Sunday, September 20, 2015

Animals Are My Passion...

Anyone who knows me, and knows my heart, knows that above all, my heart is for animals. All animals. No matter where in the world, I advocate, fight, write and believe for all sentient beings.

I'm writing now in the midst of our newest family member walking on the keyboard. Bean has come to us as of Friday from a feral litter that my mother has hand reared since their 5th week. Bean is now almost 14 weeks old. She was the runt of her litter, and is a very "string bean" size... narrow, small, but full of spunk! She has quickly become one of the family.

I have friends and family who take joy in killing sentient beings. I don't support such practices. I cannot thwart these things in my family, or in people in general, but I do not believe in such practices, and they all know it. My life has become, over time, one that stands against the murder and all use of animals for any human needs or wants. We have become a world of want. Anything we "want" or "need" is easily accessible by non violent means. No more are we required to butcher animals for our food or clothing... our success or pleasure. The people who do are in the wrong in my opinion, and have no reason to believe they are in the right. Short sightedness... careless. Unbecoming people in my opinion. Yes, even my family whom I love dearly. You are wrong... and you've moved beyond a vegetarian lifestyle to one that your new spouse has advocated. There was no reason for that... but I digress.

It is my belief that the Lord planned on us as a Human Race to be plant based beings. He had Adam name the animals creatures that He gave him. There was no talk of killing of any animal or bird until Adam and Eve fell. My brother the biblical expert cannot thwart that reality. That being said, I believe that our lives should not be about containing, killing, mutilating, eating, or otherwise harming any other sentient being in this world we have been given charge over. I will never believe that what the Lord had planned was what we are living in now. We see pestilence... plague... wars and rumors of war... anger... hatred to other cultures and beings... it never ends. What we don't see is a hatred or war against plants. They were placed here to give us sustenance. They live, but do not have conscience. They live, but do not fear... Such as the Presence of the Lord.

Other people may not believe what I believe. I don't blame them, nor do I move from my stance. You can believe what you want, and so do I.

There will never be a time, until the coming of the Lord, where my mind may change on these issues. I know He made me, and I know He made me this way... for a reason. I am a strong standing advocate for truth and justice for all sentient beings. Why do we need people like me? Why are there so many people who live to harm... live to kill... live to eat the things that our bodies weren't even meant to eat? I don't understand. I've been a vegetarian for 23 years, and am at the cusp of being a vegan. No other person who isn't vegan can say their lives don't negatively impact any other lives. Some may say that these beings were placed in our world for our consumption. I disagree. They were placed in this world for our enjoyment... our joy... our pleasure. We were meant to love these beings and care for them the way the Lord meant His love to be for us. We were given Dominion. That doesn't mean we were meant to kill them and eat them. That ONLY HAPPENED when Adam and Eve had already fallen short of God's demands. The Garden of Eden proves it. Were there animals there for Adam and Eve to mutilate? Eat? Take for their own coverings or to use as anything but being among them? No! They were there for Adam to name. They were there for pleasure in the reality that they were different! They were beautiful! They were so amazingly created! Who are we to cut a life short for our own amusement! We are no one! The Lord cuts our lives short even as we cut His beings short in their lives!

I have a hard line of thinking on these things... it's not without years of advocacy, watching, waiting, and practice. From the wonderful elephant, to the tiny butterfly... we are to watch over them! We are to CARE FOR THEM. This was the Lord's first charge. From there, and from the Fall... we have become a cruel, inhumane, unconscious being who does whatever we can to rape, bleed, and suck dry this earth that we have been given.

This is my most precious belief in this life. I yearn for the Lord to return, and to show all of us what He really had in mind for us as a race. Until then, I fight. Fight with me... it's valid.

Monday, September 14, 2015

Dealing with Uncertainty...

Uncertainty is a difficult place to be in a part of your life. I've seen a lot of uncertainty in life lately. Wildfires, war, unrest in marriages, struggling individuals in their own minds. The reality is clear - uncertainty is unacceptable if you're searching for peace.

Currently I'm dealing with friends' issues with uncertainty, as well as my own. The realms range from family realities, friendships, goals, passions, and the like. I tend to take on my friends and family's issues when I'm reached out to. I want to be all I can be for these folks, and I end up burdening my own mental health as a result. It seems similar to the wildfires this year, as this years' fires have been triple what is normally battled. It feels so bleak, but I know the Lord keeps me in His care, under His wings... and I pray He does that for these people of mine as well.

Uncertainty captures our thoughts almost all the time. We dwell, fret, pray, and think of these things while trying to move through our lives. Life is always thwarted by these issues... it isn't as though it isn't normal. Although, as I'm currently seeing, the things being dwelled on and fretted over are more than simply minor issues. They are life changing and quaking realities that they face. One thing I know is that the power of prayer is involved. If only by me, it will go forth in each issue and each life, knowing the Lord is in control, and He has the final say.

As of myself, I have hit a bit of a skid in my artistic and financial certainty. Although I realize my financial security does not exist outside of my partner Ben, I have been feeling successful with the things I've been doing that has increased not only my income but my artistic fluidity. Right now I'm continuing in faith. I do not have any more paying projects on hand, but I believe, with the success I've had online, and the belief of my friends and family, that I will come to a new place of success. I go forward in faith.

My friends and family are on my heart. I pray for their success, their peace, and their answers in the issues they have believed in me to pray over and be a support of. These are major hurdles. Major life changers. Staggeringly so. I have a lighthearted hope for one of these things, which is rare for me. I think it stems from this person's own excitement and enthusiasm. My God will not fail them. My God stands with me in the prayer for the successes of my friends and family. He answers me. He loves me. Whom shall I fear? No. One.

I encourage my readers, vast and staggering they may be... to trust in The Lord for your peace, your answers, your courage. Be blessed because He knows your name. He knows who you are, and what you're dealing with. Don't be discouraged! Be encouraged! He is there!

Please pray for my loved ones. I continue in faith to know His answers are clear, just, and true. Thank you!