#DailyProverbs 2015_0505: Choosing Love Over Privilege

The church cannot afford to wait any longer for many of the phobias and "-isms" of our history to fade. The bottom line is that people are tired of being mistreated. People are exhausted from the abuse. And, sadly, the church has grown cold and selfish in hoarding grace and has, essentially, done away with extending mercy to those in need of Christ. I have never once read an example of scripture where the early church body stayed in buildings and waited for people in need to come to them. I have never once read an example of where Jesus didn't meet those in need where THEY were and not where they SHOULD be, or where they were judge to have been lacking. Even the disciples tried to shoo away those that would become the greatest examples of faith and restoration.

Most well-known conservative Christians, or "christianist pundits" would rather wait for the 24 news cycle to fade than dispense mercy to someone in need. If you slay someone's character for a mistake on the news, or your show, and you don't act as a minister of reconciliation, how am I to assume you understand love from God, and the grace that extends to us all. And so many Christians these days are talking about having their rights trampled and how they are the subject of attack and denigration; but I am here to say that if you truly follow Jesus... what did you expect? Jesus doesn't "fit" in this world. Following the true teachings of Christ will never be "in fashion" in a conservative, capitalistic country will focus on the bottom line. Jesus isn't about a bottom line; He is about a life line. Your rejection by others and your abuse at the hands of those that decry your faith is part prophesy fulfillment and part test. You will be despised and ridiculed for the sake of the name of Jesus. Period. Nowhere in scripture does it say that you'll take up arms, bring politics into the body, rebut this abuse, and subsequently form a super PAC that legislates morality or a majority vote for your continued economic monopoly. Scripture paints a vastly different picture.

Matthew 5:38-48: "You have heard that it was said, 'An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth.' But now I tell you: do not take revenge on someone who wrongs you. If anyone slaps you on the right cheek, let him slap your left cheek, too. And if someone takes you to court to sue you for your shirt, let him have your coat as well. And if one of the occupation troops forces you to carry his pack one mile, carry it two miles. When someone asks you for something, give it to him; when someone wants to borrow something, lend it to him.""You have heard that it was said, 'Love your friends, hate your enemies.' But now I tell you: love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may become the children of your Father in Heaven. For He makes the sun to shine on bad and good people alike, and gives rain to those who do good and to those who do evil. Why should God reward you if you love only the people who love you? Even the tax collectors do that! And if you speak only to your friends, have you done anything out of the ordinary? Even the pagans do that! You must be perfect - just as your father in Heaven is perfect."

We openly talk so much of our "freedom" and our "rights" these days when what we mean is privilege. We want our way. We want no opposition. We want to be the majority. We want to be comfortable in our position of leadership. We want everyone to understand us. We don't want to be questioned. We want to be agreed with, but, that's not realistic. And it's not scriptural. And it's not going to happen... so why rail and fight against something that, in the end, makes YOU the sinner when you behave badly and trample the cross. 

We talk so much of our "rights," yet the attention given to human entitlements has not brought about collective or individual freedom. Instead, it's splintered and divided humanity into selfish and jealous groups. Intersectionality is a word thrown around to get groups of disenfranchised people to work together, collectively... but what has happened is a competition for whose rights can be won first, a race for whose equality can come sooner. If you make two steps forward... then why didn't you include my special group, too? You can't be a white feminist and still understand the struggle of a woman of color. You can't be black and not make fun of white fragility and privilege. This halts the conversation and this endangers the peace of mind and personal growth of many on ALL sides of the issues at hand. This is not the way. This isn't how it should be. 

It's a sad fact that the exhaustion that comes with social activism makes most people "periodic" activists. I have friends that do it for cycles or periods of time and then they need a rest. They need a sabbatical and to come to terms with "self-care." The heightened emotions, learning, and being told example after example of abuse, and just... the evil that people can do is draining. It's emotionally crippling. You want people to act right. And each group and person and story has a POINT and has a valid voice and reason to exist... but the truth is that most people end up being prisoners of jealousy. They are jealous of one groups "greater" rights. 

These people... these souls... become prisoners of greed. In their minds, they deserve more, and "more" becomes "never enough." Christians have moved from the message of salvation to one of legislation. Abortion, gay marriage, racism, 1%, tax breaks... these are not the arenas in which Christ dwells. And you can't campaign, and fight, and legislate a clear "winner" in these issues. If you always set a finish line in your head that when THIS law changes or when I GET this exact same right, then you are done... but that's not how it goes. Then there is another finish line, and it moves again, and again.

For example, every "christian" will tell you that you can't be a champion of women's reproductive rights AND a "real" Christian, right? You can't counsel someone that you feel abortion is wrong, if you still think the choice should be legal, safe, and sane, correct? In truth and full disclosure, I am anti-abortion, but I am pro-choice. How can this be, Michael? Well, because I think it's insane for anyone that isn't a woman to think they'll ever be put in the position to need an abortion, or to have to make choices that are unconscionable, or to need to have safe alternatives. We, as men, are not hardwired to think anything other than we can do what we want. We'll never be in the position to be told, legally, that we need permission to do something with our own body.

Gay marriage is a another great example. The word mostly used is equality, but what's really being wanted is "fairness." Fair doesn't come to everyone. But everyone is equal and should be protected legally. Unfairly, in the fight for equality, is that it's mostly white lesbians and dual-income GWM that will benefit from the tax privileges and the ability to say the word "marriage." This causes a lot of division in other groups that think marriage equality being the "cause du jour" and "face of equality" is ridiculous. What does a pair of well-to-do white folks have to do with the struggles and day to day life of a young, black, trans woman that just needs to not be kicked out of housing, or be fired from a job? She just wants the right to exist and live. She's not worried about tax breaks when her 1040EZ doesn't even get to make deductions. Is life "fair" for her? Likely not. Poverty is an unfair cycle of suck for most people of ANY color. Does it mean that the happy well off white couples doesn't care about her? No, not likely. I mean, it's not like they are taking an active role in her struggle, but they likely "care" and even make donations to causes, etc. Does it mean that she doesn't care about them? No, she likely does. But some people are always going to have tunnel vision for their own cause, because that is what is affecting them immediately. Does that mean you don't care?? No. You, too, have your own cause. Does a Christian have the ability to love and support gay people, even if you don't understand it or believe in the cause or morality of a thing? You better believe it. You can love and support someone and not believe something they do is right. You can believe in their cause OR not believe in it. That doesn't mean you don't love, care, support, and pray for them. Human compassion, love, and hoping that people don't get mistreated are what Christ would do. Finding some common well to talk at, searching out the humanity in someone and not reducing them to a body, or a sexual compulsion, or a sin and showing Jesus... that's where the difference is. Most gay people are stereotyped as hedonists that cannot control their impulses. Well, if that's true, then how do you expect someone to not be promiscuous if you only ever tell them that the sum of their being is based on a sexual choice? Their worth becomes an extension of sexual choice, sexual desirability, and their existence begins to cycle around ways to couple that into a justified way of life. How do you expect a gay man to find Christ if you tell him Christ will never love him, as is. The woman at the well was promiscuous, adulterous, and then some - and yet... she's an example of thirsting for God and finding peace. Did you forget that Christ died for all, as they were? You don't change to come to Christ. Your experience, the repentance, the water baptism... those bring about a new creature that is changed in love and shows the love of Christ.

