Friday, June 29, 2012
Thursday, June 21, 2012
Type Theory Career Test
Type Theory Career Test (http://www.careertest.net/index.htm)
by Roberto Esponja on Monday, June 20, 2011 at 3:51pm ·
So I took this Type Theory Career Test, based on the following traits:
Extrovert 71%
Intuitive 52%
Feeling 52%
Perceiving 76%
In my estimation, that's not too bad...
My personality type is ENFP. Here's the description:
ENFP - Journalist
ENFPs love novelty and surprises. They are big on emotions and expression and their life is an exciting drama. They are good in sales, advertising, politics, and acting. 5% of the total population.
ENFP's have a tendency to overextend themselves in both their physical and emotional commitments. Their proclivity to procrastinate and to overlook details complicates their circumstances. ENFP's often move on to new ventures without completing those they have already started. Their charming personalities can show signs of irritability and over-sensitivity when their desires to please different people come into conflict. During times of stress, ENFP's feel alienated. They then engage in deceptions that serve to obscure what is occurring within themselves. (YEP)
The ENFP finds symbolic meanings behind the immediate circumstances. These meanings are construed as foreboding problems when ENFP's are under stress. Having a pervasive feeling of losing control over their own independent identities, ENFP's will feel virtually split apart by intruding circumstances. They will be "besides themselves" and "just not all there" — as if something, or someone, has taken away the essence of who they are. Not feeling like themselves, the ENFP will become subject to their own feelings of shame for being a phony, a fake or an impostor. If stress continues to grow, they may attribute malevolent schemes to others in order to explain away their fears. (I don't like that last sentence. That's NOT me, but I left it in, because I don't want to censor either. Other than that, YEP.)
Careers
This lists represent careers and jobs people of your type tend to enjoy doing. The job requirements are similar to the personality tendencies of your personality type. It is important to remember that this is not a list of all the jobs possible. And it is very important to remember that people can, and frequently do, fill jobs that are dissimilar to their personality... this happens all the time...and sometimes works out quite well.
conference planner
speech pathologist
HR development trainer
ombudsman
clergy
journalist
newscaster
career counselor
housing director
acting
sales
musician/composer
artist
information-graphics...designer
human resource manager
politics
advertising account manager
dietitian/nutritionist
speech pathologist
massage therapist
editor/art director
YEP!
http://www.careertest.net/index.htm
(Here's the link (above) if you take this test, I'd be interested to know what your type is.)
- Extraverted or Introverted
- Sensing or iNtuitive
- Thinking or Feeling
- Judging or Perceiving
Extrovert 71%
Intuitive 52%
Feeling 52%
Perceiving 76%
In my estimation, that's not too bad...
My personality type is ENFP. Here's the description:
ENFP - Journalist
ENFPs love novelty and surprises. They are big on emotions and expression and their life is an exciting drama. They are good in sales, advertising, politics, and acting. 5% of the total population.
ENFP's have a tendency to overextend themselves in both their physical and emotional commitments. Their proclivity to procrastinate and to overlook details complicates their circumstances. ENFP's often move on to new ventures without completing those they have already started. Their charming personalities can show signs of irritability and over-sensitivity when their desires to please different people come into conflict. During times of stress, ENFP's feel alienated. They then engage in deceptions that serve to obscure what is occurring within themselves. (YEP)
The ENFP finds symbolic meanings behind the immediate circumstances. These meanings are construed as foreboding problems when ENFP's are under stress. Having a pervasive feeling of losing control over their own independent identities, ENFP's will feel virtually split apart by intruding circumstances. They will be "besides themselves" and "just not all there" — as if something, or someone, has taken away the essence of who they are. Not feeling like themselves, the ENFP will become subject to their own feelings of shame for being a phony, a fake or an impostor. If stress continues to grow, they may attribute malevolent schemes to others in order to explain away their fears. (I don't like that last sentence. That's NOT me, but I left it in, because I don't want to censor either. Other than that, YEP.)
Careers
This lists represent careers and jobs people of your type tend to enjoy doing. The job requirements are similar to the personality tendencies of your personality type. It is important to remember that this is not a list of all the jobs possible. And it is very important to remember that people can, and frequently do, fill jobs that are dissimilar to their personality... this happens all the time...and sometimes works out quite well.
conference planner
speech pathologist
HR development trainer
ombudsman
clergy
journalist
newscaster
career counselor
housing director
acting
sales
musician/composer
artist
information-graphics...designer
human resource manager
politics
advertising account manager
dietitian/nutritionist
speech pathologist
massage therapist
editor/art director
YEP!
http://www.careertest.net/index.htm
(Here's the link (above) if you take this test, I'd be interested to know what your type is.)
