ancient-path-counseling

Welcome to the Shattered Heart Club

Mon, 26 Aug 2024 16:59:35 GMT

Going through the motions doesn’t please you, a flawless performance is nothing to you. I learned God-worship when my pride was shattered. Heart-shattered lives ready for love don’t for a moment escape God’s notice. Psalm 51:16-17 MSG

For too many of us, it takes a kick to the spiritual nuts to get our attention. And not some weak kick either. I mean you getting caught bent over in the perfect position, legs spread at the optimal angle, ass high in the air, oblivious as you peer, bent over, at something on the ground, then a leg drawn back as far as its owner can possibly reach followed by a swift forward motion, then WHAM!

The force literally lifts you off the ground. Then you drop like a wet sack, curled in a ball, wondering if you’re going to throw up from the pain or the spinning world you can feel despite your clenched shut eyes. You’ve just been shattered. Smile for the camera.

This violation against your being can be many things. Your wife left you for another man. You just got fired and every bill was already past due. An accident, a death of a loved one, or a child or wife. Cancer and it’s terminal. Sexual confusion, straight or gay. Or you just got found out; drugs or alcohol or porn or affairs, a friend of a Facebook friend of your wife’s saw you leaving a strip club…regardless of the details, your screwed and life is over.

Fast forward a few weeks or months. You find yourself either literally alone cause everyone bailed, or kicked your sorry ass out, or you feel alone cause despite anyone else’s attempts at consolation or empathy, they have no damn clue what you’re going through and you’d rather they just say so. You’d appreciate the candor.

This is the crux, everything hangs on this time right here. You are primed to receive the greatest gift you’ll ever be given. It’s right here, when you are trying to decide if another day is worth the effort, daydreaming about ending it all and how painful would it really be, right here right now you need to just…breathe.

God has been watching you. Your Creator has had His face towards you since before you were born. The anticipation of this moment in time has caused His heart to race, His breath to quicken. Right here at the crossroad, watching and waiting for your life to literally hang in the balance, He’s ready. Eager and able and so very very motivated to step in as you fall, and with His arms catch you, lift you up, and carry you to cool waters. Sit next to the stream and hold you as you finally give it up. Breathe.

“Look at me, son”

not worthy, can’t bear it

“Look at me, my child”

failed you, in every way. please don’t make me do this. let me die.

“I was ready for this moment before the first ray of light shot across the void. I knew not only to be right here at this time, but I set aside a day over 2,000 years ago so that I could wipe your sin away. I’ve already done it, I am doing it right now, and will continue to do it till the end of this age. So, give it to me. Look at me, and breathe.”

As the tears come, as the sobbing builds, as the ache grows until you feel like your going to die of a broken heart, He holds you.

I don’t know where you are, who you are, or when you are reading this. But if this is you that I’m writing this to…well then, hello. I am glad that you are here. I wish that I was there with you, cause I’d hug you. I’m told I’m good at it.

I would like you to do something for me after you read this. I want you to close your eyes and just sit. Calm your breath, and when your heart has slowed, speak to Him. Just say hello. Then, when you are ready or when you hear that hello back, ask Him the hard question. “What am I supposed to do about this mess. What am I supposed to do about me?”.

Then just sit. Breathe…

Ancient Path Counseling

We’ve walked the path. We know the struggle and the work. We know freedom.

Obedience and Love

Sun, 12 May 2024 09:11:52 GMT

The fundamental fact of existence is that this trust in God, this faith, is the firm foundation under everything that makes life worth living. It’s our handle on what we can’t see. The act of faith is what distinguished our ancestors, set them above the crowd. Hebrews 11:1-2 MSG

“If you love me, show it by doing what I’ve told you…” John 14:15 MSG

Therapy. This is therapy.

For me anyway.

It may not be for you, but that’s your problem. Keep looking. Elsewhere. Cause obviously you ain’t gonna find it here with me. But if what you read here is therapeutic for you, or helps you in any way, then sub. Free or paid, I don’t care, both help, and I’m grateful either way.

