slather in poetry...

i will slather you

in poetry,

pirouette

into things

more carnal

and

slip

into the intuitive,

intellectual

and instinctive.

J. Grant Swank, Jr.

Don’t you just love Adam?

After all, who lately has made such an adieu about cuddle this and kissing that? A pinch here, a fondle there.

Now that America is under hate crime watch, is loving Adam Lambert a hate crime? I was pondering that this evening when reading all about ABC zapping him for their “Good Morning America” bit.

The whole problem is this: So you love Adam Lambert. Does that mean that you hate God?

Adam Lambert is telecasting that he is an out-o-the-closet kind of person. And he proves it on stage by kissing an onstage male entertainer—impromptu, so who can judge him for doing what his drives tell him what to do?

More than that, he leads around stage fellow males on leashes. Now if that’s not anti-Petticoat Junction, I don’t know what is.

But the quandary is this: Adam Lambert does this kind of mix-up and gets cancelled on one major network while picked up on another. He’s got thousands of Americans phoning in to television execs complaining about his capers. He’s got interviews with reporters, whining he’s sorry if his lifestyle stuffs it in people’s faces.

Then he persists in romping around while screaming out a screech and smashing a male’s head in his crotch.

Now is loving Adam Lambert a hate crime? Because I read in the Bible that doing that kind of thing as a male to male is repulsive to biblical deity. And so if it is that basic a madness, then perhaps Adam Lambert is putting his signature to a hate crime.

I mean by that that God hates his display because it is sin.

Of course, everyone who knows a smidgen about the Bible knows that the God of the Book forgives a genuinely repentant soul. So if Adam Lambert sincerely confessed his whatevers to God, God would bestow mercy. Note: it would have to be sincere; that is, to “go and sin no more,” as Jesus told the woman caught in adultery.

However, of course, I am not at all leaning in the direction of Adam Lambert running to the confessional for at this juncture in his young life he is making a lot of money and fuss over his carnal flips. He’s got a lot of people yakking pro and con. That makes for a star slot in some individuals’ opinions.

But back to the main point: Is loving Adam Lambert a hate crime? That is, is loving Adam Lambert equal to his committing a hate crime. Maybe I should have put it that way at the outset.

In any case, it is a serious matter. For if one Adam Lambert is committing a hate crime in God’s estimation then it would behoove him to weigh his present spotlight in nastiness with what lays ahead eternally.

What say you?

A veces pienso cual es la razón por la cual un hombre comienza a hablar con una mujer… Creo que he llegado a una conclusión: para sacar algo (al menos la mayoría, estoy casi seguro de que no me equivoco…)

Vivimos en una sociedad globalizada y, según entiendo, una mujer bonita es, bueno todos sabemos . Bueno, la razón no es mas que para sacar algo y, si no conseguimos nada, nos quedamos como amigos, aunque al final le saquemos los pies…

Si, los hombres somos así de superficiales… Increíble, no puedo creer que seamos TAN carnales.

Pero nada, creo que eso es lo que nos hace “especiales”.

Esto francamente me decepciona, puesto que no puedo creer que muchas personas solamente busquen sexo e ignoren algo bastante interesante: entablar una amistad… A veces somos tan superficiales que me impresiona…

Debemos re analizar nuestros valores, porque, como va la cosa, vamos de mal en peor; cada vez vamos olvidando que la humildad nos hace humanos, que la superficialidad nos deshumaniza…

Que sociedad la nuestra…

A veces pienso cual es la razón por la cual un hombre comienza a hablar con una mujer… Creo que he llegado a una conclusión: para sacar algo (al menos la mayoría, estoy casi seguro de que no me equivoco…)

Vivimos en una sociedad globalizada y, según entiendo, una mujer bonita es, bueno todos sabemos . Bueno, la razón no es mas que para sacar algo y, si no conseguimos nada, nos quedamos como amigos, aunque al final le saquemos los pies…

Si, los hombres somos así de superficiales… Increíble, no puedo creer que seamos TAN carnales.

Pero nada, creo que eso es lo que nos hace “especiales”.

Para começar segue o depoimento de um corno(pra dar algumas risadas):

Afinal, quem disser que nunca foi corno, é porque ou ainda não ficou sabendo ou nunca teve algo um pouco mais sério com alguém. Como dizem: só não é corno quem não pega ninguém!

Eu já fui corno e assumo, e também já chifrei assim como ajudei a chifrarem. E posso ser sincero?! É muito bom ser o OUTRO. Não digo que saio por aí atrás de mulheres que tem namorado, pois isso seria ridículo, porém quando acontece, simplesmente acontece. Assim como a Gah já falou em um outro post, a real culpa de trair não está no OUTRO, mas sim na pessoa que namora, e eu, não tenho nada a ver com o namorado que não dá a assistência necessária!

Sabe por que é bom ser o OUTRO?! Porque você não precisa ligar no outro dia, você não precisa ficar mandando SMS ou coisas do tipo, sendo o OUTRO, a coisa se torna apenas carnal(havendo sexo ou não); não há DR(discussão de relacionamento), não tem que levar pra jantar, não tem nada disso, é tudo prático, o OUTRO só entra na parte boa do negócio! E além de tudo isso, a adrenalina de fazer as coisas escondidas, sem ninguém saber é MUITO BOM!

