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No Time
In the course of our lives, we have the ultimate voice in determining our path, our journey, indeed, even our outcome at the end of the rainbow. Along the way, we must determine our values, goals, priorities, interests, even our location. Most importantly, we dictate and create our attitude, character, integrity, and personal sense of worth.
Hopefully, at some point in the continuum of our lives, we embrace God, develop our faith, make choices that nurture and grow our faith, and in an essential effort, practice our faith. Bottom line, that takes time.
Our personal timelines are cluttered with avenues that consume time like a vortex. Among them; Education, Recreation, Hobbies, Relationships, Pets, Family, Work, Travel, Sports, and Faith. We must strive to become master’s of our own lives, including those things we choose to include, and excluding those things we deem unnecessary, uninteresting, dangerous, and/or distracting.
“Admittedly, life can get complicated, even complex. Without the proper grounding, personal discipline, and determination, outside factors can delay, deter, and maybe, even prevent us from reaching our desired destination. So, we must make time for the things that mean the most to us, that fill our lives with joy and meaning, and ultimately, that impact and enrich our soul.”
Is Your Life on Track?
And so it is with God. As the Creator of all things known (and unknown), we should be eternally grateful, yes? Our every breath, thought, action, and deed resonates from the Word of God. Doesn’t it make complete sense, then, that we live our entire lives acknowledging God’s Divinity, praising Him, Thanking Him, and Glorifying Him for His Mercy, Forgiveness, Support, and Grace that permeates our world, and affects our lives in the most personal ways?
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At the end of the day (and our life), will we be able to reflect on the amount of time we spent with God, gave to God, asked of God, and devoted to God? Or, will we reflect on a life of regrets, failures, disappointments, pain, sorrow, and stunted spiritual growth?
God is there whenever we choose to communicate and interact with Him. Indeed, that Free Will thing is a fickle beast, and it is incumbent upon each of us to tame it, temper it, and leverage it to build our faith and life to a point, at its end, that it will be acceptable to God so we can spend an eternity in His Grace, Love, Warmth, Comfort and Protection, in Heaven.
Before, there is No Time Left….
Making Sense of God – The Effervescence of Eternity
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As human beings, we interact with the world as physical organisms; that is to say, we use and respond with our senses. And as a result, we spend a lifetime conditioning ourselves in this way, yet God created us in His image, and that image reflects a Trinity of consciousness; the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. And to be specific, it is singularly, the Holy Spirit that God infused into our being as humans, that sets us apart from other “organisms”. It manifests itself as our conscience (aka, that little voice inside us), and guides us throughout our life; if we choose to listen to it, and act upon it.
When Jesus Christ graced the earth, as flesh and blood, like us, people could easily comprehend His authenticity and Truth, because they could speak with Him, touch Him, see Him, hear Him, even smell him. Indeed, they got a taste of eternity, without even knowing it. Similarly, To Believe is To See.
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Upon His physical death, brilliant Resurrection, and subsequent glorious Ascension, however, our physical senses became inadequate to directly experiencing Jesus Christ, the human being; the physical organism. To be sure, God supplanted the memory of the physical Saviour with non-direct methods/alternatives to positively communicate the still, living Jesus Christ to humanity.
Miracles, His work through others, nature/environment, the Holy Spirit, and Supernatural events have been recorded in time that point to the fact and reality that Jesus Christ (along with God and the Holy Spirit) is Alive and is living in eternity. Body, Mind, and Soul are humanity’s trinity in the image of God, and our Portal to our next life.
“Likewise, where our human and physical senses end (hear, see, smell, touch, taste), our Divine or Godly senses begin. Space and Time (body), via balance and equilibrium; Intuition (mind), via ESP; and Divine Communication (soul), via faith. Collectively, these eight senses work together to enable and empower our ability to recognize, acknowledge, and embrace the True God throughout our entire earthly life, preparing us for a real, personal, and tangible reunion with God, upon our physical death.”
