GrubbsWriting

Hello Everyone!

I feel the need to explain why I've not been active on here. Well I've been really busy with my job and school. On top of that, I've been battling a lot of personal demons. I've been writing all the while, but posting hasn't really crossed my mind all that much. I'll also say that this summer will also be quite the ride, but a much less bumpy one. I'll be working at my normal job, taking 2 classes, and I'll be working at an internship as well. I'm gonna try and post in my free time, but I can't guarantee much. 

Thank you and God bless!

Grubbsy

How I've come to see things is one of the reasons I take such a high liking to story telling in the media, and to explain, I don't mean the corrupted muckraking system by which the information of day to day civilization is so rigidly disseminated (The News), but I mean entertainment! Video games, Cinema, literature, music, and so on and so forth. These wonderful, fantastic inventions granted to us by God given ability hold the potential to create glorious tales of varied genres. It's the good ones that make you think from another perspective than your own, and do so with an open mind do to a story that was told to your liking rather than merely your preference.

There was a time in which I was much more intolerant and hateful. Completely different from how I am now, and it because of the stories I've heard and the experiences that came from them that I think the way I do. I am in no way stating that my train of thought is perfect or of some higher intelligence than anyone else on this planet, but that in my human nature to try and make sense of things, the railroad for that train of thought has become, for me, a bit more smooth. Telling stories, however long of short, detailed or vague, can affect the brain in so many more ways than one depending on the mind inside that beautiful brain.

Take for example, Frankenstein by Mary Shelley. It can be received as a tale of horror, or the arrogance of man, or how man fears what he does not understand, or even what I'm attempting to explain in this very piece: that it is within mans nature to attempt to make sense of the world around him, at just about any cost. Then you have more contemporary tales like from Marvel or DC comics, that hold an almost endless array of tales, morals, and messages for their often loyal readers. I've yet to meet an avid comic book reader who didn't have a kind heart in their chest and an interesting mind to accompany it. Story telling can also go deeper into concepts like character analysis (I.e. A Biography of the fictional DC villain, the Joker, which is being written by one of the respective professors of Texas Tech University) when you read such things, your mindset is often changed from fearing and hating the villain, to empathizing with and often taking pity on them. Mary Shelley is quoted saying, "No man chooses evil because it is evil; he only mistakes it for happiness, the good he seeks."

All this being said, story telling is at its best, a catalyst for thought as a means to alter perspective by opening the doors and windows of the human mind a little bit at a time. Because of songs, movies, books, commercials, news stories, and so on, humans are better able to communicate in their desire to make sense of the wondrous universe all around us. It is because of this, in my personal life, that I firmly believe in the phrase "things could be worse" as more than an expression or basic outlook on some abysmal situation. No I truly believe that things could always be worse, and that they could always be better. Yet that we are exactly when and where God wants us to be in time and space according to His promises to us. When I choose to look on the bright side, I choose to realize that I don't have all the answers, and that I don't know what the future holds. I'm pretty much winging it like everyone else, and just trying to take baby steps in making sense of this God given world with the mind that the relationship between that world and my fate, have created. The world must always be approached with an open mind, but a cautious heart. Some stories can lead you astray from better outlooks and roads in life, unless you choose to see them in a way that leads you closer to a joyful peace between you and God. 

Here are a few examples of some great story telling in different methods and forms:

Video Games:

 
Television:


Film:


Literature:


Music:


Miscellaneous:  

Whosoever enfeebles the purpose of the phrase 'things could be worse', does not hold an understanding of the misfortunes of existence. They are likely experiencing a first test of sorts, or are simply unfamiliar, or ignorant to the stories behind the darker reaches of life on earth. Yet even then, in the absence of understanding, eyes are eyes that can used to chose a perception of whatever it is they see. Should things ever escalate to the hypothetical result of the current meaning of when people say the phrase 'things could be worse', then less and less people will use the phrase as the world around them becomes more and more bleak. I have no way of calculating the ratio between perception and situation to reliable results, although I'm sure somewhere there's a person whose already come up with one.

I will say this much however: it's human nature to point out the negative, otherwise we wouldn't need phrases like 'look on the bright side'. To say that things could be worse, is both a reminder of the negative and an attempt at even a fraction of optimism. Every man, woman and child is different in how they see the world, and such is not a completely chosen factor. An individual of science would say that is either psychological or natural instinct. An individual of faith would say that it was the way they were designed by God. A person, wise in the subject of perception, would see and understand that those two outlooks are synonymous if not completely related. 

I have explained in a few of my other pieces how I believe that God is more than just some bearded Zeus-like figure on a golden throne in the clouds. He isn't the mere imaginary friend in the sky that people of faith like myself, are so easily ridiculed of. He is what we have named ourselves according to profession & talent, and even more. No human can fully understand who or what God is, and I doubt most of Heaven does. The point is that He has given us perception as an intricate psychological catalyst for the thing I am quite opinionated about: free will. 

