It's a B to the G fit to a T Thing

Dear America,

"God, Home and Country"

NSDAR Motto

indeed

so yesterday, my DAR chapter celebrated its final meeting until the fall; for all intents and purposes, we go dark just when the sun is shining its brightest.  

to honor the last meeting, the intention was to invite someone who would simply inspire us to keep up the good fight, to remind us of who we are and what we do, and send us on our way --  as we all go our separate ways -- with the same kind of spirit and enthusiasm as the year began.   Our speaker was lined up months in advance -- because she is just that special.

Who knew, that from the time we booked her in early January,  that it would cap off such an emotional year, a springtime entrenched in melancholy and loss of one of our own, one of our very best, one of our very brightest.  It was as if the sun, itself, went down, and out, for good.

The chapter was awfully thirsty by the time Chaplain LaToya Zavala LT. USN, made her appearance.

....we didn't even realize how parched.

and what comes to mind when we hear the word parched...
perhaps arid, scorched, withered, and dry -- yes, dry as dust --  a desert comes to mind...yes, yes, lost in the desert.  Thirsty, so so thirsty.

About a month out, she asked of what kind of presentation we were looking for, and we exchanged emails to that end and I forgot all about it.  But lo and behold, just how did she open her remarks on the day?  Poking a little fun at the tall order -- and hearing her tell it, continues to make me giggle still twenty four hours later. For I had asked her to speak of the DAR motto, to motivate the troops after such a blistering spring, and springboard us into summer with enough fire in our bellies to come back in October with bells on and ringing mightily...all in fifteen minutes, LaToya would add.   yeah, yeah, that was the funny part.

And, have to admit, it was all true.  I asked her to move mountains, to bring us out of the desert -- to bring a presentation like no other presentation that's come before, and complete the mission in fifteen minutes.  

And guess what?

SHE DID!

In real life, LaToya personifies the NSDAR motto to a T.

GOD:  By trade, she is a chaplain -- BA in Pastoral Theology, with a minor in Biblical Languages, and Master of Divinity, with post-graduate work in Clinical Pastoral Education...and, after joining the Navy, with tours of duty around the world, she is currently stationed at Camp Pendleton, serving the pastoral needs of our fine marines.   They are so lucky to have her loving council everyday.

HOME:  Per her bio, Chaplain LaToya is happily married and mother of two, while on the cusp of receiving an adoption, thereby expanding her home and family to the power of five, or maybe six (considering they are open to receiving siblings).  And what a joy it must be to have LaToya as a mother, that's all I have to say.  Scratch that.  It's not all -- for this woman radiates pure divinity and grace, all the while keeping at the ready a certain boldness, strength, and command; and this is precisely what it takes to do the good works of motherhood, if you intend to do it well.

COUNTRY:  This speaks for itself; there is a clear love of country when you are willing to give your  own life in its security and protection.  She is so bold in this arena of defending our nation, this country, she swore to the following oath: 

"I, _____ (SSAN), having been appointed an officer in the _____ (Military Branch) of the United States, as indicated above in the grade of _____ do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign or domestic, that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservations or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office upon which I am about to enter; So help me God."

so help me GOD. indeed indeed.

LaToya IS  God, IS Home, IS Country, all wrapped up in a beautiful, joyful, compassionate and passionate, package.

Our chapter was so blessed to have her for a day.

LaToya moved us from the start, declaring just how much our culture has marginalized our relationship with God, placing this relationship with our Creator, generally speaking, firmly into something less-than, parched by the ever-increasing secular dominance of toning down our faith as a way of co-existing.   It's as if we carelessly say, oh It's around, this God, but essentially, we can't abide by the commandments of our faith when it comes to the day to day.  And above all, we have to be quiet about It.

It's as if, culturally, we are allowed to recognize God, but not really; God is just up there, in the heavens somewhere away from here.  But maybe we shouldn't even be so bold as to say that.  Perhaps, we must tone it down even a wee bit more, and refer to this thing, this so-called feeling of  God, as merely something divine that may, or may not be, high above, that may, or may not, lead us; and just maybe we give this something the glory only when we feel like it.

OH and she is so right.

From my Jesus Calling, just this morning:  

"Relax in My Healing, holy Presence.  Be still while I transform your heart and mind... Do not be like the Pharisees who multiplied regulations, creating their own form of  'godliness.'  They got so wrapped up in their own rules that they lost sight of Me.  Even today, man-made rules about how to live the Christian life enslave many people.  Their focus is on their performance, rather than on Me.  It is through knowing Me intimately that you become like Me.  This requires spending time alone with Me.  Let go, relax, be still, and know that I am God."

LaToya -- the one who fits the DAR motto to a T -- hit this very reality of a certain cultural conformity to a watered down version of our faith in God, with a capital G, to a capital T, and then some.

Within the first five -- of the paltry fifteen minutes I gave her -- we found ourselves screaming shouts of joy and thanksgiving to our faith, to our God.  And it was good, so GOOD.

From one of my favorite books, Real Christianity, by William Wilberforce -- 

"To place the glory of anything over the glory of God is idolatry...Whatever draws our heart from Him, engrosses our minds or holds the number one spot in our affection is an idol.  Only God is to be the object of our supreme worship...

At the risk of repeating myself, let me point out the false thinking that exists about the nature of authentic faith.  True faith is something that so pervades our lives that it affects everything we do.  It is a matter of the heart, where its reality becomes our supreme influence.  It seeks to root out anything that is contrary to its truth and attempts to bring all the heart's desires and affections under control."

The Pharisees got so wrapped up in their own rules that they lost sight of Me...

True faith is something that so pervades our lives that it affects everything we do.

We were a thirsty bunch, indeed. 

The thing is:  It took someone completely outside our bubble to wake us, enliven our spirits once more, and remind us of the good we do and from where it all comes.  With a splash of  water here, and a splash of water there, suddenly a room once brimming with weary faces, came alive again simply by being within earshot of a gentle fountain of faith, trickling up with the fundamentals and the ideals back behind our motto, carrying on with nothing short of exuberance while flashing a smile a mile wide. 

And considering our group is more amenable to these ideals in the first place --  as in, she was preaching to the choir -- it just goes to show that even the best of us need fresh sustenance, a daily dose of manna for the road ahead.

If it's not us declaring to God be the Glory, then what gives us any hope for any kind of future?

Our nation's own history proves, without a shadow of a doubt, that we, as a people, were so full of faith, that we declared it everywhere!   We gave God the glory on buildings, like court houses and municipalities; we gave God the glory in schools, allowing time set aside for personal prayers; we gave God the glory, and printed, as such, on our money, ensuring that God received the credit for our abundance and every good thing, as we exchanged money for goods and services.

Just look at what is happening now -- freedom from religion has usurped the value and security of the greatest, fundamental freedom, the greatest ideal, for which America stands. This freedom from religion nonsense claims "to promote nontheism and defend the constitutional separation between religion and government...."   When what they really want to do is dismantle our very foundation of God, Home and Country, from which America was made...albeit naturally, organically, and with bold reverence!

