Saturday, July 25, 2009

God's Love is Targeted

July 25, 2009

Psalms 103: 11
For so high as the heavens are above the earth,
So great is His lovingkindness toward those who fear Him. (NASB)

The grand message of this verse is not a measureless description of God’s love. The Psalmist declares that the love of the Lord of Israel is targeted. The great loyal love of the Father targets not Hebrew genetic purity but those Hebrew's who “fear Him”. In other translations, “fear” means to revere, worship, or in modern lingo to respect. It is the awareness that the physical world is incomplete and pointless, as Solomon confessed,"all is vanity".

In our three dimensional space time world, all measurements are but relative. There are no “pat” answers to any question, there will always be exceptions or explanations and the resulting confusion. Any potentially complete understanding of manhood must include “faithing” into the boundless heavens. To be fully human, we must have a healthy respect for the God of the fourth dimension.

In Scripture, God has revealed His ever widening targeting plan for touching humanity. Abram was the first target who was called to follow, to set a different rational of life. He was called to explore the fourth dimension, ignoring the prescribed path expected of him. Instigated by the mercy, pleasure and targeting plan of God, Abram and all succeeding generations have been progressively targeted and given the choice to respond with the yes of faith.

The sons of Israel and Christianity have preached this reality but devised coping mechanisms to avoid giving “due respect”. Instead, we find it easier to give respect to the God’s of this dimension. They include the God’s of survival,legalism,wealth, relationships, money and success. Reigning high on the list is the God of the institutional church, the God’s of Dogma and the worship of the Holy Scriptures as God. Our comfort zone is to hide in these distracting bushes as depicted in the beginning parables.

Soren Kierkegaard (1813-1855) critiqued the professional state church of his day for such nonsense. Called of God to write instead of preach, he trumpeted the necessity of a personal individual choice for the God who targets us. His teachings were shelved and lost to the church world into the twentieth century. Once exposed over the succeeding years, modern revivalism may have overreacted, taking the needed voices of individualism to a scattered dysfunctional state. A spiritually superior individualistic attitude infected the community of believers. Naturally, the condemnation of the individual masses of unbelievers followed.

Kierkegaard was right on. He refused to be “that spiritual pattern” worthy of emulation by the sea of humanity. An attempt was made to present himself as a party animal or the man about town. His writings were anonymous, rejecting any possibility of praise or negativity. Also rejected were the pattern status of the ministry and marriage. Appearances are deceiving. He believed that he was specifically targeted by the love of God to give clarity to divine targeting. Jesus so ministered in disguise.

As a church, are we projecting condemnation or the God who has each of us in the crosshairs of His Love? Are we communicating the inexpressible and unreplaceable blessing of faith in response to God‘s targeting? What of the billions of our fellow humans who have known death and the vicissitudes of life without an awareness of the Love of God? Is damnation their fate?

Some would stupidly attribute the supposed wrath of God to these questions. If so, we really don’t believe the popular and right theology, God hates the sin and loves the sinner. Thank the Lord for His targeting Love. To all those who have not yet experienced the targeting, there will come a day in some dimension for all to choose aright. In the meantime you are in the destiny of a God of Love.

G.Goslaw
Victorville, Ca.

Sunday, July 19, 2009

God's Love is Alien

July 19, 2009

Psalms 103 : 10
He has not dealt with us according to our sins;
Nor rewarded us according to our iniquities.

The world of cinema has had a long fascination with extraterrestrial movies. They maximize the assumption that we are not alone amongst the galaxies. At some points in time we are being visited and each confrontation is stranger than the last. There is an even stranger confrontation in scripture, man’s experience with the alien love of God.

Webster’s New World Dictionary has a three fold definition of alien. An alien is one belonging to another country or people. It can also mean strange or not natural. Finally, to be an alien is to be opposed or to contradict accepted status or practice. All of these definitions are applicable to the alien love of God. This love is nonexistent within the community of man.

What radical qualities make this love somehow beyond duplication by we mortals? There appears to be three extraterrestrial love characters in this verse. The first is the source of this love,the “He”. Human kind has doggedly refused to value the bigness of God. In our narcissism we have historically insisted on an anthropomorphized version. This has left the believer correctly open to criticism by the skeptic. The Christian God with human character is not God but most akin to the deities of all other totem pole religions.

The wholly other Deity is not so portrayed in Scripture. “He” is so holy, so out of this world, that to look upon Him would mean death. Even the greatest hero of the Old Testament, Moses, was not so blessed to look into His face. Yet this Deity proved to be powerful beyond all human understanding in this world. In the New Testament God was in Christ, a fully human visible reflection of this world yet specifically gifted of the alien Love of God.

