Friends
Posting
a few days early.
Love
John Frank
******
Dear All of Us,
So, I have this friend.
He's in sales.
He is so personable
and persuasive
that he could sell you
the same socks that
you have had on
for the last month
and you'd think
it was a bargain!
I don't even come in
a distant second.
So what!
That's not going
to tie me down
or slow me up.
I'm passionate
and
I'm out to be
persuasive.
Be advised!
In the parlance
of the day
I aim to be an
INFLUENCER
They are the folks
who want to effect
what flows through
our lifestyle/value veins
(L) in = into
(L) fluere = to flow
"Influence"
MY Qualifications
to be an
INFLUENCER
Well, they are
modest but strong.
It's more than obvious that
I come in a negative 10 in the
glitz and glamor department.
I've never been accused
of being particularly handsome
or overly bright.
No photo shoots for me,
not even in those
penny arcade booths
on the boardwalk -
and thank God for it!
No podcasts, publicists,
social media command.
What I do have
is
PASSION
and that with
The One
infinitely passionate
about us
and
all Creation.
My passion
is red hot.
It fires me
to hopefully
influence us all
away from
and
toward.
AWAY FROM
We and Creation
are under siege.
It's so pervasive
that too many of us
are ceasing to notice the
Erosion of Real,
much less resist it.
It degrades us,
violates Nature
and
trashes God.
We are being
brain washed,
soul stalled,
even stolen
by
The Monarchs of
Money and Manipulation
They
highly influence
to control
governments,
entertainments,
athletics,
education,
medicine,
marketing,
politics,
insurance,
advertising,
economics,
style and fashion,
the what's and how's
of society,
"The done thing"
that is undoing us.
They force worship
of the
False God
of their devising,
demand dedication
of self and society
to their
Kewpie Doll God
of
Stuff and Fluff
for their
profit and power
and
our domination.
They set the stage
for contemporary life
and
demand we dance
as directed.
They seduce us
soulless,
violate
Creation
All this
in their stylized
perversion
of
REAL
- Nature grievously abused
- "Gotta have" and
"Gotta have more have"
- rush, multitask,
hurry scurry stressed
- media mauled psyche
- molding and modelling
head and heart
for
possession
prominence
pleasure
power.
We end up, well,
upside
DOWN
all spun around
in thought, affect,
effort, attention,
purpose and energy.
We're duped and doped,
desensitized
to
REAL
to
God Love
all about
deep within
In short,
and are we ever shorted,
THE MONARCHS
OF
MONEY AND MANIPULATION
have stolen our souls
sucked them out of us
suckered us soul sterile
UNREAL
TOWARD
Let's step out into the
brightness and fresh air
of
REALM REAL
So clear and beautiful
We see that
we were born
to fall in love,
fall in love
with
God, neighbor, self
Deuteronomy 6:5
Matthew 22:36-40
That's the #1
"command"
(L) com = together
(L) manus = hand
"command"
"be hand in hand"
and that with
Love Itself
and
"God is (that) love"
1 John 4:8
That's
who, how, what
God
is
and we are invited
to be
ONE
in
God's Love Forever Flow!
That's the whole purpose
of our short years on earth.
Our years here are for
one and only one reason,
to accept the
invitation
to be loved divine
and
to love divinely
In other words,
BE ONE
WITH GOD
IN LOVE
We are birthed
in
Love's beautiful Creation
See, savor,
breath in
the freshness
of
Creation's start
Genesis 1
a delightful, mythic telling
so simply pure that even
a child can be drawn into
the wonder of it
"...it was good,
it was very good."
At the other end
of our years,
when we die,
we will forever
"BE"
in Love
or not
"BE"
at all
It's one hell
of a choice
or
It's one heaven
of a choice.
We choose
with our living.
Our choice
becomes
our forever.
Ours is not to stress
trying to create
heaven on earth.