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And because we were truly created in His image, it is understandable that we travel a similar path leading us into eternity. Our physical birth, life, suffering, joy, pain, free will, and death, perfectly mimic that of Jesus Christ. And it similarly goes without saying, that our destiny is an ascension into heaven for our Final Act. But only, if we truly Believe in God, His Divine Nature, His Unbridled Power, His Perfect Being of Forgiveness, Grace, Love, Judgment, Justness, and His Eternal Presence. For I is Singular For But One.
Achieving Heaven is truthfully simple, albeit perhaps not easy, yet completely within our control. Established rules provide boundaries and desired/expected behaviors (Bible), and Free Will affords us the opportunity to create our own unique future via our thoughts, actions, and ultimately, accountability.
You Can’t Stop The Truth
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As human beings, each of us is a complexity of experience, genetics, knowledge, opinion, bias, fear, judgment, and imperfection. Throughout our lives, we have gathered information, formulated thoughts, conclusions, and feelings. We react to our environment, especially to other people. Our core values direct our life whether we are aware of it or not.
Facts are indisputable, measurable, and descriptive aspects of physical things in the world around us. They are discovered, formulated, documented, proven and are real. Information is the totality of individual details of anything and everything. Facts and information help us make sense of the world and all that is in it, via dictionaries, reference books, diagrams, formulas, instructions, etc.
“And then there is Truth… Ah yes, those things that exist in a vacuum, that many times cannot be seen, heard, touched or proven, but merely acknowledged… Things like; time, good and evil, the universe, electricity, life itself… and God.”
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There are truths we more readily accept because we don’t or can’t perceive the difference they create by their existence, and then, there are Truths we protect with our lives; justice, freedom, goodwill, fair play, safety, philanthropy, love… and our Faith.
Try as we might, and people have; we cannot prove or disprove faith. Truth can not be compromised or erased. Facts are not the truth. Indeed, that is the fundamental essence of it and which defines it. To understand faith, you must possess it. To understand Evil, you must recognize and know it. To understand goodwill, you must demonstrate it. To comprehend God, you must experience Him. This is precisely why Good and Evil exist in the world; so that people know the difference between them and can recognize them when and where they exist.
As a Christian by choice (you know, that Free Will thing), I believe in my heart that God is Truth, God is Light, Light is Truth, and that Truth is Unconditional, like Love and Compassion. I acknowledge God as my savior and strive to practice His Truth daily, in spite of the fact I am an imperfect being. Indeed, I am imperfect so that I can recognize God.
To fully experience life and grow as a human being, it is essential to face the truth, every time and in every way. The Truth strengthens and enriches your soul. It crystalizes priorities and solidifies motivation. It makes your hopes and dreams achievable and is the basis for happiness.
You can’t stop the Truth, and Only the Truth will set you Free!
Faith As A Power Source
Intrinsic motivation has always intrigued me as a chess game intrigues a chess player. Indeed, I have been driven my entire life, by multiple forces, yet one plateaus above all others.
Something inside me responds with energy and inertia when I am told I don’t have the skills, resources, determination or vision to accomplish some objective. Is it simply a desire to succeed? Or perhaps, the appeal of a challenge? Maybe, to seek an opportunity to help others? Or, to gain their approval?
“I believe, in my heart of hearts, the driving force that catapults and propels me forward to accomplish any worthwhile objective is the resulting opportunity for me to Witness that God provides whatever is necessary to accomplish His goal(s) through a sinner like me.”
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In short, I wholeheartedly crave the ability to credit God as my Power Source in every meaningful thing I do in my life; to Witness to Him as my Lord and Savior. To use His Power in my life to help others, to learn from others, and to help others find themselves and their faith. Collectively, to grow His kingdom on earth.
I have asked myself many times, could it really be that simple? Is God that powerful? Is He that omnipotent? Amazingly, is God that Real? The answer, simply, is yes, Yes, YES, and YES!
