homelessness and the depravity of selfrighteousness ..

there's a post sitting in the wings
i've deleted it more than once
i'll get to it
for now i'll say this : -

we're trying to open our doors to people who've been on the street all night so they can get hot drinks, hot food and a chance to sleep in safety for a few hours ..
generally-speaking the people i've approached on this are supportive
there are, however, one or two who have reservations ..
one objection that stands out is that we may well be enabling some of those homeless people who are addicted to drugs - giving them a place to recover, and then they'll be back at it that evening, again ..

i hear that

................ . . .. .     .......     . . .  . .    .

and then i walk out of who i am
and i try, try somehow to step into the shoes of a homeless person ..
not possible, really, until the day i learn what that life is like
   Jesus had to learn too, you know
   read Hebrews

but i try to think of what it must feel like to be on the street every night
and the more i do that
the more i realize what a horror-ible thing it must be
   even for those who ' choose ' that lifestyle, as one person said
   as if that means anything

you really think people choose to be homeless as if it was one of many choices they had loaid out before them, all lying there with equal weight ?   ?
really  ?

i figure some people get so tired of being hated-on because they're gay
or abused because they may not be as intellectually quick as others
or been sexually abused in their own homes, by family members
   sick stuff that
   makes me want to get violent ..
i figure those could be some reasons for leaving ' home ' and running away
into the streetlife, doing whatever it takes to stay alive, even to the point of selling your body ..
they chose that ??
or were they pushed  ?
   go read online about the LGBT kids that were berated and abused by their own families
   some of whom classify themselves as ' religious ' ( i've posted on that )

i think when i hear stuff like that it speaks to the heartlessness of us
and those things come from the mouths of self righteous religious people as much as from anyone else
sad
sick

i've been trying to understand what it must be like ..
night after night
trying to find a place to lie down where the cops won't spot me and run me off
or some resident who doesn't want to sully his neighbourhood

and that's after i've thought of the cold to come that night, and checked for rain ..
hopefully there's some food in my stomach to help my body make it through the night
especially in the cold months
    humans use more calories when it's cold, and food is a must or face hypothermia

of course a skunk could walk up and spray me
a dog could come looking for food in my stuff
or a rat
or someone looking for an easy takedown
   kicking my worn-out body in the process to make me stay down
or someone wanting sex, determined to take it any way they can

and then there's the general underlying knowledge that i'm not wanted here
noone wants homeless people in their town
they try to force them out
make them run to some other town
not my town
hurts the reputation
affects business ..

i'm just a bum
i'm not really of any value
i'm no good, that's why i was abused
i deserve this ..
i just want to die ..
i don't want to wake up tomorrow ..

and i heard that exact statement from the mouth of a young person just last night .. . .     .

no one deserves that
.. .. .. .. ...... .....   . .     .....    .  . . . . .     .

i live in a world and in a country where wealth is the image-marker
wealth drives who i am ..

poverty drives who i am

we've allowed the corporate world to use the media to indoctrinate us in that
   like the sheep we are
we have given over our conscience to the propaganda of the moneygrubbers
and fallen into a deep dark place
where sports stars and musicians and ceo's make the bulk of the money
and teachers and firefighters and nurses barely make it

we're upside-down

and we judge ..
and we're wrong
dead wrong

because any time we treat humans as if they're animals
chase them off
shout at them and tell them they're bums
shuffle them around like some cattle from pen to pen
town to town
any time we can want them gone from around us
invisible
then we're nazi mentality all over again
or slavery in another form
or no better than the indian culture that locks people into classes based on who their parents are

it's frustrating
and it makes me angry
   ( which happens to be the blog post in the waiting )

i'm angry that we think we get to rank
we get to classify
humans
based on whatever it is we want to use at the time ..
class
or the colour of a person's skin !
   - how absolutely inane ..
or whether they're from the north, or the south
what they do for a living
what religion ..

classify/allocate/rank ..
and the homeless always get to be the bottom-feeders

they are the scum of the Earth
just want to see them gone
so i don't even have to see them
invisible

there are older women
   with no where else to go
   dragging around all they own in this life in a cart
families
   with young children
mentally-challenged people
   who can't hold down a job for long because of the abuse they get from workmates
the depressing loss of any sense of self-worth ..
young people who do meth
   digging holes in their face
alcolholics
   trying to hide the truth from themselves
the truth that the world doesn't want them
it wants them gone
like stinking rotting garbage
beautiful people
lost
disoriented
broken down
abused
trashed
marginalized
animals ..

many of those people are ' normal ' by the way
i simply go to the challenged to make the point ..
... ..         .... .

the invisible
   ( go here to read more on that  http://asthekingdomturns.blogspot.com/2013/12/the-600-37-1-by-1-invisible-and-advent.html )

and you dare to judge them ! ?
you dare ?
how dare you  ?
or i  ?

if it was me
or you
on the street every night
maybe we'd be looking for liquor or dope to be able to cope
   just to cope
   or to belay the inevitable feeling of " i just don't want to wake up tomorrow "

how dare we judge them  ?