I need therapy, in a bad way. I’m so far out on the ragged edge right now, my ass might as well be in a different time zone. So, let’s get therapied, therapized, whatever…

My beautiful wife, whom I love dearly and would give up anything for, do anything for, started a business. It cost some not small amount of money to get started. And there’s been no revenue coming in as of yet. And things are tight and getting scary.

Honestly, they’re more than tight. I currently do not know how everything that needs to get paid, will get paid. Unless there’s a sale, and revenue comes in. Which is entirely in His hands.

She’s worked hard, my precious little wife. Worked her little Italian ass off. And the Bible is very clear in that all hard work will profit. We are holding firm to that. But we also recognize that not all of our current financial challenges are due to the investment into this new venture. We’ve made mistakes, bought some stupid stuff, not always paid attention to what is going out versus what is coming in.

We’ve been bad stewards. For a long time.

God hasn’t abandon us. He’s given instruction, provided small amounts right when they were needed. But the major relief that would help solve a lot of issues? Not yet.

The word that I’ve gotten is “I’m coming. It’s going to be ok”. Which is very helpful and reassuring. Problem is, I’m the only one who’s heard it. So, when my wife is pressing me for “the plan”, hitting my every suggestion and idea with “but this”…I start to get frustrated, then irritated, then upset, then angry, then right and royally pissed off. Today, I told her to go get her reassurance from God herself, cause she obviously isn’t getting it from me. Please God, just tell her what You’ve told me. Frustrating.

Also, in the thick of the emotions of the scene described above, I can find myself beginning to question what I’ve heard from Him. As well as in the quiet afterward, when I’m alone but reliving the moment, going back over the bills and the spreadsheet. Doubt, fear, panic. Questioning and pleading and praying for Him to move, for something to sell, for a break in the storm. Please God, please come through. And not just for our financial benefit, but for my wife, cause she sure could use the validation that her work is good, and worth money to someone. So please, move.

The whole day has been like this. In my time with Him this morning, tears. In the time in between that and our almost argument, prayers. After that, pleading. Then more time in the spreadsheet. Have I told you that I hate excel? Burn it with fire and launch it into space after running over it with a truck and shooting it with a full mag of incendiary rounds.

This last Sunday I found myself sitting in a class with about 40 others. It’s a financial workshop class hosted by my church. Basically, it’s for those of us who’ve proven too stupid to handle money. Oh, and those who are just starting out in life but are there to learn how not to be stupid early on…I hate them, shoot them into space with excel.

It was embarrassing and humbling, sitting there with my workbook, taking notes and feeling dumb. I’m a leader in our church, and yet here I am, sitting in this class with my spiritual dunce cap on. A dumbass.

Yet, I will return next week. And the week after, for 7 weeks. Because He’s told me that this is where I’m supposed to be. That it is time that I learn how to handle money and be a good steward of what He gives me. And don’t get me wrong, I’m ready to learn, despite the humility. But the main reason I’m in this class?

I love Him. And if I claim to love Him, then I will obey Him. He made that pretty clear in the Book of John. So, off I go. Obedient. Cause He didn’t say “If you love me, then I’ll make it easy for you”. Nope, just said “be obedient”. It sucks sometimes, but this is what I signed up for. I hope you realized that when you signed up, that you agreed to live a life of “not always easy”. Or as the SEALS put it, “no easy day”.

So I have a choice to make in this season; I can give into the fear and try to fix this myself, cause believe me I’ve been tempted. Take out another loan, consolidate everything, or break our lease and move somewhere stupidly cheap yet probably not so safe, or just curl up in a ball and let fear have a field day.

Or, trust that I will find that firm foundation mentioned above. Cause I want to live a life worth living. I want to have a handle on that which we can’t see. I don’t want to live a life of normal, or what the world considers life. I signed up for whatever life Jesus chose for me to live. And right now, it’s this. Living right here in the not knowing how all the bills will get paid. Trying to learn to be the assurance that my wife needs, be her rock as I was created to be. Be her shelter. Cause learning to balance a checkbook isn’t the only thing I need to learn.

