Dancing With God

Trinity 1-3, Purpose of Men

Isaiah 43:18-21, Romans 12:1-2

Why Were You Born?

Genesis begins with the creation story. It says that God is the Creator of everything and human beings are created by God. We need to remember it in order to build a right relationship with God. Why is that?

When I went to college, one of the first classes I took was ‘Systematic Theology.’ The professor had his PhD degree in Germany, and he told us to read the German Philosopher, Martin Heidegger’s book, “Being and Time.’

It is Heidegger’s major book that profoundly influenced 20th century philosophy, particularly existentialism, hermeneutics and deconstruction. The book was not easy to read, especially for a college freshman. Most of the students read the book and wrote 5 pages book review without understanding the book. But I still remember one thing that the book said, “We are beings thrown into the world.” In other words, we were born to this world without our choice.

Is it true or is it not true? We didn’t intend to be born but our births were given. In the Christian world, we did not create ourselves but we are created by God. According to Heidegger, most people live as if they were born by themselves until they face death. Once they recognize that they could not avoid death, they feel anxious and question themselves, “Why am I here?” “What is the meaning of my life in this world?

Heidegger said that we exist only within a limited time and we cannot control our being and time. The only thing that we can do is to seek the meaning of our existence so that we can be free from anxiety. Our life is a journey to seek the meaning of our being in this world.

The Purpose Of Men

If we exist by ourselves, then we can find the meaning of our existence in ourselves. But since we are created by God, the reason of our existence is not from us but from God, the Creator. Let’s say that I built a table. Then, people do not ask the table, “Hey! What is purpose of your existence?” Rather than asking the table, People would ask me why I made the table. I know the purpose of the table because I made it.

It is the same that since God created us; the purpose of our existence should come from God. God knows the purpose of human beings, and God said the reasons in the Bible. There are two reasons for creating human beings.

First, God created us to take care of His creation. Genesis 1:26 says, “Then God said, “Let us make humankind in our image, according to our likeness; and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the wild animals of the earth, and over every creeping thing that creeps upon the earth.” (NRSV)

This verse suggests that humanity is the image of God in the dominion over the rest of creation. God created the heavens and the earth, fish, flowers, animals and God said it was good. Then God created human beings to have dominion over His creation. Hebrew word for ‘Have Dominion’ is rada. It means "care giving and nurturing" but not exploitation. God asked us to take care of His creation. So, God gave us dominion over the creation in behalf of God, and therefore we represent God to His creation.

Second, God created us to praise His glory. Isaiah 43:18-21 talks about God’s new creation. Since God’s creation was corrupted by human sins, God declared that He would renew his creation and said at verse 21, “the people whom I formed for myself so that they might declare my praise.”

Isaiah said that God created human beings that they may praise God’s glory.

‘Praise God!’ is our reason to exist.

Therefore, the last psalm, Psalm 150 ends with praising God’s greatness.

1 Praise the LORD! Praise God in his sanctuary; praise him in his mighty firmament!

2 Praise him for his mighty deeds; praise him according to his surpassing greatness!

3 Praise him with trumpet sound; praise him with lute and harp!

4 Praise him with tambourine and dance; praise him with strings and pipe!

5 Praise him with clanging cymbals; praise him with loud clashing cymbals!

6 Let everything that breathes praise the LORD! Praise the LORD!

Verse 6 says that it is not only human beings but all of God’s creation should praise God. All creatures are made to praise God’s greatness. It is interesting to compare the first reason with the second reason.

When God told us to have dominion over His creation, we take care of all of His creation in behalf of God. When we praise God, we praise His name in behalf of all of His creation.

On one hand, we represent God to His creation, and on the other hand we represent His creation to God. So, we are the mediator between God and His creation: we take care of His creation and we worship God.

Third, God created us to be a blessing. During the Bible study, we studied on Genesis and we learned about God’s promise to save His people. In order to save his people God called Abraham and said “you shall be a blessing.” (Gen. 12:2) Page

All of the Bible stories are about God’s saving efforts through the people He called. God called Judges, Prophets and Priests to save His people. God sent His beloved son Jesus to save His people. God called disciples, deacons, elders, missionaries and Christians to save His people. All of God’s calling is about saving His people and blessing them.