Jesus didn't ..
John 3 makes it clear that Jesus did not come to condemn people
but to rescue them ..

' rescue '
now there's a work for ya
as in help-up
as in " hey, i'm here, lean on me "
as in " i'm sorry; how can i help "
as in " here, let me .. "
... . . .   ..    .

lowly fishermen
despised tax-collecters
radical zealots
prostitutes
lepers
women with bleeding issues
and men with withered hands
and shepherds ..
all outcasts of the Law-abiders
all the scruff and scum of religious society ..

all followers of Jesus
.... . . .       .

i'm done !
i'm angry !
i am so done

i'm for those people
i champion their cause
i fight for them
i want to be classed with them
i want to be one of them ..
...   . . .      .

one of my aims is to document in video those people's stories
   as told by them
   their autobiographies ..
we would be amazed

we think we're so great because we pay a mortgage
is that what it's come to  ?
is that how you value a person  ?
is that how you value your self  ?
are you valued by your 3-bedroom house and car  ?
   ?

i have  a small picture of Dorothy Day pinned above my bed
i intent to add Mother Teresa, Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther-King, Nelson Mandela and anybody else i can find who gives their life to the marginalized
the despised
the rejected
   like Jesus .. Isaiah says he was despised and rejected ..

i've always pulled for the underdog
always looked to support the team that's running against the odds
i am an underdog
i struggle in underdogness
mine is to learn these people
understand something of their plight
try to get intimate with their life
and pull for the underdog as an underdog

i want them to know the love of Jesus
and i've come to the place in my life where the best way to do that
is to love them
with Jesus
for Jesus
for them

after all, my friend
they too are created in the image and likeness of God ..
...  .   .... .

tonight is the last of 2013 and the walk-in to 2014 ..
and i flatout cannot think of anything i'd rather do
than sharing a meal and talking with my homeless friends
   ( i made a special chicken soup for us  :)   )

wishing for them

hoping for them
blessing them
maybe this will be the year they get to be un-homeless
...
maybe this will be the year i get to become
homeless
with them
one of them
.. . . .        .

my example is Jesus
a homeless man, by the way

his love for humanity is boundless
and his love divides up into as many humans as there are
with 12 baskets left over ..

his love is what it's all about
and he defined it
perfectly
here ..

his life wasn't taken from him
he gave it
out of love
for us humans
for every human ever
for each human
for
me
and
you


i want to be crossed-out
i want to do like he did
i want that

i want to be him

shalom

a good read ..

thar's a blog post a'comin'
but this is a good read ..

so read

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/rachel-held-evans-/everyones-a-biblical-lite_b_4520676.html?utm_hp_ref=religion

do ..

2 pictures
they say a lot ..

i've historically been anti-roman catholic ..
i cared not for their history of abuse
nor for their theology
   particularly as it concerns the mass and transubstantiation
  on which ( in my opinion ) the entirety of  RC theology rests

i was one of those pharisee people that shoots first and asks later ..

the man in the pictures is helping to change my attitude
once you start moving in the direction he's moving
you got me

you can talk all day long
postulate and fabricate and theologicate ..
but when you get down in the trenches and embrace the hurt yourself
you got me
you got me right there

like mother teresa
dorothy day

i'm more than happy to learn from people like that
i'm happy to get in the gutter with people like that
regardless of their history or their theology
while holding my own close to my heart

know why  ?
because they are doing Jesus ..

i am also reading his encyclical
Evangelii Gaudium, The Joy of the Gospel
.. the man is well worth reading
his is a knowledgeable Biblical and well-historied mind
... ...    .

christinaity has taken a well-deserved hit in recent decades
people are walking away rather than towards its doors
doors closed for far too long to certain of us - ones that don't so this or that do that ..
as if we are God ..

we are not God
the church on Earth is the body of Jesus
he is the head, we are the body parts
and one thing is crystal-clear
Jesus was flat-out an embracer
regardless
he didn't countenance sin
      how could he
      he would give his very life for the cosmic sin issue
but he embraced all regardless of their particular sin ..
 .    .     .     . . .
and
do
i
have
sin
  ?   ?     ?

do you  ?

i'm not God ..   .
.. .      .    . . .

point being
when some form of the church begins to realign itself with the Jesus Way
opening its doors to all
embracing all
serving all without caveat
   no preconditions
   no test to pass
   no blood test to pass
in Jesus' name ..
well then i'm attentive
i'm all ears and eyes
   and hands and feet
because that's precisely where i'm headed

and ' do ' may well be my new word for 2014

do

when i look at the look on Francis' face as he kisses a deformed man
i see the heart of a man who cares
who compassions

you got me right there ..

shalom

a good read

http://www.redletterchristians.org/nativity-incarnate-god-christian/

have yourself a good read

doing what i hear

.. be doers of the word, not only hearers, deceiving yourselves; because if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man looking at his face in a mirror - he looks at himself, goes away, and immediately forgets what he looks like. But the one who looks intently into the perfect law of freedom and perseveres in it, not being a forgetful hearer but one who does what it says - this person will be blessed in the doing.

