Power Corrupts

I not only find it suspicious, I find it wrong when the person who holds the most power in a country rails against and tries to silence those who say they are being treated unjustly by those in power in a country.

The suppresive words of those accused of the wrongdoing readily verify the the claims of those being oppressed.

In the case of kneeling for a national anthem, to say that stance is unpatriotic and speaks against those who fight for a country is a false equivalency.

A soldier takes an oath when they join the military to uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States.

The 1st Amendment of that same constitution states, "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances."

Logically speaking, those who would suppress "the right of the people peaceably to assemble (or kneel), and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances," are the ones who are acting in a unpatriotic way.

Racism in America has been and continues to be a major issue. Silencing fellow Americans or standing with those who wish to silence others, only proves racism is alive and active.

A racist never thinks their words, actions, or desires are wrong. To do so would require them to release the power and privilege they have over others.

"All men are created equal," should be more than a motto; it should be a truth we all live by.

Perhaps, white America... myself included, it's time for us to wake up to the conscious and unconscious ways we have suppressed others.

Power, among mortals, leads to corruption; yet the only people blind to the corruption are the ones who hold the power.

Beyond the Beaten Path

I want to live one step beyond the beaten path

I want to see untamed time.

I want to be held captive by a falling leaf

I want to see a raindrop fall from my eyelash instead of rolling down my window pane

I want to hear words others speak with their eyes

I want to enjoy unpredictable moments

I want to experience awe when I look into the face of another

I want to appreciate uniqueness instead of normality

I want to hear the tales of wrinkles and gray hair

I want to hear the wind chuckle as it shapes the clouds

I want to witness the light innocence of a child's laughter as hope is born in an adult's shadowed life

I want to experience more than the familiar mantra of expectation

I want to live in wonder of the world's precious humanity

I want to step out my doorway with hopeful excitement

I want love's tendrils to be stronger than life and as tender as an infant's smile

I want to be free of the shackles of routine

I want to enjoy the seasons of my days as well as my years

I want to connect with souls and respect their mysteries

I want to connect with nature and know we live within one another

I want to connect with me and feel the longing for life beyond my constructed fences of safety

I want enjoy the risk of living life

I want to live one step beyond the beaten path

Be Still and Breathe

Sometimes the most essential thing we can ever do is to be still.

Breathe in... breathe out...
Breathe in...

In my quiet there is always noise. It's my noise. Not the world's. Not others. Not circumstances.

Ringing in my ears. Slow soft breaths. Creaking of bones. A yawn and the muffled sound of my ear popping.

Small, insignificant movements. Yet it is okay. I am still. I am quiet. I am me.

Stillness invigorates me. The inside me. The soul me. The real me.

The me who is. The me who trusts. The me who enjoys. The me who loves.

Quietly, as I connect with my inner self, connection seaps into my being and says, "You belong."

It is only then that I can face the world, my world, my friends, my neighbors, my life... with peace.

I don't have to strive to find my place in and amongst others.

When I accept my place on this ever changing globe,

when I am still in a world of movement,

when I acknowledge the beauty of my surroundings,

when I allow myself to remember every single one of us are imperfect,

every single one of us desires love, acceptance... belonging

then I can hear the still, small voice in my soul speak... words which are meant for my ears alone.

There is much to do in life. Doing is golden when it is birthed in stillness, in the calm moments, in self acceptance, in being.

Learning how to be. Learning how to be me. Learning to allow me to be.

It is okay. It is life. It is okay.

Breathe in...

Breathe out...

Now engage... in life, in people, in listening, in kindness, in loving, and sometimes in speaking.

Breathe...

Opinion

This is the honest to God truth: I do not know what to believe anymore about anything. Religion, politics, and life are so vulnerable to the interpretation of every single one of us that truth has become nothing more than an opinion. We are a passionate people who are clamoring to have our thoughts be known. And in the process of our adamant rhetoric, truth seems to be lost. When we can easily justify hatred, hypocrisy, and arrogance because we are fervently trying to persuade others that we hold the absolute truth, the only thing that we have revealed is that our truth is based on our own thoughts and emotions. The beauty of truth is that it does not need imperfect people to prove its existence.  It is not validated by who believes it, anymore than it is made stronger by our belief. The heart, the life, and the wellspring of truth is love. If love is not the center of our beliefs and our actions within the arenas of religion, politics, and life then we have merely deluded ourselves into thinking that we hold the truth. If religion was based on loving our neighbor, if politics was based on loving our neighbor, and if life was based on loving our neighbor, I think we would be much closer to understanding what truth is. At this point in time, everybody’s opinion, including my own, is just noise and the confusion of it all has brought me to the realization that I need a radical change. Rhetoric needs to be replaced by silent service, hatred with love, hypocrisy with truth, and arrogance with humility. If we want change, we have to be the change. If I want change, I have to be the change. I may not know what to believe in these areas anymore, but I do know this, I am tired of societal division. I am weary of one side demonizing the other and vice versa. I long for peace, which in my mind is just mutual respect in regards to religion, politics, and life. Is this possible or is it just a pipe dream?

Love & Forgiveness

I've come to the conclusion that the meaning of life is wrapped up in two things... love and forgiveness.

I'll be honest with you, I've struggled with both.

To know I am loved and to love, to know I am forgiven and to forgive are things I wrestle with over and over again.

When I think about the dailyness of my life. When I step back and purposely ponder the pieces, whether those are the people who orbit my life, the places I've found myself in, the priorities I've chosen to follow, or the events which were beyond my control.

What I've found is... if love and forgiveness are undervalued or all together absent, my life becomes fragmented.

I become irritated in my own unique ways, and I point my finger at different pieces and blame them for my discomfort.

