say what you want and take as long to say it as you need. I'm hoping the skills will transfer over to real time. We will see.

One thing I've learned about blogging itself, is that it can consume all your time if you let it. If time were limitless this would be fine, but obviously this is not the case. I admire those who produce the quality blogs that I have come across and still live quality lives, but I'm having a hard time discovering how to do it. I will work on this a bit more as I go. It's part of the learning process, so I will continue to learn.

One thing that I have discovered from my 40 day fast from the weblog is that there are things which are more important to me than my blog. (Well, duh!) I don't mean that in a sarcastic way, it is just that I believe that there is so much that needs to be done in this world. I'm not saying that blogging doesn't have it's place, but I'm not sure how much of a place it deserves in my life. Once I got over the withdrawal symptoms from not blogging, I really didn't want to come back to the blog because of the time that I knew it would take from my life. It will take some more trial and error on my part.

I'm probably just over reacting to the whole thing. Many people do far more than I do, and I don't pretend that I'm called to do everything. Just because there is a need doesn't mean that I can meet it. There are 6.5 billion people here and we all have our part to play. I'm only called to the things that I "sense" God wants me to do. Thus as I originally dedicated this weblog to the people of the blogosphere, I also now dedicate it and set it apart unto God. My life is not my own, nor is this weblog.

~ rachman
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Why I Haven't Been Here Lately

2006-11-04T00:03:00.000-06:00

Okay, I borrowed this picture from somewhere on the internet, and I neglected to make a note of where it came from. My apologies if this cat is yours, however anyone with a cat and a computer has probably seen this picture played out in front of them before. Even if it (the cat) is in a different color. Mine's in black.

The real reason I haven't been here lately is that I'm taking a vacation from the blog, but since it is a weekend I checked in to see that the blog really was still here. Yes, I guess I miss it, but I don't regret my decision to take a break. It will still be a while yet, before I get back to normal. Until then check out my old favorite:

"My November Guest" by Robert Frost

My Sorrow, when she’s here with me,
Thinks these dark days of autumn rain
Are beautiful as days can be;
She loves the bare, the withered tree;
She walks the sodden pasture lane.

Her pleasure will not let me stay.
She talks and I am fain to list:
She’s glad the birds are gone away,
She’s glad her simple worsted gray
Is silver now with clinging mist.

The desolate, deserted trees,
The faded earth, the heavy sky,
The beauties she so truly sees,
She thinks I have no eye for these,
And vexes me for reason why.

Not yesterday I learned to know
The love of bare November days
Before the coming of the snow,
But it were vain to tell her so,
And they are better for her praise.
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Glorious November ~ rachman
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It's Over Before You Know It!

2006-10-24T00:44:00.000-05:00

Sometimes we barely get started on some new adventure, when we find that it's time to quit. I took my young nephew, or maybe he was taking me, for a ride on a big wooden roller coaster (at the time it was considered one of the biggest in the world, or the best, or perhaps the most nauseating, I forget the exact title.) We waited in line in the scorching south Texas heat for close to an hour. When we finally got to the covered depot, we waited some more time for the next train to roll in and empty itself of the last group of adventure seekers. My nephew, Scott, and I sat down in the first little car and the attendant, a college kid on a summer job, pulled the bar down in front of us till it clicked into place. Too close for me and not really as close as I thought it ought to be for Scott. We waited some more minutes for everyone else to get "clicked" into place behind us. Another college kid just ahead of us in a little booth pulled a lever and the cars jerked and began to move slowly out of the covered station. The car started its slow ascent along the upward flowing track. The cog device which pulled us straight toward the sun, was clanking rhythmically. Just when the train reached a point where we were staring into the sky and trying not to look into the sun, we realized there seemed to be nothing beneath us and we sucked in our breath and plunged downward. We were in a free fall, and I for one, left my stomach at the top. Everyone was screaming, and I said a word that my nephew later said he would tell his mother about. Then we were at the bottom and we were all laughing with relief. The ride continued with twists and turns so jarring that I began to suspect that chiropractors would be waiting on the off ramp to pass out their cards. The next thing we knew we were on one more "death defying" plunge and then suddenly we were pulling into the station where more thrill seekers were waiting. My nephew would have ridden again, if it hadn't been for the hour wait; and I pretended to want to do the same. It really was great fun, and it was over much quicker than expected.

Such has been my blogging experience. I don't even have 50 posts, yet I sense that I need to take a sabbatical from blogging. I don't mean to make this sound more serious than it really is, but I sense that I need to put the blog aside for a time. I intend to fast my blogging, if you will. I admit that there are times when I would rather blog than eat, or work, or anything else. It has become an addiction such as the blog bloke warns about. Check out his "10 Ways to Know if You are a Blogaholic." Don't worry he won't convict you to do as I am doing; my decision is strictly personal. (However, he may just show you how to create an excellent blog.) Anyway I may do some weekend blogging, or I may check on my favorite blogs, or I may do none of the above. I may become "celibate" for a season. I have not completely decided how much asceticism my spirit is in need of. It may be a week or two or three. But unless I really do have an epiphany, I will be back before Advent or the holidays begin.
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Adieu ~ rachman
photo by Allyn Fratkin
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2006-10-23T01:26:00.000-05:00

funtwo - Canon Rock (Re-Synched)

Canon Rock

2006-10-23T00:25:00.000-05:00

I don't usually get into posting videos, but my friend at Be Strong recommends this one. I finally got around to listening to it and I truly enjoyed it. So if I'm not the last one in the civilized world to hear it, then check it out for a great five minutes. After all five minutes at a time may be all we can ask for.
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~ rachman
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It's Good to Be Young!

2006-10-18T02:29:00.000-05:00

I admit it. I would have no poetry in my soul at all, if it were not for the fact that I'm a sucker for a poetic lover. Once they whisper those sweet "nothings" in my ear, I am doomed. They might as well put the ring in my nose for they can now lead me around wherever they want.

I think I suggested before that my first love won me over by whispering a Shakespearean sonnet under a summer moon. Actually it was a street lamp peering in from between the curtains, but it was summer all the same. We had strolled through the city park and the air was full of the fragrance of Magnolia blossoms. Well I assume this to be true, as my sinuses were stopped up, it was the south, and those big gaudy flowers were everywhere. It was my first time away from home and I was on my own. I had never been in love and I thought that it couldn't happen to me. I don't know why I thought this, except that I had always been a lonely soul of sorts with little expectation of love. We met in the park and started talking about the book I was reading. It was one of the "Lord of the Rings" books, but I don't remember which one. Today I would probably use something completely different for a pick up, but then, as we were at the "just out of college" age, it was perfect. We talked for hours and I couldn't imagine anyone being more fascinating, intelligent, or beautiful.

We noticed that the "shadows were growing long," and yes, we actually used that phrase, and knew that we couldn't waste much more time on talk. We had dinner together--okay, it was a cheap dinner--remember we were just out of college. But with every laugh, and every gesture, and every glance, which was no longer stolen but indulged, I became more mesmerized and had no clue as to why this time was different.