In the Old Testament, God said ‘you shall be a blessing,’ and in the New Testament, Jesus said, “you are the salt and the light of the world.”(Matt.5:13-14)

Either way, it is the same that God calls us to be part of His salvation plan for the world.

Dancing With God

‘Destiny’ is another word for ‘the purpose of men.’ Louis Savary is a Jesuit professor in Spirituality. He said “our destiny is where God’s mystery and our mystery intersect.” Destiny, goal or mission of our life is not fixed but it was like dancing with God. It is well expressed in “the Creation of Adam”, a fresco painting by Michelangelo. This is part of the Sistine Chapel's ceiling, painted in 1512.

There are many paintings of the creation of Adam, but the uniqueness of this painting is that God and Adam stretch out their hands for the creation. This painting indicates that God created us not like a robot that moves as programmed, not like animals that live by instincts, but according to His own image and invited us to join His ongoing creation. God created us to be His partner by His grace, and called us to reflect His glory in this world. That is our destiny, the meaning of our life in this world.

I like this story that happened in a college. At the end of a semester, a college professor asked if there were any questions.

A student held up his hand and said half-jokingly, “Sir! I have a question. What is the meaning of life?”

Everyone laughed. They knew it was an impossible question and that the student was teasing. But the professor, well into his seventies, didn’t laugh. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a small mirror.

Then the professor said, “When I was a small child, during the war, we were very poor and we lived in a remote village. One day, on the road, I found scattered broken pieces of a huge mirror on the ground.

I tried to find all the pieces and put them together, but it was impossible, there's probably a million little pieces, so I kept only the largest piece.

By scratching it on a stone, I made it round. I began to play with it as a toy. And I became fascinated by the fact that I could reflect light into dark places where the sun would never shine…

As I became a man, I grew to understand that this was not just a child’s game but a metaphor for what I might do with my life. I came to understand that I am not the light or the source of light. But light, like truth, true understanding or knowledge is there, and it will only shine in many dark places if I reflect it.”

Christians are like the mirror. We are not light, but we can reflect God’s light.

We are not a blessing, but we can reflect God’s blessing to people.

When we take care of God’s creation, when we love people and when we worship God, we can reflect God’s love and grace.

Let’s remember that we are made wonderfully and beautifully so that we can reflect God’s love and grace in this world.

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Rest in God's Refuge

The Dream

Chuang Chou was a famous Chinese philosopher during the third century BC. One day, he dreamed that he became a butterfly and was happily flying over to the sky. When he woke up, he wondered if he had a dream of being a butterfly or the butterfly had a dream that he was Chuang Chou. Which one do you think is real, Chuang Chou or the butterfly?

Let me share my daily life.  I wake up each day; take a shower and dress up for the day. Then, I prepare my kids for school, do this and do that, go to work, meet people, and come back home at night.

Each time, I am aware of what I am doing and the decisions I make for the day. This daytime I, is about who I am, and who represents me, my identity to other people. Since I work a lot during the day, I go to sleep at night to rest.

As I fell asleep, another I pop up! Another I pop up in a dream, and this other I is busy in the dream doing something weird, crazy, funny, fantastic, creative or dumb things. While we call the daytime I as I or ego and I in the dream called the Dream I. So, the daytime I is the owner of the world of consciousness during the day and the dream I is the owner of the world of unconsciousness during the night. Which means, all people have two "I's" daytime I and dream I.

Daytime Jonah

The book of Jonah has only four chapters, but it has one of the most interesting stories. The story is about Prophet Jonah, who disobeyed God's word and was swallowed by a big fish, but still lived and finally carried out God's mission.

Some scholars believe that the story happened literally as the Bible said but others argue that even though the story carries Gods' word, it is not real. I do not want to argue if it is real or not. I do not want approach it with the general Biblical interpretation. Instead, I will try to see the story from the perspective of dream interpretation.