Why do you think that black men are so angry? If you can even categorize a group and make a nearly-racist-blanket-statement like that. Consider that maybe being black and seeing so many young black men disparately sentenced into corporate for-profit prisons for crimes less than those of other races that get no jail time. Or that's if they are lucky. Most are killed or abused. It would even be nice if white frailty would stop saying the phrases when a black man is gunned down that "blacks kill them, too." Or vilify the victim, bringing to light every past mistake, to justify passing a death sentence without due process or even a jury of peers. Yes, weed means he should have been shot. Yes, running away in fear means he should have died. Sigh. That's a soul that will never repent or change now. We white folks claiming to be all about Jesus get really upset and boycott places that say "Happy Holidays" instead of exactly what we want for Christmas. Yes, really. We get all up in arms over a word, or something petty... but we want to stay out of it when it comes to saving lives. I mean... it's pretty one-sided as far as the offense goes. Or, consider that the fact they are legislatively forced out of black homes may be a justifiable reason for anger. Maybe the fact that if you, as a black man, reside in the home of your wife or girlfriend, she can't get public assistance for the babies she was forced to have, some of which likely came from sexual assault if statistics are true. People are legislating the family and core values of a nuclear core of family away. (Some white person just rolled their eyes and said "get a job.") That'd be easier if you had a white-sounding name, and no previous record because you chose to resist being beaten down in a traffic stop because your music choices were considered wrong, or your car was too new for your color.

When did we, as Christians, begin to think that we could tell others how to live, behave and then find ways to politicize that? I get that not all Christians do this... but it is seeming like more and more of the sane, normal "Christians" I knew are moving further away from scripture and focusing on the love of God, to a religion of political capital and conservatism as a tenant of faith. The message of Jesus was clear: radical love and escorting both religious and social change through BEING changed. When you have an experience with Jesus, your walk changes. Your talk changes. Your ability to forgive and move on changes. Your ability to love beyond yourself changes.

Christians, watch out for bitterness. Be so careful... you can read the above, you can watch the news, and see your news feeds. You will feel entitled to judge. You will feel like you are above others. You will want to find a reason to feel violated. But be so careful. You will start to hang on every word, looking for offense. We are IN this world, but we are not OF it. Stop acting like you don't speak the language, stop acting like you are so offended and roll up your sleeves and HELP others know the same freedom and life in Christ. I know many white people that will, ignorantly, never learn the difference between racism and bigotry. They will use misnomers like "reverse racism" and show their overt privilege in doing so. And they will say that indiscriminately and call other white people racist, or self-hating, for not believing in it. They will leave the race conversation, heatedly and early, because it becomes uncomfortable and they will alienate and harm souls in the process. To what end? Who do you bring to Christ by making skin and culture an issue? It will have an effect, but not the one you are thinking: It will cause black people to be so sensitive to every word then, and the stress and emotional duress that comes with evaluating everything's meaning is life-draining. It also creates so much further division and a splintered group on how to say AA, black, of color, or light, bright, almost-white... Throw in Latino, Hispanic, Asian... and the Anglo-euro distinctions and suddenly everyone feels that they must be distinctly called out, represented, and "respected." Majority, minority, powerful, powerless, special interest, or even those that have a tenuous grasp on the power they have left in their final generation of rule... they all feel violated and hurt and somehow "marginalized." To quote Dreamgirls... "Effie, we ALL got pain." And we do, so tell someone what power in the name of Jesus can do vs. helping to define yet another point of separation. If we are in Christ, there is NO difference. We are all brothers and sisters in Christ. There is neither Jew, nor Greek, nor Gentile. There is no Moor, Highlander, or Saxon. There is no Republican, or Democrat, or conservative, or Liberal. There is no black, no white, no male, no female... We are all one in God. So, why are we, as Christians so determined to show off the differences and not proclaim the wonder of what the power of  living God can do to a soul that was in distress? 

1 Thessalonians 5:12-18: "We beg you, our friends, to pay proper respect to those who work among you, who guide and instruct you in the Christian life. Treat them with the greatest respect and love because of the work they do. Be at peace among yourselves. We urge you, our friends, to warn the idle, encourage the timid, help the weak, be patient with everyone. See that no one pays back wrong for wrong, but at all times make it your aim to do good to one another and to all people. Be joyful always, pray at all times, be thankful in all circumstances. This is what God wants from you in your life in union with Christ Jesus."

Instead of focusing on the privileges we feel that are "due" to us, we should take the biblical perspective of loving enemies and forgiving persecutors (Matt. 5:44). Believers must lay down what they consider their rights and privileges so they can take up the cause of a holy kingdom. That doesn't mean that we let people trample on us. Rather, we offer a proper response according to biblical principles. In short, true followers of Jesus Christ, according to scripture, should be more concerned about showing God’s LOVE to those who do wrong than about demanding their rights and enforcing a legislative cap on other groups that don't follow or believe the same. You will never legislate the love of God into someone's heart; but you can humble yourself and show the true power of the servant-hood of Jesus.

Some of you are thinking, "Who is this guy? He has NO idea about black people, or the struggle of women, or how it feels to be in a marginalized group of trans people. He doesn't know how I've been mistreated. He doesn't know MY story." Indeed, I do NOT. But what I do know is how Jesus Christ, our example, reacted to terrible atrocities and abuse. I do know that no matter what you've gone through, Jesus loves you. I know that no matter whether or not yo and I agree on the morality, or spirituality of a situation, that I don't hate you and I love you. I do know that Jesus lived his life as our very road map that we were to follow. I know that if I am to be able to honestly claim that I'm a Christian, I have to be willing to go through the same things as the Christ. He was betrayed by His friends, persecuted by His people, condemned by His peers, and crucified for our sins. Yet He said, “Father, forgive them” (Luke 23:34).

Can we do that? Can I do that? Can you do that? Before assuming that Jesus’ capacity for forgiveness and love is out of reach for you and me, as mere human beings, remember: the Holy Ghost dwells in believers. We can choose to believe that, and LIVE that. Or we can throw away one of the greatest spiritual gifts ever given: LOVE.

Luke 6:29 says to turn the other cheek and give up more than is asked because expressing love, expecting fairness, and being an example all outweigh exerting our "rights" or even our "privilege." 

If you never read this whole thing, if you never learn from my mistakes in my past, if you never really grasp any of this... get THIS: You simply cannot lose when you show others the boundless, and endless love of the Lord. You gain His blessing. He supports and defends you in this, and essentially, and most importantly, someone will hopefully be saved because of your example.

In Christ,
#JustBeingMichael ツ

Peace, With God...

Have you ever really taken the time to look at people around you??

The co-worker that never quite seems "okay." They always need that extra bit of attention, or they always are ready with a complaint? What about the neighbor that is constantly in turmoil? You never want to get stuck in a conversation, because they are constantly asking for prayer or help, but they never seem to "come out on the other side" of any trial or situation. What about a parent that just never seems to finish anything as started? The situation always changes and it's always someone else's fault, or they found a "better" way - but you just want them to be stable and happy in their golden years. Or, even strangers??? Do you run into people in your daily life that just seem drawn to you and begin to pour out their troubles to you? At the store, at the gas station, at church, at Target... at an airport, or on an airplane?? [Now, I know that I have been given a VERY unique perspective by God. To keep it real and to be transparent, I write from the perspective of someone God takes very good care of. I am one of the lucky ones that God singled out for whatever reason. I didn't deserve and I didn't ask for it, but I'm called. I'm anointed. And I've been healed and delivered, so I know what God is TRULY capable of doing, vs. just hearsay and things from "bible days." I live a life that involves God and my faith every day. (And yes, I realize how INCREDIBLE that sounds and how VERY BLESSED that makes me. I live out my faith daily because God made Himself known to me in miraculous ways daily. I'm privileged.)]

