God's Plan

A Little Time Away.

I miss writing but it never hurts to take some time away. It isn’t as much about rest as it is about perspective. Sure, we all get tired out. We all need time to recharge. Still, sometimes we are ready and raring to go but where we are going isn’t always where God wants us to be. Even when we are headed in the right direction, how we perceive what God is doing can be through the eyes of our own desires. Other times we perceive what is happening to us as not of God because God wouldn’t allow that to happen. Then comes the hybrid version of both, the lie we sometimes tell ourselves; we were heading in the right direction but because something unexpected or unwanted happened, evil has derailed what was once God’s plan. Our eyes still can be blinded by our world view and our understanding of how God views our world.

(more…)

What is Church Really Supposed to Be?

There has been a remaking of church in my lifetime. While change is inevitable, all change is not necessary or good. I struggled with a concept that at one time I could have supported. I am unsure why I entertained this definition of the purpose of the church, but I am sure of one thing; the concept of what the church does, embraced by many Christians, is actually lazy Christianity.

(more…)

Everybody Needs a Little Jesus

A pinch of this, a dab of that, and I can be palatable to those who call themselves Christians and still be popular with those who do not identify in this way. A little Jesus will get me sober. A little Jesus will comfort me when I mess up. A little Jesus comes in handy when I need to feel that I am more than just me. A little Jesus means I can be what I am while claiming to be something more.

(more…)

The Good Old Days

Oh, the good old days when everything was perfect; how I long for the days of my youth when life was simpler and cheaper. Well, to be honest, one of the reasons life was simpler was because I didn’t know how much things cost because I didn’t have to buy them, which is part of the reason that life was simpler. Sunday was church day, Tuesday was laundry day for clothes and Thursday was laundry day for towels and sheets. Dinner was at 6 PM, lunch always at noon. All I had to do was put my dirty laundry in its place and it would show up clean, and respond to my parent’s call for food and it would show up on my plate. Oh, The good old days!

(more…)

Where Were You When…?

At first glance this could be a question you would ask of someone you were counting on during a difficult period of time. There is nothing worse than facing the things that life throws at us without the support of those who we feel we can count on. The tone of voice assigned to this question immediately exposes the degree of pain one has been forced to endure in what can be best described as isolation.

(more…)

What Happens When We Don’t Understand?

Lots of things happen and we try to understand. Some situations are predictable and therefore easy to understand. Others we can make sense of even if it is not the outcome we would normally expect. Then there are the situations far beyond what we would expect. I can, with some degree of accuracy, predict that a child with an upbringing that encourages questioning for the purpose of understanding and involves laughing together but never laughing at the child when the answer is obvious, will do well. Power dynamics in which the person perceived to have the power explains what is not understood in terms suited to the other person’s intellectual limitations and mental capacity will lead to a well-developed adult. If this continues through the teenage years, there is a higher degree of success for the maturing individual and a stronger relationship with all who pour into their lives but…

(more…)