                      James 1.22-27

wonderful stuff ..

go to this link
read it
and thank God ..

http://www.nationswell.com/van-tweets-help-homeless/

shalom

Christmas passed, Christmas presents, Christmas adventing ..

now that we've all done our christmas stuff
and the wrapping paper is trashed
christmas presents sorted
and christmas is past
.. . .    .

what did we learn from it  ?
this time  ?

like, are we any closer to understanding christmas for what it should be  ?
did we do christmas in such a way that Christ is pleased  ?
are we being Christians at Christmas  ?
i ask
my
self
.... ..... .     .     .

my christmas was distorted by a computer virus
took me several hours to deal with it between christmas eve and christmas day
a real pain at the wrong time
but i had some off-computer time to reflect a bit
and that led to this
.. i had to really think about sharing it because it's very personal ..
but ...
   maybe it's for you
      too

selah ..~

o how i wish i could grasp the full extent of you
                          how you could have become one of us
                  for ever ..
     it would change me i think ..
                      i think it would make me want more to be like you
                                                                    want to be more like you

i'm so very far from being recognized as you ..
      i want to be
                           but i'm weak
                                      selfish
      unreliable
                                                 proud

         help me to wash the feet of my own heart
 and so be able to wash your feet

                         i need you
i don't want to be pretending or fooling anyone
            or fooling me
                          i want this all to be
            for you
    to you

                                   i trust you implicitly
              help my unbelief

        i love you, rabbi
                                      help me to love you more


shalom

a good read - violence is a poor response ..

http://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2013/dec/19/anarchist-cookbook-author-william-powell-out-of-print

this link provides an interesting read about the change of a man's mind from violence to non-violence, a man who has apparently influenced violence through a book he wrote ..

christmas eve stuff ..

'twas the night before christmas ..

there was sharing
lots

sharing work
sharing serving
sharing food
sharing space
sharing conversation
sharing song


and then we shared more

shared carols
shared story
shared languages
shared war and peace
   peace from within war
   from the Prince of peace
shared the beautiful ordinariness of his advent
shared the beautiful ordinance of his body and blood
shared candles
shared hugs

reconciliation stuff
kingdom stuff

we shared Jesus all night long
and it was lovely

shalom

who IS this man ..

the christmas story
what a story it is  ..

imagine ..   .      .

the same God that created human in his own image and likeness
steps off his throne
removes his finery
walks away from his majesty
out of heaven's glory ..

creates himself in the image and likeness of human
steps into our world
dons a simple robe of ordinary baby-flesh
on a bed of straw in a stable
   while animals watch and take up the chorus
                          " Allelu-jah !
                                                   Emmanu-el ! "
        echoing the angel host in their own way
.. .     .    .

advent

the Earth receives her king
crying out for his first breath
reaching out for his first touch of the familiar flushed cheek of his mother

flesh-to-flesh
face-to-face
eye-to-eye
God-to-human
human-to-human ..
...   .    .

he gets up during supper
removes his robe            
takes a basin and towel
kneels and washes the feet of his disciples
with her tears

   .. perhaps he learned the freedom of that from her
   for she loved deeply ..

" if I, your lord and teacher, wash your feet,
      you should follow my example and wash each other's feet .. "
" a servant isn't greater than his master;
      and yet i, your master, am among you as a servant .. "

God serving human ..
... .       .    . .  .

and when the time had come
he cried out in agony to be released from it - if it was possible

Earth rejects her king
and abuses his humanity
   such that he is no longer recognizable as a human ..

the image of God is marred beyond recognition

king of kings
servant of servants
lord of lords
loves his own flesh to the very end
. . . . ........   .

adventing

God's in-credible un-believable movement echoes off the walls of Earthstory like some wonderful enduring symphony
and all the cosmos listens awestruck to the never-before-heard melody
.. .     .

and things will never be the same again

..   . . .  .

God serving humanity as human
for the reconciliation of all things ..
things in the Earth
things under the Earth
things outside the Earth ..
all things
for the glory of God
...  ..    . . .
                                               
reconciliation ..

and the circle is completed ..
... .. .      .


advent

coming

to come

come !
o, please come ..


shalom

even so, advent ..

christmas

advent

love come down
to us
with us
for us          

in us

love come

even so, come ..   ..  .. . .   .


God moved out
down

God changed ..

he changed
for us
for ever

advent
in reconciliation

praise                     out of darkness
joy       out of suffering
peace                                             out of conflict
spirit                            out of flesh
freedom                                                  out of bondage
love           out of enmity


love


Jesus
advent


sorrow into              birth
death into                                                            life
poverty into                        adoption into God

Messiah advent for us


even so
come Lord Jesus

come

thinking about poverty and fairness and humanity ...

we despise communism and socialism and equalism and eveyhumanisapersonism
and capitalism is the only option

we've been taught that

i've started thinking it through, from scratch

so should you

here's a brilliantly illustrated start for ya ..

http://www.upworthy.com/9-out-of-10-americans-are-completely-wrong-about-this-mind-blowing-fact-2?c=reccon1

a read and an apology ..

