Picture: My wife hiking day 2 as we immersed ourselves in the land

I began our first full day in Glendalough with the Silence of centering prayer in the hermitage prayer room. If you are unfamiliar with centering prayer, you can see this article I wrote in 2022 and how it absolutely has, and continues to, transform my life as a daily practice. My wife and I eventually went for a hike in the Wicklow mountains just behind the hermitages where we both noticed the instant embrace of nature, the freshness of the air, and the beauty all around us.

You see again, many of the Celtic people understood something about God with believing there were two main books. One was the Little Book of the bible and the other was the Big Book of God’s creation. This makes sense since the Big Book came before the Little Book and both find themselves in the Word through whom all things were created and have their being. Those who ignore the Big Book often have very little understanding of what the Little Book is saying and those who ignore the Little Book often have not understood what creation has been saying all along. So yet, “Creation groans in expectation for the children of God to realize who they really are.” (Romans 8:19)

As we ventured through the mountains we paused along the way to overlook the Glendalough Valley, which was the picture in part one of this series. It is a reminder to get the right definition of overlook as to not overlook what is all around us in a blind sense. To overlook blindly, is to look past something that is there to reveal something, often precisely because we are stuck in the past or the future. However, when we tend to what is in front of us, deeper still what is deepest within us, we can enter the eternal past, present, and future at the same time.

In his book on Walking In Wonder, O’Donohue shares a poem from Wendell Berry titled, “I Go Among Trees and Sit Still.”

We loved how our bodies and spirit moved with the landscape and the rhythms of the earth around us as we continued through the mountains. We eventually came out at the monastic city and as we walked along the road my wife noticed a deer eating leaves directly behind two young men staring down at their phones.

The image was striking.

We were mesmerized by the deer while noticing the young men mesmerized by their phones. Now there is no judgment here as they were probably on break from work and doing all the things many of us do sometimes when we stare at these screens. For all we know, and we don’t know, they might have been reading something inspiring. However, what if they had noticed the deer behind them sharing the space with them; sharing information in the deer’s gaze of what it was looking down upon? Two souls being witnessed in their beauty and mystery. What happens when we look up long enough to see what has come to meet us? What might they have heard shimmering within?

Berry’s poem was incarnating here, that which comes and lives awhile in your sight.

The young men eventually saw my wife filming the deer and one of them quickly jumped out of the way. The other looked back to see what we were seeing and noticed the deer and was going to move before I smiled and waived for him to not bother moving. We were all in this together even when we are unaware. We know St. Kevin walked in this place and was known to feed the deer, while blessing the creatures of this valley. One legend even says a doe came and provided milk for an abandoned infant after Kevin had prayed.

It is times like these where I do not hear creation groaning, but singing, as we are finally allowing the landscape, and the creatures that inhabit it, to provide freely the gifts they long to share.

So what might we pray for today that has felt abandoned and in need of nourishment? What might we find if we walk in nature? What will come to meet us and take away our fears? What is longing to provide for us in ways we have not allowed?

In the next article we will journey through the monastic ruins to discover what always remains and what a broken cross had to say about all of us.

-PH

Picture of a tree from the Wicklow Mountains: A reminder to go among the trees and sit still. And of course, that the trees really do have eyes.

Picture: Shoreline in Dublin

If you have not read the previous post for a little context of our Pilgrimage and would like to, please click here.

We boarded a plane for Dublin, a more modern way to have the courage to lose sight of the shore and cross an ocean, yet our heart posture is different than a vacation. John O’Donohue, an Irish poet and mystic, said one of his fears was the way the government of Ireland relentlessly nurtures the tourist industry since Ireland is a small country. If the numbers weren’t modified, the country would be overrun, which can do a lot of damage from these “voyeuristic” pursuits. This is one reason St. Brendan, “The Voyager”, helped center our intention on the journey. One of his prayers can actually center us now.

John O’Donohue went on to say: “Rupert Sheldrake was asked what single change he would recommend for the new millennium that could make a difference to the world. His reply was that every tourist should become a pilgrim.” (Walking In Wonder)

Every Tourist Should Become A Pilgrim

There is a different feel to your life when you heed this advice and it’s even wise to be a like a pilgrim wherever you live. To be a pilgrim is learning to walk in, on, and through the earth, rather than missing the essence of what you are here to learn before moving on. After we arrived in Dublin, we went to the shores of the ocean to remind ourselves of the ocean we just crossed, and now, we were on the other side. A fellow sojourner and I both noticed black rocks with white streaks bursting out of them: A reminder of how darkness and light work together, and how light shines in the darkness. Whether a child coming forth from the darkness of a womb, the sun coming forth from the darkness of the night, or a soul coming forth from the darkness of ignorance, there is always a working together of these two.

Either one should not be ignored for the other.

We then headed towards our hermitage stay in Glendalough where we intentionally planned to immerse ourselves in the land for 4 days before the rest of the journey, which would eventually have us staying in a new place each night. Glendalough is one of those set apart places in the land where monastic ruins speak of ancient ways practiced as they stand as reminders of the things that outlast the hardships and destructive things done to others. After settling into our hermitages, I walked across the yard to the small library down the hall of the prayer room and was drawn to two books: Meister Eckart’s Book of Darkness and Light and John O’Donohue’s Walking In Wonder. How fitting the titles since we were drawn to those dark rocks with light streaking forth from them on the Dublin shore. When I opened the second chapter of John’s book, it was about Meister Eckart, which reminds me: “Where there are two or three witnesses…”

I opened to the beginning page of Meister’s book to read these 4 sentences set on top of each other:

Feel free to take some time with those sentences before moving on. They might open up to a beginning page in your own heart.

All these words are meaningful and we will get to a connection to the deep heart in a later article that you will not want to miss. For now, some of the other words from these sentences had been confirmed just after our planes wheels had come to a stop in Dublin where I heard the words within me, “Construction of a Soul.” The pilot had us lingering on the runway because of construction happening at our arrival gate; a call to pay attention to deeper meaning whenever one speaks. For all of us, there is a Pilot leading our life if you pay attention to where He is taking you. This kind of poetic hearing is all around us, like another Pilate asking Jesus, “What is truth?”

So I continue to testify.

The hermitages we were at also had construction being done to bring forth new ones. Thankfully they were finishing up their construction for the weekend, so our time was quiet to hear our own soul’s construction. As you continue reading, may there be things carved in you and Meister’s words ring true… that what is rough in you be removed to reveal what shimmers from within. May you know the image imprinted within you whose beauty cannot be erased regardless of how much is carved away. May you continue going deep into the heart of who we are.

All in all, one of my favorite memories will be the days we spent lingering in Glendalough as if a Black Bird was allowed to build a nest in my hand. St. Kevin who had established the monastic city there, paved the way for such patience. The next morning my wife and I would venture into the Wicklow mountains where the book of a deer had something to show us. That will be for next time.

.-PH

Picture: St. Kevin hanging in our hermitage

"To journey without being changed is to be a nomad. To change without journeying is to be a chameleon. To journey and be transformed by the journey is to be a pilgrim." - Mark Nepo, The Exquisite Risk

A small group of us journeyed this last year through the landscape of Celtic Christianity, which culminated with a pilgrimage to Ireland. We met every two weeks for 40 weeks; the amount of time it takes for something to be held together in a womb before it is birthed. A pendant necklace of St. Brendan the Navigator, one of the twelve apostles of Ireland, was presented to the group with an inscription on the back that read: “You can never cross the ocean unless you have the courage to lose sight of the shore.” One person would wear the pendant for two weeks and then bring a song to the group along with the lyrics for meditation. They would then share why they chose that song along with how they had been journeying through the last two weeks. Then the rest of us would share what we heard in the song or what specific lyrics spoke to us. At the end of our time together for that session, the pendant would be presented to someone else as they were blessed on the journey of wearing it for the next two weeks and this cycle would repeat each time we met.

At the end of the 40 weeks, each person was presented with a necklace of their own.

We slowly read through a few books (The Celtic Way of Prayer, Christ of the Celts, and The Souls Slow Ripening), which included practices and invitations for developing the rhythms of a spiritual life our Celtic elders knew so well. There was the continual invitation to be immersed in The Little Book (bible) and The Big Book (nature), which the Celts knew intimately. We saw how Celtic spirituality was connected to the Ancient Paths; paths that have become overgrown through modern theology and ideas about God and humans that often fail to answer the big questions of our origins and our present life.

In the beginning of our time, we’d often enter a time of silence and centering before reading this text together:

“This is what the LORD says: “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls...” - Jeremiah 6:16

Then we would all say together, “We will walk in it.”

This was the redemption of that verse above where in the ending, as read in the little book, it says the people would not walk in it. How important it is then, to know the ancient paths the Big Book has been telling us all along, if only we’d listen long enough. Jesus is still re-minding us: “Look at the birds of the air…Look at the flowers…”

Now, we have returned from our pilgrimage of literally being in the land of Ireland; the landscape that shaped our souls even before we got there and has now inspired the inner landscapes of our being. The next few articles will share some insights from the journey that is meant to inspire your own inner landscape.

-PH

(Picture: Glendalough Valley)

When I first read The Shack, I don’t remember if I knew it was a work of fiction, but I remember the story impacting me at a soul level unlike any work of fiction has. I remember saying things repeatedly to a friend who was also reading it, “This has to be true!” As another friend recently said to me when I told her I received an opportunity to review the book’s upcoming sequel: Return to the Shack: A Journey into Redemption, she recounted how she was so upset when she found out The Shack was fiction, but she also knew it was true at its core message. And it is, for so many of us.

We must all come to realize, as Paul Young has, especially in a culture so starved of sacred stories, that there is more truth in parables and story than one could ever seek to uncover, and that is exactly the kind of mystery God invites us into at every Moment. A story does something to us, when we really listen, and stories lead us into the depths of our own soul. You can read a story in one season of your life and be told all kinds of things, and then read it again in another season of life, and see things you never saw before.

Paul does some of this work for us in the sequel.

Some of the questions I had upon hearing there was a sequel to The Shack is: Can you really build upon that story? How can you do so without ruining the original message, or be faithful to it? We’ve all seen attempts to make a sequel of a well done movie or a book that has been so widely seen or read, only to be disappointed it could not live up to the original impact and message. The Return of Shack has not done that. Not only has it lived up to the original story, it allows you to enter into it in a way that will further confront your deepest questions of how something so tragic could possibly inch its way towards redemption. It answers questions about Reality both at the mind’s level, and deeper still, at the soul’s level of how something is worked out in real life. It tells multiple people’s stories from various angles of the Larger Story woven in the way that includes the possibility of forgiveness as a reality, not just as an idea. Of course, it tells of all the legit reasons we would resist such a story, as many will no doubt experience. The twists and turns that arise as you read it, are going somewhere, and usually, places you never thought they could. The twists and turns that arise as you read it, are coming from somewhere, places you’ve always known and longed for, but may not have had language for.

And here is another chance.

In the end, as in the beginning, The Return of the Shack delivers one of the most important messages of Reality the earth has ever known. The question is: Have we really heard the message? And if so, are we living aware of the message we, and everyone else, is already a part of? How do we participate with such dangerous wonder? How do we live in the consuming fires of Unconditional Love compared to the conditional ways of the world? How do we let go of our assumptions!?

Through this book, many will walk on the Holy ground of the character’s stories, while being invited to wake up the burning bush of your own story in the process.

One of the twists in the author’s note at the end is that Paul lets you in on how much of this story is true, but you’ll only understand that after you read it. Paradoxically, this brings us back to the fact that sacred stories hide within them truth that cannot be told plainly. They must be told through stories that connect us to the Eternal in everyday life, as Paul does. They must give the human being time to process and distill what is working its way into the depths of their being as they both read the story AND are being read by the story at the same time. As Emily Dickinson reminds us, “Tell the truth, but tell it slant… The Truth must dazzle gradually, or everyone be blind.” This is what the Return of the Shack does directly within the stories of different people slowly being told the truth and gradually learning to live in it; to see what it actually means in the midst of the greatest losses a human can feel.

In closing, I cannot recommend the book enough. Get ready to be surprised and informed again at a soul level that only a story like this could even begin to tell. Get ready to further wake up to realities both within and beyond our imagination where we are reminded of a God that actually does, and wants to do, beyond all we can ask, think, or imagine. As you read it, do not be afraid to feel deeply, ask deeply, think wider, and imagine the possibilities of Ultimate Redemption found directly in the tragedy and mystery of human life.

-PH

Thank you Apiary for providing this book for review consideration via NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

This book will be released on October 6, 2026.

“𝘋𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘴, 𝘭𝘦𝘵 𝘶𝘴 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳, 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘎𝘰𝘥. 𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘣𝘰𝘳𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸𝘴 𝘎𝘰𝘥. 𝘞𝘩𝘰𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘎𝘰𝘥, 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘎𝘖𝘋 𝘐𝘚 𝘓𝘖𝘝𝘌. 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘩𝘰𝘸 𝘎𝘰𝘥 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸𝘦𝘥 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦 𝘢𝘮𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘶𝘴: 𝘏𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘚𝘰𝘯 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘦 𝘮𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘩𝘪𝘮.” - 1 John 4:7-9

If the absolute nature, essence, and name of God is Love, regardless of if we do not yet understand what that means in its fullness, let us focus as best we can on a famous passage using Love, instead of the word God, to see what happens.

