Teaching – Path Without End

images Today was the day. Yinney was on the move through the trees, covering about 13 feet per minute. Rain was a normal thing in the Amazon Rain Forest. He had never known anything different. Lots of rain, almost like all the time, and this day started the same way as he steadily hooked each limb with his claws. Normally the rain mattered not to him, but today it was somewhat of a problem.

The limbs of trees were Yinney’s roads and pathways. Once he chose his 7th Day Tree he would learn his area just like anyone learns where they live. He would know the best paths, the shortcuts, and places having the best leaves for eating. But today all he had was that flashing glint he saw yesterday. With today’s heavy rain, the sparkle had disappeared.

So far the urge to poo had not arrived, but it was like a ticking time bomb within. It could start at any moment, and he would only be able to hold it so long. Yinney the sloth would need to poo! And he needed a safe place. He needed his sacred tree. Was it just ahead? This would be the perfect time to panic, but he was of the “Old Ways”. He was of the three-toed brown throated sloth family, still faithful to soul, and something called faith.

Yinney had been taught that true faith is a state of rest. Fear, doubt, stress, discontent, greed, none of these states of mind are faith. They disrupt faith. Faith is a powerful force if not disrupted. But faith in what? Well… the Creator, of course. What else? His heart was still full of peace and joy for he knew his Creator loved him and always provided if he stayed in the Creator’s ways.

Actually, sloths of the three-toed family were highly sought after in the jungle, as spiritual teachers. Once Yinney had his tree, he would begin growing his algae mantle of green and hang out his simple shingle as spiritual teacher. The 7th Day Tree was so important to everything, his reason for being, his purpose in life.

As one of the Creator’s teachers, he found it hard to believe so many people live lives contrary to their own spiritual design, causing much harm to themselves and all around. It really made no sense, but greed, hunger, desire; these were powerful forces causing great storms in people’s lives, and the lives of others. Obviously these Predator Cities Lu-Lu spoke of, were full of and driven by such people. People having no respect for their own Creator, and as such, they often did not realize, but in such a spiritual state one cannot have proper respect for others either, nor the environment, nor their own life. It’s all very sad, Yinney thought, as he reached for the next limb, moving like a slow flowing river. He thought of it as a vicious circle that once one is caught, they may never find a way out. But with the help of teachers, such as he, one might yet find transformation.

The word “suddenly” is not really a sloth word, unless something “suddenly” springs upon them. So…just as Yinney was becoming aware of the urge to poo, he slowly pressed through a limb full of leaves and suddenly saw the reason for the glint! And it was just as he hoped! The Amazon is full of many rivers, but this sparkle had come from a large pond, or type of lagoon, the offshoot of some river somewhere! Now all he had to do was hope there was a worthy tree for him to choose! “Oh that it would be so!” he prayed to his Creator.

Yinney considered his urge to poo. It was growing stronger. The Creator would guide if he let him. If the urge is growing quickly, then the tree must be close, on this side, not any of the trees farther away.

Still hanging upside down he looked to his right, then he looked left, and yes, there was a massive tree holding incredible potential! He knew what he was looking for. You see, Yenny had a plan. Most people don’t know sloths are actually quite good swimmers. And, in a meditative state they can lower their heart rate to one third of normal and actually hold their breath underwater for as long as forty minutes!

Most sloths are aware of their water abilities but still spend all their time in trees. Yinney was a little different. He actually enjoyed the water. Not so much to live in it, but to enjoy upon occasion, and one more thing, to have it as a possible escape route when pooing! If the tree was located right, he would have two ways of escape, not just one. He could either try to regain a high place in his tree, or possibly slide into the water! This was his grand plan, and now, his prayer just might be manifesting right before his eyes.

It took another hour of persistent moving to get there, but the tree welcomed him with open arms. He felt right at home from the moment he slowly climbed into the embrace of her many limbs. He could see it was close to the water with branches actually reaching out and hanging over! So…location was excellent! He could check off that box. Now it was time to taste a leaf.

Yinney wanted to fully enjoy this moment. The urge to poo was still under control. Slowly he chose his leaf. Slowly he reached for it. Slowly he plucked it with tender care. Slowly he gazed at the marvelous green thing that sustained his life. Slowly he brought it to his mouth, but first paused to smell of it. Slowly he savored the aroma, and then tenderly fed it in, and gratefully chewed. The leaf was good. Only one test left. Where to poo?

It was time. Downward he began traveling. Jag was not the only beast to watch for. There were many to consider. All the jungle said a sloth pooing was an easy meal. There was also the Anaconda. The largest of Amazon snakes. His mother had said the Anaconda was rare in this neighborhood. Jag had killed one once. He liked snake meat. Maybe that kept them away, she didn’t know, but one never knew when another might move in.

Downward he went, out of the high places, towards the dirt, towards the earth, towards the predator cats and other dangers. The urge was growing. So far so good. Finally reaching the bottom by way of a vine, Yinney dropped onto the ground and did not move. He was even more motionless than a solid stone.

Nothing was leaping at him. He could smell no danger either. His sense of smell was actually better than his sight. Looking towards the body of water, and the urge growing within, he began moving again.

Now he felt as crippled. On the ground he could barely move nine feet in a minute. He clawed his way along and finally reached the side of the trunk facing the water. He discovered a very nice indentured area that could become his bathroom. The Creator had blessed him greatly with this tree, and the water was only ten feet away. He could reach it in just over a minute assuming water levels remained fairly constant. This was indeed a sacred tree, and now he would bless it with his poo, and claim it as his own.

It was a great relief when the release came. Once done, he scratched some dirt over it and knew it would nourish his great tree. The long seven day search and journey was over. Yinney had found his home. Now he could begin to “know” his home. His days would be filled with simple pleasures and joy. He could hardly wait to show Lu-Lu the tree he had found, and hang his little sign.