1 " They were really religious. "

2 " I come from a big Christian family; they would tell me I was going to hell. "

3 " She was very religious. "

the link here is to an article on homelessness among the youth
it's quite a read
it's quite shameful to us inhuman humans

there are 6 testimonials at the end of the article
they are by LGBT people ..
kids

the comments above numbered 1 2 3 were taken from 3 of the 6

i want to say this ..
we are SICK
we the church are sick sick
we deserve many many lashes
we deserve so much more recompense than the rest of the world
because we are Jesus' Body 
we are to love our fellow humans
love and not hate
God is absolute love ..

i stand in the front of the line, by the way
i make myself sick at who i was
i am ashamed before God for my attitude

i feel ill

i hope you do too

i know not many people read this blog
doesn't matter really ..
for what it's worth i just want to apologize
   to every person
      each one
   who has been abused and made homeless by their parents/guardians
   for whatever reason
and especially when those people could be referred to as ' religious ' ..

God never intended that ..
he hates that
he loves you
far far more than anyone else could
please forgive me
please forgive us, the church, for our part in abusing you
please
in Jesus' name

there are some of us out there looking to change that
although we cannot undo it ..

the link ..
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/carl-siciliano/homeless-youth_b_4478875.html

do ..

we read the things in Scripture told, all comfy in our pew
listen to the words of old and think, " must speak of you "

beatitudes, we know them well, commandments not a few,
but ask to lift a finger .. " He must be meaning you "

Moses we know, and Abraham, John and Jesus too,
but, woe to us, 'tis not a must; we simply do not do

retired and retiring, " life's really tough, you know " ,
methinks i'll just sit a while and watch, and learn, and know

yet love is not a thing we gain pointing at ' you ' in pew,
it arises, in the main, from within a heart of ' do '

pontificaters, theologizers, pharisees that talk ..
friend, Jesus was a friend of sinners, someone that walked the walk

so, talk is cheap, self righteous stuff that makes us think we're cool
when all along, it strokes our pride, makes us much more the fool

' faith ' - it's not a noun you know, least not in Scripture-speak,
it is a verb, a doing word, a word with hands and feet
.. ...    .

had i another life to live with what, right now, i know
i'd give it all in doing, Jesus' love to bestow


shalom

the 600, the 37, the 1 by 1, the invisible and advent ..

sometimes i wonder ..
who do i really think i am .. .  .

i mean, really
 ..

the names are read
37 of them
they mean nothing to me
i don't know any of them ..

but the room is full
and the people in there know them

or should i say
knew
them

1 by 1
each name told out loud for us all to hear
i by 1

tissues were passed around
the woman next to me was crying even before they started reading those names
i'm sorry for her
sorry for whosever name it was she was crying for
i put my arm around her shoulder for a minute
just to let her know there was someone else there
while she cried
even if she didn't know who i was
just someone ..

37 names
37 people  
a michael
a robert
a brian ..

i knew narry a one

but they did
and it hurt like hell ..
and i felt some of that

may have been a sister
a dad
a high school mate ..
1 was a surfer-friend from way back that got caught in drug-addiction ..
they were known people
and they were missed
each 1 of the 37

and i felt a rage
low in my gut ..

easy lad
easy ..

i wanted to cry
i wanted to cry out " how could this be ? !
this is so wrong; this can't be right ! "

a friend said a few words of comfort
   of hope
he told about another homeless man
in another time
who promised
he promised !
he said he was going away to set up a place for everbody
a place for each 1
every 1
a warm home place with a roof ..

those 37 were homeless like he was
so he knew just where they were at
he could feel the pain in that room
he saw the tears
he noticed the tissue that dropped on the floor
heavy with the hearttears of a friend that remembered a friend
..    .    .

thing is
all some people need
   is to know somebody sees them
      and cares enough
         to not allow them to be invisible
            anymore
someone said ..

not invisible
as if they're not there
passing on that side of the street
looking the other way
turning around and heading in another direction
because we don't want to see
them
there
today
inmyface
not today ..

they are our ugly side
our consciece
could be me
on some other day
maybe

it doesn't take long for the switch-up
could happen overnight
what with ponzi schemes and housing market bubbles and derivatives and ..
wealth into nothing
or health into nothing ..
all gone ..
homeless
tomorrow
Madoff madeoff with it
and i got nada
all gone
and now i'm homeless

and now
i'm .. homeless ..

and they pass on the other side
look away
don't want to see me there
panhandling
still coldtothebone from last night ..
want me to go away
leave their mind
... . .    .