So are we to believe, that for a country founded on religious freedom, a separation from the Church of England controlling our lives, by taxation and otherwise, we are to cease being mindful of, and exercising, our true faith in God?  That we can only be religious at night, behind closed doors, or better still, in the dark?

When, the fact remains -- if in reference to a people of authentic faith -- there is to be no separation from this God in our daily life; what becomes unconstitutional, then,  is the masking of our faith, the hiding in the shadows of our faith.   Just what do you think will happen, once this butchery of our history,  our beliefs, our founding principles, takes hold without regret?  [Just for the record, all self-righteousness set aside, we are seeing it with our own eyes as we speak.]

God!

Home!

Country!

Truth is, "[W]hen the cement that has held a nation together no longer exists, the state soon dissolves into anarchy."  just another little something from Real Christianity...

God MUST come first, for this relationship is not only the most important, it gives us the foundation, the strength, the stillness, the peace, the home and country -- fit to make our way in the every day, every moment of the day, whether called to the needs of home or country.  

God centers us, and fills us, overflowing,  with everything we need, fit to meet every hope, every dream, every need -- every everyday concern for goodness sake --  with bells on, and ringing mightily, madly, deeply.

For God so loved the world; for God IS the Creator of all the world, of all things, seen and unseen.

It is Sunday.  And it is a good. 

And my heart is full -- thanks to the reservoir of this clay jar -- me -- being filled to the brim through positive words of encouragement based in faith in God.  So, to LaToya, my muse, goes my gratitude. 

But even LaToya would surely agree, that it is To God -- Savior, King of Kings, Jehovah, Creator of ALL Things, fit to a T with a capital G --  Be the Glory, Forever and Forever.  amen.

this is just my blog to the G, fit to a T, Thing.  amen.

Make it a Good Day, G

It's a Blog that Will Prove Self-Evident --- when you get to the very end, that is -- Thing

Dear America,

"When the cement 

that has held a nation together 

no longer exists, 

the state soon dissolves 

into anarchy."   

from Bob Beltz's adaptation

 of a remarkable read, 

Real Christianity, 

by William Wilberforce

and we're back....to the return of Wilberforce.  And what a force for good he was, indeed.

little ole' G thing has relied upon the brilliance of Wilberforce to fulfill the duties of making a point many times before, especially circa the olden days of yore; maybe mosey your way back to a day, or two, just for kicks and giggles, starting here:

11/8/10;

11/17/10;

11/29/10;

9/16/11.

[the vintage speaks for itself, considering they were all written in a day before each blog was donned a title to fit the day's scene, as in,  "IT's a (fill in the blank) Thing."]

As I was rambling through a string of happy things on November 29, 2010, this moment jumped out:

"I am happy, that when it came time to saying our prayers last night, my girl piped up and said "for Korea...both of them" -- and expanding on that with a question to me, asking if it was appropriate to pray for North Korea, too?  To which I said, "of course, and maybe more so"...distracted by some kind of Godfather flashback in my mind, "keeping your friends close, but your enemies closer." And if the good Lord willing, maybe they will change their ways, saying a little prayer couldn't hurt (good news, free will leans both ways -- bad news, free will leans both ways)."

So you're welcome; two girls prayed one night and kept North Korea at bay for nearly seven years.  teehee; guess it becomes immediate grounds to pray unceasing.

It's crazy how Christianity -- praying in general or in the particular, praying in a church or in the town square or at the foot of one's own bed at the end of the day -- has become so out of vogue in America.

Now, if you wandered back to the days of yore, citing Wilberforce, then you would know that Wilberforce was addressing a world two hundred years ago, give or take.  And the real Christianity kicker -- all of it, and pretty much everything this Brit said, is still relevant today; and perhaps even more so!

"It would seen that the best view of patriotism recognizes that society and all its numerous elements are best served when the general welfare of the greatest number of people becomes the great objective of all its people, rather than the selfish pursuit of personal peace and affluence of the individual.  A proper response to the call of Christ to love all men, even one's enemies, should produce this outcome in a truly Christian culture.  Universal love produces the highest form of patriotism.  Benevolence and philanthropy that arise from a purely secular framework usually proves deficient:  They always fall short of meeting the full needs of those they seek to benefit.  Cost is always measured against the discomfort that such benevolence might produce in the giver.  True Christian benevolence goes the extra mile.  Its objective is to meet the need even at the cost of self-sacrifice.  It is like an infection -- a good infection -- that first influences its immediate surroundings and then begins to spread outward in ever-increasing circles.... 

Christianity has no equal.  It not only teaches the highest moral and ethical code known to man, but through relationship with the Creator of the code the believer is empowered by the Holy Spirit to keep it.

True Christianity, by nature, seems to be particularly and powerfully constituted to promote the welfare and health of political communities.  Why is that?  The reality is that all other systems are rooted in human selfishness.  They are conceived in selfishness, grow in selfishness and ultimately, perish because of selfishness."

oh talk to me, WW, as we wander down this road hand in hand.

A local preacher, Dr. David Jeremiah, is beginning a new series, based upon his latest book:  A Life Beyond Amazing.  The running theme is based upon nine pillars of character that carry the trans-formative power to change our life, our world:  love, joy, peace, endurance, compassion, generosity, integrity, humility, and self-discipline.  

All of it ties into what Wilberforce refers to as the "public spirit"  and amounts to the overarching desire of creating and instilling and growing and investing in things of character, in order to multiply it...like in a seven billion fold kind of way.

But the truth is, we must start small.

We must start with the power of one -- that is, by definition, you and me, individually and collectively, rich or poor, white, black, brown, boy or girl, young and old alike.

Dr. Jeremiah uses self-discipline to anchor his entire list; and of course, this girl got to thinking....

as society has grown more and more rooted in selfishness, the values of old -- with self-discipline at the core -- have grown tired and worn, like an old pair of shoes off the beaten path and retired to the back of the closet.  The shoes that once met the day buckled up and fully equipped to march through the day of a certain understanding, a certain reverence to a Higher Power, taking heed to that which a life in faith requires of us, both in spirit and in action, are shamed to a life unseen; if they dare poke out the toe into the public eye, they are met with vitriol and mainstream madness, even labeled haters, racists, and driven back into the dark, cedar-lined walls shaking in fear or worse, in unconscionable embarrassment.

Our founders based our entire government on the righteousness of good self-discipline --  and this notion easily lends itself to everything else "self" oriented, things that this nation would be wise to cling to right about now.

Might as well be bold here and move to say that, this list, the string of selfies this girl is about to give you, carries the trans-formative power to change the world, oh yes indeed!

For Good Self-Discipline feeds into the broader sense of Good Self-Government for the benefit of the whole.  IN order to have good self-government, we must be in a word -- SELF-Conscious, fully understanding of who we are and where we came from, respective of our natural birth under God.  It's the kind of self-knowledge with the capacity to set us free, forever.