By allowing us to get into this situation I’ve failed her. I failed to provide sheltering and assurance. I’m not just learning to handle money. I’m learning how there’s one more area where I need to learn how to be a man and a husband. I’ve had to learn other areas. I survived those lessons. And if the promises that He’s spoken over me are true, then I’ll survive this one too. And be the better for it.

Finally, the last question. Why now? Why this lesson at this time?

Because of His great work in me, His healing me of my addictions and demons, and His strength that He’s built up in me. Because of all this, this is now the time and season. Because I’ll listen, and trust, and do.

Because I love Him. Wholeheartedly.

Be blessed, be strong…Jason.

Ancient Path Counseling

We’ve walked the path. We know the struggle and the work. We know freedom.

Hard days make you better?

Sun, 12 May 2024 08:59:21 GMT

For you need perseverance so that, after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise. Hebrews 10:36 TLV

…we have to be willing to endure some tough love sometimes.

The first part of today went like this: got up, got coffee, pooped, got the Word and worship and prayer, got exercise.

The exercise today almost broke me. It was rough and I’m not ashamed to say that at one point my jaw was quivering. Not from physical pain, of which there was plenty, but because in that pain and struggle to keep going, He showed up, told me who I was, shot some holy adrenaline into my veins, and I just started to lose it a little. In a good way, because in that moment it was exactly what I needed and my Savior came through. I don’t deserve it, can’t earn it, but He does it.

See, I’m 49 years old. I spent the better part of my adult life doing what I wanted (not exercising) and eating what I wanted (crap). There was the occasional flirtation with healthiness, but it never stuck cause I was never prone to being overweight more than 20 pounds or so, and I’m 6’3”, so there’s plenty of places for the weight to hide.

But now? Ha, now my body hates me, the bastard. This flesh ruled me for too long, and now I spend at least 5 mornings a week beating the crap out of it. I also don’t often feed it what it wants, either. Do I sometimes want a Reese’s, or cookies, or greasy tacos? Yep. But if I give one inch, then it could all be over. Right now, I give myself about 2 to 3 meals a week to eat good, the rest it’s smoothies and chicken and rice and broccoli. It sucks, but I’m the only one to blame.

It was 3 or so years ago that I went to the doctor for a bug, one where you know you’ll need antibiotics to get over. To my surprise, my normally just fine blood pressure was high. Short story, they gave me blood pressure medication, I took it, it killed my sex drive, I went back, they said “Oh, we have pills for that too”, and I said “Go to hell”, then went and asked God what to do. He told me, and now my blood pressure is fine without pills, my resting heart rate is down in the 50’s after being in the 70’s most of my life, and I actually like to run up stairs again like when I was a kid. You show me some stairs, and I’m gone. Last time I had blood work done, the doctor was jealous, said it was perfect in every area.

Why am I writing about this? It ain’t to brag on me. If I had my way, I’d be living off Cherry Coke, Chili Cheese Fritos, and Reese’s Peanut Butter cups. But that is not what we were made to survive off of. Is it ok to indulge every once in a while? Sure it is. But if you’re like me, you find yourself afraid of those “once in a while’s” cause you know where they can lead; you know not to trust you. Specifically, you know not to trust your flesh, cause it’s a bastard and will betray you in a heartbeat if given the slightest opportunity.

This is why all the credit here goes to Him. Jesus keeps me on this path by constantly reminding me that my body is not my own. It is a temple of the Holy Spirit, and I better take care of it, keep it in order, keep it clean, or else He might come for a visit and start flipping tables, bring that whip he made a couple of millennia ago. Now, you may be thinking “man, Jesus seems like a mean dude”. Or, you may be getting ready to say “Jason, you’re view of God is all out of whack. He’s not mean like that. He’s loving and kind”. And you’d be right, partially.