“𝘍𝘰𝘳 𝘓𝘖𝘝𝘌 𝘴𝘰 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘓𝘖𝘝𝘌 𝘨𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘓𝘖𝘝𝘌’𝘴 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘚𝘰𝘯, 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘴𝘩𝘢𝘭𝘭 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘩 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦. 𝘍𝘰𝘳 𝘓𝘖𝘝𝘌 𝘥𝘪𝘥 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘥 𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘚𝘰𝘯 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘴𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘨𝘩 𝘩𝘪𝘮. 𝘞𝘩𝘰𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘪𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘯𝘦𝘥, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦, 𝘢𝘭𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘺 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘧𝘦𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘮𝘯𝘦𝘥 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘯𝘢𝘮𝘦 𝘰𝘧 𝘓𝘖𝘝𝘌’𝘴 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘚𝘰𝘯. 𝘛𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘪𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘵: 𝘓𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘭𝘥, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘱𝘦𝘰𝘱𝘭𝘦 𝘭𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘥 𝘥𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘰𝘧 𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘣𝘦𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘥𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘴 𝘸𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘓𝘖𝘝𝘌. 𝘌𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘸𝘳𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘩𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘧𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘪𝘳 𝘥𝘦𝘦𝘥𝘴 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘣𝘦 𝘦𝘹𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘥. 𝘉𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘰𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘣𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘶𝘵𝘩 𝘰𝘧 𝘓𝘖𝘝𝘌 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘴 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵, 𝘴𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘵 𝘮𝘢𝘺 𝘣𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘸𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘣𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘥𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘪𝘨𝘩𝘵 𝘰𝘧 𝘓𝘖𝘝𝘌.” - John 3:16-21

How did this rephrasing speak to you? Try reading it out loud to hear it in the atmosphere. Tell it to the darkness. See what comes to light. Rest and meditate in this before moving on.

In other words, 𝐋𝐎𝐕𝐄 sent the exact embodiment of itself into the world for us to remember who we are; that we live, move, and have our being in and through LOVE. We cannot find our being in fear, judgement, or condemnation, for these do not exist in God, therefore we cannot find God in them either. They belong entirely to a blind world that is afraid of the light. (For more on what judgment is read this later.)

“For LOVE did not come to judge the world, but to save the world.” - John 12:47

“There is no condemnation for those who realize they are in LOVE (Christ Jesus).” - Romans 8:1

This is one of the main meanings of life: to resurrect and wake up what has been enclosed in the tomb of our hidden life, which was never our own. We belong to LOVE. We were made to see and be seen, and we can only see with and in the sight of Love.

This has always been our origin; our original and inescapable being in God.

“Through LOVE (him) all things were made; without LOVE (him) nothing was made that has been made.” - John 1:3

“𝘞𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘓𝘖𝘝𝘌 (𝘊𝘩𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘵), 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘪𝘴 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦, 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘴, 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘰 𝘸𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘩𝘪𝘮 𝘪𝘯 𝘨𝘭𝘰𝘳𝘺.” - Col 3:4 (You realize yourself in him!)

“𝘜𝘯𝘭𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘪𝘴 𝘣𝘰𝘳𝘯 𝘧𝘳𝘰𝘮 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘦𝘨𝘪𝘯𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘨 (𝘣𝘰𝘳𝘯 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯), 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘥𝘢𝘳𝘬𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 of 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘪𝘻𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘢𝘳𝘦.” - Jesus (In other words, until one remembers their origin)

Not realizing is living unreal; living in a kind of non-reality; living (dying) in an outer darkness blinded from the inner reality of the source of being. What is left then awaits the resurrection of real life; a healing and a return to the beginning; to start again and again until….

We remember what is real and cannot die.

What is real, or Israel, is persisting in the wrestle with God and one another in the work of waking up inside of LOVE and helping others do the same. To participate in a million resurrections. To come to rest by being in LOVE.

Now, can you trust that God/Love brings forth the realest, deepest, and original essence of your life without you needing to strive to do so? Can you trust the resurrection of dead things is inevitable and may appear in a different form? Can you trust LOVE heals and redeems all that is wayward and false? What is it to no longer run from that LOVE you cannot actually hide from; that you actually live in? What is it to return to Sabbath Rest, upon which the foundation of Reality and the original world rests? What is it for that LOVE to emerge from the depths of your being and turn on the light to any darkness you felt was in you? And when the Light turns on, does it matter where the darkness went when LOVE is all that remains?

God is LOVE.

Therefore,

You are LOVE.

Be and become what you were always meant to be when LOVE meant you.

-PH

“God is love. Whoever lives in love realizes they live in God, and God lives in them. This is how love is made complete among us so that we will have confidence on the day our entire life is reviewed: In this world we are like Jesus, the embodiment of love in the flesh, the manifestation of the God of Love who made us in love and who gives his life away freely, while keeping no record of wrongs. There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because he first loved us.” - 1 John 4:16-19

When digging into meaning it is inevitable to discover older foundations, which if you kept digging, would reveal older ones underneath them, until one finally returns to the beginning foundation. “Seek and you will find”, Jesus confirms, while also saying he has “uttered things hidden since the foundation of the world.” (Matt 7:7, 13:35) There is a supreme foundation that many don’t even know what it is as it remains buried and hidden, even if some correctly mouth that the foundation is Christ, or at least, that Christ is the chief cornerstone. When Jesus “utters” those hidden things, that word utter could very well mean “belch”, or to come forth suddenly like gases from the stomach. No wonder people an be offended at a more primal sound than their currently accepted language and manners.

Some of the more Jewish understandings of the text are helpful, as many of them speak and read the original language of the first scriptures naturally, and some have the unique heart required to allow the holy text to speak for itself in ways that will look as different and unique as each created thing our Creator has made. This means, the example of the text being like a diamond is a helpful metaphor. Depending on which way you spin it, the light will reflect in various ways as it passes through multiple dimensions of meaning at the same time, and this is regardless of whether one is yet conscious of those layers or not. Said another way, the same text can mean one thing to someone and another thing to another.

That last sentence can cause a major disturbance in some people for fear of making the text say or mean what you want it to. That is not at all what I mean. Do you see the need for translation! What I mean is said from that immovable beginning foundation, which allows God/Spirit/Holy Spirit, name it whatever you want to name the essence of God as God is, to speak directly to our soul with a double edged sword, which might even be quadruple edged if necessary. The text itself reveals many names for God on purpose, because the essence of God is so multifaceted, that diamond nature is both endlessly describable and indescribable at the same time. Any Word directly from God speaks to each one in a way that awakens them to the meaning for their time, their season, and their situation. So what is that immovable beginning foundation?

The immovable foundation is uncovered as one who continues to lose their ego; their need to be right; their desire for any kind of perfection in order to control their fear of the unknown; which has plagued religious and human culture for millennia. The bible then, while being so much more than this, contains the basic instruction before leaving ego.

Jesus had no problem NOT giving people direct answers. He would often tell stories and answered most questions with questions, something much of modern religious culture is allergic too. It’s easy to pretend you’ve built your life on the foundation of Christ because you can ace a theological exam, but it is another thing to live the questions you otherwise refuse to ask that haunt you at the core, especially if you are remotely conscious of them. The ego thrives in spiritual language and spiritual cultures because it can be easy to “appear” one way when your own unexamined depths are glossed over because your mind is so certain you know the meaning, or at least, think you know where you are going to heaven when you die as if Jesus’s life was all about that. Dig deeper until the foundation of our very essence is uncovered, which is far deeper than six feet under and expands across the world and universe, while at the same time being located in a flower.

As to modern translations of the bible or anything in English (which I speak), there inherently will be flaws. God does not first speak through human language to begin with and God’s first language, as many have reiterated, is not even a vocal language. I love the person who said, “God’s first language is silence, all else is a poor translation”, but I’ve covered that in other articles. For now we must know you can learn more from the created world than you can from words, and only after looking at creation intently could you even begin to start naming something. Just look at the first human Adam. The animals were brought to him by God to see what kind of names he would give them.

What is God revealing here about an egoless nature that allows another to name something, to describe what it is for them, and for God to be happy at such a partnership? Will not the animal, regardless of the name, still be living and active in the world?

An egoless foundation, though I know there are also healthy understandings of the ego, cannot be shaken. God shakes everything built on ego until one finally comes to a level with the only thing that can be built upon that lasts forever, both in this life and the next, and the next. Said another way, those who walk humbly with God know meaning can pop out of anything without needing to kill it in order to dissect it, thus thinking we would know what a living thing is when dead…but at least we would feel in control of it right?

It takes a resurrection of the dead things in life to see what was living the entire time. It takes a dying to the ego way of life in order to rise to the Way of life as intended from the foundation of the world. Not only do our translations of the text constantly need the ability to deconstruct old meanings and to grow the intended fruits of older meanings that seem new, our heart posture to what has always been underneath the texts must be awakened to see what actually lives and sustains life. Otherwise, the letter kills, hardens the heart, and rejects the Spirit that is the thing actually giving life to any word or world.

For our present context, the Passion Translation is the one I have been thinking of that has been brought into question. There are some brilliant things in this translation, or commentary, and it might just be plagiarism is the culprit according to some reports. Without endorsing any translation outside of the original text, or more importantly, outside the One who gives us our very being, the point is not to deny the criticism or beauty of any translation attempt, but to see what the Spirit might be saying “through” everything on all sides. Hold that diamond up to the light a little longer!

On plagiarism, what a weird concept for divine matters. When it comes to speaking of the things of God, whether a text or someone claiming to be inspired by God in or through anything, especially a translation, it would be impossible to plagiarize should something actually be coming from God! What acknowledgment can come from another’s work that says it is your work and not God’s? What acknowledgement comes from saying this is your work and does not belong to another?! Does it belong to you, or does it belong to the entire world?

To this Paul reminds us,

“For when one says, ‘I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos, (Or insert your favorite authors/teachers/pastors/translators/denominations/religions etc.) are you not mere human beings?’

What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building. By the grace God has given me, I laid a foundation as a wise builder, and someone else is building on it. But each one should build with care. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one already laid, which is Jesus Christ. So then, no more boasting about human leaders! All things are yours, whether Paul or Apollos or Cephas or the world or life or death or the present or the future—all are yours, and you are of Christ, and Christ is of God.” - 1 Corinthians 3:10-11, 21-22

All things are yours!

The credit we are due and any work we do with God comes to us without needing to fight for recognition, legalize it, or patent it as if a legal trademark of some kind could make it more ours or more real. All things are already ours as Christ is the foundation of Reality! You were bought with a price and you do not belong to yourself; you belong to Christ and we belong to one another.

May the bible become to you, at the very least, a text with basic instructions before leaving ego. To become the least of these is to realize what is at the original foundation will always rise to the top, not of its own accord, but of the Spirit that transcends human logic, yet is comfortable speaking inside any language to help others eventually learn with their being, not just their mind. What is at the original foundation will rise up, even if killed, to reveal what is stronger than any death or misunderstanding of Life. To serve others is at the heart of it all, and what serves one will not always serve another, at least not with a consensus recognition, so why not be all things to all people as long as you are living from the original foundation! As Jesus reveals, even if you become unrecognizable but still living from the foundation of it all, you will one day be known fully and what is lifted up from that foundation will eventually and selflessly, draw ALL people to itself.

To close, we must never discard the drawings of a child, for a loving parent knows what the child is trying to reveal, even if it doesn’t look professional. There is One artist at work who is the author and finisher of the painting of our lives and it will be translated properly in due time. We will know fully rather than seeing in part, just as we are fully known in God. All translations will fall away in direct communion with the One who is making us in Their image, now and forever.

Amen,

-PH

“Whether you realize it or not, we have been thinking about the hermeneutical endeavor, that is, the process of bringing meaning out of a text, especially scripture. Behind the whole hermeneutical endeavor lies a danger, rooted in a presumption that has developed directly out of the informational dynamic of our culture. It is the presumption that meaning is communicated primarily, if not wholly, at the cognitive level of human existence. This presumption believes that if only we could merge the cognitive horizons of the New Testament writers with the cognitive horizon of modern interpreters, then meaning could be communicated. If we adopt this perception of the transfer of understanding at a cognitive level, at an informational level only, then the only parameters we have to evaluate our understanding are our own self-referenced parameters. This is why the Bible tends to be interpreted in the light of modern philsophical presumption. We simply read back into the text our own world-view in order to maintain our cognitive, rational control of the text.”

- M. Robert Mulholland Jr. (Shaped By The Word: The Power of Scripture in Spiritual Formation)

“To find self formation by means of scripture reading, I must be open i docility yo what its text may eventually tell me about myself; I must abide with formative reading until it yields to me its treasure. Formative reading implies, more-overm my willingness to change my current self in light if the formative insight scripture may radiate to me. The word as formatie has the power to transform me, It can give rise to a new self in Christ, permeating all dimentions of my life. The word as formative can lift me beyond the stirrings of my ego and vital life so that I may discover my graced life form in the Eternal World.”

- Adrian van Kaam

“Humans were never designed to live on bread alone, but by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.”

- Jesus in response to satan quoting scripture.

In Part 1, we explored the story of our family caught in a thunderstorm on top of Black Elk Peak and what was revealed in the process. We just returned from a second family trip to the top of Black Elk Peak where we only experienced light rain on the return down the mountain; a much calmer and peaceful experience than the first climb. This speaks perfectly to the point of part 2 where we explore some more mountain and thunder themes to get to a deeper revelation. What exactly is being revealed that is heard as thunder? How do we perceive it, or miss the sound in thinking a voice speaking to us is something else?

