{Truth....Part 2...}

I wrote a post a year ago about truth, my mindset and my understanding of truth since then, has changed. This is the result of that realisation. (Also, it's a good bit longer than the last one. ^.^) Enjoy!

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Back in 2014, when I was "vacationing" in Norway, I tried to keep up with my personal bible study time. The YouVersion bible app has a lot of different study plans and the one I was going through then was The Truth Project Devotion. Let me say, it was pretty amazing. The Day One devotion was about Pontius Pilate's questioning of Jesus (before Jesus' crucifixion) and really focused on one question that Pilate asked of Jesus, "What is truth?"

"What is truth?" Pilate doesn't seem to have grasped the importance of his ironic question. Without the plumb line of Truth, we can know neither life, goodness, righteousness, nor justice. We can't even know ourselves.

What would it be like to live in a world without truth?

In a world where anything goes, finding a basis of truth wherein everyone agrees, or at least the majority of people, in the way that people are trying to do it now, is not easy. There are so many arguments constantly about what truth actually is. "What is truth? Is there a such thing as absolute truth?" (etc. etc. etc.) There are already so many concrete conclusions instilled in people, unfortunately, they aren't ones that lead to truth and peace. (Any peace they have is fleeting and not at all lasting, at best.)

To look at the things objectively, to say that there is no absolute truth is claiming the statement to be THE absolute truth itself.


Easily understood, right?


But honestly, though, what is truth?


I would dare to wager that there is an absolute truth and that everyone is looking for it, be it consciously or subconsciously. The thing about truth is that if it is *truth* it will be an accurate statement across the board. (Which is why I've always had such a problem with vague blanket statements.)

Like, "EVERYONE loves ice cream!" is not the truth, because, if you're looking across the board, not everyone loves ice cream. "Everyone has to come to the knowledge of the truth," is a more accurate statement because, until people are taught the truth and grow up with it from a young age, they will have to find it out and accept it. Truth isn't different for everyone, but there are many paths to find it.


I once was talking to a friend in a coffee shop and we were discussing the search for truth that all of humanity inevitably struggles through. We talked about the fact that, so often, truth ends up subjective to whoever is searching. 

How is it that people think they can look for an absolute truth subjectively? Sure, you may find shadows of said truth that way, but you'll never completely find it in its entirety. (A shadow of the thing is not the thing itself.) You have to be willing to give up all preconceived notions to fully grasp all of the nuances that come before you.


So that you know where I'm coming from, I'll share with you a little of my back-story of truth searching:


I've been thinking about my story a lot lately, and I realised how much of my life has been spent questioning Christianity (the religion I was raised in) and trying (and failing) to fit in to what was expected of me. I've had a lot of battles throughout my teen years that led to a lot of mental and emotional repercussions, but the hardest hit came within those last three years.


In 2014, when I was 17, after coming home from Norway I fell into a tailspin regarding Christianity and what I believed. I didn't understand how an omnipotent God could let life in earth continue to progress the way it was and had always been. In my thinking, I couldn't accept certain aspects of Christianity with "blind faith." I just couldn't. No matter how hard I tried. And I "tried" all summer, but I gave up around mid-July. (Soon after turning 18.) I decided I didn't want to be a Christian if I couldn't accept the basic principles, the building blocks of the religion, because it went against my logic, and "became" a neo-paganistic, Greek mythology follower. I held on to my own intellect and my own rationality. I was a "strong thinker," and I was slowly killing myself. What I had, wasn't truth. I became extremely depressed and I started cutting. I was suicidal most weeks and I detached from reality, without completely realising that I had done so.


Around November/December, though, I decided to try to pull myself out of where I was and search for truth. The ever elusive truth of all existence. The meaning of life, the Absolute Truth of Humanity, everything. I wanted to find it and my soul was aching to know.


In my searching, I processed through Christianity. What was it that made Christianity so different from other religions? What were the points in it's doctrine that I'd been "forced" to reject because of my logic? Was I actually correct in this reasoning?


