Back in the '80's, my Father took me to hear this man speak. He was a local Christian celebrity in the Pittsburgh Area and Radio personality for WPIT FM. His name was Dick Hatch. I remember him being very genuine and humble. Charismatic and clever. For the life of me, I don't remember his sermon. But I do remember his joke. It was the first "Grown Up" joke I ever committed to memory. The Joke goes something like this... A blind bunny rabbit is hopping through the forest when he bumps into a snake. "I'm so sorry!", says the bunny rabbit. "You see, I am blind since birth, lost from my family, and I don't know what I am." The snake replies to the rabbit, "Wow! What a coincidence! You see, I too am blind since birth, lost from my family and I don't know what I am either." "Wow! That is a coincidence!" says the rabbit. "Hey, I have an idea!" the rabbit exclaimed. "Why don't we sniff around each other and then tell each other what we are?" The snake pauses for a moment, "That's a fantastic idea!" the snake agreed. The snake sniffs around the rabbit, stops. Thinks for a moment. "Okay! I got it! You have long ears, big feet, a bushy tail, and a wiggly nose. You're a Bunny Rabbit!" "AMAZING! I have waited my entire life to know that! Thank you!" The rabbit gratefully confesses. Now the rabbit sniffs around the snake. He stops. Scratches his head. Sniffs around two more times. "Okay." the rabbit says reluctantly. " I think I've got it. You have beady eyes, a fork tongue and slimy skin. You're a Tele-Evangelist!" As funny and messed up as the punch line is, I think I have finally figured out why I have committed that joke to memory for 30+ years. Firstly, the snake. A lot of the time, people don't realize they are a snake; until someone points it out to them. In their minds, they are oblivious. The same goes for the rabbit. Aimlessly hopping around and bumping into every darn tree in the forest until they can find the path. If they ever find it at all. It doesn't matter if you're the rabbit or the snake, we're all blind without God. God tells us who and what we are. He leads us, guides us and helps us to find our way. Psalm 119:105 "Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path." We can always help those who are still blind find the path too. Sometimes, we can be the lamp, that God uses to help others. Remember, Jesus had this awesome trick he did,.... making the Blind Man see. It's kind of his thing. God Bless, and C.Y.H.
0 Comments
There are times in life, that I find myself needing a good swift kick in the pants. Or, a slap in the face. Funny, how God uses the actions of others, or events in ones life to achieve this "tough love" task. Today it just happened to be the message and scripture of my Pastors sermon at church. It has been one of those weeks. Murphy's Law of "...what can go wrong, will go wrong..." was in full gear the whole time. My wife's Grandfather had a stroke, so she left for Georgia with her Mother to be with him. So that leaves me and our son home to get stuff done around the house. Chores, work and the like. Money has been tight, so we have minimal food in the house. I had to count change just to get laundry detergent and gas in the car. Meanwhile, I have been struggling with my walk with God. More recently, than in previous weeks. For my day job I write a Political Blog for another company. Needless to say, I get to see the worst that all sides have to offer when it comes to current events and political issues. This proves to be challenging, as I have been trying to change my life and let go of hatred and bias. Kind of hard to do when it comes to daily headlines. As a Veteran, I find this to be especially challenging. We like to hold on to our hate. It gives us fire when we're in Combat. We use it to destroy our enemies. It's kind of what we do. Mostly. So when Pastor started talking about "reaping what you sow..." and the seeds that we plant in our heart lead to what we harvest later on... *** SMACK TO THE FACE, DEPLOYED!!!!! *** My hands begin to shake slightly as I sat in the pew. Not out of rage but out of humility. Every word he spoke felt like the sermon was written just for me. As he read Galatians 6:7 "Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows." I took a long hard look inward. Like staring at the mirror and being completely disgusted with what you see. For so long, I have held this hate and anger deep inside. Like a warm security blanket, I would wrap myself up in it. Staying safe surrounded by an impenetrable wall of rage. The sermon hit especially hard, because in Sunday school we have been discussing Islam. As a Veteran, I have to be honest and say that I have no love for Radical Islam. Years spent combating, hating and loathing the zealots of Mohammed have left me tired and angry. I'm tired of hate. I am tired of all the anger. I have been planting seeds of these burdens in my soul for so long, that it feels like that is all I know. In writing this, I was trying to find a passage from the Bible about letting go of hate. When I found the verses, I started shaking again, and almost began crying. *** SECOND SLAP TO THE FACE, DEPLOYED!!! *** Ephesians 4:31-32 31 Get rid of bitterness, rage and anger, outcry and slander, along with every form of malice.. 