Say what? I am borrowing my title from Alan Elenbaas. Many times someone else says something or makes a statement that just can’t be improved upon or sticks with your spirit man. Furthermore, so it is with this wild and crazy guy named Adam who’s done more drugs than anyone I know and got his best insights to the divine partaking of the ayahausca plant ceremonies in Peru. Just proves that God is omnipresent I guess. 
Let me add one quote from him that gives you a sense of where I want to go with this commentary.
Adam wrote, “It was through my experiences with psychedelics that I began to see it was possible to be ‘Christ-like’ without being a Christian.” I came at this same conclusion many years ago by wondering why so many people who were avowed atheists were more LOVING than the Christians that I knew. I also knew many agnostics that were far more moral than the church crowd I ran with and loved.
What’s up with that?
You see, I’ve come to the place where I see Jesus as much bigger than ANY religion; and I also am sure that he didn’t come to start another religion, but to reunite us with the reality that we are ALL ONE with Father-God-Consciousness-Source- not just those that speak his name in some confession in front of the church. And kudos to Greg Boyd, who is a former atheist who surrendered his life to Christ in 1974. After his conversion, he discovered that the faith he embraced failed to address many questions and objections to Christianity.
Bingo! Been there and done that one too.
Gregory A. “Greg” Boyd is an evangelical pastor and the Senior Pastor of the Woodland Hills Church in St. Paul, Minnesota. He lost 1,500 of his congregation because he told them God hated war and loved homosexuals, etc. How dare he! It was one of those “wake-up” calls to his church when we begin to exorcise Jesus from Christianity. Did you know that God’s not a Republican? And Jesus wasn’t a conservative? The Pharisees were the fundamentalist conservatives that voted Republican. Wait! The Republican party didn’t exist then.
Can Christians have fun: do a little dance, drink a little wine, and love the world?
The bottom line for me is that I don’t think Jesus would be any more popular with us today if he were to make another visit than he was 2,000 years ago. We need to pull Jesus out of Christianity and put him back into the mystical spiritual realm from whence he came and was. After all, that’s who we are, unless you’ve not been exorcised from religion and are still needing to be medicated from guilt by the law and religion.
Not I! I AM.
Years ago my openly gay brother in-law invited Chris and I to his house in San Diego. We lived in a room prepared for us. We were treated to every meal, they paid for our souvenirs, cooked beautiful breakfasts. His partner Hal was the perfect image of wholesome living( aside for our idea of it). Hal paid his bills on time and was active in his community, went to church and is just a loving guy, who by the way used to be a prophetic minister in a hyper-spiritual church. The condemnation and strict laws proved too much for him ..eventually he chose to live life guilt free and in harmony with his fellow man. I got the sense that he never lost his prophetic gift. It guided him and he listen. It was definitely a very enjoyable trip. I left there thinking that he was a lot better off than most Christians I know.
My experience there was more than a good stay at the Marriott, It was spiritual and loving.
I labeled him (back then ) Jonah, the runaway prophet. But now I say he is a loving intuitive man who loves God. Hal was not running away but running to love and acceptance. If God is Love then how can Hal love if he doesn’t know God? Who am I to judge, my job is to love Hal( and all the Hals of the world)and show him I am in the collective pool of love with him.
Most of us are experiencing gays in our immediate families, do we love in spite of? At our churches they crop up needing love and acceptance, do we reject them?
I think we hide behind religion to mask our own bigotry and blame our actions on the rules of our religion, when we are clearly told to live by the spirit and not the law.
There is a tide that the world is feeling. This, the ‘new age’ of Aquarius where there is a pouring out of the Spirit to mankind. It is felt on all levels, spiritual,social,political and personal. The water of Aquarius is cleansing and purifying and exorcising our hearts. If we open ourselves we will feel what the Universe and Nature is saying….. God is Love!
We are on an amazing trajectory that was planned eons ago and I happen to think it’s being ushered in through an exponential jump in consciousness of humanhood as we move towards 2012, be it December 21, 2012 of November 9th.
LRC is a blessed community of loving people who are being OPEN to the I AM that we all are and I pray that we realize how awesome that gift is that we’re experiencing…and not stop short of the goal. We have something very, very special growing within our midst.
Them are some powerful words again, dude. I wish the discussion would stay on a higher spiritual level rather than rabbit trailing off the chart over “fly poop in the pepper”. It’s good that everyone gets to speak their heart here, but the daily medicinal doses of correction and same old tired arguments tend to detract from the original commentary. We will NEVER change other people. That is the purpose of the holy spirit. Ultimately, he is the best teacher and he doesn’t nag and lecture like my ma did when she was in a bad mood. In my opinion, these discussions should edify one another in accordance with the commentary. Disagreements with anothers writing, especially when you already know them to be argumentative, are better left uncommented on, since this particular group of active writers tends to get caught up in rabbit trail arguments that detract from the topic and ALWAYS wind up ensnared. Let it go by… and comment on what you agree with.
Ernie – eloquently expressed. Thank you. I am new at beginning to understand “christ-consciousness”. It’s all about the love of God spread out all over the vastness of life. Religion certainly is binding, but it has it’s place and for sure is where many of us got our start hearing about the all ecompassing love of God. You don’t get that out in the world.
I am glad that I AM Living in these times!!! Even more that that , I am glad that that I AM Being Awakened in these times! YIPPEE!
Christians can have fun. When Jesus told His disciples to rejoice, He used a word that means to “skip and frisk” like a lamb for joy. There is, however, supposed to be a difference between us and the world. I like the paraphrase of I John 2:15 in the Message Bible, “Don’t love the world’s ways. Don’t love the world’s goods. Love of the world squeezes out love for the Father. Practically everything that goes on in the world–wanting your own way, wanting everything for yourself, wanting to appear important–has nothing to do with the Father.”
