Whoah... Like, Revelation.

I started surfing again. It's been a long time, but I managed to get up a few times Saturday. It was a good feeling.
While I was out there trying not to look like a retard, I realized that there is a philosophy that can be derived from surfing.


Ready for it?
Ok.. here goes:

1st. Keep your eyes on the horizon, but keep your mind on your surroundings. You may get bumped by a shark if you're not paying attention. (personal experience speaking)

2nd. Don't just jump at the first wave you see. The better one is usually right behind the one you want.

3rd. Paddle! Two reasons... You can't just go with the current... You'll end up in the rocks. If you expect to catch a wave, you're gonna have to work for it.

4th. Balance. You must find balance or you'll spend all your time swimming instead of surfing. Balance is the key to life. Too much / not enough of this or that and you'll either be overloaded or empty.

5th. Enjoy the ride. If you spend ALL of your time focused on the little things that make up surfing, you miss the important thing... you're surfing dude! Enjoy it!

Believe it or not, this parallels life. So go back, read this again, and as Mr. Myagi says, "Go find balance Daniel-San"!

In Search Of...

This is not Leonard Nimoy's In Search Of...
This is something a little more different.
This is more of an "In Search Of.. Relevance" I guess.

A friend of mine told me about a blog he read yesterday.
It saddened me greatly.
I found it this morning.

It spoke of how people are criticizing the "Emergent" churches of today and calling them, "The new Liberal Left".

Oy vey.

Emergent churches are the newest trend in Christianity that is trying to unify people as just people... Regardless of how they worship God... or even if they don't. Cuz God still loves them.

New Faith has chosen a different word to describe our movement... Engaging. We Engage the culture, our love for one another, and our love for God.
My take on things... We are all God's children. Even if we don't believe it. We all deserve an opportunity to worship God, no matter who we are, how we dress, or how we choose to worship. If that makes me Emergent, then I'm Emergent.
The way I can wrap my head around that is simple.
If my two sons decide one day that they don't have a father and tell everyone that they don't have a father, they'll still have one... cuz it's me. No matter how hard they try to "believe" that I don't exist, I'm still here.
We cannot will God into, or out of, existence. He just is.

All that being said, I think there are ultra-religious people out there who are threatened by the way things are changing. They like things the way they are and have decided that anything different is wrong. Instead of spending their time showing people God's love, they waste their time building fences between "their kind" and "the others" and then demonize those on the other side of the fence.

If you read the book of Acts, you'll find out that there was this guy named Saul who felt the same way. These new "Christians" were changing the face of religion and the religious leaders didn't like it. After a conversation with Jesus on the road to Damascus, Saul felt differently.
Yay...

Maybe that's all the critics need is a closer look at what's happening. I find it hard to understand why people can't see that God is FAR BEYOND what we can possibly understand. If He wants to shake things up, I say we should stay out of the way. If you're not part of the solution, don't be part of the problem.

A message to the religious...
Your way used to work. But it's not working anymore. There are people out there who need to know about God's love for them. Unfortunately, they have body piercings, tattoos, and don't wear suits. Time to start reaching out to them with love... not judgment.

Wait a sec... We're not supposed to judge people anyway. I'm pretty sure I read that somewhere.

The Voice of God

I was reading an unanswered post on West Metro COG's Forums section.
They asked:
1. How do you hear the voice of God?
2. What do you do if you are no longer actively hearing His voice?
3. How do you determine that what you hear is actually the voice of God?

These questions perked my interest and got my thought juices flowing.
While I was mopping up the thought juices from the floor, I had some ideas.

Immediately upon reading, Matthew, Chapter 13 came to mind:
The verse, "He who has ears to hear, let him hear." rung true in my heart.

Ears to hear...

I guess one could argue that anyone who has ears has the ability to hear.
This isn't always true though. My sister used to work with hearing impaired children... maybe she still does, but I can't keep track. I guarantee she would challenge that argument.

I think what Jesus was saying was, "If you've been listening to me and understand what I've told you so far, you'll understand this... If you don't believe what I've been saying all this time, you're definitely not going to understand this."

He then went on to explain to His disciples that not everyone is going to "get it".
Only those who are willing to hear will truly hear. Those who are content with ear tickling will just have tickled ears. Their hearts will not be touched.

So... How do we hear this elusive voice of God?
John 10:27 says, "My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me."

I wish I had a simple answer. I can only speak for how I hear God.
I personally have never heard an audible voice that made me look around wondering who just spoke.
Though I think it'd be neat, I don't think I need to be freaked out like that.
As I am a thinker, I believe God speaks to me through my thoughts.
Just like a jingle from a cheesy commercial,

*Chicken pot, chicken pot, chicken pot pie!!!*

Yeah... stuff like that.
I'll get a thought that runs through my head that refuses to be silenced.
Sometimes it's a scripture, sometimes it's an excerpt from a message I heard or a devotion I've read. Sometimes, it's a challenging word from a friend.

Either way, I think about it, meditate on it, and challenge it.
Once I've lined it up with God's word, I call it the voice of God.
Caveats:
If it boosts my ego, I call it pride.
If it causes me to look down on another, I call it judgment.
If it distracts me from God, I call it confusion.

None of these things, to me, is the voice of God.
However, if it challenges me to grow or let go of my own personal beliefs and miniscule understanding, or if it challenges me to work hard and teaches me a value I did not have, I then believe it is the voice of God.

I believe we can dull our senses with overstimulation or apathy. These things alone won't deafen us from God's voice, but can make us ignore it.
Continued ignorance of God's voice, I believe, will eventually deafen us.

God, please don't ever let me become deaf to your word. Kick me back on track if You see me slipping.