Secondly, this alien God does not deal “with us according to our sins”. Every society on this planet structures relationships in a historical context. We relate to one another by what our history says. Our history is a large part of every resume or job application. The past is the best predictor of ones future potential. A society brings labels to bear upon the lower rungs of the group and finally the group accepts it‘s place.

The alien love of God has no application forms, a resume is not required. In fact the first target is always the lower rungs of every society. Words like always and every should probably never be used. In this case they seem to be justified. A favored New Testament application is the parable of the wedding banquet. The priority guests are issued an invitation but they are all about the bustle of life and have no time or inclination to party. The host, God, issued another invitation as related in Matthew 22: 10. “And those slaves went out into the streets, and gathered together all they found, both evil and good; and the wedding hall was filled with dinner guests.”

Thirdly, the alien love of God does not reward or punish us “according to our sinless success”(Goslaw translation). The avoidance of this truth is the great sin of the church. Inherent within this sin is a lie. For one to commit to following the King, surely a “needed reward” must follow. The predominate theme of the Gospel has become reward not sacrifice. Give to this or that ministry and you shall reap the reward of healing, money, success, spiritual status or an eternal destiny. Fundamental to this damnable lie is church leadership. They are either spreading the lie or are so spiritually disfunctional that they have not the courage to confront the abuse.

This is a critique of our failure to understanding the alien love of God. Today’s sour expression of His love has been interrupted positively on occasion but there are few of late. The tragedy is that this sin is occurring when the hearts of humanity are crying out for the authentic gospel. Church,who do we represent?

G.Goslaw
Victorville, Ca

Saturday, July 18, 2009

God's Love is a Choice

July 18, 2009

Psalms 103:9
He will not always strive with us;
Nor will He keep his anger forever.

We make an understanding of the divine so complicated. At first inspection, this verse would appear to be a threat to humanity. Get your years together or else! While there is some truth to this understanding, the intent of this verse and the all scripture is to issue an invitation to the reader make a choice.

Only the disjointed would envision a God who dictates goodness and allows only the possibility of obedience. The God of Scripture gives we humans the necessity of choice. The gift of freedom means that we are encouraged to chose the Love of God. Conversely, freedom allows us to choose the self centered path. Love is not love if both possibilities are not a part of the plan.

Will our lives be God centered or self centered? The beginning parables tell of the garden of Eden and the tree of choice. From the beginning, we humans have chosen amiss, we have chosen our own way. This predisposition is in our blood. Salvation should be understood as a second chance choice to explore the God centered life.

This choice controls our future but our days remain exposed to the negatives of life. They include hard ground, intense labor, thorns amongst the edible fields, sweat to till the earth until death, meaningless death. (Gen. 3: 17-19) Without distorting scripture, one could also add disease, war, excess in all descriptions, injustice among man, hatred, greed, famine,prejudice, etc.

These life negatives or failures can become a blessing as they set the stage for God centered choices. These choices are extremely difficult, they will be continually tested. The Psalmist speaks to this struggle as God’s “striving”. This is a positive word not one of condemnation. The choice for God’s Love, however, is not for the faint of heart.

The context of this verse is a terminal context. There will come a day when God becomes weary of our rejection of the divine choice. Some expect the cataclysmic termination of human kind. Some would disagree. God has not wearied of our failures in the last four thousand years so that any attempt to downgrade His patience is absurd. That being said, the scripture says in this verse the day will come.

One preferred understanding would be that “that day” will come because He will no longer need to prod human kind to make the God centered choice. Four thousand years later this scenario is still so implausible yet positively exciting. There may come a time, on this side of death or beyond, when all men shall choose aright. In that Day, there will be no need for an angry disappointed God.

The question believer’s must ask is, will the next choice be God centered? The batting average of even the best of us is somewhere around baseball’s 300 mark. To those of us whose average is much lower, we can assume that another opportunity to choose aright is immanent. To those of us who have no need for God’s striving, may He have mercy on our souls.

G.Goslaw
Victorville, CA.

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

God's Love is a Sure Thing

July 14, 2009

Psalms 103 : 8
The Lord is compassionate and gracious,
Slow to anger and abounding in loving kindness.

Some of us grew up on the MacDonald’s hamburger. A double quarter pounder with cheese will be the same in every MacDonald’s fast food restaurant. In verse eight David testifies that when life’s focus is turned to the Lord, what will be found is a compassionate God. The Message Bible translates this verse, “God is sheer mercy and grace; not easily angered, he’s rich in love”. A more expansive translation, the Living Bible is even more transparent. “He is merciful and tender toward those who don’t deserve it; he is slow to get angry and full of kindness and love.”

