BoldGrace

"The folks from Presence.TV and Graham Old from the incredibly awesome and inspiring Leaving Munster are interested in connecting with anyone from in and around the UK who would be interested in exploring the message of fulfilled eschatology."

There you go Graham. Just as you wrote! hahahaha!

On a serious note, those of the Bold Grace Community that live in the UK we encourage you to contact Graham and engage in conversation with him. His email is      Graham Old <graham at  anabaptist  dot  com  dot  uk>

Peace

Geo

As I was reading tonight I was once again reminded by King David concerning the nature of God.  Understanding our Creator is a task that will never be accomplished (at least by me) but I can understand the most basic things that are needed for feeling good about my journey here on earth.  Allow me to quote David:

Ps 130  Out of the depths I cry to you, O Lord; O Lord, hear my voice. Let your ears be attentive to my cry for mercy.  If you, O Lord, kept a record of sins, O Lord, who could stand?  But with you there is forgiveness; therefore you are feared. I wait for the Lord, my soul waits, and in his word I put my hope. My soul waits for the Lord more than watchmen wait for the morning, more than watchmen wait for the morning. O Israel, put your hope in the Lord, for with the Lord is unfailing love and with him is full redemption. He himself will redeem Israel from all their sins.

David makes it clear that if God were to keep a record of our sins no one would be left standing, but he doesn’t stop with that, he also makes it clear that we can not only count on His love but that His love will never fail us.  And then he tells us why that love won’t fail——HE HIMSELF WILL REDEEM US FROM ALL OUR SINS. 

You see, the only possible way that any of us could ever rest our head at night in peace is to know that God is NOT counting on us to accomplish His unfailing LOVE.  Sometimes I really get tired at those who attack me for giving God all the credit due him.  Why do so many christians fight so hard against this idea that God is the Potter and we are the clay?  Does the clay have any say whatsoever concerning how the Potter will fashion it? 

I don’t suppose I will ever understand why we humans make so many stupid choices as we journey along.  I am 56 and still find myself saying and doing things I know to be wrong and hurtful to others.  I am always sorry about it and yet at the end of each new day the only thing I’m sure about is how grateful I am that God doesn’t keep a record of my wrongs, always loves me, and my redemption is never in question.  Those three simple things are what allows me to get up each new day with a great desire to be all that I can be.  

So, as I lay my head down tonight I will utter some silent words into the darkness——"Thank you Lord for loving me in spite of my poor performance, and teach me Lord to love others the way you have loved me."

The following scriptures put to soft music speak the message of bold grace better then any words I could ever put together.  Please listen over and over.  If you are struggling or going through a difficult time know that He will never let you down.

Isaiah 29

 13Wherefore the Lord said, Forasmuch as this people draw near me with their mouth, and with their lips do honour me, but have removed their heart far from me, and their fear toward me is taught by the precept of men.

According to Isaiah fear of God is but a precept that is taught by mere men and it is not of God. That very reason still stands in the church today. People draw near to God with their lips but their hearts are far removed from Him because of the fear, guilt and condemnation that is taught by men and women in the church today. As long as fear is taught, people cannot draw near to God in their hearts.

It’s time we quit listening to the precepts and writings that are taught of men and started listening to what the scriptures say. (The Scriptures being, the law, the psalms and the prophets)

Selah

Geo

Selah

Geo

I just recently watched a video about oneness that was posted here on bold Grace. This man in the video asked the question "How do I have to be in order for you to be free?". This question went soaring into my soul ever since I saw the video and suddenly I felt very encouraged to understand what he was trying to say.

I felt like he was really asking the questions: Do I have to follow your religion? Does my hair have to be a certain color? Do my eyes need to be blue? Do I have to be skinny? Do I have to be married to the opposite sex? Do I have to drive the car that is made in the USA? Do I have to fight for prayer in school? Do I have to be an Environmentalist? Do I have to be a member of the correct social club? Do I have to speak English? Do I have to pay taxes? How do I have to be in order for you to be free? Remember this the next time you go to Church. Think about what your religion is about.  Remember this the next time you are begging for forgiveness for something you will do again tomorrow. Remember this question when you gossip about someones life as if it is yours to judge and wake up to the fact that everything you do or say ultimately affects someone somewhere at some point in time. Look a little deeper. How do I have to be in order for you to be free? 

This world can be so complicated, but only if I allow it to be.  It is up to me to acknowledge that this moment is only going to be as good as I make it and to do that I have to be true to myself.  To be anything other than myself just so you can be free would be insane. It is ashame that people have to ask this question. It is ashame that we create division because we can’t accept each others differences.

If I have to live the rest of my life enduring the judgements of others then that is what I will do. And each time I endure these moments I will become stronger in who I am. I will become more loving and more kind to others. I will become more confident in who I am. I will learn not to do it to someone else. I will be me and I will feel sorry for those who can’t.

Talking to a friend the other day, he said to me, "I want to love people like Jesus loved people."

I said, "no you don’t."

He said, "why do you say that?"

I said, "because I know you, and I know you aren’t willing to lay down your life for your friends. That is the ultimate act of love - especially when you think that Jesus did it for no other reason than love. He wasn’t saving a drowning victim of a shipwreck, He wasn’t saving a child standing on the tracks of a speeding train… He did it to save all of Creation. That is a love that none of us can ever measure up to. But it doesn’t matter. He knows we can’t measure up to His mission, yet He demonstrated His love us in the most remarkable way. He was willing to give up His life for His friends (all of Creation), even in the midst of their failures."

