#however if you ship them i will personally manifest into your house and start throwing things

[painless-innit-colourful]

‘Come Home’

A TommyInnit & Clingyduo Fic ahead of the final showdown tomorrow - spoilers for today’s (19th) Tommy stream.

tw for events of Exile Arc (skippable if you miss out the entire middle section of the fic, marked by three dashes on their own separate line)

The rush, the high. He’s been chasing this feeling since forever. It’s not a perfect replacement for the real thing, which he hasn’t felt in such a long time. It’s not a fluttering but an explosion, not the strumming of the guitar but the crash of the drums, not the rain but the thunder and lightning, though even that’s become fraught for him recently. He remembers the last time, a wonderful five minutes sandwiched by pain and chaos and destruction. His best friend standing on a stage, new leader of L’Manberg. A fresh start, the promise of peace and prosperity for all around them. But then it was all over, all brought down so quickly. The Tommy that cheered at his best friend’s inauguration is unrecognisable now.

But Tubbo is not, and between the scars and the new outfit and all the words, both spoken and unsaid, it’s still them. Tommy tastes the potion they’ve just made and hears his best friend’s laughter, and if he closes his eyes, he can pretend for a few fleeting seconds that nothing has changed at all. If he opens his eyes, he’ll be back in the camarvan, and Wilbur will walk in through the door with more blaze rods and laugh at the two of them and ruffle his hair. The discs will be in his ender chest if he wants to listen to one with Tubbo. There’s a lake outside the door and a forest and a whole wide world to explore, and Tommy’s only worry is that Punz will yell at him if he sees him for having a ‘Fortnite build battle on his front lawn’ a little while ago. He opens his eyes and then takes another swig of potion to dampen his disappointment.

“Aye careful,” Tommy’s vaguely aware of Tubbo pulling the bottle away from his face before he accidentally upends it on himself. “Don’t want you looking like Sapnap earlier.” Tubbo’s grin is brighter than the sun on snow. “I have no idea what was happening with Cracknap other than he still needs help.” Tubbo’s laughter is soft, “He’s not the only one anymore.”

“Too shay.”

They drift upstairs, and then eventually out the door. It’s around 3 o’clock in the afternoon, and there are clouds drifting on the edge of the horizon. They’re dark and heavy-looking, but for now too far away to block the pale winter sunlight keeping the outside temperature a stubborn 10 degrees C. “I should go back to Snowchester.” Tubbo looks restless as they step onto the Prime Path. Tommy knows the feeling. Suddenly tomorrow can’t come soon enough.

“You’ll come back though, right? Tonight, one last ride?” They embrace, squeezing tightly as Tubbo hums an agreement. “Of course. One last ride.” And then they withdraw, and Tubbo gives a small wave as he disappears down the hill towards his highway, and Tommy watches him go. And when he finally looks up, alone with his thoughts once more, he realises he is leaning on the back of his bench; here again, always retreading the same ground. He briefly entertains the idea of putting on a disc and staying a little while, but he doesn’t have any music to live up to the occasion. Not Far, nor Pigstep or Wait, and he still hasn’t sorted out his complicated feelings over his version of Blocks. Besides, he still has things to sort out before the showdown. He walks away to prepare, humming Mellohi lightly as he goes.

---

‘Home’ is a fraught word for Tommy now. Every home the boy has had in this land is either steeped in blood and bad memories, or blown to bits beyond repair. Somedays Tommy wakes up alone and forgets that L’Manberg was wiped off the map, and it comes as a nasty shock when he rounds the corner by his home to see a crater that stretches all the way down to bedrock. Pogtopia never really felt like home, but it was bad enough when it was only soulless stone walls and bashing your head on the lanterns hanging from the ceiling that its inhabitants and visitors had to contend with. After the Manberg Festival, there was an entire room in there that’s sole purpose was to remind Tommy that he didn’t save his friend and couldn’t have if he’d tried, dried blood on the walls and all. Then there's the fact that it’s practically server tradition at this point: if you want to send TommyInnit a message, leave it on signs in his house. Don’t forget to blow up the house first though! Tommy forgets how many times he’s had to put his abode back together; probably about as many times as he’s had to reconstruct himself.

That leaves Logstedshire. Sometimes he agrees with himself that that place doesn’t deserve to be considered a home of his. He sure as hell didn’t want to live there, barely survived his stay, and the place is mostly blown up, the awful icing on the dreadful cake that was his second exile from L’Manberg. He supposes it could be considered weird that he finds himself stepping down a path he never wanted to walk again, but today… Today is about closure. And if he can look Technoblade in the eyes with a belt-full of potions stolen from his chests, he’s brave enough to face his fears in Logsted. As he arrives at the portal, he hesitates, his gaze drifting away from the swirling purple and to the bubbling orange, much further below. So many times has he been here, only then his mind was a much worse thing to own, a clouded mass of hateful thoughts, most of them not his own. Where the bridge meets thin air there are patches of a shimmering wind where the heat takes the place of the nothingness, and if he squints Tommy can imagine himself standing on the edge, wondering what would happen if he'd just let go. He’s glad now that he was in the Overworld when he made the pillar, even if it seemed like he had nowhere to go.

Logstedshire is haunted, even more so than the Nether path. It’s exactly how Tommy remembers it: the broken Nether portal missing a single piece of obsidian, the craters untouched, the pillar still stretching skyward. He can see himself again; on the beach, repairing the chests, standing at the top of the tower. It’s like being in a haunted house where all the ghosts are yourself. But Tommy isn’t afraid. The ‘Drista’ sign makes him laugh, the ocean where he’d wake up drowning (trying to make it home to where? A country that no longer exists) gets a small wave, even the pillar gets a smile, because he’s here to look at it from the ground. It was a bad time in his life - possibly the worst -  but he made it out the other side. And that’s what matters.

There are some craters though, some specific memories that Tommy can’t face yet. The smiling mask of the green man, snatching items out of Tommy’s hands to then force him to watch as he blew them to bits. How he specifically said “I want you to watch.” when he blew up everything Tommy and Ghostbur had managed to scrape together for themselves out there alone. The two-by-two hole in the centre of the largest crater, and how just glancing at it summons Dream’s voice to his mind, taunting him as he grabbed him by the front of his already ripped shirt and hoisted him over the short drop, “Why don’t you get in the hole, Tommy?”

Those still sting. There’s a reason, he supposes, why Wilbur went mad after losing L’Manberg. Why he asked Philza to kill him instead of facing the wreckage all around. But Tommy refuses to be just another repeat of history. Tommy looks into the pit made by Dream’s TNT where scraps of happiness were burned, and he spits at it.

No more.

TommyInnit heads home.

---

Hours pass. Tubbo returns from Snowchester soaked through to the skin but smiling. Tommy helps him peel off several layers of frozen clothing (he decides not to ask in regards to the hazmat suit), finding out that the nukes project is going well but they are presented with the usual issues of living in a frozen tundra: cold.

After Tubbo’s showered and changed, they share a dinner giggling about really dumb topics like Tommy pulling a fast one on Technoblade, Jack Manifold being weird and unhelpful again, and good old GeorgeNotFound. The hours fly by, and it's much later that they’re getting ready for bed when the heavens finally open, and the sound of a heavy downpour seeps in through the cracks of Tommy’s dirt house. Tommy can feel the smile crossing his face until he remembers his house is a dirt shack at present, and mud houses aren’t generally known for being the most watertight. Tubbo gets a good laugh out of his expression when he comes bustling down the stairs dragging his bed behind him, crying out, “Our clothes! Beds! Tubbo-” Their plans changed and they put their beds in the storage room, the room voted Least Likely To Have a Leak by a grand majority of two. The sound of the rain is somehow less muffled down there, and it clatters against the ceiling almost melodically.

Tommy picks up the crossbow from the pile of clothes and other bits and bobs he grabbed from upstairs when the downpour started. ‘Chekhov's Gun’. Wilbur’s gun. As in, actual Alivebur’s weapon, from before he blew up L’Manberg. It feels heavy in his hands. Too heavy. Wilbur’s voice echoes through his head, not the usual line he hears in his nightmares, but similar. 

“You’re never going to be president, Tommy.”

It doesn’t hurt anymore. Wilbur gave him that choice, and he declined. He wonders, with a certain detachment, how it all would’ve turned out if he’d chosen to take the presidency. He certainly wouldn’t have exiled Tubbo.

Tubbo, who’s looking at him with a lopsided grin, standing by his bed and holding his covers aloft, one leg already in bed. It seems like an invitation. “You alright?” Tommy nods and sets down the crossbow and clothes on top of one of the chests, “Yeah… Goodnight Tubs.”

“Goodnight Tommy.”

In the split second before either of them can commit to getting into bed, Tommy hears Wilbur again. This time though, he doesn’t mock him, nor does he sound too far gone to be saved. This iteration of Wilbur Soot wears a captain’s hat instead of a beanie, and speaks with soft conviction, and puts his hands on Tommy’s shoulders like he can shield the teen from the choice that he’s made.

“I want you to do whatever your heart says you should do.”

“Tubbo wait,” Tommy catches his best friend by the arm. Two pairs of blue eyes meet briefly as Tommy pulls him into a hug, putting one hand on the back of Tubbo’s head and messing with the hairs at the nape of his neck. Tubbo’s surprise doesn’t last long, and he hugs back, burying his face in Tommy’s shoulder and balling Tommy’s shirt into his fists. Tommy breathes a deep sigh, trying to make the moment last, but knowing no one lives forever. Eventually they split, and Tommy ruffles Tubbo’s hair as they grin at each other with tired eyes and heavy limbs. “Okay, goodnight Tubbo.”

The older boy in question takes two steps back and sits down on his bed, shuffling back quickly and holding the covers open, smiling invitingly. “Tommy,” His voice sounds like honey, so sickly-sweet it shouldn’t be nice, but is. There’s also a heavy undertone of teasing going on to start with, but it becomes more genuine suddenly. “Come home.” And Tommy understands and climbs in beside him, and they tease each other for being clingy and sappy as they try to get comfortable, and then they quiet to the odd remark as they find the right place, Tubbo’s head resting on Tommy’s collarbone, their arms wrapped around each other and Tommy’s head leaning on Tubbo’s. Tubbo drops off first, and Tommy is waiting in the noisy quiet for sleep to claim him too, listening to the rain pattering on the roof and his friend’s breathing beside him. And in the quiet, he realises a couple things.

He realises he rather likes the rain without the thunder, and that maybe the guitar is better than the drums, and that the fluttering in his chest is more uplifting than the explosion of a vibrant heart. It’s not the triumphant high he’s been chasing. It’s quieter, it’s comforting, it’s a warm feeling in his whole being. It’s just as good as the victorious moment. It’s perfect.

The second thing he realises is that he’s been wrong since the beginning. Home was never Logstedshire or Pogtopia, but neither was it L’Manberg or even the building they’re currently in. Home was the togetherness L’Manberg brought, sitting around a campfire singing the national anthem and putting more effort into the ‘fuck Eret’ part every time it came around. Home was listening to Wilbur’s guitar echoing through the caverns at Pogtopia and complaining about eating Technoblade’s potato stew for the third day running while your comrades laughed. Home is right here, wrapped in the arms of your favourite person, belly full of good food, listening to the rain as sleep slowly takes you. He sees that now.

TommyInnit is home.

[falloutjay]

Stan x anxious/compassionate reader (kind of has a little canon divergence)

After giving up on Wendy (around Season 12), Stan and us start dating, we were always worried about him (no we weren't dating him out of pity, we were just a very anxious person). Some people find of clingy, others find us adorable but We've never left his side:

Ex: We were by his side helping with whales (Whale W)

We were the only one who didn't leave him when he got depression (You're Getting Old/Ass Burgers)

Next to Heidi, we became social pariah because we didn't want to dump Stan (this even made Wendy guilty)

But him moving, really gets to us, the coronavirus makes it worse. We get worried about him, then we start getting worried about everyone else as everything falls apart (Kyle, Kenny, Eric, Butters, Tweek, Craig, Scott, etc.) And we pass out of stress. About waking up in the hospital, we find out, everyone was worried about us. And Stan is the most worried of all, he spends the whole day with us. We tal-no vent about all the happened to the both of us. By the end of it, we agree that whatever happens we'll do it together.

Guess whos back! :D

Well, while it's not my best work, in my humble opinion, I sure hope you enjoy and like it. Again sorry for the delay! ಥ_ಥ

And if it's not that clear, because I know I can write a little cryptic, there is a time skip. You can either have all the show events happen when they are children and have the time skip between Covid and the memories or between you getting together as kids and the memories. Choose however you like! ^^

_________________________________________

Stan x anxious!compassionate!Reader

Tiny eyes watched the scene unfold.

Normally, Wendy was the one to break up with Stan, but not this time around. Stan was actually telling Wendy that he had no interest in her anymore.

“What changed Stan?” Wendy asked, obviously confused.

“I think I like someone else… I don’t know yet…”

Wendy gave him a smile.

“I wish you all the luck Stan, say if you need anything!”

“I will.” And with that, Wendy took off to be with her friends, while Stan turned a corner and told Kyle and Kenny how it went.

Cartman was there too, but he only wanted to know if she cried, because “she would deserve it.”.

You closed your locker and felt your heartbeat like crazy. Ever since you changed school a few months ago, Stan captured your little ten-year-old mind.

He was kind and showed you around when you had no idea where to go. It was a little crush you developed, and you never felt as scared and excited as now, since that Stan had broken off with Wendy.

This newfound feeling almost made you dizzy but you quickly snapped back into reality when you heard your name.

“Y/N?” Stan asked and waited patiently for his answer next to you.

“Oh, sorry, I was thinking, what did you want?”

“Would you maybe like to hang out some time?”

Stan almost got a heart attack when you suddenly squealed but was happy when you managed to get a high-pitched “YES!” out.

“Okay, what are you betting Kenny? Some Pennies or a dead rat?” Cartman almost fell from his chair laughing about his shitty joke, while Kyle and Kenny rolled their eyes.

“Don’t you think it’s weird how clingy they are?” Kyle asked his blonde friend, while they kept watching you and Stan, who were seated at a separate table at lunch.

“Honestly, I think it’s pretty cute.” Kenny said with his muffled voice.

You held his arm and hugged him from the side, while he happy kept on eating his lunch.

Eric, who had now calmed down from his laugh attack eyed the couple critically. “I’m giving them a month max.”

He said lazily and looked around. “I say longer than a year.” Kenny said, throwing a crinkled five-dollar note on the table.

“You two are horrible.” Kyle shook his head before he threw 10 dollars on the table.

“Four months.”

Kenny was a happy man after a year, because despite everyone believing you two would eventually break up, you never did.

You were always by his side, no matter what.

His desire to desperately save whales with the help of a braindead ship crew?

You were always right by his in the interviews he gave.

His horrible depression that even drove Kyle away? No chance, you stood strong and helped him through the whole thing and even help reuniting the gang.

Even during the protest against Skanthunt42, you chose to sit this one out, despite you absolutely hating that the troll photoshopped a dick into your mother’s mouth.

At least you and Heidi got close due to you guys both becoming social outcasts. When Wendy heard this, she was impressed by your dedication and felt somewhat guilty for obviously not trying as much in her former relationship.

Everyone admired your patience and endurance. No matter what obstacle came, you managed to get through it.

“You don’t need to be sad, Y/N. I won't be that far away.” Stan said, holding your hand.

“B-But it's outside of town. You need ages by bike to get there and vice versa.” You said, holding back tears.

Randy walked past you and you desperately pleaded to him.

“Please Mister Marsh, please stay in town!” Randy put the box he carried into the car, before turning to you.

“Real sorry, dear Y/N. This town is…How do I put it… Absolute shit and I really want to get away.”

He patted you on the head and went back into the house to get more boxes.

“Told you, you cant talk to him.” Stan said and shrugged.

“But it’s unfair. We won’t see each other as much anymore.” Stan pressed a kiss onto your cheek, which made you blush intensely.

“Don’t. Worry. I will make time for you.”

With that in mind, you didn’t feel as sad, when the car with the Marsh Family in it left for their new home.