At the pinnacle of Jesus’ life before his death he begins to explain the significance of what death in the earth means in order to rise to new life. Like my son thinking he was going to die in the thunder on the mountain, there is a weightiness to the heavens speaking. Jesus includes the voice of his death as a life lived to serve the whole, which comes into the oneness of love that finds meaning. As he is speaking of this, and of the trouble he feels for the storm he is about the face, a voice comes from heaven. Some people heard it and thought it was just thunder, which is an inadequate response to what Jesus is saying, but at least they heard something. Others thought an angel had spoken; a response closer to the point, but still missing it. So Jesus says:

“The voice has come for your sake, not mine. Now is the time of judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself.”- John 12:30-32

Jesus was living and speaking in Kairos time. This was the opportune moment which highlights every moment when someone is drawn into Kairos time; when they are lifted up into higher meaning both in and outside of time.

In Genesis 12 Abram was called by God to leave his familiar world and to go to where God was leading him; to a place he did not yet know. The literal translation in Hebrew is to “Go to yourself” or “Walk to yourself.” Pause here and reflect on what this might mean for you too. Write it down even if you do not know what it entirely means.

How did this understanding initially sit with you to know it is just not about a geographical move? What tried to resurrect in you when you heard the call to “Walk to Yourself?”

God’s call for Abram to do this does not negate a call to walk geographically, for it is often in walking to somewhere other than where we are that we become aware of what has been with us all along. In walking we are invited to find our true selves; to find where we’ve always been, who we truly are, and what it is our true home. To be at home with ourselves is to be at home with God, wherever we go. What a picture!

What is it to leave what we are familiar with, in our own families and cultures, and walk towards the culture of our divine origin? What is it to know where our true home is, not just in heaven as some might be waiting for, but to know that home now as if Jesus was actually telling us the truth when he said the Kingdom/Reality of God is within us?

Now we enter into the deeper voice, especially if the call to walk to yourself seems to be shaking something in your core.

“The Lord said to Elijah, ‘Go out and stand on the mountain in the presence of the Lord, for the Lord is about to pass by.’

Then a great and powerful wind tore the mountains apart and shattered the rocks before the Lord, but the Lord was not in the wind. After the wind there was an earthquake, but the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake came a fire, but the Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire came the sound of sheer silence.” - 1 Kings 19:11-12

When God’s voice thunders, it is not to cause terror, but it is to remove that which terrorizes us and get it out of us even though it is often misinterpreted through our inner projections of shame, anger, or fear. One of the progressions from Moses hearing God in the thunder to Elijah hearing God in the sheer silence or soft whisper, is that in Elijah’s case God is finally revealing He isn’t really in the noise that causes one to tremble, but God’s gentleness is so powerful that it causes all that is not living in rest to vibrate out. Oh that we would just let it work its way out from within! If you’ve ever seen, or known yourself, the power of God coming upon you, there can be that same trembling as a body may vibrate or shake violently. That is a removal of something and a resetting of the nervous system, and when it is authentic, that is a true deliverance, which is something charismatics might know, but can overemphasize to the point of glorifying the trembling and thus creating parroted imitations.

Even modern therapies are finally seeing the benefit of intentionally shaking the body, something the animals have been revealing to us for a long time.

So when the 7 Thunders sound, as Black Elk himself knew, we must learn what the thunders are actually saying. What is happening in the shaking we are not to fear? Here we learn what cannot be repeated or written down, for it is only known within our secret heart through experience. The voice is for our true self’s sake as all that is false is shaken and removed until we receive that which cannot be shaken.

“When he called out, the seven thunders sounded. And when the seven thunders had sounded, I was about to write, but I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Seal up what the seven thunders have said, and do not write it down.” And the angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand to heaven and swore by him who lives forever and ever, who created heaven and what is in it, the earth and what is in it, and the sea and what is in it, that there would be no more delay, but that in the days of the trumpet call to be sounded by the seventh angel, the mystery of God would be fulfilled, just as he announced to his servants the prophets.”- Revelation 10:3-7

When we see the true meaning of the thunders, the angels often mistaken for them, and the voice of what was really being said, we see through the noise into the ark of his testament as the secret chest opens inside our very chest! You cannot explain or write this, for it is only known between lovers who need no words. The sheer silence speaks of a love that is home in itself, home in God, and home in another. The thunders, lightnings, earthquakes, and fires all become a beautiful show for what is really going on in a soul coming home; a soul that has walked to itself.

“And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.” - Revelation 11:19

So here we see the 7 thunders speak of what you cannot repeat and you must eat the scroll instead, because those mysteries must come from within you, not just repeated or memorized in your head. They must be found in the belly of your being. Only then, will you live and speak from Kairos time. Only then, will the sound of sheer silence no longer frighten you, but speak like the heavens speak without a need for words. Now the heavens and earth have met within you and you see their meaning in the stars.

“The heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands.
Day after day they pour forth speech; night after night they reveal knowledge.
They have no speech, they use no words; no sound is heard from them.
Yet their voice goes out into all the earth, their words to the ends of the world.”

-Psalm 19:1-4

The next time you hear the thunder or mistake it for an angel, listen closer, until the noise drops away and the meaning is revealed in The Voice. In that sound of sheer silence the Voice is heard and the meaning is known; the soul has come home to itself.

-PH

(Picture from the top of Black Elk Peak and my oldest son pointing to it.)

This is the curious faith like a child type of stuff, which we’ll eventually see, is of extreme importance.

This week my oldest son and I went to the movie Disclosure Day, which would have been a movie I would have loved to watch when I was younger. I do not believe this movie is a must see, but it has some insight into those who might have a crisis of faith should something like it turn out to be real; a crisis of faith should one come to realize we are not the only ones in the universe. There are typically two responses in someone who might come to some sort of serious awareness that aliens are, or could be, real. One sinks into fear in questioning their own existence as if they are now not the supreme creation of their little world which causes them to question God’s existence; something that already happens regardless of the topic. Yet another comes to say this only makes God’s existence more likely as they believe in the vastness of a Creator. Of course, there are those who currently do not believe in God regardless, which will still lead us to the greater disclosure, but why the contrast in the first two?

Anytime something appears bigger than yourself and what you are familiar with, these two responses are likely. One can drive you further into instability and the other deeper into God’s ability. We might ask then, “Who or what is actually driving what we believe?” Unidentified flying objects are more than what is happening in our skies, but what is driving the unidentified in our heart. It usually takes a close encounter of a third kind to wake us up.

What these questions can reveal is the very things we are slaves to. Are we a slave to the fear of the unknown, a slave to duty, a slave to distraction, or have we entered into the faith like a child realm who knows the goodness of their being belongs to a Being that sustains them, and all of life for that matter, both within matter and out. This matters precisely because it deals with awakening to the meaning of our existence right here, and therefore, the existence of all things possible. To free us from slavery of any kind, is God’s movement at this very moment; a movement of a third kind.

George MacDonald, a man written off as a kind of alien and a heretic by many in his day says:

“God indeed does not love slavery; he hates it; he will have children, not slaves; but he may keep a slave in his house a long time in the hope of waking up the poor slavish nature to aspire to the sonship which belongs to him, which is his birthright.”

He goes on to say,

“Those to whom God is not all in all, are slaves. They may not commit great sins; they may be trying to do right, but so long as they serve God, as they call it, from duty; and do not know him as their father, the joy of their being, they are slaves-good slaves, but slaves. If they did not try to do their duty, they would be bad slaves. They are by no means so slavish as those who serve from fear, but they are slaves; and because they are but slaves, they can fulfill no righteousness, can do no duty perfectly, but must ever be trying after it wearily and in pain, knowing well that if they stop trying, they are lost. They are slaves indeed, for they would be glad to be adopted by one who is their own father! Where then are the sons?”

To this we take a slight turn from the question of aliens to that which is already alien to many of us. The earth. How would we ever know the heavens if we do not even know what our own earth is telling us? Creation has been asking us this question, “Where are the sons and daughters of God placed in the garden of the earth’s own being?”

When we are alienated from the earth we’re already alienated from the life and mind of the One who created it. If one were to begin to even entertain the possibility of other life in the cosmos they would need to be familiar with the life of their current home situated in that very cosmos. Light must come to a darkened understanding and the hard shell of unidentified objects surrounding their heart must soften to reveal the Light that drives it to begin with. They must wake up to the Father of our being. They must wake up from being alienated from their own meaning. They must wake up from this ignorance to a full disclosure of who, and whose, they really are.

“They are darkened in their understanding, alienated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them, due to their hardness of heart.” -Ephesians 4:1

One of the key themes in the movie Disclosure Day is to listen, rather than assume or close your eyes and ears for whatever reason to that which may shake your world, but would also wake you, and others, up. What if we actually listened to the earth? What if we looked at the birds of the air and flowers of the field as Jesus instructed? What if we went for more contemplative walks outside? If we listened, what would we see and hear? A man named Job says,

“But ask the animals, and they will instruct you; ask the birds of the air, and they will tell you. Or speak to the earth, and it will teach you; let the fish of the sea inform you. Which of all these does not know that the hand of the LORD has done this? The life of every living thing is in His hand, as well as the breath of all humanity…” -Job 12:7-10

What is it to know, the life of every living thing unidentified or identified, is in His hand?

You have one job, and that is to figure this out.

It is when this question is answered that we might accept God speaking of and through the heavens and the earth at the same time, like when God goes on to ask Job:

“Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades or loosen the belt of Orion? Can you bring forth the constellations in their seasons or lead out the Bear and her cubs? Do you know the laws of the heavens? Can you set their dominion over the earth? Can you command the clouds so that a flood of water covers you? Can you send the lightning bolts on their way? Do they report to you, ‘Here we are’? Who has put wisdom in the heart or given understanding to the mind?” -Job 39:31-36

So “here we are” floating in the middle of a vast universe in which we have been directed to first learn of the earth in which we have been placed. The song is still being sung, “The whole world is in His hand.” As we learn of the earth, the greater questions no longer scare us, nor make us afraid, for we are no longer slaves to the unknown, but children who are known by the One who gives life to all. The birds that both touch the earth and fly above it reveal something to us. The full disclosure is that we are the children of God if we’d but listen to our Father speak; if we’d but listen to the being of earth He created we would eventually notice what the heavens are saying too. Then, we would no longer see others as aliens and foreigners, especially on our own planet, but as the brothers and sisters we really are regardless of the skin suit we wear. We would be prepared for all else that has life that eventually reveals itself. And when we are asked “Do you believe in aliens?”, the answer would be no, for we are no longer aliens and foreigners to mystery; no longer separated from the life of God; no longer slaves to fear or the unknown; for we are now lost and found in the wonder and curiosity of a child about the vastness of our Father we belong to, and to which, the entire cosmos belongs.

God would be all in all.

So Listen:

What is the creation that is already here telling us; the tree’s, the animals, the plants? What are they asking you to notice?

Listen:

What has God been speaking to you all along in how you already belong to both the heavens and the earth?

Listen:

You have always been a child of God; the very offspring of the Creator of everything that lives, moves, and has its being.

This is the great disclosure.

The film ends with a word, which was a central theme throughout: Listen.

This call to listen is a central foundation of the bible and all of Life. A line central to the purest of religion in the universe is found in the verse: “Hear oh Israel: The LORD our GOD, the LORD is One.” (Deuteronomy 6:4) Meaning: listen and hear all of you who wrestle with God and humanity; who wrestle with the known and unknown; who wrestle with your very existence and the existence of others; your Father is the Father of all. You are loved entirely, therefore love others, especially those that appear as aliens or strangers among you, and by doing so you will love God with all your heart, mind, strength, and being, just as God, our Father, is already loving us now.

-PH

Warning: Mature Content Ahead Based On Real Life.

My youngest son on the autism spectrum was having a hard moment when he was fixated on wanting something to happen immediately that I was trying to work with him to have patience for. It is one of our greatest challenges with him, whereas he is mostly easy going and happy, fixation moments are where we have to be extra careful and sometimes they are really hard. When he cannot work through it, he might resort to behavior issues like breaking things, even things of his that he really likes. The other night I thought we mostly worked through the most recent one, but he still went to bed not quite settled. Later I heard him doing something in his room after he had been in bed, so I went in to check. He had broken the cord to his boombox in frustration and after a bit more time working through it, he finally went to bed.

The next day, and this is the brilliant thing about many autistic kids, they can’t lie, he told me he had written bad words on his wall with a sharpie and on the clothes he had been wearing. I had completely missed this the night before, but thankfully, he can’t help but tell the truth. I walked in to see the bad words on his wall along with a drawing of a penis.

You see, years ago he and his brother were exploring under a bridge where he first learned of these words and that image, (well the words part might have first been from his mother) and those words and that image were now being remembered. (Autistic minds often remember details like crazy.) So when he was upset, he resorted to the worst thing he could think of at that moment to write or say in order to express his frustration. I am sure some of you can relate to doing something like this at some point in your life when you were mad at someone or something.

In the past I would have been more upset by seeing something like this written on his wall, but I understand now he is merely trying to process his emotions, so I told him calmly that it was not a good choice, which he understood, and that he would need to paint over it.

My oldest was hearing this conversation and I did my best to tell him to not scold his younger brother, for the parent has already spoken, something of which he has struggled with himself in trying to be a parent to him, which of course, he does not need to do. I was encouraged later when I saw he had taken the initiative to help his younger brother cover the writing with some white paint, but it obviously needed another coat as the words and image were still somewhat visible.

Before he had done that though, in my genius, I had taken the sharpie and made the words something other than what they were. I tried to make the penis into a rocket-ship and change the letters of Fu%* by adding another line to turn the F to an E and so on, so that it was now merely gibberish.

But what a nice thing for his older brother to do; to help out, and he even fixed the boombox!

