The Real Battle

One of the countless amazing truths revealed in the Bible is that humans are not our enemy. Ephesians 6:12 asserts We do not contend against flesh and blood, but against rulers, against authorities, against the powers of this dark world, against spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.
When Jesus prayed from the Cross, "Father, forgive them, for they don't know what they are doing",  He was bringing this truth into focus. He knew that Judas, the Pharisees, and Roman soldiers were not his enemy. He knew that they had been deceived by the evil Prince of this World, Satan. They were victims--like we all have been, and to some degree still are. The "spiritual forces of evil" continue to use our human differences to deceive us into believing that those who are different from us are our enemies. Evil is indeed real. But those who practice it are deceived because it can never have a positive outcome. Evil is, by definition, destructive to both the perpetrator and the victim, but especially to the perpetrator. Jesus made it very clear to His followers that He was not a victim. "No man takes my life from me, I lay it down of my own accord." "I have overcome the world." He won the spiritual war because He was not overcome by fear or hatred. He loved to the end.
This is a very good way to understand life, even if you are an atheist. We war not against humans, but against aspects of our individual and collective personalities, false and destructive beliefs,  delusions, hatred of persons, greed, selfishness, avarice, malice, etc.  These are manifestations of our enemy. When we work to rid our own personalities of all that is not kind, faithful, and true; free, courageous and motivated by good will toward all, then we are fighting the right battles.
From the Christian perspective, we have Christ Himself, His very Holy Spirit, with us always to empower us on toward victory.
God please hasten the day when evil is eradicated from the new heavens and the new earth. And please keep on keeping my heart free from evil invasions; as You have designed my body to fight off the perpetual invasions of harmful organisms.

The Mind and God

Most of us are not even aware,  most of the time, that we have a mind. A mind. A mind!
It filters every life experience more thoroughly than the liver filters the blood. It determines the very quality of our everyday lives. And we tend to ignore it and let it do whatever it's doing.
But we can pay attention to it; and learn to control it somewhat. I can notice how my mind interprets and handles things. The "you" that can notice how your mind operates is a very, very important aspect of "you". It's the "you" that shapes the will.  It's the you that has the ability to connect with the God of this universe (or with the "Universe" if you're an atheist.) Or more correctly, it's the "you" that can discover your unending, inescapable connection to the Universe--to God. Where can one go to escape God/Universe? To ask the question "Is God, or is God Not?" issues from a place that is outside  what we might call the run-of-the-mill mind: what the zen master called the "Monkey Mind", only focused, as it swings through the forest, on the next vine or the next limb. When you realize that you have a mind you can do something with it. Otherwise, you are flowing in the river of your thoughts with no outside awareness of what is carrying you along---or where!

Meditate for a moment on the fact that we did not create, nor do we even understand our minds. Our mind is a gift that has been given to us. Think of all that has come out of the mind of man, the evil and the good. Think of all that is being manifested in the world because of where we focus, knowingly or unknowingly, our minds. What if we focused our minds on loving each other, as Christ has commanded us? What if this became a conscious process, transcending impulse and instinct? What if we came to understand that our enemy is not a human or group of humans, but rather certain aspects of our individual personalities; that, as one man said "The line that separates good from evil runs through the heart of every human being?" And that our main work in life is to overcome the darkness within our own self--that part of us that is not loving, and therefore not good?  What if we made that goal--loving people, being thankful, graceful, kind and generous, fair and responsible--our primary devotion in life? And then we were careful not to let ourselves get distracted for too long from that goal--that way of being.  Could we not then, at the end of our days on this earth, have a deep sense of peace about how we spent our lives? Could we not, indeed, walk in peace every day, knowing that we have found the true Pathway of Life? That there is absolutely no better way that we could be spending our life energy?
This is exactly what Jesus has commanded us. And He even promised to give us His Spirit--the Holy Spirit--to empower us to attain that goal; to transform not only our minds, but our hearts. If you can find a  better way of being in the world, for God's sake live it! But if you can not, in order to be truly honest, you should bow to Jesus, because He accomplished this.

The Phoenix and the Owl

The magnificent Phoenix bird, having lived a thousand years and now nearing the time of its demise and resurrection, having flown in the clear and pure atmosphere of the mountain heights, feeding on ambrosia and the finest grains of earth,

saw, with his clear jeweled eyes, far below, perched upon a stump, an owl with a decaying rat clutched in his talons.

Having compassion for the ignoble bird, the Phoenix swooped downward to invite him into the nobility of his birthright, the mountain heights and spring-fed streams.

The owl more tightly grasped his precious, putrid rat and screeched with threatening scowl.

The Phoenix sadly curved his flight upward, upward

Until even the owl's forest was a green patch on the distant low horizon.