“I will make time for you, my ass.” You mumbled while you sat at a bench near Starks Pond. Letting out a deep sigh, you leaned back and just enjoyed the warmth of the setting sun.

Covid was one hell of a bitch and just had to have this big impact on everyone’s life. Stan and you now saw each other less and less.

It was just a horrible feeling that tainted your heart and made you worry a lot.

Maybe he was feeling just as bad as you are, maybe even more?

Maybe he just didn’t want to tell you how he felt?

Were you maybe a bad partner? Your mind began racing and your train of thoughts became unrailed.

So many bad thoughts manifested themselves and it made you almost gasp for air.

“I need to check on him.” You mumbled getting up from the park bench.

You began walking and you kind of hoped that maybe just the walking would get your mind in check, but sadly it didn’t. Involuntarily you had to think about all the other stuff that happened during this horrible time.

The precious Broship was more fragile than ever. You had become such good friends with Kenny, Kyle and Cartman over time that it hurt you a lot too.

You also saw Covid take a toll on your other friends, like Craig and his group, who now took Cartman into their gang after the split up.

However, that came to be…

The girls were also pretty divided, so hanging out with them meant picking sides which wasn’t your thing, you kinda just want them to get along again.

Everything felt like it was falling apart. Your parents had fights ever so often, all your friends had problems and your beloved boyfriend was stuck on that stupid farm.

God how you hated that stupid farm and Randy.

When he gave you one of those plushies that looked like him, you functioned it into a voodoo doll. But sadly, it didn’t seem to affect him, no matter how many needles you rammed into it.

Your heart felt heavy, and it seemed hard to breathe, but you brushed it aside.

You had already reached the busy streets of South Park and mingled between the newly vaccinated people.

Everywhere you looked, the people seemed happy.

Everyone was happy except you and the people around you… Maybe…You were the problem?

You shook your head. No, you didn’t allow those kinds of thoughts.

You much rather think about Stan. How you miss him and how amazing your dates were.

Oh, how much effort he put into all the small things… Well… At least he did.

Now that you thought about it when was your last date?

It feels like it had been ages. It has been ages. Everything had been ages. Going out with him, hanging out with your friends, your family not fighting… How long has this been the new normal? You can’t help but wonder.

Your heart clenched again. “Stop it, stupid heart.” You mumbled under your breath.

An exhausted sigh escaped your lips when you thought about how you maybe had to walk all the way up to the farm… It would take ages, but you really craved being held by the person you adored so much.

So, you continued walking down through the street when an elder lady stopped you.

“Excuse me, but you look rather sickly, are you alright?” Confused you raised an eyebrow. Did the vaccines make them delusional?

“No, I’m fine.” You answered, somewhat snippy, even when you didn’t know why you were so agitated.

“But you look rather pale, maybe you- I am fine.” You interrupted her and continued your path.

Were all people in this shitty town stupid or- The thought could not be completed, due to you suddenly losing consciousness.

When you woke up again, you immediately recognized one of the Hells Pass Hospital rooms, once your eyes had adjusted to the bright lights. Around the bed were your parents and more importantly Stan and his mother.

“Thank God, you’re awake again!” Your mother said when she went for a hug.

Confused you asked why you were here.

“Well, seemingly you were so stressed out, that your body basically shut down.”

Somewhat shocked you looked around. Was it really a surprise to hear that? Not really, but it still felt odd knowing that it happened.

“Well, I’m glad you’re fine, Y/N.” Misses Marsh commented and smiled warmly at you. She had always liked you and you felt the same. She was always nice to you and you felt like she was the only one with a brain in the family…

Feeling a sudden sensation of warmness on your hand, your eyes darted down to it. Stan held you hand while answering something your dad had asked him.

“Well, Sharon, you wanna accompany us to get some hot chocolate for us all?”

Your mother said with an odd wink, which made you and Stan roll your eyes.

The three adults left the room chatting happily. Stan looked at you with a stern expression, which kind of surprised you.

“I swear, whenever I think I couldn’t get more worried about you, your parents call me, to tell me that you’re in the hospital.”

“Worried? About me? I should be worried about you?” You laughed to which Stan shook his head.

“Listen, everyone has been super worried about you since you seemed so down and just exhausted. Like, Kyle already called me earlier to ask if you’re awake again. I don’t know why you worry about me; I am really fine babe. Promise.”

With that said, the door opened, and your parents came back inside.

“Y/N, the doctor said they would like you to stay the night, so they can check that you’re really alright.” Your father informed you and you were immediately annoyed.

Well, you had no choice but to oblige. Your parents left after an hour, wanting to get you some clothes and other things you’d need.

Sharon also bids her goodbye and so you and Stan were left.

And just like you wished, you got to cuddle with him. He held you close, and you vented to him, how worried you were about everything and everyone, while he told you just how worried all of your friends had been since you were acting so out of character.

“Even Cartman?”

“Yup, even when he would never admit it.” Stan laughed. He held your hand tight, and his content smile never left his face.

“I think we should talk more about feelings and being worried and all that. I know I’m not all that good at it, but I don’t ever wanna have to visit you in a hospital again.” Stan said, giving your hand a squeeze.

“That sounds good. But you gotta accept, I worry a lot, because I care a lot about you, okay?” You said sternly and Stan nodded. You two looked fondly at each other and just enjoyed the time you got.

“Together forever?” You asked and he whispered “Forever.”, before he pressed a sweet kiss onto your lips.

[jeontaeh]

TWENTY SEVEN²⁷

✫  ✬  ✭  ✬  ✫

"No, Jungkook, we're not adding custom waterslide into this house that leads into a 7 feet swimming pool."

"Why not?" Jungkook asked angrily, stomping his foot on the ground.

"Because we are stranded on a planet with no fuel to run our ship! What do you mean 'why not'?"

"Who's gonna stop us."

"That's not a valid response!"

"Jungkook! Hoseok! Shut up." Namjoon snapped, and Hoseok rolled his eyes, while Jungkook looked confused.

"We're gonna be here for a while, right? Why not make it fun?" Jungkook asked.

"Because being in the brink of death isn't 'fun', Jungkook. Not everything in life is fun. Sometimes it's serious, like right now. It's very serious right now." Namjoon scolded, and Jungkook looked down.

"Are Tae and Jin working to detect the volcanic levels of the planet?" Hoseok asked, and Namjoon nodded, looking back at the blueprint laid out in front of him. Hoseok then looked at Jungkook. "Why don't you go help them, Kook? I think Jimin and me are fine working on the house ourselves."

Jungkook looked at him with a small frown. "Tae and Jin left early so I don't think they need my help." Jungkook mumbled, and then saw Hoseok nod to his words and go up to Namjoon to discuss the house plans. So Jungkook sat down on the ground, bringing his knees to his chest.

Yoongi walked up to Jungkook and sat down beside him. "Hey there little guy, you alright?"

Jungkook nodded sadly, making little shapes on the dirt on the ground with his finger. "Yeah.. I-I just feel really useless right now."

"You're not useless, Jungkook. Don't think that way. Everyone's just on edge right now." Yoongi responded.

Jungkook looked up and then looked at Yoongi with glimmering eyes. "Do you need help with anything? Anything at all? Because I'll help. I-I feel dumb and wanna do something."

Yoongi sighed, taking a sip of his coffee, and then looking at Jungkook. "..Yeah I think there's something you can do for us."

✭

"Sandwiches coming through!" Jungkook called out excitedly, rushing out of the ship and running onto the grounds of the planet with a plate full of sandwiches.

"You asked him to make us sandwiches?" Jimin asked Yoongi, who sipped his coffee silently. "When we have a whole machine that makes any food on our command?"

"Don't burst his bubble, Park." Yoongi said, and Jungkook smiled really big and placed the tray on a table they set up, right atop Namjoon's blueprint.

"Jungkook-" Namjoon started in annoyance, but then Jungkook pat his head. "You've been overworking again. Jin told you not to. So just take a break and eat something."

"...fine." Namjoon mumbled, and Yoongi, Jimin, and Hoseok walked towards Namjoon and Jungkook to grab a sandwich. Taehyung and Jin were back, and they were clutching the information packets in one hand, walking towards the boys.

Jungkook watched with anticipation as the boys each picked a sandwich up, Taehyung pecking Jungkook's cheek and grabbing one himself. Jungkook saw with big eyes as all of them took a bite.

"Oh damn, it's really good, Kook." Yoongi said.

"Yeah, it's amazing." Taehyung added.

"Oh that's great! I also made lemonade. I'm gonna go get it." Jungkook said with a smile, and then rushed back into the ship.

The moment he disappeared, all the boys spit the sandwich out of their mouths, practically throwing up. Jimin threw his sandwich a mile away and then fell to the floor, gasping fo breath.

"That's the worst fucking thing I've ever had," Jimin let out.

"Why.. why did he put so much mayo?" Jin groaned, looking into his sandwich and seeing mayonnaise dripping out.

"Mine has olives?? Just olives and that's it??" Hoseok said, disgusted, pieces of cut olives falling out of his sandwich.

"Mine literally has nothing in it." Yoongi said dryly. "It's literally just two pieces of bread. I don't know what to say."

"He's bringing lemonade and it's going to taste like fucking piss please stop him-" Namjoon told Taehyung, who sighed.

"It's not that bad, stop complaining." Taehyung said, and then Jimin glared at him. "Oh yeah? Take another bite then."

Taehyung wearily looked at his sandwich, and then dropped it to the ground and stepped on it. "Oh no I accidentally dropped it to the ground and stepped on it." Taehyung said with no hint of remorse and earned a glare.

Jungkook rushed out holding a pitcher of lemonade. "Guys!! I made lots of lemonade for all of you-" Jungkook started, and then looked around. "Why is Jimin on the floor.. and my sandwich under Taehyung's foot.."

"They suck. It tastes like ears." Jin said, and Jungkook stopped in his steps.

"Oh.." Jungkook mumbled, and then looked at the pitcher of lemonade in his hands, and placed it onto the table. "I-I was just trying it out. I can try again and make them better if you like-"

"No! No thanks! That's really nice of you, Kook, but honestly, we're fine. Instead! You can help clean up the ship? How's that sound?" Jimin said, and Jungkook looked hesitant.

"I-I wanted to help you guys." Jungkook said in a small voice, and then looked at Jimin. "I don't want to clean the ship and I don't want to make sandwiches. I-I wanna do the cool stuff." Jungkook said yearningly.

Upon hearing no response to his words, Jungkook grew angry. "Fine. Whatever." Jungkook snapped, and then grabbed the lemonade pitcher and threw it to the ground.

"Jungkook!" Hoseok snapped, agape, and then saw the firm stainless glass bounce on the floor, not break in half. The lemonade, however, spilled onto the ground. Jungkook walked over to the lemonade pitcher and kicked it.

"Jungkook stop that-" Taehyung called, and then grabbed Jungkook and pulled him back. Jungkook almost grew angry at him, but then heard Taehyung continue. "Do you guys see that?"

Taehyung was pointed to the ground. The lemonade spilled onto the black sand began boiling and evaporating into the air, hissing. All the boys frowned.

"Oh no." Namjoon said, getting up from his seat and rushing forward. He leaned down and touched the ground, and then hissed when it burnt his finger. "Fuck. Fuck fuck fuck-"

"What- what's wrong?" Jimin asked. Namjoon looked at the boys, pointing at the ground.

"T-this- this is bad. You know what this means, right?" Namjoon asked, and after hearing no response, Namjoon sighed. "It means the lava has reached the surface. And.. with how the ground has been rumbling for the past few days.. and with how hot it's been.. and now this.. it means-"

"The- the planet's going to explode?" Taehyung asked in a small voice.

All the boys' eyes grew wide, and Namjoon gulped. "Yep. And we'll be on it when it does." He said the last part dreadfully, and Jin raised his hand up in the air, fist clenched.

"No we won't!" Jin declared, and the boys looked at him. "Taehyung and I found something out! The lava on this planet is close to the fuel our ship requires!"

"Holy shit.." Yoongi trailed, and Jin nodded. Jungkook gasped. "Ooh! I-I wanna help get the lava! I'll get the lava, Namjoon! I'll get it and- and I'll put it into the ship-"

"We already got the lava, Jungkook." Taehyung reassured, and Jungkook's shoulders fell. "We found an open lava pool and transferred them into these transport barrels."

"Put it into the ship! We can get out of here-" Jimin stated excitedly, and Namjoon paused.

"Wait- there's no way those two barrels will be enough. Plus, from those recordings you took, I don't think the lava fuel will last nearly as long as that metallic one." Namjoon said, and then sighed. "We- we'll need more. Lots more."

"I have an idea!" Jungkook said, and the boys looked at him reluctantly, knowing it'll e more than rude to not hear it out. "What?" Namjoon asked, and Jungkook grinned.

"What if we get all the fuel we need as the planet explodes? I mean, the person can get transported back onto the ship in an instant, right? So we just need someone to take in as much lava as they can and help the ship up." Jungkook said.

Everyone paused. Holy shit.

"Holy shit." Yoongi said, looking at Jungkook. "That's.. brilliant. It makes sense, too! In fact, it could give us enough fuel to last, like, forever-"

"Yeah. It's an amazing idea." Namjoon said, and Jungkook grinned really wide. "But way too risky. So we're not doing it."

"But Namjoon it's the only way we can-"

"Not if it hurts one of us." Namjoon snapped, and the boys tensed. "I don't care if we end up stranded on some other planet- we're not doing something that could potentially kill one of us."

"Okay." All of them said to Namjoon, who nodded curtly, and then turned around, going back to doing what he was.

"The dom jumped out." Jimin whispered to Jin, who glared at him to shut up.

✭

Boom Crash. The sounds from the engine room made the entire ship shake. "Fuck!" Hoseok's voice followed, and Jungkook sighed.

"Hoseok's gonna die." Jungkook said.

"Rip in peace." Yoongi stated calmly.

"Guys it's been like.. a whole lot of months back on our planet, right? Why aren't we getting any help? Do our families and friends not care about us? Who will we have when we return? Is this our doom? Our never ending torture, a prison of our manifestation-"

"Shut the fuck up Taehyung. There's more important shit going on." Jimin snapped, and then groaned, standing in the middle of the control center. "For instance, my pink hair is turning blonde."

"What a fucking cataclysm." Taehyung said, and Jimin glared at him. "Shut up big head."

"Ha! I dyed my hair permanently red when I was a kid, so it's never gonna fade away." Jungkook said cheekily, and Taehyung snapped his head towards him, eyes widening.

"Ha! Your and Taehyung's kid is gonna look like Todoroki." Yoongi said, and Jimin rolled his eyes.

"Shut the fuck up you weeb." Jimin snapped, and then Jungkook made a fake throwing up sound.

"Yuck- just talking about children scares me." Jungkook said, and then shuddered visibly.

"Why?" Taehyung asked in a small voice, and Jungkook laughed. "Commitment? Getting tied down? Having to take care of another entity- doesn't that shit scare you?"

Taehyung paused for a second, and then pursed his lips, humming. Jimin looked at Yoongi, both gulping awkwardly.

"Anyways... uhhh.. y'all wanna play Monopoly-"

"Actually, y'know, no. It doesn't scare me. Because when you really like someone, the thought of being with them shouldn't scare you." Taehyung said to Jungkook, who scoffed.

"Putting a label on my relationship with someone else does not equate to how much I care about them." Jungkook said, and Taehyung raised his brow. To explain further, Jungkook put it into words. "As in, I like you a lot, Tae. But we're not.. together together. You said it yourself."

"Even before we weren't together together, you already made up your mind in the kind of relationship you want," Taehyung snapped.

"Yeah, because I'm fucking 18 and have a whole life in front of me. Again, I like you a lot, Taehyung, but we're just temporary." Jungkook said, and Taehyung frowned.

"Temporary? Why do you think we'll be temporary?"

"Because I'm not even sure who I am yet, what makes you think I'll be sure who you are? Frankly, I don't know who you are, Tae. Because it feels like there's so much shit you're holding back from me, and I don't know why!" Jungkook said angrily.