Where else in the human experience can this definition of love be found? The best case scenario is the “perfect human relationship” that can potentially dissolve any minute. However, there is security for life in the love of God. Regardless of our life circumstances, regardless of our station in life, we will find the acceptance our personhood requires. He is the God of "sheer mercy" for those us who don't deserve it. At the risk of being classified a cynic about human relations, the best lover’s are our pets.

Let’s exclude cats from the discussion but man’s best friend can love his master similar to that of the Lord. There are no up front qualifications that warrant a dogs love. The master only needs to just shows up with food and water. As time goes by the dog will love even when neglected or mistreated. Loyalty is the common character of the dog world. So it is in the Lord’s world for He is “abounding in loving kindness”. The Hebrew word “chesed”, translated loving kindness in this verse, similarly describes this loyal love that will not discard Israel to the garbage heap. Through the repetitive failures of His people Israel, the Lord overlooks His disappointment at their unrighteousness and returns again and again to loving kindness. Go figure!

The focus of this loyal love in Old Testament times was upon Israel. The ground of this love was the will and character of the Lord who chose to begin a friendship with Abram, expecting a return on this investment. Abram’s return was limited, as has the return on investment of each of us since that time. Consequences occur naturally from our moral failures. Yet the Lord always responds with “chesed”. The Lord invested upwards of four thousand years of human history to teach us about this love and we reduce it to mere sloppy sentiment.

In the fullness of time, the lord sent to earth the best expression of His loving kindness in the person of Jesus. All mankind is now the chosen target of the loyal love of the Lord. Jesus passed out forgiveness like popcorn to all who asked and some who did not as He issued a universal invitation to the Kingdom of God. The only folks who angered Him were those merchandizing the love of God, the Pharisees and religious leaders of the Temple. This occurrence in the ministry of Jesus is an example of the Lord’s slow anger. It is grace for the guilty and anger for the self-righteous.

The Christian revivalist movement of the last two hundred years has increasingly marketed and misapplied the anger of God. Extreme accountability is made normative for the sinner but the religious leaders sell healing towels. This does not square with the scriptures. The proponents of revivalism point to a pivotal passage in the gifting of the Ten Commandments to Moses. The first time down the mountain he finds the riotous worship of Israel at the feet of a golden calf made with human hands.

Deeply grieved, Moses appoints his brother and his religious friends to slaughter three thousand of the family. Yet, Moses brother Aaron was leading the idolatry. Moses quotes the Lord, the God of Israel as commanding the violence. Check it out, Exodus 32:27, “Thus says the Lord”!

Was the killing really of God or of men’s anger citing a supposedly righteous excuse? We have all been there on occassion. Any answer must square with all or most of scripture. Be careful, one day we shall all be judged according to our use of scripture.

G.Goslaw
Victorville,CA.

Man Up America Part IV

Letter to the Editor
Daily Press
Victorville, Ca.

February 13, 2009

# 13
Bold seems to be the “ in ” word in these desperate times. However, the definitions vary. Could we put our feet into the shoes of “ Honest Abe ”? This little person accepted and anguished over the suffering of his fellow countrymen, yet believing that it was necessary. His time of suffering was ordered to establish a long term good for the people, all the people including future generations. The wisdom of “ Honest Abe ” has proved prophetic. Are we really being bold? Man - Up America!

# 14
“ La Revolution!” The hens are setting up America for anarchy, can the anger of the little people, our impotence in America politics, be directed in any other direction? Without responsible political leadership, revolution is the well deserved consequence. History is repeating itself, the cry is against taxation without representation, what will be the new Boston Tea Party? Man - Up America!

#15
February 12, 2009
Birthday of President Abraham Lincoln
Dire circumstances, what a moment to revere our most respected president who inherited such a situation. President Lincoln chose to act on behalf of the nation he loved and refused to allows it to dissolve under his watch. Let us look upon our own current troubles as an even greater opportunity. May our resolve and loyalty to the entire national interest be even stronger and reflect upon us in like manner. Let us reject our own henish tendencies. Man - Up - America!

# 16
February 13, 2009
Mr. President, who are you? Obviously, you are a gifted politician who has all the appropriate rhetoric and sympathy for our situation. Yet, your legislative style and priorities say it isn’t so! Are you just another Chicago style political hack? Our prayer is that you are a player for the people! Mr. President are you a man or a boy ( hen )? Man - Up - America!

# 17
February 22, 2009
It’s Christmas in Washington, the gathering around the Christmas tree is joyous. All the family of hens take their turn at the Christmas tree. Any cost in the name of Christmas is accepted as necessary for our well being and pain free lifestyles. The hens rule. The credit cards are filled up to overflowing. Responsibility is denied. Again, we have sold the long term good of our country for the sake of a short term fix. Where will the excess lead? Man - Up - America!