the other side of me that i clench my teeth at
and hope i never see his face
dirt-smudged unshaven wrinkled face ..
i don't want to be him
i don't like him
i don't want to see him

i want him to go away
be
invisible
.. .

but
there are those flags        
600 or so of them over the last 13 years
each flag has a name an age and an end-date
end date
left out of here
gone to another place
won't be coming back

a friend
gone ..
but remembered
not invisible
flagged and
mentioned and
memoried ..

they were homeless
and they're gone
too soon ..
.. .. .    .

no place to lay his head

selah ..~
...  .  ..

and then there was stephen
he'd been around for many years and knew a lot of the 600
the 600 ..
  1 by 1 ..

he made an impassioned statement
of being involved
of caring
of doing something to end this
all of us
something
joining the move to shut this massive wrong down
to end the invisibility
and bring light to the dark ..
to the culverts i saw them crawl out of yesterday
next to the park ..

release
liberation
freedom

advent ..

selah ..~

that homeless man
long ago
he was something
he wasn't invisible ..
he tried to hide for a while
they wanted to make him into something big
he hid ..
they wanted to big him up
because he cared
and the care moved him
and he challenged the powersthatbe
for the invisible ones
..

homeless man
went the distance for the invisible
for all of us

chew on that a minute ..
a homeless man represented me
   and you
to the powersthatbe
a homeless man stood up to empire
for release
for freedom
for the value of every human
1 by 1 ..


that homeless man is my eikon
he inspires me
i want to be just like him
.. .. .

sometimes
i wonder ...
who do i think i am ..

what can
i
do

how can i do anything to change this madness
me  ?
who do i think i am ..

they lived on the street last night
again
the many nights of coldness and fear and invisibility
cutting into their bones
into their soul
drying up their blood
ageing them
dying them
slowly

what can i do  ?
really
..   .      .

then
sometimes
in the middle of my doubt
wondering whodoireallythinkiam
in the depths of my despair for them
   ( or for
         me  ?  )
i remember my icon
my master
that homeless man
who visibled the invisible
brought light into the dark tunnels
   the darkness of those culverts where the invisible sleep
shone light on empire
   on privilege
   on disrespect
   on pomposity and hatred and despising-fellow-humans

and something wells-up inside
some lightray shines in
some energy runs through my blood
up into my heart

and i remember
him
them
the 600
the 37 in 2013
the 1 by 1
the foolish me
the weak me
the insignificant and despised me
the nothing me ( 1Corintians 1 )
and put it all together in the same bowl
mix heartily
add a little love and a pinch of effort
stir more
add some kingdom
a teaspoon more of him
mix
taste
add some more love
and get up
walk
into
the 600
the 37
the 1 by 1      
the invisible
 ..    .   . ..  .

because they didn't deserve that

they absolutely do not deserve that

and i want to be invisible with them
for them
for the them that will become a them today
become invisible
for
him

he promised !!


...... . .     shalom

more christmas walking ..

1 week to go ..

things're ramping up, aren't they  ?
the ads are bustin' loose
everybody vyin' for your money
sales and discounts and special offers
and the same ol' as last year, just in a diff colour
or striped instead of solid
heels are now 2" shorter = snub-nosed stillettos
and on and on ..

and you got a gift from aunt bertha today ..
crap ! din't have her on my list ..
.... . . . .    .

onceuponatime a long long time ago
a wise man was invited to a bigup party at a religious leader's house ..

he was quite an ordinary person, this wise man
only thing is he was getting people pretty upset by the things he said and did
he diss'ed the religious and their rules and regulations
and especially their hardheartedness, their utter lack of compassion
and their selfrighteousness ..
that really bothered him
and he let them know
sometimes to their faces

once, when he had been invited to a prominent pharisee's house for a meal
he did the unthinkable
again
and challenged them about healing on the sabbath ..
lesson 1
.. . .   .

then he told a pointed story to those who were invited when he noticed how they would choose the best places for themselves.
“When you are invited by someone to a wedding banquet, don’t sit at the best place, because a more distinguished person than you may have been invited by your host, and the host may come and say to you, ‘Give your place to this man’; and then, humiliated, you will have to move to a lower place.
"Instead sit in the lowest place, so that when the one who invited you comes he will say to you, ‘Friend, move up higher.’ You will then be honored in the presence of the other guests.
For everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and the one who humbles himself will be exalted.”
2nd lesson .. do not be significant in your own sight
rather be humble

He also said to the host, “When you give a lunch or a dinner, don’t invite your friends, your brothers, your relatives, or your rich neighbors because they might invite you back and you would be repaid. 
On the contrary, when you host a banquet, invite those who are poor, maimed, lame, blind, and the like, and you will be blessed, because they cannot repay you. 
You will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous.”
lesson 3 ..
...  .  ...      .

huh ..   ?
pardon me  ?
do what again   ?

i guess i can see the part about not trying to sit in a place of honour ..
but the rest of it .. you can't be serious ..
invite who ??

you know who my family are ??
really  ?
and my friends would seriously diss me
they would never speak to me again .. ever ! ..
you cannot be real ..
. .. .  .  ..

