Category: Journal

Things

14.12.15

– Contemporary crises (esp. Ecological) – What should be our (the common man’s) response?

1. Live in such a way that you don’t make matters worse, without making your life too difficult within the given context.

2. Give your full support to those who are actively trying to change the deficient systems. And beware of getting (unwittingly) aligned with the negative forces.

3. Create awareness among your peers, & promote the grassroots movement.

But in this world, where the inhuman powers are ubiquitous, how practical is it to survive as individuals and communities which refuse to be co-opted by them?? Is it possible to create alternative spaces in a (completely) preoccupied world?

The age of heroic one-man armies and idealistic, utopian arrangements are over – now is the time for the Spirit to move in and through the people, operating together as one organism!

– Based on the Tamil movie “Porampokku” – referred by S. Masilamani:

The common man, caught between the 2 opposing powers of the dominant status quo & rebel activism!

The majority may just continue their ordinary lives, but with vigilant resistance – promoting the latter by simply refusing to abet the former! But that is NOT going to be as easy as it sounds. It will require great sacrifice & perseverance, but this radical challenge has awesome emancipatory potential, to break the backbone of structural evil, by deconstructing it, vertebra-by-vertebra (individuals like you & me)……

– Scripture as novel/movie:

Are you going to make the narrative fit into your dogmatic assumptions, or do it the other way around?

The former approach is more definitive, but has lesser potential. The latter has more future value, but lesser present confidence.

– GOD – how can we maintain the divine personhood without falling into the trap of (our own narrow cultural) anthropomorphism? Use Jesus to define “human”, not the other way around!

– Situationism & the SFG meeting

– Terry Eagleton – a Marxist (& Christian?) critique of Liberalism, Postmodernism & Capitalism

But isn’t there any serious difficulty between Christianity & Marxism?

– “Political love”

– The only way to know ourselves well enough is through the eyes of the other!

– If only people were generally more contemplative, we would need much lesser activists!

– Ethical Slut

https://itunes.apple.com/in/podcast/13-dossie-easton-author-psychotherapist/id935441606?i=347811189&mt=2

Sex at Dawn

https://itunes.apple.com/in/podcast/sex-at-dawn-author-chris-ryan/id907525523?i=354772514&mt=2

– Working, “with pure heart, clear head & steady hand” –> manifesting the power of GOD!

Keep increasing your capacity for boredom, hard work & handling conflict…

15.12.15

– naturalization

– indentured

– keening

– ‘Young global leader’

– Life = believe + love + work

– Distinguish:

Creativity

&

Fiction

– lute

lutier

– imbroglio

– Would the world find itself in such great crisis today, if only each & every human being was independent & bold? How would a few become so powerful, & exploit the many, if not for the mindless & spineless masses?!

– Combinations:

Radical/critical

&

Theory/philosophy/theology

– Defacing the currency!

– Diogenes & Delphi

16.12.15

– The spectacle as spectacle

Object/medium

– Back to the alternate day routine!

No afternoon nap on working days.

Mild exercise on fasting (fruits only) day.

– Distinguish:

The individualism of capitalism

&

The libertarianism of anarchy

– Surrealism & revolution!

– Can one have leisure without luxury?

How much money does one need in order to live contemplatively?

This is NOT a way for the sloth or coward!

– So what do I do?

I am trying to live contemplatively.

Or

I am exploring & experimenting with the contemplative life.

Ministry (formal/official) is just a hobby.

– Eternal/timeless ~ irrelevant/fantastic?

– Thinker, artist, activist.

Where do you fall in this spectrum?

Does the sentimental & domestic person have any spiritual value or significance??

– Why did you stop wishing “Good morning” to your (the) maid as she enters the (your) house?

– Formation is nothing less than the ongoing process of incipient transformation!

– Pleasure

Vs.

Comfort

Passion

Vs.

Safety

Even the hedonist is a counter-cultural figure in this bland world!

– The levels/versions of capitalistic deception:

1. For the rich – the only worthy purpose of life is to subdue and manipulate nature (material, animate and human) to maximize financial profit.

2. For the middle class – the only way to climb up to the next stage is by submitting yourself to the system of utilitarian labor.

3. For the poor – the way to make a better future possible for your children is by accepting this predominant paradigm as the only means of survival.

The common thread is, “There is no other alternative, therefore bow (or die)!”

So now, you have only 2 choices:

1. To commit (spiritual) suicide

2. To risk being murdered (material)

But which one is victory, and which one defeat??

