Manhood 2016-57

Posted in Contemplation by

A news story on the TV about an incident spurred me on to write this about the happening which occurred. A gang member was proving his manhood to his peers and in the process became a statistic of being. No longer a free man, but a common convicted criminal waiting for a possible date with an executioner. Senseless, yes, but so common now it seems. Sad? Definitely!

 

Manhood 2016-57

 

An ancient man stalked a lion

in the Serengeti, proving

what is a fact

Another man, further north,

thrust a lance in a

hairy mammoth

To the west a slight lad

put down a cloaked

bison in an ageless ritual

 

Much, very much later, a drive-by

shooting proclaims the loss

of innocence

Elsewhere a father proclaims

his macho capabilities

but denies the obligation

While further still another

commits an act of violence

on a dare

 

Old verses new in the trial to

manhood

With the older based on

superstition and ignorance

The newer steeped in

cowardice and stupidity.

 

Den Betts

Reflections on Blame 2016-56

Posted in Contemplation by

Sometimes I think “THEY” should do something, whereas, when I think about it, they don’t care, and it comes down to my then saying “Why don’t I do something about it.” I think I should STOP blaming THEM and start criticizing myself.

 

Reflections on Blame 2016-56

 

Who is to blame for some of the woes of the land?

The reason for strife and sadness out of hand.

Perhaps the ones that should share in the cause,

Have but to look at a mirrors reflection and pause.

 

An ironworker who fought for the many “rights”

Many so bad, he now sits at home, day and night,

The nonvoter who, so many times, also sits at home

While the politician ignores them, as they moan.

 

The power of the foreign countries that you see,

Who sold us their products with glee, to thee.

The supply of the evil drugs by those who sell,

Are only given by the demand of those in private hell.

 

The newspaper reader who only shakes his head,

But does nothing to cause a change instead

A power person who could make a change for the better

Does nothing as it were, because it’s easier.

 

Many people that are, in fact, reasons for the woes,

So individual as one, but collectively it shows

Perhaps again, when you look in that mirror,

Say, “They is me, and me is the key”

 

 

Den Betts

Rage of a Man 2016-55

Posted in Contemplation, Current Events by

This is about a real life event shown on TV about a man convicted of killing of his family after a too long period of time of abuse. The story came out as a member of the wife’s immediate family told of the man’s terrible actions during the lifetime of the woman he killed. He tried to use the insane plea, but it did not work and he was put away for the rest of his life. Not enough…..

 

Rage of a Man 2016-55

 

Amongst the stillness, a whimpering sound,

Over in the corner a child lay, almost still

Huddled with legs drawn up to chin

Sobbing, a bruised body racked with pain

Tear streaked eyes, mucous flowing from nose

No attempt to dry or wipe away

Livid red welts on buttocks and back

Testimonial to a savage, unexpected beating

A man, his father now gone away for a while

That earlier before strolled together through the zoo

One drop, then two, some more blood, finally stopped

A wound from the buckle on belt so wide and hard

Seven years old and not knowing why

His love still there, somehow, – but why?

A fit of rage, a scream of hate, the belt,

For dropping a cookie on the floor?

His mother, standing by powerless to act,

Flinching as each slash came down on her son

This man, her husband, the same one married with love

So long ago, a different time, less strife

No excuses, for actions so horrible to all

No reason, no justification for this trial; why?

Only sorrow, sadness and despair for now

As she stares in the telltale mirror

Looking at a face grown old by each passing day

A returned image of blackened eyes and cut lips

WHY – the most unanswered question at times

By those that so much need and deserve one

 

Den Betts

What Has Happened? 2016-54

Posted in Contemplation, Religious by

What Has Happened? 2016-54

What will it take to have people look at others without feelings of prejudice, hatred, of despisement, fear, scorn, loathing, contempt, distaste, contempt, distain, abhorrence, and all the other words that almost mean the same thing?

What happened to the feeling of love, respect, reverence, admiration, affection, togetherness, understanding, devotion, trust, and even the belief in God?

Or is my mind in a cloud of non-understanding and one of unreality?

Who makes the first move of changing? Who are the ones that ferment the bad vibes of the world, and why? Another thing, why do people use religion as reasons for hateful actions or thoughts? I think of the places like the Westboro Baptist Church in some cases

Is God wondering if it is time for a change and does He believe His plan, if any, is not going well? Of course, if you do not believe in God this does not matter. And if you say you believe and do nothing to show your belief, it does not matter either.

I am not judging, but feel that saying you are a Christian or devout Jew or practicing Muslim and not do your part in getting closer to your God, you are not fooling God, but yourself. I believe too many people, including myself, say we believe, and do not do the things to prove it. We can do the proverbial talk the talk and not do the walk the walk type of thing….

As a self-proclaimed Christian, I feel it is about time I start to be committed to being a Christian. It is too easy to make a claim of being one, but to actually do the things that Jesus Christ would want me to do is another matter. I must read the Bible more, to see what He would expect from me. It is all there; just have to read up on it.