# 18
February 23, 2009
Just a note to test my faulty memory, wasn’t it only a few months ago that the Clinton henhouse was campaigning in Indiana, Ohio and Pennsylvania, feeling the peoples pain from extreme job loss? This ploy almost worked. Now, the Secretary of States’ first overseas trip is to you know where, China. The purpose is to prostrate herself and our country before a communist dictatorship, to prostitute each one of us in order to reassure our John that all is well. Is there no American self respect among us? There is self respect China. This is the true cost of the stimulus and bailout boondoggles. Man - Up - America!

# 19
February 26, 2009
Twenty years from today, how will these times be described? If your writing a book Mr. Historian, what would be the title of said edition? At some personal risk of sounding negative, let’s give them a jump start. The proposed title would rightly identify our time of :
“ Bloated Budgets and Bailout Boondoggles ”. Man - Up America!

G. Goslaw
Victorville, Ca.

Monday, July 13, 2009

Poor Baby

July 13, 2009

Have you ever sensed that the known world was crushing your personal space? So it seems to be with Lisa Bradley, a Marin County Kindergarten teacher. She was quoted in the Daily Press this morning, July 13, 2009. The article is about our politicians latest attempt at constructing a budget that is revenue neutral.

Ms. Bradley’s comments expose a sense of educational entitlement that parallels that of the social welfare system. To her, educational concerns and their funding are somehow special and not to be subject to the axe. The supposed mission to teach the children of California and Mexico is so righteous that dollars are of no concern.

The taxpayers of California have said no to this mindset. Sacramento is finally awaking to the fact that our educational system must share the pain of these times. Raising taxes is self destructive to California. Any educator whose mental process won’t accept this reality should take a life long sabbatical.

She pleads ignorant of the causes of our state’s economic crisis, “ I don’t know how this happened”. Burying her head in the sand like an ostrich, will not make the math go away. California may be the eighth biggest economy in the world but like any household budget, when expenses exceed income there is a crisis.

This could be a lesson worthy of her kindergarteners, although the lesson plan will have to be written by one of her instructional assistants. Then again, she could get back to teaching. Poor Baby.

G.Goslaw
Victorville, CA.

Friday, July 10, 2009

Man Up America Part III

February 2, 2009

#10
So where in the chicken yard is that man or woman? You know, the Super person possessing all the character of leadership required, the intellect, communication skills and determination to work aggressively on behalf of all classes of people for the greater good.. Most importantly, he or she will risk the furor of all those hens by disrespecting their constant pecking to enhance their own self interest. Ignoring his or her own self interest will require the most resolve. You know, the Super person is a good American, a patriot! As we hold our current political leadership to this ideal, let us all attempt to reflect this goodness in our own sphere of influence. Man - Up - America!

February 5, 2009

#11
Labels are spin intended to manipulate the trusting American. Globalization proponents are a case in point. Their method is to label anyone who questions the wisdom of free trade, a protectionist. That word sounds so ugly and undesirable, the truth is that every nation in the world has some form of protectionist policies. The only exception is this country, we give our trading partners everything and every nation wants a piece of our middle class prosperity. Man -Up- America!

#12
Free trade freedom has devastating consequences upon the middle class while enriching the invested class. Jobs disappear and our politicians take more orders from the globalist lobby. As the tax base schrinks, attempts are made to scare us with labels, give us only lip service at election time, raise taxes, and the trade imbalance continues. Why can’t we discuss trade? You got it, greed! Man-Up-America!

G.Goslaw
Victorville, CA.

Thursday, July 9, 2009

Folly of the Foxes

July 9, 2009

Billionaire stock market mogul Warren Buffet is promoting another stimulus package. Mr. Buffet is crazy like a fox. Why would a major player in the market advance another bailout for public sector jobs?

This mentally deficient observer can muster enough wisdom to run with the fox. He is part and parcel of America’s invested class. The public sector is the major revenue stream for the well being of Wall Street. Everyone working for some government welfare program is invested with a multitude of financial products. Politicians, teachers, I.R.S., staffers, Washington staffers, prison personnel, every job in medicine, state, county and city employees and the like are invested regularly through their employers.

If the public sector takes a hit, so does the market and so do the billions of the fox. There has been and is a class warfare a foot in our country. One day, when it is to late, then we shall understand. One day, if we continue this economic violence against fellow Americans, we shall all be broke. One day and soon, our grandchildren will suffer from our error. One day, we shall all be rudely awakened from the folly of the foxes.

G.Goslaw
Victorville, Ca.

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

God's Love is in Your Face

July 8, 2009

Psalms 103 : 7
He made known His ways to Moses,
His acts to the sons of Israel.

