what?

i was thinking the other day about how people struggle with the bible.  there are those who don't believe it at all, and then there are those who believe parts of it, and then there are those who believe their interpretation of it, etc. etc. etc. 
it seems the inability to sufficiently explain the bible to one another is a big obstacle to people seeking Christ.  they are told to believe in Christ, to be a Christian, they must believe in the bible and everything in it.  too hard to do, so many turn away.  in fact, to me it seems those who claim to believe in the bible completely have decided much of it actually means what they are comfortable believing.  there is a consensus among groups as to what the bible actually means when it says "...pluck it out" for instance.
so wondering why God would make it so difficult, i kind of decided maybe He didn't.  Jesus was quoted as saying  that unless He left, the counsellor (holy spirit) that he was sending us, could not come to us, instead it would come to us in His absence.  i am very much aware of the holy spirit in my life, it is a promise that was made that i have received.  what i am struggling with as regards the new testament is that Jesus made no mention of it.  i find no where that Jesus says, "there will be a new testament, watch for it and adhere to everything it says"  or anything like that.  He makes reference to the old testament so it is clear to me that He endorses the old testament.  but nothing about the writings of paul or any of the other disciples did He tell us to be looking for.  Christs' message was clear in His teachings, a message we receive from the new testament, which makes those writings invalueable to me.  but to make the point that unless you believe completely in everything written in the new testament you can not call yourself a Christian, i think that's a mistake.  had Jesus been quoted as saying, "keep an eye out, this is coming" i would be on board, but i can't find this.  the counsellor He promised, i received, the truth of that is in my heart and can not be taken from me.  the bible, i don't know, almost seems to have a little too much human influence for me.  let me know what you think.

an offering

I am offering up a relationship, a mentorship program of sorts, and I will tell you why. It appears to me there are a lot of people having a difficult time getting their life heading in a direction that is productive.  I'm not talking only financially, but socially as well.  There are so many things today that influence us, the media has such control of what we're exposed to.  What we are seeing isn't necessarily designed to encourage us toward a productive and satisfying lifestyle.  I believe many people have a haunting sensation within themselves that their life is not unfolding as they would like.  I believe people need someone safe to talk to who they can be honest with and who will be honest with them,  someone to encourage them to maybe reconsider some of the things  that are going on in their lives, the direction they are heading.  I believe I can be that person.

Life is full of wonderful moments, moments totally independent of what the economy is doing or what is happening politically.  Moments independent of anything that might be going on in the clubs, at work, or over the weekend.  The best things in life are now, as they have always been, still available to all of us.  Granted, there  is certainly an immense veil of deception streaming through our society to steer us off course, but it's not so difficult to navigate if you have someone you are willing to listen to who will point out some of what might be taking you off course.  I believe I can be that person.

If this sounds like something that might be interesting to you and you would like to talk, either message me on facebook, email at riippi@comcast.net, or call me at 253-686-2534.  

making it work

way too many families falling apart.  consequences down the road are not always considered or realized.  if you're having trouble and considering giving up, get in touch with me, let's see if there's not another way to go. 

help

people need help....those of us so blessed can help in the simplest ways.  goin' thru the closet and donating what is really a nuisance to you is one example.  i understand it might not be something you want to spend time doing, but in reality it can take as little as 15 minutes.  in that 15 minutes you can provide a season of comfort for someone else!  i don't want to be that guy that bugs people all the time, but in this case, when it comes to this, i am willing to be that guy!  "so come on people now, smile on your brother, everybody get together try and love one another right now"!  :)

and hey, it's really nothin' more than puttin' warm clothes on cold bodies.....

heaven

so i was thinking about heaven and hell.  who would i expect to find in either?  would there be murderers in heaven?  i think so, King David was a murderer, Moses was a murderer, and i would expect to find them in heaven.  rapists, thieves, homosexuals, pedophiles?  i think so.  repentent for sure, but there just the same. 
now is it also the case that in hell i might find people who had never committed a crime while on earth that would warrant incarceration?  or maybe even something as minor as a traffic ticket?  could such a person be found in hell?  i expect so.
i can't help but think it's  your attitude toward God that dictates your place in eternity.  i want to work on my attitude, i want to be so in tune with God that his will runs thru my being 24/7.  i want to learn to love as He commands me to love.  i want to go to heaven!

....love your neighbor as yourself.

second most important commandment next to loving God...all the laws and prophets hang on this...so the bible tells us.  Jesus spoke many times throughout the new testament about how loving each other is what we are called to do.  love others as we love ourselves.  well how do i love myself?  for one thing i seem to always find a way to excuse myself.  i put myself first, even though at first glance it may not look that way.  i take care of myself, in particular my feelings.  i am careful to guard against anything that may challenge how i feel.  so, recognizing that is how i love myself, how then do i love you in that same way?  first off, it would seem that i must excuse you, even though i would much rather blame you. i must put you first, consider you first.  i must take care of you, in particular your feelings.  i should guard against anything that might upset how you feel.  i must treat you in that same way i treat myself. not necessarily in the way it appears i treat myself, but in that way i treat myself on a much deeper level, where i stand guard over anything that could potentially upset or harm me.  how would my behavior look if i put loving you first?  what kind of effect would loving you as i love myself have on how i feel?

when i do what i do to love myself the resulting feelings i have are often not what i would desire.  i am often left empty or at least with a sense of not being fulfilled.  so given that i search further for something that might make me feel better.  i often resort to judgement of others.  if i can see others as being less than i, then maybe from that i can find satisfaction.  seeing myself as a better person than so and so, a better christian than so and so, a better whatever!  and if thru this judgement i can get others to cosign then all the better.  we can group together, fawn over one another, excuse one anothers shortcomings, put our focus on those we judge, those not like us, those not "saved",  and what i end up with is being at odds with what Jesus taught, but at the same time professing my testimony of Christ in my life. 

so it seems that loving myself, at least in the way i presently love myself, leaves me empty.  encouraging me to act in ways at odds with the teachings of the gospels. 

yet i suspect if we love one another in that same way: putting others first, excusing others, considering others feelings first, guarding others against harmful things, we might expect to feel better ourselves.  so it seem that what are doing is not so wrong as is where we are putting the focus of what we are doing.  so perhaps when Jesus says, we are to love others as we love ourselves, this might be something of what he meant.  at any rate, as i read through the new testament i find consistently that above all we are commanded to love one another.  and the behaviors that at times seem to dominate our landscape: judgement, jealousy, gossip, etc. are a direct result of our failing to obey that very commandment.