A New Beginning

In the vibrant space of blogging, as the author of ZealFire’s Zone, I am embarking on a journey of transition and renewal. Shedding the old to embrace the new, bringing a fresh perspective to blogging discussions, insights, and reflections. Join me as I navigate this exciting transition, exploring new beginnings and embracing the transformative power of growth and change. Welcome to a new chapter in our shared journey towards inspiration, faith, and writing.

https://inscribedfire.wordpress.com

In the Mirror

 A glimpse of the man in the mirror of which the image grows clearer, Life is dilapidated faded away with no colors, no tones, just Dorian Gray. My reflection is no painting,but I feel the stricture. Never been perfect, never a complete picture.

Anything Does Not Go

Though I would take the time to comment on and discuss a commonly brought up quote by Richard Dawkins. The quote is as follows:

“I have found it an amusing strategy, when asked whether I am an atheist, to point out that the questioner is also an atheist when considering Zeus, Apollo, Amon Ra, Mithras, Baal, Thor, Wotan, the Golden Calf and the Flying Spaghetti Monster. I just go one god further.”

Invoking the Flying Spaghetti Monster creates a false analogy which presupposes the nonexistence of god or a God. Implicit within the quote is the assumption that any form of belief in gods or God is illogical.It would also appear to imply that once a person believes that a God or gods exist that anything goes which is nonsense.

Why would the existence of God or gods any more than science necessitate that anything goes?

The point is that belief in a Creator/God does not necessitate that anything goes any more than a painting could have been painted by anyone. A reasonable and logical person would study the piece of art or writing and draw conclusion about it’s creator, and yes it must begin with the presupposition of a creator. The purpose of this though is to show that belief in a God does not allow for anything to go nor does it defy logic to believe in a Creator.

For sake of argument I will not invoke any more gods than necessary thereby in keeping with Occam’s Razor I will only invoke one God. If one starts with the presupposition that a God does exist then there are immediately attributes that begin to form via God’s creation.This God could not be physical and must out of necessity exist outside of the universe to have formed it. The universe appears to have structure to be orderly at least in relation to the macro level, and this order is consistent throughout the history of the universe. This would imply that the Creator of such a universe is not given to defying the order nor structure of the universe, therefore the Creator would be one of order not chaos.

In conclusion, the original quote by Dawkins is not surprising as it merely presupposes it’s premise while creating a false analogy. It then draws upon an inaccurate assumption that anything must go when one believes in a God which has been shown is not a logical necessity with regards to theism.

Eye Hath not Seen, Nor ear Heard.

I stumbled upon this verse that I see so many people love to quote with reference to the things that God has prepared for us as Christians, yet I noticed that the way most of us have used it has always been with disregard to the immediate context of the verse. The verse I am speaking of is 1 Corinthians 2:9 which states:

“But as it is written, Eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.”

If you look at the verse upon face value without taking into consideration the immediate context it is an encouraging verse for those who believe. The verse appears to be referring to  the future where God will give to those who have faith in Him a magnificent gift that He has prepared, but one thing overlooked is that within context this verse is not referring to the future. Directly prior to this verse Paul is speaking to the Corinthians on the “princes of this world” (1 Cor. 2:6,8; John 14:30) whom he states would not have let Jesus Christ be crucified had they known what would occur.    The subsequent verses after v.9 is the section that identifies when that which “eye hath not seen, nor ear heard” will be revealed as it states:

“But God hath revealed [them] unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God…Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God” v.10,12

It is not that we must wait for these things according to the verses above, but that it has already been revealed to us through His Holy Spirit. The future tense carries on insofar as the Holy Spirit teaches through comparing spiritual with spiritual and having the mind of Christ as believers should. The verse then should be one of a present abiding hope rather than hope delayed.