The anti-God secularist lobby would have us believe that God is nothing more than a totem pole, a statue in the town square or an intellectual concept relegated to the history books. It is as if to say, past generations may have needed a God mindset but this generation is not so dependent. Today’s secular culture says that God is a cold, lifeless, passive coping mechanism of insecure humanity.

The response of the church to this assault on historical Christianity is to passively disengage from the culture. The church accepts the status of irrelevancy , content to preach the love of Christ primarily to the margins of the culture. However, a direct frontal assault by the church, with a biblically bases theology that confronts the tenants of today’s secularism, may be the only long term hope for the church. This assault has not even been considered or formulated, let alone tried. Why is this so?

A more thorough consideration is possible but at least it is about character. A passive persona is somehow deemed more spiritual than an aggressive, in your face style. The sinner Peter, who denied Jesus three times, had no such hang up. Facing the Jerusalem crowd, he communicated the facts. You have crucified your own Messiah, the one sent by the Father to further the Kingdom reign of the Lord on earth. As terrible as this is, your motives have been foiled because He has been raised to life. Jesus has been seen by many, I have spoken to Him, He is out and about Jerusalem.

Many believed the news of the day and the church was born of the Lord‘s resurrection spirit. Peter spoke up because God the Father is not passive and His love is in our faces. Prior to Peter, “He made known His ways to Moses”, v.7. One day the burning bush was in Moses’ face. This happening reflects the certainty in his heart that the true God was recruiting and empowering him to face up to the earthly human God, Pharaoh. The mission presented to Moses was as scary and similar as today’s circumstances are for the church. At this time, “His ways” include direct confrontation with secularism.

The first confrontation with the secularist should be about history. The enemy would have the culture accept the premise that the past is somehow of little value. The “now” generations are dumbing -down the culture so their particular options cannot be questioned. The Psalmist was not so predisposed to this historical dysfunction. He kept a library of “His acts to the sons of Israel.” The in your face love of God says that the experience of our ancestors should be fundamental to righteous decisions into the future. Our decision making must be in historical context.

When the history of God’s involvement in His world is discredited, faith in God becomes only a mushy sentimentalism. Let us relate the experiences of Noah in his time. Elijah was in the face of the prophets of Bail. Let us recount the Psalmist’s rocky journey to kingship. The Father confronted this world in typical in your face style allowing the crucifixion of Jesus. A reclusive priest is sent by God to confront the bloodletting of Rome, making the ultimate sacrifice. The early translators of the clergy bound scriptures were killed and imprisoned. Martin Luther, John Wesley , Jonathon Edwards, William Carrey and a multitude of others lived out the in your face love of God. Their lives are important and instructional to this generation.

Church, you must present the reign of God by having an in your face methodology. The church leadership cannot limit itself to coddling the choir, you must stand in great confidence and speak with authority to the culture. Leadership, the message is not to replicate a certain version of the truth but to invite the now culture to experience the in your face Love of God. May it be so.

G.Goslaw
Victorville, CA.

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Mercenary Military

Tuesday
July 7, 2009

Seven U.S. troops killed in Afghanistan. This is the by line in the VV Daily Press, A3, Monday the 6th day of July, 2009. Americans with bipolar motivations, are dying with a regularity unknown in the history of our country. Never has American blood on the battlefield been reduced to mere normality.

So many bloody bylines have greeted our days. Has it become trite? Sure, we lip sink patriotic gratitude on cue but has the blood sport become routine? This voice responds in the affirmative. We no longer expect an end to the violence and we could care less. There are much bigger fish to fry, so many more consuming problems and targets.

The root of our propensity to violence is , as usual, money. The economics of war are two fold. The first and foremost is what has been called the military industrial, global dollar complex or engine. Support of our military, its budget and the resulting feeding of the American economy by the supply chain, has it’s own morality. The fact that this engine also feeds our politicians may be significant. In any event, if it’s good for the economy it’s moral.

The second is the character of our standing military. The Vietnam era exposed the abuses of a conscripted fighting force. The process was ugly and some of us lived it, some didn‘t live through it. Today’s military is capturing the negative possibilities of a volunteer and dollar wise fighting force.

In addition to patriotism, the motivation of this force is bipolar and sliding in the negative direction. Killing is becoming more of a job, it is monetary security in tough times. Should luck not follow your efforts and you die, you are a hero and your family gets a big paycheck.

The taxpayer is funding a mercenary military. Violence is, however, a moral issue that is unrelated to the dollar. Either we end our fascination with the blood sport or our country will end very badly. In this present form, at this time, we are witnessing the end of American greatness. We should all shiver at what is in store for our grandchildren.

Church, why are you silent?

G.Goslaw
Victorville, Ca.

Monday, July 6, 2009

God's Love Is Fair

Psalms 103 : 6
The Lord performs righteous deeds,
And judgments for all who are oppressed.