"Bro.. they're fighting..." Jimin whispered to Yoongi, who gulped. Him and Jimin slowly got up and tried walking towards the door to get the fuck out.

"You wouldn't understand if I told you, Jungkook. You wouldn't-" Taehyung started, and Jungkook scoffed, letting out a laugh.

"Right. I wouldn't understand. Of course I wouldn't. Just say you think I'm stupid and go," Jungkook snapped and Taehyung closed his grey eyes for a second, taking a breath to calm himself down.

"Okay, Kookie, I think it's better if we talk about this in a civil manner." Taehyung said softly, because he didn't want Jungkook thinking he wasn't smart. Taehyung walked over to Jungkook and grabbed his hand firmly.

Jungkook let out a cry of pain, and Taehyung let his hand go in an instant. Jungkook fell back, crumbling to the floor. He grabbed his wrist, hand aching with excruciating pain.

"W-why do you keep hurting me?" Jungkook let out weakly, and Taehyung's eyes grew big with worry.

"No- Kookie, I-I-" Taehyung stammered, moving forward. Jungkook moved back fearfully.

"Just- g-go away!" Jungkook snapped, and when Taehyung took a step back, the pain in Jungkook's hand only grew stronger.

Jungkook felt tears fall down his cheeks, felt the emptiness in his stomach grow further as Taehyung looked conflicted on what to do. Taehyung saw a silver erupt from the middle of Jungkook's hand, growing over his hand like veins latching out.

Jungkook started crying, body shaking, not knowing what to do. Taehyung stepped closer, and Jungkook looked at him from his tears. "S-stop h-h-hurting me," Jungkook squeaked out, and Taehyung got on his knees in front of him.

"Give me your hands," Taehyung said, and Jungkook shook his head. "I-I'll be gentle, I promise."

Jungkook reached his hands out in hesitancy, and saw Taehyung touch them feathery tips, and then reached forward, pressing small kisses to his hands.

The pain didn't go. The silver didn't go. Taehyung looked up at Jungkook, whose eyes were closed, little whimpers leaving his mouth.

"Open your eyes." Taehyung whispered, and Jungkook did slowly. Taehyung leaned forward, clasping their lips together. Jungkook was reluctant at first, but then opened his mouth, allowing Taehyung to enter.

Taehyung grabbed him steadily by the waist, and Jungkook felt the pain in his hands wither away. Their lips entangled heatedly, and Taehyung's tongue felt the inside of Jungkook's mouth. Jungkook reached his hands up to Taehyung's collar, pulling him in, kissing him harder, feeling steadier as they continued kissing.

"Hey did y'all stop fighting-" Jimin started, walking into the room. ".......nevermind." Jimin mumbled, turning around and walking out, mumbling something about mood swings under his breath.

Taehyung finally pulled away from Jungkook, both breathing heavily. Jungkook tucked his head in the crevice of Taehyung's neck. "P-please- please fuck me- p-please," Jungkook cried out softly.

"You-" Taehyung started, pulling away to look at him. "You want to-"

"I-I want you inside me, please," Jungkook begged, eyes gleaming. "I-I don't know what's come over me, I just- I need, I need it, please-"

"Okay- yeah, okay." Taehyung said quickly, reaching down to lift Jungkook up, holding him like he was made of glass. Taehyung carried him outside the control room, but once they entered the hallway, Jungkook gripped Taehyung's shoulders.

"Af-after you fuck me," Jungkook whispered, and then let his breath longer on Taehyung's neck. "Can you tell me what it is that you've been hiding from me?"

Taehyung paused for a second, and then looked up at Jungkook, whose lips traced themselves upon Taehyung's.

"Alright." Taehyung whispered into his mouth, and Jungkook hummed.

✫  ✬  ✭  ✬  ✫

https://jeontaeh.tumblr.com/post/647229209159368704/twenty-eight%C2%B2%E2%81%B8

[morsmordrehasbeensaved]

CONGRATULATIONS HALEY, YOU HAVE BEEN ACCEPTED AS BENITO ORTIZ WITH THE FACECLAIM OF ETHAN CUTKOSKY!

Halsey!!! You know I absolutely adore all of the characters you already have, but I think Benito might be my new favorite! The amount of detail you put in and the dedication you show to this character was absolutely spectacular, and I can not wait to have him on our dashboards

Check out our acceptance checklist right here on what to do next!

♔ OUT OF CHARACTER INFO ♔

NAME/ALIAS:

Haley

AGE:

20

PREFERRED PRONOUNS:

She/Her

TIMEZONE & ACTIVITY:

PST (damn..) and Hella Active

TRIGGERS:

nah

ANYTHING ELSE:

nah

♔ IN CHARACTER INFO ♔

FULL NAME:

Benito Carlos Ortiz, with a few select people who call him Benny

FACECLAIM:

Ethan Cutkosky

BIRTHDAY AND AGE:

December 10th, 1961. He just turned 17.

HOUSE AND YEAR:

Sixth Year, Hufflepuff

AFFILIATION:

Neutral as hell

BLOODSTATUS:

Muggleborn

PRONOUNS:

He/Him

SEXUALITY/ROMANTIC ORIENTATION:

Just a regular ole’ straight guy. Heterosexual/romantic

EXTRACURRICULARS:

Art Club

DESCRIPTION:

You’ve never been give a fair shot at the shiny things in life, and this has left you bitter, distrustful, and angry. No matter how hard you’ve worked, you’ve never been able to have what other people have. So, you’ve decided that you’ll just start taking them for yourself. The muggle world let you down, and so has the wizarding world, and you’re starting to believe that there is no such thing as a good person, only those that are willing to take their lives into their own hands. With your work ethic, and your creativity at solving seemingly impossible problems, you know that everything is yours for the taking. So, go on and take it.

PERSONALITY TRAITS:

(-) Audacious: Living in the slums, as well as being the youngest of his siblings forced Benito to learn how to stand up for himself. Whether that meant fighting with his older brother and sister to get the most comfy spot on their shared bed, or if it meant a risky steal so that he could put some food in his belly later that night. To survive in the area he did, one had to learn to be brave, or else they would never make it. It also gave Benito a certain aggression against the “haves”, considering he was decidedly a “have not” so sometimes, he just like to steal the purse of some rich old lady when she wasn’t looking. Sometimes it was for survival, sometimes it was not.

(-) Fierce: It was hard to make it in Benito’s house, and in order to be heard, one had to be loud and proud in their emotions. He feels things intently, whether that be happiness or anger. If happy, he might dance like fool or shout giddily into the air. If angry, he’s prone to throwing objects and is more than willing to get violent. While sometimes this helps Benito, more often than not, it doesn’t make things better.

(-) Hedonistic: Being forced to live a life that withheld a lot of life’s pleasures (vacations, good food, a room of his own, etc) has led Benito to believe that he ought to snatch up fun whenever he sees it. Unfortunately, this can manifest in both good and bad ways. Sometimes, it could be good. He might skive off class to work on a sculpture, but he also would never tell anybody no for a drink, even if he might have a class later that day to show up for.

(-) Greedy: Growing up as neglected and poor as he was, he has a tendency to seek out the better things of other people. He wants to have the same luxuries as other people, and is angry about how hard it is. He’s come to believe that he deserves what they have, and will take any measure to get there. Money is important to him, perhaps too much, and it is his main thing that drives him.

(+/-) Bold/Brash: Benito wasn’t scared of anything, at least nothing so far. Sometimes, it was to his benefit, because more often than not, most people assumed he was bluffing when he said he wasn’t afraid to fight. Other times, it was to his detriment, like when he attempted to curse someone of a far superior dueling skill. There isn’t much that he isn’t willing to do if he truly wants to, and there isn’t a single person he would back down from, for better or, for worse.

(+) Hard-working: Laziness wasn’t an option for Benito, not if he wanted a new pair of shoes, or the really cool toy that everyone else in primary school had. Or, at the worst of times, if he wanted to eat. In the Ortiz house, everyone worked for their share, from the moment they were able. He had to throw himself into what he was doing, no matter what it was, and it created within him an excellent work ethic. However, he is only hardworking on the things he feels have value, not those imposed on him by other people. He has his own goals in mind that are often different to those around him, and that is what he is always working towards.

(+) Confident: Benito is a hard worker, and he’s creative too. He has all of the traits to put his ideas into motion, and this has given him confidence. He trusts in his ability to follow through with his plans, and he knows that if he works hard enough, he can accomplish any goal he sets his mind too. Whether the goal be to beat someone up in a fight, or to best them in a duel, or to get Imogen to forgive him for something stupid he did, or to find a way to steal that necklace from that new Gryffindor girl without her noticing. He can do it, he knows it.

(+) Vivacious: Benito’s life was rough, yes, but it was not all bad. All of his family were very loud and outspoken people who knew how to have a good time. If there wasn’t a fight occuring in the house, then there was a party. His father’s laugh was booming and loud, and his mother spoke too excitedly when she was having fun. His brother often like to dance around the kitchen, and his sister was never afraid to trap Benito in a friendly headlock. This has given him an appreciation for fun, and the good times in life. He enjoys them wholeheartedly, and without reservation.

(+) Loyal: Benito is not a very trusting boy. He’s been let down too many times in his life for him to find it easy to trust someone, or something. It takes a long time for him to let down his walls enough to truly dedicate himself to something, but once he does, he extremely dedicated. He will do anything, no matter the risks, if it something he believes in. He’s committed to Imogen, and would do anything for her. He’s committed to the pursuit of money, and damn it, he would be rich one day. He’s committed to his family, and helping them make it in the world. It would be a cold day in hell for Benito Ortiz to back away from something he has pledged himself to

BIOGRAPHY:

“Names and attributes must be accommodated to the essence of things, and not the essence to the names, since things come first and names afterwards.” That was a quote from Galileo, some scientist, or whoever, that he had heard a little about during his primitive years of schooling. Benito Carlos Ortiz put a lot of stock into names, as was tradition among his father’s side of the family. Benito’s father, Hernando Ortiz, was born in Mexico during the winter of 1930. His name meant adventurous, as would prove to be true when the young boy grew up. Mexico was experiencing a lot of change during Hernando’s youth. President Cárdenas rose into power when Hernando was a boy, and began attempting to enact a vast amount of social change. However, the Ortiz family was very poor, living in a small rural village, and many of these benefits never reached them. They stayed in a single room shack together: his mother, his father, and all four of his siblings. Life was hard, and Hernando felt as he got older that it only got even more difficult. When Hernando was ten years old, World War II was ravaging the world, and his father enlisted in the Mexican Army, which was planning to help America after the attack on Pearl Harbor. That was the last time that Hernando ever saw his padre. Six years later, Mexico had a new leader: President Alemán. Life had been tough, and scary ever since his father had died, and things were more divided than ever between the rich and the poor. So, with one bag tossed over his shoulder, Hernando walked away from his village at the tender age of sixteen, to see if he might fair better somewhere else in the world.

He snuck upon a supply ship to Portugal and lived off of the few items of food he had brought with him. When that ran out, he ate the rats that scurried to and fro across the lower deck. It was hard, but Hernando was used to such things. Eventually, however, he reached Portugal, and life truly began. He spent a year in Portugal, sometimes managing to scrounge enough money to stay in an inn, but lots of times he just had to sleep on the street. After Portugal, he headed to France, hoping he might have better luck in the Country of Love. However, he didn’t find it quite to his liking, and quickly moved on over to Spain. Hernando loved Spain a lot, for he knew the language they spoke. He’d had quite a rough time these past two years, struggling to learn different languages in order to converse with the people around him. Spain was a nice break from this. He was seventeen when he arrived in Spain, and he stayed there until nearly his twentieth birthday. He worked a variety of odd jobs and stayed in a small, rundown flat with three amigos he’d met at work. However, as his name demanded, Hernando had a thirst for adventure, and eventually, he moved on. From Spain, he headed to Great Britain. As with France, he didn’t stay long, and moved again before the year ended. From Britain, he headed to Northern Ireland, Belfast specifically, where he would find himself staying for quite a long time. It was on his twenty second birthday when he got the job at the local Ship Carpentry. It was fine work for a single man, and he was happy where he was.

Two years after his move to Ireland, in the year 1954, Hernando met Annabel Buckley.

Annabel was also born in the winter, but in the year 1938. Her name meant delight to be around, and the surname of Buckley meant servant. Both of these things would prove true, for awhile anyways. Annabel was born into a quaint, small, and loving Irish family. She had an older sister, whom she loved dearly, and she got on splendidly with her mother and father, as most toddlers did. When she was of the tender age of three, Annabel’s mother was killed in the 1941 bombings of Belfast. At the time, Annabel’s father was fighting on the war front against Germany, where he too succumbed to battle. This left Annabel and her older sister alone and orphaned. Annabel doesn’t remember this too much, considering her young age. Her older sister, however, worked hard to make sure that the pair was provided for. Eventually, after an entire year of living on the street with many other orphaned children, Annabel’s older sister was able to find work in a Belfast pub, ran by a kind, elderly couple. They allowed Annabel and her sister room and board in exchange for work, and this is where the girls stayed for most of their lives. As she grew up, Annabel took on more and more responsibility in the pub, eventually becoming one of their more favored servers. She was beautiful, with golden blonde hair and shining green eyes. Her cheeks always had a rosy sort of glow to them, and she was wonderfully charismatic to boot. It was no wonder that Hernando couldn’t tear his eyes away from her. And, to remind you, her name did mean ‘delight to be around.’

Annabel was sixteen when the devilishly handsome, and worldly travelled Mexican man came into the small village pub in which she resided. She sat him at his table, and immediately, the two couldn’t keep their eyes off of one another. The chemistry was almost touchable in the air between them, and it didn’t take long for the two to come together in an incredibly passionate, heavily romantic relationship. Annabel often remarked that Hernando made her feel like the woman in the romantic moving pictures at the theater, and Hernando often claimed that she was the first thing that truly made him feel alive. They were awfully in love with one another, and that love culminated in a pregnancy, two months from the day that they met. Hernando, who truly did love Annabel, wanted to do right by his amor, thus, the pair was married just a month after they discovered the pregnancy. And, for a bit, they seemed every bit the picture perfect family. Eight months after their marriage, in the (again) winter of the year 1955, Elena Ortiz was born. Hernando chose her name, which meant Light, for he considered his darling daughter to be the true light of his life. He fell into fatherhood with a delightful ease, and found that he could spend hours cooing and smiling at his hija pequeña. The small little family did not have much money, but they had more than enough love to fill their one bedroom house. For the first time in his life, Hernando Ortiz felt grounded and settled. For the first time in her life, Annabel Ortiz felt like she had a full and complete family again.

A year and a half later, when Elena was in that adorable early-toddler stage, Annabel fell pregnant again. Like with Elena, this had been an accident, but Hernando and Annabel were decidedly less excited about it, this time around. Another child would cost a lot of money, and they were only barely making ends meet at the current moment. Not to mention, they lived in a house with only a single bedroom. This brought Hernando back to his childhood, reminding him of the one bedroom shack he’d shared with his large family. He wanted to do better by his own children, so he relocated them to a different house, one with two bedrooms. However, it was a bit more expensive, and when their son was born, both Hernando and Annabel felt that they were at their wits end. Like he had with Elena, Hernando chose the name for his eldest son as well. Leonardo Ortiz, whose name meant Brave As A Lion, was born in the early summer, June of 1957. The family began to struggle in a way they never had before, just to put bread and cheese on the table. Hernando started working a lot of doubles, and began drinking a lot to cope with it. Annabel, who had always been a bit of a drinker, did the same. The resulting stress, drunkenness, and anger that came from this began to sour the previously loving and devoted relationship that Hernando and Annabel shared. They grew violent, the both of them, and it was began to be commonplace for the neighbors to hear loud screams and breaking glass over the sound of small children crying.

Still, Hernando and Annabel had made vows to one another, vows that they refused to break. They hoped that one day, things would be easier. They kept faith that one day they would find a way to love each other like they used to. Unfortunately, those days never came. The months continued to tick by for the Ortiz family, and they lived in a sort of limbo for many years, flipping rapidly between awful fights and wonderful family bonding. Around the time that Leonardo was two years old, Hernando fell back into contact with the family he had left behind in Mexico so many years ago. He began speaking to his mother again, and his brothers and sisters and uncles and aunts, and even his abuela, who was somehow still alive. He began to make annual visits to them, though he could never afford to bring his wife and children along with him.