Anyone can do what they want to do or not do and that is up to them. We all have to look in the mirror and try to see the other Self we all have inside us. The one that lurks within us and does not come to the surface and hides the real us.

I say it is time for me to be a Christian and do Christian things; starting with the simple thing of loving my fellow Earthlings. All of them, not just the ones I feel good about. All of them that include those of other races, religions, creeds, ethnics, countries, neighbors, communities, and the list goes on and on.

That is not an easy task, but to be a Christ following Christian and surrendering myself to Jesus Christ means I have to learn new skills and do the things that MUST be done.

I welcome anyone I know to follow Jesus Christ with me. Get back to me personally and share your thoughts of doing so; it can help me in my quest of getting closer to the Lord…………………………………..

Den Betts

What is Real 2016-53

Posted in Contemplation by

I wish I knew where I come up with some of the things I write, and this is ONE of them. I DO understand what I have written, but sometimes believe others wonder where MY mind was when I did write it. Anyhow, random thoughts on a quiet summer day with just my mind going on with a tangent of thinking….

What is Real 2016-53

What is real in ones tormented mind,

Trying to find the truth in its existence

 

How can one separate the thoughts, troubled

As believed, from those perceived

 

A spongy mass of insensitive matter,

Capable of holding so many feelings

 

Vying for attention in everyday life

Coming to mind in an unorthodox manner

 

Does it twist to suit its fancy

A devious thing beyond belief

 

Can it, in fact, fool its owner

In believing in things that are not

 

Or is it instead an unopened door,

With the unknown lurking behind

 

Waiting to spring on its hapless host,

The reality of life as it is.

 

I feel like a freaking hypocrite at times; most times

Not being the real “who” to others

 

Bout time the real me stands up to be counted

And let others know just who I really am

 

Den Betts

 

Thoughts of Today’s Life 2016-52

Posted in Current Events by

Thoughts of Today’s Life 2016-52

The world will survive even though the occupants may not. We are our worst enemies. We, as a whole, treat others like Aliens and not brothers and sisters in life. We have leaders that somehow got in or do get in, and control plus do things that are contrary to common sense and decency. Minions support them and benefit from the leaders handouts and they, in turn, give platitudes to the leaders to curry favor. Instead of working together for a common goal, individual objectives are sought instead of the “good for all”.

To think of others rather than selves is, at times, a negative thought process and frowned upon or considered too liberal. Who are conservatives and who are these liberals that make up the masses? What is WRONG with being either if we work together as a combined group for a common objective to make things better?  When did it really start to be “Them against us” or “Our way or no way” type attitudes that appear to be prevalent? Why is name calling, in a horrible way, an acceptable thing to hear from our leaders? When did compromise become an archaic way of life experience?

We, the people, deserve what we get because we allow these things to occur. We cannot blame “them” for the actions of today, but instead could fault ourselves for not doing the right things or doing nothing instead. We accept things because we are only one person of ourselves, instead of collectively doing or saying what has to be brought forth for all to know.

Our complacency allows incompetency to occur; then we look around for the culprit that is really the one looking back at us in the mirror. We want “George to do it” and he is damned tired and thinks we ALL should do the things that need to be done or said.

The anti-establishment crowd is looking for a savior to make changes that we must collectively work to have done and not expect a miracle from speakeasy type people or old school politicians that promise the same old, same old rhetoric.

Den Betts

Unconditional Love of God 2016-51

Posted in Introduction to Blog by

Unconditional Love of God 2016-51

I made a recent posting on my blog and mentioned “Unconditional love of God”. I usually thank God for his unconditional love when I pray and then thought about this love.  WHAT is “unconditional love”? Well, using the thoughts of Mr. Webster, uncondiltio0nal means (1) not limited by conditions, absolute, such as an unconditional promise.

So, if God gives us a promise, a promise that states He loves us absolutely, unqualified, categorically and completely, and does not have conditions attached, is that unconditional and is it so?

Wow, that is somewhat hard to understand such a love. No strings attached, regardless of the facts. No hidden clauses. No maybe’s………. Any questions?

I have plenty of questions regarding this type of love by God to and for us.

First off, it sounds like He loves us irrespective of what we do! Now, I have done some pretty stupid things in my life. I will just stick with those that might have upset God. When I think of them, I will keep those ancient Ten Commandments in mind for now. Oh, they are old, but still in effect.

Thou Shalt NOT do this and that and in between. I get that. They are somewhat straightforward in what they say, even though I have struggled with some of them in the past in really understanding the content as written. Like, “Honor your mother and father”. What if the father was a nasty SOB and was NOT a good guy to his children; should they honor him; really? Yeh, I guess so, but I would think it would be hard to do in some cases. My parents were great and I think I did honor them in life and now.

There are MANY examples of what unconditional love means and various scenarios of the subject can be imagined.

BUT, does God have unconditional love for us? The Bible, which is the Holy Scriptures, is usually used as a reference for guidance toward many subjects. Does it SAY or USE the word unconditional in relation to love?  NO, it does not!  Therefore is the word, unconditional, to be used describing the love of God for His children?