The purest application of hate is to ignore. The writer of Psalms confronts us with his belief that the Lord God of Israel loves his people because He takes righteous, good or supportive actions. This writer, probably David, is reflecting on the history of his people who were nurtured from a call to one man into a Kingdom. At just the right moments, God would prove His love and care for Israel by taking righteous action.

The question should be asked of this verse, does this hope for God's actions have a broader focus than national borders? Most readers through the centuries have assumed that this Lord was taking righteous action for them as well. Even today this verse ignites a hope for the future in times of trouble all around the world. Believers in every culture have been rewarded by experiencing this Lord’s supportive action.

“The Lord” (v. 1.) is an approximation designation for the one awesome, all powerful presence in the world. A presence whose name in Hebrew was so respected that it wasn’t to be uttered verbally. This name is used most frequently in the prophetic traditions where the ways of man are subject to the will, the plan and the judgments of this presence. The beginning parables use another Hebrew name for God but when the divine creative activity turns to the human form, the name used is “Lord”.

The biblical revelation is that the Lord operates and has authority first with individuals, then through tribe or national identity and finally amongst all of humanity. Perk up world, the Lord has been taking action through the lives of Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Joshua, Gideon, Ruth, the prophet Samuel, King Saul, King David, Nebuchadnezzar, Cyrus King of Prussia, Nehemiah, Ezra the Priest, Esther, Job, the Prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, Daniel, Hosea, Joel, Amos, Jonah, Micah, etc., etc. Jesus of Nazareth, the named disciples and those unnamed, St. Peter, St. Paul, and John the Beloved. The list goes on and on through the post resurrection millennia to this very day.

The recorded persons influenced are eclectic and diverse. The Psalmist uses the little word “all” to describe this gathering. What does he mean by all? Go to Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance where you will find approximately 3500 uses of the word “all” through David’s writings, almost 6000 are in the entire biblical record. It appears that “all” means “all”. The Lord works great deeds on behalf of individuals but His intentions are to prove himself to “all”. The biblical record has been gifted to us to validate that fact, the ever widening influence of the “Lord”.

This amateur theologian is supportive of those few voices that extend divine influence to a universalist definition. All of human kind is in the process of accepting by faith the presence of the Lord God of all time and all space. Death is but a visible marker for this reality beyond which the Love of God will have other expressions, new opportunities to accept His influence. This is the best definition of Love generated by an all powerful big God.

The activity of God, His Love, is for “the oppressed“. Jesus preferred to use the word picture of a burden carried on an ass. Life is replete with a host of burdens; loss, isolation, starvation, violence, greed, rejection, disease, prejudice, poverty, hatred and death itself. The beginning parables describe these troubles as the deserved “curse” of all our lives lived in ignorance of God's Love.

We can make the choice to accept by faith the love of the Lord yet the troubles remain. The difference is that now we experience His escort through the entanglements of this world of woe. Having made the choice for the love of the Lord, these troubles will mellow or dissipate in the next reality, we hope.

The really good news is that even beyond the grave new opportunities for all men to choose aright may be given.

Is this not fair?

G.Goslaw

Sunday, July 5, 2009

Excess

Sunday, July 5, 2009

On this Sunday morning the sports page produced a relevant message. The last few weeks has documented a number of untimely deaths, the latest is that of football celebrity Steve McNair. This is a message for the under fifty “now” generations only because it is to late for the rest of us. Celebrity status, real or imagined is not a license for excess. The Bible declares that what goes around comes around and this life truth is again playing out in the lives of our celebrities.

In the Daily Press, 05 July 09, a perverted understanding of celebrity is vocalized by a former teammate of McNair. Quoting the article and Samari Rolle, “It is a sad, sad day. The world has lost a great man today.” Really, we have supposedly lost a great man? Mr. Rolle is guilty of as much moral absurdity as that of Mr. McNair. The life decisions of this great sports celebrity are far from any moral definition of manhood!

There is no just excuse for murder but a life of excess creates a negative hazardous atmosphere. The point is not to exploit the excesses of Mr. McNair but to ask each one of us to examine where we as a culture are headed. Is morality only an outdated crutch of the fuddy duddies that has no relevance to the daily lives of the now crowd? Does the life of Michael Jackson leave a legacy that even approaches that of Martin Luther King? Is the legacy of a cheating Manny equal to that of Lou Gehrig, who considered himself the luckiest man in the world despite his fatal disease? Kid’s, isn’t there a difference?

Please, let each of our generations choose aright today.