We spent that afternoon, that evening, and most of that night, together. Sometime during that night, between the pseudo-intellectual banter and the awkward and callow maneuvers of youthful love making, to my surprise, I thought and then said, "I think I love you." I was not new to the "aren't we the intelligent and worldly sophisticates" masquerade, nor to the youthful play of passion. There was something more. That added component that I didn't think I would ever know. There it was and I didn't know what to do with it. The next morning I was scheduled to leave and I did.

We pledged our love to each other, in the love letters we wrote for years, but saw one another only when my work took me back to that part of the country. Our lives were a thousand miles apart, but we thought we were one and we were inseparable. We thought our love would last through eternity. We were young.

During this time, on the eve of one of our separations, we shared this farewell, this valediction:

.A VALEDICTION FORBIDDING MOURNING.

~ by John Donne

As virtuous men pass mildly away,

And whisper to their souls to go,

Whilst some of their sad friends do say,

"The breath goes now," and some say, "no."

So let us melt, and make no noise,

No tear-floods, nor sigh-tempests move;

T'were profanation of our joys

To tell the laity our love.

Moving of th' earth brings harms and fears;

Men reckon what it did, and meant;

But trepidation of the spheres,

Though greater far, is innocent.

Dull sublunary lovers love

(Whose soul is sense) cannot admit

Of absence, because it doth remove

Those things which elemented it.

But we by a love, so much refined.

That ourselves know not what it is,

Inter-assured of the mind,

Care less, eyes, lips, and hands to miss.

Our two souls therefore, which are one,

Though I must go, endure not yet

A breach, but an expansion,

Like gold to aery thinness beat.

If they be two, they are two so

As stiff twin compasses are two;

Thy soul the fix'd foot, makes no show

To move, but doth, if th' other do.

And though it in the center sit,

Yet, when the other far doth roam,

It leans, and hearkens after it,

And grows erect, as that comes home.

Such wilt thou be to me, who must

Like th' other foot, obliquely run;

Thy firmness draws my circle just,

And makes me end, where I begun.

It's good to be young ~ rachman

Perchance to Dream

2006-10-14T01:02:00.000-05:00

In the movie, "Field of Dreams," an Iowan farmer plows his cornfield over and builds a baseball field. Eventually his dream of being reconciled with his father is fulfilled because he listens to the voice which guides him. The theology involved in this movie was so wacky that I never really thought too highly of the movie. But as I relaxed a little, took a look at the overall story line, and remembered that it was only a movie after all, only then did I begin to enjoy it.

We all have a field of dreams. A place where we plant seeds of imagination and let them grow. Depending on your theology, perhaps it is a place where seeds are planted for us to discover and then for us to nurture them into reality. We cannot overestimate the power of dreams in our existence. These dreams bring about medical breakthroughs as well as athletic and artistic achievements. They create nations and set races of people free from slavery. Everyone has dreams, and a field of dreams in which to grow them, but many of us have lost sight of these dreams because of the cares of life.

Even God has a field of dreams. It's not in Iowa, but in the hearts of humankind. In the hearts turned toward Him. It's a dream of being one with humankind once more. As it was when He walked with us and talked with us in the cool of the day. How can we know if a dream comes from God?

A God-given dream will stir our passion.
A God-given dream will be impossible without Him.
A God-given dream makes an impression on us for life.
A God-given dream will cause us to exercise strong faith.
The enemy will fight a God-given dream.

Fight for your dream. If you don't remember it, then search your heart and mind to get in touch with the dream which God has put inside you. Ask Him to show it to you. Then take action.

Ancient wisdom says, "This vision is for a future time. It describes the end, and it will be fulfilled. If it seems slow in coming, wait patiently, for it will surely take place. It will not be delayed." (Habakkuk 2:3 ~ NLT)

Pleasant Dreams ~ rachman

Lovely, Lonely Leaves of Autumn

2006-10-10T23:39:00.000-05:00

I'm a very visual person and since I haven't had much to say lately, I thought it best to share some of the beauty of the season from my two favorite photo sites on the WWW. The one above is by Ian Britton from FreeFoto.com.

This beautiful and fascinating photo is by David Johns at Dave's Pics. Mr. Johns works around Anchorage, Alaska, and has done some beautiful work.

And when I think of lonely, fluttering leaves, I think of Thomas Wolfe's lonely, lovely Look Homeward, Angel:

...a stone, a leaf, an unfound door; of a stone, a leaf, a door. And of all the forgotten faces.

Naked and alone we came into exile. In her dark womb we did not know our mother's face; from the prison of her flesh have we come into the unspeakable and incommunicable prison of this earth.

Which of us has known his brother? Which of us has looked into his father's heart? Which of us has not remained forever prison-pent? Which of us is not forever a stranger and alone?

O waste of loss, in the hot mazes, lost, among bright stars on this most weary unbright cinder, lost! Remembering speechlessly we seek the great forgotten language, the lost lane-end into heaven, a stone, a leaf, an unfound door. Where? When?

O lost, and by the wind grieved, ghost, come back again.

Poor Mr. Wolfe must have been a lonely soul and I know many can identify with his lyrical thoughts. I did once, but thank god not any more. “ My soul finds rest in God alone; my salvation comes from him.” (Psalm 62:1) Yes, thank you, Father God, for the opportunity to be fully known and to know both You and others You have brought into my life.

After that lovely but lonely passage, I need one more beautiful photo to remember the wonder of the season. Again by Mr. Britton.

Have an awesome autumn while it's here. But don't blink, for it's gone in an instant.

~ rachman

Cat & Mouse?

2006-10-07T00:57:00.000-05:00

Here's the thing. I'm looking for a job. I have a job, but it is not even paying all the bills. It did once, but time moves on and neither this job nor I have been moving anywhere. I lived in denial about the situation for a good while, but I can no longer ignore the facts.

I've had two interviews this week and another one is scheduled for monday morning. I blew an interview I had a few months ago, so I've been honing my answers to some likely interview questions, which I came across on Monster.Com. Sound contrived and really insincere? Of course it is. But then if you haven't been in a job interview lately, some of those questions they come up with are neither real nor sincere:

Q: Why is there fuzz on a tennis ball?
A: You have got to be kidding.

Q: There's no right or wrong answer, but..?
A: Regardless of the question, this is the biggest lie they could tell. Of course there is a right answer or they would not have asked it.

Q: How would you feel working for someone who knows less than you?
A: Do not comment on the fact that all your bosses have been idiots.

Q: If you were an animal which one would you want to be?
A: You have to decide based on the industry you're entering as to what they are looking for: a piranha or a guppy.

Q: How do you think I rate as an interviewer?
A: (Keep thinking: I will not laugh; I will not giggle. I will not laugh...)

Q: What's your ideal company?
A: Even if it really is the company which pays the most for the least, come up with something else.

Q: What are you most proud of?
A: Forget the sexual exploits for now. It must be something ethical and if at all possible altruistic!

Q: What do you like to do?
A: See above.

Q: What are your lifelong dreams?
A: See above!

Q: Do you have plans to have children in the near future?
A: I didn't plan on the kids from the distant past.

