Category: emPulse

Our Weekly Mind-bender

Transparent Truth

  In our present era there seem to be all kinds of truths; convenient truth, relative truth, truth, Truth, your truth, my truth…, & the list goes on. What’s true for you may not be true for me. In the realms of personal preference, in fashion, and politics, this is all well and good.  But…

What about the issue of Ultimate Truth? The conclusion of many people is that there is no such thing. Truth is determined between the interplay of truth, the experience of the moment, and the individual; thus, relegating Truth, true-Truth, any truth, to the realm of relativity.

This leaves us on quite unstable ground; for there is no common understanding about what we are talking about, no shared definition of what we mean by what is true. So, what is true? Who’s to say? Truth becomes whatever is convenient for us at the moment. Liberators or invading forces? Comforter or manipulator? Scientific breakthrough or stating the obvious? A matter of perspective.

Truth, for the most part, should be obvious— staring us in the face. Maybe not so much at a cellular or galactic level; we might need some help delving into those mysteries. But TRUTH should be part of the basic human condition, existing within us, observable around us.

Truth should be, and is, transparent to the keen eye.

            So how/when did we start redefining truth in our own terms? Why did we feel the need to do so? Is it simply a matter of divergent philosophies, divergent religions? Or merely personal preferences; Truth that suits my agenda, my priorities. Then is it Truth at all? Truth, just for you?

            I would challenge you to examine the way you determine what is true. What is true scientifically? What is true about the origin of the universe? [The newest theory is that the universe “created” itself.] What is true about yourself? What describes you to others? What is true about God? Is there one? Can we adequately describe everything without him? Hummm.

            Oddly, some of these questions will take in depth study and personal reflection; a few deep conversations over a dram of Single Malt might also help elucidate things.

            Truth can arise to become more and more transparent as we seek it. It is not as clear-cut anymore to simply grasp it where it is. Over time, Truth’s transparency will become more obvious.

            What do you think?

For what it’s worth,

  Gary

20 Reasons to Abandon Christianity http:

20 Reasons to Abandon Christianity http://ow.ly/uACCU

Dimmer Switch

Why are we ON so much of the time? Too many of us just never STOP. We fill our lives with important things to do; then we keep filling them to overflowing. Something has to give, or break, or wear down. Usually, it’s us. We can run at 110% for a long time, but not forever.

Johnny Carson (1925-2005) former host of the TONIGHT SHOW once said, “Death is Mother Nature’s way of telling us it’s time to slow down.” He had a point. We simply never stop, or come to rest until we die. Hard work builds character, stamina, and commitment; and it is good for the soul. But does it have to take hold of us so unrelentingly that we cannot NOT work? Seriously, when do you stop, just sit, or read a book on Kindle? When was the last time you chucked a football into the hands of a friend; or beat the pants off of someone in HORSE (1on1 basketball)? There are beaches to walk, mountains to climb, and paths to be trodden all around us. Leave the office, your Lazyboy, your FB, iPhone, & SKYPE behind.

If you have decided to install an ON/OFF Switch in your life, where you come to a conscious point when you voluntarily shut down, keep in mind that your ability to truly shut OFF will be nigh to impossible. If you are like me, you will find it too tempting to do just one more thing. It is the way we are wired.

The solution is obvious— install a Dimmer Switch alongside. It might be one which is set on automatic, where specified triggers shut you down whether you want to or not. [Kids come to mind.] It could be one that is self-monitored; but too many things can go wrong with a Self-Monitored-Dimmer-Switch. It is best to give the control of the switch to someone else. (Ask me how I know.) You may not like it when they dim you down; but eventually, you’ll thank them for doing it.

There are times in my life when I need to heed that old adage “Be still, and know that I AM God.” (Psalm 46:10, Bible) I need to reconsider its corollary as well— “Be still…, and remember who I am.”

I need a Dimmer Switch. How about you? Actually, I’m stopping now. Click!