Those of us who know Jesus have a huge advantange on the world. We have the Spirit of truth whom the world cannot receive. (John 14:17) We have God’s word to light our paths (Ps. 119:105)
The question: Did God make a mistake? He made man a man and woman a woman, and when someone close to you changes their sexual identity it throws you into a loop. Why? What happened? How did God make this mistake? Their/my (Christians) reply is God doesn’t make mistakes. Then what? Rebllion on the part of the person who is going through this? This is the big question that I & most Christians struggle with. I know and worked with gay guys and lesbians. They were actually brother and sister at the company I worked for. Awesome people. I personally know someone, my ex-hunsband who is changing his sexual identity. It freaked me out! Why? It is not acceptable behavior. Uh, we are Christians and that’s not supposed to happen! It broke my religious ethics! How could he do such a thing? He’s totally gone over the egde, etc. I am the victim living this! He’s not feminine! Living with someone for 12+ years and then find out that’s not who he is. It is a shock. I started to question everyone’s Christianity because that’s not what the bible says. God is against this, etc.
Why do we label them gay and lesbian or transvestites? Why did I just label them? Are they not Children of God? Why not call them by their real name. I am slowly changing and keep saying he/she is a child of God. I am being shown daily what love really is and reciprocating it to others no matter what sexual preference that person choses. I want to see Jesus bigger than any religion too and I think that I am/LRC is heading in that direction and with sincerity.I don’t want to judge or put a lable on anyone anymore.
I pray that when I/we come across someone who has any label that society labels or enters our doors (LRC, Work, etc.) they will feel love and acceptance. I pray that hearts and doors will be open always.
Come one,come ALL. There, I said it, mean it, and I am excited to be a Christian!
I AM overwhelmed by the love and openness shining through the discussions today. This is how the world will be changed–by the opening of our own hearts to the transformative power of Divine Intuition revelaing the majesty of our Indwelling Splendor–totally grounded in Love.
Wendy- few can uderstand what you have been through and to let the LOVE of God come through with such forgiveness, tenderness, and
compassion is nothing but the divine that lives within you taking over the flesh and saying just BE. WOW! Thanks for the courage and love you’ve shared from a HEART that KNOWS!
We are born with the spirit of truth already inside us. If we didn’t have that already we would never recognize it or see the need to want more. That is even how we begin to identify love. Love attracts, but anger, violence, nastiness repel. THE LAW does not glorify love. It produces more of what it is: judgment, punishment, guilt. It attracts guilt, legalism, fear. The law is dead and so is the rational behind it. Actions speak louder than words. Love is an action.
In John 14:17, Jesus is the one who said the world cannot receive the Spirit of truth. We are born having been made in the image of God, which means we reflect some of His characteristics, not fully, as the word means a shadow of a thing. When we receive Jesus, He gives us His Spirit to guide us. If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to Him (Romans 8:9). The Holy Spirit is available to everyone upon invitation.
We are born with the spirit of truth. Adam has to be dealt with, but we are born in truth and love.
As one philosopher coined it, “Be humble for you are made of earth, but be noble for you are made of stars.”
Cynthia, Thank you for your post.
You’re welcome. The spirit of God lives in us all the vessel doesn’t matter. I saw you and you’re ex struggling to make sense of it all but the best thing is you both are finding who you are in Him, the I AM. I forever love you both
Geor, the natural or fallen instinct of man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God; for they are foolishness to him and he cannot understand them (I Cor. 2:14). Adam is dealt with only as we’re made alive in Christ (I Cor. 15:22)
It is the spirit of truth, or the spirit of Christ that is the seed inside us that we are born with. Revelation comes from within. Our reaction is even in the inward parts.
This has been an awesome day. I got to share with a stranger about LRC. We might have a new visitor next week. He worked at the resturaunt and started up a conversation since I was sitting there, he thought I was going to eat at the counter. I explained to him that I was taking it to LRC to eat. He is wanting to get back to church, but has been working constantly. You never know who will be in your path daily. When God is in you and you know it, you attract people as well. It has been an awesome day. Thank You God.
Exactly Wendy. The spirit of God that resides in ALL of humanhood SEES that divine spark in people’s eyes. Sometimes we don’t need to do anything but LOOK, SEE, & BE!
Amen! It’s time for me to leave and will see everyone tonight. TGIF!!! I get to spend time with everyone. God Bless.
This journey of mine began in earnest in 2004, but events began to unfold in 2001. One of those events was the revelation by my youngest of three sons that he was gay. That revelation started me to think about everything that I have believed for 55 years. I would say that revelation was the true catalyst for the beginning of my journey. It was not the ONLY reason, but certainly the catalyst. I knew that “in spite” of his revelation, I stilled loved my son. Maybe I loved him more, knowing what he might be facing from the Christian world he was a part of. His revelation made me reconsider what it means to be gay or different from the majority. I have changed. Not just about homosexuality, but about everything that evolves hate of another human. I was pro capital punishment as well. I believed in an eternal hell. I believed in exclusivity,rightness of Christianity to the exclusion of ALL other religions. I could not even begin to name here the changes in me since 2001. I enjoy sharing those changes. The comments made by Ernie, Cynthia, Wendy, jbf, and George have made. I stand with you and love.
Hallucinogenic plants (Alan Elenbaas), necromancy (Leslie Flint).
What’s next Ernie?
Stay tuned and discover as I do!