But, I sometimes still just am dumbfounded that others don't just seem to "get it." It, being that God is there for us. One day, I was afforded the opportunity to be sitting beside a very drunk, very funny, very sweet older lady that was in her Golden Years. Usually those old broads make me smile and they always inspire me. But I felt truly compassionate towards THIS lady. She was in absolute chaos and turmoil. I posed a question to her, over our airline tray table: “If you could ask God for anything, what would your request be?” Her answer was immediate. “I want to feel at peace.” She tearfully explained that her life was a mess of problems due to her relationships with alcohol and food. We had a long talk and she asked me for prayer. I told her that OF COURSE I'd keep her in my prayers. She said, "No. I want what you have. Pray for me right now." We ended up praying right there on an airplane and she ended up with stammering lips and getting the Holy Ghost on a Southwest flight.

See, whether or not they know it, many in our world are like that old woman, in that they desire inner calmness but have no relationship with the Lord. They are hungry for something bigger than themselves that help to make sense of the chaos and the pain that the world will inflict. They are disillusioned with people that have half-heartedly lived out lukewarm "christianism" in front of them, but never pointed them to the actual Christ that could help them. They are hungry. They are thirsty. And people often seek to fill that hunger and thirst by trying to improve their appearance, physical fitness, financial situation, or social status—or by abusing substances. They seek comfort in other people, in promiscuity and clinging to the physical to satisfy the spiritual. But such things can’t bring tranquility of heart or mind. Only a relationship with Jesus leads to true peace.

Romans 5:1,2: "Now that we have been put right with God through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. He has brought us by faith into this experience of God's grace, in which we now live. And so we boast of the hope we have of sharing God's glory!"

Prior to salvation, we were slaves to sin and living in opposition to God (Col. 1:21). Our transgressions had formed a barrier of hostility between Him and us, which we were helpless to cross on our own. Without God’s intervention, we could not have found the way of peace. But God provided the perfect solution to our sin problem. He came to earth as Jesus to pay for our iniquities and remove the separation that existed between us and Him.

When we trusted Jesus, as the Christ, we were reconciled to the Lord (Rom. 5:10) and no longer at odds with Him. In Christ, we have peace with the Father

Our One God has provided everything we need for inner tranquility. Jesus opened the way for us to be in His family. Jesus continually offers His peace so we can experience serenity of mind and heart (John 14:27). And Jesus as the Holy Ghost cultivates the fruit of peace in our lives (Gal. 5:22).

--Do you need peace?

--Are you exhausted by the world around you and the daily offenses that attack you?

--Do you long for people to just act right, get along and for the world to calm down?

--Are you experiencing "compassion exhaustion?"

There are real answers to be found and real hope is to be had! You can experience peace today.

I love you all. Be kind to each one another.

Give peace.

Cheers, 

#JustBeingMichael ツ

Who Are You, Christians? Discovering Our True Identity...

Do you know who you are?


If you do, then you are blessed. People rarely know where they come from, their heritage and have a good grasp on who they are to be. Ancestry.com makes a lot of money selling this dream to people that with a few clicks, you can "know" where you come from. You can "know" who your ancestors were and connect with other descendants in your family tree. But does that tell you what you want to know? Does that tell you the full story of you and your people?

Many Christians are experiencing an identity crisis. 

They know they’re "saved," but they don’t really know what to think about themselves. I say this, and I already know that three of you have stopped reading here. You roll your eyes. You think that this won't pertain to you. Some of my Apostolic friends are already nervous that this will be about standards. Maybe it will be about standards to you. If the BIGGEST trial you ever face is getting your personal control over how you present your body to God, then GOOD FOR YOU. If you skirt length or the color of your hair is truly what stresses you, then you need to get out more. There are real struggles in the world.... like folks getting shot and murdered in foreign lands for admitting they follow Jesus. Or even gunned down just walking the street in their own hometown. 1 in 6 Americans... think on that... ONE IN SIX AMERICANS are underfed or go hungry. So, maybe this will resonate with you about your personal modesty. Maybe living for God is hard for you on something as simple as looking and talking like a Christian. I hope, though, it doesn't. Maybe it won't. Maybe this will reach deeper to you. There are folks that fight every day to live drug free, alcohol free and to live a life that doesn't lead to death, prison, or shame. Surely living a Christ-like life in American  can't be your biggest obstacle? Not with all He's done for all of us. Maybe this will reach to the substance inside of you. Maybe the author of your salvation, and the measure of faith given to us all will rise up and read this for what it is intended... Or maybe some of my friends that subscribe to NO GOD will think this is stupid. Maybe this is about you. Or maybe my friends that think that just being a decent person will work and that we all end up at the same place with just different roads... maybe you think I'm talking to you. Maybe I am...

Maybe, for all of you, thinking that it's about you IS the very action makes this ALL about you. Let’s take a little test. Do you consider yourself a sinner saved by grace or a saint who occasionally sins? Huh? Let me repeat this. Do you consider yourself:

• A sinner, but you have been redeemed and saved by grace, or

• A saint, but you know you are not perfect and still need God's grace

Both statements are true, but here is the message: the first one dwells on your past identity, where the second focuses on Jesus' perception of you.

1 Corinthians 1:1-9: "From Paul, who was called by the will of God to be an Apostle of Christ Jesus,and from our brother Sosthenes - To the church of God which is in Corinth, to all who are called to be God's holy people, who belong to him in union with Christ Jesus, together with all people everywhere who worship our Lord Jesus Christ, their Lord and ours: May God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ give you grace and peace. I always give thanks to my God for you because of the grace he has given you through Christ Jesus. For in union with Christ, you have become rich in all things, including all speech and all knowledge. The message about Christ has become so firmly established in you that you have not failed to receive a single blessing, as you wait for our Lord Jesus Christ to be revealed. He will also keep you firm to the end, so that you will be faultless on the Day of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is to be trusted, the God who called you to have fellowship with his Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord."

Now, I'll have to write this slowly, so I won't get caught up shouting and fail to finish today's #DailyProverb. But that passage is the opening greeting of his letter and it gets skipped over in MANY messages preached today. We get by on the major Apostolic teachings and forget that there are some DEEP promises in just a greeting. If you are a believer, God’s Word says that you are a saint (v. 2). If you are in union with Christ, then your speech and knowledge will be rich in the things of God. When you are so focused on Jesus, and you are FIRMLY established in Jesus, you will not fail to receive a single blessing or gift in the Spirit. You will be kept and maintained until the end, so that you can be found faultless. All of this, just from the "Hello" of a letter to a church that was founded at the crossroads of a multi-cultural, multi-national, and multi-religioned city. 

Remember from history and using context, that Corinth was a hot bed of activity in commerce, in power, a cross roads of trade and language and even religion. The temples there to various Gods were competing with and condemning these baby Christians for their "brutal" and "bloody" religion. And to them, in the infancy of Christianity... the crucifixion and the symbolic "blood" purification we required for the remission of sins was ghastly to the city. So, the fact that Christianity had a church established there was amazing, and the fact that it was a powerful and firmly planted church was because of God's grace to them. Paul knew this and called it out.

What about us? Does that sound familiar?