O problema de ser o OUTRO é quando os sentimentos começam a mudar e aflorar, aí meu amigo, CAIA FORA! Na hora que a mulher começar a falar que vai largar o namorado(marido, ou qualquer coisa do tipo), as coisas vão piorar pro seu lado e aí crises de ciúme podem começar a aparecer, e se você não for bom pra enrolar ela, FODEU! Se é você que está começando a ter sentimentos pela mulher(que tem namorado) é pior ainda, pois vai te trazer um certo sofrimento, se ela não quiser largar dele, e consequentemente, você vai acabar perdendo a sua marmita(acho que me entenderam né?!).

Se você tem uma amante, ou se você é o amante de alguém, tenha sempre na cabeça que “você não gosta de ninguém, é tudo carnal”! Aproveite, ultrapasse limites, aprenda coisas novas sem medo, afinal, ninguém vai ficar sabendo(a não ser que você seja idiota de deixar os outros descobrirem).

E fica a dica: se você for corno, cabeça pra cima(mas cuidado para não sair batendo o chifre por aí, haha), siga sua vida adiante, mande a namorada à merda, e saia por aí praticando o desapego. Não fique se lamentando ou tentando entender o que aconteceu de errado, quem chifra uma vez, com certeza, vai chifrar de novo. Eu não conheço nenhum ex-corno!

E lembre-se: esse negócio de chifre não existe, é apenas algo que colocaram na sua cabeça!

by Samuca

1 Corinthians 3:1

And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ.

As believers we are a different people, actually Titus 2:14 says that we are peculiar people, so what does this mean?  We are not to live in the flesh but instead we are to be sanctified and set apart from the world.  Paul is trying to teach the saints at Corinth some doctrine but he tells them that they are not spiritual.  So the opposite of being spiritual is being carnal which means they are fleshly or living in the flesh.  We are not to live in the flesh like the world but we are to live and walk in the Spirit.  The apostle Paul sees those in the flesh as those who are babes in Christ, not a mature saint.  The only way that we can “grow up” spiritually is to read and study the word of God.  Going to church one day a week just is not going to cut it.  So try to spend at least 5 minutes in God’s word on a daily basis and you will no longer be a carnal babe but a spiritual saint.

Rejoicing in Grace,
Keith

2 Cor 5:14-15

www.richesofgrace.com

i’ve got a swing in my step
it forced blood from my head  
now my ego has drifted to sleep

all thoughts have dried up
the candle has tipped, now
roof burns like dried up reeds

when the framework falls in
with only skeletons left
i think in the basement i’ll be

finding myself, in id’s selfish arms
so careless and reckless, untamed
i’ll believe i might finally be free

Romans 8:6

For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

The word carnal means flesh so to be carnally minded means that we are thinking in the flesh or worldly.  The result or what we deserve is death, but what kind of death are we talking about?  This death is not a physical death which means that God is not punishing us because we don’t live the way we use to.   The death is not the second death that happens when unbelievers are thrown into the lake of fire.  The death in this verse is talking about our practical spiritual life that is no longer functioning the way that it ought to– our Christian life is dead. But to be spiritually minded is to be thinking about spiritual things, heavenly things, thinking on the word of God.  When we do this the natural result is that our Christian life emits Christ’s life and people can see Christ living in us.  We also have peace, this doesn’t mean that everything is going great in our life and we have no problems but instead no matter what is going on, we have the peace of God.  So as you walk and live your Christian life, be spiritually minded to have life instead of having a fleshly mind that brings forth death.

Rejoicing in Grace,
Keith

2 Cor 5:14-15

www.richesofgrace.com

Você deve estar se perguntando o que seria Praticar o Desapego, o que queremos com isso e por que queremos difundir essa “filosofia”.

Primeiramente, para saber como Praticar o Desapego você deve ler os nosso 10 Mandamentos que estão listados em um link exclusivo aqui no topo do blog.

Agora vamos ao que queremos:

• Queremos ir pra balada, bares e etc sem ter que nos preocupar, sem ter que dar satisfação a namoradas ou namorados.
• Queremos poder nos apaixonar por apenas uma noite e perceber depois que não amamos ninguém, é tudo carnal.
• Queremos poder sair com mais de uma pessoa simultaneamente, escondidos ou não.
• Queremos curtir a vida solteiros, mas nunca sozinhos, pois ninguém é feliz sozinho.
• Queremos desejar a mulher/homem dos outros, pois desejar não tira pedaço, porém se der mole caímos em cima. Não ligamos de formar cornos e cornas por aí. Algum dia todo mundo levará um chifre.
• Queremos estimular nossa auto-estima, pois não há alvos impossíveis, tudo depende de como chegar e levar a situação, por mais inóspita que possa ser.
• Queremos ser felizes acima de tudo.

E por que estamos divulgando tudo isso?! A resposta é simples: todos nós já sofremos por algo que dizem ser amor e agora vemos que podemos ser muito felizes solteiros. Não somos contra namoros ou casamentos ou coisas do tipo, somos contra relacionamentos prematuros, relacionamentos que têm forte potencial de trazer tristeza pra vida das pessoas, o que acaba sendo uma grande parte deles. Queremos com nossas histórias, textos, músicas ou o que quer que seja, trazer pra vocês algumas risadas e experiências de vida que podem vir a serem úteis na vida de cada um.