Years later, in the early spring of 1961, Annabel fell pregnant once more. The family, at this point, had gotten used to their low income and had found means to survive around it. They weren’t happy, but they weren’t necessarily unhappy either. It was in this strange middle ground that Annabel and Hernando’s third child, and second son, was born. Like his father, mother, and sister, the child was born in the month of December. Hernando, as was tradition by now, chose the name. He gave the boy the first name of Benito, which meant Blessed. He hoped that the name would rain down good fortune on his son one day, and that the good fortune might trickle down to the rest of the family. Benito Carlos Ortiz always kept this in mind, believing it to be his duty to gift blessings to his family one day.

With Benito’s arrival, the Ortiz was complete, and the real story can now begin.

Benito was a happy baby, and an even happier toddler. He shared a room, as well as a bed, with his big sister and brother. During these young years of his, he was quite close with Leonardo, who was only four years older than him. From the moment that Benito was walking, the two brothers ran all around the house, causing mischief for their mother, father, and sister. Leonardo was Benito’s first role model. However, that’s not to discredit Elena. Elena, his bright and smart big sister, was the one who taught him how to survive in a world as poor as theirs. Not to mention that she also sacrificed a lot of her own toys and happiness so that her brothers might enjoy a happier childhood than she had. The family was close, despite the rather wild fights they often got into, and Benito has always looked back on this as his happiest time, the only time he could remember his family truly being a unit, albeit a dysfunctional one. Sure, their family could fight. In fact, they knew how to do this very well. Benito’s spent his childhood watching his mother throw a fist in his father’s face, and then watching as his father threw her to the ground in retaliation. He had never really been too bothered by such things, figuring that this was just the way life was. Besides, as much as they knew how to fight, they also knew how to have a good time. Alcohol permeated their family, and the community around them, and Benito honestly couldn’t remember one of their good times that wasn’t helped by the influence of alcohol. Some of his fondest memories were watching as his father and brother tapped their glasses of tequila together in a companionable gesture before tossing the liquid down their throats. He looks back fondly on their nights seated around the kitchen table, playing cards and singing old traditional family songs together: Irish and Mexican alike. Benito and Leonardo often wrestled, and while Benito never won, he always had fun. His sister loved to dance, and even more than that, she loved to wrangle her reluctant brothers into dancing with her. His childhood, while not perfect, was not entirely awful either. Sure, it was hard, and there were nights that he went without food. But there was love in his heart, and in his household, so he knew that he would be alright.

However, all of that changed when he was just seven years old.

For all of his life, Benito knew that his father had family back in his home country of Mexico. After all, he left home for a two weeks once a year to go and visit them. However, one day, just after Hernando had returned from his weekly visit to Mexico, Annabel found something while looking through his suitcases. There was a small envelope, hidden beneath a secret little flap, that was filled with pictures. Pictures of Hernando with some woman, a woman who was not Annabel. And, if that weren’t bad enough, there pictures of children. Two, to be specific. They were both girls, and they both looked to be similar to Benito’s age. There with pictures of the girls, of the woman, and of Hernando with all of them together. Annabel dug a little further, and dug up some love letters, written to Hernando by a woman named Amanda, who she presumed to be the woman in the pictures. She couldn’t understand them, for they were written in Spanish, so she brought them to Elena to translate. Elena read them, growing angrier and angrier with every word her eyes ran over, and when she finished, she looked up to face her mother with furious tears in her eyes. It seemed that Hernando had started another family, all the way across the world, and he’d kept it hidden from them for years. Now, it made complete sense why he had never brought his wife or children to meet his mother, or grandmother, or brothers and sister. Annabel wondered if he had brought this Amanda to visit them, or the two little girls. She wondered if his mother even knew about Elena, or Leonardo, or Benito? For the first time in her life, Annabel wanted to be rid of Hernando.

And so, she confronted her husband one day, after he had finished a fifteen hour shift. He stepped through the door, looking weary and tired and in dire need of a shower. Annabel didn’t care, and she flung the photos and the letters right into his face. The resulting fight was spectacular, the worst one that Benito had ever seen in his seven years of life. Leonardo jumped in at one point, trying to use his lanky eleven year old body to protect his mother. Hernando was enraged at the disrespect shown to him by his son, and things looked as if they would continue to get worse. But, then Elena stepped in. Faced with his beloved daughter’s disappointment, rage, and hurt, Hernando couldn’t face it. He fled up to his room, packed a bag, and walked right out the front door, never to be seen again by the four remaining Ortiz’s.

The absence of their father shattered the family, and from then on, they began to splinter off into different directions. Annabel turned even more so to drink, especially now that she had to work to support the children alone. She grew angry, and bitter. Benito didn’t think her name was true anymore, for she was most definitely not a delight to be around. She was mean, and she was always drunk. It became commonplace for her to pass out on their couch, surrounded in a pool of her own alcohol, or, if she was really drunk, a pool of her own vomit, or urine.

Elena grew angry too, and stopped looking out for her little brothers quite so much. The three children had to contribute to the household now, and since they were eleven and seven, Elena considered them old enough to do so. After all, she was thirteen. It was high time she started looking out for herself after spending so many years helping those around her. She grew closer with Annabel, however, and never blamed her for her drunken depression. She placed the blame firmly on the shoulders of her padre, who she know hated with a fiery passion.

Leonardo felt the same way, for he had never gotten along with father. To Hernando, Leonardo’s arrival had signalled the beginning of the bad times. To Leonardo, Hernando was angry, drunken man who couldn’t appreciate the loving family that he had around him. Leonardo was only eleven when his father left, but he was now the man of the house, and he took it upon himself to start bringing in money. For the past year, he had begun to spend more time with the other boys in the neighborhood, since the age and maturity gap between him and Benito had become a little much. The boys that Leonardo was spending his time with were other poor street kids like himself, and they’d developed a reputation for being a band of troublemakers. It wasn’t that hard for them to turn towards things a little more illegal, especially to make some money, so by the age of twelve, Leonardo had made a small name for himself by selling marijuana. The work wasn’t always safe, especially where they lived, but it brought in money.

Benito, only seven when his father left, wasn’t quite sure what to do, but he very quickly found his calling. It wasn’t all that hard, really. He discovered that if he went to the more wealthy side of town, many people didn’t lock their cars or back doors. It was all too easy for him to slip inside and fill his pockets with their expensive watches and jewelry. He was quite good at it, too, what with his small size. He could hide in spots that adult burglars could never, and he made a heavy profit from it. Soon enough, he grew more and more bold. He taught himself how to unlock a locked vehicle, using his neighbors beat-up lemon of a car for practice. From there, came stealing from stores. First, petty shoplifting. But, soon enough, Benito could walk out of a store with a bag filled and not a single employee wise to his crimes. Sure, every now and then he had close calls. He was eight years old the first time that someone caught him, but he was fast, and he easily made an escape by sliding down the flagpole next to the apartment building.

He was nine years old the first time that it wasn’t so easy to get away, but he’d surprised the man by giving him a swift kick to the bollocks. Grown adults were always surprised when children fought back. It was almost nothing for Benito to dash through the front door to escape from the foliage. There was a thrill in stealing, and a pride that Benito did not get from anything else. He often laid in bed at night, turning his wrist over so that he could examine whatever flashy and new watch he had stolen that day. It made him feel rich, which was ever so relieving since he was ever so poor.

It was actually during one of his little escapades when he noticed something very strange about himself. He was ten years old now, and he was in someone’s house. He had no shoes on, only his socks, because it made it easier for him to slip around unheard. He was being risky today, sneaking into a house while the owners were home, but he was confident that he could do it. He had just scampered onto their dining table, hands extending for the diamond coverings on their chandelier, when he accidentally knocked the vase on their table over with his foot. He swiveled around in alarm, lunging for it so that he could stop it from rolling off the edge, but he was too far. It rolled, rolled, and then began to tip over, and despite knowing he couldn’t stop it, he reached for it anyways. But then the most peculiar thing happened. Rather than falling off the table and loudly shattering all over the ground, it simply returned to its original, upright position. Benito thought he had imagined the whole thing, for he just couldn’t explain it. Not then, anyways.

He was eleven years old when a very strange man came to his house. He was tall, and he had a beard that seemed to go down forever. Not to mention, he looked very, very old. Perhaps the oldest man that Benito had ever seen. He would never forget the day when the man came to visit. He knocked on the door mid-morning. Benito was on the couch, in only his underwear and socks. He had a bowl of cereal in his lap and was trying to make out what was happening on their television, which was very cheap and only in black and white. Elena had answered the door, and when she came in with a strange expression on her face and told Benito that someone was at the door for him, his life changed forever.

It hadn’t been too hard for Benito to believe, not after the man demonstrated his strange powers. Turns out, the man had a strange name too. Albus Dumbledore. The surname sounded foreign and blocky on Benito’s lips. Albus Dumbledore, apparently, was the headmaster of a wizarding school. A wizarding school that they wanted him, Benito, to go to. He was shocked, and so was his family. After they got over their initial disbelief, they had a million questions to ask. Professor Dumbledore was patient, and he answered everything they had to ask. Benito felt embarrassed when his mother asked if the school cost any money, and then scared a second later. Would he be denied entry to this school simply because he was poor? Thankfully, Professor Dumbledore said they had a fund for helping underprivileged students. He said that Benito would have to get most of his things secondhand, but that was fine. Everything else he owned was, anyways.

And so, when summer rolled around, Benito and his family followed the directions left by Professor Dumbledore to travel to the wizarding village of Diagon Alley. It was hard to get there, since London was no easy drive from Belfast. Benito was half scared that the Professor Dumbledore wizard-man had been lying, and this was all just a scam! A clever, genius, well thought out scam, but a scam nonetheless. But, as it turns out, it was no scam. Diagon Alley was a real, live place and Benito and his family stared in awe at the sight of it. Annabel hurriedly made her way to the Leaky Cauldron to see if wizarding alcohol worked the same as muggle alcohol. (It worked better). Benito, however, set off on his own, wandering through each and every shop in search of his supplies.

Benito had just stepped into Ollivander’s Wand shop, when he saw her. She was about his size, though she looked a lot less out of place than he did. What on earth was everyone wearing? It was strange. Some people looked as wild as some of the strange figures that wandered the area of that one weird alleyway by his house! She got his wand first, and when he saw the sparks shoot from the end of it in a wonderful display of color, he couldn’t help but to exclaim in surprise. That had drawn her attention, and the two fell into conversation. He found out that her name was Imogen, and that she was also starting at Hogwarts in the fall. They didn’t talk long, but he felt good when he left the store, hardly taking the time to be surprised that he had warmed up so quickly. Once he had his wand, he was finished, and he headed to the bar to collect his extremely inebriated mother.

Now, all Benito had to do was wait.

September the First came quickly, and before he knew it, Benito found himself seated alone in a compartment on a train called The Hogwarts Express. He’d hoped to sit alone for the ride, but that seemed impossible. However, to his happy surprise, the face that popped into the compartment was one he recognized. It was the Imogen girl he’d met at Ollivanders! The two ended up sitting together, and when they arrived at Hogwarts, they were sorted into Hufflepuff as well.

Five years later, Benito is in the peak of his sixth year. His grades are alright, but he doesn’t really care about that. He had no intention of going into the Ministry of Magic, or really working at all in the Wizarding World. No, no, Benito Carlos Ortiz had bigger plans than that. After all, he was born to be blessed. No, Benito planned to use his magical powers and natural aptitude for sneaky things to live nice and breezy in the muggle world. And in the meantime, he would steal from his fellow wizards. After all, many of them didn’t respect him for who his parents were, so why should he show them the respect of allowing them to keep their belongings? The war is heating up around him, and Benito is more than ready to defend himself. But, he means to only defend himself. He had learned a long time ago that it was a dog-eat-dog world, and he knew better than to think the wizarding world was any different.

Benito Ortiz decided to not concern himself with the opinion of people that didn’t matter. He had Imogen, he had the Hufflepuffs, and he had his family. Nobody else mattered, and he wouldn’t lie and pretend that he thought they did. What he planned on doing was making as much money as he possibly could, in any means that he possibly could, and if he could, he’d try to find his dad along the way.

CONNECTIONS:

Imogen Connolly: His first friend and current girlfriend. Benito and Imogen have been together for what feels like forever, and there isn’t a single person on the planet that he feels more love for. He feels like they’re soulmates, and can’t imagine his life without her.

Katherine Bradbury: She’s new to the school, and she looks rich, so he’s got his eye on her. He doesn’t take her seriously, not really, and he finds it rather funny that she’s an American. But, he did hear a rumor about her ruining a debutante ball, so perhaps there is more to her than meets the eye.

Lucius Malfoy: Malfoy stands for everything that Benito detests, so he often tries to get on his nerves. But, more so than that, Benito has been stealing from him here and there for six years now. He has so much money that its almost easy.

ADDITIONAL INFO:

He’s a Sagittarius Sun, and an Aries Moon. Some quotes from this website that apply to Benito are, (1) “Even though you are smart and perceptive, your emotional growth lags behind your understanding.” (2) “A Sagittarius-Aries is fearless about speaking their mind and has been so since a young age. No other mixture personifies such blunt outspokenness. You have no inhibitions but have the courage to say precisely what you feel. You are active, capricious, and very independent. Everything is as you see it. It does not matter what others think, you are forthright and fearless.” (3) “You need be careful of that rather big ego of yours.”

Benito really likes the movie, “The Godfather”

Benito speaks Spanish, though not as well as he used to

Benito is really into sculpting, and astrology.

His class schedule is: Charms, Arithmancy, Divination, Potions, Transfiguration, and Defense Against the Dark Arts

[spicynbachili1]

How a book binds the Return of the Obra Dinn

That is The Mechanic, the place Alex Wiltshire invitations builders to debate the tough journeys they’ve taken to make their video games. This time, Return of the Obra Dinn [official site].

In direction of the tip of Return of the Obra Dinn’s four-and-a-half years in improvement, Lucas Pope had a buddy come over to playtest it. He sat him down, defined the way it’s a firstperson thriller sport wherein you uncover the destiny of the Obra Dinn, a service provider ship misplaced on its voyage into the Orient. Then he gave him the controls. “He performed for a bit and his response was, ‘This sport is in regards to the guide’.”

The guide includes a ledger of the Obra Dinn’s unlucky crew and illustrations of it in happier instances, a map of the ship, and chapters that define every loss of life alongside its unusual voyage, and it’s the place you plan your theories on the identify of every character and the way they died. As such, it serves as your key interface to the sport, or as Pope places it to me, “On the floor you suppose it’s an exploration sport, however you then realise that what you’re actually doing is utilizing the guide to determine shit out.”

But it surely began out as a manifest, a easy checklist of names. You’ll be able to truly nonetheless play Obra Dinn because it was in a demo which Pope launched for GDC 2016. It options 5 characters’ deaths to resolve, and enjoying it at the moment, it’d appear to be fairly shut in design to the ultimate factor. However that’s an phantasm.

“That is the factor with Obra Dinn. I didn’t see how it could play out,” says Pope. “I had no concept about something past the primary 15 minutes, which was the primary demo.” However the manifest’s checklist of six characters appeared to work simply nice. He favored the best way the names have been laid out, echoing the best way the actual East India Firm handled its crews as lists of names. “I wished within the sport to point out a few of that, the place you actually solely take into consideration them as names at first, however you get to know them and also you realise that they’re greater than names, they’re folks.”

Pope felt assured that the sport was coming collectively properly, so he wrote the storyline, a twisting story which encompasses the reason of 50 deaths inside a set of extraordinarily inflexible restrictions. For instance, Pope might solely inform the story on the fragmented factors of every crewmate’s loss of life. That’s since you, the participant, get to witness that second as a 3D tableau, frozen in time. And since these scenes are accessed by you utilizing a magical pocket watch on a corpse, Pope additionally needed to work out the logistics of presenting a path of deaths for the participant to comply with. “Simply figuring that out was actually the most important problem of the sport.”

