Fault Line … May 8, 2014

Jonathots Daily Blog

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A fault line is what triggers earthquakes.

Living on a fault line is accepting the possibility of a disruption.

The same thing is true in human beings with the issue of fault. A majority of the upheavals which occur between human beings is based upon fierce disagreements over the fault involved. So because of this, people establish their opinions along a fault line, which best represents their willingness to interact.

1. Everything is my fault.

This is way too vulnerable. It often puts us in the position of being considered the underdog and the dumping ground for other people’s deception.

2. Most things are my fault.

Once again, this is much too difficult to define, still leaving us over-exposed to those folks who refuse to consider their own part in any failure.

3. Some things are my fault.

Always too much to explain. By the time we finish clarifying our part in the fiasco, we’ve bored the listener.

4. Nothing is my fault.

This certainly reeks of arrogance and eventually drives away all of our cohorts from working with us because they have to carry the burden of our lack.

5. I don’t believe in fault.

It may be a noble gesture, but you are surrounded by a world which points fingers–and has plenty of digits available.

Personal success is wrapped up in our level of personal responsibility.

This is the truth that Jesus says will make us free–free because we are no longer dependent on other people’s participation.

We look for our part in the project and continue to pursue it with diligence and joy instead of probing for someone to blame or the nearest scapegoat.

Let me give you an example.

Seven years ago a friend of mine died. He was a victim of cancer.

He smoked, drank a little bit, was angry much of the time, single and frustrated with the status, and full of animosity toward those around him because his life had not worked out the way he had hoped.

When he passed away, rather than pointing at him in his coffin and proclaiming that “he had made his own bed” and would now sleep eternally in it, I instead took a look at what responsibility I had in his demise.

It was a beautiful, healing journey. Candidly, most of my discoveries were positive. I had been generous; I had been kind. I had influenced without becoming an interloper.

But in the process of reviewing the case concerning this friend, I did discover some truth. I could have stepped in earlier and encouraged–or even insisted–that he go to the doctor, which could have made a difference in his prognosis.

I didn’t feel guilt about it. I didn’t assume that it was my fault–but I realized that if I ever had the opportunity again with another human being, I would step into the gap a bit sooner and offer positive solutions.

It was so cleansing.

I didn’t have to take on fault, nor did I have to absolve myself of guilt.

I found personal responsibility.

In a generation which is trying to escape our part in the disaster, we are also running away from the truth that can make us free.

Not everything is my fault–but it is also not the case that nothing is my fault.

The fault line, which spurs our hearts to personal discovery, is there to bring the “truth which can make us free.”

Personal responsibility is the only doorway that allows us the dignity of finishing our day with a smile instead of a nervous apprehension about tomorrow.

 

 

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Doorways… March 12, 2013

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Today my left knee hurts. I had plans for it, including a lovely walk in the park. Yet my knee is reluctant, if not rebellious to the concept, and truthfully, will  become very sore with me if I pursue present plans.

So now what?

I have outlined to you is the whole quandary of life.

We have ideas. We make plans. We probably even become enthusiastic about the prospects. Often we purchase things to enhance these desires.

Then the whole thing falls apart. We universally refer to this malady as “problems.”

For instance, I could tell you that I was planning to go for a walk in the park, but a “problem” has arisen because my knee hurts. Most of you would nod your heads in agreement, sympathetically aware that such trials and ttribulations are just a part of our existence and that we patiently need to trust talent, life, God or whatever comes to our minds, to pull us through these hassles and hindrances.

But let me ask a question. What if it isn’t that way at all? What if the only real “problem” with human life is complacency? What if God–who is much smarter than us, by the way–knows that the only way to progress the human spirit, is by digressing our tendency to settle in on one thing, determined to remain.

For if God and life were to leave us to our own devices, we would find the most comfortable corner of the room with a pillowy chair, and cozy up to the least challenging possibility surrounding us.

What’s wrong with that?

The second most dangerous condition in human beings, after complacency, is boredom. All sin is born out of some form of boredom.