Good and decent Self-Government -- the very basis of our system of government, built into the cornerstones of our fine republic -- also relied upon self-reliance, self-sufficiency, self-will, self-improvement, self-esteem, being fully self-driven and independent!  Dependency upon big government simply did not exist in the minds of our founders in any way, shape or form!  (That would have been totally and woefully too self-defeating for words, right.)

self-taught, to one degree or another
self-respect to grow in accordance with our level of integrity...to self, to life, and the greater good
self-confidence to propel us to do good things
self-expression to bring beauty, substance, into our community and the world
self-rule to guard what goes in and what goes out, like a castle --- day in and day out -- mind, body and soul, it is a never-ending task forever after.

these are the kinds of things that determine our destiny, for one and for all.

Which surely suggests for a sharp review of something candidate Barack Obama once said to a nation, "we are five days away from fundamental transformation."  And how, now seeing the results of those eight years, and never to get them back.

What happened, right Hillary?  teehee

From the ole' G Thing, September 16, 2011:

"Our founders made America a place for religious freedom ABOVE all else.  It was the very reason we had to leave England and find a new land in order to create a new world. 

The "free exercise thereof" was divined within the framework of our founding documents, namely our Constitution, not as an insignificant gesture, or platform, banking upon the hope that no one would ever live according to one's beliefs -- it was real.  Our founders hoped we would keep our faith in something much greater than ourselves and let that Something rise above, if not truly guide us in our every day. 

This "free exercise thereof"  lawfully protected all citizens to have the right to exercise their full liberty to speak their truth.   While, to be sure, to exercise thereof is hardly stagnant; it is solidifying the real action required of us."

Our connection with the Divine Providence that set America on this path, is self-evident!

Whether in brand new shoes, or of old,  this individual relationship with the Source of All Good -- stood unshaken, above all else!  Our personal selfishness was seen in the ways we elevated this relationship above all else!  Our time set aside to pray, to read the Bible, to read spiritual works written by spiritual men and women, was time set aside in loving devotion,  no matter the demands on the day, above all else!

Is it any surprise, that as the day grows leaner, and meaner, and more and more self-centered and self-gratifying, the occasion to stop and spend even a moment with our Creator grows more and more below all else?

The more we go down the secular path, the more we wander and roam untethered to the only reality that truly matters; being completely unbalanced, we will surely fall.  Surely, the greater good is at stake!

Wilberforce wrote about it way back when in the 1800's, just as we are seeing it play out today, after a long and winding road,  in the new modern world.   Can you hear me now?  Smart phones got nothing on the Smart One, the Creator of all things large and small.  It's an equal opportunity Creator in every way -- the non-partisan, non-denominational,  non-discriminating, non-violent, and lovingly, non-negotiable Entity that It is.... Above All Else!

"Political decay can thrive under cultural Christianity, but authentic faith will bring it to a sudden halt...We are headed toward a society that incurs the multitude of evils that result from living with no religion at all."

The thing is, we will self-destruct if we continue down this path.

and that's not hate; it's just a given.

...I shall be telling this with a sigh
Somewhere ages and ages hence:
Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—
I took the one less traveled by,
And that has made all the difference.

That's just the end of The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost; making it the end of the road for me, for today.  This is where I must leave you, unless you take my hand and come along with me in Spirit...and surely, I hope you do.


Make it a Good Day, G

It's Faith is Everyone's Business Thing

Dear America,

"I would suggest that faith is everyone's business.  The advance or decline of faith is so intimately connected to the welfare of a society that it should be of particular interest to a politician.  Furthermore, the fact that I am not a member of the clergy might help people be more open to what is said in this book.  No one can accuse me of writing what I write because I have been motivated by self-interest or theological prejudice."

these words are from the original introduction of a book that changed lives and prepared the world for the end of slavery; written by William Wilberforce, Real Christianity was written for an audience over 200 years ago, but might as well have been introduced to the world last week, considering it's examination of the essential truths surrounding a certain gap -- that being, that which separates "real faith" from the practice of a "cultural Christianity."

not to mention, this girl likes that part at the end, when Wilberforce says, like besides... "no one can accuse me of writing what I write because I have been motivated by self-interest or theological prejudice."

Isn't that refreshing?

And so true -- this idea that faith is everyone's business.

...how a society may come and go simply by it's treatment, it's reverence, it's attention, to it's faith

...how this faith, or lack thereof, directly affects the welfare of it's people.

What we do and what we say matters; just as, how we do it and how we say it matters.

Isn't it funny how the word pious could essentially be expressing two entirely different things...and the only tell would be the tone of voice and/or context.  

Here we go, via google:

pi·ous
ˈpīəs/Submit
adjective
devoutly religious.
synonyms: religious, devout, God-fearing, churchgoing, spiritual, prayerful, holy, godly, saintly, dedicated, reverent, dutiful, righteous
"a pious family"
making a hypocritical display of virtue.
"there'll be no pious words said over her"
synonyms: sanctimonious, hypocritical, insincere, self-righteous, holier-than-thou, pietistic, churchy; informal goody-goody
"pious platitudes"

 It's like, how can pious be talking "saintly" one minute and "holier-than-thou" the next, right?

Now, Pope Francis has been busy crowning a few saints -- Mother Teresa received the honor in September; and just today, he was at it again...this time, an Argentinian "gaucho-priest..Jose Gabriel del Rosario Brochero along with six others in a Mass before a crowd of 80,000 in St. Peter's Square."

Just as Mother Teresa lived in and around and with the very community she ventured to teach the way of Christ and intimately care for them in every possible way, and Brochero did the same.  As Pope Francis noted, "[H]e never stayed in the parish office. He got on his mule and went out to find people like a priest of the street — to the point of getting leprosy,"


How saintly is that, to live this kind of faith through and through -- even risking life itself?

We have saints living among us, too.

People deserving of sainthood today, include the many evangelists of preachers, and priests, and missionaries -- whether traveling the world or staying close to home, they create 'a pious family,' connected in spirit and the Word, beaming messages of hope and revival to the masses.

Given the healthy dose of criticism and judgement against Christians as a whole, these soldiers at the front line of fire are most deserving of praise and adoration; for the condemnation has reached such a critical mass, generally speaking.

Dr. David Jeremiah's Sunday message included a  short summary of periods of revival in America -- and it was fascinating.  Besides ending with the call to duty for Christians to get it together again, come hell or high water, he told a story of the origins of a local coffee house, The Living Room.

Turns out, it's not really local at all -- it started in San Francisco...at the height of the hippie season in the 1960's.  In between the highs of the psychedelics, this little coffee house catered to the lost and preached the Gospel between grinds.

The Jesus Movement was all the rage.  
And then, it wasn't.   poof!   gone.

And then I found this, it's from a place called Heaven Awaits and it seeks to answer the question Why did the Jesus Movement Die?

...and if you just read the Home Page for a wee bit, you will come away thinking it's like another Wilberforce for our time.  It says, "look to the Holy Spirit, not man, for answers...Stop hiding in your house and hanging around only people who are Christian like you..."