The questions can go on and on, ad nauseam. It can be a bit like a cat and mouse game. I suppose it is the hurdle we have to go over to get to the job we're looking for. It's what has taken up a lot of my blogging time this last week. It's been an intense week, but the weeks are getting better. My destiny awaits.

~ rachman
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Awesome Autumn!

2006-10-01T23:08:00.000-05:00

I try not to use the word "awesome" as much as is popular these days. A friend of mine is always saying, "that was awesome." It was actually just a joke I had told; okay it was a very good joke, but nothing more. I know that our use of language is always changing, so I try to remember not to get too "uptight" about the things I see or hear. "Awesome" is one of the few words left, however which I know, that describes things which can make me feel reverence, fear, inspiration, wonder, astonishment, or admiration. Awesome things can take me aback, or leave me thunderstruck.

Thus I try to leave the word "awesome" for very special occasions. (I don't usually say "thus" either, but saying "awesome" makes me feel biblical.) Also I know that many people feel as I do, in that the "fall" of the year is the best time of year. After all it's harvest time. It's my favorite time. So let me say, "plentiful harvest to all, and to all, have an awesome autumn!"

~ rachman
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Praise God, It's Friday!

2006-09-29T23:55:00.000-05:00

My destiny is just beyond my sight;

It bursts forth from the background as I speak.

It calls me from outside my vantage, thus

I must keep moving forward and reach it.

I dare not sit back and fold my arms, for

I now have to advance onward or die.

~ photo by Dave, thoughts by rachman
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Who Romances Whom?

2006-09-27T22:21:00.000-05:00

In Donald Miller's book, Blue Like Jazz, there is an excellent little chapter on grace. (If you haven't read the book, I highly recommend it. It's a quick read and great fun to boot.) In the book he compares some of the concepts from the Bible to stories we have probably read (or at least we saw the movie.) Mr. Miller compares our "dream" of Christ's love for His bride, that's all of us in the church, as reading like Romeo and Juliet. Two equals in a passionate embrace. And in fact that's what Song of Solomon in the Bible is all about. Christ romancing us as it were, and we just take it all in like a blushing bride.

Mr. Miller feels that the reality of our relationship, at least in the beginning, is a little more like Lucentio's pursuit of Bianca in The Taming of the Shrew. Remember the groom (Christ) goes about endearing the belligerent and shrewish bride (all of us who are trying to be "holy" on our own) with kindness, patience, and love while the bride does not so readily accept his advances. It's much as Romans 2:4 (CEV) says, "You surely don't think much of God's wonderful goodness or of his patience and willingness to put up with you. Don't you know that the reason God is good to you is because he wants you to turn to him?" God's willingness to put up with us is part of what His grace is all about.

When we accept God's love for us, we are accepting that Grace, and accepting the fact that we can't change ourselves and we can't make it on our own. We have to stop thinking that we can make ourselves right in God's eyes. We have to let God's love do the work. We have to accept that love and when we do, we begin to fall in love with God. When we fall in love, then we start wanting to romance Him. Which is what God wants. After all the bridegroom likes to be romanced as well.

~ star crossed lovers , and rachman
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Catch Me if You Can

2006-09-24T18:00:00.000-05:00

Matthew 28:19 (NLT) says, "Therefore, go (and make disciples of all the nations...)" This is called the great commission and was the last command given to us, in the book of Matthew by Jesus, or God, the Son. In other words, Just before Jesus left this planet, His instructions to us were these: "Go forward," or "Get busy." Too many of us come into a relationship with God and then sit down in the church and never do another thing.

This is not meant to put condemnation on anyone. No, really! We all have to grow and find out what God is calling us to do. The twelve disciples had been training for three years and then Jesus told them to not do anything, but wait in Jerusalem until the Holy Spirit got there (Luke 24:49). But once He got there the church grew from one hundred and twenty souls to three thousand in one day. The Holy Spirit is here now; quit waiting around.

Followers of Christ, myself included, must learn to start moving forward and not continue to "wait on the Lord." As a side note: waiting on the Lord means to serve, as in wait tables, etc. Not sitting back with our arms folded, thinking, "when is God going to do something." God works with those who are moving forward, not sitting still. I'm still learning this one "my own self."

Ephesians 5:1 (NLT) says, "Follow God's example in everything you do, because you are his dear children." God wants us to follow him, both literally and figuratively. It is like a parent and child. A father wants a son to follow in his footsteps. God wants us to follow in His. He moved first: He died on a cross and rose from the grave for us. Now we have to move: we accept Him as savior and receive His salvation. He continues to move and waits for us to make the next move through out our lives. This is one of the ways He leads us. (Notice that God doesn't push us; He leads and draws us. Like a lover. God can be all things to us. A lover? Yes. A father? Yes. What do you need? )

God wants us to work with Him and participate in the things He is doing in the world. This was the original plan from the beginning. "To walk in the garden with us in cool of the day" and discuss the things every parent and child or every loving couple discusses in the evenings. "What did we do today," and "what will we do tomorrow" and isn't it good just to be together. We have missed out on a lot.

How could anyone keep up with God? It's true that He is always ahead of us, but He is always waiting for us to take the next step. To get a little closer. He plays the original game of "Catch me if you can!" He wants us to try. I don't think He will ever let us completely catch up, but image how far we will go if we try. God has let it happen at least once before. Look at Enoch.

Hebrews 11:5 (NLT) say, "It was by faith that Enoch was taken up to heaven without dying--'suddenly he disappeared because God took him.' But before he was taken up, he was approved as pleasing to God." God took Enoch to heaven without Enoch having to die because he was pleasing to God. Wow, that's what I would call catching up to God.

~ rachman
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The Marriage of True Minds

2006-09-23T01:15:00.000-05:00

I was going through some things on my computer this morning and came across this bit of poetry. I know that many people have lost, or usually have never found, the love of poetry; so perhaps that is why I wanted to post it. There is not a lot of poetry that I love, but the reason is because it takes time to appreciate poetry and I don't often take the time. This piece is one of the few for which I have taken the time. And the reason this one received special attention is probably because it was once whispered to me in the dark of a summer's night. It seems like yesterday; it seems like a hundred years ago. (Sigh!) Sweet memories! I may do this more often.

Shakespeare's CXVI (116) Sonnet:

Let me not to the marriage of true minds
Admit impediments. Love is not love
Which alters when it alteration finds,
Or bends with the remover to remove:

O no; it is an ever-fixed mark,
That looks on tempests, and is never shaken;
It is the star to every wandering bark,
Whose worth’s unknown, although his height be taken.

Love’s not Time’s fool, though rosy lips and cheeks
Within his bending sickle’s compass come;
Love alters not with his brief hours and weeks,
But bears it out even to the edge of doom.

If this be error, and upon me prov’d,
I never writ, nor no man ever lov’d.

~ rachman
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Thankful Thursday!

