markdohle

We are a priestly people, so we learn as we age I believe, to incorporate all into our worship and prayers. peace mark

We learn to love God alone, not always looking to ourselves and how we are doing. Thank you. Peace mark

Well said, thank you. Peace Mark

It is about the need to sit and be still and be in the present. It is also about seeing the loneliness of our journey: And in the naked light I saw Ten thousand people, maybe more People talking without speaking People hearing without listening People writing songs that voices never share No one dare Disturb the sound of silence I also believe it is about listening to God who is other. For God darkness and light are the same Ps 139. When we see the emptiness of life, how all that we do, build and work for end in death, it can be a call to go deeper or one can give in to despair. So I would suppose that this song and what it means is in the eye of the beholder. Of course like above, I being the beholder , this says more about me than what the singers actually mean. Peace Mark

I do believe that one day there will be some Nuclear exchange, it is inevitable, but I doubt Putin would be that stupid.....it is hard to know public figures because the press is often so biased on how they present people. More fantasy than we believe. The problem, which is the fantasy part. peace mark

Our prayer changes a we age I of course can only speak from my experience when it comes to prayer, but I believe that the inner life as we age takes on a new dimension that is unknown by most people before they reach what we called ‘old age’. People who have a chronic disease from a young age or of course an exception in many cases, as can be seen in the numerous stories about the journey of children and young adults with their struggle. I believe that one reason old age is often feared is because many illusions are taken away from us which can often be frightening, at least in the beginning. My first thirty years flowed by slowly compared to how I experience time now. When in my twenties, when I looked at older people, I sensed that they were at a place I was not at, and to tell you the truth on an emotional level, I never expected to become ‘one of them’. I was strong, in control, or so I thought but who I am now and who I was then is vastly different. It is not because of anything I have done on my own, it is just life, and it hones us, taking away what is no longer necessary for our journey. As we age, it is learned (hopefully) that the word ‘pilgrim’ actually does pertain to us. We are in movement, never really finding a place of rest, for we are on a journey toward what we don’t know. Yet we long for something deeper that all the years we have lived have only deepened that thirst. We are called, all of us, though it is often not thought about by many, to make an inner journey, an often painful harrowing one. We experience life on two levels. On a communal one and then most importantly, on a subjective level which can help us to grow, or make us prisoners to our limiting subjectivity. Or what I like to say our “personal infallibility”. We often forget that our spiritual life is what feeds our relationship with the world around us. Christians are called to know themselves. The whole splinter in the eye of my neighbor and the log in mine cover that pretty clearly for me. To not judge also points to the reality of how we project our hidden aspects of ourselves and like a movie it is projected on those around us. The less we know ourselves the more we will fight, hate and belittle others……when it fact it is fed by our own self loathing and hatred. So to love our neighbor as ourselves takes on a whole different meaning if pondered. To be forgiven of sin, of an actual act that was caused by our will, something strong and free, is not magic. Just join a 12 step program if you want to know what purgatory is. We are forgiven, yet the habits are still three, the self wounding still festers and our need to make amends is also needed…..all or forms of purification. To be forgiven, to convert, to allow the grace of God to do its work is a dance, a difficult one, that only becomes easier as we grow in the love and grace and healing bestow on us by grace. The gift of mercy is free, yet the healing takes time and yes the willingness to be open the healing fire of the Holy Spirit.

Yes ;-) very true. Yet he is good at lining up, I will say that for him, one of the best. Peace Mark

Yes, but we are called anyway my friend. Perhaps the seeds planted will take root in God's time hopefully. Peace mark

Like many topics of this nature, it is an endless round going nowhere. I do think however that this topic shows how one can use scripture to back up an image of God that actually goes against the revelation of Jesus Christ. peace mark