Perception is not just about the eyes. It is the senses, both physical and mental, harmonizing as an engine for the part of our nature that yearns to make sense of the world around us. We cannot choose whatever it is we happen to experience, whether by fate or luck, but we can choose how those things at perceived. One can see an object and see it for its basic & intended use. Whereas they also can be creative or innovative, and turn the said object into something else. Be it art, ingenuity, or whatever have you.

Free will is much more than the basic choice between good and evil. It is the engine by which we can choose whether to say I hate, or I love. We can choose what to believe based on fact or faith, in any matter. Perception is the God given choice between pessimistic outlooks and the optimism in saying 'things could be worse'. 

Consider this a more detailed version of my other pieces, 'Genesis 1:1-31' and 'Wisdom and Intellect', concerning the ideas and theories behind the origin of the universe. I very much enjoy writing on the subject that God is so much more than many understand Him to be. It's both a way for me to help others understand God (as I see Him, these are just my opinions based on my studies and experience) as well as a way to praise Him and His glory. Here are some links for those who may be unfamiliar with a few things I intend to cover in this exhortation.
health.howstuffworks.com/
science.nasa.gov/
www.openbible.info/
www.nytimes.com/2014/04/18/sci…



In these moments, while your eyes skim over these words that I pray provide more than some strange idea, I want you to let the details sink into themselves. I will explain that last sentence shortly, but for now, take heart to consider every single specific attribute, component, major and minor, obvious and hidden, discovered and yet known...take this all into the most open mind of consideration. 

The blood in your veins harbors an almost limitless supply of cells, which are made up of even smaller bits and pieces like the nucleus, mitochondria, organelles and so on...each of them, tasked with transporting the life element of oxygen, or clotting up wounds and fighting infection. That's just a fraction of what the cells within the blood within your veins & arteries which spread throughout the human anatomy in its entirety. That life element, oxygen is millions and millions of years old and provided to us by a beautiful planet. 'From dust you came', be it the dust of the earth, or dust from once grand stars of the cosmos...YOU are not some coincidence of universal chaos.

But of course, there are skeptics in the world, (always have been, always will be) who refuse to even consider the possibility that we may in fact, have a much more detailed and complex explanation for all of existence as we now know it. Some still believe that the world was created in six days, when for God it could have been seconds, days, or weeks, whereas to us it would've been a matter of billions of years. Some will say that the world is only 6000 years old give or take, while others will say somewhere in the trillions, and some will say that none of this is real, we're in a dream world being harvested by machines who use us as batteries while we continue our fantasies in the Matrix. I do hope that those people are of a very small minority. But in all seriousness, God only knows the real facts, measurements, history and so on(2 Peter 3:3-8)...He and only He has the true answers. I have believed for quite some time now, that the Lord our God, is more than just a creator. To give Him such simple title and leave it at that is a horrific understatement at the very least. Even recently, a world has been discovered that is quite like our own, and astronomers are stating that it is the closest representation to our little world that they've found. Such is enough to suggest that God never stops working, because He knows that such majestic beauty as we have seen with the cosmos, can and should be limitless.

He is anything and everything that is good. Every occupation, idea, hobby, philosophy, field of study, and more. I could go through every word of the entirety of human speech, and still not be able to even come close to the remote amount of minimal justice to just how brilliant, astounding and fantastic God really is. Science is the Lords way of applying logic and reason to a beautiful existence in where just about anything can happen in the equation of fate, choice and chance. I have, on occasion, imagined Him at a desk in a lab molding new animals from clay or materials that we haven't even found yet. Although I'm inclined to believe that the process is much more impossible for my mind to comprehend. All that being said, I sincerely believe that we are not meant to have all the answers to every question that we happen to ask.

Skeptical people will assume whatever it is that they would like to believe, which in some cases, is perfectly acceptable. However, I feel that regardless of chosen beliefs, we should come to some agreement that we will never really KNOW anything yet still hold the ability to admire a great and wondrous amount of beauty that our senses have been given blessings to experience(Hebrews 11:1-3). For example, I do believe in the Big Bang Theory, or at least something related to the concept. If I were to remove God from the explanation of existence however, and simply explain the Big Bang Theory, then it would really boil down to, "in the beginning, there was nothing, which for no reason whatsoever, spontaneously exploded, creating the universe and every single little thing in it, out of complete chance and in that same chance, many of those things found order and logic and begin to just sort of do their own thing and then after billions of years, life began in the process of the theory of evolution which was all about survival in a chaotic world filled with living breathing creatures and water and plant life and then a long time later, we humans developed and eventually I popped out and into reality where everyone has the ability to make their own choices and be confused like everyone else around them, just as I'm sure the reader is by now. Do you see what I'm getting at? I'm not disputing evidence, as much as I'm adding God to the equation(s).