And maybe it's just me reading more into it than is worthy, but I don't think so; for it skilfully deals a blow to the heart of every Christian, really ---- asking for each one of us to make an honest assessment of the integrity of our personal walk in faith: is it real or cultural; is it pious, or pious?

Of course, it's not like I expect all of us to agree on everything regarding FAITH; I mean, come on, that would be so unrealistic, right?  And yet, with what we know of the history of the world, how hard could it be for us to agree on this part.... that "[T]he advance or decline of faith is so intimately connected to the welfare of a society..."

How hard could it be?

Today happens to be the 100th birthday of Planned Parenthood.  [some people call it an ANNIVERSARY; I prefer to use BIRTHDAY]

Millions of babies aborted, with millions of women scarred for life...oh along with many other women who just don't care one way or the other...


The thing is, looking at the history of the organization, -- specifically, its origins -- just kills me.
It's a perfect, living, breathing example of sanctimony hooking up with multiple partners...leftist lies that have led women astray, especially the poor and those within the African-American community.

Read this, from The Negro Project.  Or this, Black Genocide dot org.
Planned Parenthood began with the Genesis of a Total Lie and it continues reliving it everyday, only now, it manufactures a voting block for the Democratic Party at the same time.  What a beautiful world, huh.

Oh sure, now of course, it's just about a woman's right to choose death over life.  Wonderful.  How evolved we have become...

But curious as to how Pope Francis has chosen to make this Jubilee Year of Mercy [year beginning December 2015], a year openly projecting a rather leftist movement within the Catholic Church.  The inclination to go less devout, and more "churchy," may very well be a sign of the beginning of the end, eh?  But who am I to go all PWBG....prophecy while blogging G while awaiting the rapture and seven years of tribulation...and so on and so on.

This snippet from about a year ago:

(CNN)Pope Francis shook up the Catholic world -- again -- on Tuesday by announcing that priests around the world will be authorized to forgive the "sin of abortion" when the church begins a "Year of Mercy" this December. 

"The forgiveness of God cannot be denied to one who has repented," the Pope said, adding that he has met "many women" scarred by the "agonizing and painful" decision to have an abortion.

And I would just love to know how the Pope would respond to what consequences, if any, to those who aren't Catholic, who don't repent, or who just don't give a flying hoot?  And what happens when the year comes to a close this December, do the priests get a 'cease and desist' on this thing called forgiveness on the "sin of abortion?"

If a society 

can dispose of life, a real life, 

ever so easily, 

how could real Christianity

 ever have half a chance?

"I would suggest that faith is everyone's business.  The advance or decline of faith is so intimately connected to the welfare of a society that it should be of particular interest to a politician."

Faith is everyone's business.

Where do we go from here, Lord?

Life, in community with one another, for the betterment of the whole, is also everyone's business.

Do you begin your day with God before you begin your day?

"The advance or decline of faith is so intimately connected to the welfare of a society ..."

And just as Black Lives Matter has raged from the grassroots as a political firestorm -- we must all stop and have an honest conversation of all sides of this movement (think it's two).   It's a movement because it has traction, it has growth, it has life.

And it, too, has a twin... lives conjoined by the color of one's skin and yet separated by conflicting ideologies, arguments born out of what's right or what's left.  Never mind that just this weekend, in Chicago, eight people were killed alongside 33 wounded.   The movement is dead set committed to one point of view -- never mind real stats, or real deaths within the black community.

Disproportionate truths happen. Sometimes often.

Sanctity of life is everyone's business.

And yet, here we are. It's Sunday --
this is the day the Lord has made,
let us rejoice and be glad in it.
or not.

all I know is it's all just words
until we actually do something to make it so.

Make it a Good Day, G

It's All About Rick Perry Keepin' It Real Thing

Dear America,

keepin' it real.
that's what we want.

and whoever comes out being more real than the next guy, or girl, the better.

"America is going to be guided 

by some set of values. 

The question is going to be: 

whose values...

[begging his audience to hold on and stay true to:]

 those Christian values that this county was based upon."  

Gov. Rick Perry 

running for POTUS

Do you really think our general spirit of goodness and charity is just by accident?  a  natural occurrence, an evolution of the highest order, that just comes about organically all on it's own, kinda like a Big Bang or something?


All action is preceded by a thought -- best described as the creative genius directly responsible for making all things under heaven.  We NEVER do something without thinking about doing something first, even if it is only for a nano-second.

Of course, Perry was speaking to students at Liberty University -- the college where Jerry Falwell Jr. sits as Chancellor.  As the article linked here makes no qualms of mentioning right from the get go, Perry was "preaching to the choir."

But you should also know, Perry wasn't just catering to a political whim of the moment, he meant every word and has no intention of stifling his authentic Christian faith in any way.  He is just keepin' it real -- because it is (you know. ..real).

“happiest moments are when I’m in communion with God"

Excerpts from another article, out of ABCDallasnews.com adds,

"This country is your country, too. Don't leave it to a bunch of Washington politicians to tell you how to live your life. This is your future that we are debating today," he said.

Tailoring his message to the Christian crowd, he said: "You are blessed to live in freedom, but as the Scripture says, to whom much is given, much is expected in return."

For Perry, this Christian thing, isn't a costume; he isn't masking a hidden agenda; he isn't masquerading as something he's not; he is simply keepin' it real.  This is who he is, at the core.  This is where his beliefs and values come.

After this speech -- from a Christian candidate speaking as a Christian to a Christian crowd mind you -- it was hard to believe how the conversation last night, directed by Bill O'Reilly on Fox News (fyi: a real Catholic and Christian), quickly and unnecessarily turned into a platform for criticism.

...for O'Reilly, it was as if this Christian candidate, flamboyantly coming out of the closet like so, was the basis for having a real argument: that this Texan's faith carried the potential to really hurt him in the long run; it was as if it was just too much reality at once, or at all.  O'Reilly made it seem as if Perry would be dividing the populace by showing his true, authentic beliefs -- even when those beliefs are clearly shared equally within the context of his entire audience at Liberty U -- and even when those beliefs are built into the very foundation this country was made.  O'Reilly thought this sort of authenticity was just too much to bear.

welcome to the new world in America.

If our nation's Christian roots are not being viciously attacked -- they are being asked to hide, to go underground; shamed by just the idea of it, cast off as if illegitimate, discredited, mocked and ridiculed by just the thought of it, as everyday, fundamental, authentic faith through Christianity is equated to radicalized Islamic terrorists; while American Atheists are being allowed to become the new mouthpiece of secular social justice laying the foundation of our new America, making the absurdity of Freedom From Religion the people's new religion. 

From one of my favorite sources of living water:

"In times like we are living in, ideas of radical obedience and self-denial fade into the background.  Even faithful Christians become soft and more tolerant of the moral decline of the world around them.  In general, most men and women think little issues of faith.  Since the majority of nominal Christians don't think much about their faith or take the time to study the Bible, it should not surprise us that they are not familiar with the very foundational tenets of authentic Christian faith.  Only those principles or doctrines that fit with the general tenor of the culture are observed as common practice.  The truths that stand in stark contrast to the systems of the culture are almost totally forgotten.  This is especially obvious when these teachings confront the problems of pride, luxury, and conformity to the culture.  Even the clergy seem afraid to tread too heavily on these subjects in their preaching for fear they will be regarded as fanatics."

