It has always baffled me why, after giving mankind the gift of free will, God didn't take it away when man disobeyed him. For those of you who haven't a clue of what I am talking about, I'll give you the cliff-note version. Based on the Bible or Creationist theory, God created mankind. He gave man free reign over everything but one: the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. In short, man ate of the tree.
Despite detailing the losses resulting from their disobedience, one thing God did not take away: the gift of free will. Throughout Biblical history, despite man often choosing paths of degradation, God did not take away this gift. Man had a choice then and man has a choice now.
I LOVE blogging. I love comments. Doesn't matter to me what the opinion is as long as there are comments. One such posting was about Oprah's Wildest Dreams Come True show. One of the comments was about her relationship with Jesus and the hope that she would one day get to know Him. I won't put this dear sister on the spot because I've heard lots of criticism of Oprah throughout the years. What she wrote was a blessing. It encouraged me to dig a little deeper into my faith. Criticism or a different opinion can either give strength to what I believe or expand my consciousness to a bigger truth – some call it the universal truth, a Higher Truth, but I call it the God's Truth.
YOU KNOW A TREE BY THE FRUIT IT BEARS. This, like day and night, seedtime and harvest, are burned into the fabric of our Earthly existence. There are certain laws. What goes up must come down. For every cause there is an effect. These are just the natural laws that are in place. Regardless to whether you are Black or White, rich or poor, believer or agnostic, sick or well, these laws apply.
DO NOT JUDGE DOESN'T MEAN YOU CAN'T CALL FRUIT WHAT IT IS. We are admonished also not to judge others. "Judge not that you be not judged." In short, you can judge if you choose to, but just be prepared for those very words biting you in the butt. As my grandmother use to say, "when you point your finger at somebody else, just notice that three fingers are pointing back at you." Dr. Phil said that his dad use to say, "I hate in you what's just like me."
Judgment is subjective. Judgment is arrogant. Judgment is egoic. But fruit is neither. Fruit is just fruit. And you recognize trees by their fruit. A good tree yields good fruit. A bad tree, bad. So if you really wish to decide about somebody, check out the fruit of their lives. The byproduct of parental involvement is different from that of parental neglect. Sure, there are exceptions to every rule; but the fruit is pretty easy to detect.
I've been accused of some pretty bad stuff. I've been called an attention hog. I've been deemed controlling. I've been told I'm stubborn. I've been accused of being stuck on myself. I've been told that I'm a fake. I remember being told that because I am a direct and straightforward, I'd not have a man. "Most men can't take a woman like you," I was told. I've been blamed for the shortcomings of other people. But there is one thing in my life that I believe with every ounce of strength in me, I did right. I raised an exceptional son. When I say that, I'm not boasting in myself, but I am boasting in the God consciousness that illuminated my parenting. I invested the truth of who I am in him. And I know that Light will illuminate any dark place he encounters in life.
On today's Oprah Show, she interviewed Ingrid Betancourt. Ms. Betancourt was running for the Senate of her beloved native land, Colombia South America. During this time, she met with the leaders of a terrorist group, FARC, and demanded that they cease their terrorist activities. Well, while campaigning in hostile territory, she was abducted by the terrorist and held captive in the Jungle for 6 ½ years before a heroic rescue mission freed her. "Did your faith get you through?," Oprah asked. "I found a Bible," Ingrid answers. "Prior to this, I thought the Bible was boring." "Until you met Jesus," Oprah interjected. "Until I met Jesus," Ingrid said. Looking around to the audience, Oprah finishes, "When you meet Jesus, you say, 'I LIKE THIS BOOK!'"
When asked what was the main thing she took away from her harrowing experience, Ingrid Betancourt said, "I had the freedom to choose what kind of person I want to be. " Ingrid admitted that her behavior was suspect to those imprisoned with her. But she said that that wasn't her intent. She just refused to take on the persona of a dog, an animal, like she was being treated. While everyone else gave a number count, when prompted by the guards, she gave her name instead. She had to hold to a sense of identify despite threat of torture by terrorists or criticism by fellow prisoners.
When you make a stand to live authentically, it always subjects you to criticism. Persecution is the cost of following Christ, but not just in the way you would expect. Most folks feel that persecution is when you stand on the street corner and tell people if they don't accept Jesus as their Lord and Savior, they will go to hell. Or that you're persecuted when you speak out against homosexuality or abortion. But I have experienced a different type of persecution. And this persecution comes from standing in your own sense of self. When you dare not to follow the collective and embrace your God-given identity, when you are authentic, it subjects you to criticism.
One pastor whom I have much regard for said to me, "Suzette, most people live in a box. You think outside the box. It can be both a blessing and a curse. For yes, you will endure great loneliness. But it also gives you access to great power." I didn't understand it then, but I do now. God lives outside the box too.
My takeaway from my life thus far is this. When you abandon yourself, you give away your power. God gave me a precious gift of free will: The freedom to choose who I will be. Don't let your family, your spouse, your children, your friends, your pastor, your Rabbi….or even your history, take that from you. Their job is not to create you or to judge you. Their job, whether executed well or poorly, is to inspire you. To hold up a mirror. To launch you into your destiny. And in whatever areas they fail, we have a Divine Gardener.
When I would hate, the Gardener comes and shines Light on my heart. He waters me with Truth. He takes a hoe and breaks up my resistance. He prunes away my anger, my offense, my intimidation, my sense of entitlement. He fertilizes me with who He is and pours Himself into me like water until I am whole. And the fruit? Forgiveness. Humility. Kindness. Temperance. Patience. God is still working on self-control though…lol. My point is I live as an awakened soul, set free from the bondages of a sin conscious, a fighting-the- devil conscious, shame, blame and most of all, the bondage of codependency (seeking or requiring validation from people). What freedom that is!
