I know, many of you have known that for years; however, that’s not where I’m headed today: maybe another today.

When it comes to erring on the side that God is BIGGER or smaller than us, go BIG! When it comes to thinking we KNOW anything about God, think again. We have IDEAS about God, and every denomination, and religion as an institution, has alot of IDEAS about God. Additionally everyone has a lot of PREJUDICES about this thing we commonly call God!

Many people like to talk about South America as they read from a MAP!

They say here’s Venezuela and here’s Bolivia, and then they read to you all of the economic and geographical data related to these two countries. I can give you a lot more insight to Venezuela since I have been there some 12-15 times. What part of Venezuela would you like information on?

And then there’s Bolivia.

Are we talking about La Paz or Santa Cruz? Talk about day and night. One is stark, dark, rocky, and with air hard to breathe. The other is humid, warm, colorful, and lush with vegetation.

When you actually VISIT the divine or walk with the Spirit, you have insights that are so much different than one who has read the book, a Bible, followed the laws, etc. So, until you have BEEN THERE, spend more time listening to those who have had the EXPERIENCE versus those who have SEEN THE MAP!

>Did I serve enough?
>Am I doing what a deacon should do?
>Should I give an additional offering?
>Do I need to take a Missions trip this summer?
>Have I prayed and read my Bible faithfully?
>Should I be teaching Sunday School?
>Would I be forgiven if we didn’t go to church tomorrow?

The list is endless!

David Hawkins wrote in his book, Power vs. Force, “I wake up in the morning grateful to be alive: I wake up a free man due to GRACE”! How about you? Is that the condition of your soul 2-3 times a week, once a month, or you can’t remember the last time that happened?

Has that ever been a goal for you: to AWAKEN FREE?

Some people just don’t make SENSE compared to how you may see the world. We don’t necessarily look at the big picture of life, but compared to some specific topic wherein it appears that NO LOGIC was employed in the discussion. However, that’s not ALWAYS a BAD thing. If the individual had by-passed LOGIC to exercise INTUITION, that could be a very good thing.

In fact, Fran Grace says, “Intuitive understanding progressively replaces ‘thinkingness’ over time if we’re increasing our consciousness.”

The highest levels of vibration are where we find enlightenment; however, we don’t start at the top, but must work our way up the ladder of consciousness. Just because some people don’t THINK like we do doesn’t mean they are wrong. It just could be that they’re hearing from a higher Source-Vibration than we!

Isn’t there a story somewhere about the Creator using an ASS to speak truth?

I can’t tell you how many people have told me that God is still RESTING after the six days of creation. Really?

>I thought God was ALL POWERFUL!
>Why would God NEED a REST?
>What’s HE (male “person of interest”) been doing since who-knows-when?

Have you ever heard of the concept by many of our early church fathers such as St. Thomas Aquinas? The phrase is “Deus est Ens”. I knew you’d remember this, but in case you’ve forgotten, it means- God is BEING Itself, which is vastly different than saying God as “a” Being, or worse yet, ALL Beings.

God is not a PERSON, but BEING Itself. Who can grasp such?

So, what’s this Being Itself been doing all these many billions of years, or are we to believe this entity just decided to show up some 2,000 years ago? Was this the RESTING: the period of nothing happening, boredom, and or the twiddling of metaphorical thumbs? Was God just waiting for Orthodox Jews, Roman Catholics, and American evangelicals to show up to get engaged?

I don’t think so.

Could it be that perhaps God-Creator-Consciousness, like all things, is ENERGY (unconditional loving vibration of the highest order) has been at WORK since ETERNITY (think very long time) going about creating and transforming, as all energy does, beyond anything that our MINDS can comprehend?

Works for me. Sounds interesting and exciting especially in light of just doing nothing but hanging out (RESTING) and waiting for us RELIGIOUS BEINGS to show up? Interacting with those dinosaurs and god knows what else has been going on in the universe had to be quite an exciting time(s).

I say READING because I didn’t know anyone at the time I came across this statement (10 years ago?), I didn’t have any friends that would dare SAY such a thing. It took me some time to buy in to the concept, but once I was OPEN, it bore witness to my spirit-man.

The hard thing to reconcile is how could God ask us to forgive and yet he won’t-doesn’t?

That’s simple. We’re NOT God. I know that’ll come as a shock to many, but just because we are ONE with God and carry the divine nature, doesn’t mean we’re on the same level as the Creator. I surely do VIBRATE but nowhere close to the frequency that God vibrates (everything is energy and everything vibrates- even God). You see, God doesn’t FORGIVE because God doesn’t JUDGE!

Of course that’s the second shoe to drop for most people.

God doesn’t judge? Well, what about the Bible verses that syas he does? I put that in the same category of other myths such as the sun standing still in the sky, etc.

For me God is LOVE and maybe a reading of I Cor. 13 could help you prime your “thinking well”. I am probably covering way too many facets of God at the same time. It’s been said that we human can accept a 10% change in our thinking in any one month, but no more. So for those who NEED to keep believing in HELL, DUALITY, GOOD-n-BAD, this just isn’t acceptable.