E você, pense a respeito, faça parte de nossa “filosofia”… Deixe seu comentário, história, dica, etc… Leitores que quiserem nos mandar textos para publicarmos aqui é só entrar em contato por email.

Poti sa zdrobesti un moment

Poti sa schingiui un sentiment

Poti sa amputezi dorinte

Dar nu poti sa omori un suflet

Bea din sangele fierbinte al vietii, curge in noi

Simte agonia, traieste extazul

Dar nu poti sa nasti un suflet

Amor carnal pagan

Infige-l in tine

Pironeste la stalpul infamiei

Dar nu poti sa judeci un suflet

DE CE SCRIEM POEZII?DE CE FACEM POZE?

Cautam…ce? nimic pe cine? pe noi!

Nu vom gasi niciodata CINE suntem, CE vrem si CUM simtim

Dar nu incerca sa nu  incerci sa afli

De ce scriem poezii? De ce facem poze?

Ca sa fugim de sfarsit

Al cui?

Al nostru!

Intre CARNE si SUFLET suntem noi!

and goat’s cheese, if your going all out.

This is an extemely fancy sandwich. It also looks very pretty and even contains a food that I can’t pronounce or spell very well, but am very good at eating.

You need:

..and..

…and maybe a….

To make:

1. You can pickle your own beetroot but it’s a lot more work for not much more delicious so I suggest just dumping a load of balsamic vinegar on those precooked ones you get places.
2. If you do be picklin’ your own ‘root don’t wash carefully and put in boiling water for about an hour (and a half, if your beet is large).
3. Once cooked the skin will rub off easily enough and you can top and tail them. Leave to cool and marinate in vineagar and olive oil in jar. This will keep for a very long time if you keep it in the fridge but the oil will solidify and look turbo-gross, so take it out an hour before you need it.
4. If you DO decide to cook your own beets be careful not to break the skin when you wash them because they’ll bleed when you try to cook them, which is distressing, and if the juice gets anywhere near you it will stain forever and ever and ever.
5. Then just slice your beetroot and place between ciabatta with a couple of slices of ham and rocket (and goats cheese, if your feelin’ racy) look, smell, caress, eat.

Enquanto vivemos neste mundo, não podemos estar sem trabalhos e tentações. Por isso lemos no livro de Jó (7,1): É um combate a vida do homem sobre a terra. Cada qual, pois, deve estar acautelado contra as tentações, mediante a vigilância e a oração, para não dar azo às ilusões do demônio, que nunca dorme, mas anda por toda parte em busca de quem possa devorar (1 Pdr 5,8) . Ninguém há tão perfeito e santo, que não tenha, às vezes, tentações, e não podemos ser delas totalmente isentos.

São, todavia, utilíssimas ao homem as tentações, posto que sejam molestas e graves, porque nos humilham, purificam e instruem. Todos os santos passaram por muitas tribulações e tentações, e com elas aproveitaram; aqueles, porém, que não as puderam suportar foram reprovados e pereceram. Não há Ordem tão santa nem lugar tão retirado, em que não haja tentações e adversidades.

Nenhum homem está totalmente livre das tentações, enquanto vive, porque em nós mesmos está a causa donde procedem: a concupiscência em que nascemos. Mal acaba uma tentação ou tribulação, outra sobrevém, e sempre teremos que sofrer, porque perdemos o dom da primitiva felicidade. Muitos procuram fugir às tentações, e outras piores encontram. Não basta a fuga para vencê-las; é pela paciência e verdadeira humildade que nos tornamos mais fortes que todos os nossos inimigos.

Pouco adianta quem somente evita as ocasiões exteriores, sem arrancar as raízes; antes lhe voltarão mais depressa as tentações, e se achará pior. Vencê-las-á melhor com o auxílio de Deus, a pouco e pouco com paciência e resignação, que com importuna violência e esforço próprio. Toma a miúdo conselho na tentação e não sejas desabrido e áspero para o que é tentado, trata antes de o consolar, como desejas ser consolado.

O princípio de todas a más tentações é a inconstância do espírito e a pouca confiança em Deus; pois, assim como as ondas lançam de uma parte a outra o navio sem leme, assim as tentações combatem o homem descuidado e inconstante em seus propósitos. O ferro é provado pelo fogo, e o justo pela tentação. Ignoramos muitas vezes o que podemos, mas a tentação manifesta o que somos. Todavia, devemos vigiar, principalmente no princípio da tentação; porque mais fácil nos será vencer o inimigo, quando não o deixarmos entrar na alma, enfrentando-o logo que bater no limiar. Por isso disse alguém: Resiste desde o princípio, que vem tarde o remédio, quando cresceu o mal com a muita demora (Ovídio). Porque primeiro ocorre à mente um simples pensamento, donde nasce a importuna imaginação, depois o deleite, o movimento; e assim, pouco a pouco, entra de todo na alma o malvado inimigo. E quanto mais alguém for indolente em lhe resistir, tanto mais fraco se tornará cada dia, e mais forte o seu adversário.

