Individuality Please

God sent me some inspiration Saturday while I was sitting amidst my balcony garden. Researchers from the University of Munich Germany found that looking at green for as brief as two seconds stimulates creativity. "God delights in concealing things; scientists delight in discovering things" (Proverbs 25:2 the Message Bible).

I have had people lie to me and say that my son, Rafael, was born with autism because I and Rafael's father had sex outside of marriage, and Rafael was conceived from one of these sexual encounters. While having partner sex outside of marriage is a sin that I have asked for and received God's forgiveness and no longer practice, it is a sin that is not connected to autism. John 9:1-3 Amplified Bible says, "As He passed along, He noticed a man blind from his birth. His disciples asked Him, Rabbi, who sinned, this man or his parents, that he should be born blind? Jesus answered, It was not that this man or his parents sinned, but he was born blind in order that the workings of God should be manifested (displayed and illustrated) in him." God is working through Rafael and me to bring healing to others regarding a dehumanizing view and treatment of persons with autism and other different minds and abilities. This type of mindset tries to erase the individuality of persons with autism and other different minds and abilities through steering them into certain custodial and administrative careers. Custodial and administrative careers are good careers if they are a person's calling. However if a person is singing jazz notes by spontaneous expression of an internal gift from God, why not educate and develop in as many ways as possible the singing ability, so that this person may bless society through a musical career?

The First Lady of Song, Ella Fitzgerald, was born to unmarried, African American parents. First her father died. Then several years later when Fitzgerald was still a youth her mother died. Fitzgerald ended up in a New York orphanage. Instead of encouraging her singing gift, governmental employees forced Fitzgerald to take up "marketable skills" like typing and stenography.

Ohiyesa (Dakota for "Wins Often"), who took the name "Charles Alexander Eastman" when he received Jesus Christ as his Savior and Lord in the 1800s, is a husband, father of six children, physician, writer, speaker, advocate for Native American rights, among other things, who described American culture as "a system of life based on trade." Things haven't changed much with today's "Get Rich or Die Tryin'" mentality.

American culture is high on the drug of conformity. Our culture compels people to pursue certain "marketable careers" irregardless of an individual's gifting from God.

Not everyone gets hooked on the drug of conformity. "Trabajare no por mi mismo, pero para otros" ("I shall not work for myself, but for others,") is a maxim of Reverend Patrick Fernandez Flores, the first Mexican American and the second U.S. Latino priest appointed a bishop in the Roman Catholic church.

Christians are not called to conformity, but to use their gifts and all of themselves to love God and to share the love of God on the inside with themselves and other people. The Apostle Paul writes in Romans 12:1-2 New Living Translation Bible, "And so, dear brothers and sisters, I plead with you to give your bodies to God because of all he has done for you. Let them be a living and holy sacrifice—the kind he will find acceptable. This is truly the way to worship him. Don’t copy the behavior and customs of this world, but let God transform you into a new person by changing the way you think. Then you will learn to know God’s will for you, which is good and pleasing and perfect." Paul goes on to say in Romans 12:6 New Living Translation Bible, "In his grace, God has given us different gifts for doing certain things well. . ." Live always incredible and improving empowered by God's love while cultivating and sharing your gifts. Read my 6/14/2012 article "Connecting Relationships and Faith."

Come off the drug of conformity and receive an ever evolving relationship with God the Father, God the Son Jesus Christ and God the Holy Ghost. God is for us. Chase and receive Him continually. Former drug addict current Pastor Wess Morgan sings on his CD Look At Me Now track "You May Not Know Me" about God's drastic change in his life, "You may not know me the way I am. You used to know me back when I was dangerous, reckless so frivolous."

Once America looses the dangerous, reckless so frivolous drug of conformity perhaps we will see persons with autism and other different minds and abilities in mass in all kinds of private and public places fully participating in society using the gifts God gave them to bless society.

Join Rafael and my relationship group to participate in the transformation process by contacting email address michefrancesjackson@gmail.com. We also welcome on-line comments.