Six feet of dirt.........Make all Gangsta's equal.
"To be concious that you are ignorant is a great step to knowledge"-Benjamin Disraeli
I wish I had been concious of my ignorance on may 3rd,1992.
I had just gotten out of jail that morning and I was now showing up for work that afternoon.
I walked in , shaved head, green dickie suit , Nike Cortez and proceeded to punch the time clock.
I was working part-time at a grocery store doing produce.
I was also working part-time robbing houses.
I didn't give a damn about anyone but myself and the Homies , they were more important than my family.
They in fact became my family.
And it wasn't because my parents didn't raise me right or show me enough love,I was just like most teens throughout our existence on this earth....Greedy and self-centered.
After I clocked in ,my manager comes up and says "Go to the back of the store man !"
I said "For What?"
"I'll tell you in a few minutes,hurry up and go!"
So I did,I was thinking the cops were there looking for me.
A few minutes went by and I went back on the floor to see what was up.
He told me this girl had brought her brothers in to see what I looked like.
"For what ?" I asked, He then told me "They think you were there when her husband got killed"!
"I wasn't there man!"
"Well, there after you so watch your back"!
Now let's rewind to how my manager knew for me to go to the back of the store in the first place.
A short while prior to this , A co-worker was having a get together at his apartment.
His complex was across the street from my job.
So I showed up and when I was coming up the stairs I saw my manager talking to this chick...
I said what's up and went inside and started drinking.
When he came in , he started telling me that he liked this girl , So I was like , Handle your buisness man!
This dude was real uptight and I honestly thought if he got with a girl , he would relax a lil ....
So I'm at the table with a beer in my hand telling him he needs to hook up with this girl ....
Then he says ...
" I don't know man , her husband got killed last year "
So then I switched it up , and began telling him to be cool and handle the situation with class because she had been through a lot of trauma already ... Basically , Don't use this woman ... If you like her , treat her right.
Then we started talking and drinking a lil more and he started giving me more details.
Then I put two and two together ...
" My homeboy killed that dude ! I know who you are talking about ! "
Being young and buzzed up , I blurted this out to my manager and told him the story.
The short version is this ...
A guy that was in the same gang I was , got into some beef and ended up killing this other dude , who happened to be the husband of the girl my manager was now trying to holla at.
The shooter was sentenced to ten years in the pen and the family of the victim was outraged.
Looking back , I can clearly understand why ...
Like I said , I knew the shooter ...
I went to school with him , Junior high ...
We rode skateboards , played Nintendo , shot hoops at Hugh Smith and within a few short years of those innocent times, we were both gang bangin and stealing.
But he ends up killing someone.
I wasn't there, I did not have a thing to do with it.
Didn't matter, My name got thrown in the mix anyhow and since the triggerman and myself were in the same gang , I guess that made me just as guilty in there eyes.
Shortly after it happened , I had two dudes that lived on my street and were supposedly in the same gang as the one who got shot walk up on me one day ...
They said they had heard I thought it was funny that the dude got murdered ...
I looked them both in the eyes and told them I never said anything like that ... Because I hadn't.
They said cool and walked off and that was that ... I didn't understand why they were questioning me...
Then there was another person...
We were cool with each other but he was also affiliated with the victims supposed gang and we were fighting with the gang he was in.
He called me one night telling me they were bringing in a dude from Cali to kill me , he said they wanted my head...
I had no earthly idea where all this was coming from , how MY name got so involved in something I was not a part of...
Matter of fact , I was with the shooters best friend and a couple other guys when we found out that our friend had killed someone.
We were riding around lsitening to music and smoking out and having a good time when we got the news.
We were all in shock ... Especially his best friend ... We couldn't believe it.
Now it had went from friends becoming gangstas and burglars to someone we knew actually commiting homicide ...
Hearing that had a serious impact on us ...
He took it to that other level ... A very tragic level.
Now a man is dead and our friend is going to prison.
All this happened with him in April of 91.
"You are known by the company you keep" Remember that!
Now the widow of that murdered man was a couple apartments over from where I was sitting ...
And now my manager has some information to share ...
Did he set me up ?
I don't think so , I think he just told her what he knew and she called her brothers from there.
I do not believe he intentionally told her about me to have me killed.
Did he run his mouth and betray my trust in him ? Ofcourse ...
Then again ... I should have never opened MY mouth , Youth and alcohol were to blame on my part .
I am not really sure what his motives were ...
And that is how my manager knew to send me to the back of the store when her and her family walked in...
Now let's travel back to Sunday , May 3rd , 1992...
It's now around 8:00pm...
On my break , I went out into a foyer in the front of the store to use the payphone.
I called my girl and was telling her I needed to get a gun.
I didn't have a gun because I was mentally unstable and I would have used it on myself and my woman knew that , so she talked me out of getting one several times.
