A shunt in the circuitry pt2...

Okay…I believe we have established that there is a definite shunt in the collective circuitry when it comes to intercommunication (understanding one another). I have speculated that that shunt may have gone deeper than just intercommunication and affected our very thought processes and abilities to understand generally. But there is another shunt. The individual shunt. We all have limitations of one sort or another. These can be viewed as shunts in the circuitry as well. On a scientific level you might say that the DNA is the circuitry and it’s not all optimized the same for everyone. This is again…what I do best…stating the obvious. Some people are born prodigies and other people have a hard time learning how to tell time or tie their shoes. Not their fault. It’s in the circuitry. Do you ever wonder why?

A shunt in the circuitry...

I’ve spent a large portion of my life trying to understand the big questions. What is the purpose of life? Who are we? Since God knows the end from the beginning, why did He put Satan in the garden of Eden to begin with? What exactly is God’s plan for us? What happens after we die? What truly motivates human beings? The list goes on and on. What I’ve discovered is that no matter how hard I try, my little pea brain cannot fathom, cannot pierce through the veil and truly understand any of these things. I can speculate, but I can’t ‘know’ for certain. That can put a person in a place of insecurity, or it can put them in a place of faith. I find myself in a place of faith for a number of reasons. As you may have read in previous posts on this blog, the magnitude of the glory of life on this planet alone, to me, speaks volumes of a creator. My little pea brain cannot fathom how life could possibly be an accident. It’s too complex, too diverse. Personally, I think it takes more faith to believe it was an accident than it does to believe it was created.

This brings up my main topic…the shunt in the circuitry. I keep looking at this scripture:

Genesis 11:7…Come, let us go down and confuse their language so they will not understand each other.

Could this be where it all began? Now don’t take this the wrong way, I’d never insult God purposefully. But, did God dumb us down so that we couldn’t understand? He surely did when it came to intercommunication. Could this scripture go deeper than just intercommunication, though? Did this confusing the language affect our internal language as well so that we would have difficulty with understanding and conceptualizing?

Submit yourselves…

1 Peter 2:13…¶ Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every authority instituted among men: whether to the king, as the supreme authority, or to governors, who are sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to commend those who do right.

Romans 13:1…¶ Everyone must submit himself to the governing authorities, for there is no authority except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been established by God.

Who is our ‘authority’? Obviously, from the above scriptures…kings, governors, and governing authorities that are 'instituted' for sure. But what about your pastor, or your boss? Are we to submit to them for the Lord’s sake? And what exactly does that mean…to submit to them? What if your pastor tells you to do something that you don’t agree with? Do you have to submit to them to be a good Christian? I don’t think so. I think a good Christian is going to do what they think is right, not necessarily what their pastor tells them to do. If you find that your boss is unfair, unreasonable, makes lousy decisions, is a jerk, or whatever, are you commanded by the Lord to submit to them? Not really. You have choices. You are not a slave per se. You can choose to confront the boss and address the issues. You can quit. Of course, if you confront your boss, you risk offending them and suffering the consequences. That is your choice, though. Imo you are not being a bad Christian in doing so. There is no law that says you can’t confront your worldly boss, or quit a job.

A man reaps what he sows...

I used to see this as a simple and black and white concept. If you did good things, you would reap good things. If you did bad things, you would reap bad things. But, it’s really not that simple. First off, there are two occasions of reaping…the here and now, and the hereafter. Secondly, what is good in the here and now is subjective. I think Christianity is good, but if I tried preaching the gospel in a Muslim country, I might reap a beheading. I think speaking against injustice can be a good thing…but you could reap some dire consequences for that. So, ultimately, you do reap what you sow, but if you want to reap only good things in the here and now, you need to carefully consider if what you are sowing would be universally recognized as good.

Something I may have learned...

I think I’ve learned that my prayers can’t change someone else’s mind. That my prayers can’t circumvent someone else’s free will.

I think I’ve learned that God doesn’t always come through. That’s a hard one for me. Sometimes, He appears to leave one to their own devices. I know I have beseeched God on a number of issues over the years and have never felt that I got a clear answer.

I think I’ve learned that people put a lot of words in God’s mouth that He never uttered. I’ve seen that over and over again in my life. If it rains tomorrow, I’ll know God doesn’t want me to take that trip.  I’m going to flip a coin, and If it’s heads, that’s a ‘yes’ from God.   If I apply for this job and get it…I’ll know it’s God’s will. If she says ‘yes’, I’ll know it’s God’s will.  If I fail this test, I’ll know God wants me to quit school.

I think I’ve learned that God protects us from the knowledge and full understanding and insight into the depth of our corruption. I think if we could see it, we’d be horrified.

God's will be done...

Yes! Amen to that brothers/sisters! Who wouldn’t want God’s will to be done in their lives? I know I do. The question becomes, though, how can we be sure that what is happening in our lives is actually God’s will? Where does human will, and the corruption of the flesh come into the equation? If you ask a friend for a favor and they refuse, is that necessarily God’s will? If you ask your boss for a raise and are refused, is that necessarily God’s will? If you are passed up for a promotion, is that necessarily God’s will? You get my point? I’d love to rest in God’s will…but I’m not always sure He is the one that I’m dealing with. I’ve seen corruption in high places. My observation is that just because someone is ‘in charge’ doesn’t mean they are right or fair, show good judgment, or are doing God’s will. I always think of Hitler. He was in charge, but he was a maniac. I think of King Saul, he was God’s anointed, and yet he did his best to kill David. Can God’s anointed act out of envy? Guess so. I guess anybody can then. So when is what is happening to us God’s will then?

