Can We Believe Anything We Want?

Can we believe anything we want? If we can, then we are the creator of our belief. If each one of us who is not perfect by any means created whatever belief we wanted in order to order our world, then we claim ourselves as the final authority. Let's look at this logically.

All humans have their own personal beliefs.
All Humans are not perfect nor eternal.
Thus, all human beliefs are not perfect nor eternal.

If we can believe anything we want, then why just limit our subjective beliefs to religion? Why not apply them to other disciplines like mathmatics. Perhaps I choose to believe that 2+2=16 rather than 4. What would happen to my checkbook if I maintained this belief? Religious beliefs are the same way. It does matter how we believe. And who, what and where is our authority in determining our right beliefs?

We, humans are not perfect nor did we make ourselves. Hence, we must seek the knowledge of the one true God as revealed in the person of Jesus Christ!

The Essence of Prayer

So often when we pray, we present to God what we want. But think about it! We are not God and what we want may not be God's will! We can pray for ourselves but we must have an honest assesment of what we need and what God is willing to provide! Read the Lord's prayer carefully. We ask God's kingdom to come and HIS will be done! Hence, the the Lord's prayer is prayer at its essence!

Idolatry

Do we still worship idols? The answer is yes, based on the fruits of idolatry! When we worship something we reflect that something in our lives. By worshipping the true God, we will eventually grow reflecting His true glory in our lives! If we worship idols that are false, we become as false as they are! (2 Kings 17:15)



 ¹⁶ So I tell you: Live by following the Spirit. Then you will not do what your sinful selves want.¹⁷ Our sinful selves want what is against the Spirit, and the Spirit wants what is against our sinful selves. The two are against each other, so you cannot do just what you please.¹⁸ But if the Spirit is leading you, you are not under the law.

 ¹⁹ The wrong things the sinful self does are clear: being sexually unfaithful, not being pure, taking part in sexual sins,²⁰ worshiping gods, doing witchcraft, hating, making trouble, being jealous, being angry, being selfish, making people angry with each other, causing divisions among people,²¹ feeling envy, being drunk, having wild and wasteful parties, and doing other things like these. I warn you now as I warned you before: Those who do these things will not inherit God's kingdom.²² But the Spirit produces the fruit of love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,²³ gentleness, self-control. There is no law that says these things are wrong.²⁴ Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified their own sinful selves. They have given up their old selfish feelings and the evil things they wanted to do.²⁵ We get our new life from the Spirit, so we should follow the Spirit.²⁶ We must not be proud or make trouble with each other or be jealous of each other. (Galatians 5:16-26, New Century Version)

Seeing our Shadow on Candlemas

It is the middle of winter and all eyes are fixed on the ground hog. Will he see his shadow? It is also the Feast of the Presentation of our Lord commemorating the time Mary brought Jesus to the temple to dedicate Him as her first born and to purify herself. (Luke 2:22-40)

This day is often called Candlemas as it was once a time when the faithful brought their household candles to the priest for a blessing as a reminder that in the dark days of winter when candles were not taken for granted we should not take the true light of Christ for granted as He is the One who lightens our darkness. But more people on this cold winter day are wondering how much longer winter will be. Will the ground hog see his shadow?

We, too, have a shadow. It is that part of our soul we deny. More often than not, we see our shadow in others before we see it in ourselves. We call this projection. Christianity is not just a historical religion about a good man who did miracles and died on a cross. It is about Jesus in the here and now transforming our soul. He lightens our darkness. He helps us to see our shadow, that log in our eye that blinds us, so that we are grounded before we can ever attempt to remove what is only a speck in someone else's eye! Part of our interior journey as Christians is to love that part of ourselves we hate, our shadow.

How often have we heard someone criticize another with the words, "He's afraid of his own shadow."? There is some truth in being afraid of our own shadow. If we do not let Christ shine His light on our shadow, we will be in danger of letting that dark part of ourselves come out in unhealthy ways. Christ wants us to see what our loving Father sees. Only in this way can we be reconciled with all parts of ourselves. Our nighttime dreams often play this drama out!

By getting in touch with those parts of our soul we find unseemly, we can best let Jesus use us for His Kingdom. Christian social activists will point to Matthew 25:31-46 as a command from our Lord to serve the poor and incarcerated. There is no command in this text, only judgement! We are told by the King what we have already done or not done. By getting in touch with the parts of ourselves that we fear, the beggar, the criminal, the pathetic, can we see what Jesus already sees. It is only in this way can we see ourselves in others to be of any service to them. As we move toward wholeness, we can help others do the same. Jesus' light shines in our darkness. When we do not see the light, we may well ask Christ, "But, when did we see you naked, lonely, thirsty or in prison?"

Let Jesus shine the light on our shadow. When we do this, more often than not, someone won't be able to get our goat!

For more on the Shadow in psychology, go here http://psychology.suite101.com/article.cfm/what_is_the_shadow

The Immediacy of Giving Thanks

Always be joyful. Never stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you who belong to Christ Jesus. (I Thessalonians 5:16-18 NLT)

St. Paul did not equivocate when it came to being thankful. But how can we be thankful in all circumstances? How can we be joyful? Are not my feelings beyond my control? Think of the last time someone pulled out in front of you in traffic? How can I be thankful if I have just been laid off from work? I have a family to feed, bills to pay, etc. These are big picture items that consume much of our lives. But we get lost in the big picture because we do not know where we are to begin with.

Where we are at this very present moment is where we are. The past has happened and we must let go of any regrets. The future has yet to come and so there is no need to be anxious. Jesus said this to us in His Sermon on the Mount (Mt. 6:34) But the truth of His Word needs to be experienced. This journey begins with the immediate NOW! This is where God is and where we must be to be covered by His Word!

Find a quiet place so that you may "be still and know the Lord". (Psalm 46:10) Take a simple object into your hand or look upon something like a flower. It can be something mundane like a coffee cup. Focus on the coffee cup. Feel the texture. How does it feel? Look at the design. How would you describe the design? Be slow and deliberate. Now think of the journey that coffee cup made from the designers to the engineers to the marketplace all the way into your hands now! Do not gloss over any detail. Now speak to God in Heaven giving thanks for all these things that make up the mundane coffee cup. Identify the joy that you find in this coffee cup. Thank God again for what He has shown you to be thankful in this very moment. You will notice the past was of no consequence in this moment and there was so much presence in the coffee cup that tomorrow had no demand on you. Practice this exercise daily and several times a day wherever you are. By doing so you will catch up to God where He is, in the present moment. For it is this moment, the present, that is the only circumstance at hand! Everything else will become inconsequential!