“For some, personal power is derived by knowledge, others by the desire to succeed. Still, others believe in a survival instinct of sorts, and yet others rely on successes that build self-confidence. Certainly, there is no singular right answer. All I know is that my motivation comes unilaterally and explicitly from my faith in God and all He provides, allows, bestows, offers, and wills.”
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Much like an athlete sets goals for him/herself, their focus yields a building block approach. The football player focuses on the next First Down before the Touchdown. The Nascar driver each lap, before the finish line. The Christian, the next opportunity to Witness, before their personal salvation and resurrection. We are all, in fact, competitors and participants in the game of Life. And, to be successful and grow, we must remain focused and aware of what is directly in front of us each and every day, regardless of the longer-term objective, goal, need or desire.
You see, faith is an incredibly powerful source of energy and Truth. Both emanate from a single point of origin, God the Father. Energy is created through inspiration, survival, fear, need, desire, protective instincts, indeed, love. Truth, however, comes solely from God, is not to be confused with facts, and by design, is accompanied by and rooted in morality. Man possesses no innate morals as morals are learned and man is imperfect. True and objective morality, therefore must emanate from the creator as He is the teacher and is perfect.
Most assuredly, many people have heard the phrase, “Trust your Instincts”, yes? And, in many circumstances and scenarios we face in our lives, our
instincts come into play and focus on determining our actions and behavior. Yet, at the core of our spirit and being, those instincts we all possess, are founded in morality, and morality originates singularly from God. The point being that God influences and largely, controls the higher level direction and trajectory of each of our lives, whereas, we are simply charged with our thoughts, actions, behaviors, and ultimately, our choices.
In the end, collectively, a large objective of human life lies within each individual discovering their (our) purpose in life. Once found, life transforms and ascends into something much more meaningful, worthy, and impactful; for us, and for all the other people we come into contact with, along the way. Here is praying, hoping and wishing each of us is open to learning as much as we need to live a Purpose Driven Life. In the big picture of eternity, it’s your life, so live it like you mean it. Who do you want to be? God Bless and Be Well.
What If…
What if… There is indeed a God;
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What if… God created the Universe and Humankind;
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What if… Humankind was given the gift of Free Will;
What if… through the gift of Free Will, Humankind determined their future and fate;
What if… that future and fate included where Each Human being spends their eternity;
What if… that eternity was defined as Heaven and (or) Hell;
What if… Those that believe in God create their own Heaven after physical death;
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What if… Those that believe there is no God, create their own Hell after physical death;
What if… Heaven is an ethereal consciousness with only Beauty, Peace, and Love;
What if… Hell is an eternity of Darkness, Pain, Fear, void of God and Light;
What if… We had this Gift all along and never realized it could be that Powerful;
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What if… God left His Consciousness for us to have by simply Choosing to have it;
What if… The Bible was in fact, the Truth of Life Everlasting, of Good and Evil;
What if… Our physical life is but a single phase of the transformation of form;
What if… Our Mind and Spirit truly live Forever;
What if… The Future is ours to create;
What Then?
Los Lonely Boys (Heaven)
Save me from this prison
Lord, help me get away
‘Cause only you can save me now
from this misery
I’ve been lost in my own place
and I’m getting’ weary
How far is heaven?
And I know that I need to change
my ways of livin’
How far is heaven?
Lord, can you tell me?
I’ve been locked up way too long
in this crazy world.
How far is heaven?
And I just keep on prayin’, Lord
And just keep on livin’.
I Love This Life!
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Undeniably, Love is the single-most powerful force in the universe. It motivates, it heals, it transforms; and it endures. Love is the DNA of creation. Understandably, Love is God and God is Love.
Life is God’s gift to humanity. Indeed, the entire spectrum of emotions and experiences; love, anticipation, community, brotherhood, compassion, excitement, gratitude, humility, joy, solitude, among others. Yet, to maintain balance, perspective and context; sadness, grief, fear, loneliness, anxiety, desperation, yes, even hatred, come along for the ride.