32 Be kind and tender-hearted to one another, forgiving each other just as in Christ God forgave you. It is time for me to let go of the hate. I have been trying to tell God what he can and can't do in my life instead of letting him work IN my life. Sometimes it is easy for some of us to forget, that he is the "GREAT I AM." and that ALL things are possible through Christ who strengthens us. Even letting go of hate. Sometimes, you just need a slap in the face to wake up and realize it. God Bless, and C.Y.H. There is that old expression that I have heard my entire life. "... Judge not, lest ye be judged." So why is it then, that some of the most judgmental people on the planet, are Christians? Time and time again, I am let down by my fellow followers of the Way. I am heavily tattooed. Arms, legs, chest and hands. Nothing that could be deemed 'offensive'. I am a Veteran of the U.S. Navy, and many of the tattoos I have are in accordance with old school maritime tradition. Still, the hate and judgement comes in waves. Maybe a reason I was running from God for so long was because of how other Christians made me feel. The look of scorn and disdain. Disapproval greeted me at every church I walked into. The eyes glaring in contempt for the ink that is in my skin. I even had an old Catholic lady in a grocery store tell me "I was going to burn in Hell for destroying God's temple..." "You shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor tattoo any marks on you: I am the Lord." Leviticus 19:28 The 'Go To' Bible verse for anti-tattoo advocates of Christian persuasion. So I did some homework. The section, "cuttings in your flesh..." is in reference to a barbaric ritual that existed back then. It was a type of 'sacrifice of flesh' to appease the Gods. A ritual still practiced today by many Muslims during the Day of Ashura. Now, the 'tattoo' portion of the verse is a tricky thing. From Aramaic to Greek, Greek to German/English etc... Not all words translate completely. The closest I could find was 'marks' or 'markings' that are the closest in translation from the original Aramaic in reference to scarring the body to remember the dead. So, it is reasonable that scholars could have made an assumption that this just meant 'tattoos'. A conversation thread I found on Biblical Hermeneutics made an interesting observation. "The command is clear in this passage to not pierce one's body for the dead. The slaves were to be pierced by their master upon choosing to stay with them rather than going free; therefore, it seems clear that the command does not forbid all piercing, but only piercing for the dead. In regard to tattooing, however, the English does not connect the command not to tattoo with "for the dead in any way. I read the other post pertaining to this passage and though it is insightful, it does not pertain to my question, that being: Grammatically, is there a connection in the Hebrew between the command forbidding to tattoo and 'for the dead?'" It's just a thought. An opinion. For isn't the Bible interpreted differently by each individual person that reads it? What I like to call "Idiopathic Christianity". Meaning each Christians walk with God is different and pertains to them specifically. No one else. What I think is important, is that I AM a Christian and walking with God. I AM a good Father and Husband. I AM a good neighbor to my Brothers and Sisters. Isn't that the important thing? I used to stress about things like the entirety of this blog. Until I had the revelation of "Idiopathic Christianity". Then I was at peace. It doesn't matter what other Christians or non-Christians think. It matters what God thinks, and how I live my life walking with Him. I will Love my Wife, Protect and teach my Son, be a good neighbor to my Brothers and Sisters. I will enjoy life, Praise the Lord; Dance and give Joy unto him. The next day I will do it all over again. The Judgments of others no longer hold sway on me. While your contemplating the opinions I have put forth so far dwell on this: In Revelation 19:16 "And He has on His robe and His thigh a name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS." The Aramaic translation for the words written and on Jesus' robe and thigh is 'writers ink'. This Video is from one of my favorite bands, and is very much how I view my life, especially since I am back on the path. I was raised a Christian. From very early on, I grew up in a Presbyterian church. After several years of growing up there, my parents decided it was best for the family to switch to a different church.
