Monday, May 29, 2017

Hearty Trail Mix

... or "Trail Mix from the Heart."

Lately, I've been sharing serious lessons I've learned about God, Jesus, the Holy Spirit, and Christian doctrine from Scripture, that is, the Holy Bible. Such revelations have had profound impact on my identity as a Christian. Yet, they are not commonly taught. Nor are they commonly accepted.

As a result, I don't trust most churches to teach what they ought. In fact, many have made a blatantly profitable business out of organized religion. The raw gospel, however, has a different intention.

My desire in these lessons is to give you verifiable truth about Christ. There are more lessons to come. But, at this time, I wish to share other parts of who I am and what I've been through. I want to get real.

Here comes the Hearty Trail Mix...

I want to share so much of what is in my heart. I desire to be vulnerable and genuine. What my Christian beliefs are is just one aspect, albeit a critical one in my life. Beyond this, my life has other aspects as well, soulful ones, human ones, ugly and pretty, which connect us all.

I'd like to share stories from my life that reveal more of who I am. Occasionally, I'll sprinkle in some shorter pieces I hope you will enjoy. I'd like to share some major and minor events from my life that have helped shape my spiritual journey, contributed to life decisions, and brought me to this point: my life is meaningless unless I bring compassion and joy to someone else's. And then, we shall discover together what David meant in Psalm 23 when he said, "My cup overflows."

Sharing my stories is my gift to you. If there's to be any value in this gift, let it be connection. 

So, it's time to mix things up a bit. I have things I want to write and share, some of which I've wanted to write and share for a long time. I was too scared then, making excuses too easy to come by.

Now it's time for me to face my fear; to do the thing I'm afraid to do. To paraphrase Beethoven, "What I have in my heart must come out. That is reason why I write."

I hope you join me. I hope you find something thoughtful for yourself. And may some fruity or nutty trail mix nugget touch your heart.