The Messyness of Truth
For the last podcast of the year Brad and Wayne spend some time in the old mailbag to let their listeners add their input. The conversation eventually settles on how truth does set us free, but not before it messes with us and our illusions. The process of opening our eyes to God's reality often involves the unraveling of lies that we've used to navigate through life. As they implode we can be overwhelmed with anger or frustration. But of those signal the very end of a process that allows the light and love of God to win our hearts into his reality. It is a marvelous, if sometimes painful process, but if we can appreciate it we can relax easier when it happens to us, and cheer others on when its happening to them.
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Hello Wayne and Brad — Happy New Year!
Thank you for your podcast today…I can relate to so much of what you mentioned. As a former Bible group teacher, your comments about helping those who wonder “what do I do now?” after entering the Living Loved life were right on. I often wonder what to do with that “ability” now that I am apart from an organized religious structure. It’s been two years now since I’ve taught, and it can be a very-confusing place to be, but I’m waiting to see if/how/when The Father wants me to use it.
I have been given an opportunity to write a monthly column for a local Christian magazine, which helps me use some of that “ability”…although sometimes I’m surprised that they print it! Not only do my columns come from a perspective of being outside of a church organization, but they are also coming verse by verse from Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7). As a basis for these columns, I study the scripture in context and from the Greek for original translation and meaning.
Because of this, I am finding that The Truth is indeed messy sometimes! Just like I’ve learned (or maybe I should say relearned) from really studying the Bible since stepping out into this new life, so much of what we’ve been told and taught is out of context, incorrect, or even worse, agenda-driven. Almost daily, The Father gives me one of those: “Really? Is that what it really means?!”
Why do people continue accepting the false beliefs? Maybe they don’t know better. Others may have some idea of the lies, but have become comfortable in their church and their churchy friends. I can understand that, because once you start asking questions or making statements contrary to your pastor’s and church’s “beliefs” folks start scattering, lest they become associated with you, or worst yet, they might “catch” whatever you have. 🙂
Some get close…they’ll want to meet you for lunch and ask questions. Unfortunately for most, once they really start to consider the facts, they get confused or scared and run back to the “safety” of their religious environment. In a way, I understand. Like you guys said, it is a very scary and confusing place…a lot of your friends vanish, you can’t always tell if God is “there” and it can be very lonely. However, now that I’m coming out the other side, I am starting to see how the Father was working all along…and for the better.
Anyhoo…thank you for your podcast that really brought together much of what I’ve been thinking and feeling. I look forward to your next one already!!
Happy New Year!
David in Nashville
David, what you shared blessed me, and I haven’t even listened to the podcast yet! : )
Wayne and Brad,
As you already know, but as time goes by, we tend to forget just how strange the Grace Message is when many of us have so much garbage to get out of our heads. I’ve been walking on this Journey for a few years now, and it seems like there is no other way. But I do remember what it was like in the beginning. Even though as we read your books and those of so many others that are on this journey, to walk along side the Father and let the spirit truly be alive in us, it takes a bit of time to really get an understanding, an epiphany, if you will , of the grace message. Your probably wondering why I’m writing this, (and so do I ) but I wonder if you guy’s some times forget a little bit , what it was like for you when you were first presented with information. I guess what I’m trying to say is, always keep in mind when your doing the podcast , that this is very new to some, and they may not get it yet.
Love you guy’s keep up the good work, Rick
Listen to this podcast and realize: “Hey, these two guys are slinging freedom all over the place!”
And the freedom of Father has been here the entire time
The scene in Cool Hand Luke as Newman’s character is having to dig a hole: only to have to put the dirt back into the hole because it is on the Boss’ land – which in turn must be dug back out of the hole because the Boss told him to dig a hole – the loop plays out, over and over. The tag line: “What we have here is a failure to communicate!”
Religion does this, over and over again. It doesn’t work, you’ve failed to hear something – do it again!
You must be doing something wrong, do it again! The promise of destiny after all is right around the corner!
The honesty involved is in seeing the failure on the part of the fig leaves. and admitting it does not work. Yes, we put them on to cover our shame and guilt, but mostly because the system’s leaders told us it was according to God’s little instruction book.
Unlike natural birth, the bonding is undercut by the demands of working out one’s salvation.
The Light peels away the darkened veneer and it hurts, but only because we thought we were doing so well!
It’s so grand to be able to sit back and relax into the love of Father without the contradictory performance.
From this vantage point, you will one day recall your dire little struggles with a snicker, and say “What in the world was so hard about letting my heart tell my head I was alright?”
I am starting to understand this idea of giving up on our own efforts and how hard that is to do. Just when we think that we’ve really given up the Spirit seems to point out another area. That’s the conversation I am having with Jesus right now—“You wouldn’t be trying to tell me to give up on this particular thing, would you? But I love doing this and… and… what would I do if I no longer had that to devote myself to? And this could be a good way to get involved in the lives of other people… and…”
This, for me, is where the rubber is meeting the road. On one hand, I don’t think Papa is consumed with whether we do X or do Y— certainly not like *we* are consumed with these decisions. But maybe there is some, deeper reality. When a pursuit drowns out his voice and we find it hard to not grasp and hold on, even when there is clear radioactive fallout, that pursuit/choice/relationship/purchase/whatever becomes an obstacle and ceases to be a good thing.
It is so easy to listen to podcasts and think of these things in the abstract, but it only becomes real when we engage Papa with those day to day, real life choices and listen. It’s not an either-or proposition. It’s a spectrum… a continuum. To the degree that Papa has won us to trust him, we will take what we perceive to be “risks” with the people and things most dear to us. And sometimes, like little kids, we just have to fail, and fail and fail until we finally, really understand that he knows best.