Ours is to begin
heaven here on earth,
gift and guest of God.
Here and forever
The one and only durable
is love.
So we break free
from the love void,
the
Reality Vacuum
of
THE MONARCHS
OF MONEY AND MANIPULATION
We let God love us
Real and Forever
We welcome the Spirit of God
to flow into us
through us
and
forth from us.
Jesus the
"way, truth, life"
John 14:6
is how
we go about that.
We live God Love
- in community:
"Where two or three
are gathered together
in my name
I am in their midst."
Matthew 18:20
In other words
God's local address is:
Us Together
In Him
In loving community
It's the launch pad
to forever.
It's just a starter.
It's sweaty sweet.
Lots of roses.
Thorns too.
We're together in class
learning Love.
Some days and ways
are better than others
until we get it all
LoveRight
Instead of being
screened dull dead
we are onlined together,
delightfully attentive
as God loves us
and gets us in on
loving
everyone and thing.
1 Corinthians 13
tunes us in:
"Love is patient,
love is kind,
It does not envy,
it does not boast,
it is not proud.
It is not rude,
it is not self-seeking,
it is not easily angered,
it keeps no record of wrongs.
Love does not delight in evil,
but rejoices with the truth.
It always protects,
always trusts,
always hopes,
always preservers."
That happens
where we live,
at work,
in the neighborhood,
in our family,
how we vote,
while driving,
in our lifestyle,
with our "haves"
and no more of them
than we need.
It thrives,
vivifies
daily life,
our time and emphasis,
our inclusion of those "other",
our repeated forgiving,
our disciplined exposer
to social media,
our response to
political and mass media
manipulation
and
maleficence,
our open, joyful
recognition of
God loving us
deep within
and
all about
in smiles, sunrises,
children playing,
a kindness received,
prayerfully letting God
mystic merge us,
a convivial church supper,
a hike in the mountains
and for old ones like me,
sitting in the sunshine.
We come alive
immersed in attitudes,
experiences and exposures,
reactions, choices
of
God Love
given
to us
and flowing
through us.
We're all invited
to be detoxed
from the
narcotic nothingness
of hollowed out living,
of moneyed manipulation.
INFLUENCED
AWAY FROM
We're all invited to be
hotwired,
passionate,
about living
the purpose
of our creation,
to be
loved divine
and
to love divinely
INFLUENCED
TOWARD
In all honesty
I'm not that much of an
INFLUENCER
Not to worry!
I have another friend,
Passion Itself
Love Itself
"flowing through"
"into"
all that is
real,
true,
good,
loving
THE WHOLLY SPIRIT
THE DIVINE INFLUNCER
We're in the best of hands!
So there we have it
AND
who/what
will have us
THE MONARCHS
OF
MONEY AND MANIPULATION
or
THE WHOLLY SPIRIT
OF
DIVINE LOVE
Who sets our stage?
Who directs our dance?
Who/what will be our forever,
our
ETERNAL
INFLUNCER
******
PS:
"Well, I told you so!"
upfront that I am passionate
about this deciding factor
in our existence and forever.
All this is so central,
so ultimate
that hopefully
ELEMENTS
FOR DISCERNMENT
can be an assist.
It follows after
the announcements
below.
Please consider taking
lots of soul
over
lots of time
with it.
Getting freed from the
Erosion of Real
will require both
as will
getting "radically" situated
in
Realm Real
******
WELCOME ALL
And was there ever
lots of us all
from all over
our shared global home
this week.
It is
ALL TOGETHER
wonder-full
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THANKS
to all
sharing
frankly speaking
with others
******
ELEMENTS
FOR
DISCERNMENT
Some
questions,
considerations,
challenges,
supports,
prompts,
references
to craft
a response
to forever.
Do we really "get it"
that the oxygen of
our culture is toxic,
that we are
drugged delusional?