‘Nough said,

Gary

Does anyone know of any books on the 11t

Does anyone know of any books on the 11th century? I’ve read on–WHAT LIFE WAS LIKE IN THE YEAR 1000. Very story-like in it’s telling. Based on the Julius Work Calendar, it invited the reader into the warp ‘n woof of the daily patters of folk in that time period. let’s just say that the Danes held an intriguing place in the advancement of the Christian faith as they bashed in the heads of the Brits.

tax day

April 15th. The Day of Reckoning. This is the day, in the United States, that government taxes are due on the last calendar year’s earnings. Of course, the real Day of Reckoning is Tax Freedom Day, the day when everything you earn is actually yours. Up until that day, everything you earn has actually been given (taken?) to the IRS. This year, that date is April 18th. Three days after your taxes are due. There now, doesn’t that make you feel better?!?

In most ways taxes are good, sorta. They pave roads and build hospitals; they organize our national defense system (Army, Navy, Air Force, Marines, the Avengers). They pass judgment on what is good and right for our society and what is not good or wrong. They provide an infrastructure so our various peoples can get on with the business of their own individual, professional and family lives. And because of our belief in the basic nature of people, our government has even built in its own system of checks & balances with its Judicial, Legislative, and Executive branches, to restrain the spread of evil. Ergo…, we pay taxes.

This “Day of Reckoning” concept has been around since the dawn of time. The idea is that one day we will all have to give an account of what we have done with our time during our life-span on this earth. A societal reflection of this is seen in our laws; which are, supposedly, encoded with a higher moral code. In our present day there is little agreement on the source or nature of this “higher” moral encoding. But there remains a wide-spread corporate sense that one day, we will be held accountable for our actions, even by those who are not-sure of an afterlife or of a deity. Odd.

Personally, I prefer to err on the intentionality side-  living my life as if there actually were an afterlife and deity. Not that I am looking forward to any kind of reward for the life I have led; but I would sure like to avoid, at all costs, any kind of retribution for my actions.

I am under no illusion that I will simply run out my days on earth and that is that. Nothing more. That would be a serious, and erroneous, presupposition. Nonetheless, neither do I presume that I am somehow special and will be rewarded for my good life. That is up to God! Rather, I choose to prepare for this Day of Reckoning through a simple, action oriented maxim-

Honor God, honor people…, make a difference.

            Through this simple threefold imperative, I hope that I will bequeath to this world, my society, and my family, a better place to live.

For now, I’ve got to focus my attention on getting in my taxes and staying out of jail.

Have a nice week,

Gary

decisions, decisions…

EmPulse for Week of March 7, 2011

decisions, decisions…

A wise person decides slowly but abides by his decisions. (Arthur Ashe, American Tennis Player, 1943-1993)

O, if only life were simpler, like in the old days. Really? You believe that? Life has never been simple. Complexity, convolution, conflict, and chaos have reigned since time immemorial! About the only simple thing we get to choose is which color M&M to munch. Life is a series of decisions; some critical, some important, some of less consequence. If you are one who does not like making decisions, you have a problem. There will not always be someone there who will tell you what to do— you will have to make a decision on your own.

Ergo, this little Ten-Point Primer on decision-making might be of some use to you. Enjoy.

1.      What is the nature of the decision? Complexity? Ramifications?

2.      What amount of time can you devote to this decision given the other areas of responsibility (read- time-commitments) in your life?

3.      What are the time-constraints on this decision? By when MUST it be implemented?

4.      What resources might you draw upon to help you make this decision?

5.      WHO should be included in your decision making process?

6.      Since your decision will affect the future, consider what might go wrong with your decision. How can you lessen its negative impact? What feasible scenarios might you create as secondary courses of action? [In general, there is always more than one way to do something.]

7.      What will your decision cost— financially, emotionally, relationally, professionally?

8.      How might spending time alone before God, listening, enable you to make a better decision?

9.      Some people need a lot of information before making a decision; others, not so much. At what point will you make the decision? Being about the future, it will never be totally certain, totally safe.

10.  Make the decision; implement it, live with its consequences.

There are few tools available to better gauge our growth toward maturity than our competence in making decisions. Risk, faith, trust, teamwork, fear, critical thinking, and just plain guts all come into play when we have to make a decision. The buck may stop with you, or you may be on a team that needs consensus; no matter the process, you come to a point of decision. By the best of your ability, so help you God, make a good one.

Have a nice week,

Gary