THE CAT - By: Dwight Nelson

The Cat
========

Dwight Nelson recently told a true story about the pastor of his church.

He had a kitten that climbed up a tree in his backyard and then was afraid to come down. The pastor coaxed, offered warm milk, etc. The kitty would not come down.

The tree was not sturdy enough to climb, so the pastor decided that if he tied a rope to his car and drove away so that the tree bent down, he could then reach up and get the kitten.

He did all this, checking his progress in the car frequently, then figured if he went just a little bit further, the tree
would be bent sufficiently for him to reach the kitten.

But as he moved a little further forward, the rope broke.

The tree went "boing!" and the kitten instantly sailed through the air  - out of sight.

The pastor felt terrible.

He walked all over the neighborhood asking people if they'd seen a little kitten. No. Nobody had seen a stray kitten. So he prayed, "Lord, I just commit this kitten to your keeping," and went on about his business.

A few days later he was at the grocery store and met one of his church members. He happened to look into her shopping cart and was amazed to see cat food. Now this woman was a cat hater and everyone knew it, so he asked her, "Why are you buying cat food when you hate cats so much?"

She replied, "You won't believe this," and told him how her little girl had been begging her for a cat, but she kept refusing. Then a few days before, the child had begged again, so the Mom finally told her little girl, "Well if God gives you a cat, I'll let you keep it?"

(Can you see where this is heading?)

She told the pastor, "I watched my child go out in the yard, get on her knees, and ask God for a cat. And really, Pastor, you won't believe this, but I saw it with my own eyes.

A kitten suddenly came flying out of the blue sky, with its paws outspread, and landed right in front of her."

Never underestimate the Power of God and what may appear to be breaking on one end, is answering prayer on another.

NEWS - BONO INTERVIEW: GRACE OVER KARMA

09/27/2010
Bono Interview: Grace Over Karma



Bono Interview: Grace Over Karma

(Excerpt from the book Bono: In Conversation with Michka Assayas)

My understanding of the Scriptures has been made simple by the person of Christ. Christ teaches that God is love. What does that mean? What it means for me: a study of the life of Christ. Love here describes itself as a child born in straw poverty, the most vulnerable situation of all, without honor. I don't let my religious world get too complicated. I just kind of go: Well, I think I know what God is. God is love, and as much as I respond [sighs] in allowing myself to be transformed by that love and acting in that love, that's my religion. Where things get complicated for me, is when I try to live this love. Now that's not so easy.

Assayas: What about the God of the Old Testament? He wasn't so "peace and love"?

Bono: There's nothing hippie about my picture of Christ. The Gospels paint a picture of a very demanding, sometimes divisive love, but love it is. I accept the Old Testament as more of an action movie: blood, car chases, evacuations, a lot of special effects, seas dividing, mass murder, adultery. The children of God are running amok, wayward. Maybe that's why they're so relatable. But the way we would see it, those of us who are trying to figure out our Christian conundrum, is that the God of the Old Testament is like the journey from stern father to friend. When you're a child, you need clear directions and some strict rules. But with Christ, we have access in a one-to-one relationship, for, as in the Old Testament, it was more one of worship and awe, a vertical relationship. The New Testament, on the other hand, we look across at a Jesus who looks familiar, horizontal. The combination is what makes the Cross.

Assayas: Speaking of bloody action movies, we were talking about South and Central America last time. The Jesuit priests arrived there with the gospel in one hand and a rifle in the other.

Bono: I know, I know. Religion can be the enemy of God. It's often what happens when God, like Elvis, has left the building. [laughs] A list of instructions where there was once conviction; dogma where once people just did it; a congregation led by a man where once they were led by the Holy Spirit. Discipline replacing discipleship. Why are you chuckling?

Assayas: I was wondering if you said all of that to the Pope the day you met him.

Bono: Let's not get too hard on the Holy Roman Church here. The Church has its problems, but the older I get, the more comfort I find there. The physical experience of being in a crowd of largely humble people, heads bowed, murmuring prayers, stories told in stained-glass windows

Assayas: So you won't be critical.

Bono: No, I can be critical, especially on the topic of contraception. But when I meet someone like Sister Benedicta and see her work with AIDS orphans in Addis Ababa, or Sister Ann doing the same in Malawi, or Father Jack Fenukan and his group Concern all over Africa, when I meet priests and nuns tending to the sick and the poor and giving up much easier lives to do so, I surrender a little easier.

Assayas: But you met the man himself. Was it a great experience?

