Good News and Better News… May 22nd, 2017

 Jonathots Daily Blog

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There’s a question hanging in the air, waiting for a brain to slurp it up and a tongue to dribble it off. If it isn’t expressed, we will continue to live in a world of assumptions.

I am not speaking of answers. I’m talking about beliefs people hold because of the dark side of their experiences and the edge of prejudice maintained from their upbringing.

Ask the question. If possible, ask it without being disgusted. Inquire with a thirst for knowledge instead of attempting to trick someone into saying something you can leap upon in anger.

The church has lost its questioning. Out of fear of making waves, we have decided to just never get in the boat. We stand on the shore and curse the ocean because it seems unchangeable. Yet there is an energy in the air. While people are despairing, sparring and spitting, the Holy Spirit is quietly seeking out those who will question and wait for the answers.

It sounds simple enough.

It even seems to have a spirituality unto itself. After all, Jesus said, “Ask and it shall be given.” He never said, “Assume and you will be proven.” Jesus believed you could seek and find, and even, with a bit of perseverance, knock and have the door opened.

What Jesus never intended for his church was a gathering of smug converts who assume that getting their butts in the door was the last thing necessary to fulfill the quorum for the pearly gates.

Here’s the truth: you can join the church if you are a questioner. Even if it aggravates the worship committee, you can continue to pose questions in pursuit of finding a better way of doing things.

Likewise, you are certainly welcome in the church if you have answers as long as they are well-salted with humility and lit up with evidence.

But nowhere at any time did Jesus welcome the complainer. The complaint will be the death of the American church if we don’t call it out and exorcise that demon from the sanctuary.

How can you tell when someone’s complaining?

1. There’s an absence of a question.

They may speak to you for ten minutes about the problem, but never formulate an inquiry.

2. There is a complete denial of an answer.

They begin to enjoy hearing the sound of their own voice lamenting the difficulty–and if anyone suggests a solution, they will bury the notion as “impossible” so as to maintain their frustration.

3. They’ve rejected good cheer in favor of a bad sneer.

They think it’s ridiculous to maintain joy in the midst of difficulty and transition.

Beware complainers who pretend they have answers or insist they are just questioning.

The good news is that questions are always welcome in the Kingdom of God.

The better news is that answers will come if we don’t grump our way to fatalism.

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G-28: Once Was Lost … June 13, 2014

Jonathots Daily Blog

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Grace is so much more amazing when it is saving wretches.

Without acknowledging our wretchedness, grace merely funds and fosters a nest of pious arrogance.

The Creator learned this about His own creation.

For when the human race is encouraged without being challenged, we become smug, self-reliant and callous to the feelings of others.

As time passed on, people developed a definition for spirituality which favored their own profiles and vices.

They began to refer to themselves as the “sons of God,” which meant that eventually they no longer needed a Divine presence, since they, themselves could fulfill the mission. Yes–they believed they were gods. (Actually, the best we can hope for by having a common Father which is in heaven, is the delightful knowledge that we’re all brothers and sisters. )

But in the pursuit of self-esteem, we lost the humility that makes us desirable and attractive to one another.

As a race, we began to believe we were giants–immensely talented, obviously good-looking and supernaturally empowered. Any notion that came along to contradict this evaluation was considered a “downer” or a personal attack.

Once again, our species failed to understand that the power of discovering our worth is having the intelligence to know that we are actually poor in spirit and require the mercy of God and therefore should extend mercy to one another.

Of course, when giants mate with other giants, they create children who are mighty and renowned.

People believed that their offspring were better than other offspring, and therefore deserved special consideration.

• It was the beginning of racism.
• It was the maintenance of sexism.
• It was the authorization of preferential treatment.
• It was the idea that “family” was the most important thing in the world and that our particular unit was supremely endowed with favor.

Yet the most intelligent approach to child-rearing is the realization that our kids are no better than anybody else’s kids, and that all the children of Earth are painstakingly learning to become citizens of a common planet.

Of course, once you convince yourself that you’re a god, a giant, and your chldren are supernatural, your imaginations all become acceptable–even when they’re laced with evil.

Remember, evil always occurs when human beings feel they do not require editing.

So instead of thinking better about each other or hopeful about the possibility of goodness, a cynicism and suspicion descended on mankind, causing us to think evil when we were intended to take the beauty of thought to ponder good things.

And of course, once evil was allowed into the mix, violent behavior became not only acceptable, but encouraged in order to protect our children, our self-worth and our status as sons of God.

Rather than despising the shedding of blood–a sensation which is innately in our being–we began to pursue what we viewed to be “necessary killing” to honor our family, our province or our belief.

You can tell that violence is contrary to human beings because the minute we look down and see our own blood leaking from our bodies, we shrivel back in horror and demand immediate medical attention. Yet in our arrogance, we can watch others bleed without flinching.

People began to contended they were the sons of god, giants, raising children who were better than other sprouts, and opened the door to imaginations becoming evil, and violence gained acceptability.

The Creator was bewildered.

The Creator felt compelled to make a painful decision.

 

The producers of jonathots would humbly request a yearly subscription donation of $10 for this wonderful, inspirational opportunity

After an appearance earlier this year in Surprise, Arizona, Janet and I were blessed to receive a “surprise” ourselves. Click on the beautiful Arizona picture above to share it with us!

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