Huh, Michael? What am I even talking about? THIS is what I'm talking about: the world is exponentially becoming ingrained in commerce and travel. The world is small to us. We are bored. We are ALL within a few clicks of being at a crossroads. We all have access to anything that is multi-cultural, multi-national, and multi-religioned at a moment's notice. To live for Christ, and BY Christ's teachings is rare. People use the term "Christian" and the guise of "Christianity" to sell money-making conservatism. Being a white, conservative, Republican in a Red State doesn't automatically make you a good, God-fearin' Christian. Following the teachings of Christ will make you a good Christian. Fakers will wage war on the poor, and not on poverty. They will tell you that family is first, but break up homes with outdated laws, outdated prejudices and fight people. They will tell you that the money making as conservatives is to continue to trust the way that it's been working, but it's not been working. Corporate greed and corrupt human politics are fighting to keep people poor and putting money after money after money into corporate coffers through the guise of progress and consumerism. BEWARE of this and realize what Paul wrote is true. Be FIRMLY established in Christ. You focus on Jesus, what Jesus did, what Jesus said, and HOW Jesus lived... you help your neighbor, you feed the hungry, help the sick, worry and show care for widows and the elderly. Be kind to those others would shun. You bring people to church that others would ignore. Don't focus on giving them a makeover or having them as a "project." Focus on showing God's love. You can NEVER go wrong being kind to people, loving people, and helping people.

Why is this concept so foreign? Because too many of us still see ourselves as the same old sinner, who’s been forgiven and patched up and yet is basically unchanged inside. We stay so "grateful" for being brought out of sin, that we forget to GROW in Christ. We forget that we are NEW creatures and that we are to walk in the callings that GOD gives us. We still think the same. We don't shift and fight and contend and WORK at being good Christians. We just expect God to miraculously change our personalities into these bound, Stepford-like "sheeple" that don't think, don't express personality, don't use their God-given gifts and talents... God made EACH of us to be unique and to do exactly what we were created to do. Not everyone is famous, not everyone is known publicly, and not everyone will be given their due recognition. But EVERYONE has a job to do, a soul to win, a work to accomplish and a measure of faith given to them. Don't sell yourself short. When God can trust you with a little, He starts trusting you with more. If you can be faithful with a just a little... you can grow that.

Are you new? Do you know who you are? Did you The Lord says anyone in Christ “is a new creature; the old things passed away” (2 Cor. 5:17). That’s what being born again is all about. We are new. If you are not new, if you can't get over yourself, and your past, and your regrets and your mistrusts, and your failure... how do you expect others to see you differently? How can you expect others to trust you and work with you, when you won't trust yourself or work with yourself? If you can't manage yourself, how can you manage others? Be new. Be changed. YOU are the ONLY key to that. Trust God to help you and have the FAITH that when God does a work in you, He is THOROUGH. We can never go back to the way we were.

The solution to this identity crisis is to change the way we think about ourselves. If we don’t, we’ll rely on how we feel, and Satan will bombard us with reminders of our failures and sins. But we walk by faith, not feelings. The devil wants to keep us focused on being a sinner, because he knows that the recognition of our sainthood will lead us to live like saints. We’ll be motivated and empowered to obey God, and the Devil will lose his foothold in our lives. 

You missed that point, didn't you. The DEVIL will use LIES like, "I don't 'feel' saved. I don't feel like being kind. I am just 'made that way' and I can't help it when I 'lose my temper' or 'run my mouth.'" Then we just give in to whatever is near. We stop trying. We stop fighting for our own causes and actions and to be better. We stop being CONTENDERS. But, those are lies. Those are untrue things that YOU control. You are the ONLY person that can control you. If you don't want to smoke, then don't. If you don't want to drink, then don't. If you don't want to do drugs, THEN DON'T. You are personally accountable and culpable for your actions. 

Jesus didn’t come just to save you from hell; If your only goal in loving Jesus is to avoid hell, you have it all wrong. You'll probably go there anyway if that's your mindset. (Yes, I just said that.) Jesus wants to live His life through you. He wants to use you to show love and kindness to others. Your testimony, your kindness, the newness of YOU will draw others to Christ, and then more, and then more. Your success in the Lord will RIPPLE throughout the body of Christ. The Kingdom will grow, thrive and future generations will feel YOUR life and what you decide today. In Christ, you have a new identity which has replaced your old one. So, live like it.

Be new. Be a new creature. Live like a new creature. Walk, talk, work, shop, drink, eat, and laugh like a new creature. Show up at work like a new creature. Show up at your family functions like a new creature. Show up with your old friends and live like a new creature. Don't throw away people or shun them if they are not just like you. Don't give up on others that you once partied with and sinned with if they can't follow you on your new journey in Christ. They still love you, so you need to still love them. One of the biggest reasons that we don't have people wanting Christianity is because WE, as Christians, don't live it out in front of the world. The reason we don't live it is because we don't believe it. (!!!!!!!!!!!!! Can you believe I said that? Yes... you should. If you really believe something, your actions and your behavior will support that belief. If I 'believed' my house was on fire, my 'behavior' would be to get up and get out and get help. If I 'believed' my health was at risk, my 'behavior' would be to get to a doctor. WHY do we say we believe in Christ, but never follow the teachings he set forth?) But it's true! Why would ANYONE want to be a Christian when those that preach, teach and tout how great it is can't even live it or show it?

LIVE your life in front of your family, your friends, your colleagues. Show them. Be salt. Be light. If you will focus on who you are now, your actions will follow, and you’ll experience the enjoyment of a victorious Christian life.

I love y'all.

Cheers, #JustBeingMichael ツ

Seek Ye First

#DailyProverbs

Today, let's talk about "Seek Ye First..."

It’s been said that the reason America doesn’t experience the power and revival that the rest of the world feels is because we pray for revival, and they pray for unity. They pray to be united together in Christ, while we pray that God blesses us and gives us more. I don’t care for hearsay or click-bait. So I’ll clarify, when I write “it’s been said…” I mean that Bro. Baily told Pastor and Sis. Ballestero; I was privileged to hear it.

Unity brings about a lot of things. Unity in learning. Unity is purpose. Unity in our sacrifice. It gets God's attention. When Jesus started delegating authority to his followers, his disciples, he gave them rules. God gives us plenty of promises... but with every covenant, every promise comes a requirement, a rule, a guideline. God is an orderly God and we can work the plan and be blessed. He tells us in His Word what His expectations are. We don’t have to cry out, cut ourselves or beg God to speak to us, when we’ve got the living Word in us, and his scriptures in front of us. But he also expects us to follow the rules... and to follow Him.

Jesus Sends Out the Twelve Disciples (Luke 9:1-6; see also: Mt 10.5–15; Mk 6.7–13)

Jesus called the twelve disciples together and gave them power and authority to drive out all demons and to cure diseases. Then he sent them out to preach the Kingdom of God and to heal the sick, after saying to them, “Take nothing with you for the journey: no stick, no beggar's bag, no food, no money, not even an extra shirt. Wherever you are welcomed, stay in the same house until you leave that town; wherever people don't welcome you, leave that town and shake the dust off your feet as a warning to them.”

The disciples left and travelled through all the villages, preaching the Good News and healing people everywhere.

That first verse says that He called them together.

Then He gave them power.

Then He gave them authority.

Then He SENT them... and He sent them with NOTHING but His power, authority, and commission.

We want God to call us. We want God to give us power. We want God to give us authority. We are not very keen on God sending us. We are even LESS keen on God telling us that we are to have the bare minimum. We need a lighting budget. We need cordless mics. We need earbud monitor systems. Anything less than state of the art is a slap in the face to us.