What I end up with is a handful of glass shards. Although I am aware they have been broken from the main, I take their fragility for granted and try to push it all aside.

Until I realize, all that orbits (people, places, events) are truly a part of who I am.

At that point, I slowly, one at a time, reach for the pieces. I examine them. I acknowledge the brokenness. I remember the moment, the place, and what priority I valued at the time.

I look at the wound. I ask myself, is it one I carry or did I inflict it on another?

Either way, the circumstance has to be acknowledged. It has to be owned. And it has to be enveloped by love and forgiveness.

If not, I remain fragmented.

Yet, if I allow myself to feel the pain of the brokenness, if I allow myself to acknowledge my desperate need for love, if I choose humility, subdue my ego, and remember my need for love and realize others have that same need as well, I begin to release my defensive stance, and I forgive.

Love and forgiveness are not one in the same. They are two completely separate entities. Yet they move in, about, and around one another, always complimenting, always preferring, and always respecting boundaries.

As I draw the pieces to myself, as I place them in their proper places, as I love or receive love, as I forgive or be forgiven, and as I love and forgive again and again, the fragments become a mosaic.

My life becomes me instead of a series of people, places, priorities, and events.

I become whole as I was always meant to be.

And the shards which once represented only pain becomes an integral piece of mosaic beauty.

Letting love and forgiveness move in, out, and around our lives is more than a dance.

Mastering love and forgiveness is not the goal in life.

Love and forgiveness are life. Yet they will always let us choose how we live in this life.

I want to choose well. And although I feel vulnerable, the risk and the ensuing soul-peace are better than the brokenness.

Our Words Reveal Our Hearts

In any natural disaster the best and worst of humanity are revealed. The best of humanity are those who spring into action to bring aid to those who are suffering. The worst of humanity are those who sit back and blame others for making "God" strike out in judgement to cause the masses to suffer.

Why is it those who so eagerly blame a natural disaster on a particular group of people, never take responsibility for a similar "God" induced tragedy that was caused by their own sin?

I've never heard any of these blamers say, "I am so sorry that my sin brought on the judgement of God. People, who are innocent of the specific way I sin, have been hurt by my God. I am so sorry my sin made God destroy you, your lives, and your loved ones."

No, blamers are blind to their own sinful ways and words. They'd rather use God as a tool to further their own agenda than grieve with humanity over the destruction caused by a natural disaster.

Their ugly words have revealed their hearts.

God is not a two-faced God who with one hand destroys life, and with the other hand brings aid for the victims of a natural disaster.

God will be found in the comforting of those who suffered harm and were displaced. God will also be found in the good will of those who bring aid. God does not stand behind the words and callous hearts of the blamers, for to do so, he would have to deny the goodness within himself.

An arbitrary god is not a trustworthy god. An arbitrary god cannot claim to be good if he selects to harm random people to bear the judgement for the perceived sin of another.

In their words, these blamers have revealed the littleness of the god they serve as well as the darkness of their own hearts.

My heart aches for the deception the worst of humanity revels in, but my heart absolutely breaks for the people who happen to be in the path of a natural disater.

I know that love, kindness, and aid will undoubtedly be available to those who are grieving over the loss incurred due to a natural disaster. And I also believe that mercy will triumph over any judgement people who blame can bring.

Our prayers are directed to a loving God who is not defined by dark, shifty shadows. Our prayers are directed to a God who is light, who is love, and who is good. And this God dearly loves all the people of this world.

To all who are suffering, please know God is not against you. He, and the majority of the people who follow Him, mourn with you and will do all we can to bring comfort to you.

To all those who are blamers, your words do not represent Jesus or His Father at all. Silence, at this point, would be perceived as wisdom. Please, if you have any decency within, you'll stop talking now.

To Life

One day, when heaven's gates are flung open, when the table is set, and all are seated, Jesus will lift his wine glass in welcome and say, "To Life!"

And in that exact moment, all of our preconceived notions of God, our petty boundaries with our neighbor, and the prideful image we have of ourselves will crumble.

When perfect love dispels the fear we've enthroned, we'll realize, when we judged and hated our neighbor, we judged and hated God.

And as we lift our glass in response to life, we will finally become aware of the fact that we have been forgiven since the words were spoken on the cross when the empathy of God peacefully overcame the violence of humankind.

And maybe for the first time in all of our lives, we will truly breathe. And then we will collectively say, "Thank you," as we begin to understand what love truly means.

My Heart is Heavy

My heart is heavy

My heart is heavy for I am alone

I am alone; I am unwelcome in the church

My heart is full of heaviness, my life feels the emptiness of separation

I am bereft

They say it's my fault

They say I am lost

They say I am evil for loving a woman

Their words do not call me home

They merely are spoken to divide us further

They say, "If you insist on being you than go die and be tormented for eternity."

As I drift away in loneliness, a heavy midst shrouds my heart

The words spoken echo in my ear

From a distance I hear, "We love you. That love compels us to condemn you."

I tilt my head at their words

Then wonder why I am sad for being excluded

And I realize... I love those who have condemned me and I grieve over the loss

And although I ache as I drift in the torrent we call life, I know that I will sleep well knowing I chose love instead of hate

In light of the Nashville Statement

In light of the Nashville Statement: To all my friends and family who accept me and other LGBT people as we are... thank you. Please know your kindness is not a sin. I am more than confident we will all be in heaven. I only hope my residence in heaven is next door to one of the signers of this asinine document, so every time I walk out my door and see my neighbor, I can smile at him and sincerely say, "I'm so glad you're here with the rest of God's family."

Love, peace, and forgiveness... we can't live well without them.