W I S D O M
by jpw
Of God and man
(Vol. 4)
Copyright © 2005 by jpw
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We are, in this world, but a speck of dust within this universe. What we currently know and currently believe, in this world, is but a speck of the whole truth that is to be found in life. Never rest upon what you currently know and believe; the path of seeking the truth is one of excitement (ask any scientist this). The path of seeking the truth can only lead to improvement in life. Choose the path of seeking the truth and accept the challenges that come your way because of this. Do this with diligence and you will find yourself a better and wiser person.
Do this with humility . . . and you cannot fail.
Foreword
My friend, know that there comes a point in every person’s life where they must ask the question, “Do I believe that God is going to raise me from the dead?” Some people ask this early in life, some later, and to be sure, some only ask this question when they can see the end is near; and this is alright: this is acceptable by the very words that God has spoken to mankind. Remember always, that the race goes not to the swiftest, but to the more determined. Remember also, that those who arrive at their conclusions early, usually arrive in error. This fourth and final book of Wisdom will address each of these three topics because these three topics are all you need to succeed in this life. In fact, you only need do well at two of these three topics just mentioned in order to succeed in this life: you may choose your two and be comfortable in your journey through life. There is an old adage amongst hunters that a deer should never see you, hear you, or smell you. Upon one of these, a deer will become curious, cease moving, and its level of awareness will increase. Upon the second, a deer will flee every time. Other than fish, no other creature is hunted more intensely than deer, yet no other wild creature has become more prolific, and has thrived better, than deer.
So . . . is God going to raise you from the dead someday? This author cannot answer that question for you, nor can any other person. This is a question that each person must ask and this is a question that each person must answer their self (to their own satisfaction). Two-thirds of this book will be dedicated to this question. Just know that if you never answer this question, you can still do just fine in this life if you use all of your other senses to guard your life and to choose your path through this life.
Now . . . is the race truly to the swiftest or does it go to the more determined? That honestly depends on what race you are running. If you are running the race of vanity, you will do fine, for a while, until you run out of resources. Should you so choose to do, you truly can scurry about here and there picking up your treasures . . . for a little while. Never mind those you hurt or ignored along the way. Never mind some real treasures you missed along the way. If you choose to obtain five large diamonds in this life rather than five true friends who are very dear to you, then that is your right in this world. This author will never fault you for this and neither should any other person (unless you damage their time, their life, or their body).
Ah, but here is your next truth . . . do those who arrive at conclusions too early, usually arrive in error? Once again, only you can answer that question to your own satisfaction, but unlike the first two questions, there is only one answer to this question and this author will gladly help you find this answer. This author has spent three books “beating-up” religious folks and, in a way, has felt poorly for doing this. This author did not really mind doing this because in fact, these books are short and have only taken but relatively few hours of any person’s life to read. Any person who truly believes in God does not mind having that faith tested for a short time if they know that test to be earnest and not wanting to hurt anyone. For any religious person who has stayed with these four books so far: you are a rock. Know that your faith in yourself is a magnificent reflection upon your patience and your perseverance: you will not be disappointed in this book.
Return now to the person who pursues their vanities in this life; whether they believe in God or not. A person pursuing their vanities in life, indeed, can appear to win many races: every treasure completes one race. It does not matter who you are in this world: a small treasure completes a race for a poor person and a large treasure completes a race for a rich person. But consider a longer race: there is a not-so-old adage concerning a person’s dying thought in this life. You have heard this before so please bear with this author for a few more sentences. Ask yourself: what person, one day from their death, ever said, “I wish I had bought that Porsche?” What person ever thought, “I wish I had gotten that promotion?” These questions do hurt, but please keep reading because this might just be you in your life, right now. What person, one day from their death, ever said, “I wish I had cut my lawn better?” And finally, to drive the point home, what person, fifteen minutes from their death, ever said, “I wish I had been rich?” By the time you are finished reading this book, you will honestly feel that any person who fails that last question truly does not deserve their last fifteen minutes here in this life.
These last several questions were ridiculous, to be honest: the obvious answers being ridiculously easy. But, and this is important, they were perfect examples of our arriving at conclusions early. The term “arriving at conclusions early” means we never considered the lasting effects of our decisions in life. These questions were silly, but effective, examples of our continually arriving at conclusions earlier than we should.
All of this . . . is this author’s promise to you, no matter who you are and no matter what you believe about God. You have spent three books, here, learning about how simple God is and how simple life can be (if you so choose to make your life this way). No matter what you believe, God is simple: period. If anyone tells you otherwise, run away from this person. No matter what you believe, your life can be as simple as you wish it to be. Your life is entirely up to you. It pains this author to say this because some will use this for wrong; but it does not matter if you are rich or poor: your life truly can be as simple as you wish it to be. Just remember that it is your caring for and your helping of others that will keep your life simple. Abraham was the only person who was ever called “the friend of God” and Abraham had so much wealth that the land, from horizon-to-horizon, could not contain that wealth God had given him. Abraham placed his cares, his help, and his giving before his wealth. Remember this . . . that through God, all things are possible. But remember this also; that each person will one day face the consequences of their decisions here. God is the one who will determine the consequences of the path you chose here in this world.