You have brought up some valid points LadyKay. It is true that the only way that abortion can be stopped is by Christians truly living up to their commitment and reaching out to others, helping them and seeking to help them get employment etc. Government help can only do so much and in fact at times actually hinders many from getting jobs and education. There are many people on welfare who need it, there are also those who do in fact 'play' the system. The problem is when we judge all by the worst, so those who really need help and in getting help will eventually be able to get theirs lives in order are stigmatized unfairly. As Christians we are called to seek to help those we know, and if enough do that then change may come. Even if it does not, we should still seek to help others. I am pro-life, but I doubt abortion will go away, nor do I think a law will stop it. Yet it can be lessened by our love and support of those we know who are thinking of abortions.....and yes it may mean that we need to help them in many ways. Yet to depend too much on government is a mistake, in the end it can only make matters worse. Also many who get abortions are not poor, they do it for purely financial or career reasons. In the end we are to show compassion for all and it is only by doing that can change come through our dependence on the grace of Jesus who is the only one who can fill our hearts with love and compassion for all of our brothers and sisters......a hard thing to do, a real death to self. Peace Mark

God’s mercy is infinite beyond human experience and understanding I love the stories in the New Testament that Jesus used to get a point across and I spend a lot of time thinking about them. One reason is I believe that when I think of God’s love as shown in Christ Jesus, it is something that I will only be able to understand slowly as my own experience of his mercy towards me deepens. All are loved by the Father and all that he creates he loves and so we are all called to a deep loving relationship with the Trinity. The Story of the Prodigal son can be looked at from different angles, below is one of them. We give retreats here on the ‘Mercy of God’, and this is one parable I use most often and from different perspectives. Mercy Sunday is the Sunday after Easter, which is when we have the retreat. It seems to be a custom here at ‘Worthy Forums’ where lots of scripture is used, quote after quote. I tend not to do that, so I hope it does not bother anyone. The world our heart dwells in So the “Prodigal son” is by himself, alone, bereft of friends, hungry and literally living in a pig-sty. Who knows how long he has been away from his family and probably never thought about them, or when he did, it was perhaps in mockery and disdain. Being thoughtless, he used his money to buy friends and indulged in pleasures that would keep him from thinking any deeper than where the next party or pleasure will come from. It most likely was a whirl of mindless activity and fun. That is how he ended up where he was. Not poor, but in degradation. Being forced to reflect about his predicament, he started thinking differently about his Father. Perhaps not in a loving way, but beginning to understand that he could influence him, or manipulate him into allowing him to come home. He had a script, a good one, which would forestall any indignation his father would have. He would simply admit that he was a bad son, and he only deserved to become his slave. So by disarming his father by admitting guilt he would at least have a place to live, food to eat and his living quarters would be a step up from where he was. So in fact, he just needed a place to crash for a more or less length of time. Since he had such a callow/narcissistic heart, he perhaps thought that all men and women were like him. We can only live in the world that our heart dwells in. His father of course did not play along; in fact he would have been unable to. His heart was in a very different place. A place where his selfish son would not yet be able to understand, if in fact he ever was as he aged. So let us go into the prodigal son’s mind and what would we see as he makes his journey home? I guess the first thing would be ‘fear’ of his father’s justified anger, something he could not evade, his responsibility for his actions, which in fact could have led to his death. By asking for his inheritance he in reality told his father that he wished him gone, dead, no more, out of his life and world. So it was quite the deed. So if he was fearful of anger, as would be expected, we can imagine that on his long journey back home he had his story well planned out and his play acting honed to a fine point. Of course what happened was something else entirely. Something so unexpected that I have no doubt the son was rendered speechless by what he would consider an unforeseen turn of events. Yet for the father, he was merely responding out of his true center; that of a loving concerned father for the welfare of his son. No doubt the father understood his son, his lack of love, or his inability to feel real sorry, yet he burst upon him, embraced him, killed the fatted calf and had a feast in his honor. In other words the father made a complete fool of himself. Yet, there was someone to be feared. It was the other son. Who was also young, inexperienced and perhaps jealous of his brother even before he left home. The second thing the son should have feared was the place his own heart dwelt in. For no matter how much the father loved him, forgave him, embraced him, killed the fatted calf for him, put fine robes on him and a ring…even after all that…. if his heart was not touched, or changed, for all practical purposes he was still in the pig-sty. For we can only live where our heart dwells….It is our world, our reality, our heaven or hell. Only by understanding the father’s love would the son’s heart be able to change. For love is a call into a bigger world, outside the confines of a barricaded heart. What happened in the end? Did the brothers reconcile? Did the younger son grow to understand the fathers love and to respond to it? Or did the brothers grow in their alienation from one another. Did the younger son after a time of rest, yet again, take ‘advantage’ of his father’s compassion and ask for more money? Perhaps he went out and died in a ditch somewhere. None of that however changes the love the father had for his sons, no matter the outcome. Love is a gift, a grace, if it is not embraced, accepted, then that choice not to open ones heart, is to dwell in hell. So what is to be feared? The father’s love, always open, ready to embrace the beloved? Well no. The elder brother, who is not much different than his younger brother? Well yes, he should be feared. What is to be most feared however is the younger son’s unresponsive heart, which is what is to be feared. God is greater than our hearts, yet if we ‘choose’ to keep it closed…..well yes that is to be feared. For the most loving of Father’s will say in the end to us all “My son, my beloved daughter, your will be done”. Our freedom is our greatest gift, it gives us dignity, but it is a fearful thing indeed.

