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Posts Tagged ‘Frank King blog’

APOLOGIES, CONFESSIONS AND NEW LIFE

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on November 9, 2024| 3 Comments »

Ever hear of The Apology Line, a fascinating social experiment from the 1980s?

Created by American conceptual artist Allan Bridge (1945-95), The Apology Line was a confessional phone system which used new technology of the time, an answering machine, to record confessions from anonymous callers.

The concept was a stunning success. Over the 15 years the line was in operation, Wikipedia says more than 1,000 hours of apologies were recorded, with callers confessing everything from infidelity, shop lifting and drug dealing to ritualistic murder.

It’s a safe bet that while the Wikipedia article focuses on the sensational confessions, there were plenty of apologies for everyday events — treating your spouse poorly, getting angry at the kids, holding a grudge against a relative or colleague and, maybe, even failing to act in a situation that needed a calm, caring intervention.

This struck me as amazing because it makes a very strong case that humans need to confess the wrong things we’ve done and the right things we’ve failed to do. Despite Bridge’s contention that no apologies are needed to the creator of humanity, it still ties directly into the beliefs of people who follow Jesus of Nazareth (who many believe is the Son of God).

Jesus followers like me note that one of His brothers wrote this to anyone willing to read it: Always tell each other the wrong things you have done. Then pray for each other. Do this so that God can heal you.

Another of Jesus’s earliest followers said: If we confess our sins, God will forgive us. We can trust God to do this. He always does what is right. He will make us clean from all the wrong things we have done.

When we make confessions to God and to our brothers & sisters, the result is relief and, in some ways, new life. In fact, people who sincerely apologize to God often open their hearts and minds to placing their trust in Jesus’s life, sacrificial death and stunning resurrection.

YOU can do this too. When you honestly, humbly make Jesus your Lord, Saviour and best friend, He comes into your heart and mind and starts the lifelong project of making you more like the person you were created to be.

At the same time, God no longer sees the wrong things you’ve done and the right things you’ve failed to do. He only sees His Son’s perfection. And so, when this life ends, you will spend an incredible eternity with your creator and His Son. It’s the best news in the world. 🙂

Interested? Yes or no, post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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FIXING THE WAYS OF MAN

Posted in Me & The World, Uncategorized, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on October 5, 2024| 3 Comments »

This provocative quote, from the renowned member of the Monty Python comedy troupe, caused my brain to spin as I digested how Palin’s words connect with reality. Stay with me as I unpack this.

Are atheists deaf to the word of God? Palin is probably referring to the Christian Bible, which many people believe is inspired by the creator and master of time, space and the universe. I’ll venture to write that a whole of of people beyond atheists are ignoring what God wants for this broken world. And sometimes, those people include ME and other people who follow Jesus of Nazareth (who many folks believe is the Son of God).

Consider this: the Bible is often hard to understand and hard to find relevant in the world today. It requires thought and checking in with people who have made it their life’s work to shine a light on what God is all about. Even that won’t do it for some folks and I understand why.

From a Jesus-following perspective, if God hasn’t given you a supernatural insight into the Bible, then you’ll probably struggle to comprehend it and give it credibility. That’s just how it is.

Are “theists” (people who believe there is a Creator) blind to the ways of humanity? Not even a little. Those who follow Jesus are very aware that this world is struggling. We know that, on our own, humanity can’t get it right now matter how hard we try. Just consider the wars, terrorism, rampant greed and superficial narcissism that we see around us and hear about daily in the news.

All of humanity’s self-improvement hasn’t made a bit of difference. We’re still self-centred, still racked with jealousy and insecurity, still believing (even it if’s just on a subconscious level) that the person with the most toys wins.