This weekend my parents were here to celebrate my birthday and my mom was with my youngest in his room. I heard her get really excited saying something like, “Oh no, what did you do!”, as she was quite dramatic and disappointed. I heard my son calmly say he had written bad words on the wall and I walked in to see he had painted completely over it with darker paint to cover the gibberish, yet the paint did not match the color of the wall. I explained to my mom this was a good thing, he was simply finishing the work to cover what he had written and it did not matter that it was a different color, or that a nice towel from the bathroom was used to set the stirring stick on, which now ruined the towel. (It’s a perfect rag now!) You see, cleaning up our messes in life can be…messy, but the intention here was pure goodness regardless of what it looked like. It was to be praised, not scolded. It is a reminder to not judge a wall by its colors.

You see, love is like that.

It covers us in ways that might not look the best to those on the outside, who do not know the context of what has been done and what is being done. Love covers a multitude of sins… and naughty words on our walls and hearts, or images in our minds. Love turns penises into rocket-ships to take us higher into the realms of growth, love, forgiveness, and better intention. It understands that walls are merely that, walls, and no matter what color they are, they still function the same way. The messy off colored wall says more about reality than it being nicely painted. This is also why children writing on walls in general are never a thing to be shamed, but a thing to be naturally praised, of course, while still correcting if they are not writing good things.

At the end of my life, I’d rather see my child’s art in my memories than remember what color the wall of his room was. The Artist is still at work on us!

Yet what happens when our own walls begin to fall, when we confess our misdeeds in the open and allow them to be covered in ways that might not appeal to others, but cover none the less. Rather than hide, they reveal, and here is where covering is the difference between covering up and covering over; between living in the light even when frustrated, rather than keeping things in the dark. Not even trolls under a bridge can conquer those who build them.

My youngest teaches us a few things.

1. Raw Honesty

2. Responsibility For Wrongdoing.

And not judging how these are done, while praising them both for being done with the right intentions regardless of what it looks like.

At the end of the day, we all get fixated on things from time to time, and if we get fixated on the wrong things, or on the right things in the wrong way, we all process things differently. We are learning the same thing in different ways. The key is to continue the journey of holding each other, giving space to process, and allowing things to come into the light. Sometimes that requires the possibility of having to make rocket-ships out of God given organs for new creations to emerge. We are invited to think from above and to understand that all of life below is a training ground for what really matters in Life. It is not the color of your walls, the size of your home, your job title, the appearance of things, etc. It is the intention by which we are learning to love, to allow things to come into the open, to cover when necessary and to leave alone when not, and to create beauty out of chaos.

Love is how we intentionally change hurtful words to something other than what they were in order to begin the process of restoration. To reframe the most hurtful thing said or done. To build bridges to understanding. To make seemingly unrepairable or offensive things seen for the gibberish they are and allowing a new canvas to emerge with fresh possibility and insight. To resurrect things from the dead.

So it is with little surprise we end on the verse where some of this idea was communicated, from a man whose name has sometimes been used as slang for penis.

Peter instructs:

“Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.” - 1 Peter 4:8

Here’s to making more rocket-ships when necessary, and to cover the gibberish with what deeply matters…

Above all.

-PH

This image is not AI, it’s the actual wall talked about in this article.

We were:

Present to this moment.

Paying attention.

Watching.

The owl was unfazed by people walking by with their dog, unfazed when our oldest returned on his bike directly in front of it, and unfazed when he opened and closed the front door not too far from where the owl was sitting. What a creature this is that is so aware of its surroundings, unfazed by the noise or actions of others, and going about its mission to find what it was looking for. It sat in that tree for a long time turning and shifting its head.

What happens when we sit intentionally for a long time, while things turn and shift in our own heads, yet we finally pay attention to something deeper turning and shifting in our heart?

What is it to become like that owl, to pay attention to our surroundings, yet focused inwardly on what you are seeking to find?

Owls have been important messengers to me over the years. They are stealthy and not easily seen, so when they appear, there is a message of light being drawn out of the darkness. These messages in the night, especially when hearing them outside my window, reveal things about our journey through life. It is moments like these, when we pay attention, that we realize how God speaks to us through creation and why Jesus instructed people to pay attention to the “birds of the air.”

Rather than see this as a nice experience and moving on about our evening like scrolling to the next thing in our feed, we listen deeply with an inner sight to navigate the growing darkness and the growing light that shines in that darkness. We are being fed in a real time feed as we listen to the things the ancient scrolls have been telling us all along.

“This is what the LORD says: “Stand at the crossroads and look; ask for the ancient paths, ask where the good way is, and walk in it, and you will find rest for your souls.” - Jeremiah 6:16

One of my favorite songs captures the message of our journey through life likened to an owl, learning wisdom, and navigating the ancient paths before us.

Some lyrics go like this:

“When the night comes, and you don’t know which way to go. Through the shadowlands, and forgotten paths, you will find a road.

Like an owl you must fly by moonlight with an open eye and use your instincts as a guide, to navigate the ways that lay before you. You were born to, take the greatest flight.” - Josh Garrels (White Owl)

Growing in our ability to see in the darkness is essential. It is how we learn discernment between an authentic messenger of peace and a disguised one, or an angel of light masquerading as a messenger of peace, but is really from an unhealthy darkness. Yet it is the healthy messengers of darkness, like an owl, that often gets interpreted as an angel of darkness when it’s actually revealing the light. How often does transformation come in the darkness and rather than going “through” it, we run from it thinking we are to reject or war against it?

Often when an actual angel of light appears in the ancient texts, and our everyday lives, we are afraid, but wisdom tells us that light is only exposing the fear that is still inside of us, rather than it confirming our interpretation that it is there to harm us. But something begins to happen when we learn to see in the darkness and we begin to interpret our lives, especially the dark and difficult, through a process by which something is being made. As our journey through life continues, we will be met by these various messengers and invited to discern.

What messengers have shown up in your life that you initially rejected out of fear of the unknown?

“God who sees in secret will reward you.” - Matthew 6:4

This is a powerful secret of Reality. When God created the light and the darkness they are not separated in how we might think, yet there is a continual process of drawing out light from darkness seen from the very beginnings of creation. It is the call to allow the wheat and tares to grow up together since we so often misinterpret too quickly what we think is light and darkness; good and evil. Therefore, we are to be initiated into seeing this process and allow its work in our life; to learn to see in the darkness.

We all are being initiated, it is what this life is; a giant initiation developing who we are to become. Earth is a womb and a cocoon, a place of struggle and delight designed to strengthen the inner essence of what we really are. This mysterious process is to be made known as the light is drawn out of our darkness taking form until certain forms return to the dust, and the essence of what we are continues the formation process from this life into the next phase. Do you see it? Something is separated, but it still had meaning and purpose. This real spiritual process is why spirituality is central to all of life. It cannot be ignored, and to do so is to resist or be ignorant of meaning in both its temporary and eternal forms. We who are spiritual turn to draw the Spirit out of others as we are called to “walk in the Spirit”, which shines regardless of a sun or moon. There are deep and hidden things in the darkness that are to be made known; things of spirit and light, of the reality of creation and its purpose.

“He reveals the deep and hidden things; He knows what lies in darkness, and light dwells with Him.” - Daniel 2:22

The God who sees in darkness invites us, like Moses, to enter that darkness or cloud of unknowing in order to know. There is nothing hidden from God, who not only fills the heavens, but fills the earth, therefore, there is no place where God is not. The key then, is to learn to see God everywhere and in everything, especially the darkest places we do not yet perceive God to be. In this reality, our entire life is seen as an initiation process; we are waking up.

“Can a man hide in secret places where I cannot see him?” declares the LORD. “Do I not fill the heavens and the earth?” declares the LORD.” - Jeremiah 23:24

God, like the owl God created, sees in darkness and we are invited to pay attention to what is happening in the darkness that allows the light to be drawn from it. This oneness between light and dark becomes aware of the illusion of separation and we are no longer needing to run from that which is being formed in all of it.

The dark then, will no longer be dark to us.

So what is the darkness in your life now? Relationship or health issues? Political upheaval? Raising kids or not being able to have them? On and on the list goes inviting us wherever we are to slow down and pay attention, to watch and see how light will be drawn out from these circumstances, rather than running from them thinking it will just go away. No, you have to go through the darkness to return to Eden. The flaming swords are spinning and glowing to light the path. The owls are showing up to remind you to watch and pray; to listen.

Then, what is to be revealed to you will slowly dawn, just like a rising moon in the sky, and the greater and lesser lights become part of the process of what eventually comes out of the darkness of any womb; of what is being birthed in you.

At these crossroads, stand and watch. Ask and see.

The Ancient Paths are being revealed in time, and digital watches cannot tell you what time it is.

-PH

The journey to the top was full of beautiful views and beautiful weather. As we reached the top where an unused fire tower now sits, we saw a storm rolling in with thunder sounding in the distance, yet our autistic son Kairos was venturing way out onto the rocks moving quickly away from us. We called out to Kairos to come back, but he would not listen. My oldest and I ran out to chase him over the boulders as I feared he might fall off the mountain or be caught in the approaching storm. We were now in a race against chronos time, which I thought the storm was a part of, as I continued chasing and calling for Kairos.

If you are not familiar with these two understandings of time, chronos is the time of the clock whereas kairos is unbound by the clock; timeless. Kairos is transformative and chronos is transactional, and we all know this when we pay too much attention to the tick tock of the clock, rather than the eternal time of our truest essence. My son Kairos lives his name, often living in another world, while being uniquely present to this one. It is to this we are all called to hear our name from the timeless realm, which directly affects what happens in time.

When we finally reached Kairos, he was out on a tall point looking out. I said we can grab a quick picture but we need to hurry back to the tower before the storm hits. Once we got back to the tower, people were quickly heading down the mountain to outrun the storm. We decided we would try that too, but as we got down a little ways it began to hail and the thunder’s distant voice was now much closer. So we hunkered down in the cleft of some rocks to take shelter from the hail stones that had started to land around us, but soon, the thunder was getting closer and closer; louder and louder.

Which briefly reminds me of someone else, Moses, who was in the cleft of the rocks once, but before that experience he experienced this:

“And as the sound of the trumpet grew louder and louder, Moses spoke, and God answered him in thunder.” - Exodus 19:19

Eventually, we found ourselves in an absolute downpour to the point where water began to rush down the mountain soaking our feet and the lightning was striking closer and closer with some of the loudest thunder we’ve ever heard. Kairos was the most afraid and started yelling, “I’m going to die!” It seems, like many sacred experiences which may not feel sacred in the moment, there are many who have experienced the rumblings on a mountain where we are in fact, invited to die to what we think is going on, and instead, to listen within and beyond the noise to what is being said to us.

I had to surrender to the rushing water, now baptizing my feet, and embrace the elements beyond my control. As the storm increased, I decided we needed to make a run back up to the tower and we started the ascent back up, which eventually required us to run up a few metal stairs (in a thunderstorm) at the top. We made it to the tower where another family had taken shelter. Slowly, a few more people ventured into the shelter from the storm. We were cold and a little wet, but finally safe.

“When a vision comes from the thunder beings of the West, it comes with terror like a thunder storm; but when the storm of vision has passed, the world is greener and happier; for wherever the truth of vision comes upon the world, it is like a rain. The world, you see, is happier after the terror of the storm.” - Black Elk

When the terror of the storm passed, we spent a little more time on the top of the mountain before safely venturing down where more lessons awaited from the experience. As I meditated on this the next morning; the pilgrimage to the top and the return; the chasing of Kairos; the intensity of the storm, I heard these words in prayer:

These words were later confirmed by a second witness through a t-shirt at a local coffee shop that read: “No Clocks On The Rocks.” There it is again, Kairos time.

For tourist purposes, this shirt represents the beauty of being in the Black Hills without having to worry about the time, to just be on the rocks and explore the land, but we were not just there as tourists. Kairos is the calling of being lifted up into that deeper dimension within and outside of time, wherever we are. Though still connected to chronos, it is superior, like my oldest son Courage being lifted into a vision on Lake Superior the day he became a teenager. It is why we named our youngest Kairos, for our names speak when we are named well, like Black Elk.

Black Elk’s visionary experience at the age of nine was, and is, of Kairos time:

“I was standing on the highest mountain of them all, and round about beneath me was the whole hoop of the world. And while I stood there I saw more than I can tell and I understood more than I saw; for I was seeing in a sacred manner the shapes of all things in the spirit, and the shape of all shapes as they must live together like one being. And I saw that the sacred hoop of my people was one of many hoops that made one circle, wide as daylight and as starlight, and in the center grew one mighty flowering tree to shelter all children of one mother and one father. And I saw that it was holy…but anywhere is the center of the world.” – Black Elk

His vision is a reminder that Kairos is the seeing in a sacred manner the shapes of all things. Unexplainable, but not unexperienceable. It is being so present to the moment that all moments find themselves there. All moments that could be arise from there. All moments that have been, are there. All moments that will be, are there; therefore they are…here.

This is the oneness that Jesus talked about as being the main point of his message and a main story of creation.

Black Elk knew it too.

“The first peace, which is the most important, is that which comes within the souls of people when they realize their relationship, their oneness with the universe and all its powers, and when they realize that at the center of the universe dwells the Great Spirit, and that this center is really everywhere, it is within each of us.”

So how do we get to here? How do we stop chasing chronos and live in Kairos? How do we inhabit time? Why does God hide mysteries in other dimensions; in Kairos. How do we not only hear Thunder, but a Voice speaking in and beyond the noise?

This we will explore in part 2 titled: “Black Elk Peak: Hearing God In The Silence.”

In Kairos,

-PH

Picture of my sons on the journey up pointing to the point in the distance.

Who is it today that seeks to destroy others, whether on reputation or actual death?

Who seeks to use the power and attention of the people against the people?

What stories or authorities are you listening to?

