1 Thing That Opens the Door to Understanding

Suffering

I have not heard of any individual who has contracted the Covid-19 disease and gone through the paces of the horror that this virus inflicts, who is complaining about masks, quarantine and social distancing.

This is because the journey these souls were thrust upon produced enough suffering that a more complete understanding came into their lives than they might have achieved by watching Fox or CNN News.

For I will tell you—try as I will, I cannot conjure the sensation in my spirit that a person with darker skin experiences when delayed, questioned and taunted by a police officer.

Although I have listened for hours, I still don’t have the comprehension that every woman possesses after being subjugated, alienated and mistreated—simply for having a vagina.

There’s a certain amount of suffering that is the prequel to understanding.

“Touched by infirmities.”

A fascinating phrase.

It means that if I don’t sample the pain in this world, I may not be prepared to dole out the healing which is required.

So now, when I have one of those days of discomfort, when a confusion makes me wonder if I’m teetering in a deadly situation, I calm down and simply realize:

It’s my turn.

Yes, it has become necessary for me to catch up with the rest of humanity, which has already gained understanding through … suffering.

 

 

Populie: There are many truths… June 11, 2014

Jonathots Daily Blog

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It is very popular to seek for truth.

When you link that with the lie that there are many representations of that truth that all work equally well, you create today’s populie.

Religion loves to wallow in self-pity over the assertion that there are many truths because it not only gives the faithful a chance to be pious over their rendition, but also various outsiders to attack as cults for not agreeing with them in the first place.

Politics revels in this philosophy because it establishes a voting block that agrees on the platform of the party, and an obvious enemy to attack–one who fails to honor the planks.

Entertainment pursues this discussion because it fosters a conflict to resolve. Therefore minority opinions are touted as being as valuable as the majority–just that they are subjugated and attacked.

It seems that when it comes to our minds and bodies, we accept immutable facts, which we call science. This is why we have an educational system and physicians who treat ailments with proven remedies.

Yet when it comes to the realm of the emotional and the spiritual, we think there is a potpourri of options, subject to individual taste.

Here me carefully–if there is a science to our physiology and intellect, then believe you me, there is a science to our emotions and our soulful nature.

You can feel free to pursue philosophies and religious practices of your particular taste, but that does not make them truthful and scientific to our earth’s situation.

Everything that is emotionally and spiritually true in our world must contain three undeniable facts:

1. The Earth is our present heaven.

How we treat the earth, how we care for it, respect it, learn the ways of nature, and ultimately, how we conduct ourselves as citizens of this planet determines the true value of our belief system.

The test of your faith is not whether you believe in God, but whether you believe that if God gave you a heaven which was merely a continuation of your life on earth, would you be angry and disappointed, or joyful over the prospect of being able to continue and improve?

2. People are God’s children.

Any attempt made to harm humans, relegate them, destroy them, intimidate them, ignore them or cheat on them is contrary to the emotional and spiritual science of earth. That’s why Jesus told us that our focus should be on “the least of these” in our society, because in doing so we know we’ve covered all of God’s concerns for his offspring.

3. The kingdom of God is within you.

The true sign of passing the emotional and spiritual science test is realizing the need to take responsibility for your life and the world around you. Lying, blaming, retreating, self-pity and intimidation are all ways of escaping this simple statement: “if there is a kingdom of God, it is within me, and therefore it is up to me to manifest it.”

If your derivation of truth does not include these three ideas as supreme, I will tell you that you are following a false spirituality. You are chasing superstition and you are honoring the idea of faith without the works that keep it from being dead.

The populie is that there are many paths to truth. This notion just leaves us with a jumbled debate and accusations instead of a fluid belief in the beauty of earth, the power of people and the responsibility each one of us possesses.

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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Populie: Doesn’t nearly everyone watch porn? … March 19, 2014

Jonathots Daily Blog  

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Eleven years old and stuck on a Saturday afternoon at my aunt and uncle’s house, so bored that my brain was itching.

I made my way upstairs to their bedroom and began to look through their drawers–when suddenly I heard a scream from behind me. It was my mother in her fully enraged mode, scurrying in my direction, waving her finger.

“Stop looking in their drawers!”

I was so frustrated and angry about being put in this situation that I fired back, “What’s wrong with it? They won’t care!”

She paused for a moment, and then, in a more even tone, said, “I care. You’d better care. And they should care.”

I will never forget those words.

As I have sat quietly by for the past twenty years and watched America redefine the issue of pornography, entitling it “adult entertainment” and now donning it with the cute nomenclature of “porn,” I am not only appalled, but feel a sense of helplessness.

For after all, to some degree, in order to object I should have some intelligence on the issue, which means I should do a little investigation.

I have not.

I won’t.

It will probably leave you in disbelief when I say this, but I have never indulged in pornography. Only once–I sat at a friend’s house and rummaged through Playboy magazines for about three hours. Those images are still available in my mind, should I check them out from my upstairs library. After that, it just didn’t have any appeal.

The issue is difficult. If you find yourself opposed to porn, people will call you a prude, a moralist or ask you if you have any personal experience.

I’m not a prude. Anyone who spends five minutes with me will tell you that I am certainly relaxed on the issue of human sexuality.

And I’m not a moralist. I’m not judging those who participate or perform in such actions.

I’m not willing to go on an extensive study to try to prove my point.

But I will tell you–I think it is one of the more egregious POPULIE propagated in our society. Here’s what I believe about romance:

• There should be no pain, no humiliation, no domination and no rape.
• It should be filled with pleasure, appreciation, communication and agreement.

I see none of those positive elements in the pictures which are occasionally sent to me over the Internet by young women and men on Tumblr, which I quickly delete.

The fact that they are willing to do this to make money does not change the situation. We certainly would not have allowed slavery to continue in this country because Uncle Tom was comfortable at the Big House.

And we should likewise discourage men and women–but predominately females–from being subjugated just because they temporarily become comfortable with the oppression.

I know it’s not popular because the populie has permeated every facet of our society. I will tell you that over half of the ministers in this country–who probably have too much time on their hands–have fallen victim to pornography.

But I think the advice my mother gave me when I was such a snoop so many years ago still holds:

“Stop looking in people’s drawers.” 

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

Click here to get info on the “Gospel According to Common Sense” Tour

Please contact Jonathan’s agent, Jackie Barnett, at (615) 481-1474, for information about scheduling SpiriTed in 2014.