– How can I/we take concrete decisions regarding the major choices of this life that will aid in the (progressive) actualization of my/our highest vision?

– No  afternoon nap on fasting day (Wednesday).

Other days (systematic study – Monday & Friday, and random learning – Tuesday & Saturday) – half hour nap.

Freak-out days (Thursday & Sunday) – 1 – 1 & 1/2 hour nap

– Should I be blogging such private stuff?? Am I being too candid/explicit? Am I an exhibitionist?

– Private seminar!

– Just because nothing lasts forever doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t try to do something good, right?
Temporality is NOT nothingness!
And just because you feel that everything is useless doesn’t mean that everything actually is.
Maybe the only way to find out what you must do is to just stop doing anything, & slowly start doing whatever you feel like, only then can you figure out something clear & true for yourself……
I should stop all ministry for a while.

– Daily Manna:
Acts 3:22-26 – you are the people of the Prophet, and the children of the Covenant!
WOW… me?? Yeah, you!
Hmmm…… so what now?
Col. 3:12-17 – gratitude (GOD) + humility (self) + love (others) = holiness (beautiful life)!
Romans 4:18-21 – hope is nothing short of fully banking on the promise of the resurrection! I desperately need the Supernatural (eternal) to sustain (& ultimately perfect) even my natural (temporal) life……
Hebrews 10:32-35 – whenever you’re tempted to give up (resignation, despair, apathy, idleness), remember your (glorious) reward/destiny!
Matthew 13:53-58 – great wisdom (worldly understanding) + integral life (moral excellence) = divine power!
Ephesians 5:15-20 – the wisdom of joy and the folly of gloom!
Psalm 89:6-11 – Joe, whatever you learn through the diverse sources, never let go of the GOD of the Bible, because He is utterly unique and awesome (& you need him more than you might like to believe)!

– Israel & church – always rebels and underdogs… tragic heroes!

17.12.15

– What do I want?
I want to do nothing, and I want to do everything!
I want to be nothing, and I want to be everything.
I want to have nothing, and I want to have everything.
I want to be nowhere, and I want to be everywhere.

– The vast majority of people in this world can be divided into 2 types:
1. Those who are busy with useless things – “much ado about nothing”; ” Life’s but a walking shadow, a poor player. That struts and frets his hour upon the stage. And then is heard no more: it is a tale. Told by an idiot, full of sound and fury, Signifying nothing.” Most people fall under this category.
2. Those who vegetate – resigned to their fate of oblivion. A minority.
I am nearing the second one…
What we need is a third type – those who have overcome their own need for social survival/significance/success, and the suffocating smog of spiritual sloth, to live out of their central core in such a way that transforms the world around them.

– You can never measure the impact one leaves on the world (for good or bad), so don’t worry about it, and just concentrate on being true to yourself, and doing all that you can to make a difference!

– I don’t teach others, I just share what I am learning…

– Free association

– Movies:
“Partisan” (hit)
Can one be both radical and sane?
“A Most Violent Year” (hit)
Can one be both ambitious and moral?
18.12.15
– “When we turn from anger, we turn from insight…
It is from rage that thought is born, not from the pose of reason.”
– Audre Lorde, John Holloway
Reason can be rightly & fully used only when the heart is right i.e. passionately engaged in the pursuit of truth & justice.

– Political love

– ballsiness
lycanthrope
– moll
operatic
– epigraph
– Classical Antiquity (Greco-Roman period) – 800 B.C (Homer) to 500 A.D (Fall of Rome)
19.12.15
– Action learning
Powerful questions
Active listening
– Grassroots & distributed leadership
– New Social Movements (NSM)
– boundless.com
20.12.15
– Movies:
“Pisaasu” (Tamil) – hit
The divine as the mystical feminine essence, as opposed to the masculine big other!
The spiritual/radical as the transcending of familial ties to embrace the other.
The human/ethical survives, in spite of the ideological dominions, in the nooks and corners of everyday lives!

Miscellaneous

5.12.15

– In a crisis, go to an activist.
For life in general, meet a contemplative.

– I’m not an artist (first-order creator), I am a commentator/critic (second-order creator).

– Distinguish:
Christ
&
Christianity
Christ > Jesus?
Christianity
&
Church
Christ + Christianity + Church = Christian

– Shasta ~ teacher

– It takes only one small fault to spoil something pure, but it takes much much more to perfect what has been damaged.
Thankfully, the former is only a human disposition, but the latter is a divine prerogative! So one divine act can offset ages of human mess – this is our only hope.