So these “leaders” asked Jesus by what authority he was doing the things he was doing and who gave him the authority to do so. As Jesus often did, he answered their question with a question. As they reasoned among themselves they realized they could not give a straight answer because however they answered, they would not be able to refute what he said. Answering one way would expose their unbelief and answering another way would do the same, but also lead to the very death they were seeking to happen to Jesus.

They were trapped in their own trap, so when they correctly answered that they did not know the answer, Jesus said he won’t answer their question.

Why tell someone the answer when they can’t receive it?

So Jesus turned towards the people and as he also often did, he told them a story.

The story only made the religious authorities and “leaders of the people” more upset as they knew this story was told against them and so they wanted Jesus dead that very hour, but they feared the people.

These leaders continued to watch Jesus and sent spies who pretended to be righteous in order to continue trying to trap him in his words.

Who are the spies pretending to be righteous today?

Who are the ones twisting words people say to catch them; to get people to turn on them?

The spies came and complimented Jesus as if they agreed with him and asked him a political/religious question to get him in trouble with political authorities; those they knew had power to judge and kill him by the laws they themselves did not agree with, but wanted to use to their advantage.

Who is complementing Jesus today without actually believing him?

Who is using politics to trap Jesus’ way of life and kill the essence?

Who critiques the empire yet loves the benefits the empire brings?

Then he asks for a coin and leaves them with an example of thinking deeper than they currently are, along with an invitation to live in the tension with how the earth and political institutions function, and how God works within and outside of them.

The “spies” could not catch him as their attempts to get the people to turn on him failed. Even though the answer to their questions was standing in front of them, they were further away in their attempts of spying out the truth.

Who is spying out our freedom?

What are we spying on that leads us further away?

Then some religious leaders from another affiliation, who did not believe in resurrection, came and asked Jesus a question. They seemed a bit more genuine, so he answered their question more directly, while implying the reality of resurrection. Their question was about a woman who had 7 husbands and which would be her actual husband after death…if there even was a resurrection.

Jesus again tells the crowd the difference between earthly relationships and faulty understandings of life and death. He said there will be no marriage in the resurrection for the point is to be married to something deeper today, and described those who become… “sons and daughters of resurrection.” If we are married to meaning beyond life and death, we are able to include both in a resurrected form that transcends the limitations, which are essential for the time being. Once you are no longer just a time-being you become aware of eternal-being; that which never dies.

That which has been living the entire time…for all time.

Anyone who awakens to the process of becoming the sons and daughters of resurrection is living more and more in the Reality of Union with God, and everyone else, even if they are not yet awake. You simultaneously live in the past, present, and future. You are living in the One who always was, always is, and is always to come.

Jesus then points to their sacred texts involving Moses as revealing the dead are raised and that God is not just the God of Moses, but of three other people they would remember from the past as having died, yet they were now being brought to the present moment as if they were still living…resurrected.

He says,

What is it to wake to the reality “all live to Him?”

What is it to know and participate in what never dies?

What is it to be surrounded by a great cloud of witnesses that have gone “before” us?

What is it to speak to and hear from that cloud; to witness, rather than fear the people currently dead in understanding the living and the dead?

Some of them started to realize he knew something they were missing and that he had spoken well. After that, they dared not question him anymore.

Once Jesus realized their questions had reached their end, he further drove the point home. It is at this point where questions start to be answered in those starting to listen AND we are starting to receive the answers that are deeper than our own.

We might even realize what we’ve been participating in the whole time.

Maybe some of you are (t)here right now.

Jesus then turns to those who are actually following him, while again speaking so that ALL the people could hear.

How does he speak directly to some and indirectly to others, therefore directly speaking to all?

What is designed to be overheard?

It is here the posture of our inner lives and the state of our hearts can tune into his point.

Will we try to trap him?

Will we walk away?

Will we sincerely ask another question?

Or will we face the challenge of following the One that can never die by knowing that long obedience in the same direction is producing something in us now that is to be resurrected beyond earthly understanding?

That is the question that determines if we are becoming Sons and Daughters of Resurrection now, and forever.

This is really about questions and stories and finding ourselves in the story, while learning to not be offended if we don’t hear what we thought we wanted to hear.

So read the story yourself. See where you find yourself in the story. See where you find yourself in the past, present, and future, now. See if you can wake up for the time-being.

This particular story is found in Luke Chapter 20.

Go and see.

-PH

“𝐃𝐨 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐜𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐞.” (𝐉𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐬 𝐚𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐬 𝐚 𝐠𝐚𝐫𝐝𝐧𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐨 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐌𝐚𝐠𝐝𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐧𝐞 𝐚𝐬 𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐬 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐨 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐜𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠/𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐢𝐦.)

“…. 𝐚𝐭 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐠𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐨 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐝𝐨, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐬, 𝐲𝐨𝐮’𝐥𝐥 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐬, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐰𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲.” - 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐧 𝐒𝐡𝐚𝐰

𝐀𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, “𝐉𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐬 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝐝𝐢𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐰𝐨 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐜𝐢𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐬...” - 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐤 𝟏𝟔:𝟏𝟐

𝐎𝐮𝐫 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐬, 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐬, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐬 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐝𝐢𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐭. 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬 𝐦𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐠𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐥. 𝐖𝐞 𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐧’𝐭 𝐜𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨𝐨 𝐭𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭𝐥𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦 𝐚𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐬, 𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐨𝐰𝐧. 𝐓𝐨 𝐝𝐨 𝐬𝐨 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐬𝐩 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧 𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐮𝐬, 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐢𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲 𝐞𝐱𝐜𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐮𝐬.

𝐀𝐬 𝐰𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐮𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰 𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐞𝐝 𝐛𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐥, 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐛𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐁𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐦 𝐰𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞, 𝐰𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐮𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐈𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐆𝐨𝐝. 𝐓𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐄𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐎𝐧𝐞, 𝐢𝐧 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐆𝐨𝐝 𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐝𝐢𝐬𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐬; 𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐬; 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐠𝐨𝐞𝐬, 𝐢𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐞𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐨𝐧 𝐚 𝐦𝐲𝐫𝐢𝐚𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐞𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐬, 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐬. 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐰𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐖𝐢𝐬𝐝𝐨𝐦.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐑𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐒𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐢𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞, 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐬 𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐬𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐤𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡. 𝐖𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐜𝐨𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐡 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐨𝐦𝐛 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞 𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞.

𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬𝐭 𝐝𝐢𝐥𝐞𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐡𝐮𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐟𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡, 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐢𝐭 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐚 𝐠𝐨𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐢𝐝 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐫𝐮𝐧 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦. 𝐃𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐭𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐨𝐧 𝐚 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦 𝐭𝐨 𝐝𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐮𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐢𝐬, 𝐚 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐬𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐟 𝐚 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐝, 𝐭𝐡𝐮𝐬 𝐫𝐨𝐛𝐛𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐮𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐥𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠. 𝐘𝐞𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐄𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐟𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐬𝐰𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐬 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐞, 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐬𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐬𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧.

𝐒𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐟 𝐉𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐬:

“𝐒𝐢𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐡𝐢𝐥𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐧 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐡 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐛𝐥𝐨𝐨𝐝, 𝐡𝐞 𝐭𝐨𝐨 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐡𝐮𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐬𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐛𝐲 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐤 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐢𝐦 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐡𝐨𝐥𝐝𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡—𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐬, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐥—𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐫𝐞𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐬 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐬𝐥𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐛𝐲 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐢𝐫 𝐟𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡.” -𝐇𝐞𝐛𝐫𝐞𝐰𝐬 𝟐:𝟏𝟒-𝟏𝟓

𝐄𝐚𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫 𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐦𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐚𝐠𝐞, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐇𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐚𝐥𝐥, 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐬 𝐮𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐟 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞. 𝐎𝐮𝐫 𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐬𝐨𝐣𝐨𝐮𝐫𝐧 𝐢𝐬 𝐩𝐫𝐞𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐮𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐆𝐨𝐝. 𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐆𝐨𝐝 𝐭𝐨𝐨𝐤 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐮𝐬 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐝𝐨𝐥 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐬𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐞 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐩𝐮𝐭𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐦𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐦 𝐰𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐫𝐞𝐚𝐝𝐲 𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞, 𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐞, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠. 𝐖𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐧𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐞𝐬𝐜𝐚𝐩𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐧𝐬𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐞 𝐬𝐮𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐰𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐰𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐧.

𝐃𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡 𝐡𝐚𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐧𝐨 𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝐛𝐞 𝐚𝐟𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐢𝐭, 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧, 𝐧𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐢𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐝𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐮𝐬 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐬𝐞𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐮𝐬 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐆𝐨𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐥𝐰𝐚𝐲𝐬 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐬, 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐮𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐦𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭. 𝐋𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐆𝐨𝐝 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐟𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐧, 𝐢𝐧 𝐰𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐢𝐦𝐚𝐠𝐞 𝐰𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐦𝐚𝐝𝐞, 𝐰𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞, 𝐚𝐫𝐞, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞. 𝐖𝐞 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡, 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐄𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐨𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐬𝐭𝐨𝐫𝐲.

𝐇𝐢𝐬 𝐦𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐝 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐛𝐨𝐝𝐲 𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐜𝐫𝐨𝐬𝐬 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐨𝐫𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐮𝐬 𝐰𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐧𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐭𝐞; 𝐰𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐬𝐞𝐞 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐏𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧. 𝐖𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐬𝐞𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐰𝐞 𝐡𝐚𝐝 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐛𝐨𝐫𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐅𝐚𝐜𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐲 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐝 𝐮𝐬 𝐢𝐧𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠.

𝐒𝐨 𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐬𝐨 𝐦𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐚𝐜𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐉𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐬’ 𝐛𝐢𝐫𝐭𝐡, 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐮𝐫𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐧 𝐞𝐦𝐩𝐭𝐲 𝐭𝐨𝐦𝐛, 𝐢𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐤𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐮𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐞 𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐢𝐧 𝐚 𝐰𝐨𝐦𝐛. 𝐈𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐭𝐮𝐫𝐧 𝐨𝐟 𝐂𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐆𝐨𝐝 𝐛𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐢𝐧 𝐚𝐥𝐥. 𝐈𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐮𝐧𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐚𝐥𝐥𝐨𝐰𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐞 𝐮𝐬 𝐢𝐧 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐝𝐢𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦𝐬 𝐆𝐨𝐝, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐞, 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐨𝐧. 𝐓𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐟𝐢𝐧𝐚𝐥 𝐟𝐨𝐫𝐦 𝐭𝐨 𝐛𝐞 𝐫𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐭𝐡, 𝐨𝐟 𝐰𝐡𝐢𝐜𝐡 𝐰𝐞 𝐧𝐨 𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐚𝐬 𝐰𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐢𝐧 𝐋𝐨𝐯𝐞, 𝐛𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐬 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐛𝐞.

𝐀𝐧𝐝 𝐬𝐨, 𝐰𝐞 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬.

𝐖𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐭𝐫𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐭𝐨𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐢𝐧 𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐠?

“𝐍𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐊𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐧𝐚𝐥, 𝐢𝐦𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐚𝐥, 𝐢𝐧𝐯𝐢𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞, 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐨𝐧𝐥𝐲 𝐆𝐨𝐝, 𝐛𝐞 𝐡𝐨𝐧𝐨𝐫 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐠𝐥𝐨𝐫𝐲 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫. 𝐀𝐦𝐞𝐧.” - 𝟏 𝐓𝐢𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐲 𝟏:𝟏𝟕

-𝐏𝐇

“𝐁𝐥𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐞𝐝 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐰𝐡𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐬𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐲𝐞𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐥𝐢𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐝.” -𝐉𝐨𝐡𝐧 𝟐𝟎:𝟐𝟗

When the past is present the future is here.

Maybe in a few thousand years it will be different, but for the foreseeable future, it seems Jesus was still right when he said, “In this particular world, you will have trouble”, while also telling his audience that people would betray them, including those closest to you.

But here’s the paradox of betrayal.

Betrayal initiates you into the depths of life, often the depths you were unconscious of before a betrayal happens. This includes both the depths of pain and the depths of redemptive growth made available from it. Of course the betrayer is often unconscious to the real reason they betrayed, but they are also in position to finally become who they were always meant to be. They can now come face to face with their misunderstanding of the larger story. Understandably, this is where some run and hide.

Yet God still comes walking in the garden asking “Where is the real you?”

And having been forcibly removed from the awareness of the garden and seemingly kicked out, the betrayer and the betrayed are invited to start the real journey of realizing their true home; their true self. They can now do the real work of understanding the process of being made in the image and likeness of God.

Sometimes, it appears betrayal is the only way you will start to grow.

Lest I be misunderstood from the start, this is not a license to betray people on purpose, for Jesus is clear that temptations to betray must come, but woe to the one to whom they come through. What it is however, is a mature and raw call to wake up to what is really going on. Let me say that again: To wake up to what is really going on.

Reality has a way of forcing you to come face to face with your own limitations and weakness, yet the deeper reality has always been extremely generous and good, in spite of all the suffering in between this realization. God is unconditional in love for us, yet understanding this is painful. Like forgiveness not really becoming real unless there has been a real betrayal, we cannot become what we are unless we go “through” a wound. So long as we stop running from the pain, we can see what the pain is actually pointing to; what it is inviting us to heal.

So long as we are unconscious of this, the journey feels so…long, if not impossible, although it is closer than we think.

Jesus gives us the example of what it is to be betrayed and to resurrect on the other side of betrayal into a new story. A story we may have heard our whole life but never really embodied. To embody something one must be wounded; to be given skin or flesh. To integrate that embodiment with the wound, one must find healing through the wound. If we allow this, the eventual scars that appear will speak more to the healing than only the original blemishing.

For a more mature understanding of this we might remember the first human (Adam) had to have a wound created from his side in order for the companion to awakening to be seen outside himself. She (Eve) was the companion there all along, but now seemingly found outside and in front of the self. Of course, he would go into her to remember how the process of oneness works and how the creation of making one in your own image begins. The Children of the Image to come forth however, would take a lot of work to guide in a world now working against so much of the process of being made in the image and likeness of God. Yet the invitation remains in awakening to how that works for us, rather than against us.

