Posted by giveawayboy on March 24, 2003 at 09:52:00:
I keep thinking about this and the spiritual unity that Steve was talking about on Sunday. It's good to ponder this mystery of being (?) in Christ (?) all day long. ACTIVE meditation on this will make us more aware of the way we are untied mystically in Christ. The boundaries will be redefined. It might be scary as we empty out. That is called KENOSIS. You can look this up online or you can ask Steve what it means. Steve likes to teach what words mean. Believe me. He's good at it too, but give yourself plenty of time as he usually has alot of interesting bunnytrails as well. But, you can find nice little moonstones on the bunnytrails as you go.
New rule about reading a Bill post. I used to hesitate to post what I wanted since I though I was isolating people, but darn it--I feel like it's time to charge forward. Here's the deal. If you feel like people on the bbs are talking ABOVE you, we are not. We are really hoping to see more interaction on all levels. I hope those who don't feel important know that they are important. But you won't see it until you get out of yourself enough to see where your national boundary ends and another one begins. I hope that the people who think that they can't post, realize that THEY CAN POST. Also, I hope that if I say something that you don't understand, that you will write me on it. WONDERMAGAZINE@AOL.COM. I want us to run alongside each other. I don't want us to have one guy out there doing all the running who ends up burning an ugly circle in the yard and never going anywhere. I know we are not all 'scholars' but who cares. WE don't all have to be. But, my kind of posts will be like this so you'll undertsand them. I pepper them w mystical language, not to make them hard to understand, but to get your thinking out there. If I say something whimsical or strange, you might fire me an email and let me know--this will help me communicate better, but in the meantime, I have to progress in the manner that I know works best for me. I hope that we can all learn more dynamic ways to communicate. I am trying to acknowledge where bbs readers might be at, but I'm definitely trying to take you somewhere, or I'm trying to push, push, push down walls, or erect things. I'm not trying to have casual chat. I think casual chat is important and valid, but I'm trying to create a vehicle in your mind. Hope this helps. I wouldn't do it if I thought it was not a worthy goal.
There is a concept I call LIFTING YOUR HEAD. Well, we need to sometimes practice this little exercise. This is an exercise that I believe anyone can do. We all know (as Steve so aptly explained) that Heaven is not necessarily UP and Earth DOWN, etc. Still, the biblical concept of lifting ones head has the idea that there is this greater hope or greater redemptive reality that we can become aware of--it's not all in the mind either--but still, it's important to practice a form of thinking that allows for something great and mysterious to creep in, to inform us. Every now and then I like to practice this little exercise. You will be amazed how when you lift your head toward God, the MYSTERY, you will suddenly become aware of how much you dissovle into nothing and how you find yourself in concert w many souls. It's amazing. You will see the boundaries of your own personal agendas disappear or be rebuilt alongside other friendly nations. So, pracice LIFTING YOUR HEAD.
Also, I wanted to mention what this guy at the GayChristian gathering in Orlando just told me Saturday. He was talking about people who have their issues (we've all got 'em) but still through their union w Christ and trying to be a disciple of Him, those issues do not have to prevent them from being in union w other souls. Your issue doesn't have to define you or paralyze you. You can and DO have power in the midst of your issues. Your issues are only that. They are issues. They are not tyrannical princes. They are only existing in the mysterious purpose of Christ. They are not to sway us from our course. We are continually built up into Christ. Our purposes with in him are varied. We will eventually begin to learn what those purposes are. I'm not totally sure about these things, but I had to learn how to ride my bike down the street before I was able to jump off of ten foot hills and land w both wheels on the ground. Still, I was able to fly eventually. Okay, back to my friend, his issues were not going to keep him inactive. His issues were not going to keep him from giving himself up for others. He told me this. It had power behind it. The fact that some people considered him an abomination would not keep him from loving them. His issues were not going to divorce him from Christ or by extention Christ's body. Powerful stuff! This guy has had some things going on his life that almost felt overwhelming to him but he has recently committed to more active service in his church youth group. For us it might not be a youth group, but we do have power and freedom in our lives to choose to do things right in the face of scary, glaring issues that seem to taunt us. We are not powerless. We are weak at times, but we have power. We need to wake up to that.
I am saying this since right now there are little irritating bugs that want to eat right through our nicest sweaters. I'm saying this since there are cute little tyrants trying to access whole regions of our minds. There are small thoughts that would seek to reign in all out attentions to keep us from the GREATER thoughts. There are inward energies that would seek to redirect us from a forward march.
This is real freestyle, so email if you need me to help steady you. Hope people are reading this, even if they are not posting responses. Also, I hope that you are going to take time TODAY to lift your head, to let your issues go, and let them get lost in Christ. The neat thing is by getting your mind off your own inner conflicts, you will begin to see them resolved. First, you will be creating a dynamic in relating to others which will rebuild you into a new and better you. Also, you will find hidden strengths and talents and powers that were formerly unknown to you. I'm not talking about things that you should be filled w pride over. This is a humbling thing. Okay, so your homework for this week is to ACTIVELY MEDITATE on our SPIRITUAL UNION IN CHRIST (whatever that is ????????) and to practice LIFTING YOUR HEAD and ALLOWING THOUGHTS OF OTHERS to enter your consciousness. Also, if you do this you will see yourself dissolving and emerging over and over again. Don't be afraid to see yourself slipping away. This is a totally healthy thing. Also, for extra credit, you are perfectly welcome to look up the word KENOSIS and think about what it might mean or how it could apply to us today.
Bill