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I am a pastor and a clinical psychotherapist. My life's passion is defining healthiness from a human perspective and paralleling it to the holiness of God, divine perspective. Shifting perspectives creates a paradigm that is alongside of rather than over and against. The parakalein of God and the paradoxes of humanity are redefined. Humanity is all about winning and yet we are losing ground everywhere. Divinity is all about letting go of the desire to win and the fear of loss. The Divine embraces the world with loving care regardless of anything.

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Rob Bell rings a bell, it is not hell

Posted by Don Paine



I listened to Rob Bell talking about his concept of God's primary character of loving and I shouted a huge amen!


Then I heard the vultures attacking him much like the person who attacked Ghandi and is certain he is in hell.  Then I realized I just called a group of God's  children who GOd loves, vultures.   Hmmm! We are all the same only different. Though we are all different in some respects we are the same,


The idea of certainty grabs all of us.  We  want to know.  We then want to tell people what they need to know.  Thankfully God just loves.  Certainty feeds our human self, our disoriented egos,  


I do think "Love wins" is only part of the story but none of us can ever know or tell the whole story, that is certain. Love also has the courage and discipline to lose and not make it a failure.  Another part tells me it is not about winning or losing, as these are human characteristics that set us up to compete and contradict,  God's spirit is loving toward all so is not competitive or contradictory but calm and compassionate.  God is Spirit and God is love and they are not competitive or contradictory.  


Ghandi is in heaven because he lived the way Jesus lived in sacrificial surrender to the needs of humanity before his own needs, in peace and in loving toward all.  After all that is the way the truth and the life.   I have met many in churches who say they are going to heaven and that they are certain.  They do not live the way Jesus did, they do not share the truth of honest reflection that Jesus did, and they do not live the life Jesus lived.


The kicker:  neither Ghandi or I would say of them they are going to hell.  I can disagree with someone and still be loving toward them.


God is would to God we wound be.


Thank you Rob for courage and honesty regardless of error or right.

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