Bono: [W]e all knew why we were there. The Pontiff was about to make an important statement about the inhumanity and injustice of poor countries spending so much of their national income paying back old loans to rich countries. Serious business. He was fighting hard against his Parkinson's. It was clearly an act of will for him to be there. I was oddly moved by his humility, and then by the incredible speech he made, even if it was in whispers. During the preamble, he seemed to be staring at me. I wondered. Was it the fact that I was wearing my blue fly-shades? So I took them off in case I was causing some offense. When I was introduced to him, he was still staring at them. He kept looking at them in my hand, so I offered them to him as a gift in return for the rosary he had just given me.

Assayas: Didn't he put them on?

Bono: Not only did he put them on, he smiled the wickedest grin you could ever imagine. He was a comedian. His sense of humor was completely intact. Flashbulbs popped, and I thought: "Wow! The Drop the Debt campaign will have the Pope in my glasses on the front page of every newspaper."

Assayas: I don't remember seeing that photograph anywhere, though.

Bono: Nor did we. It seems his courtiers did not have the same sense of humor. Fair enough. I guess they could see the T-shirts.

Later in the conversation:
Assayas: I think I am beginning to understand religion because I have started acting and thinking like a father. What do you make of that?

Bono: Yes, I think that's normal. It's a mind-blowing concept that the God who created the universe might be looking for company, a real relationship with people, but the thing that keeps me on my knees is the difference between Grace and Karma.

Assayas: I haven't heard you talk about that.

Bono: I really believe we've moved out of the realm of Karma into one of Grace.

Assayas: Well, that doesn't make it clearer for me.

Bono: You see, at the center of all religions is the idea of Karma. You know, what you put out comes back to you: an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, or in physics; in physical laws every action is met by an equal or an opposite one. It's clear to me that Karma is at the very heart of the universe. I'm absolutely sure of it. And yet, along comes this idea called Grace to upend all that "as you reap, so you will sow" stuff. Grace defies reason and logic. Love interrupts, if you like, the consequences of your actions, which in my case is very good news indeed, because I've done a lot of stupid stuff.

Assayas: I'd be interested to hear that.

Bono: That's between me and God. But I'd be in big trouble if Karma was going to finally be my judge. I'd be in deep s---. It doesn't excuse my mistakes, but I'm holding out for Grace. I'm holding out that Jesus took my sins onto the Cross, because I know who I am, and I hope I don't have to depend on my own religiosity.

Assayas: The Son of God who takes away the sins of the world. I wish I could believe in that.

Bono: But I love the idea of the Sacrificial Lamb. I love the idea that God says: Look, you cretins, there are certain results to the way we are, to selfishness, and there's a mortality as part of your very sinful nature, and, let's face it, you're not living a very good life, are you? There are consequences to actions. The point of the death of Christ is that Christ took on the sins of the world, so that what we put out did not come back to us, and that our sinful nature does not reap the obvious death. That's the point. It should keep us humbled . It's not our own good works that get us through the gates of heaven.

Assayas: That's a great idea, no denying it. Such great hope is wonderful, even though it's close to lunacy, in my view. Christ has his rank among the world's great thinkers. But Son of God, isn't that farfetched?

Bono: No, it's not farfetched to me. Look, the secular response to the Christ story always goes like this: he was a great prophet, obviously a very interesting guy, had a lot to say along the lines of other great prophets, be they Elijah, Muhammad, Buddha, or Confucius. But actually Christ doesn't allow you that. He doesn't let you off that hook. Christ says: No. I'm not saying I'm a teacher, don't call me teacher. I'm not saying I'm a prophet. I'm saying: "I'm the Messiah." I'm saying: "I am God incarnate." And people say: No, no, please, just be a prophet. A prophet, we can take. You're a bit eccentric. We've had John the Baptist eating locusts and wild honey, we can handle that. But don't mention the "M" word! Because, you know, we're gonna have to crucify you. And he goes: No, no. I know you're expecting me to come back with an army, and set you free from these creeps, but actually I am the Messiah. At this point, everyone starts staring at their shoes, and says: Oh, my God, he's gonna keep saying this. So what you're left with is: either Christ was who He said He was the Messiah or a complete nutcase. I mean, we're talking nutcase on the level of Charles Manson. This man was like some of the people we've been talking about earlier. This man was strapping himself to a bomb, and had "King of the Jews" on his head, and, as they were putting him up on the Cross, was going: OK, martyrdom, here we go. Bring on the pain! I can take it. I'm not joking here. The idea that the entire course of civilization for over half of the globe could have its fate changed and turned upside-down by a nutcase, for me, that's farfetched

Bono later says it all comes down to how we regard Jesus:

Bono: If only we could be a bit more like Him, the world would be transformed. When I look at the Cross of Christ, what I see up there is all my s--- and everybody else's. So I ask myself a question a lot of people have asked: Who is this man? And was He who He said He was, or was He just a religious nut? And there it is, and that's the question. And no one can talk you into it or out of it.