Truth, contrary to societal belief, is not some entity outside of yourself. Because every person has 100% God's spirit within them, they have the truth already in them. There's just a bunch of human-y crud that's gunking things up and getting in the way of people just finding that absolute truth.


The Greek and the Jewish have to different understandings of what truth is. (The difference between the Greeks and the Jews is also why we have such a grossly mistranslated canon bible, but that's for another post.) The Greek, the philosophical mind of the ages, believe truth to be a static, empirical, unmoving entity outside of ourselves. Something you behold. Something you shape yourself around. Something we have to strive towards. Whereas the Hebrews, a religious pillar of history, see truth as something that we internalise. Something that reshapes us from the inside out. It shows itself in our actions, our decisions, etc. It's something fluid that grows and metamorphosises and changes as we develop in it. The reality is, truth is both unmoving *and* fluid. It is an established reality and it affects everything around it like nature's changing of seasons. It's something we behold and something that grows. As we shape ourselves around the truth it reveals itself in our thoughts, our actions, our decisions, our reactions.


In my searching for The Truth, I had to come to grips with the fact that if I didn't agree with truth, it wasn't the truth that was wrong, necessarily. If someone says that 2+2=4 and you don't agree with it, that doesn't change the factual truth of basic addition. It's the reasoning that needs to change, not the truth.


There needs to be a plumb line to check "truth" or there is no way to look at it all objectively. There IS no absolute truth if there's nothing to cement it to. Absolute truth, and really truth in and of itself, is be unmoving. If it were at all subjective, the world would be *SEVERELY* chaotic. ("God is bigger and more amazing than mortal understanding can comprehend," is an example. An unmoving, absolute truth.)

It should be something static, something that we have to approach and strive towards. (Like the knowledge of God; learning to understand him and all of his nuances.) As long as we have our human-y, negative beliefs (the part of us that clouds God's spirit in us) the truth we find will be forEVER subjective. We have too many preconceived negative beliefs for The Truth to be able to just come forth. It would end up being forever changing and different for every person if we tried to do it that way.


There are shades to said truth that will be discovered just by human cognisance, but a shadow of a thing isn't the thing itself. In all of the different religions of the world, there are shadows of Truth, but no matter how close it gets, it's not the entire truth itself. If they did have the whole truth, their people would have no fear. The having and understanding of perfect truth gives itself to a life without fear. 

Humans have a habit of adding things to what they have to try to "make it better." (You can look at any aspect of humanity and come to this conclusion; man constantly wants to be the best, and will work so that he can be so. No matter what the "thing" he's "improving" is.) 

Somewhere, in the way-back pages of humanity, we were all one people (Adam and Eve and the garden of Eden, right?) and with that establishing of humanity, we (the royal "we" meaning "humanity") had a greater understanding of 1) the spirit/energy world, 2) God, and 3) what it felt like to have peace (until Adam's free will got in the way). Since God's curse on Adam, God has put us on a journey towards maturity so that we could fully understand truth.

Mankind, as a whole, has come to the place in their maturity now wherein they understand that life is more a cerebral existence than a physical, violent existence. When we think "sacrifice," we're not think "blood, guts, and gore!" like our ancient forefathers did, with their various types of animal sacrifices. Those remote tribes and their human sacrifices. The idea of conquering nations by killing all of their men...or whatever the case may have been. Nowadays, when we think "sacrifice" we understand that it means a giving up of something. (Time, energy, dedication, the giving of our lives for a cause.)

"I think, therefore I am." (I mean, he wasn't wrong.) What we believe, makes up how we think. How we think, generates the building blocks in how we act. How we act makes up our character. Our character becomes who we are. If what we believe is off, "who we are" is not really us. Society has become too complacent about what it means to have a "good life." What they're not telling you (whoever "they" are) is that where you are is not the best it gets.


I've said this before in other posts, but God wanted our lives to be way more than what we've come to accept as "the best." God says all through scripture that we're supposed to have abundance, hearing this and understanding that he means spiritual abundance, not necessarily physical stuff abundance. 