“And because of the Free Will that God granted us, we are compelled to make judgments and choices, and set priorities within our lives; and then, live with the consequences of those freedoms. And you’ve heard it before, with authority comes responsibility; specifically, a spiritual accountability for our souls.”
The regulators, of course, for our lives, are our attitude and personal discipline. I prefer to be an optimist, a helper, and work to inspire those around me with positive energy. My desire to accept the privilege to meet Jesus Christ in heaven fuels my discipline. He likewise serves as my inspiration, as He is the nucleus within my soul.
I choose to be who I am, what I think, where I go, who I engage, and when I give thanks for the abundance of gifts I have been bestowed, knowing that life can seem an eternity yet be as short as the dash. The beautiful natural environment is ours to enjoy, along with its abundant flora and fauna, indeed, each other. I shudder at the magnificent beauty of our world. It is incomprehensible for me, then, not to possess an intense and sincere gratitude for everything in my life, good and not so good. Profoundly, gratitude FOR my life.
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Likewise, none of us are perfect, and accordingly, as difficult as it is, I strive to offer forgiveness when warranted, as well as to seek it when I hurt others and commit sins. Prayer complements our actions in life and opens a direct communication channel with God. The essential aspect is to never stop striving to improve as a child of God.
Most assuredly, as it was written, no person knows the day, the hour and the moment when Jesus Christ will return to fulfill bible prophecy. It is a mystery, a secret, by design. So, until that time arrives, I will wholeheartedly, unashamedly, and unapologetically, Love my Life… because God Knows, When Will It End?
I Love This Life (LOCASH)
The Secret – Planet Earth
Death – A Melancholy And Bittersweet Celebration of Life
Even though a hexagenarian, I find myself facing a new experience; the death of a sibling. As the youngest of five, I experienced that inevitable, awkward and painful telephone call from my nephew yesterday, to inform me that my brother (his dad) had passed away. On the surface, one might surmize this is not an earth-shattering event, it eventually happens to all of us, and it happens every day, in every city, of every country on the planet.
Let me assure you, however, death is anything but routine, ordinary or insignificant. As a Christian, death is the debt we pay as the entry fee to cross the portal from human reality to spiritual eternity. It is a process, a portal and many times, painful. Make no mistake, though, death is also a celebration, albeit a melancholy and bittersweet one.
Death is as the Yang to the Ying, as it permeates Life. It can be construed as an ending, 
however, the Christian’s reality is that death is another beginning; a rebirth of our spirit/soul. Death can certainly be viewed as routine, ordinary and perhaps even normal, that is, until it directly impacts YOUR life.
When you witness death in the first person of someone you intimately know, love and share history, it is exponentially more significant, impactful and forever changes your essence as a human being.
“In a peculiar sense, death morphs your sense of reality, self-image, mortality and perspective of the world around you. Ironically, viewed as a polar region, death coexists and even defines the boundaries of life as do the poles on a planet. Profoundly, death has its own life.”
As you experience death at a very personal and familiar level, every emotion in the library of your mind is touched, jolted, carressed and exposed. In that context, death can be defined, understood, acknowledged and bounded by each of our realities of life. Death is the wild stallion being broken, it is the uncontrollable child morphing from adolescence via puberty into an adult; psychologically, emotionally and spiritually.
Without question, witnessing death up close and personal is an experience you simply Never forget. The bittersweet nature of life is that positively, it ends all aspects of human suffering, be it physical, emotional, or psychological. Death, as a metaphysical event, takes away the undesirable aspects of life, and to that end, can be looked upon as something good. The rest of that story, however, is that death also creates an ending or sense of finality (absent faith), for those remaining alive. It is the proberbial locked door, separating the past, the present and the future.
In a comforting light, however, faith and Christianity offer us the key to unlock that seemingly impenetrable barrier. All we must do is use the key, without fear of the unknown, to master our own mortality, prepare for our own passage and comfort those standing on the mortal side of eternity.