6.12.15

– “… good news of great joy” – that does sound scary!  🙂

– “Jesus the name that CHARMS our fears,
That BIDS our sorrows cease.”
Which word appeals more to you?
Magic/superstition
Vs.
Faith/miracle
Let the human heart also bow to the Name, which all of nature obeys.

– How important is corporate worship as a spiritual discipline (even a sacrament)?
Is it possible for the individual believer to resist & overcome the powers that be, without it?
Prayer & praise as theological warcry & ethical armament, as opposed to (only) psychological consolation…

– “Divine service”
Adoration as edification.
Hmmm…… does this really work? How?

– Judeo-Christian Scriptures
Vs.
The Holy Bible

– Creator & redeemer – sovereign, not (just) ruler!
– See/hear –> shout/leap
Lord, have mercy!

– What does it mean (for us) to acknowledge the One whom all the earth worships?

– “His peace that shatters human pride,
And right from wrong divide…”

– Thunderstorm ~ heavy metal
Noise or music?

– It is shocking indeed, to realize the element of human responsibility (1) even in some so-called natural disasters (2)!
And although, even more mysterious & disturbing, let us not forget the aspect of divine judgment (3).
1 + 2 = 3!
Judgment is not GOD punishing sinful persons, but revealing/confronting/condemning the evil inherent in most of the contemporary human enterprises. Divine wrath almost always seems to be far too severe, because our estimation of our own depravity (selfishness & short-sightedness) is far too mild!

– Is the church still deaf & blind to its own nonchalant & unthinking involvement in the rampant greed & brutal exploitation – in this case, the real estate & construction industry (aided & abetted by political apathy/corruption) – that have been stripped naked & exposed as appalling evil, by this relentless torrent??!
How much longer will we continue to be cowards & fools, who participate in the very systems & forces that rape this planet & the poor masses (let us not ignore the spectre of global warming)?
What hypocrisy, when we toil to promote inequality & consumerism through our all-consuming careers, & then seek to offset these very same demonic powers through our puny prayers & ministries……
LORD have mercy,
Christ have mercy,
Lord, have mercy.

– Family ~ team ~ army
Cohesion, cause & enemies

– Distinguish:
Sabbath
&
Sabaoth

– Showers of blessing, turned into cursings!  😦

– I want to be – I am – in compassionate solidarity with the suffering masses of this great city.
Christian intercession, Buddhist Tonglen & secular activism (crisis response)

– Will this catastrophe destroy the festive season?

– Take the Sunday liturgy/worship service to each & every home, and institution!

– Thank GOD for this local church, which is as faulty & yet alive, as I myself am!

– Blessed to bless,
Healed to heal,
Saved to save.

– Carol rounds in loci of disaster as ‘relief work’…!

– “O little town of Bethlehem” – my favorite carol!?
Poignant & glorious……
The unconscious psyche, the socially marginalized & the heavenly realm
Bethlehem ~ Chennai
O what a fearful hope!

– Deromanticizing the Manger (against the Evangelical), instead of demythologizing the Cross (against the Liberal).

– The Eucharist effects the conversion of the crucifiers (death-dealing agents) into the crucified (life-giving sacrifices), thereby achieving salvation – the resurrection of all!

– Meat-eating – change from 1 day a week to 2 meals a week.

– Movies:
“Dracula Untold” (hit)
Mythology ~ theology
Theology ~ mythology
Hero-journey
Death & resurrection
The trappings of power
Love Vs. Death
Hero + extreme pressure –> monster!

6.12.15

– Movies:
“The Overnighters” (hit)
Definitely one of the best documentaries I have seen!
Imagine how the movie would have ended if I was in the pastor’s place… Ha ha ha!
Grace for all sinners (sheep), except the leader (Shepherd)!
Jesus (the Lamb of GOD) need not have been a perfect (absolutely faultless) man to be the atoning (reconciling) sacrifice, but he had to be both divine & human…
The story ends with the crucifixion, always. Because the resurrection is outside of the (limited) narrative!

7.12.15

– The LORD:
Striking & healing ~ saving by judging!
Isa. 19:22 + Job 5:18

– “All of your lines, turn to circles, in time…”
That’s why we need tangents!

– Animation, sentience & sapience!

8.12.15

– Character is not only revealed by who you are in the dark (private integrity), but it is also how you deal with the powers-that-be (social responsibility)!

