"You shall not give up to his master a slave who has escaped from his master to you. He shall dwell with you, in your midst, in the place that he shall choose within one of your towns, wherever it suits him. You shall not wrong him," says Deuteronomy 23:15-16 English Standard Version Bible. Many Native Americans may not have known the Bible, but they practiced this part of the Bible by sheltering African-American slaves who fled their slave masters searching for freedom in Native American communities.
Rafael and I love to travel to Florida. Before 1819 when Spain sold Florida to the United States of America, Florida was a popular place for runaway slaves to live among the Native Americans. African-American slaves and free people intermarried with Native Americans. The Seminoles consist of Native Americans, African Americans and people who are a mix of both Native Americans and African Americans.
John Horse was of mixed Native American and African-American heritage. Like others like him Horse played a role in Native-American leadership. John Horse and Wild Cat defeated an American army led by Colonel Zachary Taylor at the Battle of Lake Okeechobee. Later John Horse led a group of black Seminoles into Mexico where they were allowed to live in return for guarding the border against rustlers and bandits.
No matter if people are African, European, Asian, Latino or some mixture, God created people with a desire to be free. Sometimes we consider certain practices acceptable for other people that we would never consider acceptable for ourselves. Former US President Abraham Lincoln said, "Whenever I hear anyone arguing for slavery, I feel a strong impulse to see it tried on him personally." How many people really wish that their parents would have aborted them instead of allowing them to live? Gospel singer Fred Hammond's mom tried to abort him, but Hammond survived. Read his story and more in my article "Thoughts About Abortion."
Proverbs 11:27 Amplified Bible says, "He who diligently seeks good seeks [God’s] favor, but he who searches after evil, it shall come upon him." President Lincoln said, "As I would not be a slave, so I would not be a master. This expresses my idea of democracy." Lincoln fought for his idea. He issued the Emancipation Proclamation in 1863, encouraging border states to outlaw slavery. Lincoln helped push through Congress the Thirteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which finally freed all the slaves nationwide in December 1865.
Rafael and I would probably be slaves today if it were not for President Lincoln.
Not only African Americans but many would probably not be enjoying the freedoms we have today if it were not for President Lincoln. Lincoln led the United States through the American Civil War preserving the Union.
Many people have low expectations of people with mental illness, but Lincoln accomplished great things even while he battled periods of depression. Do we have a Federal, American holiday recognizing the accomplishments of people with mental illness?
Printing transformed literature globally. Printing was invented in China. The written word is a wonderful way to inspire change.
Native Americans and President Lincoln helped African Americans escape slavery. Many Latino countries are experiencing social, political and economic turmoil leading some to immigrate to America. What can we do to help them?
Showing posts with label Transformation. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Transformation. Show all posts
Wednesday, February 27, 2013
Tuesday, February 26, 2013
Love Without Limit
"I absolutely love, love my life. Every year seems to get better for me," said International Bible Teacher Francis Chan in a speech at Liberty University encouraging believers to cultivate an intimate relationship with God that they share with both believers and non-believers in their every day, ordinary lives.
Chan's message is in agreement with Gospel Singer Kim Burrell's song "Sweeter." Burrell sings, "Every day is sweeter, sweeter than the day before, learning how to love you more . . . . The more I get to know ya', know ya', find out that you're so good for me . . . . You're good on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday . . . . Every day makes me want to add another day to my week cause you're so sweet.
God's sweet is too good to keep to ourselves. 1 Juan 3:16 Dios Habla Hoy Biblia dice, "Conocemos lo que es el amor porque Jesucristo dio su vida por nosotros; así también, nosotros debemos dar la vida por nuestros hermanos." 1 John 3:16 Contemporary English Version Bible says, "We know what love is because Jesus gave his life for us. That’s why we must give our lives for each other."
Some people falsely think that love has a limit. When Hollywood Actor Lauren Bacall discovered she was pregnant, she excitedly told her husband, Hollywood Actor, Humphrey Bogart. Bogart cried. "What's wrong?," she inquired. Bogart responded, "I'm happy, but I'm also very sad." Bogart said his joy was mixed with sadness, "Because once you have a child, I'll never be as important to you as I am now."
While some spouses do neglect their spouses when children are added to the family, God didn't design His love inside of believers to express itself this way. Marital love takes priority over parental love while simultaneously, extravagantly loving spouse and children.
Our children are important, but we don't cleave to them. One day they will form families of their own or branch out into single adulthood. Genesis 2:24-25 Amplified Bible says, "Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and shall become united and cleave to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And the man and his wife were both naked and were not embarrassed or ashamed in each other’s presence." Genesis 2:23-25 the Message Bible says, "The Man said, “Finally! Bone of my bone,flesh of my flesh! Name her Woman for she was made from Man.”Therefore a man leaves his father and mother and embraces his wife. They become one flesh. The two of them, the Man and his Wife, were naked, but they felt no shame."
Sometimes we close our hearts when God wants to increase our capacity to love Him, ourselves and other people. In addition to developing vibrant relationships with our children, having children is supposed to increase the love between husband and wife. Godly love is a multiplier. Division is of the devil.