Spiritual abundance = spiritual perfection. The church says that it is impossible to be perfect here on earth. That the goodness promised us can only be attained...in heaven...after we die...but we have to suffer through life and struggle to make it until the end. But Jesus himself and so many other of his disciples said that we can be perfect here on earth. (This is the part of the program with a lot of verses...)

"...so be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect." Matthew 5:48

"So then, my beloved, even as you have always obeyed, not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling." Philippians 2:12

"...but now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy. For the scriptures say, 'You must be holy because I am holy.'" 1 Peter 1:15-16

"Therefore be imitators of GOd as dearly loved children..." Ephesians 5:1

I mean, over and over again. And it is also said, time and time again that we should get to the point where we're not sinning:

"No one who abides in him keeps on sinning; no one who keeps on sinning has either seen [God] or [have] known him." 1 John 3:6

"What then? Shall we sin because we are not under law but under grace? May it never be!" Romans 6:15

"You will konw them by their fruit. Grapeas aren't gathered from thorns, or figs from thistles, are they? In the same way, every good tree produces good fruit, but a rotten tree produces bad fruit. A good tree cannot produce bad fruit, and a rotten tree cannot produce good fruit." Matthew 7:16-18

So why is it that we accept from the church that we're bound and doomed to our sin? That we just have to be content with how we are and try really hard to be good because that's how we please God but we don't have to work at it because it's all done for us through Jesus' death and resurrection...Guys...This doesn't even make sense. 


If a tree is sick, it can't look to another tree and say, "You are so amazingly healthy, save me!" No! The health increase of health in the tree itself will determine if it is saved or not. Same with our salvation. If you take anything away from this post, I hope it is this: Your spiritual health can be increased. It's not an impossible process of try really hard all of your life to get there. And it's definitely not maybe in the end you'll be rewarded by the entrance into some magical happy place. (More on that later.)


Truth is: There's more to life than what you've been shown and what you're seeing. There's more to existence than the mediocre endurance we've labelled as "good." Guys, there's so much more! And it's so beautiful. It's amazing how much life opens up when you're eyes are opened to see it all. (Novel idea, right?)


The reason why I'm taking the time to share this all with you is because I just want you to be free. I want you to be able to go to bed with a quiet mind and to be at peace. To be able to go through life and be okay with everything happening. Not just "be okay," but actually thriving.


Don't just take my word for it. Seek wisdom (it's the wisest thing you can do, right?) and find out for yourself. The knowledge taught to me is unlike anything else out there...and it is *so* worth discovering for yourself.

{Freedom}

With everything that's going on in society (the racial, sociopolitical, and societal issues in America; the cultural, political, and basic human rights issues around the world) it is very easy to become discouraged and to lose hope that anything will ever get better.

With all the various people crying for peace and love in different aspects of life (without really offering solutions...I'm not the only one noticing this, right?), it is easy to just figure that nothing's ever going to change and that a handfull of "wishful thinkers" can't really do much good in the grand scheme of things.

I am here to tell you that ever great uprising of change started with a handfull of people. Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. didn't start out on the steps of the Lincoln memorial with his "I have a dream..." speech. It was the collective mindset of many, and the culmination of some ideas he'd gathered from a few other speakers, that sparked his flame and his now, widely-known speech.

He had to start talking with family and friends, around a dinner/lunch/whatever table, sharing ideas and spreading hope.

Let me tell you a (not so) secret though: Dr. King's rallys and speeches cultivated a change (the effects of that hightened energy), but in the across-the-board kind of way it only lasted for a short while, and change only had just started to come about (like semi-successfully pushing a car a short ways).

We are not going to see widespread change (the way everyone wants; that universal peace and love) until people take responsibility for the fact that they themselves are responsible for the negativity in the world.