So problems come along to move us through the path of life so we don’t have to deal with nearly as many disasters. They are similar to the little earthquakes that occur to release the pressure on the fault lines, inhibiting a larger, more destructive shaking.

So let’s stop calling them problems. They are doorways.

My knee hurts today because for the past forty-eight hours I have given it a real workout. Without the pain, I might overdo it and create more permanent damage instead of temporary discomfort which can be alleviated through a day of rest.

In other words, without pain, there is no healing. Without healing, there is no improvement in health. And without improvement in health, there is no sense of enthrallment with the continuation of life.

What if everything that happens to us is a doorway to get us from our bedroom and  into a more expansive living space? Is there any basis for this idea?

“All things work together to the good … ”

You ever hear those words? “All things work together to the good…”

Really? Does that mean my aggravated knee, if viewed as a doorway instead of a problem, is going to take me on a journey today, which if I do not resist, will generate a new goodness unforeseen?

My answer is yes. And if you don’t believe that, you might have a tendency to live a life of a ping-pong ball, struck by divine inspiration, only to be propelled across the table to a paddle of evil, which smacks you back down to earth.

I will not be pinged and I will not be ponged.

I will not fight my pain. My pain is necessary; my pain is revelatory. My pain is divine information that there is something good out there waiting for me if I will just refuse to become depressed by the change of plans and instead, propel myself through the doorway.

For after all, there are many adventures yet to be experienced, where we discover that life is more than just a walk through the park.

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Is God Mean? … February 24, 2012

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Even though I thought I had my information straight, I decided to go back and check out the list one more time. After a careful scrutiny, I discovered “God is love,” “God is a spirit” and “God is light.”

 

For the life of me, I was unable to uncover “God is mean.”

 

It seems remarkable, doesn’t it, since the notion of God’s meanness is a prevailing human opinion from time to time for nearly all of us (myself included)? Some tragedy will come along or strange abuse of children or women and we’ll find ourselves lamenting over the seeming impotence of God to aid in these matters, and then someone will remind us about when He was starting his business back there in the Old Testament, that He was known for being quite ruthless.

 

So how does someone who is advertised for the love, spirit and light He brings get tagged so often as “the meanie?” Well, He has some strong deterrents to His public relations campaign.

 

1. Let’s start with the Bible itself. People mistakenly think that the Holy Bible is God speaking to mankind rather than a gradual discovery by mankind of how God speaks. It would be similar to examining a camel by starting at the rear end and working your way up to the face. That’s really the presentation of the book we know as the Bible. But there are those people who hold fast to the notion that the Book of Job is just as viable as the Book of Acts and because that philosophy is still in the air, it often appears that God is mean or in a bad mood.

2. Another thing that does no favors for God’s personal presentation is the earth itself. Storms, earthquakes, eruptions and all sorts of natural tragedies cause us to think that God is either in a bad mood or He’s just grumpy and anti-human. There are very few people who take the time to compliment God on a thousand beautiful sunrises, but they will certainly discredit Him for allowing one big wind to blow the roof off their house.

3. The third thing that makes it difficult for God to escape the “mean” rap are his followers. Most people who are religious blend in just enough of God to rationalize their personal ego trips–so God is labeled with all sorts of false conceptions, ideologies and interpretations.

4. Of course, the main reason that God gets smacked in the head for being mean is the decision He made long ago at creation–and that decision is the unbridled granting of free will to humans. It is irrevocable and non-debatable. People can do whatever they want using whatever excuse they choose, blaming whomever they have selected.

 

So let’s understand the problem. With some of the poor translation of the Bible, the earth’s shaking and shimmying, religious followers making the true nature of the Divine as elusive as possible and the general decision on God’s part to grant free will to humanity, God is often stuck at the end of the line, having to pay the bill for what everybody else has ordered.

 

And one other situation we rarely think about. Just because God is love–which mean’s He’s emotional, by the way–and God is a spirit–which certainly would connote that He is spiritual–and God is light–which means He welcomes enlightenment and knowledge (big brain stuff)–yes, even though all those things are true, human beings are often stuck in an adolescent stage of maturity, like teenagers not wanting to be loved, rejecting any attempt to become spirited, and resenting the hell out of light being shone on their deeds.