I never really understood why at the time, but back then; you didn't question such things. Our new church was an Assemblies of God church. I had never experienced anything like it. The people were warm and inviting, the music was lively and made you want to dance. I'll never forget my first dose of what a "Born Again" christian church was like. I remember seeing a lady become "Slain in the Spirit". Scared the living daylights out of me. I thought we needed to call an ambulance, but came to find out that this was rather a common occurrence. Listening to the Pastor preach, was like listening to a human being that was in love with the Lord. The fire, the passion; I had never experienced anything like it before. He celebrated his faith, his walk with God. I was in. Hook line and sinker. For the next several years, I was an avid member of the church. As was my family. Bible quiz, Youth Group, we were always at the church doing something. I became born again, was baptized; I even became baptized in the Holy Spirit and began speaking in tongues. I remember that feeling. The words came from me, but it was like I had no control over my body or what the words said. It is truly an experience unlike most others. One year, there were competitions being held country wide. For the life of me I can't remember what they were called, but it allowed youths to compete in a plethora of categories. From writing, to singing. Art and skits; and the one category that caught my eye. Short Sermons. I signed up for singing and short sermons quicker than you could blink an eye. I studied, and wrote. Practiced my song, day and night. I let the Lord speak to me and work through me. Then the competitions came. My song got messed up by the sound guy, who put the tape on the wrong side (which is a different key) and I couldn't hit the notes. They were too high. I shrugged it off. I knew I was a good singer, and my heart was set on the short sermon more anyway. I get called forward, and there I am. Shirt and tie, bible in hand. I unleash. The scripture was so personal to me, that I could feel the fire in my bones screaming to get out and share the word of God. A standing ovation. Hands in the air praising God. It was miraculous. This is where the story turns left when it should be heading right. We had a prayer and worship service later. Groups of people circled each other and just took turns praying and praising God. That's when it happened. This man, a pastor from another church I believe, crosses the circle and grabs me up. I have never met the man, didn't know who he was. I thought I was in trouble for a second. That's when he spoke, " heavenly Father, this man is your instrument. Jonathan (my real name, shh. don't tell anyone) you are to be a great man of God. You will accomplish amazing things in our Fathers name and you will lead the masses to his glory. You are a divine instrument of our Lord and Savior,..." Scared the jinkies right out of me. I had never met this man before. How did he know my name? What is he going on about? Me? I'm a nobody. All these thoughts were racing through my mind and I must have been as pale as ghost. His prophecy had me shaking in my boots. So I ran. I ran hard, and fast and for many years. I fell in with bad company for a while in High School, but eventually grew out of that. I then tried to hide in the Military. Through Military service, and years of Emergency Medicine I hid. Strange places to hide, doing the Lords work, saving lives; all the while trying to ignore him. Through my years of service I have seen the very best mankind has to offer, and trust me. The very worst society is capable of. I saved who I could. Hoping all the while to maybe save myself. Witnessing miracles and devastation alike, I constantly struggled with God. Then one day, years later it just clicked. More recently to be precise. As of late, I have been writing fiction novels about dystopia and the end of the world. I found myself constantly turning to the bible for inspiration and reference. That's when I started reading. And noticing how the rest of the bible applies to everyday life. And current events. And family troubles. And to who I truly am. I have been searching for so long for a way to deny my prophecy. Yet, the more I fought, the more I found myself being drawn back to him. I fight no more. I am home. Jer 29:11 |
AuthorSpike Bowan is the Pittsburgh, PA born Writer and Fiction Author. He is a Veteran of the US Navy, retired Paramedic, Husband, Father and Christian. BECOME A PATRON. CLICK BELOW!
Archives
April 2017
Categories |