Here’s the thing. Jesus is always with me, all day. Especially when I’m working out. He’s encouraging, uplifting, and pressing me to go beyond what I think I can do. Jesus chases away the fear. He speaks against the doubt that I can finish this ride or this row. When the enemy comes, suggesting I give up, telling me that the pain in my knee is not going away and I better stop or I’ll injure myself, telling me I’m an idiot or fool for thinking I could this, Jesus makes his presence felt. He takes on the Lion of Judah presence and starts roaring. Then I start roaring. Then my wife starts rolling her eyes and questioning the last 30 years of her life…

So He gets the credit, and He gets the right to be tough with me when He senses toughness is what I need. I am a man after all, He made me to be able to handle some tough love when required. And it’s the reminder of what we (Jesus and me) are fighting for, what He died for, that allows for that. Perseverance, endurance, toughness…these things are not bought easily. Men would do well to be reminded of this. They would do well to embrace it. They would do well to submit to being taught it.

The day did not get any easier from then on. Exercised, showered, dressed and ready to go, work and wife and church were all in need, the day was going to be a late one, a long one. But He was there, reminding me of how tough He is making me. That I’m being molded to be like him; Son of God teaching a son of God. That hard workouts and hard days do indeed make you better.

It’s a great time to be alive, and I thank you Jesus. Thank you thank you thank you.

Be blessed, be strong…Jason.

Ancient Path Counseling

We’ve walked the path. We know the struggle and the work. We know freedom.

Teardrops in the Fire

Thu, 09 May 2024 09:15:56 GMT

Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego replied to the king saying, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we do not need to answer you concerning this matter. If it is so, our God whom we serve is able to save us from the furnace of blazing fire and He will deliver us out of your hand, O king. Yet even if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we will not serve your gods, nor worship the golden image that you set up.” Daniel 3:16-18 TLV

Several weeks ago I received a word from God. “Fear is the only thing that can defeat you. Nothing else can touch you, only fear”. He was pretty adamant in declaring the “nothing else”. Dad wanted me to get the message that fear, and fear alone, is the only thing in all of creation that can beat me. Consider this for a moment, a Selah if you will.

Now, consider that fear only has whatever control over you that you allow it to have. It cannot force itself on you, cannot strike you, bruise you, cut you, or bleed you. It cannot break one bone, lacerate any appendage, break a nose, black a single eye. Yet we surrender to it every day.

Fear is sneaky, stealthy, and silent in it’s movement. You never hear it coming. For some, they never hear fear coming because it’s always there, it never leaves them. But good luck getting most to admit it. For others, fear has trained us well. We give in without even realizing that it was fear that just made a decision for us, caused us to sit back down, give up that dream, walk away from that soul mate, that family, that job, that potential ministry. Fear causes men every day to pull back from that hug, hold back that “I love you”, stop themselves from actually feeling and speaking and doing from their hearts. Fear is insidious; it is the most destructive force in all of creation.

And yet, for Him it is nothing. Jesus crushes fear without lifting a finger. Just His mere presence, just the thought of Him, one word or gesture…fear gone like spider silk blown on the wind. And yet, fear knows this too, and fights you to keep Him out.

I’ve been learning about a special kind of fear these last few weeks. It was only just recently that I even identified that it exists. Yet, now that I know of it’s existence, I can look back and see its destructive work all along the path of my life. I know that I learned it early, gave it a foothold when I was so young, but from what I cannot yet say…conversations that have yet to take place between Him and I; hints of future tears.

But I do see it now. My last encounter with it was just this morning, returning from the store. As I put the truck into park, I heard the chant in my head, started by that Wild Goose, the Spirit of the Lord:

“Who are you?”, He asks.

“Chainbreaker.”

“What are you?”

“Lion.”

“And you are to do what?”

“Stand my ground.”

See, a couple of days ago a brother sent me a text message. Said that the Holy Spirit had given him a word for me. This is a brother I trust with my life, cause we’ve seen the ugly in this world and stood on that line for each other and for others, so I trust this word: “Breakthrough is coming”. So, walking from the truck to our apartment, I keep hearing “Stand your ground” to every time I reflect on “Breakthrough is coming” and I feel the Holy Spirit breathe on me and the tears come:

“When is breakthrough coming?”, I ask.

“Stand your ground.”

“Where are You, and the vision I had of You the other day?”

“Stand your ground.”

“Please, come soon. I need You.”

“Stand your ground.”

And I realize it, right then. I’m being told to stand my ground in the midst of fear. A fear that I didn’t even realize was with me, trying to steal His promise, His word, His might, His strength, His purpose…trying to steal Him.

