What Did I Just Read...

I'm a sucker for an excellent podcast or book. Earlier this year the Bible Project podcast was recommended to me. I'll admit that it's not for everyone and it leaves me scratching my head at times. Lately, they've been doing a series on God and the supernatural world, and it blew my mind.

Christianity is a supernatural religion. That's hard to grasp coming from a western cultural mindset. The closest we may get is God of the Gaps for what we can't explain. Yet it's all tied together.

Then they interviewed a Ph. D and M.A in the Hebrew language by the name of Michael S. Heiser. He works for Logos Bible software and wrote a couple of books, Supernatural: What the Bible Teaches about the Unseen World - And Why It Matters and The Unseen Realm.

The first is like an overview of the spirit world according to the Bible and the latter is much more in-depth. Honestly, it helped that he works for Logos. It gave him cred. Otherwise, I was probably going to write him off as a quack.

While I read, I looked for bad doctrine. I also saw how Jehovah's Witnesses could get confused and say Jesus is an angel.

The books tied the Bible together for me. Some parts make me do the doggy head tilt. Like how demons or unclean spirits are the spirits of dead Nephilim.

I've been ruminating on what he calls the divine council of lesser spirits that God has in charge of other nations. Apparently, some went rogue. Other's didn't.

One question I have is, are they still ruling? How does that work? Who's over America? Can we tell by how that country acts if it's a good or bad ruler?

Ok, that's more than one question. The books have me thinking though...

Winging It!

I was at the doctor the other day for my wife's health insurance screening. While she was in the back, I sat in the waiting room reading. Until a kid-toddlers-walked by.

I would look up and then go back to reading. This one child caught my attention though. She was probably barely over her mom's knee in height. She was staring in rapt attention up at her mom, her little head almost all the way back.

I'm thinking I can't remember ever being that small, despite the photographic evidence. The next thought is I don't feel like I ever grew up either. I was just given more responsibility until it snuck on me.

In fact, I feel just as uncertain now as I did then...

Philosophical Musings from Superhero Shows

Superhero movies and shows have some pretty deep philosophical concepts if you pay attention. Here's a couple:

Why I don’t want to mind read after watching the Flash. If I could, then I’d always be thinking about what I just saw in their minds. I do that now with the books I read, which is literally thoughts on paper.

And some hidden secrets would mar relationships since I would have a hard time looking at someone the same again. I definitely don't want anyone looking in my head at that darkness.

An interesting theological point I just thought of is that God knows just how horrible we are, that I am. Yet, "But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us."

That's Romans 5:8. It wasn't a surprise to Him. He wasn't like "aww man, I bought a lemon."

Then I was watching Black Lightning and Khalil’s divided loyalties. Man can’t serve two masters, he’ll hate the one and love the other. That's in the Sermon on the Mount.

You will have to choose when they conflict. Even if it’s your own set of standards. This may be where situational ethics comes into play-or no right answer/good answer. It's why politics are so sticky.

A person says one thing, yet does another. We don't ask why they did it. We don't ask what did they know that we didn't.

Trouble also comes when we don't know who we are or what we stand for as individuals. You have to think deeply about things because it's nuanced. I've said a child's Sunday school theology won't work for an adult. It applies to life in this way as well, a bumper sticker philosophy won't cut it in real life.

It's only a foot wide and a millimeter deep.

Two Months of Testing

It's been two months since I started using the Welltory app. Running experiments to see what restores me and what drains me. It's led to some interesting discoveries.

Like food is a drainer.  Lowers performance, drains energy and increases stress. Bummer. Digestion is a downer.

Full strength coffee? That's a nope. Ok, compromise. Half-Caff.
Still a nope. I've been relegated to Decaf. To think, I once shouted death before Decaf.

That blapshemous coffee boost my energy and lowers stress. I still drink the high-octane, but my caffeine amounts have dropped drastically from 600-700mg a day to 60mg.

Writing was a shocker. Lowers my performance, my energy and increases my stress. Still not going to stop.

What's good?

Chatting. Apparently relationships are good for you at +1 in energy and -1 in stress.

Same with church. But we knew that ;).

Work. It flucuates. Boosts the energy, but also raises the stress....

Reading for the win. It's a booster.

Volunteering is a gray area. It can drain or restore depending on what I'm doing.

The biggest surprise is when I stand up in front of people and speak. That's been the biggest energy booster and stress buster. How is that possible for an introvert?

Either way, it's helping get my life back in balance. Making adjustments to my day based on the daily tests. This week has been much better than usual. I even have the energy to work out again. Working to keep the trend going.

The Writer's Block That Wasn't

Writer's block. Some say it's a myth. That all you have to do is be willing to write badly until the good comes out.

I don't have writer's block at the moment. If anything its a deluge of randomness that I can't expand into a decent post. It's more of a long FB status.

Things like asking me what I think about the latest issue, or this thing and that-and being surprised when I say, "I don't know." Why?

Because I don't have enough info. Everything is layered like the lasagna I'm about to eat. Different perspectives, motivations, cause and effect, truth, half-truth, and lies.

Simple answer, "I don't know. And I don't want to invest my time in learning more on that topic."

Another bit of randomness. People are like kaleidoscopes. Multi-faceted.

Trivia for you. According to the Welltory app one of my biggest boosters is public speaking. It makes my energy and performance go higher and my stress lower.

How is that possible for an introvert like me?

Randomness from the Writer's block that wasn't.

Pfft...Politics

"Can you believe this!"
"What they're trying to do is..."
"I didn't know she was a liberal...I don't think I like her anymore."

The political monologue we deal with. People reading a headline, getting outraged.

"This makes me mad!"

One of the best decisions I ever made was when I stopped watching the news. And that was during the Obama presidency.

Now...it's even more of a sideshow that continually proves the darkness in the human heart.

Chill people. Turn off the tv and talk to friends and family...preferably about something other than politics.

Like how many licks it takes to get to the center of a Tootsie Pop.

Purpose?

Purpose. Something most of us search for. I was asked what I thought someone's purpose was.

My answer, “I can’t answer that since I’m not living your life. What I can say is it’s found where your strength, passion, and tragedy intersects.
I’ve been a teacher for at least 8 years. Teaching is the passion, learning the strength and having to use it to get through tragedy makes it where I can help people in similar situations or to keep them from the same”

Where do your strengths and passions collide with a personal tragedy or experience that you can speak into?