well he was being real
in fact he was all about real

thing is
we like to be seen and recognized and accepted and praised and honoured
that's us
even when we're trying to pretend not to ..... .. ... .

jesus, that wise man, didn't go in too much for that
he rather thought it was rather .. pompous and arrogant
like .. lying like

so he paints a picture of genuine
of being humble
associating with the ordinary
vulgar, it used to be called a long time ago

imagine it for a minute
you have a party on christmas eve or christmas day
you lay the table with goodies just like you would normally do at christmas
but instead of inviting your family and friends
   and neighbours and impressionista
you invite .. .  ...  .
the homeless
a couple shut-ins
some old folks from the ' home '
that new family that moved in down the street
   that noone wants to talk to because they're arabs
and you party with them
give them the goodies
give them gifts
and generally rock out with the deprived ..

hey
that's Jesus-style right there
that's hittin' it up his way
he just gets into that kinda thing big time
puts a huge smile on his face, kinda thing

you want to honour Jesus on his birthday ??
do that ..
put a smile on the faces of those people
bring some light and joy to their lives on Jesus' birthday
and you got Jesus a great gift
a wonderful gift

and he'll just be tickled by it
just thrilled
really

try it
you'll love it

i promise

peace

more advent ..

The people walking in darkness have seen a great light;
a light has dawned on those living in the land of darkness.       ( Isaiah 9.2 )
...
This is what God, Yahweh, says, - who created the heavens and stretched them out, who spread out the earth and what comes from it, who gives breath to the people on it and life to those who walk on it -
“I, Yahweh, have called You for a righteous purpose, and I will hold You by Your hand.
I will keep You and appoint You to be a covenant for the people and a light to the nations, 
in order to open blind eyes, to bring out prisoners from the dungeon, and those sitting in darkness from the prison house.    ( Isaiah 42.5-7 )

When John heard in prison what the Messiah was doing, he sent a message by his disciples and asked Him, “Are You the One who is to come, or should we expect someone else?”
Jesus replied to them, “Go and report to John what you hear and see:
                                              the blind see,
   the lame walk,
                                    those with skin diseases are healed,
                     the deaf hear,
                                                                the dead are raised,
             and the poor are told the good news.

And if anyone is not offended because of Me, they are blessed.”       ( Matthew 11.2-6 )
.. . .       .

advent
   in stages
reconciliation
   in process
as one new testament scholar puts it
   there is a sense of the done, the doing, and the not done yet
      ( in my words )

for some reason God decided to bring about reconciliation the long, hard way
but .. he's God, after all
and he gets to do it right
regardless of our take on it

selah ..~

israel's long-awaited Messiah advented some 2,000 years ago
and it changed the world
forever

humble man he was
yet focused
   determined
   unrelenting
   forthright
   frank
                        missioned
simple man
yet profound
   wise
   relevant
   challenging
                            missioned
ordinary man
yet he changed the face of God for all the world to see

he put a face on God ..

selah ..~

what do we do with this man  ?      ?

selah ..~

the sense of dread that weathered his time was palpable ..
the oppression
servitude to empire
obeisance ..
you could almost feel the cold of it

israel's statehood swallowed up in rome's empire
they had long lost their identity
slaved again

"  i am the Lord,
your God ..
it is i who brought you out of slavery in egypt and set you free  "
   repeatedly repeated in their holy writings

and then there was the passage quoted at the beginning of this post
israel had the promise of Jahweh himself
he would anoint one
send him
for release
for rescue
   salvation

messiah
long-awaited
anticipation
in the darkness
the gloom of oppression

"  i am the Lord
i am your God
with my own arm i will rescue you  "

messiah
God with arms
and feet
and eyes and hair and stomach ..

advented

selah ..~

they waited
longed for him

he came

... ..  .. . . .      .

thing is
we feel the bite of winter
   wherever there is winter's cold bite ..

but there is a winter which is a statement of being
a dreadness that chills most of the 7.2 billion humans that were alive as of 20 seconds ago
.. the majority of them shiver in the cold bite of Earth's winter

winter bites in the form of cold darkness all across this Earth
in the forms of slavery, child labour, child prostitution, hunger, lack-of-potable-water, homelessness,
drugaddiction, mental health challenges, illnesses ageing and the waiting-to-die ..        
                                                       poverty
      deprivation
                            enslavement
 hurt
            numbed by the cold of life in this fallen place

messiah stepped in to that

and he will step in again one sunshiny day
there's the ' anticipate ' for ya
right there ..
the long-for
the hope for us all
when reconciliation will be perfected

selah ..~

thing is, though ..
                           he steps in now
now
this christmas
this season

but moreso
                                now
as in now
today
here
over there
on the eastcoast
across the sea in that country

he advents right now
in
                 you
in
              me
wherever we are
wherever we will be in an hour