2006-09-21T19:36:00.000-05:00

Thankful Thursday: I got this phrase from a blog I visited recently. Now I can’t remember who it is or was. One of those I came across after linking on someone’s profile after checking out someone’s comment on someone’s blog that I had come across after following up a link on some else’s blog or something like that. (And I wonder why I can’t get anything done around here.) Anyway if I’m stealing someone’s idea, well, I’m sorry. Just let me know and I will have a Tremendous Tuesday next time:

* I am thankful that I have a roof over my head, and it is paid for till the end of the month.
* I’m thankful that it has not been as hot as it was a month ago, and that it is not getting cold yet.
* I’m thankful that I have a car to get me to and from, both work and church, and I’m thankful that a better car is in my future.
* I’m thankful for beans cooking in the crock-pot in the kitchen, and for the steak later on this year.
* I’m thankful that my health is good and that it will get even better as I can afford better food choices.
* I’m thankful for the clothes on my back, and for the new clothes, which will fit my trimmer physique.
* I’m thankful that I have lost (most) of the extra weight I was carrying around with me.
* I’m thankful for the job that I have which is giving me a vacation this week and pays (most) of the bills.
* I’m thankful for the job that is just ahead. Don’t know what it is yet, but I’m looking while on vacation. (Okay, I took a break today!)
* I’m thankful for this top-of-the-line computer (well, it was eight years ago), and I’m thankful for the top-of-the-line computer in my future.

There is more to be thankful for I’m sure, but perhaps another time. A side note or two: If you see my sister in Shenzhen, China, tell her, "Happy Birthday," for me on the 23rd.

Also September 24th through October 23rd is the Muslim celebration of Ramadan. I know that militant Muslims grab world headlines these days, but my friend Mohamed Fadly, a young fellow from Egypt, reminded me that not all Muslims are the same. No more than all Catholics or all Mennonites or all Baptists or all Pentecostals or all anyone else, are all the same. The point is Ramadan is a time when Muslims are especially open to spiritual things and want to hear from God. If Christians would pray for their Muslim co-worker or their Muslim neighbor, as well as for the Muslims around the world, then many Muslims would receive dreams, visions, and revelations of the one true God. Think about it. How about loving our enemies for a change; then God could do a work for eternity in all our lives.
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~ rachman

Positive Confessions

2006-09-19T14:50:00.000-05:00

"Sometimes it seems like I'm paying for the mistakes I made in the past. Maybe that's why I am having such a hard time of it." I have been thinking that and it has been affecting my ability to make a living this last year or so. I've felt trapped in a dead end job and thought that there was nothing I could do about it.

I was reminded today through my little devotional that I read in the mornings, about this verse: Isaiah 43:25 (NLT) "I--yes, I alone (God, alone)--am the one who blots out your sins for my own sake and will never think of them again."

God said He blotted out my sins, and He didn't even do it for my sake. He did it for His own sake. Wow! God loves us so much that He provided a way out of our sins. Why? So He would not have to suffer by seeing His creation in hell! And how did He keep Himself from suffering. By going to hell for us. He didn't "sweep the sins under the rug," but He paid for them Himself.

Of course as a Christian, I knew this, but I had forgotten that this means the mistakes I've made even after becoming a Christian. 1 John 1:9 (NLT) says, "But if we confess our sins to him, he is faithful and just to forgive us and to cleanse us from every wrong." I know this verse and have been following it, but I was forgetting that being cleansed from every wrong, meant I no longer have to suffer the penalty. I don't go to hell later and I don't have to have such a hard time of it now. God will never think of my sins again. Then why am I thinking of my sins all the time. Because I am listening to the voice of the enemy instead of the Spirit of God.

If you have confessed your sins to God (repentance) and confessed Jesus as your Lord and Savior (salvation,) then confess God's word inorder to silence the voice of the enemy (learning to walk in the spirit or the ways of God).

Confession: When I repented, my Father God in Heaven blotted out my sins. He doesn't remember them, so I don't remember them either and I no longer bring them up.

~ thoughts from a morning devotional
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Facts vs. Truth

2006-09-16T01:24:00.000-05:00

Facts are what we see in the world; truth is what the word of God says. Some people believe that the two words, "fact" and "truth," mean the same thing; but in reality they can be as different as the mountain and the reflection. (Perhaps an even better example, by my way of thinking at least, is to be as different as the "picture" is from Dorian Gray.)

For example if one turns to Jesus as her Lord and Savior, then the Word of God says she is a child of God, though to the world she may still look like the "street walker" she once was. If yet another one has turned from his sin and made Jesus his Lord, then the Word of God says he is a new creation, though to the world he may still look like the emaciated "crackhead" he once was.

You see this is truth: when we turn from sin and turn to God, then the spiritual change is instant and accomplished by God for us. But these are the facts: even after turning from sin and turning to God, the physical and psychological transformation will probably not be as easy or instant, but they will be possible.

Jesus looked at them intently and said, "Humanly speaking, it is impossible. But with God everything is possible." ~ Matthew 19:26 (NLT)

~ rachman

The Best of Life is the Rest of Life!

2006-09-13T22:54:00.000-05:00

This picture came from the blog called PostSecret. If you haven't checked it out yet, it's time you did. I don't necessarily like all the cards or secrets I see, but I guess that's the point. Each one represents one person's secret feelings, emotions, actions, desires, or whatever. I don't know what is so secretive about the one above, but I identified with it immediately. A lot of people probably do. As I stated when I started blogging, time is short.

Today was my birthday and it went pretty well, but now at the end of it, I'm reminded that I haven't done everything I need to do in this life. This can be problematic for many people, I'm sure, but then I'm only responsible for what I've done, or not.

I'm not really feeling bad about the situation, as someone always likes to say on the birthday card from the coworkers, having a birthday is better than the alternative. (At least in the natural.) I know that to be absent from this world would be the best thing that could happen to me. But I wonder, no, make that, I know that I haven't done all that I need to do in this life. But time is short. Biblically speaking I should have another 70 years, but I can't help but think that by the "signs of the times" I, or we, only have a few years left. Okay, maybe a decade or two. I need to do some thinking, and some praying, but mostly I need to do some "doing." So I guess I had better get busy. "The best of your life is the rest of your life."
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~ rachman
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Home Again, Home Again, Jiggety Jog

2006-09-10T16:10:00.000-05:00

That first summer after moving back in with Mother was pretty rough for a lot of reasons. For one thing, I was used to living by myself by now and I had become pretty carefree. Before becoming a Christian I had been a little too carefree, but that was a thing of the past. Still I was free to come and go as I liked and keep the hours I liked. Be as loud as I liked or as quiet (read that as moody.) As well as be as lazy or messy as I liked, though I really wasn't a particularly messy person.

On another level I was used to central air in my apartment; Mother's house had two window units and this was Texas in July. I know it could be worse (I grew up in that house, so I dealt with it once), but it only takes a few summers with central air to convince you not to go back. The third, but by no means final, obstacle I remember dealing with, was the boxes. There were boxes everywhere. I had just condensed two households into one. True I was a single man, but I had already collected most of the basic furniture and accoutrements we latch onto. I worked in a clothing store so there was plenty of that. And the books. Oh my, there were books. I love books, so there were lots of books. My books were my children and God had blessed my quiver.