Stating the obvious...

I know I do that a lot. I’m sure that most of my observations are not revelations to those that hear or read them. They’ve probably heard them already, and/or thought of them before themselves. Nonetheless, I have another to share. :-) Please bear with me.

A couple of days ago I went to the store to buy supplies. One of the food stuffs that I purchase regularly is Newman’s Own Sockarooni sauce (I love this stuff). Once I returned home and put the bottles on my shelf I thought I noticed a difference in the size of the bottles. You see, I still had a bottle that I had purchased previously. Upon closer inspection, sure enough, though the new bottle was slightly taller…it was also narrower. The bottom line is the new bottle was 24 ounces, and the old bottle was 26 ounces. In other words, the cost went up 7+ % (if my math is correct). That’s quite a rise. That seems to be the ‘common’ practice these days. The cost of the item stays the same, but there is not as much of it. I don’t care for this practice….it seems cheap and deceptive to me. I wonder if there should be some sort of law against it? I think if you are going to, or need to, raise the price of your product, there shouldn’t be any attempt to hide that from the consumer. Why not just be honest? Tell it like it is. If the consumer is more knowledgeable about what is going on regarding inflation, maybe an outcry will have some effect? Maybe the politicians will be forced to address it instead of their typical routine of postponing the inevitable? I get the feeling that one of these days the bottom is going to fall out of our economy and it’s going to crash…only this time, with our economy being part of a global economy, it’s going to wreck world-wide havoc.

Here’s a paranoid thought...

Fear can stimulate the economy. For instance, let’s just say that robbery is on the rise in your neighborhood. What would you do? Many people would buy things to help protect themselves and their belongings. Some would move. Either way, you are spending more money than you would be otherwise. If you hear that a hurricane is on it’s way…you go buy things. If you hear that a product is going to be in short supply and the price will likely be rising…you might go and stock up. If you hear that an enemy is threatening to attack, you might build a bomb shelter, purchase arms, ammunition, and other supplies. If you hear that the climate is being impacted by the use of fossil fuels, you might go out and buy a green car or a bicycle. Any time cataclysm is proclaimed, it likely stimulates the economy.

I’ve also heard that war stimulates the economy. Obviously, when a country wages war it uses more war related things. That means production has to be increased. That means more people are employed. That means more people have money to buy things.

The paranoid part of this thought is that someone might use fear just to stimulate the economy. A healthy (I’m not sure healthy is really the right word) economy can mean security for the politicians that are in power, as well as for businesses in general.

Judge not that ye be not judged...

I find this scripture is frequently misused these days. Many that quote it seem to do so in an attempt to neutralize any negative thought, perception, or comment one might have regarding a behavior. The problem with that, of course, is that the Bible makes it quite plain that certain behaviors are considered inappropriate and to be avoided. So, if you see a person engaging in a behavior that the Bible describes as inappropriate, you obviously can only come to that conclusion by using some ‘judgment’. Judgment is not necessarily condemnation. Just because I notice someone engaging in inappropriate behaviors does not mean I have sentenced them to hell. It just means that I have noticed that what is being done is frowned upon biblically. God is the Judge.

On another level, I see this scripture as very logical. If, indeed, you ‘judge’ someone negatively, expect them to do the same to you. If you dislike someone and they know it, expect them to dislike you. If you are loving and kind to people, most of those people are going to love you in return. It’s sort of a basic principle. Often times you get back what you give out. As was mentioned in a previous post, though, this is not always the case. Those that learn to love and forgive their enemies, for instance, can neutralize this process of reciprocity.

There is one more level. God’s level. There is a scripture that says that unless you forgive others, God will not forgive you. It’s this judgment from God that I, personally, hope to avoid. Thankfully, I see so many flaws in myself that I don’t see how I could possibly condemn someone else.

And the hot question is....

Okay...here's a hot question that's been on everybody's mind. Can spiders be retarded? ;-) You know those little stocky fuzzy/hairy looking ones...I call them...jumping spiders? Well, I have one that keeps hanging around my desk area. He/she cruises around on the walls...and on my desk...and today...hanging by a thread under my desk. One day, a couple of weeks ago, I lofted something in it's direction. I didn't try to hit it...just give it the impression that it was in jeapardy. Did that deter it? Nah. The next day...there it was again...cruising along...halfway up the wall. This time, though, when I looked up at it...it appeared to rear up and look at me. Then it dropped straight down the wall and under my desk somewhere. The next day...there it was again. Today....on my desk....and then later...under my desk. I'm not too quick to kill things...so I captured it and took it outside and released it out there. I'm not sure it will survive long out there, though. So, can bugs be retarded? My guess is that if humans can be...so can bugs. In all my years, though, I don't think I've heard this one debated. haha!