Everyone, I don't care how zen/righteous/balanced/whatever you say you are, everyone has negative beliefs that drive them and their actions, responses, thought processes; everything. Everyone has negative beliefs because (and this is scientifically proven) everyone, before the age of five, is making conclusions about *everything* in their world. Decisions about cats, couches, dogs, what they think about different foods and different people, sidewalks, hairbrushes, days, nights, books...everything). Their kid-brain was making 700 neurological connections a second. In all of these decisions that shape what they like and dislike, they're also making conclusions like: "I am not capable," "I'm worthless," "I'm unloved," "It's not me," "Relationships suck," "I'm alone," and SO many more like those.

These are the negative beliefs that drive you, your life and is what causes you to shape your life in the way that you do.

And everyone has them. If you've ever thought anything negative about yourself, your life, people, etc. then you have a negative belief within you. You can't give it, unless you have it. (So basically, humans are pretty screwed up.)

BUT THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT YOU DON'T HAVE TO STAY THERE! God never meant for life to suck, he never meant for us to have to work so hard to be good and to push *so hard* to do everything we're supposed to do.

There is so much that is available to people that they're unable to see because of their blindness. And I don't mean physical blindness, but their lack of self-awareness. Those whose eyesignt doesn't go past the end of their nose. Those who take in so much that they don't realise that they believe fairytales and aren't aware that so much of what they take in is...mythology.

It is possible to be awaken from those misguided ideas, though. You're not stuck.

As someone with a strong religious background (and someone whose time in the midst of that religiosity is pretty heavily punctuated by all the times I rebelled and questioned what I was being taught), I can say that the freedom on the other side of letting go of mythology and pride is...beyond words.

I will say, though: With everything I've been able to experience since being on my journey to get rid of my negative beliefs, I've currently been stuck in this limbo of confusion and understanding about those who can say statements, one after another, that completely contradict the dogma they teach. The ones unaware of how insensitive they are to...basically everyone, despite how much they'll go on about doing the right thing and people a good person. The ones who...and this isn't me casting a stone, 'cause I've been there. Just being real...the ones who go to church every Sunday and yet can still look at someone who is genuinely in need and tell them that they (homeless person) have to fend for themselves. (WWJD? Right?) I've personally seen this happen so many times.


*sigh* At the same time I'm writing this, and I know that those people who don't understand after being presented truth are not among those whose eyes have been opened. God will open some people's eyes and ears, and will leave others closed. I dont' get to decide that (as much as I want everyone to be free). They can't even decide that. (Nothing ever happens except for what God has ordained.)

God knows, it can be kinda frustrating when you're trying to offer someone the ability to connect deeper with themselves and others; for them to be able to see a bigger picture on life...and then they dismiss you because they didn't find the truth themselves (which is a response resulting from pride), or because they don't want to give up what they've known (a result of the fear of the unknown and also pride) and then choose to be oblivious to the BIGNESS OF LIFE that is available to them.

I get it. I get that people, because of their negative beliefs, are afraid of biggness...the possibility of a future beyond the furthest reaches of their imagination and a reality that plays out differently than their 1- or 5- or 10-year plan projects. I also know that there are more people, like me, who are tired of the same old thing over and over.

Those are the people I most desperately want to give that red pill to. (Matrix reference.) In order to take the pill, they've got to choose to do it. They've got to want to make a change. They've got to realise that doing the same thing repeatedly while expecting a varying result is the definition of insanity. They've got to come to the awareness that they're living in insanity...and they've got be willing to realise that it sucks.

I know..."It's not just that easy to wake up and realise that you're life isn't as good as you may have thought and that you need a new basis of belief." I agree...I know that for me it took some guiding. I mean, I knew that, with the things going on in my life, my level of existence was pretty low, but I didn't realise how deeply I'd been digging my hole. I'd be willing to wager that most of you aren't entirely aware of how deep the hole you're digging for yourself is.

The beautiful thing is that the message doesn't end with, "You're awful. Try harder to do good!" Lord, no! (Where's the hope in that?) There is a way to fill back in the ground and stand on a solid platform again.

"OK, then. What is it??" It's not my message to spread, but I can point you to the messenger. She is amazing and God has gifted her with the ability to explain anything and everything clearly and simply.