Roberto Esponja I now know 4 people who have taken this test, reluntantly agreeing to its accuracy.June 20, 2011 at 7:21pm ·
Thank You Fast Eddie
Thank You Fast Eddie (From the mouths of babes)
by Roberto Esponja on Saturday, June 18, 2011 at 12:09am ·
Tonight
I spoke to Jed briefly, and told him I was going through some old stuff
I had written. Being ADD I have this junk scattered all over the house
and the internet, in boxes, envelopes, drawers, various blogs,
everywhere...and I thought I might find some value, if only nostalgia,
in compiling it.
In the course of our conversation, Jed asked if I had seen much change over the years in reviewing some of my writings.
I was embarrassed and saddened to honestly answer,"No, not really..." I paused for a moment and I continued, "I don't know if it's a calling of sorts, or just a sensitivity to certain issues, but the same things seem to come up over and over in all my writings."...I was truly stumped.
I've read plenty, I know and talk to lots of very intelligent and well educated people, I had certainly pondered and found many answers to life's issues over the years, and yet there it was in black and white, the same things over and over. I was bummed to say the least.
So, I went back inside the house, and began to look over even more of my ramblings, to disprove what I feared to be the case. That's when I came across this long forgotten little piece (Originally Posted on July 24, 2009), and I felt that my continual awareness/sensitivity to certain things, well...maybe it isn't really all that bad.
Maybe certain issues, will always be issues, and it just may be, that the bigger problem is when they cease to be issues to us at all. d(-_-)b
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
Before you go on, allow me to give you a little background about what's going on here.
Eddie was a kid (at the time) in the youth group I was helping to lead. He was kind of awkward in both appearance and social graces, but clearly a very sweet natured, compassionate young man. During the time I had known Eddie, he had for the most part remained silent. He was more of a listener. When he did choose to speak, (and it always seemed a very conscious choice for him) he had a very soft and gentle demeanor that was clearly conveyed. I had known Eddie and his brothers since they were little kids, and although I could always see the gears turning in Eddie's head, I never really knew what he was thinking. Maybe he was just too self conscious to speak up, I don't know.
As Eddie grew older, I began to realize that he was in fact a very deep thinker, quick to listen and slow to speak, (Traits I wish I had more discipline in!) and he had a very unique perspective to offer. I like that in a person, and so as he began to speak up a little more often, I found myself actually listening to him more and more.
On this particular night, Eddie seemed to be deep in thought, or perhaps even troubled by something, I couldn't tell. I approached him a time or two, but he would not immediately share with me. Later that night however he approached me, when I was kind of away from the other kids...this is how it went, and just how deeply a simple question can resonate...
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
…and so he asked me,” Dave, do you think God still speaks to us?” and without hesitation or any real thought I answered,”Yes, He does.”.
“How?” he replied, “What does that sound like?”
And, in a moment of great irony, I asked God silently,” Well, How?! What does it sound like?!”
I’m sure He must have laughed before answering the words which I relayed to Eddie...
“God calls himself our Father, and if that is the case, we are his children.
I have four children, Eddie, and I don’t speak to any one of them quite the same in any given circumstance.
I have one child who seems to need to learn through her own experiences and no amount of speaking or discipline seems to matter. She has to figure it out.
I have another child, that if I so much as look at her cross, she cries, and so I speak to her very differently. The same is true for the other two.
So, I guess that God must speak to each of us in the way we need him to, in order to be heard and understood.”
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
I have since thought about Eddie and that evening, many, many times. I have replayed that moment in time over and over, with fondness, but also with wonder. Why was that simple question so profound to me? I knew there was something deeper to that whole situation, but what?
Then this morning it hit me, we (I) do not seek our God with the faith of a child, The sort of faith you need to have, to ask as question like that. We (I) most often approach God as though we might discover some great fraud or fault. That he may be less than perfect, unable to meet all our needs, or that our faith may have somehow been misplaced and where would that leave us?
So, we try to at least give the appearance of believers, especially to other believers, but I think deep down we fear what it might mean to live out that faith.
We find ways to work around our tough questions, afraid to ask the simple questions, we don’t dare expose our own short comings, insecurities, or weaknesses, for fear of judgment, ridicule or some strange exile that leave us alone and humiliated. We fear to seek the relationship with God that we were created to have, and so we begin to create God in our image, making him just like us.
It seems so obviously wrong to me, so why do we (I) do it?
Because, it is too easy to have have the flower of our faith trampled by the wheels of religion and the ungrace that it contains.
We become hesitant to trust the love that once cast out all fear, and lead us to a pronouncement of faith. Like someone in an abusive relationship, we flee the true and perfect love we were made to experience for fear of the unknown, and we settle back in, to suffer the security of the abuse we have always known from the world, and worse yet from the church.
I think the whole world, fears this perfect love, the love of God as exemplified in Jesus. (This includes you and me both.) I’ll explain…
This sort of love demands changes, and action, and it demands sacrifice of those it calls. Now, with that I think we might be able to live, because that alone allows us to remain in our pride, without bruising our egos. It becomes our strength and our accomplishments. A badge of nobility we can earn and can show proudly.
In short it allows us to remain focused on ourselves.
