I Can Take It!

   

     When I began this blog nearly two-and-a-half years ago, it was in response to a prompting that I needed to use my modest gift of writing to open a dialogue among us normal, average Americans.  I have never claimed to be an expert on anything, but I have also never been content to sit on the sidelines and let others form my opinions for me.  At the same time, I did not request or require that anyone agree with me.  I just felt that there had to be lots of people like me that were waking up to new and chilling prospects, with a desire to make others more aware.
     All I knew, at the time that I started writing, was that things seemed very wrong in the country that I loved so much.  It also became apparent that things were getting off track in my church, too.  I found myself no longer satisfied with "following the crowd" and was filled with a deep need to not only get to know my God better, but to discover what He would have us know about these times we live in.
     I undertook this project, knowing that not everyone would be interested in the same topics as I was, and most certainly, not everyone would share my faith, which is at the heart of this blog.  But I knew that it was something that I was supposed to do; that somehow it would become part of the purpose that God had intended for my life.
     There have been days that I'm sure I bored you to tears.  And I know there have been days some of you were saying, "Enough with the 'Biblical worldview' and your conservative, Christian values!"  Some friends have asked, "How do you do it everyday?"  I'm not sure if they are asking how I find the time, or if they are really wondering why I think what I have to say is important enough that anyone would read it everyday.  Believe me, there are days when I wonder all that myself!  But it's not that I value my own opinion so much, as it is that God keeps giving me affirmations that it's not time to quit.
     On the days when I am so mind-numbing weary, or feel that there's nothing He wants me to impart or that you might possibly find interesting, I will receive a comment in which someone reaches out and lets me know that God has used me to speak to them.  How can I stop writing when I receive a comment that says, "I was really feeling fearful (or depressed or hopeless) today, and your words were exactly what I needed.  I no longer feel alone in my feelings and I know that God is in control!"  You should just know that they aren't my words.  I am just His instrument and we are encouraging each other, as He strengthens us.
     Two-and-a-half years is a long time to stay focused and listen for God's promptings.  Sometimes He has whispered to talk to you about what is going on in world events; making it increasingly clear that rebellion against Him and persecution of His followers is on the rise.  Other times He urges me to talk about the decline of our culture, our society and our morality.  That's always good for a negative comment or two from the godless who misquote the Bible and attempt to enlighten me about what Jesus was really teaching.  Lately, God has pushed me to reveal the deeper understandings of His Word; beliefs that were accepted by early Christians who had the benefit of first or second-hand accounts of Jesus and the apostles teachings --- beliefs that have been modified, altered, revised, and even eliminated in the last two thousand years by organized religion and men who sought to distort the Truth.
     I can't tell you why God has chosen this time in my life to reveal this deeper comprehension that was concealed for years by the various churches I have attended.  But I can tell you that He has removed me from mainstream Christianity, and while many fellow Christians think PLW and I have wandered too far off the reservation, we are no longer satisfied with conforming to the traditional and comfortable "box" they live in.   We can agree and support each other on the basis of our faith, but I want more of what God is offering me, and less of the lukewarm and conventional instruction from the Church.
     All that being said, I am grateful for this opportunity to share my thoughts and my opinions.  As I promised myself at the beginning of this adventure, I will go where God leads me; all the while knowing that my writing will not be accepted or applauded by everyone.  That is not my goal.  In fact, as my readership has expanded, I am receiving more negative and critical comments -- some of them are so hateful and despicable that I choose to delete them; they offer nothing to the discourse.  I have been accused of being a hater, crazy, a religious zealot, a right-wing nut, and biblically bizarre.  It's a small price to pay for being allowed to present my message of God around the world.
     How much longer He will inspire this blog, I do not know.  I apologize in advance for those days when I can't hear His voice very clear; you will know it by the quality of my words.  But this much I do know ... this blog exists to glorify my God and as a means to encourage all His children in these difficult times.  And I will do it to the best of my God-given abilities until He whispers, "It's time to stop."  Until then, thank you for being a part of this journey with me, and together we will continue to follow His lead.

Isaiah 30:21      And your ears shall hear a word behind you, saying, “This is the way, walk in it,”  ....