The original “being made in The Image of God” was never a done deal, hence why you are still breathing to become aware of the ongoing formation started long ago.

You are still being made.

But oh how deep the betrayal! Oh the cross we are bearing! What is to come of such suffering!?

How did the One learn to comply with Reality through what he suffered? (Heb 5:8)

When we look upon the cross of Christ, we see the tailend of how we become a real human being. We see the agony of being betrayed, both when we are innocent and when we are part of the cause of the original suffering. Remember, it was God who first wounded the first human by creating the wound in the side. This was done to help, not to harm, but the responsibility and the Spirit of the wound lies with our Creator. So when Jesus is in the depths of the agony of betrayal, his side is pierced in the same location the first human’s side was wounded. But something deeper was coming out of it. From the in-side of the first human came “the Mother of the Living” and from the in-side of the last human came “the Father of all Being.” If we can see it, we can finally see how we are healed “through” the wound; put back together again to see who we really are.

Born again from Being rather than merely flesh and blood.

“He was pierced for our offenses, He was crushed for our wrongdoings; The punishment for our well-being was laid upon Him, And by His wounds we are healed.” - Isaiah 53:5

He drank the cup of bitterness, a cup many asked to drink but were not ready for, but that cup of bitterness will come to all of us. What will we do when it does? Will we allow it to poison our being or will we let it run through us so as to not pass on the cycle of betrayal? To become more like the one who never leaves or forsakes.

These are the questions that determine our growth in being made.

These questions can allow a resurrection of our story.

This is the process of becoming a real human being.

Being one who knows the depths of pain, betrayal, grief, AND still participates in the reconciliation of all things.

Of course this story is still doubted, not unlike Thomas who catches a glimpse of a resurrected body and story. Thomas was still betraying himself with the story he was telling himself. When he hears that Jesus has resurrected he wants proof. When Jesus appears where does he ask Thomas to stick his hand?

In His wounds.

“Then He said, “Reach your finger here, and look at My hands; and reach your hand here, and put it into My side. Do not be unbelieving, but believing.” - John 20:27

There was nothing there, because no longer was the point about the one standing in front of you; it was about remembering the One that was in you. You can reach into the wounds and find nothing there, just holes in your understanding, but there is a deeper substance of faith from within that is more real than appearances, more real than betrayal, more healing than trauma, and far more forgiving than your mind can conceive.

It might feel empty, but it is through the wound you come to feel the weight of Reality that has been holding you invisibly the entire time. You reach out your hand into that nothingness to know the Hand holding you. You feel the emptiness in the side revealing God has been at your side the whole time.

Now you are moving from unconsciousness to consciousness beyond the need for physical appearance and beyond the trauma of the wound. You are becoming a resurrected being made in the image and likeness of God.

“It is better that my physical form goes away, because I have revealed to you the Spirit by which you will finally understand. I will send you this Spirit over and over again.” - Jesus

So then, when we are betrayed or when we betray, we are finally awakened to the initiation of becoming who we were meant to be even if it at first, like God did with the first human, we are put to sleep. We are finally able to feel deeply enough the necessary love required to know what is stronger than death; something we thought only available in our dreams. We are finally ready to see healing come through the wound, rather than running and hiding. We can finally see what was in front of us the entire time.

We are finally ready to start the journey of becoming one with the Mother of all Living and the Father of all Being, who have been at our side, and inside, the “whole” time. And once that wound is closed the opening to our resurrected story begins; we are ready to show other people our wounds. We are naked and unashamed, with beautiful scars to show it. We have died before we died as to live before we live.

We have awakened from within a Love finally capable of being wounded, yet now carrying the authentic desire to heal the wounds of the world… one side at a time.

-PH

“Without prophetic revelation people cast of restraint, but happy is the one who keeps the instruction.” - Proverbs 29:18

“Do not despise prophecies, but test everything; hold fast to what is good. Abstain from every form of evil.” - 1 Thessalonians 5:19-20

The context surrounding these latter verses is “praying without ceasing” and “giving thanks in all circumstances” as you rest with the peace of God in the entirety of your being. This is the most important point in the invitation to enter real inner rest. In fact, the literal translation of “pray always” means “come to rest.” The marriage of the Charismatic and the Contemplative has always been the way forward. Both are built on the foundation that has existed since the beginning, which included the ending, that is, when God rested from creating the world signaling our original design to live from God’s rest, rather than for it.

In the decade of rest,

-PH

How often have we looked for the right words to say, or didn’t look, but blindly tried to say whatever it is we mean, only to then feel the lack of those words’ capability of expressing what we mean? Once we spoke, the words felt empty with an inability to express, or in assuming another’s inability to understand. We might actually be “at a loss for words.” This often happens when we fumble around trying to tell someone of an experience, but end up saying, “You had to be there”, in order to truly know.

So the question remains:

“How do we get people there?”

Which relates to the question:

“Do you know what I mean?”

Which relates to the question:

“At what level are you really listening?”

What if we stayed with that sense of fullness (what is meant) long enough, therefore joyfully embracing the silence in a loss of words, so it develops into a gift of fullness to fill the emptiness of others? This is the gift of Presence before words. Here, awkward silence is seen for what is rendering it no longer awkward, at least for us.

Which leads us to:

Looking For The Right Words To Resonate With

Since words can mean multiple things to different people, which can both add to the dimensionality of what you mean, or miss it entirely, we are looking for words that resonate rather than mere descriptions. Descriptions only mean as much to the degree what is meant is experienced. I can describe marriage to someone who has never been married but they would never fully know what I mean since they are not married. Or, if I have a beautiful marriage but another has/had a terrible one, the word “marriage” might mean terrible things to them.

Is there an ultimate meaning we can marry that speaks to all of us regardless of our different interpretations and experiences?

Which leads us to:

Looking For No Words So The Right Words Can Emerge

Now someone might ask:

“If we are looking for no words then how can someone know what we mean?”

Meaning must come before words, something the West can find difficult, because words are meant to communicate experience. We have to go to the place that is before all words to even get into the same vicinity as meaning. Granted, there are reasons spiritual teachers use words in stories or parables to get close to a thing, because they invite the one who will listen to have open ended questions. Why open ended? They must close what you think you know in order for you to open to what is deeper still; more real. Jesus mostly answered questions with questions and told stories, while inviting the listener to understand with a deeper heart than what might appear on the surface of thoughts.

But the time will come for you to actually speak, only this time, it will come from what is actually being said rather than what your mind thought you were hearing.

“When the time comes to you at which you will be forced at last to utter the speech which has lain at the center of your soul for years, which you have, all that time, idiot-like, been saying over and over, you’ll not talk about the joy of words. I saw well why the gods do not speak to us openly, nor let us answer. Till that word can be dug out of us, why should they hear the babble that we think we mean? How can they meet us face to face till we have faces?” — C.S. Lewis, Till We Have Faces

Sacred Silence

Sacred Silence guides us to the center of our souls before speech, so when the time comes to speak, we are no longer doing so from our head. How inviting is this in an overstimulated information age! Yet intentional silence can be feared by people who do not really want to know what is meant. For you to know what is meant is to let go of what you think you know. Go aheart and ask yourself, “Do you really want to know the Truth?”

If you say no, you will continue listening to your own babble and the babble of others in the land of babble. These towers do get mighty tall, but they will get you good cell coverage until the information overload collapses on your soul.

If you say yes, you will enter sacred silence to listen to what emerges beyond the mind’s ability to initially understand. The cells of your body will eventually resonate with meaning before words. You will find yourself in the land of God, and better than those dinosaur movies, the actual land before time. Your mind must first be initiated by Presence.

All true understanding comes from being rather than thinking; embodying rather than fragmented definitions. This is why we look for words we resonate with and why sacred silence allows the veils made out of inferior meanings in our heads and in front of our faces to be removed. “Till that word be dug out of us…” because it has to come from the very thing that does the resonating in the first place.

In order to get to that “face to face” place, we are invited to sit in silence with this famous koan Jesus said, albeit differently than the following, yet meaning the same thing:

“What is the face you had before your parents were born?”

If you’d like a scripture reference for the same question we’d ask:

“Who is the you God knew before God knit you together in your mother’s womb?”

Or if you really need Jesus to say it without a question:

“Unless one is born from the beginning (above) they are blind to the Reality of God.”

Only when this question is answered will we know what it means and what God meant when God meant you.

“You had to be there” is to become the reality in our awareness of where we were before we were born, and where, we are invited to return, while we are here. That narrow road less travelled, makes all the difference. We move from looking for the right words - to resonating with deeper words - to discovering the sacred silence (presence) from which all meaning comes, and we now learn the right words to embody, rather than only think.

In short, we not only learn, we remember. We re-member all words in the WORD made flesh dwelling in and among…us.

-PH

“Even as we are a nation of immigrants, we are also a nation of laws. Undocumented workers broke our immigration laws, and I believe that they must be held accountable – especially those who may be dangerous. That’s why, over the past six years, deportations of criminals are up 80 percent. And that’s why we’re going to keep focusing enforcement resources on actual threats to our security.”

Barack Obama addressed the nation with these words in 2014 with commitments of adding more resources to secure borders, working to deport those who should not be here, and seeking ways to help those already here to determine if they “play by the rules”, to be able to stay. This does not mean he did or would do everything the same as another president would. The full context of his speech makes that clear when heard in its entirety. The point is that while people will disagree about how any leader goes about accomplishing the same objectives, one must remember that these have been important issues for every president.

At the very least, we should not pretend it is an easy issue to address, nor an easy situation for any leader of a nation to govern.

Minneapolis finds itself in the middle of this issue and once again, in the midst of protests, which not surprisingly, have turned into a more chaotic scene than it needs to be. This has resulted in two unnecessary deaths and damages to property. It was a similar playbook deployed in 2020 that was strengthened after the death of George Floyd, which led to a continuation of manufactured race wars to incite outrage and violence for a seemingly righteous cause. This never denies real issues where they actually are, but the majority of it was political theater. As more agitators moved in among those genuinely protesting peacefully, the opportunity for chaos would not be ignored. Now we have seen again, more harm is done precisely when people get baited into being involved in propaganda narratives by becoming puppets in a diabolical scheme.

Our eyes are seeing clearly through our screens though, aren’t they?

Of course, some will say you are the one under the influence of propaganda. Round and round it goes until the next thing, and then the next thing, on and on unless one finally breaks free from the matrix in order to focus on their own inner transformation, which is the most important thing.

Here are some basic guidelines to help as you process.

• It would be wrong to assume everything ICE, protesters, law enforcement, public officials, immigrants, news reporters, or any human being says or does, is right. Just as it could be wrong to assume everything they say and do, is wrong.

• It is wise to develop the capacity to allow yourself to hear the full context of any story as to understand why something is happening, what actually happened, and when you will have to admit you don’t know. The complexity of human life and those involved in situations like this should be seen for the messiness it is, rather than allow propaganda, media, or political rhetoric to manipulate stories to make something appear true when it is either partially true, mostly true, or not true at all. Being quick to listen and slow to speak will save you from much of the negative and reactive energy that surrounds these things, while shielding you from carrying burdens or narratives that are not yours to carry.

• You are not going to persuade anyone who is committed to misunderstanding you, or committed to hating another person or group. (MLK Jr. was right, hate is too great a burden to bear, and those under the weight of it can rarely be reasoned with.) To anyone committed to misunderstanding you, what you say can and will be used against you to prove any valid point you make as only able to be applied to their side.

Personally, I was not going to comment on this situation because I do not believe it’s wise to speak up about every controversial thing happening on earth. For many of us, it would be impossible as well as irresponsible to do so, especially if you are focused on a job, family, kid(s), inner peace, or live in a place other than the latest controversy. This does not mean you will not be called to speak up in different seasons of life, which was something I did during the last election cycle. I was reminded of this from an extended family member recently.

He texted me after being intimated by ICE agents for exercising his right to follow their vehicle. I asked if they hurt him and he said no, however, they did approach them with their guns and yelled at him with threats to arrest him if he continued to follow them. He later asked me in all caps to SPEAK THE F**K UP in direct relation to how I had publicly written about Donald Trump as a kind of peacemaker in the past. I invite any reader to go back and read those articles to better understand the context. One article I had written on The Call to Resist Tyranny should get you into the ballpark of how we got to the current topic, which includes insight about foreigners and propaganda. This is especially pertinent when many on every side think they are resisting tyranny, which I do not doubt is happening on multiple sides, but we have to explore it in the larger context if we want less chaos, actual peace, and to understand how we got here.

Let us begin, again.

We must remember that one of the main issues surrounding recent presidential elections was the influx of foreigners coming into our country, which has tried to set up a system to allow them to come in safely and legally, while keeping those here illegally in check. It’s an impossible job for any president or nation to do perfectly, but we understand the intention. We can also understand the complexity of foreigners who are genuinely fleeing from oppressive situations to come here, which is nothing new, along with those who are coming to cause harm, which is nothing new.

Both are realities, and to deny their actuality and complexity, is dishonest.

This is the main problem for many isn’t it? Can two things really be true at once? How about three or four? Yes.

A major problem arose when border security, which we see has always been understood by all sides of the political spectrum as necessary, had become something of political speak, rather than action. (nothing new) In fact, there was major inaction allowing mass crossings into the country with little being done to stop it…almost as if it was…intentional. Sure enough, the actions within that inaction were discovered as intentional to bring in an influx of foreigners just to win elections now, and in the future. It was just another brick in the invisible wall of a larger issue.