I didn’t even know it was there. Walking with me every day. Whispering in my ear every day. Trying to steal from me every day. Every day of my life that spirit of fear sucking and feeding and lying…a literal spirit of fear. Hounding me all the days of my life.

Shadrach, Meshach and Abed-nego blazed a trail. They were not afraid. They were completely submitted to whatever the will of God was; burn or not burn.

I bet every dollar I ever make that in that moment, with the appearance of Salvation right there in the furnace with them, they rejoiced with tears.

They had their teardrops in the fire from a place of joy and deliverance. I’ve had my teardrops in the fire, but they’ve come from a place of pain and fear, fear of not surviving, of God not coming through.

Let me follow in the footsteps of these three Hebrew warriors; I shall not bow to the idol of fear, nor worship its fruit. My God will do as He pleases with me.

When deliverance comes, may my tears fall in the fire, and make a pleasing scent of thanksgiving and worship for He who always comes through. Selah.

Be blessed, be strong…Jason.

Ancient Path Counseling

We’ve walked the path. We know the struggle and the work. We know freedom.

Wait for the Lord

Tue, 07 May 2024 09:17:06 GMT

Wait for Adonai. Be strong, let Your heart take courage, and wait for Adonai.

Psalms 27:14 TLV

I need one of three things:

A good long cry. More snot the better.
A good long laugh. The more belly hurting the better.
A good fight. Let us swing until we wear ourselves out.

Sad thing is, neither number 1 or 3 is consider manly in today’s world. And that is part of the problem. I grew up in a world where boys could fight. Most of my friends were first my enemies. New kid on the block or in class, or jackass one street over talking smack about our street. We circled each other for a bit, sometimes for days or weeks but you knew where it was heading, and then that moment. You both could see it in the other’s eyes; “I’m tired of you, I’m tired of your crap, and ima bout to beat it outa ya”.

And you did. And there was no real clear winner. Because you were kids, not some highly trained hand to hand combat badass’. No, just dumb kids wailing away on each other until you couldn’t lift your arms anymore. Then you could see a different look in each others eyes; “He stood toe to toe with me, never waivered. I like this person. Let’s be friends”.

And you were. And all was well, you both went on with being boys and didn’t grow up to be serial killers and punchers of kittens. Amazing.

Today though, fighting between boys seems to be consider a crime against nature, and if two boys get in a tussle, then off to the psych ward with them, the deviants. Same with men. We’ve created a world where the most a man can hope for is to be considered a really nice guy. Or a criminal. Take your pick. Cause there are criminals in this world, real bullies, and yet we expect men to do what? Call someone else. Screw that. God made us men, and if there’s a problem right in front of us, and it needs a good, strong fist to resolve it, then resolve it… When the hell did we lose this right of being a man? We celebrate boxing and MMA, yet expect normal, everyday Joes to just be passive. It’s bullshit. It’s a contradiction.

Now, I’m not advocating for men everywhere embracing their inner bully. No. But how many of the problems in our world right now are because men have gone quiet? For decades they’ve been told they were the problem, they were too mean, too rough, too manly. Toxic. So, all right then kiss our asses and have at it, we’ll go watch football and check out. Get drunk, watch porn, work late cause why be somewhere where we’re told we’re the issue.

And yet, God still is the same. And He has the same expectations of men that He did when He made Adam. From our God, who made our first father in His image, right up to you and I, the expectation is the same: be a man. Be a shelter and a covering for your family and friends and those you love, and set your face like flint when someone threatens your tribe, cause usually all anyone needs to know is that there’s a man about, and the expression on his face is enough to send trouble packing. But if it’s not, then go to war with extreme prejudice. As John Eldridge tells it, “Be a man. Let the world deal with it”.

So, if I wanna cry, I’ll cry. I don’t care what anyone thinks about that, and neither should you. If I wanna laugh, I’ll laugh. Just as soon as I find something worthy of laughter in this world that has completely forgotten what humor is.