We were already fighting with a gang and I am being warned Gangstas from Cali wanna kill me and now I had these people after me ... I had just gotten out of jail , I am still waiting to go to court for burglary of habitation and before all this , we had fought these other cats and a dude who was with us used brass knuckles , Now all involved in the fight are also looking at an Assault with a deadly weapon charge because of him ... I had been in a mental institution the month before and now I needed to get my hands on a gun for real because this was all starting to crumble around me.
So I am on the payphone telling my girl about the gun situation when this big fool walks in..
Straight mad-doggin me...
I knew immediately it was the widow's brother ...
So in my mind I know I am about to throw down with this dude and it's about to happen very quickly...
He walked straight up to me and said "Are you Scott Johnson?"
I said "Yeah man" and I told my girl I'd call her back , Like I said , I knew we were about to fight.
But before I could hang up the phone,he pulled out a Rambo style knife and started jabbing me with it as fast as he could.
#1 and #2 go inside my back, #3 into my left lung, #4 pierces my liver...
This all happened to me in about 6 or 7 seconds.
I gave him a solid left hook to his jaw and he stumbled back against a rail.
I stood over him throwing punches with everything in me...
This is when he drove the knife straight into my stomach , which made stab wound #5.
My vision turned completely red.
After a second or two when I could see again,I punched him again and this time he swung back with his right hand.
And that is when #6 went buried to the handle in the left side of my cheek.
I believe he was aiming for my throat ... an inch or so lower and he would have reached his goal.
Then he pushed me back and headed for the exit...
I grabbed the back of his shirt with my right hand as he was going out of the door and I was trying like hell to pull the knife out of my jawbone with my left.
I was going to stab him in the back of the head! I was going to kill him.
I was screaming and cussing and trying to pull the knife out of my jaw ,but it would not budge.
I was weak from blood loss,but my adrenaline was raging.
I held onto the back of his shirt by the neck and we ended up outside in the parking lot.
A truck driven by his brother pulled up and he rolled into the back of it .
I looked that demon in the eyes for a split second, He was as scared and shocked as I was.
I wasn't dead yet , the job didn't go as planned.
And as the tires squealed ... My murderer vanished into the darkness.
So here I am with six stab wounds in me, not to mention a hunting knife embedded in my face!
The knife went through my cheek and lodged in my jawbone,leaving the blade inside of my mouth.
Obviously this prevented me from speaking clearly so I started yelling for help the best I could.
And out of nowhere this woman grabbed my arm and started leading me back inside...
WIth a calmness and tenderness that was out of this world...
As I passed the dangling telephone reciever,I picked it up and told my girl "I'll call you later baby" and I hung up the phone.
She had heard everything ...
Now imagine this woman seeing somebody in the shape I was in and remaining perfectly calm and gentle.
This ANGEL continued to lead me inside.
She led me back through the same place I had just been stabbed and then through the automatic doors and into the store.
She helped guide me down as I collapsed on the floor, then I heard the screams.
My manager ran up with this disgusted and shocked look on his face and say's "Ah,Scott,I told you man,I told you"!!!
I just looked at him while I was coughing up blood...
I remember My other co-worker running up and holding his stomach like he was about to vomit.
I remember the lady who worked one of the registers and how horrified her face was ...
Now that I can look back ,I see a dog who has been hit by a car and is dying.
It cannot speak and express it's pain,It can only stare at you as the final breath approaches...
But the eyes... the eyes of the dying speak a million words...
That's how I feel I looked to them.
I could only speak with my eyes ... "This is it man - Why Me?!!!".
Then I saw the head manager of the store run up with the same disgusted look on his face as everyone else.
He said three words that I will never forget....
"It's Gang related".
So here is the OG ...
Coughing and spitting up blood and laying in a literal pool of blood.
I was numb,in shock,I was just staring at everyone's horrified faces and hearing their hollow screams.
I was thinking, this is it man your going to die Scott...
You will never see your family or friends or girlfriend or even your dog again , Everything you love is fading away...
I suddenly realized I had not done anything in this world and I wanted that chance again.
Oh my God ! Give me another chance ! I will appreciate it !
The lady who led me inside had disapered,she was nowhere to be found.
She didn't even come out in the newspapers when they covered the story...
All of that and the fact that she remained perfectly calm and comforting in the midst of bloody chaos is why I believe and say she was a certified angel.
And speaking of angels,The paramedics arrived.
They wrapped my head in bandages,leaving the handle of the knife sticking out.
They took a razor and cut off my clothes leaving me in nothing but my undies ,socks and Nikes...
I kept telling them that my back and stomach were killing me....
When I raised my head and looked at my stomach I saw where the serrated edge of the knife had pulled out some of my intestines ...
They loaded me on a stretcher and rushed me out to the parking lot where careflight was waiting.
As they were pushing me towards the helicopter the cops let my parents through the crowd that had gathered.