Many of you are willing to sit under the teaching clergy for hours and months and years, putting energy into someone who isn't giving you the results you're looking for...The message that God has given Sandra Kay *is* because, and I am a personal witness to this, everyone who has listened to this message and has internalised and fully embraced it, have had radically positive changes in their lives. It's not at all about following her, or her wanting you to follow her (at all), she just wants to share the message that God has given her. 

OH! One last thing: all of life, everything we experience in our physical life, is about energy and the exchange of it. Actually, ALL areas of existence is about energy. It just is. What energy are you putting into your universe? What energy are you putting into people? Do you have 100% peace about the results you're getting back from the energy you're putting out? If not, do you think it's time for a change?

{Early Mornings}

(Hey guys! This is an old post I typed out a year ago that I've just found and, after reading it, realised it's something that needs to be published. 

So here you go! ^.^)

Okay! So! I know...that's a pretty pretentious, stereotypical title for a blog. I didn't know what else to put and it works, so there! ;)

Back story: This past June/July, my entire family has either driven or flown to other parts of the US to seek great adventure, master an instrument, visit friends, or just get spoiled by Nana. My entire family, save my dad and me. 

This wouldn't be a point worth mentioning, except for the fact that the house I live in is situated on 3.5 acres, situated with a whole ~1.5 acres of farmland. Complete with (at the time) a sow, a couple of her babies, the boar; three wildly aroused roosters and the poor hen they abuse; the hens in a small coop in the basement that are still growing up and haven't made it down the hill yet; six baby guineas; and three dogs (one of whom is my baby Rufus ^.^).

Dad and I were left to shoulder the farm responsibility and the schedule was me in the mornings and dad in the evenings. (Except for July 4th, dad and I were both out there and actually did a lot of cleaning up around the big chicken coop, so that was cool. ^.^) 

When I say mornings, please don't imagine me getting up at the crack of dawn, because that is severely unrealistic. On my days off, I usually get out there around 9:30-11ish because sleep and stuff. 

One day in particular, July 6th, I think, was the first time I had to work. Subsequently, the first day I had to schedule doing the animals before getting ready for work...Which was a morning that found me awake and outside around 6:30 (I don't even know how that happened) so that I could get out there, feed everyone, shower, and still have time to do everything I usually do to get ready for work. (Yay! adulting and planning ahead!)

When I went outside, this view met me: 

Seeing this...smelling the fresh air and feeling the remnants of nighttime in the shadows; I was reminded that I used to love sunrise.

There's just something about being awake early enough to notice the world, air, and nature before the day gets corrupted with humanness. 

See, when I got up at 9:30 and later, the sun had already been up for a while. It was already humid and gross (meaning that flies and mosquitoes had enough time to wake up). People have been up long enough to put out a bad vibe that'll last the rest of the day. In getting up early, I was able to bypass all of that. It was still kinda chilly; there was more of a problem with ants in the dog food than there was with flies in the air, and the air had such a fresh newness that I felt at peace. 

(Talking about "vibes" and such may seem like hippie-dippy talk, I know, but feel the difference and tell me that's not legit. Energy is in everything and affects everything.)

Being out that early was like a warm hug, really.

It reminded me of the four weeks, collectively, I'd spent in Texas at Academy 31, a two-week long all girls summer camp and then some. (I went two years in a row, for those of you who are trying to do the math.)

A permanent part of the A31 schedule is our 7am wake up call for PT during the week. Early mornings for PT meant a lot of fresh air and new vibes. (Although, Texas has this thing where the sun's heat permeates before the sun actually gets up, so that was a thing sometimes.) Among the many things I learnt the two years I went to A31, one of the biggest is that early mornings are a very good space of time in which to be still and quiet. Whether that's reading your bible or just quiet meditation and prayer or yoga or any other variation thereof, depends solely on you. That early in the morning, your brain is so fresh and empty of the day's worries that you can have that time to set your thoughts on a positive path and be so much better off for it.

Something I've also learnt from my trips Texas is that even though the day can start out perfectly, that doesn't mean everything that happens in that day will be perfect.