Uns padecem maiores tentações no começo de sua conversão, outros, no fim; outros por quase toda a vida são molestados por elas. Alguns são tentados levemente, segundo a sabedoria da divina Providência, que pondera as circunstâncias e o merecimento dos homens, e tudo predispõe para a salvação de seus eleitos.

Por isso não devemos desesperar, quando somos tentados; mas até, com maior fervor, pedir a Deus que se digne ajudar-nos em toda provação, pois que, no dizer de S. Paulo, nos dará graça suficiente na tentação para que a possamos vencer (1 Cor 10,13). Humilhemos, portanto, nossas almas, debaixo da mão de Deus, em qualquer tentação e tribulação porque ele há de salvar e engrandecer os que são humildes de coração.

Nas tentações e adversidades se vê quanto cada um tem aproveitado; nelas consiste o maior merecimento e se patenteia melhor a virtude. Não é lá grande coisa ser o homem devoto e fervoroso quando tudo lhe corre bem; mas, se no tempo da adversidade conserva a paciência, pode-se esperar grande progresso. Alguns há que vencem as grandes tentações e, nas pequenas, caem freqüentemente, para que, humilhados, não presumam de si grandes coisas, visto que com tão pequenas sucumbem.

(Thomas Kempis)

Let us remember the verdict of the Jerusalem council of Acts 15 where the Jewish Christians decided the guidelines for sanctification and holy living for Gentile Christians. Consider this verse:

“That ye abstain from meats offered to idols, and from blood, and from things strangled, and from fornication: from which if ye keep yourselves, ye shall do well. Fare ye well.”

Now consider this nugget from an article on the movie “Good Hair“:

” … the movie, “Good Hair” … details the lengths to which some black women and men will go for straight hair … from a hair salon where a 6-year-old maintains a stiff upper lip as a chemical relaxer sits on her scalp, to the temples of India where the hair women sacrifice in a religious ceremony is swept up, sent to factories and exported as weave“

Of course, I know the difference between eating something and putting it in your hair. I also know that Paul liberated this principle from being made into legalism in 1 Corinthians 8. However, allow me to propose this:  humans generally need to eat meat in order to be healthy. So, if there was a choice between damaging your health by doing all that one possibly can to obey Acts 15:29 and thus becoming malnourished or eating meat and being healthy, Paul said to eat meat. Also the context of 1 Corinthians 8 is that the meat that had been offered to idols was then mixed and sold with all the other meat, and it was impossible to tell which meat was which.

So while Acts 15:29 made it unlawful to KNOWINGLY eat meat offered to idols – which is practicing idolatry – UNKNOWINGLY eating meat offered to idols was not idolatry and thereby harmless. The reason is that the prohibition is not on the meat itself, which was fine, but rather the idolatry, which is sin. So this was not  a choice between being an idolater and not being an idolater. Instead, it was a choice between not APPEARING to be an idolater and being malnourished, or APPEARING to be an idolater and being healthy. Paul’s reasoning was that appearances don’t matter, only the heart does, so go ahead, buy your meat at the market with no worries as to whether it was offered to idols or not – because it was impossible to tell – and eat it.

However, where meat serves a vital human need, I would argue that hair weave does not. It is entirely cosmetic. So even though it may be lawful, is it nonetheless expedient (1 Corinthians 6:12) for a Christian woman to adorn herself with hair offered to idols? Is such a thing edifying (1 Corinthians 10:23)? Is hair offered to idols and then sold for a price an appropriate covering (1 Corinthians 11:15) for the body of a Christian woman, seeing that such a body is the temple of the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 6:19) as opposed to a pagan temple filled with idols? And is acquiring and wearing costly weave that has been offered to idols a way of keeping 1 Timothy 2:9-10?

In like manner also, that women adorn themselves in modest apparel, with shamefacedness and sobriety; not with broided hair, or gold, or pearls, or costly array; But (which becometh women professing godliness) with good works.

Now of course I am not going to claim that it is a sin for Christian women to use weave because it MIGHT contain hair offered to idols. Not only would I be guilty of violating 1 Corinthians in saying such a thing, but I would not even be able to rely on the literal interpretation of Acts 15 or Exodus 20:3-4 (the passages concerning idolatry specifically and practicing false religions – which includes participating in their rites and ceremonies – in general). Instead, I am just providing more information for Christian women (and men) to consider in our efforts to make better, more Christ-honoring decisions. After all, where does the idea to go out and put weave in your hair come from? Or the idea that we have to look a certain way come from? Generally the media, Hollywood, mass entertainment, Madison Avenue (commercials), and what have you. They sell you an image of beauty that is not real. I am not merely referring to this image because so much of it is literally fake, whether the product of airbrushing, lighting, cosmetic surgery, photo editing etc. but because it takes our minds and hearts away from the true beauty that is Jesus Christ that is revealed through us through the wonderful works of His creation (Romans 1) and causes us to exchange it for a lie, an image conceived not in God’s mind or made by God’s hands but rather created by man’s hands and conceived in his sinful, corrupt rebellious minds. And what are images conceived and made by man? Merely idols.