The calling of teacher is a great honor. As once was said, the pen is mightier than the sword. Wisdom and values must be taught. In this way kingdoms change, swords are put away for another day, and peace can fill a land, a people, and a person. As history has proven many times, it can start with one, one simple teacher, and their words.

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“Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary…” (Mark 6:3)

God the Father could have chosen for Jesus to be born into a family of whatever trade he desired. He could have been a blacksmith and learn to work with fire and shape steel. He could have been a doctor, or merchant, or politician. All the possibilities that existed at that time, but he was born into the family of a carpenter, a man working with wood. So Jesus learned carpentry, and I’m sure he was a good student. I’m sure he became a Master Carpenter.

One thing about carpenters is they understand how important it is for something to be “level” and “square”. In this blog site I have spoke often of the church “short-forming” things. Cutting things short. Cutting things they ought not to have cut to begin with. We’ve talked about getting back to the early church fathers so we can get back to what Jesus actually DID, and what Jesus actually BUILT. Here is a real life story of what happened to me just this last week.

My dad is 86 years old and he decided the farm barn needed a new door. Not a small door, but the big roll away door that hangs on rollers. I offered to help build it, but he said no. All he needed me to do was help hang it. He wanted to build it.

A few days later I get a call and he is at his wits end because the door is not going together right, and he doesn’t know why? He’s wore himself out trying to figure it out. I told him I’d be out tomorrow. He said he would be gone all morning and half the afternoon before he would be home. I did not say this, but I thought to myself, “GOOD!” Because my dad likes to take over on things, and it’s his farm, his barn, and his door! So I knew what would happen. How could I tell him what to do with his door? He wanted my help because he was wore out, but tomorrow he would be ready to take over again. So me having a chance to figure out the problem while he was gone, was PERFECT!

When I got there I found the partially built door laying on the cement floor. There was a long 2×6 board running across the top and one across the bottom. He had tongue and groove planks to be interlocked and nailed to the two long boards. He had one plank nailed to one end of the long boards. This is where the door would start. Then he also nailed one at the other end. This left a big space of no planks between the planks, and my first thought was: “Is the door square?” So I took my tape measure and did the “X” thing from corner to corner and it was not. Got to fix that first.

So I knocked the door around a little, trying to square it up, but no matter what I did, it refused! What am I doing wrong? What is wrong with this door? I was beginning to see what my dad meant. I took the end plank loose and played with the boards some more. Still no luck! Forty minutes went by and I began to fear my dad would get home before I figured this out, and then I wouldn’t be able to think because of his constant talking. It was a real fear! So I prayed under my breath.

The door simply had to be square or it would never be a proper door. It would be nothing but trouble! But what is the problem? Finally…in desperation, I saw dad had cut the two long boards to a certain length. I assumed he cut them so they would properly fit the door opening. I saw the two end pieces he had cut off the boards. Picking them up, I compared their sizes. They should be the same size. But they were not! There was almost 6 inches difference! One board was 6 inches shorter than the other! This wall would never square in the normal way with two different size boards! And then I found out later, that he should not have cut them at all! They were already the right size! So I had to splice the cut off pieces back on!

This difference of 6 inches was very hard to see with the naked eye. Because of the way the wall was laid out, and two planks nailed on, the 6 inches just didn’t stand out. But when I compared the two cut off sections, I knew the boards had to be different. Once I discovered the real problem, then I was able to square the wall a different way, and we were soon on the way to building a proper door. I had it three-fourths done when he got home, and he could not believe I had it almost fixed and finished.

20180904_171847 When Jesus laid the foundation for his church, I’m sure everything was exactly square and level. The Master Carpenter set it right, but since that time men have built upon that foundation walls not level and not square. They cut short things they ought not to have. And what they have built will never square! I had to undo almost everything my dad did, before I was able to fix the problem he had created! But had my dad not been away, for me to have a chance, I don’t know if it ever would have been made right.

Over my many years of being involved in church, I’ve had the chance to offer direction many times, but since I was not the Pastor, my insight never seemed to be accepted, and we ended up down roads I eventually walked away from. And this is why I finally realized I needed to start something that fit the vision in me, and see what God would do?

How we build on what the Master Carpenter laid the foundation for is of utmost importance! As the leader of a flock, it must be taken with extreme seriousness!

“…But whoever is building on this foundation must be very careful. For no one can lay any foundation other than the one we already have — Jesus Christ. Anyone who builds on that foundation may use a variety of materials — gold, silver, jewels, wood, hay, or straw. But on the judgement day, fire will reveal what kind of work each builder has done. The fire will show if a person’s work has any value.” (I Cor. 3:10-13)

It goes on to say much more, and I advise reading it all. We have done much at this blog site to expose how far our Modern American Church (MAC) has drifted from the original four-square pattern the Master Carpenter created. Many people seem to think it is no big deal. Believe me, if it were YOUR house, level and square would be a really BIG DEAL! But it’s time for this site to teach of other factors involved in our “unsquare” modern teachings. What is simplicity? What is serenity? Would you describe your life as simple and serene? Why is it we seem to be stuck in the fast lane of life while God flows in the slow?

These are factors also affected by our modern way of living, a way not square and not level with what Jesus taught. The unsquare and unlevel modern church says you are successful and full of the wisdom of God, and yet you have become slave to many things, and Jesus taught a different way. These modern builders are building houses of cards that will not stand the test of God’s fire. Jesus is still the Master Carpenter. Lets get back to what Jesus DID. What would Jesus do (WWJD), and what Jesus DID should be in HARMONY.

20180831_170239 This message has been brought to you by “Fellowship of the White Path”.