Chapter 1 says that God told Prophet Jonah to preach to the city of Nineveh. It was a great city of the Assyrian empire and its population at that time was more then 120,000. Niniveh was a wicked city worthy of destruction, but God wanted Jonah to preach to the Ninevites so that they would repent otherwise the city would be destroyed.

But the Assyrians were the people who destroyed Northern Israel. They were the enemies of the Israelites. Prophet Jonah, who was an Israelite and had patriotic mind, did not want their enemies to be saved. His patriotism was stronger than his desire to follow God's words.

So, verse 3 says that rather than going to Nineveh, Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for Tarshish, which was the opposite direction of Nineveh.

Jonas' daytime I had a certain value or belief. If God says something against his value, the daytime I was willing to run away from God to avoid the conflict.

Obeying to God's words seemed like betraying his people. So, running away from God was the daytime I defense mechanism.

Nighttime Jonah

The story continues to say that Jonah took a ship to go Tarshish to flee from the Lord, but the storm came and threatened the ship. Then, Jonah confessed to the people that because of his disobedience, God caused this storm. So the people threw Jonah into the sea, and God sent a big fish to swallow Jonah.

Chapter 2 is Jonah's prayer when he was in the belly of the big fish. Jonah prayed at verse 2, "... out of the belly of Sheol I cried, and you heard my voice. According to the Old Testament, sheol is a place where the dead people go. Being in the belly of a big fish was like being buried in a grave. It was dark, cold, lonely, scary and starving. There was nothing he could do but simply ask God for help.

According to the dream symbols, under the sea is the place of unconsciousness, where we are not aware and in the belly of the fish is the center of the depth of the unconsciousness. Since this is a place where one can be more receptive rather than proactive, it is a place where one can hear God's voice. It seems a scary place, but it is also a place of God's refuge where we can reconnect with God. It is a place where a dream is created.

Have you ever questioned why Mary had an angel's visitation for that I the annunciation but Joseph had it in his dream? Women are more receptive than men during the day. So women could hear God's message. Men have a strong ego during day time to deal with their daily social life, so they could not hear God's voice. When men sleep at night, they become more receptive and become ready to hear God's voice. So, a dream is the best way that God talks to men. Number 12:6 says "...when there is a prophet among you, I, the Lord, reveal myself to them in visions, I speak to them in dreams.

Jonah had a strong ego and didn't listen to God when he was awake, but when he was swallowed by a big fish, he became receptive to God's voice. He repented, and swore that he would follow God's command.

Back to daytime I

Morton Kelsey, a Jungian psychologist and an Episcopalian Priest, says, "A dream is a way to listen to God". God talks us through a dream, but most people negate the dream and do not remember it.

Jonah experience God in the belly of the big fish and he committed himself to follow God's command, but once he came back to earth his ego still controlled his life. He was not happy to follow God's commandment.

So, chapter 3 said that she went to Nineveh and preached as God commanded, but he went through the city in just one day and preached quickly. It required 3 days to visit the city, but Jonah quickly finished his business without much concern (Jonah3:4).

It is like a guy who loved drinking. He went to see a doctor. His doctor said that he should stop drinking otherwise his kidney would fail. He said that he had to drink and the doctor said that if he drank just a couple of wine, it would be what fine. So this guy prepared a big cup that could hold a bottle of wine and drank it, told himself that he followed the doctor's advice.

Jonah was like that. He pretended to be following God's command, but he did not like to follow God's words. So chapter 3-4 describe Jonah's inner conflict between hispariotism and obeying God's word, between his consciousness and he's unconsciousness, between his daytime "I" and his inner "I".

We like to love people us Jesus said. But like Jonah, we love people who loved us. We love our family but not others. We love our community but not others. We love our country but not enemies. Always, we put a certain boundary consciously or unconsciously, and we love people who are within the boundary we created in our lives. We believe that we love people as Jesus said but denied that there are some people we really do not care about. Since our daytime "I" denies to see the uncomfortable truth, it is oppressed. But the truth is revealed in a dream, on the dream challenges us to move beyond our limits.