So the real issue is not that the hair MAY HAVE BEEN offered to some idol in some Hindu temple. The issue is that your DESIRE to use weave – wherever its origin – probably comes from looking at magazines, watching television, coming up with some false image of beauty that you desire. So, the false idol that is the problem is not in some temple in India, but rather is inside the temple of your own heart! And these false images and idols promoting a perverted, corrupted sense of beauty and attractiveness in the media have only two real purposes. The first is mammon, money. I fear continuing to sound like a leftist or socialist, but the fact is that these images are disseminated to cause you to buy the magazines that contain them, which contain still more images that cause you to want to buy the makeup, hair products, clothes etc. that make the magazine publishers a lot of money.

The second reason, make no mistake, is to challenge and attack Biblical notions of modesty, decency and sexuality. Most of the publications, TV shows, movies etc. that endlessly present these images also ceaselessly mock anything resembling notions of Biblical purity, including but not limited to marital fidelity. Even if they don’t directly attack it, they undermine it with the lie that a man and wife can sit and look at that junk 24/7 without either A) being tempted to stray (adultery) or B) fantasizing (which is also adultery Matthew 5:28), or similarly that our children can watch it without either being tempted to commit fornication or fantasizing about it. So similar to my challenge regarding tattoos, the issue is not whether weave is permissible according to scripture, but whether the motivation to get a weave is Christ-honoring in the first place.

That said, there may be many motivations for getting hair weaves that are completely legitimate, i.e. totally unrelated to wanting to look like the female vampires in these soft-core pornographic magazines and music videos. Some women may state that their husbands like the way that it looks. Others may profess that it is a look that they prefer for themselves. Others still assert that in their work environments (office or professional jobs, etc.) they must maintain a professional appearance. Again, I am in no sense asserting this to be some sort of law that has any bearing on anyone’s salvation, justification, sanctification or consecration. There are also many who may perceive me to be just totally off base, tilting at windmills and causing unnecessary division and confusion (stumblingblocks as it were) when I should focus only on Jesus Christ and Him crucified, risen, and will one day return. To such people, I apologize in advance, and please know that it is not my intent. Instead, my reason for dealing with this topic is this Biblical one: Christians, beware of and be separate from the world and things in it, whether it be its mindsets, its desires … or its idols. After all, we only have to look at the world of televangelism. Paula White, Medina Pullings, and many others are counted among those who market their own appearance, and tie it into their false health/wealth/family prosperity gospel doctrine. Jan Crouch, Juanita Bynum and Cathy DuPlantis are just among the many who proudly declare that they have had cosmetic surgery (or surgeries)! Extend it a little further and we have professed evangelical Christians Carrie Prejean’s lingerie modeling (and plastic surgery), Heidi Montag’s Playboy modeling, and Miley Cyrus pole dancing, all done for a little bit of fame and fortune that even were it to last 1000 years would be a mere flicker of an instant in the eternity that we will either spend with Jesus Christ in New Jerusalem or in the outer darkness where the worm never dies, the fire is never quenched, and there is wailing and gnashing of teeth. Again, the issue is not the weave, but the heart and where it lies.

However, for people who are considering the issues raised in this post, allow me to refer you to an expert on the topic by following the link below:

I’m a natural systah

Also, for those who may be wondering what all of this is about to begin with, please play the video below.

vom fi într-o zi victorioși

atunci timpul se va opri

și din sînge ne va curge beragata

ei nu ne vor băga în seamă

noi ne vom încărca armele

și vom trage spre ei cu uraniu

gîndurile ne vor fi arse

imaginile se vor distorsiona în apă

și în oceane de gheață vom pluti

acordurile îndepărtate ale măștilor

ghene de puroi și var

și zăpada e neagră de amar

bulele ei perene de pe pene

stropi de silă în valurile anemice

și glandele-i stoarse de mortar

pandemie fără reguli ca hienele

repulsiv vă porționez cu toporul

și înghit vesel membrele și viitorul

When I awoke, it was to no realization…no thought.

I was alone, sitting on a bed, staring at my hands…the floor, beyond them. All was a brilliant and spotless white…the ceramics on the floor, the walls and baseboards, the sheets under my soft pajama pants…the socks on my feet…my forearms and hands. A room, spartan…bare. Myself…a bed…a pillow. I reached to my right, slipped my hand beneath that crisp bag of feathers…and found my Sig.

I stood up and walked around the end of the bed, to the window…checking the chamber and checking…the chamber. A glint of brass, an oily click. Just a room, like a hundred million others. No framed pictures, no color, at all…long, white curtains…the coolness of the floor. The darkness in my right hand.

I pulled the curtains back…my eyes blinded, slits in the sun…and I saw…a woman. She was seated in a chair at a linen covered table, not ten feet away…and her smile, as she looked into my eyes…was radiant. The sort of visage one might find in Argentina or that rare flower which can be found in Bolivia. She held a toddler in her lap…a pink dress, bow in her short, chestnut hair…laughing. She leaned forward in her mothers’ arms…blowing out the single candle…on a cake which matched her dress. The child looked at me…and seemed to squeal with joy. I hid that which was in my hand, behind me, cold against my lower back as I secured it…and then, she looked away, distracted by the rainbow of gifts around her. There had never been a sound, but that of my own breathing. I felt nothing…recognized no one at the table, no one in the crowd which stood behind. No other seemed to take notice of me. I looked into the face of the woman, again…and for a moment, wished I did know her. I looked further right, to the street…there was a motionless taxi and…I wanted in it.