My dearest friend, you will learn much about God in this book. It does not matter if you believe what you learn here or not. You would do well to believe it, but this is not required of you. However, it is absolutely required of you to believe that this life, indeed, does go to the more determined and that those who decide the course of their life early (never considering the consequences) usually have chosen the wrong path. Truth is, they chose the wrong path because they stopped looking at other paths available to them: they stopped guarding their life as the deer does.
Remember that it is never too late to choose or change your path (based on what you learn in this world). A wise person always examines the path they are on and the paths that are available to them. Remember the deer . . . especially the old deer who has fewer paths to choose from. This old deer might be nearly blind, but as long as it can hear and smell, it will continue in this life. There is much wisdom to be had in this life if you stay alert to the world around you.
Stay alert, my friend, for the duration of this book and prepare yourself for an extraordinary journey into the simple truth of God, the simple truth of mankind, and the simple truth of your life.
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W I S D O M - of God and man
OF GOD
My friend, all truths are based upon simple facts. We may not understand these truths, but we must accept them and see them for their simplicity. Life exists, in this world, because there is oxygen and carbon dioxide in the atmosphere; also, there is water on the ground; simple. Water pipes burst when freezing because water is one of the only substances that expands just before it freezes; simple. Now, just as simple, but harder to understand is the fact that intelligent life exists in this world only because water is one of the only substances that expands before it freezes. It is the absolute truth that if frozen water pipes did not burst, then life, as we know it, would not exist on this planet. In the relatively early days of this planet, there were many ice ages as we realize today. When the earth froze (to extremely cold temperatures), ice formed on the surface of this earth. This crust of ice floated on top of the waters thereby insulating and protecting the precious life beneath, allowing this life to develop and become more advanced. If ice did not float, but rather sank, then every million years, or so, this planet would have become a solid block of ice for well over one-thousand years; and advanced life on this planet would have had to start all over again.
While all truth is simple, some truths need a bit of explaining. So why does ice float on water? Because of something called the hydrogen bond. As a liquid, water molecules form a “V” and nestle in tightly with other “V’s.” Before water freezes, the “V’s” have to line up in a certain pattern called crystallization. Hence the spacing between molecules expand just before freezing: hence bursting pipes. Why is water one of the only substances that behaves this way? Science does not know: in fact, this very phenomenon has been the cause of more than a few scientists to conclude that there are just some laws of nature that must have been written solely for the purpose of life existing here. A great many substances possess this hydrogen bond. Of these, only water expands when it goes from a liquid to a solid state: science does not know why.
Now learn another truth of this world that may never be understood. This world is made up of an endless series of chemical reactions; any scientist can tell you this: this includes the human body. The most common chemical reaction in this world, by far, is that of combustion. We burn fossil fuel in our engines, coal to produce energy, and wood to keep us warm. The truth is; that science is clueless as to what chemical reaction occurs during combustion. While all truths are simple, there are some that just may never be understood by mankind.
This section of the book is about God, but before you can understand God, you must learn what the truth is. Science is a wonderful thing, but science will never explain all things to you. Every person needs to accept simple truths as they exist in this world. Any scientist can tell you why water expands just before it turns to ice, but no scientist can tell you why no other naturally occurring substance does this. Likewise, no scientist has ever been able to explain how coal burns to produce electricity. Science takes advantage of these truths every day of your life in order to bring these wonderments into your life, but that does not mean they understand why these things happen. Your life is no different than a scientist’s life.
You do not need to believe there is oxygen in the air in order to take your next breath. You do not need to understand what happens to that oxygen after you breathe it in. However, it is absolutely required that you understand that none of this can happen if your head is under water. Life is this simple and, believe it or not, God is this simple. Just as a scientist does, you wake up each morning and face the truths of this world. So here you are, reading this book expecting to have God explained to you; and this author is teaching you about chemical reactions. Well, all this author is really teaching you is the truth you find in this world; you will need to find God yourself! However, this author will teach you many ways of finding God based upon simple truths you find in this world, the rights and wrongs you find in your heart, and your ability to use your common sense. Sound familiar? Have you read these words elsewhere in these books?
There is, but one God, who created this universe and breathed life into a creature, called mankind, some six-thousand years ago. This is the premise of every religion today. While this author cannot prove any of these facts, enough truths will be presented to you so as to allow your common sense to see these truths for what they truly are . . . a factual part of this life. Some time ago, there existed religions that espoused multiple gods. There are reasons these faiths died over the years: they defied common sense as science progressed, they defied logic, and they could not be proved.