– amber

– “Reverse development”!
Reverse migration – city to town
Reverse employment – IT to agriculture
Reverse community – online to physical
Reverse governance – from bureaucratic to democratic

– I think it is high-time for me to ask afresh the perennial questions of what work I am doing, whom I live with & where I am dwelling!
The recent disaster in my city has made this clear to me – new, different & better answers, than those I had previously given, are now required.

– Time to move from radical theologizing to utopian experimentation!

– How can I live in such a way that my life becomes a radical alternative to this suicidal & insane society?
I don’t wanna change the world, I just wanna……

– Should all our children be educated in agriculture, instead of coding, in order to be ‘future-ready’?!

9.12.15

– I want to get involved in some youth ministry, I am tired of working with people in the second half of life…!

– Judgment – no more ‘business-as-usual’… you can’t get away with this, forever!

– Read, reflect, respond ~ eat, regurgitate, chew the cud.

– “Why we should censor our dreams?” – Slavoj Zizek
“After Theory” – Terry Eagleton

– “Pussy Riot”

– Which is more important:
Leaving the world a better place
Or
Leaving this life a better person?
But don’t they both go together?

– Trade In Services Agreement (TISA)

– twilight

– Intelligentsia
&
Intellectual

– The sermon as prose poem!

– Visions, parables & rituals

– foundling
Objet trouve

– Private corruption –> public apathy

– The international & ecological dimension of individual choices

– Judgment – Divine withdrawal –> destruction

– “Defiling the land”

– Divine motivations:
1. Passion to be glorified
2. Love for His creation (especially people)
3. Covenant faithfulness

– The next David

– Lord, let this recent urban disaster lead to a political renewal! Amen.

– Judgment:
1. Against the people of GOD – repent & be the true Israel/Church
2. Against other peoples – turn toward Israel/Church
3. Restoration – salvation for all those who are part of the new Israel/Church!

– Is the conversion of Israel the key to peace in the Middle East?

– Is global spiritual revival the only way to save mankind’s future?

– What would be the central thrust & dominant themes in the theology of an authentic contemporary prophet?

– “Against the mountains of Israel” – Judgment starts with leaders – kings, cities & temples!

– The end (of the old) before the beginning (of the new)

– Idolators, killed by their very own idols!
False prophets – the high-priests of the Lie

– Judgment ~ lamentation
Woe unto you ~ I feel sorry for you

– Purification of GOD’S people –> GOD’S final war against Satan!
Purgatory for people,
Hell for the Devil.

– Conduct/attitude/character > actions/decisions/choices

– Eze. 36:22 – this is far greater than just the reputation or survival of one species/race/nation!

– 3 ways of cleansing:
1. With water
2. With salt
3. With fire

– Holiness as sensitivity!

– Nature as the mediator of GOD’S grace & wrath

– Repentance becomes complete only after the restoration, when the sinners realize the full weight of their evil!

– Premonarchical Israelite tribal confederacy

– The novel controversy of developing comparative models, out of the rapidly shifting mix of methods, alongside classical approaches…

– republic

– I need to constantly refocus my energy & aim…
The contemplative’s impact on the world is mostly indirect, because he is inwardly concentrated.
The activist’s spiritual growth is also mostly indirect, because she is outward oriented.

– Non-hierarchical social organization
What?!

– non-relationship

– Does Christianity have the necessary resources today, to save mankind & transform the world?

– Following Jesus ~ Being Christian ~ worship GOD
Is this possible without regular engagement with prayer, Scripture & church?

– apocalyptic
millenarian

– Models, networks, constructs, patterns, systems, rules, structures…

– Uncover the historical distance between the period of the biblical author and the events he is recording!
E.g. Moses & Genesis

11.12.15

– ‘Non-sexual nudity’

– I am tired of just reading & talking about radical stuff, I want to do something! I need to make some major changes in the overall framework of my life, just minor adjustments here & there in the details/content is not enough to make any substantial progress…
I must live in such a way that, if most people on this planet emulate, we would have a much brighter future.
New lifestyle option:
1. Weekdays – work & personal growth
2. Weekend – relationship & relaxation
No commute (more than walkable distance ~ 2-3 km) to & from work.
Spend one day a week with your spiritual community! Husband & wife live together, only one should have a full-time job. Other family members can stay apart. Visit each other once in 1 or 2 weeks.

– Randomize the system,
And systematize the random.

– If you can buy something you need, second-hand, then don’t buy the same product brand-new!

