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B-52 in flight
It is a habit with me.
To stop, and review, before a birthday.
To stop, and review, as we face a new year.
Well it's 2024.
Time for a review.
Of self, work, and direction.
Not on accomplishments, for it's not about that.
Scripture humbles me.
At how little I know.
Save for SPIRIT, I'd be lost.
He does all the leading, guidance, and direction.
That this writer may be pure, perfect, and precise.
The ideal, of which I have a long way to go.
Nevertheless, I'm on track.
What have I learned these past 52 months as born again?
All that, you can find from over 90 blogs.
I can't produce that much, unless SPIRIT guided me.
As it is, we have burgeoning blogs.
Not that I'm burping, for there's still tons to learn.
Some days, I feel like we're just warming up.
And maybe, we are.
The WORD of GOD is magnificent.
It's rich with GOD's story.
Rich with man's fallible ways.
Rich with GOD's mercy.
Rich with His promises.
Rich with His TRUTH.
That was what I was searching for anyway.
Right from the start -- only ABSOLUTE truth.
For the world presented me with half-truths.
Diluted truths, corrupted truths, manipulated truths.
Would that be truth at all?
So, I kept searching.
And this I must say.
If you really want truth, there's something you need to do.
LEAVE the old self behind.
DROP all previous knowledge.
That old self has been programmed.
HUMBLE yourself, and accept you're lost.
That you know nothing.
That you're sick of sin.
That you want real change.
Those are the things GOD wants to see, hear, and witness.
No pride, no vanity, no sense of self-importance, no baggage.
I went through that 57 months ago.
And I lived to tell the most wonderful tale.
But it starts with one thing:
GOD wants to HEAR your declaration to self.
That you're sick of self.
Sick of sin.
Sick of your old ways.
Then, He waits for you around the corner.
(He showed up five months after my April 2019 declaration.)
As you reach that corner, these things occur:
He doesn't laugh at you.
Okay, maybe He hugs you tight.
Smiling at His funny, lost child, rumpling your hair.
He doesn't blame you.
He knows you kept trying.
Even as you listen to anyone BUT Him.
He doesn't say, "I told you so."
He knows you'll come around, at His own perfect time.
When you've lost everything.
He doesn't show you a displeased frown.
Your abject self is enough.
He knows you got the message.
He doesn't make you feel bad, period.
How can a WONDERFUL FATHER ever do that?
He just hugs His long-lost prodigal child.
First thing He does is give you a sense of peace.
And then you become frantic, wanting to take hold of a Bible.
Which you devour, hungry as a starved child.
And you really begin to understand His WORD.
Marveling at the simplicity of it all.
His SPIRIT makes sure you do.
That's the process.
That's how it works.
Consider the tone, and conversation:
First, pride: "I can do it. Leave me alone!"
Second, humility: "I can't seem to do it. What am I doing wrong?"
Third, delight: "You mean, You've been there all along, and I didn't know it?"
(And then, you silently kick yourself.)
Now you see why there's laughter in the end.
Both you and GOD laugh at your foolishness.
Relieved, that all is well.
The mark of a true convert?
You laugh at yourself, the hardest.
You remember your foolish ways, and laugh.
You remember your foolish ways, and cringe.
You remember your foolish ways, and cry.
But you smile, too.
You smile at others, knowing they'll come around, too.
At GOD's own perfect time.
Like GOD, you don't laugh at them.
The true born again has lost all cruelty.
You just do your best to be a witness for the LORD.
Yes, there are tons of pain, too.
You grieve at how you've hurt others.
You grieve at how you've hurt yourself.
You grieve at how you've displeased GOD.
You grieve at how ignorant you were.
Sure, you didn't know Him then.
But once you know Him, you can't have enough of your GOD.
You want Him to teach you, night and day.
You never want to stray again.
You stay close by His side.
You hang on His EVERY word.
You watch His face, all the time.
And you're relieved to be saved, on time.
Lastly?
You can't wait to share His WORD.
That's what I've been doing.
All 52 months of it.
Four years, and four months.
Non-stop writing, and sharing.
Sure, I had a five-month waiting period.
After the declaration, a period of waiting.
That waiting period was necessary.
GOD wants to make sure your heart is right.
That you have firm resolve.
That you want REAL change.
That you're ready to hear about His Son, JESUS.
And if you are, and you do, boy, get ready!
GOD knows it, too.
And He's on it.
Proverbs 13:10
King James Version
10 Only by pride cometh contention:
but with the well advised is wisdom.
P.S.
In looking for an image for this post, first thing that comes to mind is the word B-52.
Of course, I knew what it was.
But I didn't know it was also called the "Stratofortress".
Yup, that's the humongous bomber.
Curiously, it also had all the "52s" in it.
The design number, and first tested on 15 April 1952.
Had to be it.
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Image: processocreativo on Pxhere
