Good Morning Father,

Philosophy and Art both render the invisible visible by imagination.

George Henry Lewes

Judge a man by his questions rather than his answers.

Voltaire

And there were shepherds living out in the fields nearby, keeping watch over their flocks at night. An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 

Luke 2:8-11 NIV

The glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified.  I wonder how often this happens to us.  How often are we terrified when we shouldn’t be?  How often do we miss the blessing because we are afraid?  Wouldn’t it be nice if we had an angel that would pop up every time something happened and said, “Don’t be afraid!  God is with you!”  

I have a friend that claims to be an atheist or an agnostic.  He claims that the Bible is a bunch of fiction and religion is a joke.  We have had our discussions and it seems that when he was young, he had an uncle that was a preacher.  He remembers this man with angst and says he was the biggest hypocrite that he has ever known.  I am sure that I do not have the full story, but this one man was the basis of his unbelief in God.  One man... one mouth... one tongue... one mind kept a man from knowing God.  Not only did this one man affect one man, but he affected this whole man’s family and kept them from being brought up with God.  This man will fight you tooth and nail about religion and the Bible.  I wonder if this uncle will be judged on his nephew’s turn from God?  I don’t know why this came up but it did. 

Fear!  What causes fear?  

Fear

noun

an unpleasant emotion caused by the belief that someone or something is dangerous, likely to cause pain, or a threat

Fear is an emotion.  Fear is a belief.  Fear is the mind’s ear that someone or something is going to cause pain or harm.  Fear is the mind’s belief that something is against you.  I learned in school that fear causes the fight or flight mode.  You either stand and fight against what is going to cause you pain or you run away from it.  Fighting is usually caused by being cornered and one has no way out.  Flight is usually caused by removing yourself from the problem.  Either response does not necessarily end the fear.  The fear that I am addressing is not emanate fear of the physical like a man shooting at you or a car coming straight for you.  I am speaking of the fear of the mind in situations that causes one to act irrationally.  I fight fear all of the time.  I have since I was a child.  It all came from opinions.  I am older now and I am still fighting these same fears.  I hate judgement.  I do not care what anyone says.  Judgement comes from one person doing what the other person would do or not do.  I am tired of judging.  I am tired of self-appointed God speakers.  I have learned to listen and ignore.  There is no sense fighting with them, yet I refuse to run.  My mind now just sits and listens and thinks, “I thought you were smarter than that.”  I listen to people who defend themselves and want to say, “Be smarter than that.”  

I am who You made me to be.  I listen to You and You alone.  I may hear others, but I don’t have to listen.  Give me the intelligence to know who and what to turn off.  

Mom asked me Friday, if I could have anything in this world what would it be.  She was wanting to know what I might want for Christmas.  I told her “Peace!”  I thought about it after we left.  What I would really like is a place to worship.  A place without judgement.  A place without hate.   A place where I can go for fellowship.  It is that simple and that difficult.  I don’t want a place where everyone “believes” the same way I do about everything.  I want a place where peace abounds and love is more important than agendas.  I want a place where the self-righteous are somewhere else and the enemy is not allowed to use “Christians” to separate people.  I want a place not where the people love the person but not the sin, but a place where they love the person and deal with their own sin.  I want a place where I can stand beside my brothers and sisters and raise my hand to you.  It’s a shame that this place doesn’t exist.  It is a shame that people have no mirror to look into.  It is a shame that their sin doesn’t glare at them the way it should.  It is a shame that I sit alone in my room and have church day in and day out.  I am probably better off.  The only person I have to deal with in my church is myself and to be honest, that is more than I can deal with anyway.

Father, thank you for meeting me every morning.  Thank you for loving me every day.  Thank you for guiding me and giving me direction.  Thank you for teaching me how to listen to you.  Thank you for being my rock, my shield and my fortress.  Thank you for my walk.  LOL, at least my walk keeps me humble.  Thank you most for your Son who you sent to show me love.  Thank you for the circle he has drawn around me saying, “you may go this far but no further.”  Thank you for a Son that was beaten and spit at because he dared to say, “I am God’s Son.”  Thank you for the words, “Bless them anyway Father because they know not what they do.”  Teach me to have this heart and this mind that I may love the unloveable and the outcasts.  I want to use my talents so that I can say at the end of my journey, “Father I used everything you gave me.”  I do not have all of the answers, but this I know... “I am loved by the Creator and he is my Mentor.  He placed me where he wanted me in time and space that I may know Him.  He is my hiding place.  I am blessed among men because he has seen fit to allow me to walk in shoes that allow me to love a little more and judge a little less.  I AM only because he loved me an wanted me.”