On top of the fact that I had pretty well pampered myself for the last several years, I still had to get used to the little oddities that Mother had developed since living alone. I slowly began to realized how much Mother had come through over the last few years since Daddy had passed on.

When my father died, I knew that Mother was going through a bit of a trial, but I had not known how much of one. Mother came from a good southern family of 13 children, when she married Daddy and very promptly had her first of three children. Daddy was from a smaller clan of only 9 children, but with a never ending line of nieces and nephews and cousins to help raise, Mother was never really lonely, or at least not alone, I suspect. I had been the only kid at home since about the age of eight. After getting out on my own and learning to live as such, I had somewhat come to terms with the idea of being alone and the occasional feelings of loneliness. If I ever really felt it, I just got out of the house. It didn't always have to be with other people. Sometimes just long walks in the outdoors was all I needed. And of course when I became a Christian I spent time with God, and there were times when that couldn't be beat.

Ah, there I go talking about myself again. Back to mom. After a lifetime of family, she had never really been alone until she was widowed after years of marriage. Going through books of hers, later on, which dealt with depression, I realized how rough it must have been on her. Like any grieving widow I suppose, but I had never known it. She had always been good ole' strong Mom. I even admit now that I, being a selfish bastard, had not had much pity for her. I remember thinking, "Well, Mother, at least you had love once; I have always been alone. Get used to it." I do feel pretty heartless now, but everyone's hell is different.

Aside from being the grieving widow, being older and alone, she had become quite fearful. Again it was only after moving back that I saw this. When I first broached the subject of moving back in with her, I thought that she would object; but instead she seemed to brighten at the prospect. Once I was there and was trying to settle in over the next few months, I saw some of the reasons she relished the idea of not being by herself anymore. She had always been conscious of locking doors and windows, but now she would even prop chairs up against doors, like you see in the movies, and she would not open the windows for fear of intruders. This was in the heat of summer, remember. Her house was an old one, by our standards out here in the heartland, that still used a skeleton key for some of the locks. I also admit that this was an older part of town very close to some areas where even I would hesitate to walk alone at night. It took awhile, but I convinced her that she was not alone, she was safe; and to be sure, I had the old doors and locks replaced. I think she gradually began to feel less fearful.
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other thoughts another time ~ rachman
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Five Characteristics Needed for the Days Ahead!

2006-09-07T22:16:00.000-05:00

Courage~~~~ the days may be frightening to some.

Wisdom~~~~ the days may leave some wondering which way to go.

Strength~~~~~ the days may take all that some have to endure.

Kindness~~~~the days may cause some to see only cruelty.

Compassion~~ the days may fill some with confusion and bewilderment.

~ lessons learnt after Hurricane Katrina
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Hope, Are You There?

2006-09-04T15:48:00.000-05:00

And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.~Romans 5:5 (NIV)

Hope springs eternal, or so "they" say. Most people know that it can be lost, hope can be lost, that is, at least momentarily if not longer. For me, "momentarily" lasted about six and a half years or...oh, let's say seven years. (My goodness, that's Biblical.) It started when I noticed my, somewhat elderly Mother, who had been widowed and had now lived alone for the last eight years, was having a hard time getting certain things done. Paying bills and balancing her check book for example. It was not the lack of money, though she was not wealthy; it was just the mechanics of reconciling the figures and so forth. I knew I needed to start helping her take care of some of her affairs, but I didn't know how she would take this. She and Daddy had always been reluctant, as I think most people of her generation are, to share their financial matters with anyone, including us kids. However, she seemed more than ready to let me take over in these matters. I had just recently started driving her every where she needed to go. (I was thankful that the usual list of weekly errands consisted of only three places: sunday church, the grocery store, and the hair appointment.) To get her to stop driving herself, because of her failing eye sight, I had said that I needed to borrow her car, while mine was out of commission, and that I would take her to do her errands in the mean time. (While my car was getting a little old, it was still running; but I justified the lie because I was a coward about confronting her with the problem.) In addition to the bill paying and so forth, her memory seemed to be going a bit. For example she worked in the church nursery, with the three-year old's Sunday School class, and had done so for forty years. She finally gave it up because she said she just couldn't remember the names of those little faces anymore.

~~~~~~~~~~

One saturday night I came home from work and there was a message on my machine from a neighbor of Mother's. It basically said that I needed to come check on my mom. The neighbor sounded a little distraught, but didn't explain anything on the answer machine. So I changed clothes and made the short five-mile drive to see what was up. When Mother answered the door, I was shocked. My usually cool and collected mom was agitated, incoherent, and had "wild" looking eyes. She had grass in her hair and on her clothes. It was hard to figure out what she was telling me or what had gone on. (It's hard now to remember what I did learn or how I got the information. I was told later that I should write everything down, but at the time I didn't feel that I had the emotional energy to do so. For me at least, "acting" on something and writing about it, don't really go together. It is one or the other.) I know I called the neighbor from across the street to get what information I could from her and pieced it together with what Mother could tell me. Basically Mother must have fallen in the backyard, though we don't know why, and called out for help. When help did come, they helped her up, but she refused to go to the hospital in the ambulance. Some people will wonder at that, but they will just have to understand Mother. She's always been very strong, very independent, very private, and I guess you would have to say very stubborn. Going to doctors was not something she did willingly. Since she could walk, they got her inside her house, (they had to get the door off the hinges to do it,) and then the neighbors called me. After I finally got her to some medical care, the doctors didn't believe that a stroke or a heart attack had caused the fall. She doesn't have thinning bones and nothing was broken. She did hit her head in the fall, but all the tests showed no problems there. She must have just stumbled on the uneven brick pavement leading from the house, but how long she was outside after the fall, or how long she had called out, we don't know.

~~~~~~~~~~

I have grown up watching different members of my family taking care of the older family members. My great-grandmother was 99 years old when she died at home (actually the home of her son and daughter-in-law.) My grandmother died at home, where she had been cared for by my aunt. My grandfather and my other two grandparents (maternal side) all died in the hospital, but had been watched over by various aunts and uncles and by my own parents as well. Mother had encouraged her parents to move into the house across the street from where we lived, in order to watch over them there. I remember some of the anxieties that Mother went through caring for her parents. So now it seems only natural and "right" that I care for Mother at home. (I have two sisters, but one is living overseas and the other one is 600 miles away.) It did take me a little while to decide the proper course of action. When I asked God what I needed to do, I got nothing. To my knowledge God never did tell me to go live with Mother and watch over her, but He never told me not to. I think we get some of our guidance from what God doesn't say as well as what He does say. I do know that Jesus made arrangements for His mother before He left this earth, so I knew I had to take some kind of action. But what? The thought of moving back home to my mother's house repulsed me. I'm single and now I'm going home to mom. What a loser! But if I take her into my house, as opposed to going "home" to her house, well that seems okay. My ego could handle that. I start checking into real estate for what we will need. Now I'm not completely unaware of what I'm thinking about doing, as I used to sell real estate. I'm thinking we just need a place with two bedrooms and two baths basically, but I'm not financially able to do it. I start asking God again what I need to do. I tell Him what my needs are. A house with two baths and two bedrooms, no stairs. (My apartment is on the second floor and Mother can't do stairs.) And of course it has to be something that I can afford. Now God speaks to me. He tells me that I already have those things in the house where Mother still lives and I grew up. So I swallow my pride, put some things in storage, and move back home with my mom.