Messiah advented
and advents, as in present tense
through us

God advented in Jesus ..
Jesus advents in us

the same way Jesus put a face on God
we get to be
Jesus' arms
and feet
and eyes and hair and stomach

is that not what his Body is  ?
aren't we that  ?
Jesus' Body
on Earth
now           ?    ?

advent
happens                                                      
now
here
in                us
through                       us
out to the world
in Jesus' name
for God's glory
for the kingdom ..

so
advent, then ..

be advent ..

put a face on Jesus

shalom

unstoppable ..

last night i had the privilege of watching a biography

it was a brief lifestory of a humble determined won't-be-stopped-peaceloving-Godfearing-humanitarian who turned compassion into a verb and started The Catholic Worker movement during the Great Depression ...

one thing stood out to me from that video and others i watched on youtube
her humility ..

i've learned (?) that humility and determination/fearless/stand-up-to-the-powersthatbe etc. are not antithetical

i am blessed and encouraged by knowing about humble people like her

there's a proverb-of-sorts: ' imitation is the greatest form of flattery '
i prefer
emulation is the greatest form of praise

her name is dorothy day
and she was unstoppable

go and do likewise ..


http://dorothydaydoc.com/home.html

peace

passing up on our freedoms ..

the link is to a 3-minute clip of charlie rose interviewing carl sagan

and what sagan says is insightful - the principle is valid, and pungent
i just posted links ( on another site ) to examples of freedoms being eroded

http://www.upworthy.com/a-science-icon-died-17-years-ago-in-his-last-interview-he-made-a-warning-that-gives-me-goosebumps-5?c=fea


a critical principle under freedom is the significance of each person's acting-out their freedom
when you give up your right
someone else will snatch it
and usually they use it for ill

one more time ..
when individuals pass-up-on their responsibility as individual members of society
they, in effect, hand over their freedom to be coopted by some waiting vulture
   some mover/player who will then use it to forward their own agenda
.. .. .

and that goes for the church too
bigtime

selah ..~

yesterday i was privileged to meet with a small community of Jesus-people again
and worship
and sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs
and hold hands and share on-the-heart stuff and pray for one another
and join in remembering Jesus' death by sharing the bread and the wine
and listen to God speaking from the heart of a wise humbleman

i heard this, although not verbatim ..
" what's going on here is not religion propping-up and making excuses for what's going on in the world around us
but underground, non-violently revolting against it .. "
   or similar

we are the counter to the system of the world
and we always
always
move in the direction of Jesus
always for the oppressed
always against the self-ish establishment/power/moneyed influence
always in peace
always out of love

we do this
   as individuals
   working together
   in the Body

the Body cannot operate properly otherwise
i
         must
you
         must
he/she
         must

if we do not
the world system wins

 .. .. ..   .

a final thought on this ..
there are christians in other countries who move in that direction
at risk of their lives and their families' lives
because of persecution ..
they offer their lives to spread the Good News of Jesus
so people will know ..
they are beaten mercilessly and imprisoned and tortured
today
now
in our time
many many many of them ..

we live in a land that allows us the freedom to share his love

shouldn't we  ?

shouldn't
you
?

shouldn't
i
                   ?

go for the heart ..

 

better to go for the heart
if you can get someone to give their heart
then anything is possible

Jesus did ..
he went for the heart every time

selah ..~

read the first few chapters of the gospel of Jesus according to apostle john
   Jesus closest friend ..
repeatedly he redirects
points upwards
shifts the focus
adjusts the worldview
up
ever up
off the earthview
away from the physical
up to the spirit-ual
ever up

take the samaritan woman as 1 example

he's sitting by a well outside Sychar of Samaria
a woman approaches with her pot to get water
and he asks her for water ..

that's a nono
- like oil and water, jews and samaritans do not mix
they are enemies and even claim different spiritual holy places
   although they believe in the same God and trace their spiritual heritage from the very same place
   and both are expectant  for the Messiah ( think advent )..
- also in that day men don't converse with women in private
the disciples had gone looking for food and Jesus sat there alone when she walked up
so Jesus immediately blew 2 nono's out of the water with 1 short sentence ..

he did stuff like that

he went to the heart of the matter

then he redirected the woman's attention from wellwater to spiritwater
and identified himself when he told her personal stuff about her life
and so on ..
blew her mind
and blew the disciples' minds when they returned and saw him talking with a woman
Jesus did stuff like that
and a Samaritan woman to boot
Jesus was like that

and then there's the nicodemus story and physical vs spiritual birth

and nathanael - when Jesus first saw him he said " look, a genuine, sincere isrealite indeed - no deceit in him .."
genuine
acknowledging his heart

and the famous temple advent where Jesus took on the religious
   the ones who most stood in his way
   the mentality that was anti to heart
   posturing and pretense and pomp and pride and falsepiety
methodically plaiting a whip and angrily driving them out ..
angrily
from his heart

anger out of love

Jesus was like that ..

selah ..~

distraction ..