– “People are taught to accept the world ‘as it is’, thus unthinkingly perpetuating it. Critical Theory responds by saying that the world is constructed socially through discourse, thereby freeing us from the ideology of adjustment, and empowering us to imagine a radically better world.” – Simon Western
To what extent is today’s Christianity an instrument of ideological slavery, or a liberating challenge to the dominant (dormant!) mood?

13.12.15

– Movies:
“Heaven Knows What” (flop)
This could have been a good short film. It’s a disastrous feature!
The title is apt.
Can something (ultimately) destructive, be called “love”?
Youth, addiction, poverty & obsession… Utter nihilism!

– Books:
“One Hundred Years of Solitude” – Gabriel Garcia Marquez (flop)
I don’t understand why this novel is so highly rated by critics!!
It’s somewhat like the movie “Heaven Knows What”. Maybe nihilism is the womb of existentialism! Maybe the former is the objective side, & the latter the subjective side of the coin of life……
Maybe it lost its power to enthrall, because I had too many long interruptions between short readings.
Compare Christian Scripture with Melquiades’ scrolls. Maybe eschatology/prophecy is to be understood as, not future consummation, but as the apocalyptic moment! What can the sands of time do against this eternal reality??
What is life but the (seemingly vain & futile) struggle to survive (even occasionally thrive), in the face of evil (injustice & suffering), meaninglessness & death?

Happenings

30.11.15
– What am I doing?

I am just trying to understand/interpret & practice/demonstrate a robust spirituality.
– Check out the course “Theology Quest” (Howe & Myslinski) on iTunesU!!!
– subsidence
– lumpen
– Movies:

“Faults” (hit)

The cult of the bourgeoisie, & the lumpen proletariat…

What are your fault-lines?

The client as analyst!

Can there be freedom & fairness, without violence & destruction? 

“Escape from Freedom” – Erich Fromm 

Political psychoanalysis as theological revelation!

1.12.15
– Boredom:

What are the ways in which my life lacks intensity (& why)?

&

What are the ways in which I attempt to self-medicate (& why)?

Let my fearless descent into the depths of emptiness & frustration make me a more disciplined & creative person. It is only through this rough (toughening & enlightening) journey that I can become mature, & then capable of guiding & nurturing others into (their) glory…

Calibration!
– Learn ~ input –> change ~ process –> growth ~ outcome!
– “Dictionary of Obscure Sorrows” – check out this YouTube channel!
– Boredom is the mother of creativity,

Frustration is the mother of endurance,

Chaos is the mother of discipline.
– unmake
– Outcomes of learning – change in beliefs/values, opinions/attitudes & decisions/actions
– inane

impertinent
– Curiosity + courage = creativity!
– Art criticism & social sciences – the links between art & science.
– The child – the paragon of both recklessness & cowardice!
– “There is no present, there is only past & future.” (the flow of time)

“There is no past & future, there is only the present.” (the eternal now)

Can both these statements be true?

Of course, they must!
– Appreciation > enjoyment
– Distinguish:

Reflexive (impulsive)

&

Reflective (thoughtful)

&

Contemplative (prayerful)
– Is heroism nothing but counter-cultural cupidity?!
– humbug

hocus-pocus
– vulpine

knaves

educe

cumbrous
– chattel
– The beauty of mathematics!

3.12.15
– When you investigate something, are you prepared to accept a finding that would be inimical to your self-interest or challenging to your cherished beliefs?
– Why can’t you love GOD without loving people too?

Because of the divine humanity (Bulgakov)!

The Second Adam (divine) is the first, & the First Adam (human) is the second.
– Spirit/principle/life/GOD –> flesh/action/love/man
– All Christian rituals are effective only because of the Christ-event, whose truth & power they are meant to symbolize & channelize.
– Obedience –> blessing –> prosperity

Wisdom –> growth –> success!
– Do not despise small beginnings, because if they are part of the Kingdom, then they will definitely become great!
– Parables: Cryptic explanation of great mysteries – What did you expect? The revelation of the Secret will be no less puzzling!
– Daily worship –> a life of joy!

The vow of praise & prayer
– I must strictly limit my total sleep per day to a maximum of 8 – 8.5 hours (including night & afternoon)
– What if you have to live with someone you don’t like:

1. Learn to accept the other as they are & work on your own negative emotions. Beware of hatred!

2. Love them, irrespective of whether you like them.

3. Pray for the family.

4. Help them to change & improve themselves.

5. Take breaks.
– Read –> study –> learn

Start practising digestion!
– When you feel depressed, resisting carnal temptation becomes almost impossible!
– Can/should I do any volunteer relief work during this flood crisis in Chennai? Will I just be a liability?

