Dinner with the "Enemy"

As you know, Jesus said, "Follow me."

Did he mean that literally, to follow him around like a puppy dog, or did he mean, follow in my footsteps, follow my example?

As impatient as he got with the disciples when they did put their brains on hold and followed him around like he was a guru or something waiting for him to give them their answers . . . he always redirected them to live the truth he exemplified and tried to teach them, I surmise that the latter was his dictate.

No matter what happens, you have to live YOU -- the God within you must become alive in YOUR walk. Even if the world views you as crazy, stupid or a menace, go boldly in your faith, your truth and your convictions. When the world stands in judgment of you for being you -- your unique expression of God -- KNOW that you are doing it! You are doing that which Jesus told us and taught us to do.

When you are afraid to take a stand and do what's right, remember, we are invited to sit at the table with our enemies -- those who would come against us, those who would throw us in jail, those who say "you are wrong because we say so." What the world says, and what is right -- well, God gave you discernment to understand the truth in your own unique light and view. And, the truth is, even if they don't know it, they are really not your enemies, they are just another part of God's truth working its way to the light of our collective experience.

Use it. Follow Jesus. Don't be afraid of what may happen to you. God's got your back even if it looks like this world is winning at the moment!

peace & harmony,
elaine
'freedom must be exercised to stay in shape!'

"What are YOU thinking?!"

elaine clermont is thinking how lazy we can get on FB and other quick "check in" applications! i just ended a sentence with a preposition after ragging so hard having found an instance of the same in a 6th grade Language textbook!

YIKES!

but perhaps one of these things is not like the other . . .

it goes back to intention.

the ever so important, yet often silent question never asked when one is seeking information on that which is in chaos.

"In the beginning was the Word,
and the Word was with God,
and the Word was God.
The same was in the beginning with God.
All things were made by him;
and without him was not any thing made that was made.
All things were made by him;
and without him was not any thing made that was made.
All things were made by him;
and without him was not any thing made that was made. "
John 1:1-5

but no "why?"
the "why?" is missing.

so, i ask you . . . should we stop teaching them how to write well by using text books that use exemplary language and writing skills? or should we let them teach them that to write well, according to historic context, you must consciously know when and if it is appropriate to end your sentence with a preposition!

live and let die in our wake
or
live and let live on?

god is always about balance. perhaps it is true: that there is a season for all things.

jesus lived and let live once again.

why can't we?

there are no mistakes in the eyes of the most awesome thing you claim to worship, so why are you still accepting the shame?

do you worship an idol without any power or do you follow in his footsteps, with that kind of power?

and that is to answer my "what are you thinking?" question of today.



peace & harmony,
elaine
'freedom must be exercised to stay in shape!'

The Ethics of Jesus

Are you a rule follower?

Have you noticed in your dealings in your life that our society has more and more become affixed to the adherence to "the rules" and "procedures" and "directions" than we are to using our own judgment, our own discretion and our own choices to live our lives, do our jobs, interrelate with others?

This is a problem. Rule followers worship the Jesus idol. Sure, they think they are doing the right thing, after all, its "right" to follow the rules, isn't it?

I don't know, what rules are you following? Do they contradict the purpose and destiny Jesus has given you to fulfill? Do they feel wrong when you measure them against your innate and instinctive actions consistent with what you feel is right?

Jesus did not give much weight to the rules of his time, and if you are following Jesus, then you too should examine this question of "should I or should I not follow the rules?"

This question is one that is paramount in this time on our earth. This question is not just for those who are in power, but it is for the everyday person . . . the postal worker, the bank employee, the power company customer service representative, the teacher, the politician, the policy maker, the police man, the mother and the student.

Abdication of your own self-determination of choice based on the situation God has presented for you to experience, whether it is in your job, your life, your school, your interactions with other people, is one of the biggest ways to separate yourself from God.

Every time, in every experience, in every situation when you know what you should do or know what you feel is right to do, and you choose to say, "No, the 'rules say ...'" to shut down your inner knowing, your inner voice, close off your connection with God ... you are separate yourself from God in a blind following of an idol that replaces the truth you know with something artificial and arbitrarily established by man to create a false experience, a false truth, an illusion of reality that is not connected to the flow of the Spirit through you.

So many people are soooooo afraid to lose their job because the "rules" tell them "_______ is the answer." So, regardless of what they feel and know to be right, they follow the rules. In essence, you put another god (the rules of man) before God -- that which you know is right when you are connected to the Spirit of God.

Because in truth, the truth you know of how you should handle the situation is a result of your connection with God. Supplanting that knowledge with the rules of man, of your boss, of the company, is where we separate from God, and fall into the ways of idolatry. To follow the rules out of fear, well, that is the way of the Devil.

That is not to say, you should say "screw the company, I'm going to do this, this and this because I think its right!" But if you place yourself under the authority of man who takes from you YOUR ability to choose and be discerning, you have placed yourself under an ungodly authority.

No one who stands in the power of God will take another person's connection to God and supplant it with their own. Those who are truly in the power of God want to support and uplift the power of God in others -- building in you, your own personal connection to the voice of God as to what is right. Godly people do this for you, even in something as mundane as your job.

What is right is known to you. If you choose to be connected to God, based the experience you have before you, you know what is right, and if you don't know, you should seek help and seek the answer so you can learn more about your connection to God. Each experience of life is test of your connection to what is real (God) vs. what is false (the World). Who do you follow?