But if I wanna fight? The reality of it all is that you and I are actually in a fight for our lives, and the lives of our loved ones, every single day. And it’s this daily fight that for me right now is so ugly that I’m in tears at some point every day. It’s this fight that has me begging for something, anything, that I can actually put my fists to. A tangible, real threat that I can beat the ever-loving snot out of. But those fights are few and far between in adulthood. Probably a good thing; I’m too damn old to be fisticuff’ing every day.

This fight where every day the enemy comes hard for my identity, my strength, my determination…this fight sucks. Every damn day here it comes. Another fight with the wife, or another issue with a bill, or a supplier or customer. Joy stealers every one. And yet it is right here, on this thin line between worlds, where a man is made or shattered. Cause the trick to being a man, to learning that you have what it takes, is to learn that what you have is actually not yours at all. It’s a gift from a loving Father, it’s a blessing from a warrior Savior, it’s counsel from a wild Spirit. It’s strength, God’s strength. It’s His affirming, understanding, been there done that Son. He overcame, He lives in me, so I overcome.

Why do you think that Jesus told us that He and His Father would come and make Their home in us? Tabernacle with us? Fill us with the Spirit of the Lord? It is not to make sure we behave, be good little boys. Cause He didn’t make good little boys. He made MEN. In His IMAGE. He commissioned us to go forth and claim dominion. He did not tell us to only claim dominion if no one fought us over it. He did not say give up if someone else wants it, or if someone’s feelings get hurt, or if the world decides that fulfilling the charter of God is a micro-aggression. Heck, let us major-aggress. Please.

We are to be loving, but not loving doormats. We are to always start with an extended hand, open arms inviting a hug. But when we find ourselves in a fight, well then let us fight. Our families are counting on us.

He will come through with exactly what we need right when we need it.

We don’t deserve it. We can’t earn it. Yet, here He is. All we ever have to do is what He told us do. Wait, be strong, take courage, and wait. And while we wait, we fight. Otherwise, what is there to be strong for, to take courage for? It’s for the fight, while we wait for the Lord.

Be blessed, be strong…Jason.

Ancient Path Counseling

We’ve walked the path. We know the struggle and the work. We know freedom.

Be a Fellow Man

Mon, 29 Apr 2024 13:30:10 GMT

They dress the wound of my people as thought it were not serious. ‘Peace, peace,’ they say, when there is no peace. Jeremiah 6:14 NIV

I’ve sat down and started on this article/rant/whatever twice already. And deleted everything. Cause it sucked. Things started going in a direction that was self-indulgent and whiny. Please, if I’m ever whiny, kick my ass.

I met a woman a couple of days ago. Ginger and I were buying a dresser from her, a piece for my wife’s business. At first, this lady frustrated me a little. We drove an hour to get there; it was that kind of piece, according to my wife. And when we show up this lady says the dresser is at her storage facility, which is just across the street. So we get in our truck, and she gets in hers…and we sit, waiting.

Is she going to drive? What is she doing?, Oh, there she goes, she’s backing out now. Oh, wait, now she’s rolling her window down and talking with a neighbor…

Finally, after another fiasco at the gate to the storage place, which was not her but some dude in front of her who couldn’t remember his gate code, we pull in and get to moving stuff around so I can get the dresser out and loaded in my truck.

While I was securing the dresser and mirror that came with it, I listened as her and my wife talked back and forth. Come to find out, this lady, a burdened woman, has a husband who is a veteran and is currently paralyzed on one side of his body due to some strokes. She was at the VA with him earlier in the day.

The reason that she is selling the dresser, and a lot of other stuff, is because they are moving to the East Coast to be closer to their children due to the issues with his health. And this lady is having to handle most of this all on her own, until one son arrives later this month to help finish up. Oh, and both of her boys are in the Army, just like their old man, one a Green Beret, the other 82nd Airborne. Bad asses, both of them. But I’m sure this mom has spent some days and nights worried out of her mind for both of them.

I mentioned my frustration earlier; now, I feel honored just to meet her. She’s a hero, and she doesn’t even know it.