More thoughts later on...

~ rachman

Who's In Charge Here?

2006-09-01T02:22:00.000-05:00

George Carlin used to tell a joke about being a kid and asking his priest this question: If God can do anything, then can God make a rock so big and heavy that even God can't lift it? This is the kind of question that a lot of people may wonder about, even if they don't ask it. It's the less painful version of one of the following questions: If God is all powerful then why does He let people (more specifically, me or those I love) experience so much pain, suffering, and loss? If God is all powerful then why do so many children die from hunger or contaminated water supplies? If God is all powerful then why does He allow so much death and destruction at the hands of terrorists or the so called "acts of God," such as tsunamis and hurricanes? This issue was touched on in the previous post entitled, "Is God Limited?" Just a quick answer to these questions. God is not in charge here!

Okay, maybe I should explain that statement a bit. Hebrews 6:18 (NLT) tells us, "...God has given us both his promise and his oath. These two things are unchangeable because it is impossible for God to lie. Therefore...we can hold on to his promise with confidence." What I want to bring out is the fact that we can depend on God's word as being the truth. He can not lie. Once God says something, there is no going back. So God cannot do anything that He said He would not do. Genesis 1:26 (NLT) says, "Then God said, 'Let us make people in our image, to be like ourselves. They will be masters over all life...'" God put us in charge. What? Yes, reread that verse. We were put in charge. God is not responsible for the tragedy in this life.

(For you English majors out there, I don't use the word "tragedy" lightly.) The definition of "tragedy" is, "a literary work in which the main character is brought to ruin or suffers extreme sorrow, especially as a consequence of a tragic flaw, moral weakness, or inability to cope with unfavorable circumstances." That is exactly what happened in the Garden of Eden. (Hang on and I will try to explain, because whether we take this story as allegory or fact, it doesn't change a thing.) Adam, or the main character of our story is brought to ruin and suffers extreme sorrow, as a consequence of his tragic flaw, his moral weakness, or more specifically, his inability to cope with unfavorable circumstances. If you don't know the story, very simply an enemy came to Adam and twisted the words of God. Adam chose to listen to the words of a stranger and thereby committed high treason. Adam had authority over the stranger, it was Adam's garden remember; but instead he put his trust in the stranger, making the stranger his god. Adam gave up what authority he had and became the slave of the enemy. God was not in charge of this world and now neither were we. That authority was given up to the enemy. We suffer because of it. Now we still live in a beautiful world which God created, but in the hands of the enemy it is coming apart around us. John 10:10 (NLT) says, "The thief's (or enemy's) purpose is to steal and kill and destroy." The enemy has used us to kill others and ourselves and to gradually destroy our own world, because of our inability to cope with the unfavorable circumstances that have come upon us.

If we stop there, as most people do in practice, then we are indeed without hope. We might as well live as the animals around us. "Eat, drink, and be merry; for tomorrow we die." However (thank, God, for those conjunctions), while we may be a slave to someone or something, we still do have free choice.

Deuteronomy 30:19 says, "Today I have given you the choice between life and death, between blessings and curses. I call on heaven and earth to witness the choice you make. Oh, that you would choose life, that you and your descendants might live!"

God wants us to choose life, He wants us to really live, but He will not force it upon us. If He once said that we could choose, then He will not take that choice away. We once chose the enemy and we can now choose God today. No one can stop us from coming to God if we choose to come. God will not force us to choose Him, but neither can the enemy stop us from making that choice. We are still the masters of our own choices and decisions. We make the decisions even if the decision may hurt us. Yes, God cares that we are hurting. That is why He gave us the Word of God. To teach us to choose life and not death. However God will not interfere with our life if we don't want Him there. He can't move in our life unless we let Him. He wants to come into our life and teach us how to live, but it's up to us to say, "Amen! Come, Lord Jesus!"

~ rachman

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Want More of God?

2006-08-26T22:19:00.000-05:00

John 1:16 (NLT) ~ "We have all benefited from the rich blessings he (God) brought to us--one gracious blessing after another."

Most of us in this world don't know that it is God who gives us the things we need for life. "From the time the world was created, people have seen the earth and sky and all that God made." (Romans 1:20 ~ NLT) "For He gives his sunlight to both the evil and the good, and he sends rain on the just and on the unjust, too." (Matthew 5:45 ~ NLT) No matter which side we think we fit into, God sends the rain and the sunlight to us on this home we call earth.

Ephesians 5:1-2 (NIV) ~ "Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us..."

We have all read the tee shirt that said, "Love is not love till you give it away." I laughed when I first read it, but I guess it must be true. If we learn to be imitators of God and live a life of love, we are learning to go through life as "givers" instead of "takers."

Luke 6:38 (NLT) ~ "If you give, you will receive. Your gift will return to you in full measure, pressed down, shaken together to make room for more, and running over. Whatever measure you use in giving--large or small--it will be used to measure what is given back to you."

If we don't believe that this Word from God is true, all we have to do is smile at the next stranger we come across. Nine times out of ten, they will smile back. An instant pay back for our "gift." Wow! We do get what we give out. And if God gives us His word on it, then we can't out give God. If we learn to empty ourselves into the lives of others, then even if they don't return the favor, God will fill us back up. God rushes into our emptiness if we let Him. Our emptiness keeps God's presense with us. (Cool, I could use more of that.) When we are "full," it's for the benefit of someone else's "emptiness." We draw close to God by emptying ourselves into others. How much of God do you want?

~ rachman

Do You Have a Character Deficit?

2006-08-21T02:15:00.000-05:00

Jesus replied, " `You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.' This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: `Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the other commandments and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments." ~Matthew 22:37-40 (NLT)

We can't love our neighbor anymore than we love ourself. This is a real challenge for many people, including myself. (Sometimes I think I'm loving myself only to later realize that I'm just giving in to laziness by being too easy on myself. And even worse than laziness, I realize I am giving in to fear and denial. More on fear and laziness at a later time.) And perhaps the really big challenge (in my eyes at least) is that we can't love God anymore than we love our neighbor. How we treat our neighbor is how we treat God. (Oophhh! That one hit low. But I guess it's true since Matthew 25:40 says, ...the King (God) will tell them, `I assure you, when you did it to one of the least of these my brothers and sisters, you were doing it to me!') Ok, ok, we have to treat our neighbors a little better it looks like. But how do we get started?