Rest in God's refuge

In Hebrew, the word dream is "chalom", and its meaning is to be made healthy or strong. Morton Kelsey says that dreams are gifts from God. God gave us dreams to make us healthy and strong. A dream is supposed to be God's refuge where we can rest.

Modern dream science has discovered that all people dream at night whether they remember or not. When people were deprived of their dreams, they become emotionally disturbed and anxious. Dreaming is not an option, but a human condition to keep our physical and psychological heath.

And understanding our dreams is our choice to grow spiritually.

Although, understanding our dreams is not the only way to improve our spiritual growth, it is one of the better ways to understand ourselves, to maintain our spiritual health and to understand God's guidance. Dreams do not tell us the truth directly. Most times, dreams talk to us indirectly through symbols. Therefore we need to interpret our dreams carefully with an open mind.

Remember that God gave us dreams as a gift, for our psychological and spiritual well- being.

Sing On Dance On!

Sing On, Dance On!
Music by Mark Weston

Sing on, dance on, join in celebration; 
praises we bring to our Lord, God and King. 
Sing on, dance on, shout with  acclamation, 
praising, rejoicing with all living things. 
Praise to the Lord, the Almighty, the king of creation. 
Sing on, dance on, join in celebration, 

O my soul, praise him, for he is our health and salvation! 
Sing on, dance on, shout with acclamation. 
All you hold here, now to his temple draw near;
join us in glad adoration! Alleluia! 

In all things we see God's glory, through all things his beauty share. 
Thankful for the gifts God gave us, mindful of his loving care. 
Sing on, dance on, join in celebration; 
praises we bring to our Lord, God and King. 
Sing on, dance on, shout with  acclamation, 
praising, rejoicing with all living things. 

Praise to the Lord! O let all that is in us adore him! 
All that has life and breath, come now with praises before him!
Let the amen sound from his people again;
gladly for ever adore him. 

Sing on, dance on!
Sing on, dance on! 
Praise to the Lord!

Christianity And Love

Christianity

The Christian understanding is that love comes from God. The love of man and woman—Eros in Greek—and the unselfish love of others (agape), are often contrasted as "ascending" and "descending" love, respectively, but are ultimately the same thing.[31]

There are several Greek words for "love" that are regularly referred to in Christian circles.

Agape: In the New Testament, agapē is charitable, selfless, altruistic, and unconditional. It is parental love, seen as creating goodness in the world; it is the way God is seen to love humanity, and it is seen as the kind of love that Christians aspire to have for one another.

Phileo: Also used in the New Testament, phileo is a human response to something that is found to be delightful. Also known as "brotherly love."

Two other words for love in the Greek language, eros (sexual love) and storge (child-to-parent love), were never used in the New Testament.

Christians believe that to Love God with all your heart, mind, and strength and Love your neighbor as yourself are the two most important things in life (the greatest commandment of the Jewish Torah, according to Jesus; cf. Gospel of Mark chapter 12, verses 28–34). Saint Augustine summarized this when he wrote "Love God, and do as thou wilt."

Christianity of Love

Sacred Love Versus Profane Love (1602–03) by Giovanni Baglione.

Intended as an attack on his hated enemy the artist Caravaggio, it shows a boy (hinting at Caravaggio's homosexuality) on one side, a devil with Caravaggio's face on the other, and between angels representing pure, meaning non-erotic, love.

The Apostle Paul glorified love as the most important virtue of all. Describing love in the famous poem in 1 Corinthians, he wrote, "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, and always perseveres." (1 Cor. 13:4–7, NIV)

The Apostle John wrote, "For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him." (John 3:16–17, NIV) John also wrote, "Dear friends, let us love one another for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love." (1 John 4:7–8, NIV)

Saint Augustine says that one must be able to decipher the difference between love and lust. Lust, according to Saint Augustine, is overindulgence, but to love and be loved is what he has sought for his entire life. He even says, “I was in love with love.” Finally, he does fall in love and is loved back, by God. Saint Augustine says the only one who can love you truly and fully is God, because love with a human only allows for flaws such as “jealousy, suspicion, fear, anger, and contention.” According to Saint Augustine, to love God is “to attain the peace which is yours.” (Saint Augustine's Confessions)

