First off, I have no intention of preaching or imparting wisdom, it is not that kind of blog. I am sorry, but my story may sound simple to you. I have very little use for large theological terms: hermeneutics, ecclesiology, eschatology, and ontology. I have been part of a church my whole life, and still do not know the difference between Justification and Sanctification.  

My apologies, but I do not throw judgments around. I will not judge you or others for their politics, religion, gender, or sexual orientation. We all have our own struggles in life, and I will try not to add to yours. I have no idea what you are going through, but will try to listen if ever you decide to shed your mask and confide in me.

I’m sorry, but I cannot rail against the problems of the world, because “they” are not the problem. There is no “us” and “them”; those are made up terms. WE have an enemy, but he has convinced us that “they” are the enemy. Our enemy has convinced us that he doesn’t exist.

I hate to even bring it up, but we all have evil within us. We are all capable of horrific evil, but we are not the evil within us. There is a tendency within humanity to self-promote, self-protect, shift blame, and deny our fears. These actions create a lot of evil, but that is the consequence of living in a fallen world.

But on the other hand, we all have good within. We are made in the image and likeness of God, and thus, He has imparted the DNA of his goodness within each of us.

With regret, I have very few words of advice for your struggles. All I can offer is encouragement to keep going. I can tell you with absolute certainty your Father in heaven loves you, even as you are, but he also loves you too much to leave you where you are. He is calling you into bigger and better things and will never give up on you.

I cannot help but notice we all carry a deep feeling of longing in our hearts. That desire for more is not asking for material goods, it is asking for meaning and purpose.

I apologize, but this blog will not erase that longing, and I hope to intensify it at times. The longing brings searching and digging deep and discovery and true freedom.

I am sorry, but I am not here to convince you of my theology. Apologetics is not a gift I have. Either what I have to say rings true with you or it does not. My job is to speak and let the Spirit do the rest.

All I have to offer is my journey. I can point out the path I have found. Whether it is the right path for you is another question. I can tell you the truth that we all hope for and wish were true but somehow still deny.

We live in a fallen and broken world. There is cruelty and evil all around, but that is not the truth. For some reason, we focus on this pain and ugliness.

We are between worlds. The has-been and the not-quite-yet. This is the space where good lives with evil, and the ugly and the beautiful are intertwined. God is indwelling and overcoming this world, but He is partnering with us to do it. All things are being made beautiful, and that includes us. It includes you!

The truth of this world is that God, our Father, is bigger, and better than we dared to imagine. He’s not mad at, or angry with you. He truly is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast loving loyalty (exodus 34:6 and 7). It is a world soaked with His character and nature (or ontology if you prefer that word).

The tension in-between worlds is that it is both soaked with God’s goodness and overrun by the evil of the age. The Kingdom has come, but it is not quite fully present. We can choose which world to live in and live by.

The path I point out will take you where you are supposed to go. I know the beginning and the end, but am unsure what lies in between. Will it take us through the desert? Will it be a quick journey, or one that ambles for forty years? I apologize, but I have not the answer. We are on this journey together, remember?

I regret to inform you that this path is narrow, with lots of roots and rocks to trip you up. But it is straight if that is any consolation…. Straight up the side of a mountain, but hey, He said He’d make your path straight. He never said it would be easy.