Jesus Christ is not arrogant, but He is certainly confident. When Christ added apostles and other disciples to His life, Christ was not diminished as a person, neither were His original relationships diminished by adding new ones.
God seeks to make us like Him. We have corrupt ideas about companionship. Reading, studying, meditating on God's Word, the Bible, and talking to God about His Bible is a primary way that God teaches us to love Him, ourselves and other people. Second Corinthians 3:16-18 the Message Bible says, "Whenever, though, they turn to face God as Moses did, God removes the veil and there they are—face-to-face! They suddenly recognize that God is a living, personal presence, not a piece of chiseled stone. And when God is personally present, a living Spirit, that old, constricting legislation is recognized as obsolete. We’re free of it! All of us! Nothing between us and God, our faces shining with the brightness of his face. And so we are transfigured much like the Messiah, our lives gradually becoming brighter and more beautiful as God enters our lives and we become like him."
We want to be loved by the people we share a relationship, and we will often say and do things to indicate how we want to be loved. Some times our loved ones miss the message. An Egyptian saying for this type of miscommunication is, "A thousand raps at the door, but no salute or invitation from within."
Sometimes we miss the plea for love because we expect other people to be like us. Yet no two people, even twins and other multiples, are the same. Like we study God in the Bible, and talk to Him about what He has to say, we have to study people and talk with them about what they have to say. Then empowered by the Holy Ghost, give love the way it can be received.
Chan's message is in agreement with Gospel Singer Kim Burrell's song "Sweeter." Burrell sings, "Every day is sweeter, sweeter than the day before, learning how to love you more . . . . The more I get to know ya', know ya', find out that you're so good for me . . . . You're good on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday . . . . Every day makes me want to add another day to my week cause you're so sweet.
God's sweet is too good to keep to ourselves. 1 Juan 3:16 Dios Habla Hoy Biblia dice, "Conocemos lo que es el amor porque Jesucristo dio su vida por nosotros; así también, nosotros debemos dar la vida por nuestros hermanos." 1 John 3:16 Contemporary English Version Bible says, "We know what love is because Jesus gave his life for us. That’s why we must give our lives for each other."
Some people falsely think that love has a limit. When Hollywood Actor Lauren Bacall discovered she was pregnant, she excitedly told her husband, Hollywood Actor, Humphrey Bogart. Bogart cried. "What's wrong?," she inquired. Bogart responded, "I'm happy, but I'm also very sad." Bogart said his joy was mixed with sadness, "Because once you have a child, I'll never be as important to you as I am now."
While some spouses do neglect their spouses when children are added to the family, God didn't design His love inside of believers to express itself this way. Marital love takes priority over parental love while simultaneously, extravagantly loving spouse and children.
Our children are important, but we don't cleave to them. One day they will form families of their own or branch out into single adulthood. Genesis 2:24-25 Amplified Bible says, "Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and shall become united and cleave to his wife, and they shall become one flesh. And the man and his wife were both naked and were not embarrassed or ashamed in each other’s presence." Genesis 2:23-25 the Message Bible says, "The Man said, “Finally! Bone of my bone,flesh of my flesh! Name her Woman for she was made from Man.”Therefore a man leaves his father and mother and embraces his wife. They become one flesh. The two of them, the Man and his Wife, were naked, but they felt no shame."
Sometimes we close our hearts when God wants to increase our capacity to love Him, ourselves and other people. In addition to developing vibrant relationships with our children, having children is supposed to increase the love between husband and wife. Godly love is a multiplier. Division is of the devil.
Jesus Christ is not arrogant, but He is certainly confident. When Christ added apostles and other disciples to His life, Christ was not diminished as a person, neither were His original relationships diminished by adding new ones.
God seeks to make us like Him. We have corrupt ideas about companionship. Reading, studying, meditating on God's Word, the Bible, and talking to God about His Bible is a primary way that God teaches us to love Him, ourselves and other people. Second Corinthians 3:16-18 the Message Bible says, "Whenever, though, they turn to face God as Moses did, God removes the veil and there they are—face-to-face! They suddenly recognize that God is a living, personal presence, not a piece of chiseled stone. And when God is personally present, a living Spirit, that old, constricting legislation is recognized as obsolete. We’re free of it! All of us! Nothing between us and God, our faces shining with the brightness of his face. And so we are transfigured much like the Messiah, our lives gradually becoming brighter and more beautiful as God enters our lives and we become like him."
We want to be loved by the people we share a relationship, and we will often say and do things to indicate how we want to be loved. Some times our loved ones miss the message. An Egyptian saying for this type of miscommunication is, "A thousand raps at the door, but no salute or invitation from within."
Sometimes we miss the plea for love because we expect other people to be like us. Yet no two people, even twins and other multiples, are the same. Like we study God in the Bible, and talk to Him about what He has to say, we have to study people and talk with them about what they have to say. Then empowered by the Holy Ghost, give love the way it can be received.
Wednesday, August 1, 2012
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.
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.
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