This use of foreigners under the mask of humanitarian, political, or religious principles is simply evil. (It is not lost on me that there has also always been good being done in some of these cases.) It has no regard for the people who live here or those brought in, even if their hotels were paid for and money given. This caused havoc for the cities where they were placed. The news finally had to admit this was happening, but they reported that at least they weren’t paying “luxury rates.”

Yes, what a luxury it is to spin the context and deflect the point.

During that year’s election cycle the news had to further cover topics like this, even though it took the idea of people eating dogs in Ohio (largely unfounded claim) to get them to look, which strangely led to a real video of a woman in Ohio eating a cat.

But that was just scratching the surface…

What propaganda doesn’t know is there are things you can’t make up and truth is stranger than fiction.

In my article on resisting tyranny, I pointed to what God revealed to a nation that allowed an influx of foreigners unable to be integrated into its system properly. It has never turned out well. And yes, I understand the context will be uniquely different for America, but the spirit of that context remains the same. Hence, we find ourselves in a situation where Minneapolis has become a focal point of some of the major issues of what happens when foreigners come in and take advantage of our situation, namely through fraud, criminal activity, violence, gross sexual crimes, and murder. These are not fantasy stories, they are real, but when we allow them to be minimized or denied just to attack political frameworks on any side, we become blind to the complexity of these very real issues for the sake of appearing right. How strange it becomes then, when citizens (including children) are taken advantage of, or even killed by foreigners who are here illegally or on temporary status (Now voided due to crime), and some remain largely silent about these realities… seemingly as cold as ice.

Some remain silent because the optics just don’t look good for propaganda narratives when you tell the truth.

Foreigners and Ice

In 1977 the band Foreigner released their hit song, “Cold as Ice.” How fitting is their band name and song? We’re about to see.

For our present purposes, ICE has been around awhile, and has worked under every administration to enforce the complexity of immigration laws. This can be helpful for those who think ICE randomly showed up on the stage (but is mainly focused in Minneapolis) as part of some Nazi-like regime, which is one of the propaganda narratives used in recent years to make things appear other than they are. This led to the opportunity for people to take advantage of the situation, which leads to more chaos, mental health issues, and death

In light of people protesting ICE, I see no problem in standing up to ways in which any group is actually harming others, and this includes ICE. I see no problem with peacefully protesting or filming their actions if they are in your area, but I encourage this to be done in an actual peacemaking spirit that does not obstruct their work as to make matters worse. I disagree with the actions of protesters who yell obscenities, throw objects, approach them, or physically assault them. Renee Good is a tragic example of what happens when ICE is not looking for you, but you go looking for them. This only intensifies the situation, makes matters worse, brings even more ICE agents in to protect their group, prolongs their current work, and gives unreasonable people fuel to do crazier things.

Of course, there are powers behind the scenes that actually want this.

As far as ICE themselves, many have been trained to see them as cold and uncaring, not realizing their own judgments of them can be just as cold as their own projections. The problem is the optics mass produced through propaganda to demonize and dehumanize people or groups. Will some ICE agents do this to some people? Yes. Just as some everyday citizens do too, regardless of their profession. The problem is not the entirety of any one group, the problem is the failure to understand the complexity of the situation. When we allow these projections, one becomes of the exact spirit they think they are exposing in another, while denying the good that any one of them might do. Contrary to propaganda opinion, ICE has actually captured legitimate criminals all over the place, and homicides in general are the lowest in the nation since 1900. Also, the rate of violence for these kinds of operations is remarkably low, and they only escalated as citizens got in their way.

If we think ICE is only as cold as our projections of them, those main lyrics from Foreigner’s song play loudly in our unconscious:

“You’re as cold as ice. You’re willing to sacrifice our love.”

Propaganda Tactics

The situation in Minneapolis is understandably tense. Having just been there two weeks ago, I heard the concern about the police state feel in the atmosphere. I too, would hate the feeling of a police state, especially when a large number of people were led to compare this to Nazi Germany. But just because something “looks” like something, doesn’t mean it is. I remind people the optics of this situation is mainly isolated to Minneapolis, a city known for having out of state people pour into it whenever a situation becomes highly politicized. These people awaken the chaotic from within any opportunity to promote outrage and make matters worse.

I do not support police states, nor would I support everything a specific ICE agent might do. I support peaceful and cooperative protests, but not the disrespectful kinds. Each individual regardless of what group they identify with is responsible for their own actions and each individual will be held accountable for them, sometimes in this life, for sure in the next.

What we see happening is a direct result of propaganda and political framing that brainwashes people into thinking only one side is right and the other side wrong. Propaganda takes a tragic moment, like George Floyd or Renee Good, and creates larger problems that lead to buildings being burned, cities to be overrun with non-peaceful protesters from in and out of state, and a place for unprocessed rage and anger to manifest for a cause. Its goal is the manipulation of emotions that we already saw in Minneapolis years ago.

Foreigner’s song continues:

“I’ve seen it before, it happens all the time.

You’re closing the door, you leave the world behind

You’re digging for gold, you’re throwing away

A fortune in feelings, but someday you’ll pay.”

And now many are paying the price because they still do not live in hindsight, which is 2020. Their emotions continue to be manipulated through propaganda and the inability to handle truth in tension; rinse and repeat.

Hindsight is 2020

2020 set the mark for a real totalitarian regime that is far greater than what is happening in Minneapolis, yet connected to it. Propaganda and mass censorship at the time caused fear, panic, and death to pass like a virus from state to state, country to country, and it affected most of the world leading to mass attempts at control. Now that things are less censored (yet still masked through propaganda), news outlets and internet media still continue in a similar spirit of not wanting to give you the full context, nor do they have the patience to let things develop. They are quick to speak, slow to listen, and few actually have Wisdom to share. The larger context matters and there are more than 10 sides to every story. Without patience or a fuller context, people never learn, while they continue in the cycle of only watching for what makes their side of the story seem the only legitimate way.

We saw recent examples of this in the case of a Hmong man, ChongLy Scott Thao, who many used as an example of an innocent person being “targeted” by ICE as if they were just trying to harass people for no reason. This does not make how they always do their job right, but did you at least know ICE was tracking two high level sexual predators that used to live at Thao’s address? Their names are Lue Moua and Kongmeng Vang who were released into the community because of local policies. We are talking about men who kidnapped and raped kids. Did you hear the media say anything about this or did they just want to make it look like some random house was targeted? To make it even harder, the description of Thao matched these men. Do we really expect perfection from these kinds of difficult roles of finding perpetrators of violence and abuse?

Are you that hard on yourself?

You have every right to question how one goes about these things, but it would be helpful to understand the complexity of an actual situation so as to not miss the humanity on all sides.

It is said, something which I cannot validate, that whoever was in the house refused to provide ID, so ICE detained him until they could figure out if he was one of the rapists. We know was rightfully released when they were able to verify his identity. The question remains, are we more upset at the difficult job enforcement professions have to do because illegal criminals are actually raping kids, while local leaders initially, and intentionally, didn’t want to cooperate? (Again, this doesn’t mean there aren’t those locally who are actually helping) Do you see what happens when foreigners who have no regard for human rights or decency are still free to terrorize people and there are people whose job it is to find them?

This does not mean we cannot question how something is done, but at least let us understand why something was being done.

How about the propaganda surrounding the 5 year old boy whose picture was shared all over the internet with the intention of making ICE look like they were targeting a 5 year old? If we allowed the story to develop instead of being quick to speak, we would have understood his father fled the scene leaving his 5 year old behind and ICE took care of the child. Again, a complex issue blown out of context to create rage and the perception that everything ICE is doing is wrong. The media seems to care less about an actual child being killed or raped by an illegal criminal than what they can get from spinning the optics on a difficult situation. It’s like the failure to understand that the agent who killed Renee Good had previously been injured in a separate incident when dragged by a vehicle when attempting to arrest a criminal fleeing. Does this make what he did right? No. It just helps us actually learn empathy in the midst of some of the most dangerous jobs and we can at least see the complexity of a fuller context of why someone might do what they do.

2020 Vision

I have seen two opposing sides share this same quote:

“The party told you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears. It was their final, most essential command.” - George Orwell

But it goes on to say:

“His heart sank as he thought of the enormous power arrayed against him, the ease with which any Party intellectual would overthrow him in debate, the subtle arguments which he would not be able to understand, much less answer. And yet he was in the right! They were wrong and he was right.”

2020 invited us to see what tyranny and totalitarian regimes actually look like. It doesn’t matter how professional they sound, how much of an expert they pretend to be, or what pretense they use to appear to be about public safety, while manipulating you to “trust the science” or the political experts. These are the real foreign invaders of our bodies and our freedoms, and they couldn't care less about George Floyd or Renee Good, because chaos and destruction is what they want. If they can keep people living in fear, reaction, and outrage, and then get you to condemn an elected surgeon doing the difficult job of removing cancer, then they are satisfied…for the moment.

But the routine political and science speeches had run its course, and another politician wasn’t going to fix it. The real enemy wanted you six feet apart and even six feet in the ground if you weren’t healthy enough to make the cut; just fall in line. In the end, they wanted you to reject the evidence of your eyes and ears… and cover your mouth in the process. But I’m not just talking about what was seen on the surface with our physical eyes even if our face was masked and voices were censored, I am talking about this:

“It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.” ― Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, The Little Prince

What is essential for hindsight being 2020 was the invitation in the midst of the chaos to slow down and to stop. To put down our judgments and group think. To back out of the propaganda wars to gain clarity and context, while focusing on your own inner transformation.

Because learning to see with the heart is the only way forward. It’s the only way you become aware of a context large enough to hold the tension on all sides, while also rising above them.

When it seemed the entire world shut down, it was an invitation from The Divine to learn what real rest was. Sabbath, having to do with this rest, means “To Stop.” While propaganda tried to tell you a virus was an accident or a natural cause, people began to awaken to know better. Now their bodies and livelihood were on the line, not just their mind, that is of course, if you didn’t fall in line. There’s more things always brewing in their labs, but what evil means for harm, God uses to inspire us to stop and consider what we are actually doing with our breath; if we even notice at all. The mantra, “I Can’t Breathe” was not only for George Floyd; it was for all of us. God was inviting us from plagues to promises, and many began the mass exit out of the powers of Egypt.

The invitation still remains to enter that rest.

To enter into our own transformation, rather than being distracted by projecting our own inner disease onto every political or world issue, right or wrong, just so we don’t have to deal with our unprocessed life, is the only way to peace. It is no wonder propaganda and distractions become so enticing, and like that surrounding ICE, we would do well to slow down to avoid slipping, losing control, or crashing. We would do well to realize Trump, who is a centerpiece for so many in all of this, is idolized/worshipped by both those who love him and those who hate him, and both are often equally deceived.

So go ahead, focus on your own transformation. Get rid of the actual propaganda scaling your eyes. Sit still and silent long enough to receive prophetic vision. Get your heart rate up through exercise, rather than manufactured outrage. Get outside in nature long enough to hear what creation has to teach you. Your inner transformation is the most important thing, for without it, you will perish on the sea of information.

Minneapolis Mirror

Minneapolis means “Waterfall City” or “City of the Falls.” It finds itself in the state where the headwaters of the Mississippi River begin to flow through the heart of America. The headwaters are one of my favorite places to visit. Years ago, while there, God began speaking to me about these headwaters symbolizing the “heart-waters” of America. This multidimensional meaning included the invitation to move from the head to the heart; to see with those inner eyes that both makes sense of what your physical eyes see, but more sense coming from the foundation of what your inner world is to know.

From the heart flow living waters.

It is no coincidence that Minnesota is once again the place the water of controversy is falling. Its direct outer picture becoming more chaotic is a direct invitation of whether we should extend our energy into a situation, possibly making matters worse, or take the time to listen to what we could really learn, rather than jumping to conclusions. If we stay long enough in our heart, we will gain the Wisdom to be able to see through the storms of life, whether this one, or the next.

So may you find the inner invitation to transformation being the loudest thing calling to you. It is the narrow Way that neither gets pulled to the left or the right. It is the Way by which we see above the noise to larger perspectives that include everyone, without needing to focus on certain people or things in a way that misses what they have to teach us…from every side.

How you see when you look into the mirror of current events, or what you give your attention to, determines what you will reflect.

With Love,

-PH

For more context on Propaganda and Prophetic Vision you can read:

JFK: Prophetic Vision, Censorship, and Change

The Cure for Conspiracy Theories and Unhinged Propaganda

Developing Prophetic Resonance

Prophetic Vision, Manufactured Meanings, and Listening For The Real

The Trump Card: Sheep In Wolf’s Clothing

“𝑰 𝒔𝒕𝒊𝒍𝒍 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒕𝒆𝒍𝒍 𝒚𝒐𝒖, but you cannot handle them now.” - Jesus

We have easy access to read over and over what was written down, but did you know you also have access to hear what was not?

“Do you understand what I am telling you?”

“Yes”, they answered.

Then Jesus said,

“Therefore every scribe 𝒘𝒉𝒐 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒃𝒆𝒆𝒏 𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒆𝒅 𝒊𝒏 the reality of God is like a master of a house, who brings out of his treasure 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒏𝒆𝒘 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒘𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒐𝒍𝒅.”

There are two kinds of knowledge: What is told and what can only be revealed when someone is ready. When the two become one, you know the new and the old. Without this integration of oneness, the old fights the new and seeks to protect people from it, while the new fights the old by forgetting its foundational meaning.)