We tell God these days that we “can’t” do ministry unless we are assured that it’s comfortable, will fit in our schedule, and we are able to ensure that we are properly paid. People want to play in church on Sundays, but they don't want to practice during the week. They want to be in the big churches and have the nice systems... but they can't see themselves helping a small church that might be one person, acoustics, and doing it simply to ensure that God's name is glorified in worship. And most people want a check. I am not correcting Paul. I believe the workman is worthy of hire, but it’s about communal generosity, not wealth or prosperity. Do you think a man of God will be uber-wealthy? Do you think if he is, he’ll keep it, or spread it for the Kingdom? Do you think about the camel and needle? What did Jesus really mean when he sent his followers, his friends… the men that would be with him out into the world and into towns like this? With nothing? As nothing? As people that would need kindness, and alms from strangers to survive?

Would YOU do it, if that’s how God called you to ministry? Could you? What did Jesus really mean by that? Like, really mean... Is it possible He meant to leave everything behind? Live in a commune?

Oh… wait... He kind of said that, didn’t he? Matthew 8:22 is where Jesus told the rich young ruler, a teacher of the law, and an actual disciple to leave it all.

All of it?

Yes, all of it. He told the rich young ruler to come with him. And he meant right then!!! He told him to leave it all behind. He told the young man to walk with him daily, forsake his home, his business, his money, his servants his house, his family. Jesus told him to say goodbye to all of that and come prepare. Jesus knew that His immediate rise and fall were coming. He knew that the Gospel would be spread. He knew that eternity was in the balance. The ruler just thought of that day. What were his tasks THAT day? What were the things he needed to accomplish THAT day?

Do you get caught up at church?

Do you get fired up and mean well and want "more" of God? More power? More help? More blessings?

Do you feel the rush of a preacher’s message and tell God you’ll follow him, literally, anywhere?

Do you balk when God accepts your offer and asks you to commit to following Him and leaving your world behind? 

What about the passage in Luke to the one in Matthew? It’s nearly identical in the technicalities of what is offered as the story, but it offers a few more insights into Luke’s pragmatism and writing style. He focuses on the different phrasing used. Matthew captured the beauty and majesty of the whole “Son of Man” thing, but Luke cuts to the point: If you don’t follow God, and obey God, you are of no use to God. #Boom

The Would-be Followers of Jesus (Luke 9:57; see also, Mt 8.19–22)

As they went on their way, a man said to Jesus, “I will follow you wherever you go.” Jesus said to him, “Foxes have holes, and birds have nests, but the Son of Man has nowhere to lie down and rest.”

He said to another man, “Follow me.” But that man said, “Sir, first let me go back and bury my father.” Jesus answered, “Let the dead bury their own dead. You go and proclaim the Kingdom of God.”

Someone else said, “I will follow you, sir; but first let me go and say goodbye to my family.” Jesus said to him, “Anyone who starts to plough and then keeps looking back is of no use to the Kingdom of God.”

Could you do that and leave everything for God? Would you?

What did Jesus mean when He said that anyone that ploughs looking back is useless?

What keeps calling you to back?

What has a call so strong that you won’t keep looking forward at the task God has for you?

What is so powerful, grand, or important that the straight and narrow row you should be ploughing will be crooked or stopped due to your inability to look forward?

Ask yourself those questions and answer them honestly. Answer them truthfully. Do you think you can follow God and let Him truly mold you and use you? Or will you offer all of the reasons that YOU are the special case that He should work with? Will you convince God that you deserve the mantle of leadership and prestige and want the power to proclaim the Gospel, but YOU deserve to be let out of the sacrifice and the path that God would have you walk.

Seek Ye First: God and Possessions (Matthew 6:24; see also Lk 16.13)

“No one can be a slave of two masters; he will hate one and love the other; he will be loyal to one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money."

See, here is where the rubber meets the road for most people. Most conservative citizens in the Bible Belt consider themselves to be “Christian.” The matter is that they are conservative. They have values that are conservative. But their love of money is a problem and it’s one that will overshadow the rest of their testimony. You cannot love money and serve God. It’s POSSIBLE, but incredibly NEARLY NEVER GOING TO HAPPEN that a rich person will make good moral choices and make it to Heaven. Jesus just flat out said it: A rich person will work to make more money and hoard and keep money. They just don’t usually end up using it to make the lives of the downtrodden and poor and needy better, or even tolerable.

You can even sing the songs, wear the right clothes, look the part and be a teacher of the law, a ruler, or a disciple of Christ… but if you won’t drop YOUR plans, and YOUR life, and YOUR mindset, then you are missing the point. The Gospel has been spread. It’s been put out there. Those in charge of it have mutilated it. They’ve abused it. They’ve bastardized it for selfish gain… God can handle all of that. I’m not an apologist, nor am I ashamed of it. The cruelties done in the name of Christ were done by politics, greed, and for control. They were not done in LOVE. But, without love, we are clanging cymbals. We are useless. We are ineffective. Why? Because God is Love (1 John 4:8)  See, if you are not full of love of Christ, even for those not like you, then you don’t know God.

Seek Ye First: God and Possessions (Matthew 6:25-34 ; see also Luke 12:22–31)

“This is why I tell you not to be worried about the food and drink you need in order to stay alive, or about clothes for your body. After all, isn't life worth more than food? And isn't the body worth more than clothes? Look at the birds: they do not sow seeds, gather a harvest and put it in barns; yet your Father in heaven takes care of them! Aren't you worth much more than birds? Can any of you live a bit longer by worrying about it?

“And why worry about clothes? Look how the wild flowers grow: they do not work or make clothes for themselves. But I tell you that not even King Solomon with all his wealth had clothes as beautiful as one of these flowers. It is God who clothes the wild grass — grass that is here today and gone tomorrow, burnt up in the oven. Won't he be all the more sure to clothe you? How little faith you have!

“So do not start worrying: ‘Where will my food come from? or my drink? or my clothes?’ (These are the things the pagans are always concerned about.) Your Father in heaven knows that you need all these things. Instead, be concerned above everything else with the Kingdom of God and with what he requires of you, and he will provide you with all these other things. So do not worry about tomorrow; it will have enough worries of its own. There is no need to add to the troubles each day brings."

What are you doing FOR God?

When God called you to follow Him, did you only agree on YOUR terms?

When God told you to share the Gospel, is it only in the situations of which YOU approve?

When God asks you to step out in faith and help, is your obedience only when YOU are comfortable? 

When God tells you to do something, is the schedule set only when YOU decide?

Don’t miss it. Don’t you dare miss what God has for you. I often wonder if the rich young ruler witnessed the crucifixion. If he told his children and grandchildren that he knew of Jesus and had a chance to go with Him. What did he think after that encounter when he left, saddened?

What about you? Do you leave saddened?

How many encounters have you had with God? How many times has God given you a chance and reached out to you? How many times has your heart been pricked with conviction and you feel the Holy Ghost urging you to talk to Jesus? How many times have you begged God to keep giving you chances, because you are "not ready." How many times have you told God that you need to take care of a few situations, just be patient while you correct and work on a few loose ends? That's not how it works with God. His love is infinite, not His patience. If you are consumed with worldly things, they will be the things that choke your relationship with God. They will be your demise. You will miss the point, and you will miss your chance.

I ask you again:

What has a call so strong that you won’t keep looking forward at the task God has for you?

What possession is worth communion and following Christ? You just "have" to have it.