Jesus followers know there is a solution to this. A better way that leads to what so many people are lacking: peace. That peace comes from our convictions, which state:

  • There is more to life than 70+ years of working, eating, sleeping and, finally, dying.
  • Following Jesus gives us new, life-changing insight on how to live a life of real fulfillment, love of all humanity (which echoes the love God has for ALL His creations) and peace.
  • This life is just the opening sentence in the book of all eternity. Jesus said so when He told anyone willing to listen that “whoever believes in [Me] will have eternal life.”

Do you understand how knowing this life is NOT all there is can change everything? It’s the way to peace!

So how do you get in on this? Jesus explained it in the quote above. You need to follow Jesus – declare Him your Lord, Saviour, best friend. When you do that with humble sincerity, He comes into your life and begins to make you the person God created you to be.

That’s a life-long process that won’t end until this life is finished and you’re in His presence forever. Sound interesting? Yes or no, post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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CON MAN? SAVIOUR? LUNATIC?

Posted in It's Not About 'Religion', tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on September 14, 2024| 2 Comments »

Oh boy. Where to start?

If you’re reading this, I assume you’re open to spirituality and have probably not considered Jesus of Nazareth – who many people believe is the Son of God – to be any sort of con man. Apparently, the creator of this atheist meme believes these American megachurch pastors to be less than honourable.

Just for fun, I asked Google if Jesus is a con man. The responses are all over the place, but I particularly like this one from American entrepreneur Robert Kimmons:

If Jesus was a con man, he was a pretty terrible one.
He lived a life of poverty, didn’t get much sex (and maybe didn’t get any at all), and died an ignominious death.
Sure, his teaching created a belief system that has dominated the world for over a millennium, but what con man would be willing to give his life to accomplish that?
As a con man, Jesus was an unmitigated failure.

This has the ring of truth to me. Consider just a few challenging things that Jesus told anyone willing to listen:

  • If a man looks at a woman and wants to sin sexually with her, he has already committed that sin with her in his mind.
  • Don’t fight back against someone who wants to do harm to you. If they hit you on the right cheek, let them hit the other cheek too.
  • You have heard people say, “Love the people who are your friends. But hate those who want to hurt you.” What I tell you is this: love the people who want to hurt you. If people want to cause you pain, pray for them.

Would a con man ever make these (and many more) difficult statements? Unless he wanted to drive away his potential victims, then certainly not.

At times, Jesus makes it hard to follow Him. That’s because He’s not interested in “fans”. He’s interested in committed disciples who will be His ambassadors in a world that even the most optimistic of us will admit isn’t doing very well.

Jesus ambassadors have opened hospitals and universities, risked their lives by treating African ebola patients and Syrian war victims, and started vital charities like Samaritan’s Purse, World Vision and LifeWater.

While I’m a long, LONG way from being a poster child for Jesus ambassadors, He has empowered me to write more than 200 blogs like this one to tell YOU about Him and how your life can be enriched – starting right now – by declaring Jesus to be your lord, saviour and best friend.

When you do that, God no longer sees all the wrong things you’ve done and the right things you’ve failed to do. He only sees His Son’s perfection. As a result, when this life ends, you’ll spend eternity with Jesus in Heaven – a place with no suffering, no loss and no death.

Sound interesting? Yes or no, post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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WHERE HE KNOWS YOUR NAME

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on August 3, 2024| 3 Comments »

“There’s something missing from my life. Sure, I have a nice wife, a career and a house; I guess I’m talking about that spiritual something to give it all meaning and enable me to be at peace with myself and the world.”

This was a monologue from Norm, the barfly played so expertly by actor George Wendt on the dearly loved American comedy Cheers. I happened to see it while skimming videos on Facebook and it stopped me in my tracks.

While the “speech” ended with a silly joke that was typical of the show, I saved the video because I believe if many of us gave it any consideration, what Norm said would accurately describe our lives.

It was certainly the case for me. In 2004, I had:

  • A career in print journalism that was going nicely
  • Experience with several satisfying romantic relationships
  • A home in surburbia

To any outsider, I had all that things that would make me a success. But something was missing.