In every relationship there is friction. My mentor says that there is a miracle lubricant. (No, probably not what you think, nor is it politeness as suggested by Robert A. Heinlein, although this probably never hurts.) As oil is to a car, so character is to people. Character is the lubricant that allows our personalities to mesh. For example when a man "strays" in a marriage, it's because of a character flaw or a deficit in his character. It is more than the notion that "men's brains are in their pants." That's really the easy way out. "It's biological, I can't help it!" No, that excuse only works for animals. Human beings, and in this example, men, are meant to come up to a higher level. Regardless of where you think we came from, does any of us really want to stay at the level of animals? Whenever or wherever there is a deficit of character, we all pay the price in our relationships. A character deficit is not just a mental or emotional issue. It is a "heart issue." Another example is "conflict evasion." As in when a conflict, of any type, shows up and we avoid it. This may be part of the giving in to fear and denial issue that I admit to dealing with. It is one of the deficits of character that I'm working on now.

All these things happen because of missing ingredients in our character. The first law of relationship is "seek first to understand and then to be understood." At first I thought it kinda' sounded like Socrates' guiding principle, "Know Thyself," but more than knowing or understanding ourselves, we need to understand God. When we pursue character, we are pursuing God. When we pursue character, we are also pursuing other people's concerns (moving beyond ourselves). Where there is character there is compatibility. When a couple claims lack of compatibility as grounds for divorce, it is not just an excuse. At least one of them has a character deficit causing incompatibility. God wants us to come up to a higher level and do the right thing even when we don't feel like it. Character involves doing things we don't like doing.

If we avoid doing the things character calls for, then we avoid God. When we avoid the God of the Word, then we end up creating God in our own image. And our "god" will overlook whatever we do or don't feel like doing. We get on dangerous ground when we do this. "Character involves submitting to God's standards and surrendering to God our expectations of one another." To check and see if we have been doing this, all we have to do is look at how many relationships we have in our life that are healthy (or not). Be a man (or woman), and commit yourself to pursuing character.

~ thoughts on a strategy session by LSJ

If God Starts Something...!

2006-08-14T23:34:00.000-05:00

Only I (God) can tell you what is going to happen even before it happens. Everything I plan will come to pass, for I do whatever I wish.
~ Isaiah 46:10 (NLT)

God never starts something unless he has already finished it! He has the answer, which was ready before the foundation of the world, for anyone who knows and acts on His Word.

If you need wisdom--if you want to know what God wants you to do--ask him, and he will gladly tell you. He will not resent your asking. ~ James 1:5 (NLT)

~ rachman

How Can I Know God?

2006-08-11T03:58:00.000-05:00

The way to know God is through God's Word. And Jesus Christ is the Word in flesh and bone. First John 1:1 (NLT) says, "...Jesus Christ, the Word of Life." So it is through Jesus, the Word, that we can know God.

It doesn't really take a lot to be saved, or in other words, know God and live forever. John 6:47 (ESV) says, "Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever believes has eternal life." This is one of the clearest and most concise verses in the Bible describing the way of salvation. It's not by our good deeds and it's not by our church membership. It's not by keeping the law, nor by being good, but it is simply by believing that Jesus paid for our sins on the cross.

The simplicity of the gospel is brought out even more in the following verses: John 3:14-15 (ESV) "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes in him may have eternal life." The Biblical story of the snakes biting the Israelites in the desert is very simple. In Numbers 21:6-9, Moses was told to put a bronze snake up on a pole. When someone was bitten, all he had to do was "look" at the pole with the snake on it and he would not die. In the same manner, anyone who sees that he is sinful (or has a snake bite) and "looks" to Jesus for salvation from his sin, will be saved.

When we "look" to Jesus, we simply have to call on Him. Romans 10:13 and verse 9 (NLT) says, "Anyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." And then "... if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved." It is that simple.

Salvation is eternal, so remember, you can't have eternal life today, and not have eternal life tomorrow.

~notes from a "Good Morning, Lord" Bible study

Life is a Gift~Don't Throw it Away!

2006-08-08T23:39:00.000-05:00

When you were born, you were crying and everyone around you was smiling.

Live your life so that at the end, you're the one who is smiling and everyone around you is crying.

~things found on the w.w.w.

Which God Do You Know?

2006-08-05T02:07:00.000-05:00

God's Word is the measure of His Character. Character can be defined (according to the American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 4th ed.) as the combination of qualities or features that distinguishes one person, group, or thing from another.

Therefore by looking at the words of God, we can see and understand (or measure) the differences between God and everyone else, and more specifically, between God and our own perception of God. In other words we can come to know what makes God unique in all that we perceive about the world. We tend to see God as we are and not as He really is. For example, if we see the world in a negative fashion then we see God in the same way. If we're an addict, then we think of God as nothing more than the source of our addiction. We need to look at the Word of God to get an accurate picture of what God is really like. (One might say, "well of course the words about God in the Bible are positive, they are propaganda written by those who call Him God." If this is a good argument, then why are the "gods" of other religions so often evil, wicked or cruel? Maybe it is because their idea of God is based on humankind and human reasoning instead of the one true God.)

By looking at the Word of God we can see who God really is:

James 1:17 ~ (NIV) "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows." Unlike us and our changing perceptions, God never changes.
1 John 3:1 ~ (NLT) "See how very much our heavenly Father loves us, for he allows us to be called his children, and we really are!" God, the Father in Heaven, loves us and He won't change His mind or His ways. He will always love us and allow us to become His children.
Matthew 6:30 ~ (NLT) "And if God cares so wonderfully for flowers that are here today and gone tomorrow, won't he more surely care for you? You have so little faith!" We have little faith because we don't know the Word of God.
1 Corinthians 8:3 ~ (NLT) "But the person who loves God is the one God knows and cares for." To know God is to love God, and He cares (that is He is concerned about us, watches over us, and provides needed assistance) for us as a Father (a loving father, which may or may not be like the one you had) cares for his children.

Another definition of character is moral or ethical strength. By getting an understanding of who God is, just from the few examples above, we can determine that God's moral or ethical strength lies in the fact that He never changes. We don't have to wonder if He is in a good mood or if He will be drunk and beat us. Every good and perfect gift comes down from Him, the God who never changes. We are all His creation and He wants us all to become His children. He does not hate us, he is not angry with us, nor is He the least bit indifferent to us. By learning His Word we come to trust Him and love Him and know that He will care for us.

Unlike the people we have known in the past, unlike the abusive stories we have heard about God, the God of the Word may not be like anyone you have ever known. If you are "lucky" then a few of those people and stories may have pointed the way to the one true God. If not then take a fresh new look at the real God of the Universe, through His Word.

~ thoughts on a teaching by Ed Cole

Got Worries?

2006-08-03T22:37:00.000-05:00

Casting the whole of your care [all your anxieties, all your worries, all your concerns, once and for all] on Him, for He cares for you affectionately and cares about you watchfully. ~ 1 Peter 5:7

I know that this isn't an easy thing to do, but as you begin to learn about who the one true God is, it gets easier. As you begin to believe what God says about Himself and about you, there is no other way to go than towards Him.

If you look at, let's say ten examples, you can see that God really does love you. No foolin'.