Augustine regards the duplex commandment of love in Matthew 22 as the heart of Christian faith and the interpretation of the Bible. After the review of Christian doctrine, Augustine treats the problem of love in terms of use and enjoyment until the end of Book I of De Doctrina Christiana (1.22.21-1.40.44;).[32]

Christian theologians see God as the source of love, which is mirrored in humans and their own loving relationships. Influential Christian theologian C.S. Lewis wrote a book called The Four Loves. Benedict XVI wrote his first encyclical on "God is love". He said that a human being, created in the image of God, who is love, is able to practice love; to give himself to God and others (agape) and by receiving and experiencing God's love in contemplation (Eros). This life of love, according to him, is the life of the saints such as Teresa of Calcutta and the Blessed Virgin Mary and is the direction Christians take when they believe that God loves them.[31]

In Christianity the practical definition of love is best summarised by St. Thomas Aquinas, who defined love as "to will the good of another," or to desire for another to succeed.[12] This is the explanation of the Christian need to love others, including their enemies. As Thomas Aquinas explains, Christian love is motivated by the need to see others succeed in life, to be good people.

Judaism

In Hebrew, Ahava is the most commonly used term for both interpersonal love and love between God and God's creations. Chesed, often translated as loving-kindness, is used to describe many forms of love between human beings.

The commandment to love other people is given in the Torah, which states, "Love your neighbor like yourself" (Leviticus 19:18). The Torah's commandment to love God "with all your heart, with all your soul and with all your might" (Deuteronomy 6:5) is taken by the Mishnah (a central text of the Jewish oral law) to refer to good deeds, willingness to sacrifice one's life rather than commit certain serious transgressions, willingness to sacrifice all of one's possessions, and being grateful to the Lord despite adversity (tractate Berachoth 9:5). Rabbinic literature differs as to how this love can be developed, e.g., by contemplating divine deeds or witnessing the marvels of nature. As for love between marital partners, this is deemed an essential ingredient to life: "See life with the wife you love" (Ecclesiastes 9:9). The biblical book Song of Solomon is considered a romantically phrased metaphor of love between God and his people, but in its plain reading, reads like a love song. The 20th-century Rabbi Eliyahu Eliezer Dessler is frequently quoted as defining love from the Jewish point of view as "giving without expecting to take" (from his Michtav me-Eliyahu, Vol. 1).

Islam

Love encompasses the Islamic view of life as universal brotherhood that applies to all who hold faith. Amongst the 99 names of God (Allah), there is the name Al-Wadud, or "the Loving One," which is found in Surah [Quran 11:90] as well as Surah [Quran 85:14]. God is also referenced at the beginning of every chapter in the Qur'an as Ar-Rahman and Ar-Rahim, or the "Most Compassionate" and the "Most Merciful", indicating that nobody is more loving, compassionate and benevolent than God. The Qur'an refers to God as being "full of loving kindness."

The Qur'an exhorts Muslim believers to treat all people, those who have not persecuted them, with birr or "deep kindness" as stated in Surah [Quran 6:8-9]. Birr is also used by the Qur'an in describing the love and kindness that children must show to their parents.

Ishq, or divine love, is the emphasis of Sufism in the Islamic tradition. Practitioners of Sufism believe that love is a projection of the essence of God to the universe. God desires to recognize beauty, and as if one looks at a mirror to see oneself, God "looks" at himself within the dynamics of nature. Since everything is a reflection of God, the school of Sufism practices to see the beauty inside the apparently ugly. Sufism is often referred to as the religion of love.[citation needed] God in Sufism is referred to in three main terms, which are the Lover, Loved, and Beloved, with the last of these terms being often seen in Sufi poetry. A common viewpoint of Sufism is that through love, humankind can get back to its inherent purity and grace. The saints of Sufism are infamous for being "drunk" due to their love of God; hence, the constant reference to wine in Sufi poetry and music.