What idol do you have that you have put above following Christ? You just "can't" give it up.

#SeekYeFirst

Cheers, 

#JustBeingMichael ツ

The Secret of Contentment - Part One

This is one of the hardest blogs I've ever written. Mainly, because I've had to soul search what I really believe and if I am truly "happy" or if I'm really "content." That's a raw look in the mirror to have to take. I've also had to search out my spiritual beliefs and if I am "really" applying those to my daily life. Also, because this will be a multi-part series blog, I don't like to always point out the negative, but this first piece is setting the stage for our current state of affairs and how we can be content, even in the middle of chaos. So, read at your own risk and realize... 

Contentment is a hard word to really work with. You never really hear contentment talked about. Peace is the poster child for Christian mental well-being. Contentment is the one we gave up on and sold down the river. The world offered us some bling and we bought it. Even songs rally around peace, but you never really hear contentment in songs. Lanny Wolfe wrote “My House Is Full” and that is the only song I know that has the word contentment in the verse. Maybe it’s just harder word with which to rhyme. We feel pressure to be content, yet the world around us is always pressing us to be discontent. We claim peace as our promise from God, but we leave contentment to our whims and choose to say we will be content LATER in our lives, once accomplishments and goals have been achieved. But we won’t take responsibility for our contentment. Our society has evolved to the point that we bear no personal responsibility for our actions.

Let me paint a picture for you of why we are discontent, it’s easy: we are told to be discontent. I could technically end this here, but some folks will need examples. We are told we are not good enough, not smart enough. We are told we need to make more money, lose more weight, spend more, work less, and promote the path of least resistance. We are told that if we differ in any way, then we don’t fit and we are “wrong.” We are told that anything less than homogenization is an aberration. We are told to strive for the exact, cookie-cutter level of success, want, and path – or we don’t love our fellow man, our country, or our God. And most of us are miserable. We can get everything we want, and usually very quickly, but we are not content most of the time.

• Food? 30 years ago, a good meal took hours of preparation. Now, we get antsy if we have to wait 5 minutes for gourmet. Are you content?
• We eat American-sized portions. They are literally 1.5-2.5 times the size of FDA portions from 20 years ago – are you content?
• We wear American-sized clothes. We keep altering the tags on the clothes so we “don’t feel bad” about our bodies. Sizing charts from Europe to America vary. Now, they vary from retailer to retailer. We all know that a size at American Eagle is different at Hollister is different at Pac Sun is different at a boutique store. Are you content?
• We get everything delivered, but WOE to the driver that is more than 4 minutes late. Are you content?
•  Hold music? No thank you, I’ll enter my number and have you call me back when my turn in queue is up. Are you content?
• Do you feel like having an expensive toy NOW? Well, charge it. Pay later, or never depending on your circumstances. Are you content?
• If you don’t have the latest smart phone, just have your provider break out the cost over several months on a payment plan. You NEED an $800 phone that is meant for traveling professionals. You need to check your email and be able to blog and take photos and instantly share your thoughts to a world of strangers. It’s not your fault – you felt pressure to be like everyone else. Aren't you content?
• Tired of corporate greed? Aren’t we all! Let’s just default on the contracts we signed. If you cannot pay your bloated mortgage, it’s the banks’ faults for giving you a line of credit, not yours for not managing your money. Are you content?
• Outraged at your student debt? No one should have to work for an education, that’s just absurd… you should be forgiven that debt instead of paying the debt you signed your name on a contract to pay. Be content.
• Oh, was it an exorbitant and unfair deal to begin with? I didn’t realize that knowingly signing contracts and agreements that you didn’t intend to honor was still okay, just because you morally disagree with the lender. Are you content?
• While you are in school… don’t worry that the self-same education you feel entitled to is being squandered. Are you content?  
• Don’t worry about grades, spelling, grammar, diction, facts, and “the curve.” It’s the professor’s fault for expecting YOU to know and grasp English, right? Be content.
• Michael Kennedy! You can't say that! It's practically racist if you expect someone to sit in an American classroom and know the language of the country in which you are being taught!!!! (Some white right-wingers will AMEN this without thinking! ‘Merica!) Are you content?
• I hope those people didn't "Amen!" too loudly, because I don’t mean Mexicans and Blacks not knowing English or using Ebonics. I mean uppity white kids that are so lazy they cannot speak or write their own native language, in a country where they are afforded every privilege possible to be able to do so. In my mind, you are the racist for automatically connecting non-whites to lower expectations for education and presentation of language skills. Are you content?
• No one "likes" dead kids. No one "likes" murder, street violence, gang violence, and no one "likes" school shootings… But we cannot continue to be devastated every month because people refuse to believe the cause. Speeding is regulated. Pharmacology is regulated. Beverage consumption is regulated. Why is this even an issue? Maybe... I mean, it's like rational people just throw everything out the window. Don’t worry so much about mental health checks and waiting periods because Jim Bob needs to be able to get his gun TODAY. That’s just the American way. As long as we shuck and jive and just blame a few folks here and there and let those kids keep dying, it'll all blow over, right? It’s only a few crazies here and there doing all the killing – NOT normal God-fearing, sane folks. Could you be more content?
• Or let's overlook the fact that they seem to have unlimited access to those weapons. Or let’s overlook the fact that it’s almost always white, religious males that do the shootings. Or let's overlook the fact that it’s almost always religious white males that wage most wars of any kind. Point: Just because you are religious doesn't mean you know Jesus. Are you content yet?
• Oh, Michael, you have gone too far now! How would you feel if someone held you up at gunpoint and robbed you or killed you or raped you? Well... to be honest... I’d feel awful. I’d feel robbed and raped. Just like you would feel awful, robbed, and raped if that person did that to you, did so with a gun they got easily, the day they got out of prison instead of making it as hard as possible to be a law-abiding gun owner through background checks and following up on crazy folks. Be content.
• Don’t like that you have found yourself unhealthy, overweight, and disease-ridden after years of chemicals, fake food, and any and every vice you ever encountered? Don’t blame yourself for picking up a cigarette and getting cancer – you are NOT at fault! Take comfort in the fact that it’s your genes, and your poor family’s socioeconomic status. If you had only been a little richer, you could have been exposed to better habits! And the company that made those things are at fault for providing them to you. They should pay! Are you content?
• Ugh, "those" people on welfare are just moochers and they should be taught a lesson for expecting handouts! Let's compare them to animals and the "No Feeding" signs at zoos, instead of respecting them as created and designed creatures of God. Let's make sure that we teach them that handouts are not the way! Handouts and welfare only breed dependence and failure! Just like every major car corporation under the last three presidents and every bank under the last 2 presidents!!! Teach people that if they can’t make it on their own, if they make poor financial choices that negatively affect their long term fiscal health, then they don’t deserve to be saved! Leave it up to a free market and capitalism, right, Corporate America??!?! Hello? Just me? Are you content?
• McDonald's should be sued for selling burgers that make people fat! It’s not YOUR fault you ate 3 a day for 10 years! You cannot be expected to care, know, or control what goes in your mouth. Remember that $800 phone you got on credit through your cellular provider and the $45 a month for data? Well, you have access to the entire knowledge base of humanity in the palm of your hand. Don’t plead ignorance. You can Google song lyrics, statistics, jail terms per crime, your favorite sports statistics, your local wages and tax credits per child. You can watch your favorite television, tweet your experience, look at a stranger's genitals, and calculate how much you won't be tipping with that plastic device - but you can’t look up cheap, healthy meal alternatives? You didn’t eat right because it wasn’t important until it was too late. Don’t blame anyone but yourself now. Just be content.
• If you don’t like your spouse, then don't worry. You can get rid of them. Do they want you to treat them well? Do they expect you to be home, help around the house, and take an active role in your relationship? Ugh, what a drain on your emotional reservoir. Leave them. They should have known better than to age or change physically. They should have known better than to act bewildered and confused when YOU changed after a decade. Trade them in on a younger model! Most marriages are just starter marriages now anyway, right? Forget those pesky “vows.” Contentment is just a secretive rendezvous away! Be content.
• Don’t want to be faithful? You don’t have to be! Monogamy is a fake creation. We are animals, programmed to just drop and rut on any street corner as the mood hits. Don’t worry about consent or faithfulness. I mean, male privilege and "rape culture" are just touchy-feely words that man-hating liberal lesbians made up, right? If you are in heat, or you have a need, fill it. Better yet... the real key is to have an open relationship OR just don’t get caught cheating. That solves so many pesky questions and issues. If you don’t get caught, it didn’t happen. If you DO get caught, just use the phrase, "God made us sexual creatures; therefore, He obviously knew what He was in for with mankind." That’s not your fault. You can’t be expected to control you mind or your body. Are you finding contentment?
• Don’t want to be bothered with societal niceties? Blame the latest boutique syndrome. There is something for everyone… if you are hyper, shy, slow, lazy, have thin eyelashes, want less cramps, can’t focus, can’t cry your own tears, don’t like bread, like bread too much… whatever. All of it is able to be solved with a focus group, a pill, a few side effects and the following class action law suit. Are you content?
• If you don’t like your child’s behavior, they need a pill. Children, at the genetic level of their cells are predisposed to be hyper, loud and find the world infinitely interesting. It's their mitochondria and the Kreb's cycle. They have many times more mitochondria at birth than they ever will at death. And, sadly for us and the aging process, mitochondria do not replenish as we get older. That's why as the cells don't create any more, people get slower, more tired, less interested, and it becomes harder to learn, assimilate, file, and then retrieve information. Children are practically wired to be inquisitive and want to know things. But, if they won't be quiet, or want you to participate in their journey through the world, they must just be oppositional and need a pill. Don’t worry about taking a moment to educate them and explain that just because they see you act like a demon to servers, wait staff, the help, and people in labor jobs doesn’t’ mean THEY get to act that way to people. They will repeat every action they see, even if buried for years. Are you content with your children?
• If your child sees you disparage and malign your own parents, why do you act so upset when they speak like that to you? It's not your fault that you are already overextended emotionally, so it’s not your fault that you chose to procreate and be responsible for another human’s emotional and mental development. Clearly it's the childrens' fault that the world is worse and that society is in free fall. They are the ones that changed the world, not the adults in charge, right? Are we content?
• If you cannot shoehorn your poor behavior into a syndrome, don’t worry! The answer is to just blame the action of another of THEIR syndrome and say you had no choice to but to react poorly, and that your actions are dictated by others. You cannot control yourself, you are at the mercy and whim of how others act. Are you content?
• Don’t like your latest syndrome? Take a pill.
• Don’t like the side effects, blame big pharma…