We chatted about the idea some more, and he said, "knowing that Jesus’ love was that great opens my heart to love others more. It’s not about loving like He loved, but awakening to the depths of His love for us. Just thinking about it is changing me."

I said, "there you go. Love isn’t something we have to do because we want to be like Jesus. But it is what we do when we understand the heart of Jesus. If we truly know what happened those 2000 years ago, our hearts will melt, and our minds will change."

That’s what repentance (the changing of our minds) is all about. It’s not something we do to be found acceptable, or to feel like we’re somehow complying to an unimaginable requirement, it’s something that happens when we realize the enormity of Christ’s love for us. If we believe Christ’s love is that great, our minds will change. Maybe the writers of the NT should not have said, "repent and believe", but "believe and repent"… if you believe the Gospel, your mind will repent (change) about the way you think about life, love, and unity.

If you believe it, nothing else will matter. If you don’t, nothing else will make any difference. Repent all you want, it won’t change you a bit. It is only a work of desperation to find salvation… a work of your own. And nothing you do will change anything. Repenting won’t bring "belief", but believing will bring repentance. If you believe that the work of the Cross of Christ was the final revelation of God to prove His heart of peace toward His creation, your heart will be filled with His love, and your mind will see the completeness of His work, and will be saved.

All glory to the Creator, who has made peace with us through the Work of His Cross!

God Said:

Whither goest thou when you stay with Me? Where do you go but to the Center of Creation? There is no other place for you to be. You think you are here or there. Certainly, your body exists in one spot at a time on Earth, and your attention as well, yet you are the Heart of the Matter. You exist nowhere but in My heart, and My heart is the Center of Creation. I am from where all knowledge comes. I am the Source of your knowledge, and I am also the Goal that you seek. You seek that which you have. You seek that which you are. It is your own Presence you seek. Only for a moment in your thinking have you been absent from it, this illustrious Being which is your Self.

You have been in a quandary, beloveds, only because you believe you exist somewhere far flung in the world when, in Reality, there is no place to be but within My heart, the Heart of Hearts, the same one that beats in your chest.

This Oneness is not complicated. Oneness has to be simple. Only you think Oneness is complex. You would analyze the unanalyzable. You would create mystery where there is simplicity. It is too easy to absorb and overlook the Oneness that you are. It is right here, and you look out there, way out there, where you think the Vastness of Oneness ought to be. You overlook the Oneness that is already yours. You look far afield when you only have to stop a moment and let the Presence of Oneness, MySelf, arise within you. I am beyond your reckoning but not beyond your recognition. You can see but not describe. You can see, and yet I am not a Vision. You can feel Me, hear Me, touch Me, and yet you feel I am beyond your reach, when, beloveds, I am entirely the reach of you. You are the Seeker of Me. You are the Beholder of Me. And you are that Infinite which you seek.

You run around in circles chasing that which you already are. You seek the Adventure that lies within you. This is the heart of all your seeking, all you wanting, and all your wondering. And yet you are afraid to discover. You are afraid you do not merit. You fear you will go up in smoke if you touch even the tip of My hem. You fear the discovery which you seek. You might rather seek than discover. You like to cross the bounding main and not have to reach the shore of your Self.

Let’s face it. You enjoy being in the middle of the Ocean without your bearings. You would rather search for your bearings than to know them. You don’t remember that there is more and more.

You think more and more belongs only to the world of shopping or some such when, all the while, there is discovery after discovery in the realms of God, and, therefore, within the realms of you.

Don’t think you have to understand what I am saying to you. What We are talking about is not in the realm of understanding. It is in the realm of recognizing.

Deep within the cells of your Being lies the wealth of My words. You do not have to understand My words, for now you possess them. You do not have to remember My words, for now they stir within you. You don’t have to anything because now you have all the seeds planted within you. They will grow with or without your attention. Your awareness will blossom, and there is nothing you can do to stop it. You are going along for the ride, and there is nothing you can do about it. You can’t even hang on, beloveds. You have to let go.

From Our Friends @

http://www.heavenletters.org/

Peace

Geo

There are many Christmas carols that I love. i particularly love the last verse of this one.

Do You Hear What I Hear?

Said the night wind to the little lamb,
"Do you see what I see?
Way up in the sky, little lamb,
Do you see what I see?
A star, a star, dancing in the night
With a tail as big as a kite,
With a tail as big as a kite."

Said the little lamb to the shepherd boy,
"Do you hear what I hear?
Ringing through the sky, shepherd boy,
Do you hear what I hear?
A song, a song high above the trees
With a voice as big as the the sea,
With a voice as big as the the sea."

Said the shepherd boy to the mighty king,
"Do you know what I know?
In your palace warm, mighty king,
Do you know what I know?
A Child, a Child shivers in the cold–
Let us bring him silver and gold,
Let us bring him silver and gold."

Said the king to the people everywhere,
"Listen to what I say!
Pray for peace, people, everywhere,
Listen to what I say!
The Child, the Child sleeping in the night
He will bring us goodness and light,
He will bring us goodness and light."

He is no longer sleeping in the night. He has brought us into the day of His majesty. The darkness has passed away. It is a new day and the light is glorious. And He has brought us goodness….His goodness imparted freely to us all. May people see it everywhere and be at peace.

Happy Holidays to One and ALL!

This one is for ALL of my Grace Buddies!

I hope you all got what you did NOT deserve! And that you did NOT get what you DID deserve!

Because I DID!

Peace

Geo

P.S. Here is one more place you can find me  grogee.multiply.com/

You can add video or audio comments there as well as written ones