whenever you can
fight against the distractions
remind yourself of the heart-of-the-matter
move in that direction
diss the rabbit trails
watch out for the bogs and swamps and roots that look to trip and swallow you up
sucking the kingdom energy right out as you struggle to get loose and free yourself
waste of energy

the saddest part of it all
is that too often those red herrings and rabbits come from within kingdom ..
the enemy to fear the most is the one that comes at you from inside kingdom walls
where you least expect

selah ..~

Jesus was a simple man
he tended to simplify ..
he went direct to he heart
he didn't play games
didn't play politics
didn't thrust and parry
didn't worry too much about the players
especially the religious players

what he did was to drive direct to the heart
when faced with those distractions
those that would divert him
divest him of his mission
deter

Jesus was into a mindset that said ..
   clarify
   simplify
   balance
   centre
he redirected from the mindset
to a centred heartset
constantly
as he walked in spirit
submitted to his GodFather

he wasn't hesitant to walk off
alone
commune with God
reboot
remind himself of the criticality of centre ..

when needful he aloned it

see, Jesus didn't commit himself to people
even the ones that said they believed ..
another form of ' religion '    ?

he didn't need people to point him out and praise him and testify to him
because he knew people
he understood human
intimately
for he is human
he knew the human mindset and heartset ..
and he walked away from that
turned his back on it
left them standing there
praising thin air
playing their games
plying their politics
pointing at .. empty space
            ( john 2: 23-25 )

selah ..~

when you decide to walk in the path of Jesus
go for the heart

be aware of the distractions
especially those that would come from within your own camp
from the ' believers ' ..

walk His walk
take His position on it
match His example

swallow Jesus regularly
   like nurturing bread
   like cleansing wine

clarify
   simplify
      centre
         balance

go for the heart
every time

walking into christmas .. heartily

the big day is 1 1/2 weeks off

it's the biggest day of the year, yuh know ..



the retail company i worked for back in the day
   a viable/profitable relic of the department stores era
racked up 30+ % of it's annual sales durins the 3 weeks surrounding christmas
.. huge
if not for those 3 weeks there'd be no business

here's a thought ..
as most of us know christmas has become the greatest excuse
   to indulge in Moi-ness
whether it's used as opportunity to splurge on my family and close friends
or on Me
... ..    .

ok so i'm not breaking new ground here ..
christmas is actually a celebration of The Christ ..
that word is the Greek rendering of ' Messiah ', a Jewish term for ' anointed '
and most of the time refers to the Son of God, incarnated as Jesus
the man we know from the New Testament documents ..
Israel had long awaited his prophesied advent as their Deliverer

and he did advent
but in most unusual ways
unexpected personage
waaaay off the beaten track ..

read the gospels ..
please ..

don't get caught up in the politicizing of christmas
or in the consumerising of it  ..

sure, it's a wonderful time to be gracious
to join in the celebrations
enjoy your family
your friends
your workmates ..
                             your ... enemies ..  ?

ever notice how allofasudden people who despise one another all year long
suddenly pause the animosity at christmas  ?  ..
strange that ..
.... .      ..    .

i vote we do it Jesus-style
i vote we buck the system
i vote we diss the way everybodyelse does it
overspending overdoing
mostly to impress
mostly because if we don't the givee will be offended ..

Jesus didn't care much for being inoffensive to the uncaring
he let the chips fall ..

contrarily, he went to the offensive
to those who were an ' offense ' to society
like beggars and whores and thieves and people with awful skin diseases and mad people and ...
those were the people he listened to and talked with and helped and taught the truth of God ..

let that sink down into you
into me

Jesus went to the oppressed and the marginalized and the beaten-down and the sick and the fatherless and widow and accused and abused and the stranger and the alien
he went there
and he brought a ray of hopeshine
he blessed the poor and the mourning and the meek and those that strive for peace ..

he threw the whole thingy in a tizzik
upended the privileged
overthrew the religious and their tables of prosperity
   plaited a whip while they looked on, and then used it to drive the abominable out
they were a stench in his nostrils ..
.... . .    .

i vote we do something different this christmas
as we go about our christmasbusiness and busy-ness ..
let's be open-eyed for someone ' down-on-their-luck '
somebodies needy-like
hurting
hungry
old/dirty clothes
some child with probably no decent gift for christmas
some old person dying in that old-folks-home-of-death
some disabled vet
some forgotten body
..
let's look for them
let's pray that God points them out to us
let's ask him for the opportunity
each day ..

carry around an extra something in our wallet
earmarked just for that purpose
looking for the opportunity
to give ..

and then bless
bless them
in Jesus' name
with a smile
and a hug
a warm embrace of love
blessing them
...    .     .

give
    peace
                    love
          hope
joy

give
from your heart
with your heart
to their heart

be the heart of Jesus this Christ-mas
give
overflowingly
cheerfully ..

it will not make you any the poorer
in fact it will enrich your souls
'cause you're doing it to Jesus
for Jesus
as
Jesus

and it will not be lost on God .. .  ...  .

you got my vote