 

Yes, if you’ve raised children, you will remember the phase in those precious teen years, when the fact that you loved them and wanted to “spirit them” to better causes, and in order to be a good parent, you had to shed light on some of their dubious behavior … well, let’s put it this way. It did not cause you to fall into good graces with your sneering offspring. Yes, all parents have heard from their teenager: “You’re mean.”

 

So when you combine a Bible that is read literally instead of progressively, an earth that is mothered toward evolution and growth despite our objections, followers of God who always have more agenda than mercy, the decision by the Almighty Himself to grant unconditional free will to His human creation, and the fact that lots of us get stuck temporarily in an adolescent maturity and want to be left alone and not be loved, spirited or enlightened–well, when you consider all of that, it’s no wonder that some disgruntled patrons of the earth might consider God to be mean.

 

Here’s the truth: God is love, spirit and light. The love doesn’t change, the spirit is always moving forward and the light illuminates even those things we wish it didn’t. Mother Nature has a job of making sure that the earth continues and in the process, grants us all an even playing field. Human beings are basically self-involved, but when motivated by other fellow-travelers who are less selfish, can be pumped up to do better things.

 

So the answer, to me, is that God isn’t mean, but He created some factors in the world around us that can be mean if we don’t learn how to discern the signs of our times and understand our vulnerabilities. God gives free will and lets us discover the hidden treasure that’s been placed everywhere in creation.

 

So in conclusion:

• The Bible is a book about God–not God Himself.
• The earth is something He set in motion. It is never merely His daily whim.
• His followers have to be judged on whether they bring love, spirit and light to the world–thus, God.
• And the decision He grants us–to have free will–should be entered into with humility, respect and a healthy lust towards succeeding.

 So as we continue our I.G.P.–intelligence, growth and progress–we can fine tune that trio by understanding that a loving spirit of light named God has given us the free will of choice to find Him and unmask the imitators. So now we are two questions down, with one remaining. How about this one:

 

Are we supposed to do better?

 

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Below is the first chapter of Jonathan Richard Cring’s stunning novel entitled Preparing a Place for Myself—the story of a journey after death. It is a delicious blend of theology and science fiction that will inspire and entertain. I thought you might enjoy reading it. After you do, if you would like to read the book in its entirety, please click on the link below and go to our tour store. The book is being offered at the special price of $4.99 plus $3.99 shipping–a total of $8.98. Enjoy.

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Sitting One

 I died today. 

I didn’t expect it to happen.  Then again, I did—well, not really.

No, I certainly didn’t expect it.

I’ve had moments of clarity in my life.  Amazingly enough, many of them were in the midst of a dream. For a brief second I would know the meaning of life or the missing treatment to cure cancer.  And then as quickly as it popped into my mind it was gone. I really don’t recollect dying.  Just this unbelievable sense of clear headedness—like walking into a room newly painted and knowing by the odor and brightness that the color on the wall is so splattering new that you should be careful not to touch it for fear of smearing the design. The greatest revelation of all? 

Twenty-five miles in the sky time ceases to exist.

The planet Pluto takes two hundred and forty-eight years to circle the sun. It doesn’t give a damn. 

The day of my death was the day I became free of the only burden I really ever had.  TIME.

Useless.

Time is fussy.  Time is worry. 

Time is fear.  Time is the culprit causing human-types to recoil from pending generosity. 

There just was never enough time. 

Time would not allow it.  Remember—“if time permits …”

Why if time permits?  Why not if I permit?  Why not if I dream?  Why not if I want?  Why does time get to dictate to me my passage? 

It was time that robbed me of my soulful nature.    It was time that convinced me that my selfishness was needed. 

I didn’t die. The clock in me died, leaving spirit to tick on.  

So why don’t we see the farce of time?  Why do we allow ourselves to fall under the power of the cruel despot?  Yes, time is a relentless master—very little wage for much demand.

I died today. 

Actually … a piece of time named after me was cast away.