“𝑻𝒉𝒆 𝑷𝒓𝒐𝒑𝒉𝒆𝒕 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒑𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒆𝒅 𝒊𝒏𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒚 𝒉𝒆𝒂𝒓𝒕; 𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝑰 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒔𝒑𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒅 𝒕𝒐 𝒑𝒆𝒐𝒑𝒍𝒆, 𝒂𝒏𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓, 𝒊𝒇 𝑰 𝒘𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒕𝒐 𝒔𝒉𝒂𝒓𝒆 𝒊𝒕, 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒚 𝒘𝒐𝒖𝒍𝒅 𝒄𝒖𝒕 𝒎𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒂𝒕.” - Sufi Abu Hurayra

Only when one is trained from the inside can they resonate with what is to be revealed when they are ready, otherwise, it will be misunderstood or perceived as wrong.

There are things we cannot know or share with words, but only in communion with God.

Therefore, we develop a deeper connection to this union from the inside through the practice of interior prayer, often in a sacred silence beyond words. It is there we move from the scared to the sacred.

“𝑰𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒉𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒃𝒆𝒈𝒖𝒏 𝒕𝒐 𝒎𝒆𝒅𝒊𝒕𝒂𝒕𝒆, 𝑰 𝒊𝒎𝒑𝒍𝒐𝒓𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖 𝒃𝒚 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒍𝒐𝒗𝒆 𝒐𝒇 𝑮𝒐𝒅, 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒕𝒐 𝒅𝒆𝒑𝒓𝒊𝒗𝒆 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓𝒔𝒆𝒍𝒇 𝒐𝒇 𝒔𝒐 𝒈𝒓𝒆𝒂𝒕 𝒂 𝒈𝒐𝒐𝒅. 𝑻𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒏𝒐𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒂𝒇𝒓𝒂𝒊𝒅 𝒐𝒇; 𝒕𝒉𝒆𝒓𝒆 𝒊𝒔 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝒕𝒐 𝒈𝒂𝒊𝒏.” – Teresa of Avila

In meditation or interior prayer, we come to know what has not been written down as we discover what was written down in the depths of our heart. Simultaneously, we come to know what was written and the foundation of what it really means. If only we would go into the depths of our heart to hear(t) it.

-PH

(Outside in: is the pattern the world uses to teach information from outside sources. Inside out: is the pattern God initiates with transformation from the inside. Christ/God is not accessed through the mind, but through the heart. Eve refers to a companion or helpmate, which symbolizes the Spirit of God as our helper. From where does our help come from? From the Lord who comes forth from within.)

The next thing I know I was no longer napping but found myself outside of my body and hovering outside my second floor apartment window looking in. I then started ascending straight up into the heavens at a high rate of speed. Lest you think I am super spiritual, I was nervous as this was happening, as I didn’t know what was going on and was not in control. I then stopped abruptly as I found myself hovering in space looking back at the glowing earth as one would see in pictures from space. I hovered for a while until all of the sudden I started falling back towards the earth, again at a high rate of speed while thinking “I am going to die, I am going to die.” When I got within 20 feet of hitting the ground I slowed down to the speed of a feather, gently floating back and forth until I found myself about an hour away from my apartment (in another town) and in front of an old apartment building I had lived in years earlier. (That apartment was associated with a school I had previously attended) I then heard the words, “8/16ths you’re halfway there, 8/16ths you’re halfway there.” Then, I woke up from my nap.

I share this experience with you to encourage you on your journey as there are many meanings to extract from this. Like any spiritual experience, there are multiple meanings and levels of dimensionality to how they speak to each one of us at specific seasons in our life. This experience is not shared to wow you into thinking I am someone special, I assure you, I am a fellow sojourner with you in this life and have plenty of weaknesses. But some of the best keys are found in our weaknesses, not in the spiritual experiences themselves, which must lead to transformation to be of any real value. Otherwise, they are just material the ego can use to look or sound good.

I highlight this point further from the following passage:

“I know a man in Christ who was caught up to the third heaven. Whether it was in the body or out of the body I do not know—God knows. And I know that this man—whether in the body or apart from the body I do not know, but God knows—was caught up to paradise and heard inexpressible things, things that no one is permitted to tell. I will boast about a man like that, but I will not boast about myself, except about my weaknesses. Even if I should boast, I would not be a fool, for I would be speaking the truth; but I refrain from it, so that no one may think more of me than he sees in me or hears from me.” - 2 Corinthians 12:2-6

The man speaking in these verses is talking about himself, yet he is not wanting people to focus on the dramatic experience he had, but on what the experience is designed to lead us to. There is a wisdom about what we can share and what we cannot, but what we share is to lead to that which we cannot share, for only God knows that. God will share with you specifically what you need to know from the inside out.

The first point to make from my experience is Christ is not accessed through the mind, so telling you about my experience does little to persuade the mind of its meaning. The feelings or longings that arise in the heart is where the real inspiration comes, not from the information, but from the Spirit that resides in and through the words that are to resonate within. The natural mind cannot understand spiritual things and can easily misinterpret them

But then why was I hearing “You have to renew your mind” over and over again? Because the only way to renew your mind is to develop an open and listening heart. In the heart you experience Christ, which then renews the mind. Otherwise, all you have is information, not transformation. There is a reason the same person who left his body and went to the third heaven later prayed: that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened. (See Ephesians 1:18)

The 8/16ths you're halfway there has multiple meanings for me, but has one universal meaning for all. The distance between the head and the heart is about 16 inches. At that time in my life, I was only halfway between the two. This is why it is said we must make the 16 inch journey of eternity from the head to the heart. As short as that distance is, sometimes it takes many years of traveling to understand this from the inside.

How do we make that journey?

It is through the development and practice of interior prayer. Some might call this the prayer of the heart. There are many different expressions of this with names such as Centering Prayer, Silent Prayer, Breathing Prayer, etc. All these are ways by which we go beyond the mind (with all the ways it tries to figure things out and think it knows or doesn’t know) and leads us into the heart where true knowing resides. Christ resides in the heart, for Eternity itself was placed there in you.

“For eternity has been placed in the human heart, yet humans cannot fathom with their mind what God has done from beginning to end.” - Ecclesiastes 3:11

In 2020 I shared a prophetic vision someone received about the coming decades with a unique description of what God was doing in each decade. The decade of 2020 was to be known as “The Decade of Rest.” The man who shared this word had died in 2014 so his accuracy was highlighted by what the world experienced in 2020, which was essentially a worldwide Sabbath. Sabbath means “to stop” or “to rest.” The question remains: Did we allow those lockdowns and the stopping of life as we knew it to bring us to the real meaning of Rest God was inviting us into, contrary to how much the world was perceiving it only through medical and political lenses?

“Therefore, since the promise of entering his rest still stands, let us be careful that none of you be found to have fallen short of it. For we also have had the good news proclaimed to us, just as they did; but the message they heard was of no value to them, because they did not share the faith of those who were listening. Now we who have believed enter that rest. Therefore since it still remains for some to enter that rest, and since those who formerly had the good news proclaimed to them did not go into it: Today if you hear His Voice, do not harden your hearts.” - Hebrews 4:1-3,6-7

We are now half-way through this Decade of Rest and the invitation remains. If you have not found deep internal rest in yourself, it does not take long to get there, for the journey is only 16 inches and eternity is in your heart. If it has been hardened, you can open the heart by developing a practice of interior prayer. You will start to notice profound changes in a matter of months, typically noticed first not by yourself, but by those around you. The key is to establish a practice and stay with it, rather than a mere new year’s resolution that typically does not last. Think of this as a practice for the entire decade and the rest of your life, to find…the rest of your life.

Real rest comes to us in our weaknesses. I can attest that my life is not easy and I often feel weak as a parent. Our youngest child is on the autistic spectrum and has been one of the greatest challenges of our family’s life, and of course, one of the greatest blessings. Our oldest has struggled majorly with having an autistic brother and is coming into his own challenging teenage years. It is not easy, but in my weaknesses, I have been developing interior prayer for years that centers me in the midst of chaotic moments. You are not alone in your struggles and there is a way to find rest in the midst of any storm. Your storms might be perceived as greater or lesser than mine, but we all have troubles in this life. It is interior prayer that anchors us through this life and into the next. It renews our mind as we move further away from being conformed by the distracted, entertained, and hurting world into a world that is focused, centered, and a healing presence for others, even in our weakness.

When we are weak, God is strong. This remains true whether we believe it or not.

As we meet God in our heart through interior practices, it is quite common for the mind to express itself like I did in my out of body experience, saying things like: “I am going to die!” or “I am not in control!” It is true there is a part of you that will die and is not in control, which is a main cause of suffering to begin with when we avoid such realities. Jesus said if we want to find our real life in God we must come to God and die, but it is not our real/true self that dies, it is our false self that was conditioned or shaped by the world systems we are not to be conformed to.

This includes many religious systems who claim to speak for God.

Much religion uses rules, regulations, and outer teachings thinking that is what informs and transforms people. Most of these institutions are afraid of inner transformation so they wash the outside of their cups (lives) seeking to appear to look the part, rather than washing the inside of the cup through interior prayer and actual communion with God. They even warn against those who tell you God is found within yourself and they might even tell you there is nothing good in you. This leads to cognitive dissonance and attachments to outer knowledge that never satisfies. Living Waters are found within your heart, even if they have been damned up through religious or cultural thinking. So we must come to the waters and drink, and even if those waters have been dirtied, a simple practice of interior prayer allows the dirt to settle to the bottom and your real life in God becomes clearer and clearer. Jesus says:

“Go into the inner room of your heart and close the door on the perceptions of the outer world. There you meet with God, your Father, who is in secret. Your Father who sees in secret will reward you with in your now opened life. It is there you find rest for your souls, for where I Am, there you really are.”

Here are some practices for you as we enter the last half of this Decade of Rest. There are many forms of these but the basic concepts are all you need to begin.

Centering Prayer

1. Choose a sacred word as a symbol of your intention to consent to God’s presence and action within.

(Pick a word like Hope, Love, Peace, etc. Don’t fixate on choosing the right word as this is not a mantra but only a symbol of your intention to be silent and still in allowing God to be with you and in you. You will only use the word when you start to engage with thoughts instead of allowing yourself to just be. This is about intention rather than attention. And yes you will have thoughts, so don’t think you are doing it wrong when you have them, and don’t think you are doing it right when you don’t, just practice resting in God.)

2. Sitting comfortably and with eyes closed, settle briefly, and silently introduce the sacred word as the symbol of your consent to God’s presence and action within.

3. When engaged with your thoughts, return ever-so-gently to the sacred word. (That ever-so-gently is important: be kind to yourself, especially if your thoughts seem to be the master of your life.)

4. At the end of the practice, remain in silence with eyes closed for a few minutes.

It can be helpful to set a timer, no more than 20 minutes and no less than 5. Just start somewhere even if it is one minute! The only way you can fail is by not doing it. In the long run, practice at least 20 minutes a day and typically no more than 30 minutes per session. You can build up to at least twice a day with morning and “early” evening being an excellent rhythm. Doing longer sessions too late in the evening can introduce a lot of energy, which can affect sleep for some. In the beginning it might feel like you are doing nothing, and as empty or foolish as this might feel, the deeper promise will be revealed in you should you stick with it. Don’t worry if you feel like you are returning to your sacred word constantly, with practice, God will become known in you beyond thoughts and beyond worry. The practice of letting go is a muscle that will be strengthened with time.

Your life is like a clear water bottle containing dirt (flesh) and water (spirit). If you shake the bottle, the entire bottle becomes cloudy from the dirt and unable to see through. Many of you already feel your life is cloudy or shaken up. As you practice interior prayer, you are consenting to surrender your life with God and the dirt begins to settle. Your life and the Spirit that sustains it eventually becomes clearer and more transparent as you live more and more centered. You gradually live from rest rather than for it. Eve and the Spirit, truly come to companion and help you, from the inside out, into your everyday life.

Breathing Prayer

Breathing prayer is the same concept but using different breathing techniques. The simplest method is focusing on your breath, rather than your thoughts or sacred word. Of course, you can, silently within, use the sacred word as you focus on your breath instead of thoughts.

Another simple method is the 4-7-8 technique. Inhale through your nose quietly for 4 seconds, then hold your breath for 7 seconds, and then exhale slowly through your mouth for 8 seconds. Rinse and repeat.

One more is simply taking deep breaths, or even fast rapid breaths that get your heart rate moving a bit. Then pause to breathe normal, while resting as you focus your intention in simply being.

You are learning to be with God in your body.

My out of body experience is shared to help us lean to be with God in our body. Remember, “8/16ths, you’re half-way there.” It is to move from the head to the heart and learn the embodiment of God in us. This is the incarnational reality of God’s and our own, existence and being. In fact, many unconsciously do not know they are saying the name of God with every inhale and exhale right now. As we become conscious of this, “Yah-Weh” becomes the familiar sound we can hear, but deeper still, we know the meaning of the name from within. Yah in the inhale and weh on the exhale, leading us straight to our heart.

The benefits of these practices deal with all kinds of trauma, anxiety, and spiritual ignorance as we learn that the body does indeed keep the score, but the Spirit rules the game. You will find yourself coming deeper and deeper into rest, which will transform your entire life, regardless of anything that happens outside of you. This is God’s strength in your weakness and is real spiritual power.

So may you enter God’s rest and develop interior prayer practices for doing so. If you’ve read this article, you’re halfway there. All that is left is to go and learn (practice) what this means.

In Love and in the Decade of Rest,

-PH

16 is often represented as the number of Love. “8/16ths, you’re halfway there” is about a journey into the depths of Love within our heart. We are instructed to live from this heart of Love, since Love, aka God, comes from the heart. Interior prayer leads to receiving, knowing, and allowing God’s Unconditional Love to live through us and extend to the outer world. The inner knowing of God is to cover the earth as the waters cover the sea, one soul…and breath… at a time.