In Spirit and In Truth

I'm back. Seven years after my last published article on this site, I've come to revisit my old, cherished friend. Taking a much-needed break from IS & IT, I've spent the last seven years nurturing my passion for holistic living , becoming a herbalist, holistic writer, lifestyle consultant and a social media specialist for the natural products industry. To those who followed IS & IT back then...I'm sure you're curious...my final tally of Crumb-Snatchers...eight. :) So, I've been called to return to write with the knowledge that I've gained these past seven years. Having been through and currently am experiencing trials and tribulation, I write with a new mind that I haven't had previously. We live in strange times. Truth, if you share any love for her, is brutally under attack. These are times that call for an exposing of the lies that mislead, ensnares souls and depresses spirits that are by principle, free to see, roam and explore Trut...

Being a member of the former World Wide Church of God, we would frequently refer to our church as "the true church".  And truly I believed I found the "true church" of God. This was an organization was extremely legalistic by standards. They imposed all sorts of rules and regulations, you'd be hard pressed to find the Good Book. Nevertheless, I felt then, it was worth it, as it was the "true church" after all. Back then, all other churches were "false", and the haughtiness we carried amongst ourselves, and neatly folded doctrinal materials, justified our judgmental behavior as we were true members.  I'd laugh looking back from where I stand now, except it's unfunny. Looking back, I see a sad, desperate, situation. A group of folks with severe self-esteem issues grasping at any resemblance of self-importance. Severe self-esteem issues, I say because it showed a true lack of understanding of God's grace and Christ'...

Okay, now this is funny. Looking at my stats for this blog a month ago, I noticed I was getting some traffic from a porn site. Yes, that's right...porn. Well, I thought, my outreach is heading in the right direction and paid it no nevermind. A month later, I was contacted by a webmaster requesting a link exchange. The webmaster believed that my blog would fit perfectly into their "collection of quality links" on their site. In hindsight, his insistence that the email was not spam should have been my first clue that this request was not your typical link exchange request. Nevertheless, I clicked on the link and was bombarded with pictures of a woman displaying her ta-tas. My blog is a perfect fit for a porn site?! I was offended! The more I thought of it the more I realized that quite possibly, the webmaster may have taken my "no judgment/no hypocrisy" message a bit too far. So, I had to laugh. Let me state, while free will exists, I will not contribut...

I received a tweet from @CoconutHealth yesterday and was riveted by their post: Medicine: Idolatry in the Twenty First Century http://bit.ly/e8cUZO Very rarely do I refer or endorse other scriptural material, but I am in agreement with the content in this article. I encourage you to read the article in full as it compares America’s love affair for prescription drugs to idolatry. It makes fascinating and thought-provoking points and comparisons. Here is an excerpt: “Are things any different today in terms of idolatry? It has taken on a different form, but it is in essence the same thing it has always been – trust in idols rather than God to supply our needs and desires. Modern-day culture has changed dramatically since the theory of Darwinian evolution came on the scene and dominated academics in western culture, so that today the physical world is exalted above all other realities. The spiritual world is either denied or ignored. Hence, creation of physical idols is very uncom...

The beauty of raising seven children is the variety of characteristics that grace our home. There is no shortage of creativity. I absolutely love the fact that these seven babes display a rainforest of personalities, exotic and unique, come from the same people. What an Artist we have in the Lord! And like a rainforest, people populate the earth, all with talents, skills and thoughts, some unique, others not so unique, but all glorify the Creative Artist in Him. Being a member of the WWCG long ago, there was a limit on uniqueness. There was no vision of creativity. Blacks and whites were not allowed to mix. Marriages that didn’t fit certain criteria were to be separated. Women were only allowed to wear specific items of clothing, devoid of makeup and allowed to work only at certain jobs. Having come from this background, there’s no wonder why I’m sensitive to any hint of mainstream conform. Many religious organizations are full of, if not mandatory, then pressured, conformity of gr...

I cannot count the number of times a Christian has used the "Body is a temple" example to justify legalistic measures or judgmental condemnation against behaviors such as smoking, drinking and sex. Yet these same people who proclaim to be holy in body are the first to blurt out "OH My God!" at the most inane and simplistic things. A proclamation that clearly uses the Lord's name quite vainly. How can such a temple speak faithless things? These same people, zealous for what they believe to be true evangelism preach this example of guilt, will in a second, wring their hands quite worrisome when their next meal is in question. How can such a temple speak faithless things? Expressions of doubt of one's salvation. Worries about food, clothing and shelter are common sentiments I have heard from Christians who chastise others who do "physical" wrongs, yet they doubt the security that comes with Christ's blood, going against the very fabric of why ...

Here's an interesting website called BatteredSheep.com that talks about Armstrongism . Here's a portion of what is talked about on the site: It is astonishing that many still bow at the feet of the deceased Herbert W. Armstrong as if he were God himself. There are websites by ex-members of the Worldwide Church of God, that have a great deal to say about their experiences within this modern day church organization. Some such websites are:  The Painful Truth ,  Exit & Support Network , and there are many websites about the Worldwide Church of God on the Internet. There are innumerable personal stories by ex-members of this authoritarian hierarchy and tragically some ex-members are now "atheists", while some over the years have committed suicide. Others have fanned out into many different church organizations, while others no longer attend church, and others are members of various splinter groups. Herbert W. Armstrong still has many followers, including splinter...