 …the list goes on and on, ad infinitum, ad nauseum.

We are a society that has found ourselves hurtling towards chaos… quickly. But we don’t know why and we cannot seem to apply the brakes. Nothing is no one’s fault anymore. There is no personal responsibility for anything you do, say, or fail to do. (Unless you are on the opposite side of our two-party partisan political arena, THEN, it’s ALL the fault of the other side, right?) I mean, if you believe in personal responsibility and liberty, then you MUST hate poor people and don’t believe in public assistance. Or if you believe in helping people that are down on their luck, or going through a tough period, you must be someone that promotes dependence and welfare queens. Let’s say a single mom that had a military husband that died and the government paid them nada, then you must be a liberal hippie that wants to give all your money away, right? (I mean, Michael, do not be absurd - THAT situation is fine. Military wives are practically saints that should be revered.) It’s only bad to help out single moms if they are black sluts that have lots of babies – THEN it’s just ridiculous to ensure that those children are cared for. Or if they are the spouse of a fallen soldier that was part of a same sex couple. Those freaks can forget it, too. Forget that some are never taught any better and were trapped in propagating a cultural cycle. No, I think we all agree that only tragedy-befallen-white-women deserve consideration and help. Tragedy cannot befall men, so, if you have a penis, you also are judged differently and shamed if you need help. All others should be shamed and ignored for doing all they knew to do with what they had. 

Pshaw!!!! We’ve been had! Money making is the name of the game now. Corporations, and through their lobbying efforts, the government at large drive society based on financial markets and fiscal bottom lines. They want to separate families. Michael, that's just silly... except for the fact that if you are divorced that's TWO houses, two sets of energy bills, two sets of Christmas, birthdays, etc. You have more vehicles, transporting more kids using more gas to get to more places. They want whites and blacks to NOT band together. Just look at the number of coalitions, jobs, marketing, and "separate but equal" way they do schools and colleges and jobs and "clubs" and drag shows and food and places of interest. I mean, just this week I read an article on why white atheists don't care about the black atheist experience. That's crazy. We cannot believe that we are just an atheist... we have to compartmentalize people to the most granular level or we are "not fitting in to OUR people." That didn't come from WITHIN us. We are taught that. We are brainwashed to believe that. They want gays and straights to hate one another. They want men and women to be at odds. They want parents and kids to not get along, poor and rich to feel ill at ease. Don’t you see how many jobs, books, talk shows, self-help seminars, wars, companies, real estate, creams, and surgeries, make up, hair products… all of this chaos employs a lot of people. Those people work for peanuts and the majority of the profits make a lot of money for a few. WHY would they change that, promote the "right" thing to do, and give that up? Think about that slowly. 

Let the horror of that sink in...

Every time you really get riled up by a lie, a fake picture or statistic on Facebook, and you begin thinking about whatever is making you upset… you spend money. You may not even realize it. And it is ruining this country! You don't even realize that you will spend money on it. But it doesn’t go directly to the cause. Don’t be misled. There are overhead bills to pay. Executives, directors, managers, promotional ads, television spots, and further “spin” on whatever take they need to make extreme enough for you to spend even more money. It especially confuses me when people that are middle class whites agree with this stance. When you get told that it's black welfare queens that are taking the most money, and you buy into that, you then vote for the guy that taxes YOU the most, takes YOUR money, and gives the MOST of it to billionaires, themselves, and government. THEN they still give some to welfare. YOU are the one still paying? WHY would you NOT vote for the guy that makes the billionaire corporations PAY their FAIR share of the taxes they owe? You are essentially voting against yourself and you are essentially falling victim to the lie that big business and government are trying to convince you. They are pitting white men against every other demographic. If we all worked together, as people, to promote people, and not interests, causes and money… this would change drastically. Just ask women about the $8 BILLION dollar a year beauty industry. They pit all women of all colors against one another to make sure that white girls want black booties, and black girls want white hair, and Asian girls have to use sticky tape and contouring tricks to have lidded eyes... everyone spends all of their money to look like someone else. Media, corporate entities, and the government have all worked together to ensure that the flow of money from fear-driven consumer, to corporation, to government and in varying cycles will continue. And yet… we are still overspent as a nation and as people. Credit card debt, surges for the economy, only to pay people in retail, so they can pay people in food industry, so they can pay people in retail, and all of it gets taxed. It’s a cycle. We will borrow money from one country, so that we can give money to another country to show goodwill and keep our national interests in check. Yet, we’re broke. And we have internal infrastructure that we ignore, while we spend American dollars in other countries. That’s not our fault, though… we as a people have overlooked and ignored our leaders for so long, that we’ve allowed them to run rampant. I can hear some people now: “Michael, that’s cruel… tsunami/tornado/earthquake victims around the world NEED our money and our prayers and support.” I’m not saying they don’t. I’m saying that IN YOUR PERSONAL life… if you go borrow money from the bank, and take out loans to the detriment of your own family, and give that money away to needy people… YOU have the right to tell me I’m wrong and to shut my mouth. But if you practice the opposite, and you pay YOUR bills, and YOUR families’ bills first, THEN give to charity and to causes… then you need to recognize that AS A NATION, we cannot continue down this path of funding the entire world, especially if we are going to be fake about it and have to worry about silly things like human rights and collateral damage and war crimes, etc. You cannot give away so much that you are left destitute and unable to take care of your own.