The only thing that will always be predictable about life is it's inherent unpredictability. Without a doubt. But when things go sour, all of your emotions and thoughts don't have to become negative as well.

DISCLAIMER: The fact that I'm giving this advice, DOES NOT, in ANY way, mean that I've got this "control your mental positivity" thing down pat. Because I don't. I am a person that is very much affected by the emotions of people around me, and more often than not, I'm stuck in a comatose haze because of how a friend of mine is feeling. These are all things I've experienced before and things I'm still learning. (Like Doctor Strange learning how to bend all of reality.)

Anyway...

Your mentality is what you make it, and you have the power to control your thoughts. No one *makes* you feel any certain kind of way. They may influence you emotions, but the fullness of your response depends solely on you.
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Okay. So hi ^.^ 21 yr old, prestent age and time Me here!

I'd just like to put in a note and say that over the past six months I've learned how to gain control of my mental positivity. My life has taken some CRAZY hairpin turns and I've come out on top.

I've been taught a process, easier than "just think positive!" or meditation or yoga or anything like that. It is...the epitome of simple. I want that everyone would be saved that everyone can have peace that surpasses understanding and joy in absolutely everything. 

It's so possible guys!

I don't want this to sound like an ad, but I know the lady with the answers. And she's well worth listening to.

That's all for now, though :3 Ciao!

{Wake Up}

So, it's been about a million years since I've posted anything new, and with good reason: adulting is wild. For those of you who don't know, being a fresh 21 year old out on the town is a whole new kind of crazy and I'm learning to wade through the fun/weird that is currently my life. BUT! I've been seeing something over the last bit that has given me more than a moment of pause...It's caused me to actually attempt to finish a blog post. *gasp!*

I know that the hot word of the century is "equality." Whether that be between men and women, races, gays and the straight, short and tall, fat and thin. Whatever the case my be, people are always clamouring for an equal slice of the pie that we so dearly have come to call, Life. We do have to be careful with that though.

(the above picture was censored for your convenience.)

There's a point when our cries for equality turn into the wails of a selfish child. Or rather, the feeling of entitlement comes out when equality should be forefront. 

Here's the thing guys. We're all trying to live. Trying to survive. Some people get through by only struggling to exist. Why are we making it harder on ourselves?

It seems like now, more than ever, people are taking pleasure in "ruining" the lives of their fellow earth inhabitants. Ridiculing them for *every little thing* and constantly berating others for not holding the exact same political, religious, economical, societal, whatever beliefs that the other does. Like COME ON!

It would seem that people don't understand that their energy directed towards others has an affect on their environment, their world, themselves. Ever heard of the Law of Divine Oneness? We're all connected. The energy that keeps the universe and the world going is the same energy that keeps you and I alive. When you diss that energy-containing organic being that cuts you off in traffic, you're also dissing the energy-containing organic being that is you.

This concept and reality also ties into the Law of Cause and Effect. (Karma.) Not only does karma balance out the wrongs done to you, but she is also quite effective at balancing out the good. (She just loves balance, really.) And, to be quite honest, Karma likes dishing out good, positive things than harsh negative things. (Women are inherently nurturing...it's a hard fact.) So instead of pushing out negativeness, dish out some positivity.

Now. How does this tie around to my point at the beginning about equality and entitlement? It ties together in this way: If you're harping on everyone treating everyone with equality and yet wouldn't treat the cashier lady at Walmart with the same gentility and respect that you would treat your best friend, then you need to back up a few steps. You cannot change the world globally until you create change within yourself. (I'm sure you've heard this one before, right?)

It's about time people started taking responsibility for what they're getting out of life. This isn't a new concept entering the world either. So many people from all over are feeling the strain of our current position in our existence as human beings. 

Law of Capacity stipulates that things, when they reach capacity, either deflate or explode...We're in charge of what happens to the world. We, as human inhabitants of this physical world, have a direct affect on what happens. Do we want our world to explode? (Whether literally or metaphorically...) Let's do everything we can to affect the change we want to see. 