So, at a certain point, I came to recognize that my life accomplishments didn’t mean much and they would disappear the moment my soul left my body. Maybe the fact that you’re reading this means you’re at, or near, this point in your life.

So here’s what I did: Because of attending church services as a child, I had a vague idea about Jesus of Nazareth, who many people believe is the Son of God. So, with an open mind, I started connecting with Jesus followers who were capable of having spiritual discussions with non-believers.

Over time, I came to understand two vital things: who Jesus is and who I am. Some folks think Jesus was just a cool guy with some great ideas worth following. Others believe He was nothing more than a made-up character.

If you give any credibility to the primary-source accounts of His physical life on earth, then you’ll know that Jesus didn’t allow us the option of figuring He was just a great thinker and good person. You either have to believe He is who He said He is (the Son of God who came to came to live, die and return to life for our benefit) or a lunatic with a god complex.

As for being a fictional character, who would do this and carry it through? And why? To get money, sex and power? Really?

As for us, most people in the world today figure they’re good and, if there’s any kind of creator and any kind of Heaven, then we’re good enough to get in on our own merits.

But that’s opposite to what Jesus said. He told anyone willing to listen that “you must be perfect, just as your Father in Heaven is perfect.” Once I understood that, I realized that being “good” was absolutely NOT good enough. I had to trust and follow Jesus, who claimed to be “the way, the truth and the life.”

Once I finally did that, my career changed (to telling others about Jesus), the women I dated changed (I married a Jesus follower) and I came to understand that the things this world values are meaningless in the grand scheme of things. My meaning and JOY comes from following Jesus and telling people like you about Him.

Are you missing something in your life? Then look into Jesus. I think He’s what you need. Agree? Disagree? Post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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FROM CHILDREN TO FAMILY MEMBERS

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on May 18, 2024| 1 Comment »

British comedian and atheist Jimmy Carr asks a good question and, since you might be asking the same thing, I appreciate the opportunity to answer, .

First of all, as a follower of Jesus of Nazareth (who many people believe is the Son of God), I believe God created every person who ever was, is and will be. So yes, we are His children.

But there’s a difference between being His children and being in His family. And we are definitely NOT all in His family. You might ask, quite, rightly, why not?? Because it’s not an automatic thing. We’ve all separated ourselves from God’s family because of the wrong things we’ve done and the right things we’ve failed to do.

In other words, we’ve put ourselves ahead of our creator. We’ve either declared He doesn’t exist, or we’ve forgotten about Him or we’ve made the shallow, ultimately meaningless priorities of this world our main focus.

The results of this error are sadly obvious: broken families, addictions, crime, human trafficking and so much more. Jesus followers like me are not immune to this error; sometimes, I forget about God and mess up quite spectacularly. Just ask my very forgiving wife.

So what’s the solution? How can we be adopted into God’s family? The answer is simple: follow Jesus. Read the four original-source biographies of His physical life on Earth (they’re simply called the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, named after their reputed authors). Investigate the claims Jesus makes about Himself and His Father.

Once you do that, my hope and prayer is you’ll come to understand who God is, who you are and who Jesus is. Then, as you apologize for all the wrong things you’ve done and the right things you’ve failed to do, and pledge to make Jesus your priority, God will welcome you into His family. And that will change your life NOW and for all eternity.

One of Jesus’s earliest and most influential followers, a missionary named Paul, put it this way: “You’re no longer wandering exiles. This kingdom of faith is now your home country. You belong here, with as much right to the name Christian as anyone.”

Got questions? Things you don’t understand? Then keep searching. Or, email me (frankdmking@gmail.com) and I’ll do my imperfect best to help.

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GOD, BONE CANCER AND BEAUTY

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on March 9, 2024| 4 Comments »

As you read the meme above, are you nodding your head in agreement? It wouldn’t surprise me in the least. We all know that this world is awash in beauty and pain, love and grief, anger and joy.