If this were the end of it, we might be OK with that, but what scares us is that what this love requires, before and more than anything else, is surrender.
Some of us might even be alright with certain surrenders of sorts, but at the heart of what really scares us is that this surrender, is that of our will, in exchange for the promise of something greater. It asks of us a level of trust and vulnerability we have not known since childhood, and have not given since the first time we experienced the crushing disappointment of its violation.
This level of surrender, (or faith) is deep but not complex. Most of us understood it once, even if we don’t remember that time. Our struggle is to return to that point. To work against, and shed every instinct and defense we have carefully trained ourselves in and to regain perfect trust without fear. To understand that all is and will be, OK, because your Dad is here for you and always will be. That he loves you, and that in itself is more than enough.
I am learning.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
…and so the he asked me,” Dave, do you think God still speaks to us?”
Yes Eddie, he does, and today it was through you.
Thanks.
d(-_-)b
Originally Posted on July 24, 2009 @http://phreshwater1.wordpress.com/2009/07/24/thank-you-fast-eddie/
In the course of our conversation, Jed asked if I had seen much change over the years in reviewing some of my writings.
I was embarrassed and saddened to honestly answer,"No, not really..." I paused for a moment and I continued, "I don't know if it's a calling of sorts, or just a sensitivity to certain issues, but the same things seem to come up over and over in all my writings."...I was truly stumped.
I've read plenty, I know and talk to lots of very intelligent and well educated people, I had certainly pondered and found many answers to life's issues over the years, and yet there it was in black and white, the same things over and over. I was bummed to say the least.
So, I went back inside the house, and began to look over even more of my ramblings, to disprove what I feared to be the case. That's when I came across this long forgotten little piece (Originally Posted on July 24, 2009), and I felt that my continual awareness/sensitivity to certain things, well...maybe it isn't really all that bad.
Maybe certain issues, will always be issues, and it just may be, that the bigger problem is when they cease to be issues to us at all. d(-_-)b
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
Before you go on, allow me to give you a little background about what's going on here.
Eddie was a kid (at the time) in the youth group I was helping to lead. He was kind of awkward in both appearance and social graces, but clearly a very sweet natured, compassionate young man. During the time I had known Eddie, he had for the most part remained silent. He was more of a listener. When he did choose to speak, (and it always seemed a very conscious choice for him) he had a very soft and gentle demeanor that was clearly conveyed. I had known Eddie and his brothers since they were little kids, and although I could always see the gears turning in Eddie's head, I never really knew what he was thinking. Maybe he was just too self conscious to speak up, I don't know.
As Eddie grew older, I began to realize that he was in fact a very deep thinker, quick to listen and slow to speak, (Traits I wish I had more discipline in!) and he had a very unique perspective to offer. I like that in a person, and so as he began to speak up a little more often, I found myself actually listening to him more and more.
On this particular night, Eddie seemed to be deep in thought, or perhaps even troubled by something, I couldn't tell. I approached him a time or two, but he would not immediately share with me. Later that night however he approached me, when I was kind of away from the other kids...this is how it went, and just how deeply a simple question can resonate...
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
…and so he asked me,” Dave, do you think God still speaks to us?” and without hesitation or any real thought I answered,”Yes, He does.”.
“How?” he replied, “What does that sound like?”
And, in a moment of great irony, I asked God silently,” Well, How?! What does it sound like?!”
I’m sure He must have laughed before answering the words which I relayed to Eddie...
“God calls himself our Father, and if that is the case, we are his children.
I have four children, Eddie, and I don’t speak to any one of them quite the same in any given circumstance.
I have one child who seems to need to learn through her own experiences and no amount of speaking or discipline seems to matter. She has to figure it out.
I have another child, that if I so much as look at her cross, she cries, and so I speak to her very differently. The same is true for the other two.
So, I guess that God must speak to each of us in the way we need him to, in order to be heard and understood.”
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
I have since thought about Eddie and that evening, many, many times. I have replayed that moment in time over and over, with fondness, but also with wonder. Why was that simple question so profound to me? I knew there was something deeper to that whole situation, but what?
Then this morning it hit me, we (I) do not seek our God with the faith of a child, The sort of faith you need to have, to ask as question like that. We (I) most often approach God as though we might discover some great fraud or fault. That he may be less than perfect, unable to meet all our needs, or that our faith may have somehow been misplaced and where would that leave us?
So, we try to at least give the appearance of believers, especially to other believers, but I think deep down we fear what it might mean to live out that faith.
We find ways to work around our tough questions, afraid to ask the simple questions, we don’t dare expose our own short comings, insecurities, or weaknesses, for fear of judgment, ridicule or some strange exile that leave us alone and humiliated. We fear to seek the relationship with God that we were created to have, and so we begin to create God in our image, making him just like us.
It seems so obviously wrong to me, so why do we (I) do it?
Because, it is too easy to have have the flower of our faith trampled by the wheels of religion and the ungrace that it contains.