Deuteronomy 23:5 ~ the LORD your God loves you.
John 3:16 ~ God so loved us
Romans 1:7 ~ God loves you dearly
Romans 8:39 ~ nothing will separate us from the love of God
Ephesians 2:4 ~ God loved us so very much
1 Thessalonians 1:4 ~ God loves you
1 John 3:1~ our heavenly Father loves us
1 John 4:9 ~ God showed how much he loved us
1 John 4:16 ~ We know how much God loves us
Jude 1:21 ~ God's love can bless you

This is just a sampling of the times that God tells us what he really thinks of us. Why do we listen to all the folks who tell us that God is angry at us, or hates us, or wants to make us miserable. Because we know of all the (imperfect) people in the world who say they love us, but they treat us like dirt, or they desert us or leave us, or they abuse us, or all the other things that one mortal soul can do to another.

And of course most of us have been taught some pretty stupid things. If we could just start to understand the truth as opposed to the "facts" that we have been taught.

Ephesians 3:18 (NLT) ~ And may you have the power to understand, as all God's people should, how wide, how long, how high, and how deep his (God's) love really is.

I started out talking about giving all your worries and cares to God. Then I realized that you have to know that He loves you so very much that He wants you to come to Him for the help that you need. He does love you, so go ahead and let Him take over.

1 Peter 5:7 ~ Give all your worries and cares to God, for he cares about what happens to you.

~ rachman

Can You Turn Over a New Leaf? Of Course, You Can!

2006-07-31T02:41:00.000-05:00

In my early twenties, I realized that I must be a homosexual. Late in life to finally realize I know, but this was a few years ago. At that time we didn't automatically think, "Jane's a bore; let's check out Tommy." This was a pretty conservative part of the world to boot. (Okay, the women didn't wear burqas, buy neither did the men publicly.) I was raised in a mainline Protestant church and remained in one for some years after my newly acquired carnal knowledge. I was in college and like most college students there are all sorts of discoveries to be made as one starts to live life on one's own terms.

Before I "came out" I was a moody and unhappy teen. Nothing unusual there really, but since I didn't know who I was, what chance did I have? I did date, but it was lack-luster at best; because of the church training I really did believe that I shouldn't be doing too much "fooling around." At least I told myself that was why I had so much restraint and self-control. It did take a while, but after adjusting to the idea that I liked Tommy better than Jane, life became much easier. Easier if you call living a double life easier. When I was at home during the college years, I would head off to church and stop by the local tearoom. Yes, I was a "park queen." I would stop by on my way to anywhere just to see who might be around. After dates, I would dump, er uhm, drop off my girlfriend and drop by the park. Just to see who might be ready for action. (Yeah, I'm lucky to be alive today.) I began to embrace the lifestyle and I loved it. (My first Christmas in my first apartment, I remember sending out beautifully painted "unicorn" greeting cards. Don't ask.)

Now when I "came out" (don't get the wrong idea: there were neither debutante balls nor any engraved announcements sent out in those days; coming out for me simply meant that I now knew who I wanted to have sex with and it was now just a matter of "going out" to find someone who wanted the same thing, the same way, and of course without getting beat up,)as I said when I "came out" there were no emotional confrontations with parents, (although there were three or four with police, undercover cops, and whoever wanted to roll the local queers. And come to think of it, there were a few "pycho" cases that I still have no idea what they really wanted, but I got outa' there before I found out anything more about them. [If you get a gut feeling, LISTEN TO IT!])
I never told my parents (remember I was talking about parents--stay with me) I never told my parents anything and they are both gone now, so I never will. I used to wonder if they knew anyway. (Come on, what do ya' think, I sent out unicorn Christmas cards!) Today they would have to know, but things were different then. For one thing we didn't suspect everyone who remained single of being gay. After all the local priest was single and he was ok. (Sorry, that was a cheap shot.) For another thing I really wasn't a "flamer," or at least I wasn't very demonstrative so I didn't stand out too much. Anyway I know that Dad finally decided that I would never give him grandkids. It kinda' irritated me when I heard my aunt tell me this, as I still thought that I might have kids some day. I don't know whom I thought it would be with or how long I was going to wait to get started, but I figured I'd come up with something.

After about eight years of living a discreetly gay lifestyle (is that possible? Or is it just like a "jumbo shrimp?"), some friends from work took me to visit their "charismatic" church. (They promised to feed me afterwards; I was still a young bachelor after all.) It was a bit strange to me, but I could see or sense a power there that I hadn't experienced at my mainline church. Since I had grown up in church, I secretly felt that the life I was living was not what God wanted for me. But how could I deny the person that I was. The person that I had become was just as unhappy as the kid I once was. I had found love. (For you doubters, two men can love each other. Profoundly. Any relationship between two people is a fragile thing. It is going to have a hard time making it without a foundation in God's love. Our's was no different.) He was even a fellow Christian. We both felt that we were disciples of the one true God through His Son Jesus. On looking back I was probably the one at fault as I now believe that I was only a religious man and not a Christian. So my love was more selfish than I would like to remember. My friend on the other hand, I think was the real thing. However as he continued in the lifestyle he was drawn to he began to change his opinion of what a Christian was. He began to feel that he could be of both worlds. (I'm sorry if I have to disappoint, but we both believed in the beginning, that a follower of Jesus Christ could not continue in a gay lifestyle.) Where he is today, physically or spiritually, I have no idea. I still believe that one has to "come out" from the gay life to follow Christ.

I Corinthians 6:9-11(NLT)~Don't you know that those who do wrong will have no share in the Kingdom of God? Don't fool yourselves. Those who indulge in sexual sin...male prostitutes, homosexuals...none of these will have a share in the Kingdom of God. There was a time when some of you were just like that, but...You have been made right with God because of what the Lord Jesus Christ and the Spirit of our God have done for you.

I wanted my life to be different from the way it was and not just aberrant. So that night at the charismatic church, I talked to the pastor, made Jesus my Lord (even if it meant giving up everything from the past), and asked Jesus to baptize me in the Holy Spirit. My "likes" and "dislikes" did not change instantly, but Jesus is now my master and not the desires that drove me for eight years. God began to set me free from that day on. Yes, free from homosexuality. The changes in my emotions and in my thinking have been gradual, but God has been recreating me over the last eight or so years. (Actually longer than that since I first wrote this testimony for my new church.) You see, I don't believe that I was born a homosexual. Okay, the inclination for that lifestyle might have been there, but it was the enemy who led me and I followed him into the trap. Jesus came to set me free and He has brought me out. What Jesus saves, He can deliver.

1 John 3:8 (NLT) But when people keep on sinning, it shows they belong to the Devil, who has been sinning since the beginning. But the Son of God came to destroy these works of the Devil.

~rachman

What is Faith?

2006-07-28T00:30:00.000-05:00

What is faith? It is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen. It is the evidence of things we cannot yet see...so, you see, it is impossible to please God without faith. Anyone who wants to come to him must believe that there is a God and that he rewards those who sincerely seek him. ~ Hebrews 11:1,6 (NLT)

The Entrance of Our Destiny

2006-07-24T03:18:00.000-05:00

Everyday we stand at the entrance to our destiny, but it is up to us to enter in.

Do something! Be willing to do what no one else "will," and get the results that no one else "has."

~from T.J.