Even Einstein, one of the poster boys of science, believed in a God of order and logic and reason. The fact is that it's in our nature to want and try to make sense of this beautiful world and the broad universe all around it, and we're desperate for answers the majority of the time. And that's OK! God loves those who seek out knowledge (Proverbs 18:15-24), yet we must understand that we're only going to find the answers that we are ready for, by God's authority. Odds are also good that we may have faulty translations seeing as how units of measurement have differed and changed like many other things throughout our time as flawed creatures in the middle of a war. In Job 38:4-30, and Isaiah 40:12, God alludes to evidence that we wouldn't have the ability to truly behold time & space with each and every detail. Do you think a thing like evolution or the Big Bang Theory would've flown back when the Catholic church was on a horned high horse? No it would've been snuffed out with its believers the second their mouths opened. And knowing their dark history, chances are good that those sorts of things did occur! Words like universe, billions, theory, science, and so on either didn't exist or held very different meanings in those days.

What I encourage people to have is an open mind for is this: that God created the Heavens and the Earth(Genesis 1:1-31), and by that same authority, that very same God can do literally anything, including bringing about such things as the universe and everything it. Every detail, major and minor, near and far, then, now and forever.

God bless.

I've found that people who accuse others of being the devil, usually have the Devil himself whispering in their ears. Being that we are imperfect, basic reasoning would only assume that we are unfit to pass pure judgement on anyone or anything. I believe that we can all agree on that to some extent, but of course stands the possibility that I am wrong by that very same logic. Judgement is not just for sinners, it is for choice in general. My point is related in that choice is in fact reliant on perspective and perception (Matthew 7:1-5).

On one hand, we could see a man begging for money on the side of the road and think of him as a man in need. Yet in today's world, we are taught to be conservative in our trust, therefore on the other hand, we could see that man, and question his legitimacy. Then of course there are those who insist that instead of mercy and charity, that these fellow human beings of ours should just up and stop being homeless and without work, as though they have a choice in the matter. But of course who can blame them when there people who do fake and cheat their way through life for a quick buck by pretending to be beggars? It's a mess of a situation in which no one and everyone is guilty. Confusion is just another weapon in the hands of Hell (1 John 4:1, 1 Peter 5:8).

In light of the death of Westburo Baptist founder, Fred Phelps, I felt the opportunity arose to write on the subject of judgement, since he and his little cult have been the poster boys (and girls) of hateful judgement for years. I've personally always found them to be adorably irritating to the point in which I pray for God to just incinerate them and their "church" with the same angels whose handiwork is known to this day in history as the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah. But I shouldn't be quick to anger, and especially not to judge them or the things they've done (James 4:11-12). Let the record show that I believe that literally all that they've done is a disgrace to the Christian faith, let alone any monotheistic religion. I am taught however, to always forgive and always love despite the vein in my forehead that may or may not be on the verge of exploding out of shear rage for the ungodly picketing of funerals, churches, concerts or even pride parades(Ephesians 4:32, Luke 17:3-4). The only times an individual should ever pass moral judgement are when that judgement is over their own choices and how it will affect others, as well as their relationship with a loving God.

Truth be told, the only thing really keeping that rage at bay is knowing that in reality, they're dead wrong, and will be given justice according to the horrible things they've done. Still, my opinions may be similar to those of majority who know of these sick Individuals, but it is not my place to pass judgement or say that they're going to Hell (chances are still pretty good that there's a special place for them down there). But here's the deal that many Christians tend to forget when they allow that same anger to grab hold of them whilst talking about, watching or listening to people like those in the Westburo Baptist Church: we are called upon to love and to forgive, despite the flaws of those whom our human nature tend to judge. The only enemies are the ones that can't be seen. Fear and ignorance, derived from confusion, Illusion, or deception brought about by the Devil himself, with the rest of Hell. 

We must have faith and with that faith, we must have grace and love (Mark 12:30-31). It is good to strive for a life that would leave both you and God smiling. Paradoxes and hypocrites are not welcomed in the Kingdom of God, just as brewing fires wouldn't be fit in a forest (Luke 6:37). The word 'gospel' translates to 'good news', and when it is that we are not spreading the good news through the Word of God, it is encouraged to live a life through that very Word. For the Word is God, and God is love(1 John 4:8).

 



www.huffingtonpost.com/tag/fre…
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Westboro… *


*Note that I am using wikipedia because going to their actual website is part of what keeps funding them and their protests.