We become hesitant to trust the love that once cast out all fear, and lead us to a pronouncement of faith. Like someone in an abusive relationship, we flee the true and perfect love we were made to experience for fear of the unknown, and we settle back in, to suffer the security of the abuse we have always known from the world, and worse yet from the church.
I think the whole world, fears this perfect love, the love of God as exemplified in Jesus. (This includes you and me both.) I’ll explain…
This sort of love demands changes, and action, and it demands sacrifice of those it calls. Now, with that I think we might be able to live, because that alone allows us to remain in our pride, without bruising our egos. It becomes our strength and our accomplishments. A badge of nobility we can earn and can show proudly.
In short it allows us to remain focused on ourselves.
If this were the end of it, we might be OK with that, but what scares us is that what this love requires, before and more than anything else, is surrender.
Some of us might even be alright with certain surrenders of sorts, but at the heart of what really scares us is that this surrender, is that of our will, in exchange for the promise of something greater. It asks of us a level of trust and vulnerability we have not known since childhood, and have not given since the first time we experienced the crushing disappointment of its violation.
This level of surrender, (or faith) is deep but not complex. Most of us understood it once, even if we don’t remember that time. Our struggle is to return to that point. To work against, and shed every instinct and defense we have carefully trained ourselves in and to regain perfect trust without fear. To understand that all is and will be, OK, because your Dad is here for you and always will be. That he loves you, and that in itself is more than enough.
I am learning.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________
…and so the he asked me,” Dave, do you think God still speaks to us?”
Yes Eddie, he does, and today it was through you.
Thanks.
d(-_-)b
Originally Posted on July 24, 2009 @http://phreshwater1.wordpress.com/2009/07/24/thank-you-fast-eddie/
- Eddy LaBounty and Veronica Vanessa Vonk like this.
- Roberto Esponja Thanks Jed, and Eddie. I hope you don't mind me sharing. d(-_-)b
me so corny
Uh huh, me so corny, uh huh ,me so corny...Rated G, for goofy.
by Roberto Esponja on Friday, June 17, 2011 at 5:10am ·
If you've got a corny joke, I'd love to "hear" it. I'd love it more if you had one that you came up with on your own.
(Let's keep it rated "G", please.)
I've got a ton of them, these are just some of the worst I've made up recently...
If one minute you're standing there minding your own business, and then next you're being attacked by an alligator...well, it's probably and insta-gator.
Q) How do masons learn best?
A) Through trowel and error.
Q) Where do Zombies live?
A) In the brain forest.
Q) What do you call a polarized hen?
A) A chick magnet
Q) What causes the Earth turn so quickly?
A) It's Bi-Polar
Q) What is the Easter Bunny's favorite music?
A) Hip-Hop
Q) Where does Santa like to swim?
A) In the North pool!
Q) What makes tooth fairies such a bad liars?
A) Because, telling the tooth is their business.
Q) What is Santa's favorite music?
A) Wrap
Q) What did the plaster say to the earthquake?
A) You crack me up.
(Let's keep it rated "G", please.)
I've got a ton of them, these are just some of the worst I've made up recently...
If one minute you're standing there minding your own business, and then next you're being attacked by an alligator...well, it's probably and insta-gator.
Q) How do masons learn best?
A) Through trowel and error.
Q) Where do Zombies live?
A) In the brain forest.
Q) What do you call a polarized hen?
A) A chick magnet
Q) What causes the Earth turn so quickly?
A) It's Bi-Polar
Q) What is the Easter Bunny's favorite music?
A) Hip-Hop
Q) Where does Santa like to swim?
A) In the North pool!
Q) What makes tooth fairies such a bad liars?
A) Because, telling the tooth is their business.
Q) What is Santa's favorite music?
A) Wrap
Q) What did the plaster say to the earthquake?
A) You crack me up.
-
- Roberto Esponja New One:
Q) Why do cheetahs always seem so bummed?
A) Because cheetahs never prosper.
Putting a little shame in our game
In my experience, it seems that it has often been the practice, in the institution of religion to use guilt, shame and passive aggressive actions to manipulate others in to performing a will other than God's, and to meet a very different (although often cleverly masked) ungodly, undefined, and honestly unattainable standard, when offering assistance, if it is in deed truly offered at all.
I hear your voice
I hear your voice, but I have no idea what it is you are saying anymore.
by Roberto Esponja on Thursday, June 16, 2011 at 1:35am ·
From my blog: http://phreshwater01.blogspot.com/2011/06/i-hear-your-voice-but-i-have-no-idea.html
A little back ground:
I wrote this tonight in the parking lot at work. (After work)
For the most part it took about half an hour. I have been pondering many of these points for a good long while, but had never actually formulated them, or directly spoken them to God as such.
I have no idea why I didn't just simply pray these things aloud, but rather wrote them down.
I certainly didn't intend to post this.