Turning from the window, I moved to the doorway…a closet, large and bright, with another door at the other end. I paused to don a pair of shoes from the rack…plain, white…Reeboks. I passed through the far door, not looking at the house, just finding the exit…and I was in the sun, feeling it on my cheeks, shoulders and chest…very warm, pleasing.

The cab was gone and I stood there, looking around me…the common, clean, safe neighborhood. Houses in rows, with short, rather narrow lawns…trees. A wolf in suburbia. I did not belong…and didn’t want to.

The homes were set close together, maybe 10 yards apart…and, passing between the one I had just left and the one opposite the party in the window, I saw a broad canal. Stretching from horizon to horizon, the deep blue of depth, very straight, obviously man-made and large enough for ships. I needed to cross it…never thinking of why, but…that is…where I was going. A distant wasteland, that other shore…obscured by smoke and tannish dust. Hazy mountains, brown and barren.

Over the manicured lawn, then, standing at the edge…I heard a voice. Cheerful, yet…at the edge of hearing, unintelligible. The deep voice of a middle-aged man from Boston.

An elevator car simply and lopsidedly crashed to the grass beside me…a steel cage of yellow grating and thin beams, suspended from a set of greasy cables…like those seen in mine shafts, construction sites…large enough for two men. As if such occurrences were common…I pulled up the safety bar…and got in.

The rush of flight…vertigo and the blur of landscapes…the laughing man I could not see…swung me in an arc, forty-five degrees to the ground, far below. Miles passed beneath, becoming yards…then slowing to feet. I was over water, now…in darkness. Chop lit by sconces on a large, corrugated metal building to my left…open on one end, an empty dock, inside…

My canary cage alighted, very gently…on the concrete, high beside the water. The interior of a warehouse…van-sized crates, to my left, in perfect rows, stacked fifty feet high, neat at the bottoms, staggered along the tops. I opened my cage and began to walk along the dock, toward the rear…a high platform made of thick wood…dark posts and beams. A stairway…

When I reached the upper floor, I encountered a group of people who treated me with long familiarity…pleased to see me and smiling. A small, stocky man took my arm and led me…pointing to a rack of what looked like computers. Floor to ceiling, black boxes with flashing LED’s…screens showing waterfalls of code…masses of carefully loomed cables. I ran my hand, lovingly, along the black cabling, admiring the aesthetics of their sweeping flow… Some perfectionist had spent a year in this space…and made of it a loveliness to behold.

The man who had directed me there pointed to a charred area beside where I stood…radiating lines of charcoal…the smudge left by a grenade. “He exploded,” was all the man said…as if this needed no explanation, which it did not. I simply nodded…and walked away. An artist lost…and this saddened me.

I passed through the small group of maybe eight people…some sitting on the floor, talking…heading for the door opposite the stairs which had brought me here. Outside into dawn…the upper landing of industrial stairs. Tubular railings, thick with creamy, gray paint, chipped in some spots…the reds of rust and primer peeking though. All around, a vast maze of buildings, all connected to the one I had just exited…uniform…blank. The pale gray corrugated walls having no doors or windows, confining an endless crowd of people in their high and sterile embrace.

I observed those closest to me as I slowly descended, my hand light on the rail. People of all cultures and eras…business suits, chain mail, togas and casual in dress…a monk, a bandolero…walking together in conversation. There was a cacophony of voices, some low, some high…laughter, argument…orations. Many…were watching me…an attitude of welcome. None impeded me as I reached the tarmac…black and smooth, showing little sign of age. They parted before me…though less than half seemed aware of me, at all. Few spoke to me…most only smiled, we exchanged perfunctory acknowledgments and they were behind me…I kept walking. Long avenues and ninety degree turns…leading nowhere but back to themselves.

I came, eventually, to a squared cul de sac…an end. There was a group of tables and a higher ratio of women. Some only turned their heads to me, another, iconic of the nineteenth century Southern Belle, reclining on a table, raised up from her supine laziness with a feral intensity. A seated come-hither pose, with her arm behind and supporting her lithe body, bared and dangling leg slowly swung to a music only she could hear. Others rushed to me, taking my hands and pulling me toward the group at the tables…some pushing from behind. The most aggressive of them, the smiling woman in her red and black saloon attire…pulled at my hand as if leading me to dance. A harlot from the era of gunslingers, sly and comedic eyes under her light brown curls…

Those with me seemed lost in their caresses of my chest and back…a hunger not for flesh, but for souls…

Their whispers were lewd…tempting. A soft song of carnality.

I set myself to the ground…immovable. A rock. I was not smiling when I asked the woman who pulled at my hand…of…The Way Out.

Her eyes, no longer laughing…became an angry glass surrounded by very fine crow’s feet. She released my hand and using that arm, merely pointed, up and to my right, her eight o’ clock…high. There was a ladder, nearly invisible in its color…blending, very well, with the wall it scaled. At its top, was a very tall man, hued entirely orange by the setting sun…looking at me. Beckoning, a knowing and melancholy smile, not quite formed…half turned to go the way he would take me. A posture which said there was not much time.

