Originally posted on July 5, 2019 @ 1:03 am
It’s late; 12:12 AM. I’m listening to a singer who goes by the name “Sade”. She is singing a song titled “Somebody Already Broke My Heart”, and this woman can sing. Its smooth, almost jazz, but much better, with a simple rythm, simple lyrics and her velvet voice.
Thought you might be curious about the music I listen to at 12:12 AM on a Friday morning in South Texas.
I’m not working tonight, not burning with the Words in my heart demanding to be written. But there is something that I want to share with you, its just going to take me a minute to find out what that is. Some patience as I work my way down to it, please.
I went for a nice, brisk three-hour hike today with a party of perfect strangers. It was great fun. I met some fine people and had some really nice conversations as we stomped through the forest and fields. The only time Yahuah came up was when a fellow hiker commented about some pork recipe in Portugal, and that Muslims don’t eat pork.
I replied that followers of Yahuah don’t eat pork either, and she was kind of stumped by that. After a short pause, I commented that He teaches that pork is unclean and that we are not to eat it. Her reply was perfect: “Well, yeah, but that was 2000 years ago.”
People operate under the selfish “You, too, can be as God” notion that if He said it a long time ago, then it no longer is valid. That made me laugh. Not her saying it but me writing it. I’m still smiling.
I reminded her that Yahuah does not change, that He is the same yesterday, today and for ever, and that He told us plainly that His teachings are “forever”. She asked me if I recently gave up pork, and I replied “No, it was years ago. And I made the best pork ribs you could ever eat”.
And that was the end of the spiritual part of our journey. We talked quite a bit about linguistics and machine-learning. She told me that there is an Inuit tribe that speaks without using their voices. That’s quite a trick and when she explained to me how they do it, I was fascinated. They simply exhale air through their mouths, reshaping their lips or changing the origin of the air from their mouths to their lungs, creating entire phrases made of non-vibrating air.
That is pretty cool, is it not?
We have opportunities every day to speak of Yahuah to strangers. There are opportunities to speak of Him in almost every conversation with any person. We don’t have to teach an entire doctrinal study. We can make a lifelong impact on a person with something as simple as “Oh, I don’t eat pork.” They will ask why, and presto! There is your brief opening.
Those small opportunities are so valuable, because we can be candid, non-confrontational, friendly, honest and non-threatening. We don’t embarrass them or come across as lecturing – we just share something important with a stranger who will quite possibly never meet another follower of the Way.
My comment that I do not eat pork because Yahuah made an impression on her. I could tell because she literally did not know how to respond. She was silent for a moment, so I knew that she was listening and that she heard me. And then the follow-on that His Word is eternal. I could have further taught her that Yahusha said plainly that if we love Him we will keep His commands, but that will come on another hike.
We build with small stones. Slowly, over time, ears open to opportunity, we gradually build strong houses.
Looking around at all the wickedness in the world, it is easy for we of the Way to consider our lives as being invisible. We are not flashy people 🙂 But neither is salt particularly flashy. Not like pepper – all hot and black and spicy. But we are the one thing that makes all food better, even ice cream. It is an honor to be salt. Small, common looking, taken for granted everywhere, and badly missed when it is gone.
You are the salt of the earth. As long as you are here, the world is truly a better place. You make a difference in a thousand little ways every week of your life. You move forward the Faith, you serve Yahuah and He is so glad to know you.
I am, too.