G.Goslaw
Victorville, Ca

The California Axis of Evil

Letter to the Editor
Daily Press

June 30, 2009

Kudos to representative Steve Knight! Our states version of the axis of evil is on the attack against certain state politicians with a glossy mailer. Representing the axis is “The Fair Budget Coalition“ as described by James Rufus Koren, the Redlands Daily Facts on 6/16/09. As a Victorville resident, we received the said deceptive mailing.

The Fair Budget Coalition is fed by the axis of evil which includes the state teachers union, the state school employees union and the public employees union. This self serving trinity and it’s deep pockets is responsible for the political impasse that has held the future of Californian hostage.

The coalition has no respect for the intelligence of the California voter. They assume we all can be deceived so easily. The supposed issue sited as hypocritical, auto expenses, is received by all state assembly politicians, whether they are for or against tax increases. Judged by the Sacramento standard, Steve Knight’s car expense is not exorbitant.

The only plausible motivation for the unions’ actions is to bilk the taxpayers of California of every spare nickel. Wake up coalition members, confess your evil, there are no spare nickels!

Representative Knight is correct, accurate and truthful. More taxes to support more spending is a California killer.

For California to move into governmental integrity, the unions must accept less not more.

G.Goslaw
Victorville, CA.

Friday, July 3, 2009

Man-Up-America Part II

Letter to the Editor
Daily Press

January 16, 2009
# 5
Our politicians are ignorant of any responsible economic policy. The American economy is not viable as a consumer based entity that produces little of any substance besides banking products. We as a people are more than a potential sale. The drive for cheap labor has created a bubble that has burst all of the hopes and dreams of the little people. This drive must be addressed by the same politicians that have exploited the people with such disregard. But will they? Or will they continue the “bail out” lie? Of course they will! Man - Up- America!

January 23, 2009
# 6
Henish hypocrisy, the politico speak is about jobs, jobs, jobs. This expedient language must generate the warm and fuzzies. Could all the verbiage be a way to avoid tackling the job destroyer, free trade? Is anyone bragging about being a free trader in this atmosphere when the two, free trade and home grown jobs, are incompatible. The trick is to achieve a balanced approach that has not existed for the last two decades. Man - up- America!

January 26, 2009
# 7.
Henish manipulation of our economic system is most commonly referred to as governmental bailout. The bailouts trade long term security and viability for some resemblance of a short term fix, weather or not it proves successful. With each gyration of the boom and bust cycle the downside becomes increasingly uncomfortable, so here we are again. Why can’t we stand pat now, take our lumps, and leave a legacy for future generations that may include economic opportunities? Man - Up -America!
# 8.
The election of Barack Obama has deservedly generated the warm and fuzzies amongst us. As one injustice is abating in our society, another has come into prominence. Racial equality has been replaced by a struggle of equal venom and selfishness, class warfare amongst the people, we are divided. Some have described the division in differing ways but money is the issue. The invested class, those who make decisions as they watch the DOW Jones, the interest rate on their moneyed accounts and IRA’s, have opened a gulf of disregard for the rest of the little people. This societal warfare is who we have become. Man - Up -America!

January 31, 2009
# 9
As a country we are in a huge ditch. Caught between a veritable rock and a hard place. The national bank account is empty, we have already amassed a gargantuan national debt and are being told to spend our way out of this current economic dilemma. The hens are also saying it may not work but at least we’re doing something. The question is at what price? As we the little people know, the house really belongs to the bank until the mortgage is paid. Who shall be our banker, to whom shall we surrender out national integrity? Shall we be another Chinese province? No! Man - Up -America!

G.Goslaw
Victorville, CA.
( #5 was published without Man-Up-America identity)

Continuing the Lie

Letter to the Editor
Daily Press
Victorville, CA.

January 29, 2009

Our politicians are ignorant of any responsible economic policy. The American economy is not viable as a consumer based entity that produces little of any substance but banking products. We as a people are more than a potential sale.

The drive for cheap labor has created a bubble that has burst all of the hopes and dreams of the little people. This drive must be addressed by the same politicians that have exploited the people with such disregard.

But will they? Or will they continue the bailout lie? Of course they will.

G.Goslaw
Victorville, CA.
(Published in Daily Press 1-29-09)

Thursday, July 2, 2009

Safety Now or Later

March 2, 2009

A Letter of Clarification to Dr. Jeff Kaplan, in response to 2/28/09 article in the Daily Press.

May I once again point out that the scriptures do not unearth the Lord’s goodness in the way your article describes. The first sentence of the seventh paragraph states, “This Psalm is not for everyone”. This statement is guilty of being a spiritually racist remark that is out of sync with the Bible as a whole. Every book of the Bible is for everyone to digest if they so chose.