I was suddenly, roughly…embraced by two small women who looked up at me with longing and love, chins sunk into the line below the muscles on my chest…ferocious nails digging into my back, black eyes flowing with both loss and demand…their voices cracking in grief…”Please, don’t go….stay with us.” Others struggled close…desperate in their restraining grip, strident in their whispers…and I wanted nothing more than to be with them…forever.

Feeling tears drop across my lips as I looked up…to where the impossibly tall, perhaps inhuman, man had been…he was gone.

So was the ladder.

Are You a Spiritual Person?

Gal 6:1 ESV – Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.

There are many who are overtaken in faults within the church today, but they do not get restored. Why is that? Are there no spiritual people in the church? Or, do we not know what it means to be spiritual, and therefore cannot find anyone to restore them? Are preachers the only ones who can be spiritual?

It is those who are spiritual who are to do the restoring. Who are they?

Taken within the context, they are the ones who manifest the previous qualities of the fruit of the spirit (5:16, 22) 

“Spiritual” is an after-Pentecost word—it does not show up in the Gospels nor in the LXX.

There is a difference between being spiritual and being religious. Spiritual = of things pertaining to spirit. Religious = of things pertaining to formal duty.

There are many religious people who are not spiritual.

There are many spiritual people who are not religious.

There are many spiritual people who are religious.

The Bible distinction is not between spiritual/religious (the world has this figured out), but between spiritual/carnal. It is either one or the other. It is not possible to be carnally spiritual or spiritually carnal (1 Cor. 3:1).

We often assume Christian = spiritual. But we know from our experience that is not true. It is possible to be a Carnal Christian (as we can see from this verse in Corinthians).

Now, here is an interesting thing for your consideration: Carnality is defined in the Bible, but spirituality is not!! Spirituality is inferred and implied, but not defined. Carnality, however, is clearly explained.

Characteristics of Carnality: 1Cor. 3: 2-3 

We could say here that Paul is referring to babies, and we know that babies need to be cared for.

Babies–

Need milk (1Peter 2:2—there is a place for milk)

Can’t eat meat (Heb. 5:12-14)

Manifest envying, strife, divisions (1Cor. 3:3) [this usually comes from the main characteristic of the 'me' generation--MINE!] {also notice that these are contrary to the fruit of the spirit}

Where does carnality come from? It comes from where you place your mind–what you allow your mind to dwell on. You become what you feed your mind on.

 Rom. 8:5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.

The word translated ‘mind ‘ is phroneo (fron-eh’-o); [from NT:5426]; to exercise the mind, i.e. entertain or have a sentiment or opinion; by implication, to be (mentally) disposed (more or less earnestly in a certain direction); intensively, to interest oneself in (with concern or obedience).

How do we move from being carnal to becoming spiritual? By no longer being carnally minded.

1. Repent (metanoia = change your mind) [this is definitely a religious word] Decide that you no longer want to be carnal, but that you want to be spiritual (though not necessarily religious).

2. Reveal–ie, confess your carnality–James 5:16 (exomologeo = speak it out)

3. Renew your mind Rom. 12:2 (Jesus said to cleanse the inside first–Matt. 23:25-26)

4. Replace your thinking style–Col. 3:2

5. Reflect–ie, take control of your thoughts (Phil. 4:8)

Notice that the last three are all about what goes on in your head. This is your area of control.

Someone may say, “But, I have no control over what comes into my mind.”

That may be true. But, you don’t have to pull up a chair and offer that thought any hospitality!

 And anytime you find yourself moving into carnality, you can use this to change your mind and your practice. It may be difficult at first, because you’ve had many years of practicing being carnally-minded. But, stay with it, and you will soon find yourself in a spiritual condition you may have only dreamed about.

NOTE: This is the sixth in a weekly posting on the Epistle to the Galatians. I am not the only one who is writing on this book. There are others who will be posting something on their blog each day of the week. We are each bringing something that the Lord gives us from chapter six of the epistle. You will be greatly blessed and encouraged, and your heart will be filled if you will take the time to read each day’s posting from one of the other saints involved in this collective effort. Put this link in your “favorites” or on your link bar at the top of your browser: http://www.philter48.com/bbs/ and make it a point to visit everyday.

So,… you read this blog. Good for you. That means you’re probably a Christian, right?

Tell me then. Are you nose-deep in the Bible each and every day,… or are you more of the carry it to church like an accessory type?

That Bible of yours… It says some pretty interesting stuff. Are you aware of this?

It also says some stuff contrary to what you might think…

Don’t worry. It’s not your fault that you think this way. It’s how you’ve been taught.

However,… now you know that your Bible isn’t just for decorative purposes. Now you have to read it. No more excuses for you, my friend!

But, since I like ya… I’ll give you a jump start into your new world of DISPROVING FALSE TEACHING!!! Yay.

Here’s a good place to start.

-AGE OF ACCOUNTABILITY: Many (if not most) Christians believe that until a child reaches a certain age, they aren’t responsible for their sins.