Importantly, death is not to be feared, but to be understood, prepared for and anticipated… and the way we accomplish those goals is through our personal relationship with Jesus Christ. Death serves as that little voice in the back of our minds coaxing, whispering and urging us to take stock of the life we have, leaving no stones unturned, to demonstrate gratitude for it, to reconcile our differences with others, remind those close to us just how much we love them and how much they mean to us. In a terse and succinct context, now, go do it! Be well.
Dedicated to the eternal spirit of David L Cerkas (1947-2016)
Parallel Paths – The Intersection of Life and Death
From childhood and on throughout our lives, we develop and maintain the mindset that life and death are mutually exclusive states. I’m here to tell you that they not only coexist, yet further, simultaneously exist in each of us.
“The moment we are born, we begin dying and the only thing we control is to what extent we live while we are breathing. Death has this context of inevitable finality about it, yet it is exclusively a result of not knowing anything about it; or worse, being unwilling to learn its nature and invite it into our lives, so we can better prepare for it.”
Each of us have friends, family, neighbors, classmates, coworkers, and yes, pets, that have ceased to live, yet are 
vibrantly alive in our memories. We create this righteous attitude of sorrow for their death, yet in reality, the sorrow we create is selfishly directed at OUR loss, not theirs.
Likewise, we are very good at identifying the right things to say to our loved ones, but only AFTER they cease to live, as we know it. The challenge, you see, is to identify these right things to say, and then say them, to these special lives, while they are still breathing!
And life goes on, with new life being created and existing life exiting this place we call our world. Beings coming and going, sometimes intersecting with others, at other times, traveling alone; much like molecules bumping into each other in a chemistry beaker.
And as random and insignificant as life sometimes appears to us, it is truly, so very special, so magnificent and such a gift that it behooves us to celebrate it with every breath we take in, lest it be our last.
The world today contains so many distractions, from life, from our spirit and soul, from each other and from God. Yes, at times we need that bolt of lightning to remind us of our priorities. Consider this article that little nudge to refocus your priority list, rekindle that spark and zest for living, remember to smile and greet everyone you encounter with goodwill, and lastly, to revive your gratitude for the gift of life you are enjoying as you read this.
Yes, much like the tracks that we know with certainty are parallel, we equally know as life embraces death, the tracks converge and eventually intersect, transporting our spirit into eternity, anxiously reconnecting with all those vibrant memories which then become our new reality.
You see, we’ve got it all wrong. Death is but a door, a transformation of energy and a portal to our future. It is not to be feared, but importantly, prepared for and anticipated. Until then, live with passion and practice compassion for others; live your conscience and Look for the Good. I’ll be watching.
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Faith – A Strategy You Can Believe In
Parallels in life abound. There are common threads among relationships, motivation, discipline, healing, teaching; just to name a few. Parallels, not in the sense of a common denominator of the concepts themselves, but in how these concepts are applied in various scenarios of life. And becoming “good” at life is the ultimate goal, yes?
“As a manager, I learned over time that raising children, in all its glory, excitement and occasional pain, contained specific lessons or approaches to be learned that very effectively carried over to managing people in a business environment. Aspects like motivation, discipline, analysis, problem-solving, personal development and team-building; shared threads of process, insight and self-awareness that could be woven or stitched together to form a cohesive and compassionate strategy to not only accomplish work, but more importantly, develop character, integrity and a sense of purpose in others when viewed and appreciated as precious human beings.”
Equally, there is learning in the interaction, conversation and sense of accomplishment one experiences when it is shared among individuals. A key ingredient, however, in the pursuit of introspective and effective leadership can be distilled into one word and one goal; compassion and building trust.
As with many individuals, some things you learn throughout the course of living, present themselves as simply profound and just stick with you throughout the remainder of your life. For me, one of those “things” was a quote from a management guru, Gordon Shea, as contained in a 1984 Management Briefing for the AMA (American Management Association ).