It is difficult for me to be this honest. It leaves me quite vulnerable to say the least, and I have no idea what consequences it will cause me to bear. However, I have found that if I have thought, felt or experienced it so have countless others, and so if someone reads this and somehow it helps them, well great. I can't really know what difference this will make if any, but while there are lessons that only experience can teach us, there are experiences that the lessons of others can help us to avoid.
Perhaps this will help you to avoid some of those experiences.
d(-_-)b
Actually this one will not be in the notes, so that any responses may be made with anonymity, should anyone care to do so. It will also not be in the notes, because it's very personal, and will, I anticipate, cause offense.
Go to my blog if you think it's worth the effort.
I'll post more notes later.
A little back ground:
I wrote this tonight in the parking lot at work. (After work)
For the most part it took about half an hour. I have been pondering many of these points for a good long while, but had never actually formulated them, or directly spoken them to God as such.
I have no idea why I didn't just simply pray these things aloud, but rather wrote them down.
I certainly didn't intend to post this.
It is difficult for me to be this honest. It leaves me quite vulnerable to say the least, and I have no idea what consequences it will cause me to bear. However, I have found that if I have thought, felt or experienced it so have countless others, and so if someone reads this and somehow it helps them, well great. I can't really know what difference this will make if any, but while there are lessons that only experience can teach us, there are experiences that the lessons of others can help us to avoid.
Perhaps this will help you to avoid some of those experiences.
d(-_-)b
Actually this one will not be in the notes, so that any responses may be made with anonymity, should anyone care to do so. It will also not be in the notes, because it's very personal, and will, I anticipate, cause offense.
Go to my blog if you think it's worth the effort.
I'll post more notes later.
- You and Dustin Corey like this.
ADD it up
ADD it up.... (PS I don't really edit. This stuff is pretty much straight outta my head)
by Roberto Esponja on Sunday, June 12, 2011 at 1:49pm ·
(From my blog: http://phreshwater01.blogspot.com/2011/06/add-it-upps-i-dont-really-edit-this.html)
ADD, I wouldn't trade it for the world. Strange, eh?
I've enjoyed it most of the time. (Although it wreaked havoc with me in school, and contributed to my less than ideal upbringing, because no one really understood it back then.) It has given me a perspective on life I wouldn't otherwise have.
The blessing is often the curse as well.
It also makes life suck. I waste time doing things over and over, I can't find things and look for them only to realize I'm holding them, I can't concentrate, comprehend and recall things I've just read, or conversations I've just had. I drive by my destinations 2 and 3 times, all sorts of stuff.
It has a certain way of just making me depressed and and robbing me of self-esteem. I try not to bitch about it, but it's always there under the surface, just waiting to come out. Consequently, I can be a little thin skinned sometimes, to otherwise harmless remarks, and can be a little defensive needlessly. You should probably know this about me if you ever talk to me. Forgive me in advance.
Yesterday was one of those days for me. I never know when they'll happen, or what will set it off, but God works that out too, and I got some unsolicited encouragement from a few folks, so that was helpful.
Thank God for Addreall. (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0000166/)
Part of the blessing of ADD is strange associations, leaps in logic, connecting thoughts or ideas that other people might not consider connecting together. It allows for some rather "creative" problem solving, and a lot of times I am funny or profound to people, when all I was really doing was just saying what I thought. Good for them, good for me.
I like word plays and typos, I've made up some pretty punny jokes (to me at least), and don't mind laughing at myself, all thanks to ADD.
The downside is, it also means I have the kind of thinking that is usually enjoyed more at a distance, with the filter of time, and is at times barely tolerable to those closest to me, as I process all these thoughts. The problem is, these thoughts never, NEVER stop for me. Sometimes, neither does my need to vocalize or express them. I used to lie awake for hours just wishing I could shut it off. Now I embrace it, and go with it.
You may have noticed I'm a bit of an over-poster on facebook. (Gee ya think?)
Read this as fast as you can> Today I was thinking once more about the church as a body, the church as an institution, the church as a body vs. the church as an institution, that we find God wherever we seek him, that the real problem is that we don't really seek him all that often, that he could be in a building or in the forest because where we are he is, so a building in itself isn't bad because it doesn't matter where you meet as long as you're meeting together, but we associate buildings with institutions, and we associate institutions with religion, but religion isn't Christianity, religion is an institution, then I thought about a song call Institutionalized, by Suicidal Tendencies, then I thought that church might be a sort of voluntary spiritual institutionalization of ourselves, then I thought about the church as a body singing this song to the church as an institution, and I laughed and laughed, then I forgot all about all of that when I saw the trash needed to be taken out, and then forgot about that because there were dirty dishes, and then my friend called, on and on and on....
You can go back and read that more slowly if you want.
I could have made that more easily readable, but if you read it really, really fast, well..that's what happens in my brain 24/7. Now you know just one of the many things that makes my wife amazing.
So, here's a link to Suicidal Tendencies' Institutionalized: http://youtu.be/9tBaMlAUj08
(In case you're not familiar with it.)