ITS BEEN A WHILE

yes, its been some time, since i was here last.
i have found a blog that suits my needs better than this one, altho...
i can customize the background, header, and side bars with this blog. makes me want too come back.
only issue is..it (this blog) DOES NOT push my posts in a chronological order if i date them.
the other blog (www.ourstory.com) does.

ill be back and forth with both, i think, because im getting an idea for a web presence, i really have not seen much of out on the internet...yet.

i see a bunch of it n the BLOG world, but main web page presence pages? not so much.

SCRAPBOOK WEB PAGE DESIGNS.

making, like what you see here on my blog, a WEB PAGE...
web pages can have several DIFFERENT pages within them...
so, lets say, your an avid cook, and you want too share your recipes with ppl, a click of a link on the home page can put you into a web page that has a scrapbook "themed" feel that has something to do with..kitchen, recipes, food, etc.

or, maybe, you had a baby...and you want to display updates, pictures, video of your newest arrival.
again, a click of a link and your on the page about your precious newest family member.
and the page would be catered too the desires of your heart, with look, feel, and wit and whimsy appeal...all to your design taste.

im serious about this idea.
not sure how well it will be profitable for me, theres a ton of FREE blog templates that have the same dynamic, but i think..ppl might be interested in a WEB PAGE that they can update and have freinds,family, and others connect too...

if im lucky, i can find a SOCIAL NETWORKING program that allows me too customize it, and ppl can also have their own: MYSPACE/FACEBOOK/TWITTER place that will do everything all the social networks currently do, the difference: SCRAPBOOK THEMES for the sites appeal, and look.

i have been scouring the net, looking at ppls blogs. downloading FREE embelishments, getting ideas, thinking up ways i can make MY web page look like im trying too offer others the chance too have.

i have too have a program 1st tho, PHOTOSHOP ELEMENTS.
i have a book on how too use the program.

then..i can do anything!
and ill be doing it!

on a side note:

daniel has decided for the 2nd day in a row, hes refusing too go to seminary. he says he could care less if i inhibit his use of the XBOX360...(thats a lie, he was trying too get me too give in last night over it).
it pains my heart, i feel ive gotten him involved with church...too late.

we used too go when he was smaller, but his peers at the buidlding we attended didnt do much with him, let alone even talk too him, because we lived in lower standard homes (trailers) and they didnt. daniels clothes were thrift store type, hand me downs, not old navy, or anything remotley name brand and trendy.
scouts was hard for daniel..and as a result, i think because he had so little support in cub scouts, hes not too interested in scouts today...

but, beyond that, he doesnt like church. and seminary, is part of that. we had him sign a 'contract' that stated if he DIDNT go too seminary, hed have ALL priviledges associated too the internet (includes XBOX360) suspended until he decided too go back again, upon which the rights will be reinstated.

he says to me now: "i dont care if i dont play on the xbox."

he says that today, this is day 2 of this stand-off, i give him till saturday, when hell be begging me too let him on.

i have a similar rule for sundays church attendance, if he goes he can play xbox. if he doesnt, oh well.

change of subject again...

in a week craig starts a new job. oklahoma detention center. phone support.
he says hell be the ONLY one in there working tht job.
ill be happy when we have money again, its been really hard not having any, altho, we have not neded anything even if we didnt have what we were used too having.

the Lord has blessed us greatly, and im going too say..its because we have been diligent in paying our tithing.
we havent had a serious need for food, and what we did get from the bishops storehouse has lasted as long as 6 weeks before wed need another "2 week" supply. reminds me of the story of the woman who was making the last bit of food for her and her son, when a man came asking too be fed, and she said she couldnt, or her son would die and so would she. the man told her too feed him, and her reward (blessing) would be her oil and flour would never diminish...she fed him, and was blessed with oil and flour for a long while....faith. its all based on faith.

so, even tho i grumble because we have had a lack of fund, our needs have been met exceedlingly!

thats it for now...
ill keep updated on any progress.

MICHELLE