The question that occurs to me is: why does British actor/writer/narrator/director/atheist Stephen Fry somehow conclude that this world’s enormous contrasts deny the existence of a creator? And does it lead you in the same direction?

My pastor friend Ross Carkner, who I showed the meme to, agrees that “beauty alone is not a testament to God’s existence.” But then he points out something that I believe is equally true: “God exists in the midst of the beauty and the ugliness.”

Here’s the thing: Jesus of Nazareth, who many people believe is the Son of God, never promised us a life free of bone cancer or acne or leukemia or bunions or even rap music (sorry; this old guy’s gotta have a moment of fun).

In fact, He told anyone willing to listen that “Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows; but cheer up, for I have overcome the world.”

I’m sure you’re asking, just as I did when I first read this quote — from one of the four original-source biographies of Jesus’ physical life on Earth — what ‘overcoming the world’ means.

The website GotQuestions.org notes it’s multifaceted:

  • Jesus gives His followers peace to overcome our troubled hearts.
  • He gives His followers strength to turn away from the wrong things we’ve done and right things we’ve failed to do.
  • Jesus gives His followers ultimate victory over the evil spiritual forces that haunt this world and inspire wars, pandemics, pedophilia and so many other ills that plague humanity
  • He gives His followers a share in His victory over death, because after being crucified on false charges, He rose from the dead several days later (Please check out the ‘links to other sites’ tab to read all the evidence supporting Jesus’ resurrection).

All this gives me, and other Jesus followers, tremendous relief and endurance as we deal with life on this planet. In fact, I’ll go so far as to claim this God-fueled relief and endurance gives Jesus followers a source of power that the rest of the world doesn’t have.

If you’re not following Jesus, then do you have any hope to overcome the challenges of life? And if you’re not following Jesus, do you have any hope of life beyond 70+ years of eating, breathing, working and finally expiring?

I have that hope. I’ll go further and tell you I have supreme confidence, that Jesus gives to all His followers, for a good and joyous life beyond this existence — a life that leaves behind all the pain and exhaustion of what we so often experience now.

Do you want in on this blessing? Yes or no, post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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CONSIDERING A PURE HEART & GOOD INTENTIONS

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on February 10, 2024| 7 Comments »

Ah, peace. We all want it and most of us think we don’t have nearly enough of it.

When I discovered this internet meme, three things immediately set my “spidey sense” tingling.

1. The creator of this meme believes the way to peace is good intentions and a pure heart. While lots of us have similar ideas about what makes up “good intentions”, I’m sure there are many points of divergence.

The ancient saying “the road to hell is paved with good intentions” is still around today because it’s true. Here’s just one sad, unfortunate example:

Dr. Spock, the author of a famous handbook on child rearing, recognized that babies throw up a lot and therefore recommended newborns be laid on their stomachs to sleep. Unknowingly, this would result in thousands of accidental smothering deaths. We now know that newborns should sleep on their backs until they can roll over for themselves.

An internet search will provide many more examples of good intentions gone horribly wrong. So I need to ask: Who defines what is good? And how good is good enough?

Let me offer a very radical, very out-of-the-box answer: the creator of time, space the universe and YOU defines what is good AND how good is good enough.

ChristianWeek.com suggests achieving goodness means being kind and decent, compassionate and generous, resourceful and studious, curious and concerned with addressing injustice.

As a follower of Jesus of Nazareth (who many people believe is the Son of God), I’m delighted that these characteristics can be agreed on by pretty much everyone.

Here’s the controversial part: Jesus followers like me believe being good is absolutely NOT good enough. In one of the original-source biographies of His physical time on Earth, Jesus said “you must be perfect, just as your Father in Heaven is perfect.” Oh boy. This isn’t looking good for me, you or anyone else on this planet.

2. What is a pure heart? Ideapod.com has this definition: It doesn’t mean having any faults, but rather without any hidden intentions. It’s not about always being right or perfect, but rather doing your best to do the right thing.