“Trust is the ultimate intangible. It has no shape or substance, yet it empowers our actions. And its presence or absence can govern our behavior as if it were a tangible force. . . . Trust is the ‘miracle ingredient’ in organizational life–a lubricant that reduces friction, a bonding agent that glues together disparate parts, a catalyst that facilitates action. No substitute–neither threat nor promise–will do the job as well.”
And speaking of parallels, let’s make the quantum leap from business back to life; from trust to its foundation; faith. If not steeped in trust, what is faith? Faith is that trust or belief in something or someone that cannot be seen, touched or perceived by our physical senses, but only felt and experienced with our heart.
When one looks at life from a macro perspective, the essence of life is faith. Faith that the core essentials of our physical being will be provided (food, clothing and shelter). Faith that a means to provide for those essentials will be obtained (job). Faith that our emotional, psychological and meta-physical health will be attained…. You see, Faith is indeed, a strategy for life.
Faith, not in the sense of simply the word, but critically, in the sense of the belief in God, eternal life, salvation and a sense of purpose. Faith is life, as is the oxygen we breathe, the water we drink and the sun we embrace as warmth. Faith is perhaps, the Spiritual DNA of our existence as human beings; as children of God.
Faith is nurtured, cultivated and undeniably grows within each of us as our self-awareness develops and we acknowledge and accept the reality and presence of the supernatural force we call “God”.
Be well, or should I say, “Keep the Faith”.
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Capturing the Essence of Prayer
There are many dimensions to consider when defining a characterization of what is involved in being a Christian. Constructs including God, redemption, salvation, sin, miracles, angels, demons, heaven, hell, faith, rebirth, penance, sacraments, resurrection; and prayer. As an understatement, your personal relationship with God is as unique as you are! Accordingly, it follows that how you communicate with God is also unique as well as what you call and how you define Prayer. Likewise, it will be endlessly amazing and special.
“As beauty is in the eye of the beholder, so it is with prayer. Surely, one can open a Webster’s Dictionary to obtain the standard or commonly accepted description of it, however, like our minds, personality and spirit, prayer means something different, amazing and boundless to each of us.”
Intended to provoke thought and introspection, below is a short list of how one could describe or capture the essence of what prayer represents. This list is by no means all-inclusive, but rather, fertilizer of sorts to help you internalize its meaning:
- Ultimate Conversation with God
- Unwritten Contract with God
- Open-Ended Invitation to God to consume our Heart and Mind
- Unsolicited Plea for Help, Healing, Outcome, Redemption, Forgiveness
- Direct Dialogue with God
- Unfocused Expression of Gratitude
- Offering of Repentance
- Manifestation of Spiritual Resonance
- Checklist of Mortal/Physical Needs or Desires
- Intercession of Divine Nature on your or another person’s behalf
- Alignment of Present with Future
- Fusion of Thought, Intent, Desire, Need and Projection
- Introspective Reflection of our Personal Reality and Timeline
- Affirmation of Belief, Faith and Expectation
- Revelation of Self, Sin, Intent and Benevolence
- Transforming Progression in the Process of Spiritual Maturity
- Offering of Contrition
- Targeted Projection of Self and Energy
Without stating the obvious, prayer simply can not be confined to an entry in the dictionary. It is equally and simultaneously, broad and specific in context as it applies or is used by each human being.
“The most essential aspect, however, is that prayer is an awe-inspiring and Powerful construct. To a degree, it defines our individual spirits as our fingerprint defines our bodies, yet it cannot be seen by the eye, but only touched by the heart.”
As Christians, we must acknowledge the power of prayer and leverage it to advocate benevolence in the world, use it to empower healing, to eradicate pain and promote alignment of spirit and our mortal lives. The outcome will be inner peace, harmony and the courage to live your life to its potential. Similarly, prayer shatters the fear of death and prepares one for eternal salvation. I pray for the redemption of every soul on earth, knowing there is no limit to the grace, mercy and healing of God’s presence in everyone’s life. Be well.
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The Inspired Verse 