An adaptation of William Wilberforce's A Practical View of Real Christianity (written in 1797) retold by Bob Beltz in Real Christianity

Can you believe that was circa eighteenth century?  Can you believe society has not learned a thing since?

Scratch that.  Maybe we learned it, but then quickly dismissed it -- or maybe little by little shied away from it -- and the more and more we turned away from it, the more normal it seemed; pretty soon things evolved and grew into a new normal, a new normal that smacks the old one right across the face as if we had grown possessed by some freak of the devil himself.  As if, all of a sudden, society needed a cleansing, an exorcism of the highest order...oh my god those people believe in God!

As if, keepin' it real, keepin' it really real, is a cause for real alarm.

wow.


Our founders made America a place for religious freedom ABOVE all else.  It was the very reason we had to leave England and find a new land in order to create a new world.

The "free exercise thereof" was divined within the framework of our founding documents, namely our Constitution, not as an insignificant gesture, or platform, banking upon the hope that no one would ever live according to one's beliefs -- it was real.  Our founders hoped we would keep our faith in something much greater than ourselves and let that Something rise above, if not truly guide us in our every day.

This "free exercise thereof"  lawfully protected all citizens to have the right to exercise their full liberty to speak their truth.   While, to be sure, to exercise thereof is hardly stagnant; it is solidifying the real action required of us.

Sure, they are just words, but these words are clearly, in actuality, and fundamentally, put to good use.

These words make up the atom, that which is part and parcel of the creative thought -- the Big Bang -- back behind the very creation of this country.

These very words serve as a greater purpose under heaven.

Congress may not establish one religion; the nation may not establish one religion; but man, in and of himself, may choose his religion and speak unabashedly, and often, and with unparalleled flamboyance, making real his authentic faith at any given time.  This right is protected.  [and as such, given it's rare occurrence, should be admired, honored, cherished as a sign of something really cool]

So -- here we are -- everyone is talking about this crazy, fanatical Texan; people are having conversations large and small about HIS faith.

Perhaps the question we should be asking ourselves is more like this, how strong is our faith?  How do we measure up in our actions, our words, our deeds when it comes to our own religion?  Are we being authentic?  Would our God be proud of us?  Do we speak in public declaring our truths, beliefs, and values and exercise that right freely given to us thereof without concern of being ridiculed, dismissed as fanaticism, declared a total loon, or even... denied a seat in the big white house for keepin' it really real because of it?

OR do we just whither away, fading into the dusty rose wall paper of our colonial roots -- keeping watch from a position indiscriminate to the naked eye -- without saying so much as another word?  And thereby, shockingly, allow secular think tanks, and atheists, and unbelievers, to not only tell us what to think, but dictate what is permissible in practice of our religious freedom, virtually stifling the "free exercise thereof"  and eradicating Christianity right before our very eyes.

We are being asked to intrinsically change everything -- from our traditions and holidays, to our principles and values, to even history itself.

Looking into our future, perhaps it will be our own cultural Christianity, our conformity to a secular separation from God, that ultimately reveals the hidden contagion with the real potential to kill us.  To think that this may be even possible is of course the first step for a course correction --  making way for a restoration of the fundamentals -- giving way to a new, new world that just so happens to date back centuries.

Me thinks God might be smiling down on Rick today, thinking to himself, thatta boy; perhaps it is we, ourselves, who have so little faith (or, have just grown too afraid to show it).

just sayin'.

just keepin' it as real as a little g can get.

Make it a Good Day, G

What America craves is the truth.  We want real people; we want real religion; we want real conservatives; we want real change (only if that change means the same thing: fiscal order, return to solvency and a balanced budget, and limited power of the federal government allowing a return to real freedom for everyone)

for somebody who is not keepin' it real...go here.

or watch this --

The Real Newt Gingrich from Frank on Vimeo.

It's a Real Patriotism Thing

Dear America,

"It would seem that the best view 

of patriotism recognizes that society 

and all its numerous elements are best served 

when the general welfare of the greatest number 

of people becomes the great objective 

of all its people, 

rather than the selfish pursuit of 

personal peace and affluence by each individual...

Universal love produces the highest form of patriotism."

We love to talk about the Day After here on G thing -- oh right, that is the idea that started it all for me, being G.  It was just another sunny day in Solana Beach, when lighting struck me upside the head and said, do something, say something, just begin the conversation if only to soothe ye own mind.

That was July 23, 2009 and the day went something like this:

Where do we begin and how do we begin again, I ask myself.

Where I live, it is the Day After OPENING Day of the Races, in Del Mar. It is one of those local traditions that brings the seasonal influx of big hats and high balls, arriving as Bing Crosby sings by train or by car-- limo or B'mer-- and away they go with a day of heavy drinking, gambling and the like. I really don't wanna sound cynical during these trying times, but it is a wonder when pondering the state of America and all of it's ills, worries and confusion how merriment still reigns a very high priority.

Of course, it is also the Day After the Presidential prime-time address regarding the state of our healthcare system and the valiant push by our President Obama to "make it so"-- even if it rushes to harm us in the end.

While just the idea of the Day After brings a sense of melancholy, as if to say that the party is over, time to heal the hangover, pop a pill and sleep it off.

It is the day after something big, something planned, and that something is now over...it merely signifies the remains of the day, recognized here as the Day After.

I find such irony in realizing that here we are, living in the country which created the very idea of "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness," having now thoroughly grown into such a wayward, mental state, as a people. Seems to me we are lost -- individually, and collectively -- living in one serious hangover; while the only way, I see, to transcend this downward trend is to go back in time, to the time before, to a time where it all began.

A time when our founding fathers and philosophers and renaissance men and society were all speaking the same language. A language that united us in thought, and in word, and in deed, to do our personal best. It was a time that called for individual responsibility to rise up and create a life of happiness on our own. A time when you had no choice but to create that life because big daddy nanny state wasn't going to do it for you, and moreover, we didn't want them to!

How can it be okay to let the government simply takeover our lives?  While, to that end, it would seem, by two-thirds of the prevailing attitude, a hostile takeover at that. Are we giving birth to people so weak, and clearly blind, to the trappings of big government? Or are we just spellbound by the very idea that maybe this time big government will be different?

Perhaps we are no longer the greatest generation, or nation; perhaps handouts and subsidies and higher taxes are the answer to our prayers.

Wake Up you people! Socialism has many ills, wrecks societies and has never been a system of government that allows for the full freedoms and liberty of it's people. It has never worked -- and it never will -- and by all means and heaven forbid, do not let a really cool President convince you otherwise!

Our power to choose everything, good or bad, not only dictates our individual life each and every day, but as a whole, in our present day, it has the ill-fated power to create a society of puppets!