This is all very, very laudable. I’m just not ready to say that me, you or anyone else has achieved it.

No matter how hard I work at it, there are times when I do NOT try my best to do the right thing. Despite my best efforts, there are occasions when I absolutely DO have hidden intentions. This means I fall short of Jesus’s standard for this life and the life to come. Can you, with complete honesty, claim you are pure-hearted?

3. What is the “end of the day”? The tone of the meme suggests it’s the end of life. If you believe there’s something beyond 70+ years on this planet, then the meme is ignoring that. Given the words of Jesus about Heaven and what’s required to get there, is that a good idea?

There’s a lot to ponder here. I suggest the best way to start is to investigate the life, ministry, death and resurrection of Jesus. If He’s right and your eternal life is at stake, then nothing is more important than checking Him out.

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UNCONDITIONALLY LOVED AND VALUED

Posted in In The News, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on January 6, 2024| 4 Comments »

“You’ve got to be clear that you don’t want certain customers coming in.”

Chip Wilson, the founder of lifestyle clothing giant Lululemon, dropped those controversial words during a recent interview about the company’s direction since he departed in 2015.

This takes me back to 2013, when an Abercrombie & Fitch executive created a media storm by shamelessly declaring the clothing retailer tried to exclude anyone but “cool kids” from buying its products. (The controversy inspired me to write this: https://wp.me/p2wzRb-7o.)

Then, as now with Chip Wilson, the issue is all about ranking the value of people. That’s a constant, subtle focus of our culture, designed to make people feel special. The trouble is, it does so by downgrading certain types of what we might regard as less desirable people.

Most of us, and that includes ME, are guilty of this — often without even knowing it. And it’s been going on since the dawn of humanity. Jesus of Nazareth, who many people believe is the Son of God, often battled this mindset during His physical time on earth.

Jesus spent time with the rejects of his day — tax collectors for the hated Roman empire (which occupied ancient Israel, where Jesus lived), prostitutes, menstruating women, people with mental health issues and more.

Jesus did so for two reasons, and I believe those reasons apply to YOU and me:

  1. He wanted them to know they were unconditionally loved and valued, no matter what anyone said to them or behaved toward them.
  2. He wanted them to recognize they had missed the mark of who God created them to be, and it was possible to fix that by following Him.

Now transfer this list to YOU: Jesus wants YOU to know YOU are unconditionally loved and valued, with all your faults and with all the wrong things you’ve done (and the right things you’ve failed to do).

Second, YOU and me have missed the mark of who God created us to be. We’ve listened to our culture’s siren call and, more often than not, made meaningless things (money, toys, vacations, trophy spouses, sexual pleasure) our focus, all the while living as if we have no Creator. In other words, at the urging of the world around us, we have made ourselves God.

Upon realizing this, I opened my mind and heart to Jesus. I’m glad to tell you that He entered my life and is making me more generous and less self-centred, more loving and less insecure, more contented and less angry. The list continues, but you get it. And the work won’t end until this life is finished and my life in Heaven starts.

Sound attractive? Yes or no, post your thoughts below and let’s have a conversation.

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COMPETITION? WHAT COMPETITION?

Posted in It's Not About 'Religion', tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on November 11, 2023| 5 Comments »

Has this ever occurred to you – that “religion” (a nasty term I want nothing to do with) and science are in some sort of wrestling cage match – and science has religion in a choke-hold?

That’s certainly the point of this meme, helpfully provided by an internet atheism community, and it suggests that “religion” doesn’t work. Guess what? I’m a man of faith and I absolutely agree.

Religion is all about what Stephen Hawking called “authority,” along with following rules, looking good in front of others and judging people who don’t appear to have it all together. Yech. Sounds awful, doesn’t it?

So let’s talk about faith/spirituality instead. And let’s wonder why on earth anyone would believe faith and science are competing. They absolutely are not because, as Hawking noted “there is a fundamental difference” between them.