I admit I am not that experienced in the realm of theology, but I DO have MY opinions. What do I think?

Well, in reality, the word UNCONDITIONAL means exactly that, and it cannot be used just because it sounds great or in our mind “right”. Maybe, another word would be better or a couple of thoughts overall. What are YOUR thoughts?

One source (1 John 4:8) states “Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love”. Sounds neat, but does that love move Him toward benevolent action? Perhaps another issue…

Another verse: (Romans 5:6-8) states, “For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.  For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die—  but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” This really brings us to considering Jesus as God and as God, He died for us……………… Now that is love, and really means something…. Is it unconditional though; maybe.

One more (of many). (1 John 4:9-10) “In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him.  In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” I would like to think that God so loved us that he DID show His love by doing what He did, “Having Jesus Christ come into our lives, and with the ultimate sacrifice, show His love for us, which is fairly unconditional.”

To the diehard, naysayer, you are correct, it does not say so in the Bible, but I believe He does love us pretty dang much and I will STILL use the word UNCONDITIONAL in MY prayers; period………………………

I would think that the love of God is one that initiates and does not come from a response of ours. That is what would make it unconditional. If it were conditional, we would have to do something to earn the love of God or to merit the love, but that is NOT the case. We would be expected to appease His Holy wrath or become clean of our sins before God would love us and that is also not the case. God motivated by love, moved unconditionally to save His people from their sin, through Jesus Christ that becomes, once again, unconditional love being shown by God…… So Be It!

This being 6-24-2016 we as citizens of the world and the U.S. have experienced a horrible act recently, by a person who killed over 4 dozen people in a nightclub in Orlando. I ask, does God also LOVE the person that did this terrible act. OR, did He despise the gay’s that were at that club, having fun? Makes one think, but I believe He loves and loved every one of them, good and bad.  Then, I ask, why did God NOT do something if he loved the gays too? This world is full of terrible people that do terrible things. Then, this brings up the thought of “free will”, but that is another blog in the future…  Comments?

I would also think that I would NOT be surprised or upset if God decided to eradicate the people of Earth and experiment somewhere else on another planet to see if His plan would work there. We, as a whole, do not follow Him the way He wants and it may be time for a change on His part……………….. Maybe a KILLER comet is what we need………………. That is scary!!!

Den Betts

Walking on Earth 2016-49

Posted in Contemplation, Spiritual by

As one that KNOWS there is a Triune God, I wrote this yesterday when I was thinking of my Being and where I am in life. I was blessed, one time, with some knowledge that goes beyond the norm and with that insight, I can relate to what I have written below:

Walking on Earth 2016-49

We walk on Earth as land locked beings;

Our existence, like a quest for knowledge.

We try to separate reality from fiction

Looking for the reasons of– why we are

Our lives have the

Convolutes of true knowledge

Mixed with the absolutes of life

Do we owe our existence to a Creator

That observes and judges– per our actions?

Are we, but organisms

That are born, exist, and then die?

OR, can we look forward to a life

Beyond, just that existence?

AND relish a blissful way of living,

That goes on and on and on?

Words spoken, promises made, with

Each of us to find out individually

At the given time in the future…………

Should we ALL consider the consequences

Of making the wrong awareness ??????

Den Betts

Prayer/Psalm 2016-48

Posted in Religious, Spiritual by

I think I wrote this as a simile to a written Psalm in the Old Testament, but cannot be sure. I tried to find the actual (if so) psalm but could not. So, I will claim it as mine and instead call it a prayer. It still sounds like a psalm…….

 

Prayer/Psalm 2016-48

 

He shall be my light and salvation

To hide me, shelter me from my worst fears

Allow me to sing, to dance and be merry,

With joy and happiness of a knowing protection

Be gracious to me, when lonely and afflicted

Forgive me, when I have gone astray

Create in me a clean, pure heart,

Protect me from my own transgressions

Become my strength, a shield against adversity,

Gird me with gladness of living and life

Comfort me in my worse times of grieving and despair

Deliver me from the evils of the world

Cleanse my mind of wrongful thoughts, words and deeds

Save me from those that would do me wrong

Praise be to God, for He is the one, the only one

To have the power to be, to do, for life everlasting

 

Den Betts

Constipated Mind 2016-47

Posted in Contemplation, Poems by

I remember one time when I wanted to express myself, but was unable to do so. Talk about frustration! We all take for granted the simple actions of life. Our senses, our motor skills, our ability to do and think. When those are taken away, OUCH! We then become something else, a different entity of life……………..

Constipated Mind  2016-47

The want, the need, the desire,

To express, to let loose a thought

And do something so much, so much

 

The inability to expound on the

Things you desire to state, to

Incorporate in the flux of it all.

 

An urge to go with the flow, the

Norm of things, but knowing of

The incapability of doing so.

 

The mind having the motive, but

Not the competency of taking action; still

Wanting, needing, desiring fulfillment.

 

 

The “control center” of the Self

That sometimes is not in control,

That struggles for release, for abilities to be free

 

 

Den Betts