I say today, NO thank you.

We have the power to create responsible, accountable citizens who revel in every thought our freedom brings -- to raise a family, grow a business, acquire wealth and prosper in every possible way. Government is not needed for that! Stop, think, grow rich and look at how we are just turning over, as if playing dead, to the powers that be through taxation, through excess, through mismanagement, through loss of control, through waste, through affairs on the taxpayer dime, through corruption, through lobby, through not in my back yard, through just sleeping it off like the Day After hoping we will just wake up and have it all better tomorrow.

The only pill for this Day After is a hard pill to swallow. That's it. Mary Poppins is not here to put a little sugar on it. It will take each of us, individually and collectively to wake up and place our government back in the hands of the people.

We must recognize that this power and strength is within ourselves all along; our outer world will only change when we align our self to the qualities that will sustain the individual to rise up and be strong all by one's self. Then collectively, we will live all of our days in the land of the free and home of the brave and even look forward to the Day After, and the day after that, and the day after that, and ...

ahh, nothing like a a little day tripping down memory lane.

Given Obama was just an O-babe in the woods back then -- that fateful Day After ...the one that started me on this journey -- I wish I could say that he hasn't done much since.  But, of course, if you are a part of the awakened citizenry that has subsequently arisen out of the ashes, you would be well aware by now that his style of executive leadership, combined with his associations through community organizing, has pretty much upturned every blessed rock this country was built.  Our foundation has been shaken to the core -- no, make that "fundamentally transformed," indeed.

The opening quotation today is from a book that I keep reading and re-reading:  William Wilberforce's Real Christianity as told by Bob Beltz -- who offers us a version of the Wilberforce classic with a modern flare.  But make no mistake, the life and times of a young Wilberforce -- who, at the ripe old age of twenty one -- was compelled to shed some much needed light upon a culture of corruption and shame.  (And bear in mind, a manuscript originally published in 1797!) 

Suffice it to say, everything Wilberforce knew then, runs exactly -- make that profoundly -- concurrent to the day's current affairs.  Sure, there is one small caveat here, in that Wilberforce was a Brit; but let that not stand in the way of the lessons that only real authentic change (through a true Christian heart) brings forth.

Three days before he died, monumental legislation was signed into law in the House of Commons, in Great Britain:  the abolishing of slavery; and all because Wilberforce thought he could make a difference.  He turned over his entire life and pursuits to the immediate cause.   And by raising a higher conscience within society, through a reawakening of the basic precepts and teachings of living life and growing society from a place of authentic Christianity, he changed the world.



Basically, Wilberforce believed many things -- here is just a glance:

"Benevolence and philanthropy that arise from a purely secular framework usually proves deficient:  They always fall short of meeting the full needs of those they seek to benefit.  Cost is always measured against the discomfort that such benevolence might produce in the giver.  True Christian benevolence goes the extra mile.  Its objective is to meet the need even at the cost of self-sacrifice.  It is like a river that flows from an unfailing and abundant source...

...[Christianity] not only teaches the highest moral and ethical code known to man, but through relationship with the Creator of the code the believer is empowered by the Holy Spirit to keep it.

True Christianity, by nature, seems to be particularly and powerfully constituted to promote the welfare and health of political communities.  Why is that?  The reality is that all other systems are rooted in human selfishness.  They are conceived in selfishness, grow in selfishness and, ultimately, perish because of selfishness."

and just maybe we will return to the force defying all odds, in Wilberforce, for the entire week...who knows.

But before I go, did you happen to read about a kid from Compton, Allan Guei?  Talk about finding one's unselfish spirit!  Read this.

THIS is what this country is all about.  Doing something for somebody else just out of the goodness of one's own heart.

Yes, this is the Day After our nation's 235th birthday.  That is a lot of candles.  While, against seemingly all popular belief, real goodness and real charity and a real unselfish heart live to see another day in Allan Guei.  All America really needs now is more of us following the way of Guei, be it religious or not. 

America seems to be more transient in spirit than we have ever been.  By the looks of things, with the loss of living our daily life from a place of "an unfailing and abundant source," with man attempting to play God the more the public spirit wanes, we could easily be living in  Great Britain, circa1797.  But we're not, are we?

We live in America, in 2011, as our nation's caretakers of the American belief system.

The American belief system -- the one we recognize that our rights come from the Creator, not government -- the one, which began, centuries ago, with our Declaration of Independence from Great Britain, for a number of reasons really -- and each and every one painstakingly and duly noted within...

The one my girl graciously allowed me to read out loud just yesterday afternoon -- you know, out of the goodness of her heart... she let me have my thrill without an eye ball roll to the back of her head and all.  And she, as a matter of record, seemed almost enthusiastic (but I'll never tell)  (oops).  While I began our sentimental journey reading every word of our declaration, she quickly began to finish a few familial phrases on the fly -- you know, in the moments I would give way to a theatrical pause.  Oh, girl, you make a mama's heart sing...it was a good day.

And all things considered, it makes for a pretty good day after, too.

Make it a Good Day, G

Dear America,

"Is there any doubt that the handwriting 

is on the wall for where we are heading...

look around...

manners have been corrupted, 

morality has sunk into depravity, 

indulgence is out of control and, 

above all, faith has been discredited and unbelief has become fashionable. 

When a culture reaches this point, 

it becomes so out of touch with truth 

that masses of people deny outright the existence of God.  

God's will for the nation has been abandoned 

and man has been made God."

that was said hundreds of years ago by William Wilberforce, and via the miracle of paraphrase, furnished to us through a captivating revised edition of a classic, written by Bob Beltz, we are able to tap into the same mindset, only with a modern view.

"...these are the things 

that keep you from having a proper sense 

of priority for the things of God.  

You will be tempted to settle for cultural Christianity 

and will not willing to pay the price for the real thing.  

The former fits your ambition better.  

Your faith will not be authentic faith at all....

You will think of yourself as a Christian 

because everyone who lives in the country is a Christian.  

You will bear no signs of transformation, 

either in your thinking or behavior...

If you are willing to listen to this warning 

and not settle for a cultural Christianity 

but desire to know  and possess authentic faith, 

it is time for you to step away from the crowd.  

God is at work in your life.  

Get away to a place where no one is around 

and get down on your knees and pray.  

Ask God to take away your spiritual indifference 

and insensitivity and enable you to draw close to Him...

ask the Holy Spirit to begin to work in you 

from the inside out, 

to make you the man and woman 

God designed you to be...

Embrace grace."

One man's Christianity "stirred the conscience of a nation"  -- redirecting every thought, word, and deed surrounding the cruel depravity of an entire group of people -- and ultimately, raising the level of compassion and truth and justice high enough -- to bring about the end of slavery.  As the story goes, "three days before he died, [Wilberforce] learned that Parliament would pass the legislation abolishing slavery throughout the British Empire."

The Wilberforce connections made --  God and Country, Truth and Values, Faith and Foundation -- directly linked for all the world; and to this day stand instrumental, fundamental, and essential in the creation of a civil, vibrant, productive society.  Naturally, these ideas became the cornerstone for the making of a new world, in America.