4.12.15
– Movies:

“Inherent Vice” (okay-hit) 

A gorgeous movie, with an unforgettable scene! OMG… it feels like you could almost touch her. 

How do you relate the hero’s PI business as a social service, the FBI’s anti-subversive agenda (against the entrepreneur turned communist), the turbulent, weird friendship between ‘Bigfoot’ & Doc, & the central romance, & integrate them with the title? 

Hey, you missed the (ubiquitous) Marijuana (& the larger Hippie culture) ! 

What happens to Shasta during her disappearance??

Random

15.11.15
– Should I try to speed up my gadgets, get faster ones, or just learn to be more patient?
– My confusion & frustration comes out clearly in the way I play TT!  :-[
– “Let them grow together until the harvest time.”

What meanings can you draw from this passage if you read it with a psychoanalytic lens or a leadership lens or a cultural lens?

Can you identify the unconscious in this parable?

16.11.15
– Bentley Hart is better at dealing with the New Atheists than Peter Rollins.
– Movies:

“Aayudha Ezhuthu” (Tamil – hit)

I have elements of Inba, Michael & Arjun in me!

Someone like Inba could never make a living like other normal people, so his (& her!) end is realistic.

Was the ending of the film too optimistic??
– How is Rollins’ “Idolatry of God” similar to, or different from, the basic Buddhist premise of Nirvana?

18.11.15
– Each person’s death should be a cause for celebration to those who are left behind:

1. Organ donation

2. Give away at least half of your wealth to charity.

3. Cremation – no usage of real estate or money for burial.

Write your will today, & assure a glorious end with your loved ones.
– There are 2 kinds of future:

What will be (probability – passive – fate – extrapolation of the same old past – if we do nothing to bring change)

&

What can be (possibility – active – hope – the breaking in of something new – if GOD works in & through us)
– Dream:

A spider comes crawling out of the mat. But as it slowly comes out, I realize that it is actually a giant, monstrous spider with huge tentacles!

(Compare with movie “Enemy”!? How best can you label the expression on the hero’s face in the last scene?? In my dream, it was horror. But I don’t think it’s the same as the movie…

The unconscious, sexuality, ideology, etc.)

19.11.15
– Kingdom/Calling/mission > Work/career/ministry
– Love > acceptance

GOD unconditionally loves (not only accepts) us!

Affirmation from without –> evaluation from within…

NOT the other way around.
– Movies:

“A Clockwork Orange”

Why this title? What is the novel (by Anthony Burgess) all about?

If human nature can be changed only from within (spiritually), then is there nothing we can do about it??

How can we be repaired without being damaged by the very same attempt?!

What can the Christian Gospel do about this conundrum?

Getting to know the book on which a film is based is as important as having an elemental knowledge of the Bible in its original languages!

What is common to religion and the state, in their approach to reforming people? Fear & control!

20.11.15
– “You were young and your heart was an open book,

You could say live & let live…

But in this ever-changing world in which we live in,

Makes you give in & cry,

Live & let die!”

– Guns N Roses

Is it possible to stay human & still survive in this world?? Just look at the Cross!
– Don’t use USB hub for charging your mobile devices. Use only a power adapter or charger.
– We are willing to be patient with mechanical instruments, but why not with the digital?
– Aayudha Ezhuthu – Inba, Michael & Arjun – all 3 are in me, yes. But in what order, & how do they relate to each other?
– 3 elements of Christian life:

1. The sheer grace of GOD

2. Our faithfulness

3. Miraculous works

In your faith, how do these three line up?
– Study Bible:

1. General articles

2. Intro. to each section/book

3. Translation notes & passage commentary

How do you map these 3 onto your spirituality as a whole?
– What do you call small people who are living large, & great persons who are living small?

21.11.15
– In “Jimmy’s Hall” (movie), where are we (the contemporary church)?

Look at the last scene with the kids cycling & screaming behind the escort…!

22.11.15
– Choices:

1. Live & work in a tier 2 city, that is close to a metro, but not as overloaded. Visit the metro once in a few months for certain important cultural & educational events.

2. Avoid the daily commute by living very close to your workplace. You can visit your family home during weekends.

3. Allot a particular place in your house for a specific purpose – study, prayer, sleep, entertainment, socializing, etc.