A loving relationship with Jesus, being open to what the Spirit shows you in your heart that needs repentance and healing and a deepening trust no matter what one feels. Salvation is a gift, we each choose to accept it or not. Jesus could only work with those who had faith, or through those who had faith for their loved ones. Sometimes we can only pray: Lord I believe, help my unbelief. Matt 9:24. That is enough, the Lord will always supply what we need, not what we want. Peace mark

I like that, very concise.

The reason people fall away is that many have a very immature understanding how God works in our lives. There is nothing to show in the New Testament that our lives will be easy or without problems. Even the very rich have deep problems that they must deal with. Look at the life of Christ, he suffered greatly. Not only in his passion, but because of his deep love and compassion his heart was in deep pain over the state of peoples souls, hearts and lives every day of his life. That is why he sought them out, not to make their lives easy, but to give direction and hope and yes the salvation that all humans long for, or our hearts are made for infinite love and nothing in this world can ever trump that. The cross of Christ Jesus is light, because in the end it leads us to deeper healing and the growth in love for self and others. Faith is not about magic, but about embracing life in all of it joy and suffering while being united the Christ Jesus. It is about a deep loving, trusting relationship with the Holy Trinity. God Bless you my friend. Peace mark

To talk of sin implies 'choice', you take that away. I admire you knowledge of scripture, but one reason Christianity is such a Tower of Babel today is that everyone and his grandmother is an expert on scripture and find any number of quotes to back up their position. As such, the purpose God has appointed sinners to exist is so that he may demonstrate his wrath and make known his power and judgments, It also says that God wills the salvation of all.......one thing about this kind of quotes and theology, it always brought out by those who are 'elect'.....Jesus must weep at us. Thank God, we are judged by Him and not by any human being. We make salvation as something like belonging to a "country club" and only those predestined by birth can enter. If we understood the love that God as for us as revealed in Jesus Christ, we would not speak so lightly about hell and who goes there......we are told not to judge for a reason, we are really bad at it. May I make a suggestion. find quotes that go against what you have stated above, and then post your thoughts on them. Peace Mark

Yes, thank you ;-). Peace Mark

I believe that the more thoughtful we are and you seem very thoughtful, the more we see our deeper inner struggles. So you understand the struggle with doubt. Many people have doubt but repress it and then they can come across as defensive and angry. Doubt can encourage to go deeper into our faith experience and to study the Word as well as other writers who have gone through what you seem to be doing. In this world, faith is needed, it gives us eyes to see and slowly we grow in our faith, then we see with the eyes of Christ Jesus, and our heart becomes his Heart, our arms his and our feet to minister and do help others are his as well. Your are blessed. You are also a very good writer, I enjoyed reading your post. Hope to see many more. In Christ Jesus love and peace Mark