Personally, every possible perspective has value, we want to hear and evaluate all voices. Collectively we all are then able to explore for meaning and understanding in this risky business of life. Despite all of our progressive mandates, life just remains full of risk. The challenges change but the risks remain. ( my coinage ) As a culture we no longer have to be afraid of the Black Plague but we kill millions of innocents by medically correct abortive procedures. Sorry kid but your not needed here on earth. What is the difference?

David’s life was full of risk, you know the unfolding history. Psalm 23 is David’s declaration of faith, of trust in the Lord to be his guide through the risky circumstances of life. It was an every day decision to trust that vertical relationship more than any other way of dealing with the stress of life. We all have utilized on occasion those other human stress reducers to no or temporary avail.

Please let me mention just one. There is the progressive mandate to build a nest with other fearful personages. We adopt boundaries of safety within which life is less risky. We compromise our own identityby an overriding identification with a particular group. However, the chicken wire is both a barrier to keep risk out and a prison for the hens or the sheep or the church. The Shepherd then is more of a prison guard and God a protector from risk. Nest building is not God’s way.

Possibly that is why Jesus directed His disciples ( the shepherd ) to leave the protection of the sheep fold to search after the one lone, lost, and at risk personage. How do we get our head and our heart around that kind of shepherd? Surely,Jesus was declaring that the sheepfold understanding of God’s protection was and still is faulty.

The sheep fold of that time was the self protective and exclusionary Jewish religion circa OO. For the protection of the faithful community,the at risk Jew with low performance credentials, the sinner, is expendable for the greater good. Jesus by His teaching, by His focus, by His actions and by His declared mission, blew this understanding of God’s goodness out of the water.

The door to God’s goodness is open to everyone because the church is the ongoing visable representative of God on earth. In the church, we should more resemble the shepard. Personally that directive is unpleasant and mostly impossible. It is, however, scripturally unavoidable. Let’s go back to David as a case in point.

David was chosen by God to be King of Israel and after that declaration by the prophet Samuel, the risk factors in his life multiplied. In this time of risk, we must not trust in the fold, the Church, trust first in the Vertical Guide who will guide each of us through the risk to his expanded will. Trust only in the God who will walk beside us. Let us rejoice as we confront risk.

G. Goslaw
Victorville, Ca.
(This slighty revised letter has been ignored.)

The Cursing Church

July 2, 2009

Matt. 15 : 5 - 11.
6. b. And thus you invalidated the Word of God for the sake of your tradition.11. “Not what enters into the mouth that defiles the man, but what proceeds out of the mouth, this defiles the man.”

Isaiah 29 : 13 & 14
13. Then the Lord said, “Because this people draw near with their words and honor me with their lip service,but they remove their hearts far from Me, and their reverence for Me consists of traditions learned by rote. 14. Therefore behold, I will once again deal marvelously with this people,wondrously marvelous;(a divine pun )

The cursing church is the absence of God’s blessing. The reason is simple but powerful. A place where the traditions and priorities of men drown the blessings of God. The church becomes a human institution, a social gathering where the traditions of men are the priority not the activity of God. This happening has been ongoing throughout all of spiritual history.

It is reoccurring change that can be measured in years, not decades or centuries. The church dynamic has a constant.

It is the rule of human priorities while claiming to be motivated by the Love of Jesus Christ.

It is the crowd gathered around the cross laughing at the seeming impotence of God’s authority and control in the world.

It is giving a miniscule monetary blessing to the homeless shelter, as long as you corral “them” away from us.

It is preaching love and mutual respect toward all races while Sunday AM remains the most segregated hour in the world.

It is about making the communion table more about status than sin. One must be visibly sinless or a part of the group, so the group can approve of the partakers. The rational is bizarre.

It is not being seen with a sinner or counted among the spiritually desperate. The church is the spiritually accomplished.

It is about claiming the redemptive power of God but not for certain sins. Certain sins are either not important or beyond redemption.

It is about looking good in the mirror of public opinion instead of God‘s opinion. Which opinion matter’s most?

It is about being front and center as God dispenses grace. Surely our approval or participation of the Church is required.

It is about piously feeling good about being a first responder to God’s grace. We are special as the receivers of God’s goodness.

It’s all about Us! It’s all about our partnership with God. Of course this is never verbalized and the definition of partnership is foggy.

The church’s view of itself is critical to being either a blessing church or a cursing church.

The church is the only place where we sinners can find resolution to the sorry state of sin. We are all so intimately involved with this state that we all need a constant blessing from God.

The church should be an expression of God’s love for we sinners, played out in real time. Sin has been deleted but it will always remain in the recycle bin until the return of Jesus Christ.

Finally, the church should not be subject of the pun of Isaiah in verse 14. A cursing church is a lip service church that God will judge. As the church, we are so close, every day, to denying the authority of our maker in our lives.

G.Goslaw