{Growing Up}

"There's something people don't tell you about growing up...It hurts and it's not easy.

This past year as been a LOT of ups and downs and sideways and backwards... And it hasn't be anywhere near even a shadow of easy. So much of life and so much of new is experienced internally (or externally, if you're an extrovert...? I'm honestly not quite sure how that works as I am not an extrovert lol) But in experiencing and processing, and living and learning I've struggled and I've grown."

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That is how I was going to start this blog post a year ago. In that year time-frame, had the pleasure of experiencing so much...Overcoming so much...Oh my gosh.

I'll give you the Cliff's Notes: 1) I was kicked out of my family's house, 2) I went through the rejection of so many of my close friends which led me to 3) deal with an icky break up with a guy I thought I would be with forever...but through all of that I've learned to 1) have incredible, uncomprehendable peace in everything, 2) have insurmountable joy and dance through every thunderstorm, 3) have a stronger spirit because I've pushed through and 4) have been able to get rid of the negaiveness lurking inside and have become a more positive person as the outcome.

So, hey. If I were to tell you that there's a way to cure the world from negativeness would you belive me? What if I told you that not only do I know that there's a process, but that I've used the process and that's how I've been able to do and learn and experience everything I have been exposed to without feeling so tremendously overwhelmed. Guys This process makes it so easy to transision from simply barely existing to thriving and overencompassing every challenge in life.

So, can I challenge your idea of what peace is? It doesn't mean that everything in your life is peachy and perfect. It means that even though crap may happen and cross your path, you're okay because you know that everything happens for a reaon and you're okay with sometimes not even knowing the reason why, but knowing that It's All Good.

Being able to handle life doesn't mean that life becomes easier to handle, it just means that we have all the tools to tackle whatever comes our way. 

If you had a chance to change your universe, would you?

{Discomfort}

It's amazing what six years teaches you...

Okay...so.

Six years ago, I was 14. I was in the very beginning stages of figuring out how The Real World actually works. And in all of that figuring out, there are multiple levels of discomfort. I don't really know what exactly I was referring to in this post in mentioning "feeling uncomfortable," but regardless I'm pretty sure everyone can relate to that loathing for discomfort. 

THE THING IS: growing up is a huge mess of uncomfortable and weird. It just is. To avoid comfort is to refuse yourself growth. 

You can't learn something new without messing up a couple times. You can't hone a skill without making a fool of yourself once or twice. The growth process just happens to work that way. 

"Take chances, make mistakes, and get messy" Miz Frizzle always said...aaaand she wasn't wrong. 

I can't tell you how many times I've heard stories of people who pushed themselves outside of their comfort zones and flew to Europe, or went skydiving, or wrote a book, or joined Toastmasters...pushed themselves and pushed through the uncomfortable and have amazing stories to tell about how amazing their process is/has been. And, consequently, how grateful they are that they've that they were even given the opportunity to push themselves. 

Don't miss out on The Amazing just because you didn't want to feel uncomfortable. 

{Truth}

WARNING: I will (most likely) step on many toes in this post. If you and I have differing opinions and you feel like you need to blast me in the comments, the comment will (most likely) be removed. (I hold that right as the owner of this blog.) We can have an invigorating, philosophical discussion if you would like, but mutual respect, common courtesies and consideration of persons and people is requested. Thank you! :D

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     Back in 2014, when I was "vacationing" in Norway, I tried to keep up with my personal bible study time. The YouVersion bible app has a lot of different study plans and the one I was going  through then was The Truth Project Devition. Let me say, it was pretty amazing. The Day One devotion was about Pontius Pilate's questioning of Jesus (before Jesus' crucifixion)  and really focused on one question that Pilate asked of Jesus, "What is truth?"

"What is truth?" Pilate doesn't seem to have grasped the importance of his ironic question. Without the plumb line of Truth, we can know neither life, goodness, righteousness, nor justice. We can't even know ourselves. This is why Jesus, the King of all creation, came into the world to serve and bear witness to the Truth. What would it mean to live in a world without Truth? Have I pondered the immensity of Pilate's question? 