However he succeeded, laying the plan out in a spreadsheet-like software he made to cross-reference crew names, deaths, places and instances. He then wrote scripts for the brief snippets of dialogue that play out earlier than every scene is revealed and drew the sketches of the crew and maps of the ship. Lastly, he put all of it collectively in a brand new demo and in November 2016 took it to PAX Australia.

It was a shock to see how the sport performed. In contrast to Pope, the PAX gamers didn’t already know the storyline backwards. He hadn’t appreciated how the unique demo’s 5 deaths, every offered in chronological order, have been adopted by a brand new part which options 13 new characters and a sequence of deaths which might be out of order. “This sport is linear and all narrative based mostly and all baked, and there was no level I might sit down and play it to get a really feel for what it’s truly like,” says Pope.

His PAX expertise confirmed him he’d gotten issues badly fallacious. “The core problem was that you just see the story out of order, there are 60 fucking folks, 4 decks, flashbacks which might be completely non-chronological.” When gamers got here throughout our bodies, they wouldn’t know when their deaths occurred. Clearly, the manifest wasn’t sufficient to assist organise the storm of data the sport was throwing round.

Earlier than the guide, Pope tried a timeline-based interface. “I had a tough time making it look good and never really feel cluttered, which is without doubt one of the many causes I moved on to the complete guide interface.”

So, the right way to give the occasions a construction? The reply got here within the type of headings. What if a scene was known as The Finish, Half Three? That will naturally sit after Half Two, and due to this fact in an outlined place within the total narrative. “As soon as I had that, it was fairly apparent this ought to be a guide, as a result of all of a sudden you possibly can flip by way of it like a timeline,” Pope says.

Pope doesn’t actually prefer to make video games that want specific tutorials. Papers, Please managed to precise its core mechanics by way of play itself, and whereas he knew Obra Dinn must maintain gamers’ arms much more, he grabbed at any intuitive characteristic he might. The guide supplied an ideal metaphor for a timeline, naturally affording the power to flip backwards and forwards by way of its pages and thus by way of the time of the story.

Nonetheless, it was a ache to lose the manifest. In thematic phrases, Pope favored the best way the impersonal checklist of names contrasted with the best way the sport would step by step reveal them as folks. As an illustration of how necessary that is to him, the rationale why dialogue transcripts characteristic a cross subsequent to traces spoken by the character who died within the scene, however don’t distinguish between spoken traces by different characters, is “as a result of I don’t like decreasing any individual to a letter”.

However on a sensible degree, he knew the guide would pull right into a world of labor he wished to keep away from. When improvement started on Obra Dinn, Pope had simply completed localising Papers, Please, which was “the type of factor that scars you for all times”. Papers, Please has tens of 50×100 pixel paperwork which he’d initially manually specified by English himself, pixel-by-pixel. Localising them into seven different languages, becoming the translations into the identical house, was gruelling. He promised himself Obra Dinn would have “essentially the most fundamental UI I might get away with, so the manifest was like that, very fundamental, nothing fancy, three pages.”

Certainly one of Pope’s first mockups for the guide. “The management system right here was weird: the sticks/mouse would scroll each map and sketch home windows round, clicking the motion button would edit the destiny, shoulder buttons to web page ahead and backward. It nonetheless retains the timeline indicator, which ended up being superfluous.”

The guide imposed a complete lot of latest UI. Its looser structure averted plenty of the technicalities he confronted localising Papers, Please, however entailed plenty of difficult programming. He additionally needed to design a approach to navigate the guide, beginning with a gamepad scheme as a result of he knew it’d be more durable to create. There are many little nuances, equivalent to separating the D-pad choice from web page turning to keep away from unintended web page turns. He added a bookmarking perform so that you simply can refer again to all of the scenes wherein a single character seems (“everybody is aware of what a bookmark is”). And he needed to keep away from the temptation so as to add shortcuts between chapters and bookmarks. There’s only one shortcut, which flicks to the desk of contents. “Anything would wish plenty of instruction, so it was the best factor. Then, when you resolve you gained’t have that many options, educating isn’t that arduous as a result of it’s only a guide. The participant will determine to show the web page.”

However he wished the guide to positively seem like a guide. “I used to be considering, might I print it out, and wouldn’t it look cool?” He added a characteristic that almost all gamers in all probability gained’t have seen, that the gutter, the central divide between dealing with pages, strikes from one aspect of the backbone to the opposite as you flip by way of its pages. “You’ve gotta suppose I wished it to seem like a guide if you wish to make it try this.”

And but Return of the Obra Dinn’s guide isn’t a guide. It’s virtually a HyperCard stack, and it’s the place you carry out the important thing actions within the sport, figuring out every character and the way they died. What’s extra, its chapters begin out clean, magically filling in with particulars once you witness every scene. The design of that sequence, of seeing a personality’s loss of life and its web page showing, was one other problem, and Pope solely solved it a month earlier than the sport got here out.

Till that time, the scene would seem for a minute, the guide would seem, after which the sport would ship gamers again to the current, giving no additional alternative to look at the scene for clues. Pope’s change was to permit gamers to wander round after the minute performs out and the guide fills in, however he is aware of it nonetheless leaves gamers ready for the guide to seem to allow them to begin including their options. “To repair that might have been much more work,” he concedes. “I felt, OK the sport’s not good however I felt that after 4 and a half years, I might ship it. You may get somewhat ship-happy, principally.” And apart from, that minute of compelled time with the scene slows you down, helps you discover the main points you’ll want to resolve the sport’s mysteries.

Return of the Obra Dinn is full of little inconveniences like this. In spite of everything, it might simply have a button that exits a scene. “I actually didn’t need that, that’s sport considering, an exterior thought course of,” Pope says. And you’ll’t replay scenes with out schlepping to search out the physique to make use of the watch on it, even when it’d be easy addition to the guide’s set of features.

”That’s one of many dangers, gambles, I took that I take so much in my video games, the place I inconvenience the participant as a way to maintain the temper, the sense of the principles I’ve arrange,” Pope says. And in Obra Dinn he certain himself up in guidelines. “This sport was a juggling of restrictions: 1bit, story solely advised when somebody dies, simply layer upon layer of issues that I couldn’t do.”

There are two guidelines to the watch. First, it helps you to go into the previous, however you’ll be able to’t change something, all you are able to do is look. And second, it gained’t teleport you within the present time. So you’ll be able to’t go right into a scene and are available out in a brand new location on the ship. “In any other case the watch could be so highly effective that it’s bizarre you’re fixing some rinky-dink excessive seas homicide when you possibly can be ruling the world with it.”

By the identical guidelines, the guide needs to be passive. It could’t invoke the watch’s energy, simply can help you learn stuff. “I didn’t need these two beams crossing.” However whereas it’s passive, the guide remains to be fairly magic, a journal which binds collectively the thriller behind a doomed ship.

from SpicyNBAChili.com http://spicymoviechili.spicynbachili.com/how-a-book-binds-the-return-of-the-obra-dinn/

[nolimitsongrace]

September 4: Staying In a Place of Faith

Staying In a Place of FaithSeptember 4, 2020

But without faith it is impossible to please him… — Hebrews 11:6

I am so glad Denise and I chose to obey God when He called our family to move from a comfortable life in the United States into the unknown challenges of ministering in the former Soviet Union. I vividly remember that difficult time when I struggled with the growing awareness of that divine call. However, I ultimately came to the place where I knew there was no way around it. If we were going to obey God and walk in divine alignment with His plan and purpose for our lives, we’d have to obey His leading and move halfway around the world to the former USSR.

A verse that really helped me back in those days — and that still helps me today — is Hebrews 11:6. It says, “But without faith, it is impossible to please Him [God]…” The word “without” is the Greek word choris, a word that means to be outside of something — like outside the city limits or outside the house, as opposed to inside the city or inside the house. It should actually be translated, “But outside of faith…”

*[If you started reading this from your email, begin reading here.]

This word describes faith as a location — a place where you can live “in” or live “out” of. The Greek literally means, “But outside of the place of faith, it is impossible to please Him…”

Furthermore, the word “please” is the Greek word euarestesai, a compound of the words eu and arestos. The word eu means well, as in something that is well — and the word arestos means enjoyable or pleasing. Together they describe the pleasure one feels from seeing something that is especially excellent or delightful.

So when you take all these different meanings into account, Hebrews 11:6 can be translated: “Outside of the realm of faith, it is impossible to bring delight and pleasure to God…” The flip side to this statement is that when you are living “in” a place of faith — that is, if you are where God has called you and doing what God has asked you to do — you bring pleasure to the Lord.

For Denise and I to live in a place of faith, it required us to be where God was calling us — and that was the former USSR. In the years that we have lived in this part of the world, God has asked us to do many things that required us to have “faith.” Each time, we had to decide to stay “in” the place of faith until the assignment was accomplished. Regardless of how difficult the task was or how long it took us to do it, we knew we had to be committed to stay “in” the place of faith until the job was done. According to Hebrews 11:6, God has been observing us — and as long as we’ve stayed “in faith,” it has brought delight and pleasure to His heart. That has been our great motivation to stay “in” faith!

If you want to fully follow God’s plan for your life, you must find out where God wants you to be. Then you must get in alignment with God’s call and stay there until the task is fulfilled. It is only from this position of solid, unequivocal alignment with God’s will that you can know you are pleasing God!

But you have to get started! So in today’s Sparkling Gem, I want to help you know how to start moving toward that all-important goal of being “in” faith with the tasks and assignments God gives to you. It may be that you don’t know where to begin your tasks of faith, so I want to help you learn how to get started and to discover where you’ll find God’s will for your life.

I want to offer six suggestions that can help you get moving in the right direction. If you don’t already have concrete direction, I’ve discovered that it’s best for you to first find a place to serve; then as you serve, God will start giving you a vision for your own life. So here are my simple six suggestions:

1. Decide to start.

Look around you and assess the various needs you see. Decide which needs you may be able to help meet. Prayerfully determine how your talents, gifts, and money can best reach souls and bring them into God’s Kingdom.

Then go for it “full throttle”! Actively set your faith on fulfilling the task. Believe for blessing to come upon it. Make it a priority in your prayer life, praying and serving as if the entire project depended on you.

2. Decide how you are going to start serving.

Seek guidance from the Lord regarding how you’re supposed to move forward. What is God specifically telling you to do? Is it something at church, with a ministry, or on your own? Are you supposed to start by giving financially to the work of the Lord? It takes fuel to run any ship, so your finances provide a powerful means of serving. Giving is one of the most effective ways to help promote and advance the cause of the Gospel.

3. Decide where you are going to serve.

Don’t take just any opportunity that comes along. Instead, ask the Holy Spirit to show you where you are supposed to serve. Once the Lord shows you, go for it with all your heart. Don’t be a low-level performer at anything God calls you to do. Give your best to the assigned task and remember that there’s a reward awaiting you in the future.

4. Decide what level of commitment you are willing to make.

Don’t overcommit yourself by promising to do something that isn’t possible for you to do. Even if your heart wants to say, “Yes, yes, I’ll do that,” step back and ask, “Is this realistic? Will I be able to do what I’m committing to?”

Evaluate how this level of commitment fits in with all the other commitments you’ve already made. When you commit to do something, people think they can depend on you. So if you back out of your commitment later because it’s too much for you to handle, you mess up the plan for everyone else involved. It’s better to move slower in the beginning so you can make sure you’re making the right decision.

Before you make a financial commitment to a church or ministry, make sure it’s a commitment you can really keep. If your heart is crying out to give financially, act on that desire.

However, first analyze what amount you can actually give. If you have the ability to give large amounts, go for it! But if you need to start by giving smaller amounts because your financial resources are limited, that’s all right too. It’s better to commit to an amount that is actually achievable than to make a financial commitment that is larger than your current ability to fulfill.

5. Decide to make a habit of sowing seed — and start immediately.

Galatians 6:7 says, “…whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” This law of sowing and reaping works for everyone in the world. What you sow is exactly what you are going to reap. It may take awhile, but harvest day is coming if you’ve been planting seeds along the way. So decide to become a sower immediately — and start sowing those seeds today!

You also need to decide what you are going to sow. Since Galatians 6:7 says, “…whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap,” it’s very important to know what you want to reap. Determining what you want your harvest to be is the best way to determine what you should sow.

For instance, if you need time, you should sow time. If you need love, you should sow love. If you need friendship, you should sow friendship. If you need money, you should sow money. This is a law of God that always works. So look at what you need to reap, and then start sowing your seed accordingly.

You need to decide where you’re going to start sowing seed. As you make that decision, I urge you to make sure that you sow your seed into good ground. By that I mean you should sow seed into a church, ministry, or Christian organization that is truly accomplishing something profitable and good. Don’t throw your seed into ground that doesn’t produce excellent fruit. Look for fruit-producers. Once you find them, you’ll know where you should plant your seed.

I also strongly recommend that you sow your seed into what you want to become. I plant my seeds into ministries I believe in and into ministries from which I want a particular harvest. The Bible promises that we become “partakers of the grace” that rests on any ministry we sow into (see Philippians 1:7). Therefore, I carefully choose where I sow my seed. I sow into ministries that have something I desire for myself. In other words, the grace that is on that ministry is the grace that will flow back into my life.

6. Decide that you will not stop for any reason.

Galatians 6:9 continues, “And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” Keep your eyes on the prize, and don’t allow weariness to knock you out of the game! The Bible promises that your due season is coming. Even if it looks like it’s taking too long for your harvest to come back to you, hang on tight and keep doing what you know God wants you to do. Your “due season” is on its way.

In the process of receiving that expected end, keep your level of expectancy high. God promises that your “due season” will come if you don’t faint and give up. So don’t let the devil or discouraging circumstances maneuver you out of the manifestation you’ve been waiting for. The moment you’re on the brink of your “due season” of God’s plan for your life, that’s usually the time the devil tries the hardest to get you to quit!

These six principles of God’s Word always work — in every country, in every culture, and for every person. If you will follow these principles, they will work for you to get you on the path that leads to your divine destination.

I urge you not to waste any time just sitting around and waiting for something to happen. It’s time for you to jump into action and expend whatever level of energy is necessary to move forward in fulfilling what God has put in your heart to do. And if you don’t know how to get your own dream moving yet, take this time to sow your time, talent, and money into someone else’s God-given dream. Remember, the law of sowing and reaping is always in operation. What you do for someone else is exactly what will come back to you!

So if you don’t know where to start in your own journey of faith, I pray that these six suggestions are helpful to you. Once you start moving, serving, and giving, I am sure that the Holy Spirit will begin talking to you about your own faith assignment — which may be entirely to help someone else. Whatever your divine assignment entails, God will make it very clear to you as He observes you staying faithful. These six suggestions are very simple, but if you put them into practice, it won’t be long until you begin to hear God speak some concrete direction to you. Then you’ll begin to understand where you need to be and what you should be doing to stay “in” the place of God that makes Him smile when He looks at you!

MY PRAYER FOR TODAY

Father, I thank You for this practical help on knowing how to get started on finding my place of faith. I want to know Your will; I want to follow it; and I want to stay “in” that place of faith until I hear You tell me that I’ve faithfully finished the task You’ve assigned to me. Help me know where to start, where to serve, what to sow, and where to sow my seed. I know that the six suggestions outlined in today’s Sparkling Gem will help me get started, so Holy Spirit, let’s do it — I am ready to get started today!

I pray this in Jesus’ name!

MY CONFESSION FOR TODAY

I confess that I am not a person who just sits around, wondering about God’s will for my life. Until He speaks to me, I will implement these six suggestions in my life. I will start; I will know how and where to serve; I will determine the level of commitment I can make right now; I will sow my seed; and I will not stop. I fully expect to see harvests coming back to me from every direction. I refuse to sit idly and wonder what I should do. I will find a place to serve and sow, and I will get started. As I take these steps of faith, I’ll begin to hear God’s voice speak to me specifically about my own place of faith — and when I hear it, I’ll obey and stick with it until I hear the Lord say the job is done.

I declare this by faith in Jesus’ name!

