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The Resolute Renegade

I am fed up with “The Church.”

I put that in quotations because that is what these establishments have been calling themselves. I say establishments because, as of late, “The Church” is a product of a religious spirit, and it is for sale. What do you get for your contribution? A sensation; a fleeting feeling flowing from a false faith.

I say false faith because it is allegedly based on the Bible and God, but in actual practice, it focuses on almost anything but God. Some organizations elevate their leaders to God-like status and only hold their feet to the flame when the light of their misdeeds casts a shadow on their public image.

Other organizations thrive on mimicry. It’s a monkey-see monkey-do mentality. The name-it and claim-its newest iteration of greed. “It worked for me, so it will work for you” is not a firm foundation for anyone’s faith. Prospering by parroting another person’s performance is just putting faith in what you do rather than in what God does through you.

There have been countless other cult-like “churches” that completely ignore their leadership’s faults despite the preponderance of evidence against them,  and they inexplicably thrive despite it. If you offer anything but profusive praise or dare to question a word of their teachings, they immediately label you a troublemaker. A rebel. A challenge to authority. In my experience, it is always the wolf in shepherd’s clothing who decrees such dramatic dogma. True authority never backs down from a challenge and is confident enough in their belief to rationally defend it with patience, love and understanding rather than denial and obfuscation.

God is the ultimate authority, and He never cries foul when people question Him. He answers their questions and, in time, patiently explains why things are the way they are, provided you are patient enough to wait.

NEWS FLASH: Faith in man is false. Faith in a system is false. Faith in faith is false.

In Mark 11:22, Jesus plainly says, “Have faith in God.” That’s it. Nothing else. End of sentence.

Yet, for as long as I can recall, we have been taking the word of God and twisting it into something other than the faith-building tool that God intended for it to be. (Romans 10:17 “So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.” KJV)

I have butted heads with more preachers than I care to count. The greatest oppositions to my faith that I have ever faced (and I have survived cancer), have all come from within “the church.”

A little more than a year ago, I was asked to return to a church that I left two years prior because their media team and office staff all quit. I agreed and was eager to help because I genuinely enjoy doing so, especially if it is something I know how to do. This was a problem that needed fixing, and fixing problems is what I have done for decades.

Shortly after returning, I remember feeling melancholy because of one haunting question that I couldn’t answer.

If they didn’t need me to come back and help, would they have ever called to invite me back at all?

Fifteen months later, I got my answer: A resounding no in the form of a letter from the pastor banning me from all church activities.

My crime? Standing up to him when he dismissed the concerns and well-being of multiple parishioners.

How dare I? And when people asked what happened, I told them the truth. Word got back to the “pastor,” and I was banned for sowing discord.

With the exception of a few discerning people, everyone abandoned me. I was no longer useful to them, so I was cast aside.

Again.

Story of my life…

That is why I am a resolute renegade. A faithful fugitive. A disciple disappointed by the dictates of man. Faithful to God and His principles, but a solo sojourner on a populous path.

And I know I am not the only one…

CODA:

If you have been the victim of a narcissistic leader, please seek Godly counsel and advice. The few friends who have stood by me during this process are truly a blessing to me, and they have made the journey a great learning experience.

It Should Come as No Surprise…

He said this would happen. War, violence, famine, pandemics. Hate masquerading as love and true love proclaimed as hate. The whole world has been turned upside down and most people think that it’s normal. There is no logic in people’s chosen reason, and no rational reason in their chosen logic.

The foundational facts of life have become fluid, malleable, and anything but factual. Impassioned offense is the accepted justification for reacting with rage. Emotions as fleeting as freshly fallen snow on a hot summer’s day are the basis of law and justice for the unruly and unjust.

“I think, therefore I am,” as evidence of someone’s right to exist has been replaced by the battle cry of the feebly minded, “I feel, therefore you don’t matter.”

Charlie Kirk spoke boldly of his faith, the Bible, and the standards thereof, then openly welcomed people to debate him about them. He didn’t belittle their beliefs, but that didn’t stop the vocally vanquished from claiming it to be so.

But, thousands of years ago, He also warned us that this kind of thing would happen, too.

“Blessed are you, when men shall revile you, and persecute you, and shall say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake. Rejoice, and be exceeding glad: for great is your reward in heaven: for so persecuted they the prophets which were before you.”

And so, today, like every prophet and martyr before him, Charlie is in Glory with his Savior and has received his just reward. Not the least of which is to be free from the anger and aggression, deception and derision, hatred and hypocrisy of intolerant imbeciles.

Rest well, Charlie. You’ve earned it.

Futility: A Poem

The bags are packed, a car is fueled; its wheel a driver’s manning. 

The destination is unknown, but not for lack of planning. 

The course was laid; a goal was set, all done with clear notion; 

Everything made ready, but the wheels not set in motion. 

Intimidated by the curves on the road that lies ahead, 

The driver sits and contemplates his worries now instead. 

His heart yet dreams of places, it has ever yearned to go, 

Fear now holds him captive to the ground his mind does know. 

He listens to the stories people often stop and tell. 

He longs to venture to a land that will give him some as well. 

Each time he makes a motion to leave his present state, 

An excuse to stop his action makes him sit and wait. 

Life goes on and days go by, still his life is idle. 

Fear is now his master, like a horse with bit and bridle. 

He wants to make his mark on the world, as many have before, 

But maybe, what if, and could be leave him lacking this and more. 

His hope now lost; the plans he made were unfinished in the end. 

Dread had taken more than dreams; regret his only friend. 

His life was filled with nothing, for his dreams he lived without. 

His death began the day he sat and listened to his doubt. 

The moral of this story, I hope will soon be clear: 

Never listen to the voice of an unforgiving fear. 

To sit and dream without resolve of seeing them come about, 

Is to give up life entirely, before your time runs out.