Right as I finish up securing the load, she’s telling my wife the story of how for days nothing that she’d listed was selling. Then, in the last two days, everything is selling, and she’s praising God for the blessing. Cause money is tight, and they’ve struggled to pay their rent and without the help of their boys they wouldn’t be able to move to where they are so the family can all rally around and support them.

I instantly move close, ask her what her name is and her husband. After she tells me, I ask if I may pray for her, and when she says yes, I take her by her hand and pray for healing, provision, a safe and trouble free move, and His blessing on them both and their boys. I’d have offered money, but if you’ve read my last post, you’d know that we are currently not doing much better, so prayer it is, which is probably worth more than our money anyway.

We part ways shortly after, she thanks me for the prayer and seems a little shaken by it. Like, shaken in that “I can’t believe a stranger just prayed for me and I’m not sure how to process it” way. She’s a Christian, and I’m the first to pray with her through this whole ordeal. She’s married to a vet, has two sons currently serving, and I’m the first to pray with her through this whole ordeal. Their current landlord is pushing them to move out as soon as possible, and I’m the first to pray with her through this whole ordeal.

This is BS. And it is sadly the state of affairs in our culture, both inside of and outside of the church.

This has to change.

Listen to me; we have got to start taking care of each other. Doesn’t matter if we know each other, if you’re a Christian, or if I am, or whatever. We are people. You are my fellow man, and hopefully either currently are, or soon will be, my brother or sister in Christ. If we don’t take care of each other, even with prayer and a friendly hand on a shoulder, or take a stressed out, fearful mom and wife by the hand and offer a prayer, then we are dead.

Take people’s hearts seriously, as you would want your own to be handled. One of the best quotes I ever heard was an admonishment to be kind cause everyone is fighting a hard battle. We have all had to fight. We’ve all lost some, and won some, and lost again, receiving wound after wound after wound. Take the wounds that we all bear seriously, be sorrowful at what happened to you and each other. And offer to pray with each other, for healing and blessing and whatever the need is, regardless of where. No advice, just prayer and hugs, and compassion. How many times have you heard someone say that just knowing someone cared saved their life that day, helped lift them, kept them going? Come on.

The government is not going to take care of us: while it should care for our vets, it's not supposed to take care of you or I. And you sadly cannot count on “someone else” coming along either. Cause damn, we are all cowards now, too afraid to offend anyone.

Cut it out. Get some spine. Grow a pair. And show some love. You’ll save the world.

Be blessed, be strong…Jason.

All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.com The “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™

Ancient Path Counseling

We’ve walked the path. We know the struggle and the work. We know freedom.

Culture of Cannibalism

Fri, 26 Apr 2024 08:55:32 GMT

From the Tree of Life translation:

Now the deeds of the flesh are clear: sexual immorality, impurity, indecency, idolatry, witchcraft, hostility, strife, jealousy, rage, selfish ambition, dissension, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these. I am warning you, just as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit God’s kingdom. Galatians 5:19-21 TLV

Now from The Message translation:

It is obvious what kind of life develops out of trying to get your own way all the time: repetitive, loveless, cheap sex; a stinking accumulation of mental and emotional garbage; frenzied and joyless grabs for happiness; trinket gods; magic-show religion; paranoid loneliness; cutthroat competition; all-consuming-yet-never-satisfied wants; a brutal temper; an impotence to love or be loved; divided homes and divided lives; small-minded and lopsided pursuits; the vicious habit of depersonalizing everyone into a rival; uncontrolled and uncontrollable addictions; ugly parodies of community. I could go on.

This isn’t the first time I have warned you, you know. If you use your freedom this way, you will not inherit God’s kingdom. Galatians 5:19-21 MSG

First, a confession: I included two translations because recently a dearly loved subscriber got snarky about my usage of The Message translation. This is my not so subtle jab back at him: do you understand now? Love ya!

I find myself more and more getting fed up with our culture, cause the culture of our world is the embodiment of the verses above, and it is creating a race of dead people. Everywhere I look and go, there they are, the walking dead staring at me with hungry eyes asking a question: “Can I feed off of you, and if so, what can I feed of?”. It’s at times sad, heartbreaking, and at others tiring and frustrating.