QUESTIONS FOR YOU TO CONSIDER

Do you know what God has told you to do with your life? If not, have you considered serving someone else or somewhere else until your vision becomes clear to you? Are you serving somewhere now? Where are you serving?

Have you ever been “in” faith, and then slowly moved “out” of faith to the degree that you had to repent and get back in faith again? When was that experience? Is it something you are going through right now? How do you plan to get back “in” faith again?

Of the six suggestions you read about today, which of them are you already doing? Which ones do you need to implement?

[davidaolson]

The long, leisurely drive from Garden of the Gods to the Comfort Inn in Alamosa where we will hole up during our visit to the Great Sand Dunes National Park takes us by the Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument. It is happenstance. We had no idea it existed. We see the sign. Have the time. Stop for a visit. As the name suggests, it is famous for fossil beds including massive stumps of petrified redwood trees. After watching the Park Service video, I am most anxious to encounter the petrified beings, to touch the stone rings stretching deep into the seasons before man attempted to harness time, before man created gods in her own image, before woman anointed herself lord of creation.

Outside the main doors, there is a very small loop where the largest of all the unearthed stumps are on display. Though they have completely turned to stone, they look fresh, newly exposed wooden stumps that can easily be chopped into kindling or cut horizontally for spectacular multi-hued, deeply ringed tables. They are held together with 1/2 inch binding metal strapping wrapped around their circumference to help them hold form. Entropy has a way of driving things to crumble and decay. The bands stave off the crumbling. For how long, I can’t say. Still rusts. Entropy is formidable, unrelenting, always the victor.

The downside? We cannot touch the ancient beings. A dry moat and fence separate us. There will be no running my fingers over the rings, no feeling for a petrified pulse, no communion with the venerable trees. I understand why. People can be assholes. They will nibble away at the fragments. Stuff chips into their pockets and scurry off like packrats adding the memorabilia to a collection of forgotten trinkets gathered over the years. A few bastards ruin it for everyone.

We choose as our longish hike, considering there are some time constraints, the mile-long Petrified Forest Loop which winds around a number of the petrified redwood stumps. The loop is almost completely flat with vistas of the mountains in the background of short prairie grasses in the foreground and a smattering of trees. It meanders. We drift soaking up the gorgeous weather, basking in the ambiance, enjoying the stillness, thankful this is a decidedly uncrowded trail and there are no screeching voices raping the silence. We only encounter one other group, a hobbling grandfather with a cane and his two highly energized grandsons, two playful kittens rough house tumbling in their own joyful world.

The second stump we approach is massive but lacking the girth of those at the trail’s start. Its presence should align my senses like metal filings marching to invisible magnetic lines. But it doesn’t. I am more powerfully attracted to the tall, lifeless tree behind the stump up on a small knoll. I say lifeless because I can see no Spring buds like the surrounding copse. The bare branches are gnarled with arthritic joints. I say lifeless knowing looks can be deceiving. I say lifeless yet I feel an energetic connection across the space separating our two living souls. I stand transfixed gazing at its magnificence wishing to comprehend the long life journey from seedling to sapling thru maturity into now.

I need to get closer, need to make physical contact with the tree now knowing that is a deception. However, it is off the official trail behind another damn fence and a petulant sign, a petty bureaucrat happily handcuffed by inane rules demanding obeisance stipulating we stick to the established trail. ‘I’s dotted. ‘T’s crossed. Signed in triplicate. Stamped by the grand poobah. I opt for a few wide-angle and zoomed photographs.

Frustrated, I kick the fence. It cracks. Should I beat the bastard down and score a victory against tyranny? No. Despite my rebellious streak, I do tend to follow rules…sometimes. We turn to leave. One step. Two steps. I sense a strengthened pulse, tease a whisper off the leading edges of the wind that hit me in waves synchronized with the inhalation of my own breathing.

I pivot back, walk around the fence, cross the forbidden zone, halt at the foot of the majestic being. The bark is missing. Flayed by entropy? Age? Elements? Colonies of ants once making the between layer a colony home? Where are the ants now? What happened to their sultry queen?

Bark gone, the heartwood is exposed, raw nerves open to driving wind and cascading rain, searing heat and bitter cold, the chewing mandibles of insects, bird’s pointed beak digging for larvae. Does it feel pain? I imagine the sensitivity of my own flesh with the outer epidermal layer missing and I’m staked to the mast of a sailing ship the salt spray burning holes in my desire to live. Does that approximate the experience of this being?

I reached for the tall trees exposed flesh. Did I say tree? I hesitate calling it Tree even with a capital T. Too much baggage in the four-letter word, too many assumptions contained in the generic label. How should I reference this being many times taller than me? Deity? Demi-God? Do I have the courage to come face to face with a God? In the Bible, seeing the face of God meant death. God declares, “You cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.” Which then begs the question, what is a face?

I don’t throw these loaded God words with fanfare or poetic license rather for the transformative effect on my soul, my cluttered, encumbered, burdened soul. But I will use the archaic term for clarity. Anyway, at the instant I finally press flesh to flesh, energy flows into me and my mind calms. The disappointment lingering from the Garden of Gods visit is washed away. Free at last. Free at last.

The trunk is warmer than the surrounding air by at least 10° if not more. I’m not good at estimating temperature. The marked difference is strange. I can see if was basking in the sun but there’s a heavy cloud cover. I’ve never encountered a warm-blooded tree. Err…warm sapped tree?

There’s a definite pulse. A strong pulse…daaaa dummm, daaaa dummm…slower than a human pulse…daaaa dummm, daaaa dummm. There is one tree pulse to every four or five of my own. If I could slow my system to match, would my life span quadruple, quintuple? What would life be like 200 or 300 years into the future? What did this tree see 400 years in the past? Definitely a blooded tree. I press my ear against the body. There’s a heartbeat too. Incredible.

The tree is not significant in diameter. I wrap my arms around it to feel the warmth more deeply. There’s a slight give similar to pressing the surface skin on a very cold batch of chocolate pudding. I squeeze tight, feel my body penetrate the surface then, like a noodle being slurped into a mouth sans the slurping sound, I’m pulled into the tree. Inside the tree? I’m broader than the tree. How can I fit inside?

I look around. The tree is bigger on the inside than the outside? Tardis? Doctor? Doctor, are you here? Romana? K9? Maybe, it’s not that doctor. Clara? River? Amy? Rose? Wishful thinking.

I am able to see in a 360° arch without moving my head. There’s a slight cast like looking through a one-way mirror. There’s my wife. I knock. The knock echoes loudly. She doesn’t move. I slam the wall with my fist. Still, nothing. I’m out there too with my hand still pressed against the barkless flesh.

I have not physically popped inside the tree. My body is still intact on the outside. My mind and soul shed the flesh and wormed their way into Tree. Freaky! How is Irene not able to tell she’s standing next to shell David? Is it because my internal life is so inconsequential there is, in effect, no difference between whole David and shell David? That shines some light on my life.

How do I reconnect with my shell? A problem for later? A problem at all? If she can’t tell the difference why not simply exist in both places? If this tree lived for 100s of years, might my mind and soul also exist inside of Tree for another hundred years? That would give me 100 years of solitude. Ever since living in India, I find my self increasingly craving solitude. But for 100 years? I might go insane. If I’m not already insane? How do trees maintain sanity when living for so long. Hell, Methuselah is almost 5000 years old! If I do get out of here, I must make sure a vacation wraps around meeting Methuselah.

Perhaps, I am already beyond insane and believing I’m inside a tree is another manifestation of my insanity. If I can see myself outside, do I have multiple personalities? I must be cray cray. I know! It’s the CO2! Trees breathe CO2. I’m in the tree, probably inside the lungs and am breathing CO2 into my lungs. It must be fucking with my perceptions of reality. And if I’m breathing in CO2, I must be inside the three which means I’m not crazy. Am I the first being to slip inside a tree?

“No, you are not,” a feminine sounding voice echoed in the cavernous space. “We share our space with more insects by weight than 50 of you. We give them home, they massage us and keep us clean. They raise their families in the crevices of our bark, build nests in the holes vacated by songbirds. We allow songbirds to bore holes in our body and inhabit those holes. For our small sacrifice, we are guaranteed daily songs, nightly prayers, and decaying matter to enrichen soil filtering succulent water to sip in through our roots. And the bird song aids in our meditation.”

“Who…who is we?”

“We are Tree. Tree is We?”

“Tree? Is that your name?”

“We have many names. To some We are Anito. Others call We Kathor or Bo. In parts of China, We are known as Pi-Fang. There are as many names for We as there are peopled tribes.”

“What shall I call you?” Time to get to the essence of the name. If I know what they call themselves, I will have better insight into who they are.

“You may call We…Tree. It is a common term in your lexicon and a communication tool easy for your mind to grasp.”

Shit! Thwarted by a tree. “Nice to meet you, Tree.”

“Likewise, David. It’s obvious you don’t realize this but We have met before, many times before. We have watched you grow your entire life.”

That’s creepy. I feel like I’ve been stalked! Push that ill-feeling away. There is so much to learn. What shall I ask next? Obvious. “Why does We sound like a woman? And why do meditate?”

“You are interpreting to assuage the needs of your psyche. It is likely you view women as nurturers and are more comfortable having this conversation with a feminine persona, a female hero. It can also be because deep down you realize trees are givers of life. Never takers.

Your second question. We have no voice. We meditate because We sustains We. Walking is not possible. Through meditation, We march under and across open land easily creating an above-ground forest with aerial canopies. We as a family invite all to share in this glory. The marching is put into play by our mind while in deep meditation. With each new We, our meditation power amplifies exponentially until an entire forest of We creates a unique ecosystem breathing life into this planet. Without We, you would not be.”

“That’s kinda arrogant!”

“How are facts arrogant? We created the oxygen necessary for your emergence. We create oxygen necessary for your continued existence. Ergo, without We, you would not be. You may even say, We are your creator being.”

“Is that all you do? Create an atmosphere so man can be?”

“Hardly, We create atmospheres that all life may be. Not just humanity. Through our meditation, We make thoughts manifest.”

“What does that mean…to make manifest?”

“Our unified thought is so powerful it cannot be contained in simple synapse connecting electric impulses. The energy builds and Our thoughts explode into physical beings. Hummingbird is the outward manifestation of highly focused, deep thought exploding into Kaleidoscopic light. Hummers collect pollen from flowers instantiating the sex act between plants. It’s rapidly flicking tongue drives both female and male flower parts to long orgasm fruits which you not only enjoy eating but add to your health.”

“Whoa…your thoughts create hummingbirds?”

“Yes, We do. Those ancients lying dormant in the field behind you were much stronger. There were many more We in their day thus the meditative energy was intensified. They created Sparrow, Hawks, Flicker. Our ultimate creation, the one we are most proud of…

“I know.” I blurt out. “You all are most proud of is Golden Eagle.”

“No. Golden Eagle was meditated into existence during a season of tree self-aggrandization. It soared on the wave of inflated tree egos. We have since achieved a deeper, other-centered harmony and no longer create Golden. It’s why their numbers are so low. Their tribe is sustained solely on egg production. We no longer augment that race.”

I sensed a tinge of regret. “Sad?”

“Sad? No. It is merely the normal progression of life. All beings jump to a new body when the old one dies. Life continues just in different forms. As forms change, knowledge of the previous incarnation is carried deep in the brain’s core. It’s how empathy is created between beings vastly different than ourselves. If you love dogs, it means you were likely once a dog.”

“That’s Karma!” I blurted feeling proud of my intimate knowledge of life’s intricacies. And to show tree I was smarter than We.

“Close but no.”

“No? I’ve read about Buddhism. I lived in India. I’m familiar with karma.”

“Karma says the sum of previous existences decides fate in a future incarnation.

“Exactly.”

That Karma is a distortion of reality bent by the scratched prism of human minds because your kind has a need to believe they control their future. It is the same with all your ‘religions’. Truth becomes twisted and mangled until humans are at the center and the reason life exists.”

I find myself intrigued. My views on religion are similar. “Then what do you mean?”

“The next phase is a random act. A body is ready, the being’s soul is ready. And voilà. Existence in a new state.”

“Each person has one and only one soul that is judged by the Good Lord Above upon physical death?” Poised as a question but really a statement.

“Religion misinterpreted to mold reality into man’s narrow ability to grasp the immensity of the pluraverse.”

“Pluraverse? How does that align with our universe?”

“There are multiple universes superimposed upon each other. Thus a pluraverse. There are three here right now.”

I crane my neck trying to get a glimpse of the parallels.

“Don’t bother trying to see them on your own. The human ability to perceive is narrow, myopic, unable to perceive there are many universes right here, right now. Only one exists in color bands your eyes can see. Humans discriminate colors with three cones. Mantis shrimp have 12 and can see more colors than you can imagine including ultraviolet, infrared and x-ray. Trees see with 9.”

“Trees can see?”

“Of course.”

“Where are your eyes?”

“We don’t need eyes as you imagine them to see.”

“What’s in the parallel universes?”

“The petrified being you looked at before coming up here is, to you, a stump, a decayed tree replaced with rock. It is petrified and struggling to fend off entropy.”

“What do you see?”

“In the slowly vibrating, infrared lighted parallel universe, We see a massive redwood still living, growing strong, shouting thought leaves into the sky some morphing into songbirds…”

“Birds again. You seem to have a single-minded focus on birds.”

“We are of a collected mind, never single-minded. Our primary focus is giving life to the world. Life without music lacks purpose. So, We make sure there’s a constant infusion of birds to add their beautiful songs.”

“And why is that? You are not God. What is it your responsibility to create life?”

“Responsibility? It is our joy. We are not God but, then, neither is God a God. The ultimate is an aggregation of the Collective Consciousness extant in all beings. We serve the Collective Consciousness by breathing oxygen into the pluraverses and exercising our unique gifts to infuse birds into the mix.”

“Hold on a second. If God is another name for the Collective Consciousness by extrapolation all contributors to the Collective Consciousness are God.”

“In a manner of speaking.”

“That’s so heavy. And it corroborates an essay I wrote in college with the conclusion being that I was God as was everything else. I guess I’m a man ahead of his time.”

“Yes, I can see it being heavy for one who has not existed for more than a century in continuous meditation. We Tree are sanyasi, truth seekers. We abandoned the folly of disconnected individualism eons ago instead unifying under a single meditative hum. Our unified meditation has given us understanding well beyond the imaginable approaching the ultimate infinite.”

“I need to understand ultimate truth. Please tell me.” Hoping I don’t sound too needy.

“Humanity is the only beings not ready to accept ultimate truth. Birds do especially Lord Raven who’s mind thinks in poetry born of supreme meditation. All the animals and plants do. Human minds have not developed the capacity to simultaneously hold two opposite ideas believing them to be opposing truths.”

“What?”

“I will provide you with a simple example. To you, black and white are opposites. Black can’t be white. White can’t be black. Light and dark are mutually exclusive and can’t coexist.”

“Obviously!”

“We know black defines white. Light dances with dark. There is no difference between white and black.”

“That make’s absolutely no sense!”

“As We said, your kind are not ready. Evolution is slower in some than others.”

I needed to take back control of this screwy train of thought. There is knowledge here to be gained. How do I manipulate a tree? “Ok. Ok. I will accept what you said at face value. What can I grasp at this stage in my cognitive development?”

“That depends…”

Silence. Tree stopped talking. Seconds tick off into minutes that roll into hours. I wait until the silence gnaws through the ropes binding my patience and I am compelled to fill the void. “Depends on what???”

“I see you have very little patience so I doubt you have what it takes to absorb Our knowledge.”

“I’m patient. I waited minutes before jumping in with my question.”

“You were silent less than 10 seconds even then your mind was churning.”

“Well. I’m better than I used to be. With your help, I know I can grow the patience and learn from you.”

“Are you ready to spend eternity with me? Give up life as you know it and merge into the We? Because that is what it will take for you to begin grasping our knowledge.”

“Oh Shit. Uh. There is so much to see in this world. I’m not ready to set roots down in this isolated place for the next 100 years. So, no. I don’t wish to merge with We…at least…not yet. Perhaps when I’m old and sitting on the border between now and next.”