What would it be like to live in a world without truth?

    In a world where anything goes, finding a basis of truth wherein everyone, or at least the majority of people, agrees is not easy. I mean, there are so many arguments constantly about what truth actually is. "What is truth? Is there a such thing as absolute truth?" (etc. etc. etc.) If you don't already have a concrete set of ideas and beliefs, all of these arguments and conversations could easily sway you to whatever the "majority" rules. (Which is nebulous at best.)

     To look at the things objectively, to say that there is no absolute truth is claiming the statement to be THE absolute truth itself.   

 Easily understood, right? As if...


*sigh*

     But honestly, though, what is truth? 

     I would dare to wager that there is an absolute truth and that everyone is looking for it, be it consciously or subconsciously.

     I was talking to a hipster friend in a coffee shop (so stereotypically hipster, right?) but we were talking about the search for truth that all of humanity inevitably struggles through. So often, truth ends up subjective to whoever is searching. But how can you look for an absolute truth subjectively? Sure you may find shadows of said truth that way, but you'll never completely find it in its entirety. 

     I think it may be pretty understood knowledge that I am a Christian. (If you didn't know, I am.) Last year (2014), after coming home from Norway I fell into a tailspin regarding Christianity and what I believed. I didn't understand how an omnipotent God could let life in earth continue to progress the way it was/is/has always been. In my rational thinking, I couldn't accept certain aspects of Christianity with "blind faith." I...I just couldn't. No matter how hard I tried. And I "tried" all summer, but I gave up around mid-July. I decided I didn't want to be a Christian if I couldn't accept basic principles (because it went against my logic), and "became" a neo-paganistic, Greek mythology follower. I held on to my own intellect and my own rationality. I was a "strong thinker" and I was slowly killing myself. I became extremely depressed and I started cutting. I was suicidal most weeks and I detached from reality, without completely realising that I had.

     Around November/December, though, I decided to try to pull myself out of where I was and search for truth. The ever elusive truth of all existence. The meaning of life, the Absolute Truth of Humanity, everything. I wanted to find it and my soul was aching to know.

     In my searching, I processed through Christianity. What was it that made Christianity so different from other religions? What were the points in it's doctrine that I'd been "forced" to reject because of my rationality? Was I actually correct in my logical reasoning?

     Truth, as I've come to understand it is something completely outside of myself. You have to grasp it and internalise it before it can become your own. 

     The Greek and the Jewish have to different understandings of what truth is. The Greek, the philosophical mind of the ages, believe truth to be a static, empirical, unmoving entity outside of ourselves. Something you behold. Something you shape yourself around. Something we have to strive towards. Whereas the Hebrews, the religious pillar of history, see truth as something that we internalise. Something that reshapes us from the inside out. It shows itself in our actions, our decisions, etc. It's something fluid that grows and metamorphosises and changes as we develop in it. The reality is, truth is both fluid and unmoving. It's something we behold and something that grows. As we shape ourselves around the truth it reveals itself in our thoughts, our actions, our decisions, our reactions.

     In my searching for The Truth, I had to come to grips with the fact that if I didn't agree with truth, it wasn't the truth that was wrong, necessarily. If someone says that 2+2=4 and you don't agree with it, that doesn't change the factual truth of basic addition. It's the reasoning that needs to change, not the truth.

     There needs to be a plumb line to check "truth" or there is no way to look at it all objectively. There IS no absolute truth if there's nothing to cement it to. Absolute truth, and really truth in and of itself, should be unmoving. It should be something static, something that we have to approach and strive towards. It can't just come from ourselves and it shouldn't because if it did, it'd be forEVER subjective. Forever changing. 

     There may be shades to said truth that will be discovered just by human cognisance, but a shadow of a thing isn't the thing itself. I think in all of the different religions of the world, there is a shadow of Truth, but no matter how close it gets, it's not the entire truth itself.

6 Jesus answered, "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through me. 7 If you really know me, you will know my Father as well. From now on, you do know Him and have seen Him." ~ John 14:1-7