People either want to eat your money, your attention, your time, your resources, your energy, your compassion or empathy or understanding or whatever emotion they need from you to help them feel better about themselves. And it’s not them that I blame for this. It’s our culture. We inherited the seeds of it; we tilled it, fertilized and watered it, and now we harvest it daily. We have successfully grown a crop of instant gratification, and it never leaves anyone fully satisfied. Everyone is always hungry and feeling a lack of “fill in the blank”. Whole generations, who currently have more available to them than any other generation in memory, act as if they have nothing.

People come to believe that there is something they need, they see someone else with it, and then they feed off of those people, trying to get it. They end up fried, frustrated, lonely, and dead inside. Becoming cannibals, they believe they are ensuring their own survival, when all they are really doing is hastening their own end.

I know, cause I was one of them. Seven and half years ago I was deep in this crap and ready to check out, cause I realized nothing would ever be able to fill me. Then God threw cold water on my head, woke me to the fact of my victimhood, and ever since then He’s been cultivating a lifestyle of delayed gratification in me; in my heart, my mind, and my soul. It is becoming His greatest strength in me. Is it always fun? Heck no. Is it always rewarding? Eventually, yes.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m still a work in progress. Will be till the day I die. As will you, even if you submit to Him, assuming you’ve yet to. As for those of you who have submitted, ask yourself if you still feed off of others, and who, where, when, and how. Ask Him. Don’t be afraid, it’s truly a question He wants us to ask. Needs us to. Cause if we aren’t willing to grow, give up on the culture shown in the above verses, well then how can you sleep peacefully at night, knowing that your comfort is coming at the expense of someone else?

Let us make an agreement right now. Let us agree to seek the courage to end instant gratification in our lives. Let us agree to root it out whenever we feel the Holy Spirit poke us and say “right there, that needs attention”, and then get to it.

I’m not asking us to embrace a hermit life style, or never order off Amazon simply because we can have it this afternoon. I’m asking us to invite Him in and give Him permission to show us where we’ve allowed this worldly spirit of “now” to gain a little too much ground. I promise, we will all be better off for it, and we will be much better present for those we love. Spiritual coverings, indeed.

The greatest gift I’ve received from all of this is the capacity to love again. If you read the verse above I hope you didn’t miss the remark about an “impotence to love or be loved”. I cannot express the absolute wonder I feel sometimes as I remember my loveless life before Jesus. Sometimes, with tears walking down my cheeks, I thank Him over and over and over again for the gift of being able to love, and be loved. And it is with sorrow that I remember that man, that boy, who lost his ability to love, and allowed the world and the enemy to convince him that he was unworthy of anyone elses. Thank you Jesus for this amazing gift. And thank You for the way You’ve taught me what love is, and what it looks like, and for the lessons of love that I’m still learning.

Hebrews 12 reminds us that God loves us, therefore He disciplines us. Not to crush us under it, but to uplift us through correction. To make us better. You cannot be present for others if you cannot love. You cannot receive both the easy and the harsh lessons from your Father, if you cannot love. You cannot bear the weight, if you cannot love. The entirety of it all is to see you love again, so that you can receive His love. And with each passing season, receive more and more. And then to see you pass it on, give it away, so He can fill you with more. Love is worth it, I promise you.

The world will need strong people who love strongly again one day. Most Christians believe that the world is on the downward slide towards Armageddon. Hell, they’re practically gleeful about it sometimes, shamefully so. I believe there’s more redemption to come before all that kicks off, and it will be men and women of loving character that will lead the next season or seasons of revival, healing, salvation. Jesus is raising them up as we speak, and you may be one of them.

So, fall to your knees, ask Jesus where you’ve erred, and ask Him for courage, strength, and the capacity and time to begin cultivating a life dedicated to delayed gratification where and when applicable. It’s a journey. It won’t happen overnight. Remember this. Remember love.

Be blessed, be strong…Jason.

Unless otherwise stated, Scripture quotations are taken from The Message, copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. Used by permission of NavPress. . All rights reserved. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.

Ancient Path Counseling

We’ve walked the path. We know the struggle and the work. We know freedom.