Imagine it being sung by the church body to the institution of church, (with some slight changes of course) and I think you'll find it rather humorous, maybe a little sad.
I'm not making any sort of statement, (Although, of course, you will come to your own conclusions because of my having suggested this.) I really did, just think it was funny.
I imagine more of you will relate to this, than will admit, but that's part of the deal too.
d(-_-)b
P.S. This is not at all what I thought I would be writing about
ADD, I wouldn't trade it for the world. Strange, eh?
I've enjoyed it most of the time. (Although it wreaked havoc with me in school, and contributed to my less than ideal upbringing, because no one really understood it back then.) It has given me a perspective on life I wouldn't otherwise have.
The blessing is often the curse as well.
It also makes life suck. I waste time doing things over and over, I can't find things and look for them only to realize I'm holding them, I can't concentrate, comprehend and recall things I've just read, or conversations I've just had. I drive by my destinations 2 and 3 times, all sorts of stuff.
It has a certain way of just making me depressed and and robbing me of self-esteem. I try not to bitch about it, but it's always there under the surface, just waiting to come out. Consequently, I can be a little thin skinned sometimes, to otherwise harmless remarks, and can be a little defensive needlessly. You should probably know this about me if you ever talk to me. Forgive me in advance.
Yesterday was one of those days for me. I never know when they'll happen, or what will set it off, but God works that out too, and I got some unsolicited encouragement from a few folks, so that was helpful.
Thank God for Addreall. (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmedhealth/PMH0000166/)
Part of the blessing of ADD is strange associations, leaps in logic, connecting thoughts or ideas that other people might not consider connecting together. It allows for some rather "creative" problem solving, and a lot of times I am funny or profound to people, when all I was really doing was just saying what I thought. Good for them, good for me.
I like word plays and typos, I've made up some pretty punny jokes (to me at least), and don't mind laughing at myself, all thanks to ADD.
The downside is, it also means I have the kind of thinking that is usually enjoyed more at a distance, with the filter of time, and is at times barely tolerable to those closest to me, as I process all these thoughts. The problem is, these thoughts never, NEVER stop for me. Sometimes, neither does my need to vocalize or express them. I used to lie awake for hours just wishing I could shut it off. Now I embrace it, and go with it.
You may have noticed I'm a bit of an over-poster on facebook. (Gee ya think?)
Read this as fast as you can> Today I was thinking once more about the church as a body, the church as an institution, the church as a body vs. the church as an institution, that we find God wherever we seek him, that the real problem is that we don't really seek him all that often, that he could be in a building or in the forest because where we are he is, so a building in itself isn't bad because it doesn't matter where you meet as long as you're meeting together, but we associate buildings with institutions, and we associate institutions with religion, but religion isn't Christianity, religion is an institution, then I thought about a song call Institutionalized, by Suicidal Tendencies, then I thought that church might be a sort of voluntary spiritual institutionalization of ourselves, then I thought about the church as a body singing this song to the church as an institution, and I laughed and laughed, then I forgot all about all of that when I saw the trash needed to be taken out, and then forgot about that because there were dirty dishes, and then my friend called, on and on and on....
You can go back and read that more slowly if you want.
I could have made that more easily readable, but if you read it really, really fast, well..that's what happens in my brain 24/7. Now you know just one of the many things that makes my wife amazing.
So, here's a link to Suicidal Tendencies' Institutionalized: http://youtu.be/9tBaMlAUj08
(In case you're not familiar with it.)
Imagine it being sung by the church body to the institution of church, (with some slight changes of course) and I think you'll find it rather humorous, maybe a little sad.
I'm not making any sort of statement, (Although, of course, you will come to your own conclusions because of my having suggested this.) I really did, just think it was funny.
I imagine more of you will relate to this, than will admit, but that's part of the deal too.
d(-_-)b
P.S. This is not at all what I thought I would be writing about
- You and Veronica Vanessa Vonk like this.
- Roberto Esponja Los Vonks Jonathan can confirm the Read this as fast as you can, because he was the phone call, and talked to him about all of this.Kind of funny, eh?
-
you shall know the truth
...you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.
by Roberto Esponja on Saturday, May 28, 2011 at 2:05am ·
Nothing is created from nothing.
And the fact of the matter is that nothing can be believed into, or out of, existence.
Our mere belief that something is so, does not make it so, any more than our disbelief can nullify it...
The Truth existed before us, and will continue to exist after us.
The Truth is infinite, while we are finite.
The Truth is eternal, not created, but always existing.
No beginning, no end, the Truth simply is.
By its eternal nature, the Truth can not be "relative", but must be absolute.
It is the standard, by which all standards are measured.
It it is absolute, and incorruptible, and it can not accept a lesser standard.
However, because it is absolute and incorruptible, it can be known.
We are created, limited by time, we have a beginning.
Thus, our comprehension of the Truth is limited to our experience.
We apply the Truth based on our experience, and understanding of it.
Our understanding of it, however, is quite simply and only that.