But if God doesn’t JUDGE, there’s nothing to FORGIVE us for. We on the other hand are masters at judging and therefore we need a LOT of forgiveness. I know I do!

When it comes to religion so many people think of symbols, metaphors, and parables as something less than that which is LITERAL. What most people today are not aware of is that the emphasis on LITERALNESS is of recent emphasis. Whatever happened to the mystique, mystery, and esoteric aspects of the spiritual life?

Unfortunately the era of Enlightenment and the advent of the scientific revolution threw a scare into religion.

The idolizing of RATIONALISM by the public took religion out of the mysterious and into the literal where one could rationally deal with a THING! However, we live and move in a symbolic universe. The Greek root SYM-BOLON means a “throwing together”. The symbols are somehow the substance.

It’s nearly impossible to talk of the universe, black holes, and God as an example without the use of symbols and metaphors. Certitude isn’t for the poets and adventurers. Symbols POINT us in the right direction. Jesus was emphatic that we understand that he wasn’t the focus. He wasn’t the one to be worshipped. He simply POINTED to the ONE!

Jesus was himself a SYMBOL. He symbolized the divine spirit within us all- the CHRISTOS!

The name is also a metaphor for something bland, mushy, unappetizing, or infantile, and thus (paradoxically) with little worthwhile content. Okay, so what’s up with the PREDIGESTED word? I am so glad you asked and I need to confess one of my irritations before going further.

When a deep theological question is asked, I can smell the predigested religious pablum long before the first sentence is concluded. Here’s a couple of examples that set me off, even before they finish the sentence-

>Jehovah Almighty has shown me that….
>Only the inerrant Bible has the answer which….
>Everything is in God’s timing and……
>The ways of the Holy Father are….
>Only Jesus can save one who…..

I can’t tell you how many times I have seen someone ask an innocent and yet deep question only to be followed with some memorized dribble (aka predigested pablum) that bring no life and usually doesn’t even appear to answer the question being asked.

I sat predigested because the individual keeps spitting the same answers out regardless of the questions.

And yes, those bland and worthless cliches are akin to maybe 1/2% milk.

People are looking for some MEAT that they can chew on. It doesn’t have to be a filet: ground beef would help. Answering a question with a question would be good. I know that doesn’t make you look like you know it all, but then, YOU DON’T so give it up thinking such.

Break bread with those that are hungry and serve GOOD WINE while you are at it and people just might want to ask you a second question. Think maybe?

Sure. We are NOW! You see, heaven isn’t what most have created it in their minds to be It’s fun to watch some theologians trying to explain the “sheep metaphor” in John 10. Jesus simply says that there are “other sheep” not in THIS FOLD (insert whatever name or religion you want at this juncture).

If you have a keen ear you will hear the meaning of his words wherein he says THEY LISTEN TO MY VOICE (John 10:16). This surely brings up the question are YOU listening to the voice of the Universe-God-Father-Matrix, or are you just listening to the doctrines that your religion has created?

That’s a tough question to answer.

Seven chapters later, Jesus reminds us that his heart for the Kingdom means that, “ALL WILL BE ONE” (John 17:21-23). All, as in ALL? Wow, that’s a pretty big concept to grab a hold of and be happy with it. There are so many areas that this Kingdom view covers that really tears down the dogmatic precepts of most religions.

But, that’s a GOOD THING!

I live in the WHY NOT paradigm, but let’s examine the WHY question and look at how one can get to the root answer (in any question). Let’s take a very general statement and run some deeper questions. Let’s say you declare, “I want to inherit $100,000″. Let the discovery begin.

WHY?
So, I can pay off my debts and buy some things that I’ve always wanted.

WHY?
So I can gain more respect from my friends who know I have many needs.

WHY?
To have a feeling of security with friends and family.

WHY?
So I can feel happy.

WHY?
Because everyone wants to feel good about themselves.

Regardless of what statement one begins with, the road always leads an inner desire to overcome fear-anxiety and to be loved (feel connected). We are always dealing with our EMOTIONS which we believe will ensure our survival. However, until we come to the realization that all answers come from within, we will continue to ask WHY without any lasting satisfactory answers.

That’s just one of the reasons I focus on the WHY NOT!

It’s not as though the PAYBACK is totally wrong and costly because there is a PAYOFF that the EGO experiences. The EGO thinks and operates vastly different than our ESSENCE. The EGO is happy with triumph and also happy in defeat.

Say what?

Whenever the EGO is getting attention it is happy. Even in defeat there’s the PITY PAYOFF. Oh you poor thing, you have been wrong, let me help you. Can you hear it: have you heard it before? Do you remember the cool feeling when in defeat you were lifted up by others as having been maligned or wronged?

We have the CHOICE of feeding the EGO or submitting to the ESSENCE that is our true self.

It might not look like there is any kind of PAYOFF when one is surrendering to the, “I AM” that we are, but could there be anything greater than BEING who we ARE? But then one must have some understanding of just WHO we ARE. Coming to that conclusion IS the grand PAYOFF and PAYBACK at the same time.