.... and of the art of persuasion

What would be the motive for persuasion? Can one really change the minds of others? If I look at myself I must admit that it is extremely difficult for me to change my mind. Even if I do acknowledge that someone has a good point I still approach it with great caution and even defensiveness (and I am one who loves new ideas and fresh perspectives). Even so, I wholeheartedly align to new ideas and the challenge towards growth that these new ideas offer yet my inner core values seem to be often at war with my cognitive choices. This is not entirely a bad thing as we do need to be discerning and not simply accept everything that comes our way. However, what does this say about our ability to be persuaded? What does it say about our ability to persuade others and induce them to make a change or shift in their own lives? Can we do this? Do we have the right to do this?

Some very fascinating angles from biblical texts add more of a twist to all of this. A psalm written in the turbulence of inner suffering and need, even despair and depression says, “Deep calls to deep in the roar of your waterfalls.” Water often speaks of teaching in biblical symbolism. This suggests that even in the roar of much cascading teaching and persuasion it is the depth in and of the turbulence at the bottom of the waterfall wherein the call is found and settled, not in the rush of many droplets, but in the core body at the base of the waterfall. The issues of life seem to be deep and not cerebrally superficial. They seem to be core values that are deeply inlaid inside of us. Ancient paths laid long ago. Head knowledge is of great value, but core knowledge still seems to hold all the aces.

Another vexing passage speaks out that no one can come to Christ unless the father who sent him draws him. A quote from the prophets adds to this by saying, “They will all be taught by God.” Jesus continues to say that only those who hear from God the father can or will come to him (Christ). To my mind this injects a challenge to the persuasiveness of man that we so passionately engage in. Surely being taught by God is a very different thing to being taught by man?

Even if we could persuade another does this mean that they are able to change and be accepted by God? According to the texts above we have to ask if persuasion is synonymous with deep calling to deep. What if the person we persuade is not called of God? How will we or they know? What if they or we believe that they are called, does this make them called? Is it not God alone who decides this?

In all our efforts to persuade others by proclamation are we not possibly treading on the path of ground we know not of? Are we not trespassing on land that might not at all be ours to walk on?

the stench just got worse for me, how’s it smell to you?

I heard the other day that if we could put every person alive on planet earth together in one physical place, allocating a square meter to each individual we would all be able to fit into the state of Texas, USA. Now that might not be 100% accurate and confirmed as yet but it sure birthed a shocking realisation in my mind almost immediately. I suddenly thought of how much space was left over in the world. I then started thinking about how we are told that we are running out of natural resources – plants, food, water, fertile land, oxygen minerals, etc. etc. I also heard that if we pooled all the money and divided it all up equally amongst every living person on earth each would be a multi-millionaire in US dollars. …. Maybe I’m not all that smart, but this all seems a little crazy to me. It smells funny doesn’t it?

Alongside all of this there is mounting pressure on us to be eco-friendly and to conserve and spare our resources like water and also to not waste stuff like food and mineral resources etc. Now this sounds good, reasonable and wise even, responsible.

However, a very few individuals have got a monopoly on water and food and the control of resources and production. Alongside this our governments tax everything…. we even pay them to breathe the air which they never owned and to live on the land that they never created. At the same time industry consumes vast quantities of natural resources to make a lot of mostly unnecessary things to sell to us at mostly exorbitant profit yet we (labeled “consumers”) are under ever increasing pressure to cut back on excesses seemingly so that they can continue to make more stuff to sell back to us. ? ….  the stench just got worse for me, how’s it smell to you?

social appropriateness

what is social appropriateness? i am reminded fairly often that i'm not really all that socially appropriate, but who decides this? i even remind myself. now where does that come from? i've heard that some things are best not said. in fact i don't even need to hear it, rolling eyes, glares from across the room, rejection, distance, all these speak faster than the words of this social value. there is a saying that goes, "don't cast your pearl before swine" which is wise i think. but has honesty become one of these pearls we cannot cast? it's not safe to be honest anymore. i think we are far too socially appropriate for our own health. the ground swell of socially appropriate pop culture doesn't really show an interest in honesty. we'd rather keep it superficial. "too much information" is even too much information so it's become tmi. i wonder how strong our release valves really are? it makes me think of tectonic plates. it seems socially appropriate to live in hip places like california, maybe we all live in california in our minds? to live on a fault line and pretend that it’s not dangerous is what I would call socially inappropriate