Sunday, August 16, 2015

Psalm 23

The original #PSALM23 that was revealed to David, as a little shepherd boy:

The Gods are my caretakers; I shall not stray;
Side by side they lead me in the beautiful paths and glorious refreshing of life everlasting.
I shall not, in this Divine Presence, want for food nor thirst for water.
Though I go down into the valley of uncertainty or ascend up into the worlds of doubt,
Though I move in loneliness or with the fellows of my kind,
Though I triumph in the choirs of light or falter in the solitary places of the spheres,
Your good spirit shall minister to me, and your glorious angel will comfort me.
Though I descend into the depths of darkness and death itself,
I shall not doubt you nor fear you,
For I know that in the fullness of time and the glory of your name
You will raise me up to sit with you on the battlements on high.
- From The Urantia Book 48:6.9-19

UB 48:6.20 says, "That is the story whispered in the night season to the shepherd boy. He could not retain it word for word, but to the best of his memory he gave it much as it is recorded today."
Source: http://www.urantia.org/urantia-book-standardized/paper-48-morontia-life

+++

PSALM 23 as we have it today:

The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.
- From Psalm 23, The Bible
Source: https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Psalm+23&version=KJV 

Sunday, August 9, 2015

Doubt Filter

There's this, "doubt filter" that we have as humans. However, one has to be careful
not to set the threshold too high! LOL! In his over 3 years of face-to-face
association with Jesus, the Apostle Thomas made good use of his doubt filter and
the Master [Jesus] appreciated that about him. A lot of people do not know this...
"Thomas the doubter" should be taken in good stride. 

Thomas was the eighth apostle, and he was chosen by Philip. In later times he
has become known as “doubting Thomas,” but his fellow apostles hardly looked
upon him as a chronic doubter. True, his was a logical, skeptical type of mind, but
he had a form of courageous loyalty which forbade those who knew him intimately
to regard him as a trifling skeptic.” - Urantia Book 139:8.1
“Jesus enjoyed Thomas very much and had many long, personal talks with him.
His presence among the apostles was a great comfort to all honest doubters and
encouraged many troubled minds to come into the kingdom, even if they could not
wholly understand everything about the spiritual and philosophic phases of the
teachings of Jesus. Thomas’s membership in the twelve was a standing declaration
that Jesus loved even honest doubters.” - Urantia Book 139:8.6




The doubt filter has its place. It helps us to apply caution and patience. You do not
have to be in a hurry to accepting anything or rejecting anything. You take your
time... Do your homework. Ask questions. Honestly seek for answers...

Doubt is a must. We are confronted with it at different times, in one area of life or
the other. An important question is, "What do we do when faced with doubt?" It is
important to use that "doubt experience" as an opportunity to pray, to meditate,
to investigate, to study, to learn, and to grow! When confronted with doubt, we
shouldn't grow cold feet... We should tackle the challenge head on! And with open
hearts to God’s truth and divine insight, our doubts would be clarified. Doubts will
give way to faith - unshakeable faith. Our “faith” would then grow and evolve and
become actual, factual reality.

And Jesus puts it quite nicely, "There is but one struggle for those who enter the
kingdom, and that is to fight the good fight of faith. The believer has only one
battle, and that is against doubt - unbelief."