Consider this: science deals only with the natural world, while faith/spirituality overlaps significantly into the supernatural. So they have almost nothing in common. That’s why there are many spiritual thinkers in the fields of engineering, physics and astronomy, chemistry and biomedical sciences.

(In fact, Wikipedia lists more than 60 scientific thinkers that follow Jesus of Nazareth, who many people believe is the Son of God. I wrote about some of them here: https://wp.me/p2wzRb-e9)

I hope that by now, you are willing to consider that science and faith can and do get along quite nicely. That means YOU can still be science-oriented while exploring a life of faith. That’s certainly the case for me; I like science because it shows me how God does stuff. 🙂

Like those 60 thinkers mentioned earlier, I follow Jesus because it makes the most sense and it helps me to understand this world and what I believe is the life to come. Now here’s the thing: Jesus told anyone willing to listen that in order to get the best of this life and the next life, “You must be perfect, just as your Father in Heaven is perfect.”

Oh, man. I’m absolutely nowhere near perfect (just ask my wife) and I can safely write that you aren’t either. So what’s the solution? It’s simple: follow Jesus. Declare Him, with serious sincerity, to be your Lord, your Saviour and your best friend. Then start reading about Him (there are four original-source biographies available that detail His physical time on earth) and connecting with other Jesus followers.

If you do that, Jesus will come into your world and start the life-long process of making you more like the person God created you to be. And when this life ends, God will see you like He sees Jesus: perfect in every way. That means you’ll spend eternity with Him in Heaven.

Sounds like a pretty good deal to me. Do you agree? Yes or no, click/tap the ‘share’ button below and let’s have a conversation.

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FROM GOAT HERDING TO ARTFUL WRITING

Posted in Me & The World, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on October 7, 2023| 5 Comments »

Maybe you’ve heard about this criticism often made by atheists about the Christian Bible: it was written by people who were simply too primitive and ignorant to understand life and this world. And maybe you agree with these critics.

But I trust you’re reading this now because you’re open to spirituality and open to exploring the credibility of a book that millions of people believe is the truth about God and Jesus of Nazareth, who they believe is the Son of God. So consider these points:

  1. The people who wrote the 60+ parts of the Bible were mostly NOT goat herders. Even as late as the 1600s, less than half of the world’s male population (and, like it or not, a vast majority of the Bible was written by males) could read or write. It’s quite safe to say that very, very few goat herders were among them.
  2. People who could read or write when the Bible was written were usually among the elites of their society. They were educated, usually well off and often nobility. One example? Most historians believe the man who wrote “The Gospel of Luke” — one of the four biographies of Jesus’s physical life on earth — was a physician. That’s a long, LONG way from goat herding.
  3. You would be surprised and amazed at how carefully most of the Bible was written. I listened to a podcast about one section, called Jonah (most famous for a man being swallowed by a giant fish) and was blown away by the writer’s techniques. Certain words were used repeatedly in that section to suggest a larger picture that the author knew people of his day would understand. In other words, this was sophisticated writing — not primitive scribblings of illiterate cave dwellers.
  4. Even among people who believe Jesus of Nazareth was NOT the Son of God, many still admire Him for the brilliance of His teachings. Many of those teachings, such as loving your enemies and doing good for them, continue to challenge us today. And guess what? Jesus thought enough of the Bible sections written before He arrived (the “Old Testament”) to quote from at least five of them. Look it up if you don’t believe me.

While you’re digesting all this, consider one more point: the criticisms made about the Bible are often used to avoid considering its main points: God LOVES you, me and everyone else on this planet — even though we ignore Him and repeatedly do wrong things and avoid doing right things. God wants to be part of our lives, starting RIGHT NOW and stretching into all eternity, so He can make us the people we were created to be. All that can happen when we decide to make His Son our Lord, Saviour and best friend.

What do you think? Post your comments below and let’s have a conversation.

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