“Wise choice, human.”

I can’t leave empty-handed. It would be an extreme waste of a learning opportunity. “Can you show me something? A glimpse of all you have learned? Something my mind can grasp with a little stretching? Maybe a tidbit that will make sense down the line?”

“What you request means pecking a hole in this reality and allowing you to enter our dreamvision.”

“Fantastic! Let’s dream away.” I close my eyes and wait for sleep to take over. “I guess I’m too eager here. How can I dream wide awake?”

There are dreams, visions, and dreamvisions. I can dreamvision all of what came before me and some of what is yet to be. Entering our dreamvision is quite easy. Just follow my instructions. Breathe in for a 7 count. Hold for 4 counts. Exhale for 8 counts.”

“How long is a count?”

“Synchronize your counting to the beating of your heart. The inhalations will fill your lungs with CO2 and help you on the journey.”

“Whoa. CO2 is deadly to humans. Doh. My body is out there. It’s my soul in here. My soul has no lungs.��

“It is a mindset. You are correct and the CO2 cannot hurt your spirit.”

“How can my spirit breathe? It’s bodies that breathe.”

“You need to trust We on this. Repeat the breathing sequence a few more times making sure it is perfectly aligned with your heartbeat.”

I cannot sense my heartbeat. I put my hand on my imaginary chest. There it is. Da-dum. Da-dum. Breathe in 7 counts. Hold 4 counts. Exhale 8 counts. Repeat. Repeat. I’m feeling light-headed.

“You should be feeling lightheaded. The Carbon Dioxide is infusing your system soon you will pass out.”

“Pass Out?” I pull out of the breathing sequence. My vision is reduced to a tunnel which, in time, returns to normal.

“Yes. Pass out. The CO2 is a shock to an oxygen-breathing being. Don’t worry though you will awake almost instantaneously and experience the dreamvision of We. Just let yourself go.”

“But… but…but…I don’t want toooo….I’m afrai…”

A raven croaks. A long, drawn-out croak. A soulful croak. It’s long, held in perfect pitch, a vocalist singing and extended until the breath is exhausted then persisting a few heartbeats longer.

“What’s up with the Raven?”

“Raven unties memory knots helping us to recollect past and future memories.”

I open my eyes. Two moons hang in the sky, waning crescent moons half as bright as the sun piercing the clouds on a foggy day. “How can there be two moons? Why are they flickering between black and white?”

“There are always two moons. You are seeing through the eyes of We, seeing what We see. As I told you, the parallel universes are always present, superimposed in the now. The flickering you see is your mind approaching the ability to comprehend that black and white, dark and light are identical.”

“The moon was full yesterday. How can they be identical crescents today?”

“The moons are not identical. One is waning, the other is waxing. And what makes you believe today is today?”

“Isn’t today always today?”

“You have entered the meditative dream of We. Today, yesterday, even tomorrow have no meaning. We can experience any point on the time continuum beginning with the emerge of First Tree. Think of it as being fully present in the now and now can be any now, any time, the particular now necessary for enlightening. Trees are all bodhisattvas and we are sharing bodhisattva experience with you.”

“Bodhisattvas? Like the Buddha?”

“Of course. Do you recall where Siddhartha Gautama achieved enlightenment to become Buddha?”

“Beneath the Bodhi tree in what is now Bodh Gaya, India. I’ve been there a couple of times. I collected some leaves fallen from the tree. My wife framed them. They sit on our bookshelf.”

“You don’t think it was an accident that Siddhartha became Buddha beneath a tree, do you?”

I could be a smartass and say coincidence but this seems like the wrong time. I wanted to see where Tree teaching took me. “I guess not.”

“It was We who shared the knowledge opening Siddhartha’s eyes. Over the days he meditated at Our feet, we dropped leaves around and on him. Some became birds before touching Earth. Others were perfumed with understandings of the Universal Consciousness puzzle. It took a while until Siddhartha was able to connect the pieces into partial understanding, enough for a slice of enlightened knowledge. That is the origins of Buddhism.”

“Partial understanding?”

“Yes. As I said, the human mind, in its present evolution, cannot grasp full knowledge. So, we dispense what is needed when it is needed. As has been our practice throughout your history.”

“There are others?”

“Yes. Siddharta was one of the few with a spirit evolved sufficiently to grasp a fragment of true knowledge. He achieved the fourth phase in one lifetime.”

“Fourth phase? Grandfather taught me about the four phases. Do you know grandfather?” It was a question to which I immediately knew the answer.

“Of course. Grandfather is also We.”

“Were there others you gifted special knowledge? Of course, you just said were there were others. Who else have you gifted this enlightening knowledge to?”

“There have been many others.”

“Like who?”

“Moses at the burning bush. It was we who simulated burning in his mind and dispensed the knowledge needed at that a point in history to help humanity on their journey. There was Jesus at the fig tree. We scared him so he made We whither then avoided We for a long time. He learned enough to understand the necessity of loving one’s neighbor. We needed to engage with him again to complete his teaching but didn’t have the opportunity until he was hammered into the cross. The cross was We and We completed his education. When he moaned, “It is finished.” it was because he finally understood and was ready to leave the fourth phase into Spirit existence.”

“Are you telling me you instigated the great religious revivals?”

“Yes. It was communion with We that inspired Mohammad’s recitation of the Islamic Holy Book. We have gifted a litany of shaman’s and holy people throughout history reaching way back to the cave paintings in El Castillo, Spain and Sulawesi, Indonesia. There are older ones from the Neanderthals that have yet to be discovered. Few remain because CroMagon man destroyed them believing they were against their view of God. Your kind seems to never learn.

We point you forward yet you choose to close your eyes. We always chose a messenger from a person in their fourth phase because they have proven themselves capable of spiritual evolution. The problem is the many in the early phases with marginal abilities to comprehend the ultimate, grasp onto the lowest limbs and force them down the throats of others as gospel. And thus you have your unholy wars, your dogmatic religious practices, the hate across belief systems.”

“Why are humans always the recipients of your knowledge. Why not animals?”

“Animals, plants, rocks, all beings other than man are many lifetimes into the spiritual phase and coexist in the Collective Consciousness. They are also We.”

“This is absolutely fascinating. I must share this with the world. Too bad my blog has so few followers. Our world is pretty fucked up now. Hopefully, you’ve picked out the next great teacher to help guide us. The US has an orange baboon in highest office fighting with cockroaches on both sides of congress. Evil is gaining strongholds the world over with a stranglehold on political power. An enlightened teacher is needed now, was needed yesterday.”

“Yes, indeed.”

“Have you found one yet?”

“We have. In the past, We chose messengers who achieved the fourth phase in one life cycle believing their intelligence was the key success. This time We have decided on an individual that has struggled through many life cycles to reach the fourth phase. The thinking is that resilience is key and their experiences will help cement the message in souls also struggling to progress.”

“Who is it? Can you tell me? Would I know her, him, they?”

“Grandfather tells We, you are ready.”

“Me?”

“You have been chosen.”

“But, I’m a nobody. What can I possibly do? Nope. Not me. Pick another…someone with…with…I don’t know. Someone who is not me. I am getting old. Retirement is a few years away. I want to spend my time traveling. No one will listen to me. I have proof. My blogs have been out for a good 7 years and they have few followers.”

I pause, breathe. Wait for a response. Nothing.

“How can Tree expect me to nudge the course of human history when I can get barely any blog followers? You know, I’m a loner. No one will listen to a loner. I can’t even maintain friendships. Who would take a loner seriously? A half baked, half-assed loner like me?”

“As were they all…”

“What? You are equating me with the prophets? With the Son of Man?”

“Of course not…not yet. They were all similar to you before their anointing. They did not believe in themselves. But they all made the leap.”

“Hmmm…let’s say I acquiesce with your ask. Will I be well known? Will my blogs increase in followers making me an influencer?”

“That is hardly the point but yes. You will be well known, near-universally known. As such, near-universally loved and near-universally hated. Your penchant for solitude will be critical for you to rejuvenate. We foresee long periods of alone time in the desert.”

“That I like. I love the desert…especially red deserts with twisted canyons…but you knew that, didn’t you?”

“Of course. But that doesn’t make it any less true.”

“Ok…let’s say, for the sake of argument, I play along. And I’m assuming I have a choice?”

“In a manner of speaking.”

“Why me? Why now?”

“We could go into extensive detail about why you but you would throw up objection after objection to any and all logical or illogical, spiritual or corporeal arguments. To avoid the fruitless, a bit of Tree humor there, debate, We will just say, ‘Why not you?’”

“I get that. Then my 2nd question, why now?”

“History has cycles, ebbs and flows. There are buds in spring, fruit in summer, color in the fall, and barren winter days when We withdraw into our subterranean root system. Humanity, mentally, is in a trough…worse than being barren. When barren, fruit is not created. When in a trough, the fruit is actively destroyed.”

“Is it really that bad?”

“Do you not read your own blog? Despite the metrics pointing to this being one of the safest points in history, The powerful would have everyone believe we are in crisis and must resort to isolationism and hoarding. It is they who are forcing the crisis mentality. History is struggling because of a small but influential swath of humanity. We are in a point where the numbers show flowing yet the voices of the elect claim we are ebbing, stuck in a trough and fighting a squall. In the current human trough, the fruit is being poisoned. Humanity is the poison fruit destroying all life including your own.”

“Is it global or only America?”

“Narrow thinking. It is impossible to be healthy in isolation. We is connected globally through an extensive root system. We are aware of everything happening everywhere simultaneously. We are acutely aware of the complete and total interconnectedness of all beings.”

“Humans are deluded by the egregious belief that one arbitrary enclosed space can exist isolated from all others and be healthy. It is a dangerous delusion that will destroy the planet including your America.”

“No surprise there.”

“It is your destiny to awaken humanity before the tipping point and the impossibility of return.”

“Destiny. I am beginning to hate that word. I gather this won’t be easy?” A half question at best. A question to which I already knew the answer. Why ask it? I don’t know. Sometimes, I need to hear the obvious.

“No. Change never is. Think to your corporate life?”

“You are aware of my corporate life?”

“Yes. Are We not on the patio of your office?”

“Yup.”

“As We said, all are interconnected including the We planted on your 7th-floor office patio. Change is difficult in a corporation with a clearly defined mission. The difficulty of course-correcting humanity will be like escaping from inside a black hole. You will be adored, reviled, ignored all at the same time, by the same individuals. You will have all beings, with the possible exception of roaches who expect to inherit Earth once your kind destroys it, helping you in this quest to save the world.”

“I enjoy a challenge but, I’ve got to say, none of this ‘reality’ endears me to the cause.”

“Better a cruel truth than a comfortable delusion.”

“I love that quote. Did Ed Abbey get that from you?”

“No. Enlightenment is multidirectional. We learned quite a lot from Abbey. He wrote with such wisdom, opened up new worlds for We to see.”

“As did I.” Emotion roiled in my soul for the author I appreciated more than all others. I still feel anguish at his passing.

“Ok. I’m reluctant but if it��s written in the stars I guess…well…destinies are as destinies will be.”

“Destinies are destinies and one of yours will influence all of ours.”

“So much pressure. What’s next?”

“We teach you to connect with the universal harmonic. It helps you to tune in the Universal Consciousness, turn on to the connectedness, and drop out from the mental clutter wall separating you from Everything.”

“You must be referencing the Aum.”

“Each being connects in their own way. To humans, the way is through repetition of the Aum.”

“Aum in 108 repetitions.”

“No. Again a human distortion of knowledge shared ages ago. The 108 is manmade not universe ordained. Are you ready?”

“Yes. I think I am.”

“I will lead you. All you need do is repeat after me until you are tuned in. After that, it’s in your hands. Until then, follow me closely. So I can steer you clear of the broken worlds laying shattered inside. You’re not strong enough for those yet. Visiting one could give you a Psychic wound. They are difficult, almost impossible to recover from.”

“I’ve heard enough. Let’s kick this off. Hit it, Tree.”

“Aaaaaauuuuuuummmmmm.”

“Auumm.”

“Longer. Aaaaaauuuuuuummmmmm.”

“Aaauuummm”

“Listen closely. It is much longer. Aaaaaauuuuuuummmmmm.”

“Aaaaaauuuuuuummmmmm.”

“Keep repeating. Aaaaaauuuuuuummmmmm.”

“Aaaaaauuuuuuummmmmm. Aaaaaauuuuuuummmmmm. Aaaaaauuuuuuummmmmm.” Raven croaks, almost as if it is laughing. “Hey, I’m feeling an internal vibration. Aaaaaauuuuuuummmmmm.”

“You’re getting it. Keep going. Hold the Aum longer.”

“Aaaaaauuuuuuummmmmm. Aaaaaaaaauuuuuuuuuummmmmm. I’m getting a vision. Aaaaaauuuuuuummmmmm.”

“David.”

“Aaaaaauuuuuuummmmmm. Aaaaaauuuuuuummmmmm.”

“Ccooommmme ooonnnn.”

“Come on? Tree what’s that supposed to mean. Aaaaaauuuuuuummmmmm.”

“David, Comme ooonnnn. I want to get to the dunes today before it’s dark. Let’s finish up this hike so we can get to the dunes.”

“Dunes?” How confusing. “Aaaaaauuuuuuummmmmm.” I feel a strong tug on my arm and open my eyes. It’s my wife.

“You’ve had enough time to photograph this dead tree. We need to get going if we’re going to make Great Sand Dunes before sunset.”

“What?” My hand is still pressed against the tree. The bark is cold. There’s no heartbeat. “What the hell? Have you been here the entire time?”

“What do you mean the entire time. It’s only been a few minutes. There’s some bright orange lichen on this petrified stump. I think they would make a great picture.”

“I can’t be worrying about pictures now. There’s so much to do if I’m going to save the world.”

“Save the world?”

“Tree said it was my destiny…” I stopped. A red mist descended over her face quickly replaced by concern.

“Don’t tell me you had another hallucination. David, this is bad…really bad.”

“They are NOT hallucinations. It was real. They were all real. I experience other dimension interconnectedness. I’m chosen. And all my experiences you call hallucinations are connected. Common elements are woven between all of them. Grandfather is the unifying thread. He either shows up or is referenced in the experience.”

“In my professional opinion, one of two things are going on. Either you have cancer and your brain is feeding upon itself or you have dementia, maybe even schizophrenia.”

“Schizophrenia?”

“Yes. There’s no mental illness in your family history so it is more likely early-stage cancer. Hopefully, early enough to be caught and eradicated. When we get back I am going to make the Doctor’s appointment.”

“A shrink or a cancer doctor?”

“Both! We are going to get to the bottom of this insanity.”

“Insanity? Nice joke.”

“I’m not being funny. I am worried.”

“Ok. Ok. We will set up appointments. Shrink first so I can prove to you I’m not crazy.”

“Thank you. Now, let’s walk over to that outcropping. It is picturesque. Then we can drive to the dunes. I can’t wait to climb the great sand dunes. You know how much I love sand dunes.”

    Tree is We But We are Not Tree The long, leisurely drive from Garden of the Gods to the Comfort Inn in Alamosa where we will hole up during our visit to the Great Sand Dunes National Park takes us by the Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument.

[purrcraze]

Are Maine Coon Cats Good Hunters? Why This Is Important

Maine Coons are in the top three breeds of cats, beloved due to their unusual size, sweet personalities, and also hunter ability.

Are Maine Coon Cats Good Hunters? They are renowned for their hunting abilities, due to their size, ability to withstand harsh climates, and above average intelligence. They were even used for hunting mice back in the day. While they look the part, Maine Coons are not dangerous and are loving, amiable pets that just want to play.

Knowing that Maine Coons are great hunters is actually very important as it is a huge part of their character. Continue to read to learn more about that and to learn to satisfy their inner hunter.

Genetics and history play a factor

The Maine Coon´s exact origin is debatable. Raccoons, Vikings, and even Marie Antionette all have been touted as playing a part, none of which has been proven entirely correct.

It is fitting, however, that such an unusual breed would illicit strange tails.

Due to their Norwegian Cat ancestor, the Vikings legend probably hones in closer to the truth.