 

The Silence Settling Over

Do you feel the cloak of silence settling over?  The dust sinking upon this enclosure, the words disentegrating into the void, as the last of my hopes are helplessly deployed.  In silence you persit to watch unaware; my soul makes notice that you are there. Yet in silence I’ll let you keep as my eyes sink with little sleep.

Left Alone

Left in the dark with not a soul amidst I sit in this lonely world. Darkness ensues surrounding this corpse sinking into the depths. Expressionless gasping for breath with bitter strength. Resistance besetting, no resistance is waxing bleak.

Jesus Calling Devotional Bible

Jesus Calling: Enjoying Peace In His Presence devotional Sarah Young shares with the reader her thoughts upon segments of Scripture which she feels God has spoken to her an has enabled her to share with the reader. These segments are written in first person with her as the speaker talking to the reader directly. The notes throughout the Bible are coupled with several passages through Scripture to read with each. The notes and devotions are well written and inspirational.

This was the first type of devotional I have reviewed and have actually read to a degree, therefore I was not used to reading the format of a person speaking directly to me as the reader and took quite a bit to get used to. I enjoyed reading the devotions as well as the fact that it was coupled with the NKJV translation which is one of my preferred translations of the Bible to read. I would have found it more reasonable if it was not assumed that the reader knows of Sarah Young and who she is.  The introduction is of her telling the reader why she has written the pieces, but I did not know who she was to start and had to research further as to who she is. If bought online though it will state briefly that she is a missionary, and provides a mini excerpt about her.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the BookSneeze®.com <http://BookSneeze®.com&gt; book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 <http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/waisidx_03/16cfr255_03.html&gt; : “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Looks Like Rain, Feels Like Rain

Looks like rain and feels like rain but is not rain it’s the tears from all the pain, but there’s coming up a quickened storm, furied as the trees are torn, ripped from the place of stay, the brightness turned, darkest day, no flood comin from the way, i’m mourning, being drowned out, it’s storming, coming down without forewarning, out of the blue, they blew, where the skies were few, my rhymes now confused, then again God-infused, as a tree planted by the water, I’ll stand firm, Stand firm, For long-term

Sublime and Surreal

A lovely ravishingly alluring delightful goddess. Angelic as the stars in the heavens emanating such an aesthetic radiance for the eyes to behold. Delicate eyes to the soul of a pure heart of gold. A fairy, quite like in the tales, yet surreal. A creation of the Divine whom created such perfection with a purpose, one to be pursued. Arousing such an unquenchable passion emblazoned by a petite and precious frame. A silhouette of beauty whose image can not be captured, but causes the heart enraptured. Captivated with intrigue of one so fair, so charming, as thee.

The [Expanded] Bible by Thomas Nelson

The [Expanded] Bible by Thomas Nelson is a part of their signature series. There are numerous cross references spread throughout the Bible itself to aid in studying the word of God. The [Expanded] Bible though offers different interpretations such as traditional meaning of passages or a literal translation of a word. For example John 1:1 reads as:

“1In the beginning [Gen. 1:1] ·there was the Word [the Word already existed; Cthe Word refers to Christ, God’s revelation of himself]. The Word was ·with [in the presence of; in intimate relationship with] God [Cthe Father], and the Word was [fully] God.” -Thomas Nelson, Inc.. The Expanded Bible

There is an introduction to the Bible in the front while the meanings of the abbreviations and how to read The [Expanded] Bible are also in the beginning. An index of major events that occurred and topics of the Bible is included.

My Accommodations and Criticisms :

The index of major events helps a lot when I can not remember where to find stories like those of Balaam and the one of Saul and Barnabas. I find the additions intriguing and helpful in studying the Bible, and beneficial. I did like that the additions were clearly marked as additions, and could be seen as such. The only negative aspect to them is that when wanting to just read the Bible it is difficult to read through, because of the additions. Nonetheless, I find this one of the better Bible’s out today, and I would suggest it to anyone else who is interested in seeing more in depth meanings whether they be traditional or a more literal rendering.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their BookSneeze.com book review program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.