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I Have Met The "God"

God is real, please admit it! Here is a story that will warm your heart.

I AM PROUD TO SAY AND DECLARE - THAT I HAVE MET THE "GOD"

On 15th of March 2008 during my sleep I had a dream. During my dream I was sitting under a tree in an abundant area far from city with my head down and in a thoughtful mode.

After some time I realized a passerby stopped in front me. Then I raised my head and saw a strange figure in front me.

... That figure asked me I am watching ...you since forty years you are coming here and sit for some time and go back. What is the cause you're coming here?

I replied to him that I am in search of "ALL MIGHTY GOD" IN ACTUAL SHAPE.

Then stranger questioned me, do you know that the creatures are existing because of "God's Power"?

I replied yes.

Then he smiled and said, is it not sufficient?

Then I replied, NO.

Then the stranger said HE could help me know and realize what will happen, when God is not present.

I replied O K please let me realize that.

Then the stranger asked me to get up, when I got up, HE held me from my waist side and told me close my eyes till next order. Then he said come along with me and took me to another unknown place. After reaching there HE asked me to open my eyes.

Then stranger questioned me could I see HIM?

Then I replied Yes.

Then HE ordered me to look around.

When I happened to look around I saw nothing around all had vanished and collapsed. Looking at that I was so stunned, that I became speechless.

Then HE questioned me should we go back now?

I nodded my head in YES.

When we came back at the spot from where HE took me, HE asked me have you realized who the GOD is.

I nodded my head in YES & pointed towards HIM, considering HIM the " GOD " As I remained safe with HIM.

Then I asked who exactly you are? Then stranger replied I am VAYOO, HAWA, AIR and SAID HE is the only GOD of entire universe. This I have told you to end your search for me "THE ALL MIGHTY GOD ".

Further describing about himself HE said as under: - That

1 Where HE is present, creatures and creation exists, else not.

2 HE is the creator, the protector & the destroyer of entire universe.

3 HE is the master, He is the slave and HE is the servant.

4 HE is available in state in which the creatures want HIM to see.

5 HE does not charge or demand anything for the services HE renders to this universe. Hence all sorts of offerings in his name remain as waste.

6 He enters and exits out as a creature inhales and exhales. Thus He has no home.

7 HE is present in every creature regardless of personality and dignity.

8 HE has no son, no daughter and no nominee. In fact HE is all alone.

9 To have HIM, creature needs not go anywhere, as HE is present just adjacent to every creature.

10 In fact all creatures are equally loveable to HIM.

11 Creatures can call HIM by any word they know, as HE has no specific name.

12 All creatures are the produce of the respective reproduction procedure present in the body of all creatures. HE gives them life & they grow up from the time of concievment.

13 All creatures are getting the rewards of acts they perform. All creatures perform an act to fulfill their own need of time to earn their livelihood.

14 HE is not at all responsible of their act they do. Also HE does not guide them to perform or not perform a specific act.

After reading the above subject if you feel you are also like minded then please forward this paper to some friends & relatives for their information.

Appeal from A K Dhir As human beings follow as under:-

1 Worship at first place the prandata " ALL MIGHTY GOD " as realized.

2 Worship secondly to Janamdata " YOUR OWN MOTHER ".

3 Worship thirdly to Anndata " YOUR OWN FATHER ".

4 Fourthly give due regards to all of "YOUR ELDERS " & love to all youngsters.

5 At last give due regards to "YOUR GURU " your knowledge providers.

P.S- As he left us alone on this earth, but i would like to spread his wonderful thoughts.

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Teach Me Lord Lyrics by Loonis McGlohon

Teach Me to love and teach me to live, and teach me to see and yield and forgive.

 Father, we need you at work and play, so teach me to know you day by day, teach me to know your voice and your will and help me to climb my own Special hill.

You have the plan so help me to see the plan you have for me, Lord. Teach me today I pray

You have the plan, so help me to see the plan you have for me, Lord. Teach me today, I pray.

Teach me to love and give and live today.

The Last Day

THE LAST DAY

The Last Day 
This is sobering!!! 

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