No more, no less.
The Truth stands alone.
It does does not consider our standards of fair or unfair, for it alone knows.
It exists, unchanging, regardless of our thoughts or actions, either for or against it.
It does not demand or require, our approval or acceptance.
For the Truth stands alone.
It will not become "more true", if we approve.
It will not change, however much we may disapprove.
Uncreated, it simply is, regardless of how WE feel about IT.
We do not, we can not, change the Truth.
The Truth, however, can and will changes us.
This alone makes it worth seeking.
And the fact of the matter is that nothing can be believed into, or out of, existence.
Our mere belief that something is so, does not make it so, any more than our disbelief can nullify it...
The Truth existed before us, and will continue to exist after us.
The Truth is infinite, while we are finite.
The Truth is eternal, not created, but always existing.
No beginning, no end, the Truth simply is.
By its eternal nature, the Truth can not be "relative", but must be absolute.
It is the standard, by which all standards are measured.
It it is absolute, and incorruptible, and it can not accept a lesser standard.
However, because it is absolute and incorruptible, it can be known.
We are created, limited by time, we have a beginning.
Thus, our comprehension of the Truth is limited to our experience.
We apply the Truth based on our experience, and understanding of it.
Our understanding of it, however, is quite simply and only that.
No more, no less.
The Truth stands alone.
It does does not consider our standards of fair or unfair, for it alone knows.
It exists, unchanging, regardless of our thoughts or actions, either for or against it.
It does not demand or require, our approval or acceptance.
For the Truth stands alone.
It will not become "more true", if we approve.
It will not change, however much we may disapprove.
Uncreated, it simply is, regardless of how WE feel about IT.
We do not, we can not, change the Truth.
The Truth, however, can and will changes us.
This alone makes it worth seeking.
- Roberto Esponjahttp://en.wikipedia.org/
wiki/Truth 
As the article above clearly points out there are many schools of thought regarding truth, and many definitions depending on what the term truth is being applied to.
So, just to give a perspective as to...See More 
Roxann AdamsenBear in mind that I write this as a heathen and anthropologist. The article is reminiscent of a well know philosophy posed by Socrates as recorded by Plato. It's called the Theory of Forms. It states that this is not the real world but a re...See More- Roxann Adamsen But keep in mind I do not believe in one central God. Sorry for the rambling reply. I had a paper written on this stuff but couldn't find it. Hope it gives you some food for thought.
- Roberto EsponjaWow! That was a great response, and for the most part I find myself in an amazing amount of agreement, until we get to "good" and "bad", but that is due more to our theological differences which color our standards of what is actually good or bad...Why do you call me good?" Jesus answered. "No one is good - except God alone.
I am also not fond of the popular term "their truth", because I don't believe I've ever heard it used in a way I feel accurately represents the point being made. We may choose to live out our understanding of truth in a way that differs from others, but our understanding of it is quite simply and only that. No more, no less. Again, our differing views regarding God, the Prime Mover, source of origin, whatever what you want to call it, is where we split on that point...What if some did not have faith? Will their lack of faith nullify God's faithfulness? May it never be! Rather, let God be found true, though every man be found a liar...
I feel compelled to believe that Truth, with God as the source of all origin including that of Truth, must be absolute and unchanging to be known. While we can not say the same of our perceptions of that Truth, the fact is we all seem to agree that truth exists however misunderstood it may be.
My initial line that nothing comes from nothing, was a rather feeble attempt at evidence for said creator. I also happen to believe that one of the great things about Jesus, is that he allows us no middle ground by His claims to be "one with the Father" (and on and on). He is either exactly what He said he was, or exactly the opposite of His claims, pretty powerful either way you view it given the mark He has made on history...Jesus told him, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one can come to the Father except through me.
Many of what we now call our greatest thinkers, were people throughout history that had been martyred or renounced by the church for their heresy in understanding of God and His Truth. Their willingness to think and seek for themselves revealed revolutionary (or heretical) views, that are now however just common thinking among many believers. So while I might not go so far as to say that someone else is wrong, per se', I certainly wouldn't be very honest if I didn't say that what I believe, I believe is right. (But I'm am always open to idea that I may be convinced otherwise, by listening to the conclusions of others.)
Bravo, Roxann, taking the time to look into these things and come to your own conclusions. That takes real work and perseverance. d(-_-)b - Roxann AdamsenYou're right we do split on theology but I admire your steadfast faith in a higher being. It was a Jesuit missionary in South America that said," All religion are valid. Who am I to limit God?" God is what you need it to be. For me god has little bearing on how I live my life. Religion serves a function which is to codify acceptable behaviour. I got that as a child but now that I know to abide by the rule of society I don't feel the need for it. The question you posed "What if some did not have faith?" struck a cord with me. I have no faith...in anything. I don't even have faith that the sun will rise tomorrow. The probability is that it will but I can't say with absolute faith and conviction that it will. There are too many possibilities, too many truths. I find that where you seek Truth, I find ambiguity. For instance, in therapy they tell us to "control your mind instead of your mind controlling you." What is "you?" Some would say it is the soul. But I ask how is it separate fro the "mind" and how does it relate to the brain? It lead to the question, are we the sum or our parts or are we more than the sum of our parts? And what happens to "you" when you die? These were earth shattering questions for me as it had certain implications. But all I'm left with are more unanswerable questions. Again sorry for the rambling.