Very common. I, in fact, was told that it was around age twelve.

However, that’s not what the Bible says…

⁵Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me. -Psalm 51:5

³The wicked are estranged from the womb: they go astray as soon as they be born, speaking lies. -Psalm 58:3

¹⁰As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:

¹¹There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.

¹²They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. -Romans 3:10-12

How about another?

-LOST SALVATION: I’ve discussed this before. There is no lost Salvation… If you are lost, you were never truly saved in the first place.

³⁹And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. -John 6:39

³⁷Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.

³⁸For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come,

³⁹Nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. -Romans 8:37-39

³⁰And grieve not the holy Spirit of God, whereby ye are sealed unto the day of redemption. -Ephesians 4:30

Here’s a favorite.

-MAN IS GOOD: Everyone who feels attacked by Christianity always wants to fire back something about being a “good person”. Afraid not…

¹⁰As it is written, There is none righteous, no, not one:

¹¹There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God.

¹²They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.

¹³Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips:

¹⁴Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness:

¹⁵Their feet are swift to shed blood:

¹⁶Destruction and misery are in their ways:

¹⁷And the way of peace have they not known:

¹⁸There is no fear of God before their eyes.

¹⁹Now we know that what things soever the law saith, it saith to them who are under the law: that every mouth may be stopped, and all the world may become guilty before God. -Romans 3:10-19

Sound familiar..?

-CARNAL CHRISTIANITY: Maybe you’ve heard this term. Maybe not. The gist is that Christians can come to know Jesus, yet live their lives the same as they did before. True REGENERATION demands a change in one’s life…

⁵For they that are after the flesh do mind the things of the flesh; but they that are after the Spirit the things of the Spirit.

⁶For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.

⁷Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.

⁸So then they that are in the flesh cannot please God.

⁹But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ, he is none of his.

¹⁰And if Christ be in you, the body is dead because of sin; but the Spirit is life because of righteousness.

¹¹But if the Spirit of him that raised up Jesus from the dead dwell in you, he that raised up Christ from the dead shall also quicken your mortal bodies by his Spirit that dwelleth in you.

¹²Therefore, brethren, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live after the flesh.

¹³For if ye live after the flesh, ye shall die: but if ye through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, ye shall live.

¹⁴For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. -Romans 8:5-14

Now we’ll get CONTROVERSIAL! These are the ones that ever the most reverent Christian prefer not to believe Biblically… I mean, let’s face it. God has always been painted as this gentle old man who wants the best for everyone.

That’s the god of cartoons, not the God of the Bible!

-GOD LOVES EVERYONE: This is a hard one,… be ready.

⁵The foolish shall not stand in thy sight: thou hatest all workers of iniquity.  ⁶Thou shalt destroy them that speak leasing: the LORD will abhor the bloody and deceitful man. -Psalm 5:5-6

¹¹God judgeth the righteous, and God is angry with the wicked every day. -Psalm 7:11

¹²For the eyes of the Lord are over the righteous, and his ears are open unto their prayers: but the face of the Lord is against them that do evil. -1 Peter 3:12

-WE ACCEPT JESUS: In all honesty, I’ve always had a problem with this anyway. Just saying it makes God sound as though He can’t do anything without our permission…

¹²But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:

¹³Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. -John 1:12-13

³⁷All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that cometh to me I will in no wise cast out.

³⁸For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me.

³⁹And this is the Father’s will which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up again at the last day. -John 6:37-39

⁴⁸And when the Gentiles heard this, they were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord: and as many as were ordained to eternal life believed. -Acts 13:48

²⁹For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.

³⁰Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified. -Romans 8:29-30

¹And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;

²Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:

³Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.

⁴But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,

⁵Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;) -Ephesians 2:1-5

This is the point of GRACE,… a word not used nearly enough in churches these days.

If were to simply “accept” Jesus, then we’re saved by something we’ve done ourselves. Through grace, and God’s calling of his ELECT, He gets the glory, not us.

I don’t expect you to fully grasp this,… as I truly doubt any living person on Earth does. God does what God wants to do. That’s good enough for me.

Alright. Last one…

People absolutely hate this one!

Throughout our lives, we’re taught that Jesus came to this world to atone for the sins of everyone (whether they “accept” Him or not).

I’m not going to dig to deep into this with my own thoughts,… but take note of the use of the word “many” throughout and not the word “all”.

-JESUS DIED FOR EVERYONE: Here we go. I can already tell you’re grinding your teeth…

²⁸Even as the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many. -Matthew 20:28

¹⁴For many are called, but few are chosen. -Matthew 22:14

²⁸For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. -Matthew 26:28

¹⁶Ye have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, and ordained you, that ye should go and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain: that whatsoever ye shall ask of the Father in my name, he may give it you. -John 15:16

¹³But we are bound to give thanks alway to God for you, brethren beloved of the Lord, because God hath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief of the truth:

¹⁴Whereunto he called you by our gospel, to the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. -2 Thessalonians 2:13-14

³For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world. -Hebrews 4:3

"Whew! That was a LOT of reading."

So,… whether you agree with me or disagree with me, open your Bible. Read. Study. It’s God’s Word,… perfect and infallible. Oh, and it’s WAY better than the Twilight books. BLECH!