We’ve made entire generations dependent on government. We have taught children how to perform to standardized tests, and made them “one size fits all.” We wonder why there are less and less exceptional people, when we refuse to promote exceptionalism. Everyone gets a trophy. Everyone gets to tout participation, but no one is a “winner.” That would make the “losers” feel bad. We teach students memorization, but not how to research and actually learn something. It’s unheard of to actually expect someone to implement something they’ve learned, unless you languish in academia. I love all night conversations about “what if,” but that’s not going pick up a shovel and move a mountain. At some point you have to learn to put thoughts into action. We’ve taught people that we should be embarrassed to be too successful, or educated. Or that you should be embarrassed if you are poor, or lack education. Parents get upset with teachers if their children perform poorly, instead of expecting a child to study harder, learn more, or take the time to work WITH their child. There is a certain amount of shame that SHOULD go with scoffing at education and bettering yourself. Parents are no longer involved. Parents no longer enforce the full participation of the right of education. They are just too exhausted after long workdays, commutes to suburbs, Candy Crush, and their own “me time.” However, I say, “If you were adult enough to have sex and produce a child. You should be adult enough to be a good parent.” Education is viewed as a right, and I want to say… viewed as an obligation now, instead of as a privilege. But, it’s always been a privilege. You are forced to go to school or you are truant. If you didn’t want to go to school, you used to get a job. For a time, secondary education was a luxury. To complete that meant you studied hard, passed hard exams and it carried clout and respect. Now, students are expected to complete secondary education, or you are a dropout, a loser, a slacker. College was for professionals and for those that truly were meant to be the top tier of knowledge, the best of their fields, and academics that wanted to write and teach and share knowledge. Now, to even be considered for entry level, students are pushed to complete higher education, or you won’t succeed. But… people have turned on education. We act like people that like to learn, study hard, and want to better their situation are nerds, outcasts, and “prissy” know it all’s. We treat educated people like they are these bastions of privilege and we don’t understand that it’s too hard to learn plural vs. possessives. We actively ostracize people that want us to do better, and cry out like crazy street preachers… We strive to be perfectly average. We don’t want to be the one that breaks the curve, so we don’t do TOO good; and we don’t want to be poor (shudder) so we don’t do TOO badly, and we end up being status quo – which is just average. We have been taught that average is just fine. Average is acceptable, adequate, and you should be happy with it. We have even moved the mean of the bell curve and we have changed the first sigma to show that “average” is “good” so that workers don’t have to cry about their Annual Review to HR and so students don’t feel like they are singled out when they are, in fact, average. These help no one. No one is made to try harder; instead we are changing the labels to mean something different - to remove stigma, to remove incentive.

We don’t wage war on poverty, but the poor themselves. We are now shaming the actual humans for their fortune or misfortune. We hate the rich and the poor equally and we assume that both are in that position of their own doing. Reversals of fortune and bad things just happen. Life just happens. We get run over by buses we never see coming. So why are we so hard on one another, and not on the circumstances that cause our fellow race of man- and womankind to suffer? We treat the poor like they always cause their own situation, and we treat them like they are pariahs. But we have also created a sense of entitlement in our poor that creates a further rift. Entitlement doesn’t breed gratitude. No one wants to give to charity, not when it’s looked down upon like you could have done more. Well, I could have done zero, so there’s that you ungrateful wench. We worry more about offending the human rights of another country, when our own citizens are not well cared for and we take our tax paying citizens for granted. We grant complete freedom and amnesty to illegal aliens, but we won’t give tax-paying, natural-born citizens full rights if you disagree with their sexuality. I mean, let’s make sure to spend tons of dollars on someone that snuck here and is wanting a free ride because they had one kid on US soil over someone that pays their bills, YOUR bills, and that illegal woman’s bills by faithfully having 30% of each dollar go to a general fund for all of America. That makes perfect sense.

But it’s not our fault… right? It’s no one’s fault. Not the leaders, because they do what they are told… right? It’s not the fault of the corporations, because they are run by committees and boards. Not the citizens, they have no real power over those in charge. Not the poor because they have no power whatsoever. Not the middle class, they are too busy working to pay for the poor AND the rich. That’s what we’ve all been told to believe. Nothing is your fault.

This seems bleak. This seems pointless and sad and aggravating. (Or, maybe that’s how I feel writing this.) But this is just part one of my series on Contentment. I wanted to set the stage. I wanted to show you that we live in a messed up world, with skewed values and we expect immediate, no-cost, consequence-free results. They are required to convince us to participate, but that’s not our natural state of being. We are made to be content and to live together, it’s the lie we’ve bought into. We are told that if we waver in any way, we are bad. We are an anomaly and we are aberrant. I have literally been told in business to keep my head down, don’t be too good – because that breeds discord and jealousy within a small industry. But, don’t be too bad because we don’t want negative attention either. The perfect place is in the middle, under the radar, doing the acceptable minimum. Don’t be too religious. Don’t be too evil. Don’t be for God. Don’t be against God. Don’t make too much. Don’t be poor. We are told that to be content we must always look to the next step and to keep moving to the next moment. We must always be ready to trade in this year’s model of a phone, car, or house and upgrade to the newest fad and trend of what we “should” want. And we are STILL not content. But we can be.

I can testify and bear witness to the fact that we can be content. We can be in the middle of a great high, and a great blessing, and be truly content. We can be in a trial and facing some truly low points, and be truly content. We can be going through something that would make anyone crumble and assume a fetal position – and be truly content. Peace is available to you, that’s been preached innumerable times. I’m here to tell you, to bear witness and to show you that contentment is available to you.

Lift your head. Do not be discouraged. Understand that you are created, designed, perfected and you are to be blessed, at peace, and content. You are DESIGNED to be content and to be at peace. Stay vigilant. Be aware that everything I’ve said is a trap for all of us. Any of us, if not careful, can be led astray, can be distracted, and can fall victim to viewing each detail in dismay and horror and not bolstering one another in life and furthering our faith. Do not let your mind wander. Do not let your heart be troubled. Your life and your outcome are not tied to peace and contentment. Riches, fame, and “being blessed” are not tied to God’s love for you or your salvation. God does bless people. He rains on the just and the unjust. He gives and He takes away. Your spiritual worth, NOT your material worth, is what is tied to Christ on the cross, peace, and contentment.

This world will not get better. You will always see things that trouble you. But YOU can know peace and know contentment.

Parts Two and Three will be posted in the coming days…