It is fitting to imagine these massive fur babies stalking the ships making sure rodents don’t get into the limited sources of food. What else would a Viking have by their side than these massive felines?

What we do know is they were domesticated initially to serve as barn cats. Like many cats that were tamed for this use, their instinct is to hunt and not just for food. Ever have a cat that placed their “offering” at the door or even worse at your feet?

They are showing you that they are doing their job.

Male MC’s go up to 25 lbs, while females can grow up to 18 pounds. Their paws are specially equipped for combat along with walking on the snow.

Some even have the internet beloved 6th toe, giving their feet the perfect snowshoe to skip across white fields while everyone else sinks in. They are named Maine Coons for a reason.

Meows manifest in trills and horse chirps instead of the typical wistful or boastful caterwauls in your day to day cats. It might sound cute when they are sitting at the window talking to a bird.

In fact, it is something that has been both the process of evolution and breeding to entice these little squeaking friends to come on by while your cat patiently waits to pounce.

Due to these genetic benefits, the Maine Coon is well equipped to keep your home vermin free. Just be cautious if you have smaller animals in the house.

They have been reported to be great with dogs and other breeds of cats, even ones smaller than them. It would be smart, however, not to adopt smaller animals that they instinctually see as prey or take deliberate steps to introduce your new friend to them.

Keep them active

Due to the hunting instinct, they are known for and their above average intelligence it is important to keep them engaged.

They tend to reach maturity slowly, attaining adulthood at around age 4. What this means for you is they need something to occupy their mind and keep them active.

When you do get toys for this breed to make sure to go for sturdy. Due to their size, some toys might be inadequate when they really get going. (If you want to get a toy for your Maine Coon cat, have a look at this article and learn about the 3 best toys for Maine Coons.)

They will tear up the stick and feather type toys with a snap and a tug. Making you wonder why you wasted your money in the first place.

Check the weight amount that your new cat tower can hold. Otherwise, it will fall to the ground with their bounding leaps. Even the rope that is used to wrap the poles of the tower is no match for their claws. (Of course, I also have written an article on the 3 best cat trees for Maine Coon cats – read it here!)

Another activity that you can try with your Maine Coon is tug of war or playing fetch.

They are an excellent cat for walking, a harness being the better choice for them instead of the standard collar and lease. You can easily teach your Maine Coon to walk on a leash – read our guide on that here!

A good harness for your Maine Coon is crucial, as your Maine Coon could escape if you buy a harness that doesn´t fit properly or is of low quality. These harnesses will do that job perfectly!

Not only that with a lack of fear for water you can finally get that water fountain bowl that has been in your cart forever. More on their love for water here.

If this reminds you of a dog then you are correct, a phrase most commonly associated with them is “the dogs of the cat world.”

Just a tip from an owner of a shocking large cat when playing fetch, be careful where you throw the toy.

They will bound over furniture, other animals, or even you if you are in the way to get their prize. I like to let my cat get the scent of the toy, as you would for a dog, then throw it all over the house to see if they can sniff it out.

Just like with humans there is nothing worse than an active mind that doesn’t have action. Expect a mischievous cat that likes to play and have fun.

If your nerves expect a docile well-behaved kitty that just wants to sit in your lap, you might be disappointed.

Due to their hunter nature, it is advisable to keep them inside as much as possible, domesticated cats are responsible for wiping out entire species of birds and mice.

Not their fault, this is what humans have trained them to do for centuries.

Are they dangerous?

Not unless you are a mouse or a bird. Due to the Maine Coon’s size and thick fur, they do look fearsome, like wild cats of old.

However, listen to your mother when she said don’t judge a book by its cover. Their loyalty, intelligence, and playfulness will prove to you their moniker as the “gentle giant.”

They are renowned for their loyalty to their humans. When you arrive home, they will probably be waiting for you at the door.

As mentioned before a Maine Cat’s personality matches more of a dog than what you would expect from a feline. Also read: Maine Coon Personality – 15 Things you must know!

The Maine Coon’s dedication to family and ease with children, dogs, and other cats make them the perfect family pet. They might show caution towards strangers but are not known to attack.

At the most, they will skitter away and then slowly come back to check out the new human that has come into their domain.

While researching this topic I came upon YouTube videos that depict them attacking their owners. As you watch these videos, you can see the person shoving things in their cat’s face, and the cat gives them ample warnings to please don’t do that.

Treating any animal as a punchline is showing that you have no respect for their well-being and that isn’t funny. As any cat servant knows what a cat ultimately wants is respect and acceptance.

Disrespect those two sentiments, and they will let you know about it.

A qualification to even be considered a Maine Coon is friendliness and amiability. People who have never had a cat before, especially a Maine Coon, have assumptions about them due to their appearance.

Really they just want things their way and love. When they want pets, they will come to you, and if they want to be left alone, they will let you know. Simple as that. Respect that and care for them then you will have a loyal companion for years.

If they are showing aggression

Like a lot of cat breeds, there could be many reasons why your Maine Coon is showing aggression since it is not inherent in their kind. There are a few things to check first before you start to hyperventilate.

If you are the owner of your cat for a while and know that this is a change in temperament first check any changes to their surroundings.

Have you moved?

Is there a new cat in the house or their territory?

Have you made a change in the house?

Changes, even small ones, cause stress to a cat’s sensitive nature. Reassure them that everything is ok, by pets, cuddles, and playing. If they need some time alone, let them have it so they can go through the process of adjusting.

They will spring back to their usual selves given time. When bringing a new cat into your home, you will have to deal with their process of accustoming themselves to each other.

If there haven’t been any changes in their environment, then there might be something medically wrong. A trip to the vet may be necessary to make sure your kitty is in its best health and make you stop worrying.

If you want to learn more about aggression in Maine Coons, read this article!

Related Questions

What do you feed a Maine Coon? Due to its size and proclivity to gain weight caring for a Maine Coon means that you have to be proactive with their food. Any feed bought should be high quality, and meat should be the first ingredient on the label. Avoid food with high qualities of fat.

How do you care for a Maine Coon’s fur? With an undercoat of thick hair and the tufty guard hair negligence of there, hair will result in what is call hairballs, lose hair around your home, and matting which is painful. Brush 2-3 times a week and bath them when their fur becomes stringy, about once a month.

Do I have a Maine Coon or a Siberian Cat? The differences are slight due to their common ancestor the Norwegian Forrest Cat. The differences are minor but a few clues are Maine Coon is more independent, don’t enjoy climbing, and tend to have a softer meow.

[nolimitsongrace]

September 4: Staying In a Place of Faith

Staying In a Place of FaithSeptember 4, 2019

But without faith it is impossible to please him… — Hebrews 11:6

I am so glad Denise and I chose to obey God when He called our family to move from a comfortable life in the United States into the unknown challenges of ministering in the former Soviet Union. I vividly remember that difficult time when I struggled with the growing awareness of that divine call. However, I ultimately came to the place where I knew there was no way around it. If we were going to obey God and walk in divine alignment with His plan and purpose for our lives, we’d have to obey His leading and move halfway around the world to the former USSR.

A verse that really helped me back in those days — and that still helps me today — is Hebrews 11:6. It says, “But without faith, it is impossible to please Him [God]…” The word “without” is the Greek word choris, a word that means to be outside of something — like outside the city limits or outside the house, as opposed to inside the city or inside the house. It should actually be translated, “But outside of faith…”

This word describes faith as a location — a place where you can live “in” or live “out” of. The Greek literally means, “But outside of the place of faith, it is impossible to please Him…”

*[If you started reading this from your email, begin reading here.]

Furthermore, the word “please” is the Greek word euarestesai, a compound of the words eu and arestos. The word eu means well, as in something that is well — and the word arestos means enjoyable or pleasing. Together they describe the pleasure one feels from seeing something that is especially excellent or delightful.

So when you take all these different meanings into account, Hebrews 11:6 can be translated: “Outside of the realm of faith, it is impossible to bring delight and pleasure to God…” The flip side to this statement is that when you are living “in” a place of faith — that is, if you are where God has called you and doing what God has asked you to do — you bring pleasure to the Lord.

For Denise and I to live in a place of faith, it required us to be where God was calling us — and that was the former USSR. In the years that we have lived in this part of the world, God has asked us to do many things that required us to have “faith.” Each time, we had to decide to stay “in” the place of faith until the assignment was accomplished. Regardless of how difficult the task was or how long it took us to do it, we knew we had to be committed to stay “in” the place of faith until the job was done. According to Hebrews 11:6, God has been observing us — and as long as we’ve stayed “in faith,” it has brought delight and pleasure to His heart. That has been our great motivation to stay “in” faith!

If you want to fully follow God’s plan for your life, you must find out where God wants you to be. Then you must get in alignment with God’s call and stay there until the task is fulfilled. It is only from this position of solid, unequivocal alignment with God’s will that you can know you are pleasing God!

But you have to get started! So in today’s Sparkling Gem, I want to help you know how to start moving toward that all-important goal of being “in” faith with the tasks and assignments God gives to you. It may be that you don’t know where to begin your tasks of faith, so I want to help you learn how to get started and to discover where you’ll find God’s will for your life.

I want to offer six suggestions that can help you get moving in the right direction. If you don’t already have concrete direction, I’ve discovered that it’s best for you to first find a place to serve; then as you serve, God will start giving you a vision for your own life. So here are my simple six suggestions:

1. Decide to start.

Look around you and assess the various needs you see. Decide which needs you may be able to help meet. Prayerfully determine how your talents, gifts, and money can best reach souls and bring them into God’s Kingdom.

Then go for it “full throttle”! Actively set your faith on fulfilling the task. Believe for blessing to come upon it. Make it a priority in your prayer life, praying and serving as if the entire project depended on you.

2. Decide how you are going to start serving.

Seek guidance from the Lord regarding how you’re supposed to move forward. What is God specifically telling you to do? Is it something at church, with a ministry, or on your own? Are you supposed to start by giving financially to the work of the Lord? It takes fuel to run any ship, so your finances provide a powerful means of serving. Giving is one of the most effective ways to help promote and advance the cause of the Gospel.

3. Decide where you are going to serve.

Don’t take just any opportunity that comes along. Instead, ask the Holy Spirit to show you where you are supposed to serve. Once the Lord shows you, go for it with all your heart. Don’t be a low-level performer at anything God calls you to do. Give your best to the assigned task and remember that there’s a reward awaiting you in the future.

4. Decide what level of commitment you are willing to make.

Don’t overcommit yourself by promising to do something that isn’t possible for you to do. Even if your heart wants to say, “Yes, yes, I’ll do that,” step back and ask, “Is this realistic? Will I be able to do what I’m committing to?”

Evaluate how this level of commitment fits in with all the other commitments you’ve already made. When you commit to do something, people think they can depend on you. So if you back out of your commitment later because it’s too much for you to handle, you mess up the plan for everyone else involved. It’s better to move slower in the beginning so you can make sure you’re making the right decision.

Before you make a financial commitment to a church or ministry, make sure it’s a commitment you can really keep. If your heart is crying out to give financially, act on that desire.

However, first analyze what amount you can actually give. If you have the ability to give large amounts, go for it! But if you need to start by giving smaller amounts because your financial resources are limited, that’s all right too. It’s better to commit to an amount that is actually achievable than to make a financial commitment that is larger than your current ability to fulfill.

5. Decide to make a habit of sowing seed — and start immediately.

Galatians 6:7 says, “…whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” This law of sowing and reaping works for everyone in the world. What you sow is exactly what you are going to reap. It may take awhile, but harvest day is coming if you’ve been planting seeds along the way. So decide to become a sower immediately — and start sowing those seeds today!

You also need to decide what you are going to sow. Since Galatians 6:7 says, “…whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap,” it’s very important to know what you want to reap. Determining what you want your harvest to be is the best way to determine what you should sow.

For instance, if you need time, you should sow time. If you need love, you should sow love. If you need friendship, you should sow friendship. If you need money, you should sow money. This is a law of God that always works. So look at what you need to reap, and then start sowing your seed accordingly.

You need to decide where you’re going to start sowing seed. As you make that decision, I urge you to make sure that you sow your seed into good ground. By that I mean you should sow seed into a church, ministry, or Christian organization that is truly accomplishing something profitable and good. Don’t throw your seed into ground that doesn’t produce excellent fruit. Look for fruit-producers. Once you find them, you’ll know where you should plant your seed.

I also strongly recommend that you sow your seed into what you want to become. I plant my seeds into ministries I believe in and into ministries from which I want a particular harvest. The Bible promises that we become “partakers of the grace” that rests on any ministry we sow into (see Philippians 1:7). Therefore, I carefully choose where I sow my seed. I sow into ministries that have something I desire for myself. In other words, the grace that is on that ministry is the grace that will flow back into my life.

6. Decide that you will not stop for any reason.

Galatians 6:9 continues, “And let us not be weary in well doing: for in due season we shall reap, if we faint not.” Keep your eyes on the prize, and don’t allow weariness to knock you out of the game! The Bible promises that your due season is coming. Even if it looks like it’s taking too long for your harvest to come back to you, hang on tight and keep doing what you know God wants you to do. Your “due season” is on its way.

In the process of receiving that expected end, keep your level of expectancy high. God promises that your “due season” will come if you don’t faint and give up. So don’t let the devil or discouraging circumstances maneuver you out of the manifestation you’ve been waiting for. The moment you’re on the brink of your “due season” of God’s plan for your life, that’s usually the time the devil tries the hardest to get you to quit!

These six principles of God’s Word always work — in every country, in every culture, and for every person. If you will follow these principles, they will work for you to get you on the path that leads to your divine destination.

I urge you not to waste any time just sitting around and waiting for something to happen. It’s time for you to jump into action and expend whatever level of energy is necessary to move forward in fulfilling what God has put in your heart to do. And if you don’t know how to get your own dream moving yet, take this time to sow your time, talent, and money into someone else’s God-given dream. Remember, the law of sowing and reaping is always in operation. What you do for someone else is exactly what will come back to you!

So if you don’t know where to start in your own journey of faith, I pray that these six suggestions are helpful to you. Once you start moving, serving, and giving, I am sure that the Holy Spirit will begin talking to you about your own faith assignment — which may be entirely to help someone else. Whatever your divine assignment entails, God will make it very clear to you as He observes you staying faithful. These six suggestions are very simple, but if you put them into practice, it won’t be long until you begin to hear God speak some concrete direction to you. Then you’ll begin to understand where you need to be and what you should be doing to stay “in” the place of God that makes Him smile when He looks at you!

MY PRAYER FOR TODAY

Father, I thank You for this practical help on knowing how to get started on finding my place of faith. I want to know Your will; I want to follow it; and I want to stay “in” that place of faith until I hear You tell me that I’ve faithfully finished the task You’ve assigned to me. Help me know where to start, where to serve, what to sow, and where to sow my seed. I know that the six suggestions outlined in today’s Sparkling Gem will help me get started, so Holy Spirit, let’s do it — I am ready to get started today!

I pray this in Jesus’ name!

MY CONFESSION FOR TODAY

I confess that I am not a person who just sits around, wondering about God’s will for my life. Until He speaks to me, I will implement these six suggestions in my life. I will start; I will know how and where to serve; I will determine the level of commitment I can make right now; I will sow my seed; and I will not stop. I fully expect to see harvests coming back to me from every direction. I refuse to sit idly and wonder what I should do. I will find a place to serve and sow, and I will get started. As I take these steps of faith, I’ll begin to hear God’s voice speak to me specifically about my own place of faith — and when I hear it, I’ll obey and stick with it until I hear the Lord say the job is done.

I declare this by faith in Jesus’ name!

QUESTIONS FOR YOU TO CONSIDER

Do you know what God has told you to do with your life? If not, have you considered serving someone else or somewhere else until your vision becomes clear to you? Are you serving somewhere now? Where are you serving?

Have you ever been “in” faith, and then slowly moved “out” of faith to the degree that you had to repent and get back in faith again? When was that experience? Is it something you are going through right now? How do you plan to get back “in” faith again?

Of the six suggestions you read about today, which of them are you already doing? Which ones do you need to implement?