You know, things like
- drivenness to
get ahead and
lose a heart
in the chase
- the lie of
"the good life"
that fools/fouls us
in the promise,
exhausts us
in the striving,
leaves us cloyed
in the end
- the illusion that
we've got
to keep up
with others
in anything but
loving, peaceful,
mutual support,
but rather
sad strive
to keep up with
cars, address,
wardrobe, acquisitions,
titles, fashion fixations,
frenetic striving to belong
in circles that spin us
round and round in
dizzy cycles nowhere,
- the accumulation of
more than needed
- why have a
Cadillac Escalade
when a Chevy Equinox
will get us there just fine
and the difference could
make a difference for the
45 million young children
across the globe
suffering from
severe malnutrition
each year?
(Children International).
If that rings radical, it is.
(L) radix = root
We go to the root
of what Jesus says:
"Do not store up
for yourselves
treasures on earth...
But store up
for yourselves
treasures in heaven...
For where your treasure is,
there your heart will be also."
(Matthew 6:19-21)
what's at the heart of
what we are all about?
- the point not to be missed
is not that Jesus would have us
be dirt poor, but that
Jesus would have us live such
that millions upon millions
would no longer have
to live dirt poor.
- If the whole world were to live
as Americans live we would need
the resources of five planet earths.
We only have one.
(University of Michigan,
Center For Sustainable Systems)
Only living Divine Love
will balance out such a love deficit.
That would mean a modest,
tasteful, lifestyle for all.
- Can we break out of the 24/7
supposed "news" bombardment,
that overloads, overwhelms,
our souls and psyches
displacing a calmness of spirit,
a soul sensitivity to God Love
deeply intimate in us
and so splendid all round?
- Can we eschew addiction to
supposed social media
that is anything but
socially real or healthy?
- Will we keep at it until
we find or found
a genuine
spiritual community?
-Will we deeply consider
with others the depths
of sacred writings?
- Are we ready to work
for social justice
without becoming
either obsessed or
self-righteous about it?
- Can we get beyond
churchy piety
and fall into
profound prayer,
letting God
draw us intimate?
- Do we truly realize
it's either
"Thy Kingdom come"
or
Empire's Rule Unreal
and that we are
currently trending
to one or the other
AND
it's an eternal tip
with consequence?
- When it comes to
values, judgements,
actions, reactions,
are they such that
they really are
Jesus living love in us?
A close, honest look at
how we spend our time,
invest our energies,
live our preferences,
will answer the question
and probably will bobble up
new, life/love
significant questions.
- Just how actually
is Jesus the model
and companion
of our lives?
He prayed,
was profoundly
intimate with Abba.
He helped and healed.
He was completely human.
He ate and drank
with all sorts of people.
He lived in community.
and it was far from perfect.
He didn't bail.
Jesus was GodLove
personalized.
Are we open to such
in us with and for others?
Jesus birthed
a new world order.
There were lots of
birthing pains to it.
He did it in
less-than-optimal
circumstances.
He did it the midst of
the evil that was the
Roman Empire.
The bullyboys
in the front office
made him pay
with his life.
They didn't realize that
life is more than a body.
The GodLove that is Jesus
sure suffered and died
and simply sprung free,
like a seed maturing
through and beyond
the confines of earth.
In us and our world
are we open to
our potential,
no matter
what it costs us?
To catch the Spirit,
better,
to let
The Spirit
catch us,
please consider
slow soulful months
with
EAGER TO LOVE
The Alternate Way of
Francis of Assisi
Richard Rohr
Franciscan Media
Cincinnati, Ohio
Richard is
a clear channel
of
GodLove.
a wonderful
INFLUENCER
******
Hey, we all sure got
our money's worth
this week and well
the investment.
It's been long,
long on GodLove
and the gift of
The Wholly Spirit
as our
INFLUENCER
See you next week.
Love to all.
God Bless
John Frank
frankly speaking
spirituality for the street
johnfrankshares.blogspot.com
******