- Roberto EsponjaI will admit, by virtue of my faith, I have been given a far different position in the process, in that I have a book to reference, that is rich with history, and filled with linear thought that stems from a common origin of faith that spans over thousands of years. But if you took all of the conclusions, of all of the lifetimes, spanning all of time, ambiguity is what you will always find at a certain point, when the finite is attempting to understand the infinite. In fact, I am always most suspect of the motives of those who claim to have all the answers.
It almost seems to me that you have walked on to an ongoing building project, and decided that everything must go, so you can repour the foundation.
I don't know you are looking for, or hope to find, but it seems that finding a starting point of some sort, and understanding that you aren't going to find every answer you may hope to, is a great way to at least find some of the most crucial answers. Some things are crucial to know, some are nice to know, some things can not be known, and with other things, knowing is irrelevant for it simply is what it is. So it is up to us to seek the answers we are compelled to believe we need, but we don't need all the answers, no matter how much we believe we might.
Of course I will tell you the Bible is a great place to start. Why wouldn't I, if that's what I believe? BTW You do have faith, you exercise it to a degree everyday, whether you aknowledge it or not. I will say however you are right given your beliefs, about the what we are guaranteed in life. I just happen to believe there is more.
I am not yet complete
I am not yet complete
by Roberto Esponja on Thursday, May 26, 2011 at 9:39pm ·
I threw this together this afternoon. It means everything you wish it didn't, and more....
I don't often share what I write, I feel it makes me vulnerable, and I don't like that. (Who does, right?) So if I tagged you, I'm not looking for a response.It is because I respect you and I just thought you might understand or relate. Ignore it, share it, tell me how wrong I am, do whatever you want...
I am a caterpillar, a very hungry caterpillar.
In this cocoon for a time,
I must learn which leaves are good for sustenance
And which will slowly kill me.
One glorious day I will be released
To be the butterfly I was created to be
But that day is not this one.
I am a fish, caught by the fisher of men
I have been released
Not into a bowl, to live a life of comfort and confinement
But into the ocean, to live freely
Swimming among the sharks, who would love to devour me.
I have been slow to learn of the cruel fishermen
That would leave me to drown in their nets,
That would feast on my carcass, and throw away my remains.
I am not the prize catch,
And after providing for them what they need,
They will, and do, move on to their next.
...I understand this now.
I am dust, and will be blown away with the wind.
When the life breathed into me, is taken from me,
and returned to its giver,
I will return to the earth from which I came.
I am only one part, not unlike the millions of others
I am barely a even a factor in the whole equation
I am almost nothing, and yet I exist
My thoughts and words mean little, to most
But they are all I have in defining who I am
And if, in the quest to understand the great I Am,
I can not be honest,
Well then...
I can not truly BE anything.
d(-_-)b
I don't often share what I write, I feel it makes me vulnerable, and I don't like that. (Who does, right?) So if I tagged you, I'm not looking for a response.It is because I respect you and I just thought you might understand or relate. Ignore it, share it, tell me how wrong I am, do whatever you want...
I am a caterpillar, a very hungry caterpillar.
In this cocoon for a time,
I must learn which leaves are good for sustenance
And which will slowly kill me.
One glorious day I will be released
To be the butterfly I was created to be
But that day is not this one.
I am a fish, caught by the fisher of men
I have been released
Not into a bowl, to live a life of comfort and confinement
But into the ocean, to live freely
Swimming among the sharks, who would love to devour me.
I have been slow to learn of the cruel fishermen
That would leave me to drown in their nets,
That would feast on my carcass, and throw away my remains.
I am not the prize catch,
And after providing for them what they need,
They will, and do, move on to their next.
...I understand this now.
I am dust, and will be blown away with the wind.
When the life breathed into me, is taken from me,
and returned to its giver,
I will return to the earth from which I came.
I am only one part, not unlike the millions of others
I am barely a even a factor in the whole equation
I am almost nothing, and yet I exist
My thoughts and words mean little, to most
But they are all I have in defining who I am
And if, in the quest to understand the great I Am,
I can not be honest,
Well then...
I can not truly BE anything.
d(-_-)b
- Roberto Esponja Matt Beem, Dustin Corey I couldn't tag you two for some reason, so here it is.
-
John Mullis I kiss you on the top of the head. Well said, Roberto.
I don't go to church...
I don't go to church...
by Roberto Esponja on Thursday, May 19, 2011 at 11:05pm ·
...I'm not looking for a church, and I have no interest in following the salesmen in the business of church.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)