This is a very painful topic. I do believe that abortion is murder, but the culprit is more than the mother. It is the families, as well as the men who believe that being a 'player' is what it means to be a man.....and at the same time showing contempt towards the woman they have 'played'. As Christians we are called to proclaim the sacredness of life, as well as seeking to heal the women who have had abortions. I see my share. What I find reprehensible is having an abortion for career reasons and then bragging about it on national TV. This seems very twisted and I don't understand it at all. The way our culture is today, a law is not going to stop this tidal wave of murder. It is only by a change from the bottom up that change can come. Which it may not happen at all....yet we should always gently proclaim the truth about abortion. It is a sin often committed only once. I have heard that there are women who abort more than one child, or even many times, but I believe they are rare. In the Stats, women all over the board get abortions or seek to convince someone in to getting one. That goes for women who are christian from all denominations. Again, blame goes way beyond one women's choice. Sin is personal, but it also binds whole cultures into slavery and fear.

In prison or out, the struggle the same (What I have learned from writing prisoners) No matter where we find ourselves we still have struggles and are in many ways imprisoned by fear and habits that keep us chained from the freedom of the children of God. In writing prisoners I am learning that as far as their everyday struggles are concerned, and their desire to serve God, they are no different from me and in my own path toward loving God with my whole heart, mind and soul and in loving my neighbor as myself. It is in our humility, that we draw close to God When that is missing we are doomed to repeating the same failures and sins over and over again. By growing in self knowledge, we become freer for we know what we need to bring before the Lord. Until we learn that, the Lord will let us fail until we learn. Below is a letter I shared with a prisoner I have been writing for quite a while and I have come to have a deep respect and caring for him. His first name is Roger; please pray for him and those in prison with him. Dear Roger, Thnk you for sharing so deeply in your last letter. One thing about life my friend is that there will always be a struggle of some sort. Our inner chaos and the chaos of the outer world often meet at a crossroads and we simply have to choose if we are able, or to work towards the ability to decide. And yes, it is often the same struggle, or one of a few others. Relationships are the main area of most lives where that struggle seems to be the strongest. Our freedom is not as great as we think it is, yet though growth, getting up and understanding our cycles we can slowly learn from them and be more mindful of our weaknesses as well as strengths. That is why self-knowledge is all about. It is our relationship with Christ Jesus that fills the emptiness in our souls with his light. The deeper we are rooted in him, the more we are able to embrace the many ups and downs of our lives. For no matter where you are, be it in prison, or outside, or even if your life is filled with every good thing, you would still struggle with something. We are finite beings with the calling and appetite for the Infinite. That is why all of our plans to escape our inner pain through self destructive ways of self medication lead only to deeper pain and emptiness. Yet for many, it seems they never learn…..well…..that is until they hit some sort of bottom and backed into a very small tight corner. For it is there that grace often finds us and helps us to open up our hearts. It can be a zig zag process yet the Lord seeks only to bring us home, to heal us and to bring us to the understanding of His deep love for all of us. In that we learn compassion for self and others. Praying for those there in prison with you and especially for those who bother you the most, is a good way to deal with others aspects of ourselves that may seek revenge, or worse, on our ‘enemies’. It is in our contact with Christ Jesus that healing comes and we learn how much he has forgiven us, it makes it easier (but not easy) to forgive and love others. For often people are caught up in dramas they have no inkling of. It is all they know. I am not much further along. Yet to know that I am loved by God in Christ Jesus, allows me to draw on that love and to not fear whatever is shown me. It is all lifted up to the Infinite Mercy. Life goes by in a ‘blink’ my friend. Each day seems permanent yet we know it is not. Each moment passes, which is why they are all precious. No matter what moment you are in, or no matter what you are experiencing, everything is there for you to turn to God, to be with God no matter what you are experiencing, and in that you learn to love God for Himself, and not for what you can get out of Him…..slowly Christ Jesus leads us to ‘Agape’ love. This can only be reached by a heart touched, consumed by grace, intoxicated by God’s love. This love is often hidden from us, but when we choose what is right and good, it is a sign that we are truly rooted in the Agape/Love of God. It is quite a dance but one worth having with God. Everything in your life will come out for the good if you turn it over to the Lord. Bring before Christ Jesus all that is in you; your struggles, your failures and your sins, your past regrets and your fears and anxious concerns and place them in the chalice and offer them up to the Lord. It is fear that keeps us chained in our inner cells, it is Christ Jesus who wishes to free us, for as he said: “Fear is useless what is needed is trust”.