Our founding fathers, townships and settlements, future universities and curriculum, poets and countrymen, literary giants like Emerson and Thoreau, and the whole of government itself, carried with them the Wilberforce thread; and likewise, America created the very conditions to set in motion over two hundred years of our Judeo-Christian heritage in action, paving the way for freedom, liberty, and justice for all.

Was it perfect?  I think we can all agree -- it was not.

But what is?

Who is?

Are you  perfect in every way?  Am I?
Speaking only for myself, that would be a no.

Have some people acted out of character, shall we say, and done the nation wrong?  Indeed.

That is the beauty and the beast of free will; we are each accountable, individually, for our own actions, our own deeds -- whether they be good or bad;  we are each responsible for our own words -- whether they are respectable or dispiriting; we are each beholden to our own beliefs, our own religion, our own thoughts, our own God (or not), respective of our own mind, our own free will,  in equal portion.

What we do individually -- how each and every one of us responds to our inherent duty and delight of being our own person  -- when it is applied in the macro, the collective is made and fostered.

In other words, if we stop being good people, the entire nation suffers.

As a white girl, I can easily become unglued thinking back to the days following the Civil War and how southerners responded (not all, but who are we kidding, what does it matter -- as a whole, the south stood for so much reprehensible damage that, to this day, we will never forget).  As a white girl, I could reach a level of lividness unknown to man when contemplating the depravity of blacks throughout our history -- segregation, the horrid acts of the KKK, past administrations (like Wilson's) returning us to the dark ages with racial bigotry and separatism.   It makes me ill; and, being grounded in merely my little reality, left only to imagine how a black person must feel.

I can't take it back, you know, history.
I am powerless to take any of it back.
There is nothing I can say to make it better, to take the pain away.
absolutely nothing.
as a mom, there is no place to kiss to make it all better.
the damage is done.

But here's the thing -- and it's a big but and I cannot lie -- am I responsible for it?

Having been a child of the sixties, having grown outside of the south my entire life, having been educated in integrated schools all my life, having friends, coworkers, fellow congregants of color, right there along side me ALL THE DAYS of my life, and now, having entered into an era welcoming the first African-American president, when a black woman has become pretty much the most noteworthy, influential American that has ever lived -- and super rich on top of it, when all walks of livelihoods, interests, political views, activities no longer gravitate by color, how can we continue to break each other, and jeopardize our future, using the very injustices of our past to hold us back?

It wasn't me.  And more than likely, it wasn't you either.

What one person, and with others conspired, to take from another -- be it life, liberty or happiness -- will remain forever wrong.  No question.  And the only way it will serve us, is to move forward, never forgetting AND letting it go.
 
Is it too naive for me to think we are all brand new?

I cannot be held responsible for another man's wrongdoings; it is just not fair.

I can care;
I can respond with compassion;
I can teach my own child to live without bigotry and hatred for another;
I can love and accept those who I come in contact of another race, unconditionally;
I can embrace ideas that foster unification, rather than division;
I can become educated in the history that has allowed untruths and false perceptions to shape us;
I can respect a president of color, even if I wholeheartedly disagree with his policy;
I can become awestruck at the celebrity of a woman who has changed America from the inside out for the better -- left with a wish to meet her one day;
I can enjoy the talents of all Americans, no matter the color of their skin, but the content of their character;
I can do my best to be kind to all people, even if showing a simple courtesy, like saying a please or a thank you, opening a door or giving someone my seat -- I can do that, with great joy;
I can be the best I can be, finding strength, courage, conviction, and love from a faith dating back thousands of years; all these things I can do moving forward.

I think I can, I think I can...
...slowly...
...but surely...
I believe, individually and collectively, we can make the grade.

Did you know they built the railroad tracks over the great heights of the Alps before they even had a locomotive engine with enough horsepower to take it?

We must have what we want in mind; first intention must be made clear and certain. Do we want to get along, or not?  IF the answer is yes, than what we do from here on out becomes elementary.  We set in motion the very thoughts and things and ideas to unite us, not divide us.  We take steps forward, not back.  We move in the direction our new found glory takes us, and with every step forward, we build momentum, setting forth the very conditions from which a new civil society can be made -- and fostered.  we continue to elevate everyone's freedom and liberties; we do not take from one just to give, lend, beg, steal, borrow to another..

Wilberforce set in motion --going back to the eighteenth century -- the power of authentic faith; it shaped a brand new world, it healed a country and centuries of oppression, and gave us, individually and collectively, ideas we can use to move forward with honor, all of us.

Our president is with the families of 9/11 today, marking the death of an international terrorist as a symbolic close in the history books; does it change anything?  will it take away the catastrophic loss of life and security of the last decade?  no.

nothing will really change from that which has already lived and died.  every measure of destruction is still gone.  what is left with us is the memory, and what we take with us moving forward is the lesson, the gift that only comes with grace of God, along with the inherent ability to raise our spirits to the Most High (if we so choose to accept it).

think about it; if we held tight to the things that did us harm all our lives, how broken would we be?  if we led our lives according to all the horrors done to others, whether last week or long ago, how heavy would our hearts remain? if we carried these burdens all the days of our lives, what capacity is left to wrap our arms around the good just waiting for us? 

I believe God wants us to live in joy with one another.  God wants us to learn to love one another.  God works in mysterious ways through the good, the bad and the ugly all over the world, every day.

There are powerful, wonderful, forces afoot; this is a day to give thanks to the glory of God. Spirit works, bringing life lessons and generous blessings, whether we are rich, or poor, or somewhere in-between; it makes no difference.  My connection to God is the same, but different, as Oprah's; prayers have no skin color; prayers are an equal opportunity for all people; prayers work in the same way for you as they do for me and so on and so on.  and if you don't want to pray at all, that's an option, too.

AMERICA has been founded, fostered, and prospered by a natural, deep connection to Spirit and all that is Divine and Good.  IT is a fact that will live on in a well documented history; it is a fact that our future, explicitly and undeniably, relies.

Perhaps you can take the Christian out of the country, but you can't take the Christianity out of a nation.

The president reminded us on Sunday night, we are "One Nation, Under God, Indivisible, with Liberty and Justice for all."  All faiths revel and take liberties Under God; this beautiful, spiritual connection is what unites us as a people, and powerful enough to bring the end of slavery, oppression, and inequities large and small. 

AMEN to that.

Let us live it, breathe it, worship it on this day, and from this day forward, with joy and thanksgiving.

Of course, some will argue with the president indeed; some people might just say, there is no God, what about me, what about my rights;  while other people might say they were for It before they were against It but now they're for It again -- maybe -- but not quite sure; and then, some people might not even care if we do anything about It at all; and some people might just go wee wee wee all the way home; but history tells us, and our hearts show us, THIS nation, THIS foundation, THIS country built upon the Rock of Ages, indivisible -- THIS IS WHO WE ARE.

and much like history has repeatedly tested us, much like the days of Wilberforce -- rumor has it -- tomorrow is, once again, up for grabs.