Jesus taught us to follow our own connection with God -- that path supersedes all the laws and rules of man that do not feel right in our own spirits.

Stop following the rules. If you are Godly, you don't need to be told "don't kill anyone." You already know that to be right. You don't need to be told that war is tool of coveting, killing and murder. You already know that, because the Spirit of God gave us some general commandments or rules to make that perfectly clear even when man tries to twist it with fear and lies.

Follow the higher ethics of the spirit of God, and if you get fired for it, God has something oh, so much better for you to build a deeper connection, receive greater joy and fulfillment in the time you spend here on earth!

peace & harmony,
elaine
'freedom must be exercised to stay in shape!'

Mom Is a Spiritual Warrior

peace & harmony,
elaine
'freedom must be exercised to stay in shape!'

"Christians" playing at "Christmas"

i love the holiday season. as a child it pretty much sucked. my mom was "forced" by us kids to cop to the "American consumer Christmas" . . . and when she fought to maintain some kind of balance with what she knew christmas was about, she was in so much denial of herself that it was forced and, of course, we rebelled against the lies her actions made of her words. its only a natural thing for a child to do.

so . . . what, as i wonder with all these Escalades roaming around right now, shopping at walmart filling up their car as fast as they can and rolling home to empty it before heading to toys-r-us to fill it up again . . . on the back of their car they wear their calling cards: a yellow ribbon to support the troops, the little boy kneeling before the cross praying, and for good measure, "my child is on the honor role" . . . a proud Christian, American parent.

you know, jesus was a rebel. that's what he did his entire life. took what was presented as "real" and the "truth" and he challenged it, and quite forthrightly told people when they were not being consistent. and you thought he merely died for your sins . . . that's funny. he died for the sins of everyone who wouldn't stand with him in support of the truth that we all really know but are usually so far in denial that it is our responsibility to stand up for it . . . yes, i suppose he did die for your sins and those like you who lived at his time.

Is ANYHING we see around us consistent?

what is missing is the "why?" from our self-reflective experience life is supposed to be . . . that inward journey to find god while interacting in the world.

i don't know, i'm just looking for a couple of christians who think that it is inappropriate for my 3rd grade daughter's elementary school's "dance team" performs a dance to "Candy Girl" for the Martin Luther King, Jr. Day parade here in las vegas . . . seems to me, that a song about boys talking about how sexy, hot and tasty their girls are is not quite appropriate?

and even after all this time denial is still the modus operandi, "Christians" . . . i have yet to meet one, a 'christian' that is, here in las vegas, and las vegas has more churches per capita than any other place in the united states and all those churches are filled with really good "Christians."

am i the weird one?

peace & harmony,
elaine
'freedom must be exercised to stay in shape!'

Three Steps Forward, Two Steps Back . . .

Oh, America
...
Oh, "Christian" America
...
Why can't we learn
things the first time?

And, just as the white church did in the 1960s, the church -- black and white -- are leading the way now. Leading the way of intolerance, of inequality, of prejudice, of denial of ourselves ... because as Jesus said, "that which you do to the least of these, you do to me." And, all across America the Church denied people's right to be married -- whether civilly or under God. Shame on you.

But, we know the church's foundation is Peter, the head denier of them all . . . and thus, we inherit the denial of truth in the foundations and structures of our churches. When WILL the rooster sound for the final time?

Do you REALLY think that Jesus would be opposed to two people joining in love and commitment? I realize that YOU may have a problem with it ... but do you think Jesus would?

If you say yes, I venture you are trying to justify ignoring his lessons of tolerance, acceptance of other's and their individual journeys without judgment. If you can give me one lesson of his that supports your prejudice and denial of equal rights to any other person for any reason, PLEASE, give it to me. I challenge you ... no old testament stuff, no letter from Paul ... Jesus, his lessons ... show it to me. And, if you can't, PLEASE look in the mirror and ask yourself, "why can I not just follow him? Why do I have to look for justification for my denial of equality to another human being?"

And, while you are at it, tell me why the two amazing girls in this blog are denied their right to have a family, equally, under the law?

Less than 40 years ago, it was the church who said that my marriage to my husband is an abomination to God . . . here, I sit with the truth. And, the source of that lie is the source of the one you voted for on 5 November 2008.

There is no way to say this is good. No way to say this is Godly. No way to say that "Jesus led me here." Unless you live in the world of crafted and created in the lies of prejudice.

peace & harmony,
elaine
'freedom must be exercised to stay in shape!'

when the walls close in

god is bigger than ever.

in the midst of the darkest hours
when fear and the mind demons
come to play folly with your
dreams, it is the knowledge
that life is perfect in the
moment because you
and god are always
together in all
that you do.

remembering that your life and the moment you are in have a true, deep purpose that you may not yet understand breathes life into the fruits of the spirit. a simple knowing that gives joy when there should be nothing but disappointment and depression. faith is not tested in times of trouble, because in those times, all you have is faith. and from that faith springs hope, and from that hope flows love and forgiveness. because, in the end, that is what its about: forgiveness. the complete acceptance of what is without blame for what it is.

from there, the path you walk unfolds as you are patient and moved into action. real change happens when forgiveness is the springboard for your actions as they move you one step closer to love.

peace & harmony,
elaine
'freedom must be exercised to stay in shape!'