Grace is grace, if it could be earned it would not be grace. It is grace that gives us the desire to die to self, to love others and to pray for others and to minister to them. It is all gift, and that gift should be shared. Peace mark

When is harsh treatment acceptable when sharing the Gospel? Humans understand many human behaviors simply because we are all capable of it. It is easy to point to others and say they are being ‘over the top’ in how they are relating to others than it is to see it in ourselves. For instance, when someone is called ‘narrow minded’, it is often used on those who think differently on a subject. It is a defensive stance; being narrow minded has nothing to do with it. Though the person using that insulting term is trying to manipulate their opponent and make them selves look good. So being ‘open minded’, means that the opponent now agrees with me. I do believe there is more than one way to witness. Also when we witness we are planting seeds, for as St. Paul says in 1 Cor. 3:7: So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. I think the Golden Rule applies here. I don’t like being attacked, nor do I like someone throwing scriptures at me to back up their own agenda or belief. Since I don’t like that, I try not to force that on others. However to share with others the love and mercy of Christ Jesus, to let them know of the free gift of grace is always good……when it becomes aggressive then you lose the listener and even make it harder for them to listen to other Christians in the future. It goes with any group, each member represents the whole. It is unfair, but that is how we are. A mean loud mouth atheist will make many believe that all atheists are like that…when in fact that is not the case. Not all are called to be teachers. I do believe that many who go around ‘preaching’ should not do so, for in the end it is not the Holy Spirit but their own spirit that is spewing out contempt on others. Christians are the ones who are to be persecuted for their faith; we are not called to hound others because they are not Christians. If Christ Jesus truly lives in us and we have died and he is one with us, then this should show in how we treat others with the dignity that they deserve, because all humans are made in the image and likeness of God. When we ‘hound’ others, we turn them into stereotypes and overlook the uniqueness of each human being. Christ Jesus ‘saw’ others, we are called to do that as well, to have compassion for all, love for all and to pray for all that we meet. We are after a royal priesthood, offering prayers as our living sacrifice to the Father. But you are not like that, for you are a chosen people. You are royal priests, a holy nation, and God’s very own possession. As a result, you can show others the goodness of God, for he called you out of the darkness into his wonderful light.—1 Peter 2:9 I am truthful about my faith with others. I share my experiences of the living Lord and his mercy, but I don’t demand that they change, that is the Holy Spirit's work, not mine. It is not about saving anyone, but about opening up hearts. When we are harsh, or judging in ways that we are called not to, it is then that hearts close and become bitter towards Christ Jesus and Christians in general. I believe it is tragic and much of what Christians have to put up with today comes from Christians persecuting others in the past for being different and in a minority position.

Yes he was harsh with people like us who know the book, know who is saved and who is not.......the weak and those who were outcast were treated with gentleness by him, but people like us, who have the book are often more like the Pharisees than Jesus. Self righteousness is the spiritual disease of those who are elect. By the way, this is not directed at you ;-).........just an observation. Peace Mark

You have humility, I am sure you do fine my friend ;-). Peace Mark

I do think that the way 'truth' is spoken will be either in love, or in anger and a desire to control. Christians if they are persecuted are to be because of their love of Christ Jesus and not because they act like followers of "Westboro Baptist Church". Many Christians have anger issues as well as the will to power, they cover that over with the phrase 'speaking the truth in love'. Good question, hope you get a lot of responses. Peace Mark