Mark Graham 8/30/16

Far Away and Up Close

We are all more attractive and admirable from a distance than up close. It's easier to get along with someone if you don't live with them. "A prophet is not without honor except in his own household." Jesus, Matthew 13:57

Bonhoeffer quote (Grace)

" It is by the grace of God that a congregation is permitted to gather visibly in this world to share God’s Word and sacrament. Not all Christians receive this blessing. The imprisoned, the sick, the scattered lonely, the proclaimers of the Gospel in heathen lands stand alone. They know that visible fellowship is a blessing. They remember, as the Psalmist did, how they went ‘with the multitude . . . to the house of God, with the voice of joy and praise, with a multitude that kept holy day” (Ps. 42:4) … Therefore, let him who until now has had the privilege of living in common Christian life with other Christians praise God’s grace from the bottom of his heart. Let him thank God on his knees and declare: It is grace, nothing but grace, that we are allowed to live in community with Christian brethren."
--Dietrich Bonhoeffer, from Life Together

Politics and Violence

When Jesus was born, Herod was the king of the Jews [their "president"]. He was so evil that Augustus said that his pigs were safer than his children (because his children potentially threatened his power.) In the Second Chapter of the Gospel of Luke we read about him. When the Magi traveled through Jerusalem, following the star that was leading them to what they had come to understand was the birth of a King, Herod said "Let me know when you find him so I can come and worship him also." His true intent was to murder him. Politics has always had a gruesome side--like life itself. Evil is real; and no arena of life is able to shut it out. Only the heart that has been redeemed and enlightened by the Christ (Who was protected by Divine intervention from the evil intent of Herod and Who has shown us the Way of Truth) can be perpetually protected from evil. This is true becasue we know, through Christ, that the Way of Life is the Way of Love--the Love that He manifested to the human family, and that He makes available to all who "seek, ask and knock".  Only to the degree that we are motivated by this Love are we free from the ravages and control of evil. His ultimate freedom was evident in His prayer from the Cross: "Father forgive them, for they don't know what they are doing." He was still loving! Nothing--not the hatred, mockery, cruelty, false accusations, abandonment, betrayal, physical torture or being nailed to a Cross and left to die--nothing could penetrate His soul of Love for the human family. And what a victory! Even today, on the streets of our violence-torn cities, divided by prejudice, fear and anger, those who are speaking with the clearest and most healing voices are speaking the language of Jesus the Christ. "Love one another! We're all God's children! Pray for one another! We got to stop killin' each other! Stop this violence! Stop it!" Martin Luther King, Jr., that Baptist preacher, knew that violence could never win the day. He was immersed in Jesus' teachings. Preached them repeatedly from the pulpit. Jesus has solved the problem of violence for all who hear and heed His voice: "You have always been taught to love your neighbor and hate your enemies, but I say to you, Love your enemies; bless those who curse you; do good to those who hate you; and pray for those who despitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be the children of your Father in heaven." Mt. 5:44.  Remember: He not only spoke those words, He lived the reality of them!
Until we get to this place of heart and mind, all our solutions will be temproary and restrictive in nature.No politician can redeem the hearts of humans; and no military or police force can totally block evil. Education does not provide spiritual enlightenment. (Hitler was educated and intelligent!)
The solution to our social diseases will not be found in politics, law enforcement or education. These are only helpful to the degree that they are being enacted in a social climate of humans who have been and are being enlightened by the Spirit of Jesus Christ. All other goals and motives are distractions or palliative at best.
In America we have had an unprecedented opportunity to be a "Light on a hill" to the rest of the world; not by proclaiming ourselves to be better, more powerful or more righteous than other peoples, but by taking responsibility for the freedom that we have been given by "Divine Providence" (as our Founding Fathers clearly understood) and using it for the benefit of humankind. Not by selfishly grasping for more and more "rights" or sinking into a quagmire of hedonistic pleasure; but by practicing the spiritual disciplines that are a pathway to and manifestation of the only true freedom that exists: the freedom of the soul that Jesus expressly provides. ("I come to set at liberty those who are oppressed.") We still have this opportunity! But now, as always, the evils of fear and hatred threaten it. Fear and hatred are parasitical, draining away the life-force of Love. And Jesus delivers us from them! I beg you, as one who loves America and desires her to become what God has given her the potential of becoming, join the enduring revolution! Recognize the Lordship of Jesus! I challenge you to try to find a purer, more enlightened pathway than the one He walked and taught. If you can, walk in it! But if you can't, then why waste your time on anything less? Work on behalf of the Christian Faith. Support those who propagate the Gospel of peace around the world. This would be an enlightened thing for even an atheist to do, since the Christian faith infuses any society (like "salt" and "yeast") with freedom and life-enhancing qualities that are good for all--not just Christians.  And when the general population of any nation is predominantly enlightened by Christ, there is peace and harmony among the people. Jesus said, "They will know that you are my disciples by the love that you have for each other."
Please God! This is how we want to be known! May the world see America as a nation of people who sincerely love each other; and who also love the entire human family.
"Unless the LORD builds the house, those who build it labor in vain. Unless the LORD watches over the city, the watchman stays awake in vain" (Psalm 127:1).

Dinesh D'Souza: Conservative Politics

Below is a link to a speech given to Young American Force. His knowledge of American politics is broad and deep. A good listen.
I hope you will see his movie "Hillary's America..." opening Jul. 22

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D7hM1-amF44