Not if my prayers have anything to do with it; can I get an amen?

Make it a Good Day, G

Dear America,

"Is there any doubt that the handwriting is on the wall for where we are heading?  If we look around, we will see the outcome of these trends in countries that are ahead of us in teaching the logical conclusions of such cultural drift.  We see in such cases that manners have been corrupted, morality has sunk into depravity, indulgence is out of control and above all, faith has been discredited and unbelief has become fashionable.  When a culture reaches this point, it becomes so out of touch with truth that masses of people deny outright the existence of God.  God's will for the nation has been abandoned and man has been made God."

 William Wilberforce, adaptation by Bob Beltz, Real Christianity

My guess is you'll never guess when that was first published?

Try 1797.

And it wasn't even about the United States, it was jolly old England he was speaking about.

But it could have been Anytown, USA -- and not some odd two hundred years ago, but more like just last week.

The book makes quite the case for getting the masses' head out of our proverbial a** -- with a greater sense of elegance, of course.  But his point, throughout every phrase, exclamation and lamentation, is that "a nominal faith" will not save us; "it will take a vital faith for Christianity [our culture, society...whatever] to survive at all..."

..."When the cement that has held a nation 

together

no longer exists, 

the state soon dissolves into anarchy."

We, as a nation, and as a people, are being surrounded by wake up calls; and likewise, it is how we choose to respond that will make all the difference.  Will we roll over for five more minutes?  Will we keep hitting the snooze button?  Will we just rationalize not showing up today because we owe it to ourselves to have a day off, a day to play, a day to play hookie?  We've been good; we're a good person, deep down; I deserve it...what's a little white lie gonna do really?

Few books these days have the ability to really touch us -- speak to us.  This is one.  Buy it today.

In a word, we have issues -- and it's not for lack of intelligence, or understanding of history, or misrepresentation of the facts.  

Oops. Scratch that; maybe it is.

We just think we are so hot these days, don't we?  We just think, I am, therefore, I AM!  Who needs a God anymore?  Who needs to live from the soul, in relationship to that which gave us everything?

We are simply too smart, too studied, too full of ourselves and what we know -- we can do it all, without any help, without living from a higher consciousness and spiritual connection to that which is greater than ourselves, any day, everyday, bring it.

Granted this version of Wilberforce is a force to be reckoned with; it's a modern take that almost takes your breath away; but can you just imagine it?  Wilberforce was thinking this stuff over two hundred years ago; he got to the core of a touchy, cultural phenomenon without mincing words or sugarcoating his disfavor -- basically calling everybody out and saying, get over yourselves, will you!  with an attitude of just look at us, look around, don't you see what is happening here?  

Delving deeper he simply says, if you think God is satisfied with this "cultural Christianity" thing we got going on, then you got another thing coming; adding, it's not enough to be born into Christianity and be done with it -- deliberate and contemplative attention to the details is absolute and required. [kind of like it's not enough to be born in America, that makes you an American...it becomes so much more than that, over a lifetime.]

Describing "true Christians" in terms of "it is a joy for them to serve the Lord.  They don't live lives out of obedience out of some heartless obligation to a punitive deity.  They live joyfully in the blessing of the life God designed...this kind of faith is filled with happiness."

And really, not just Christianity, but in all faiths -- the key is found in the connection to God, any God, and being in relationship to It, day in and day out, thankfully, graciously, adoringly, lovingly, and living in the company of others coming from this spirit of understanding and grace, in every way.

So much of what was done by our founding fathers was connected to this core belief -- as they lived it, breathed it, embodied it -- as these truths to live by were transcendent and inherent by nature, endowed by our Creator.  The culture of the time, and in turn our government, came out of the forces of Divine Providence meeting up with the minds of men who deliberately elevated the essential element of the common man, the individual, becoming the cornerstone of a nation, and forever remaining the vital piece of the puzzle .

It was entirely up to the individual to make the connection with God -- as England had already taught them everything they needed to know; and to live by this connection not out of obedience to a "punitive deity" but to live joyously, finding purpose, vibrantly connected to the Source of all Good in order to create the new world with It.

It was an idea ahead of it's time; it was an idea obligating the individual to do his duty, to live right and good; it was an idea that allowed for the perfect pairing of freedom with unalienable rights, to grow into productive, active, participants in the life and times.  As long as we stayed in relationship with God -- and passionately so -- our culture could live in peace and harmony throughout all the days to come.

What we are witnessing today -- as in 1797 -- is the watering down of this Christianity, the very root of our beginning; and, if we are not careful, perhaps this will be the cause of our ultimate demise.  We have allowed modern conveniences and conforming to culture, rationalizing bad behavior and succumbing to vices, to take over right action.

Wilberforce claims that to live in authentic faith, requires right action, with a passion, and a real desire to please God -- from our heart and soul, never ceasing.  It is not enough to call ourselves Christian and not live by It, to not center our world around Christ and His teachings.  It is simply not enough.

But now, we have a culture who would rather discredit Christianity, bury it as just some old world teachings we no longer have any use for -- we have evolved beyond the need for belief in anything but ourselves, more loyal to our things than our faith, firmer allegiance to our careers than our God, finding our savior through an impoverished  lifestyle that simply can't be bothered -- for who's got time for It really --  all we want to do is roll over and hit snooze.  It's Sunday, after all -- yesterday -- my only day to rest, for Christ sake.  

Wilberforce believes that what is asked of us is an "unconditional surrender"  -- that when we live from this position of letting our lives be in the hands and heart of a loving God, we act according to our faith, we benefit in proportion to this faith, and create a life of happiness resting in the knowledge that this life on earth is temporal, that our true destiny is eternal life -- this life on earth is just a "passing through."  Above all, we will gladly do anything in this life to show our love for God, and take care of each other, authentically, reverently, overflowing in the spirit of this true faith.

"we are headed toward a society

that incurs the multitude of evils 

that result 

from living with 

no religion at all."

Many barbarisms of our past have been stricken from society simply with the influx of living according to true faith; culture is strengthened in every way imaginable when connected with each other by an authentic, real Christianity, illuminating a higher purpose to live by, inspired to please God, content in our own humility, and satisfied with the simple life; the more our culture finds it's way further and further away from this reality, the greater our chances to falter.  History proves it, time and time again.

As it was in 1797, don't kid yourselves, it can happen here, in a heartbeat.  It would behoove all of us not to roll over and play dead.

Nations have fallen on the decline of faith before, so..."Let this be a warning.  It would be a tragic mistake to think that even though the moral fiber of our country has deteriorated, our prosperity and wealth will keep us from drifting further.  Nor let us imagine that the fate of Rome might never be our own."

Yeah, like we really have that "prosperity and wealth" thing going on to fall back on...that's a good one.

Make it a Good Day, G

and just so you know -- just as in the making of good Christians (substitute Jews, Hindus, Muslims, Atheists, any belief system far and wide) anywhere and everywhere -- for future reference, it's not made a good day until YOU make it one.