I'll never forget the look on my mom's face...Close your eyes and imagine Fear,Shock,Disbelief,Rage and Pain all in one expression.
If you can do that,then you will have an idea of what my mothers face looked like when she saw her only son laying on a stretcher under the blood soaked white sheets with the handle of a knife sticking out of her baby's face...
She was sobbing uncontrollably and saying "Your gonna be alright ,your gonna be alright baby"! Something like that..
But her eyes contradicted her words...
If the eyes are the windows to the soul , her windows were broken.
Careflight flew me to Harris-Methodist Hospital in Ft.Worth and I was rushed into surgery.
I was surrounded by Doctors and Nurses.
I was awake for awhile answering questions while they prepared to operate.
The Doctor looked at me and said "I'm going to pull the knife out of your face now,Scott...
A nurse grabbed my hand and he grabbed the handle with both hands and slowly pulled the knife out of my jawbone.
I was squeezing the nurses hand with everything I had , felt like I could have broken it.
I saw him carry the weapon,drop it in a plastic bag and seal it up.
Then entered the Morphine...
Hours into surgery, the doctor came out and told my parents ,girlfriend and friends , I was bleeding to death and there was nothing more he could do.
He said he had lost me once already and that I was bleeding from so many places the blood was coming out faster than they could put it in.
I had already been through 32 pints of blood and it was not clotting...
My mom grabbed the doctor and begged him not to let me die!
She said take GOD with you,he can pick up where you left off!
The Doctor looked at her and said "He might live another hour" .
That sounds cold-blooded but I guess he didn't see much hope.
My left lung collapsed.
My liver was completely severed.
Some of my intestines were pulled out.
My back muscles were ripped out.
70 percent of the roof of my mouth was taken off.
And to add to the drama the tip of the knife had punctured my carotid artery ,the vessel that carries blood and oxygen to your brain.
God guided the hand of the surgeons and through his grace and their skill I was eventually stable.
But it was a constant struggle for my life...
I was hemmoraging,fighting off infections and raging fevers and I went through another 25-30 pints of blood.
This is all the short version of Hell ...
The morophine kept me physically knocked out,but the nightmares tortured me and kept my mind wide awake.
I had many hallucinations that were so life like I could not tell the difference...
When I was concious enough to know what was going on,I didn't understand how someone could do this to me!
All that Gangsta S*** went out the window , Now I was the victim , Now I was just a 17 year old kid again.
I was mentally raped,depression overtook me again and it took me to a deeper and darker level.
I remember the first time I took a shower in the hospital.
I screamed and cried ... They couldn't stitch me up because of the high risk of infection.
Now my stomach was open from below my belly button up to my chest ... The sight of this was overwhelming for me.
I spent around 3 weeks in the hospital before I was released.
The ride home was terrible ... I felt every bump in the road...
My stomach was still open so we had to go through the painful ritual of cleaning the wounds...
I was still bleeding inside my head from the carotid artery and the doctors had basically said they did not know when I would hemmorage and die , only that I would ...
I could hear a swishing sound in my ear as the blood was being pumped.
Not only was this very scary but it was very irritating...
I had to have another surgery to repair the damage inside of my head ...
And I supposedly still have an aneurism in my face.
But I fully believe I am completely healed.
This bleeding in my head actually kept me out of prison and got me probation when I was able to go to court.
During that time , If I got into a fight and got hit the right way , I would have bled to death and died.
I had a very compassionate lawyer on many levels ... Thank you Sir.
The years have passed and the wounds have healed but what happened that night will never be forgotten.
The scars are a permanent reminder of a life I used to live and choices I made.
The scars are also a reminder that I am a miracle and proof of a higher power.
But I struggled greatly with this at a young age.
Truth be told , I was a criminal and drug abuser who got stabbed to death because of retalliation.
Retalliation for a crime I had nothing to do with.
I now had people all around me telling me that I am a living breathing miracle and God spare my life for a reason.
I coudn't grasp what they were telling me , It was now extra pressure on top of all I was already dealing with.
But the older I got the more I could understand and see the bigger picture and what exactly God had done in my life.
By all accounts I should be dead , I should have been another statistic for that year.
You may be wondering what happened to the dude who did this to me ...
I picked him out of mugshots several times when the police came to the hospital.
He also had his initials tatted on his arm... So that took out some of the guesswork.
The police told my mom they found the truck and they had sprayed some chemical on it that apparently illuminates when there is blood on it... The detective told her my blood was found all over it , in the bed and in the front.
He was arrested on May 15th and was charged with attempted capital murder at the age of 18.
According to newspaper reports he was released four hours later pending a court appearance.
Apparently he missed the court date ...
In febuary of 1993 , I saw him in the newspaper again.
He was involved with several others in the murder of a 14 year old.
The kid was stabbed at least 23 times and was held underneath the water at a small lake in Dallas.
The paper said they killed the kid because they were afraid he might snitch about something they had done .
This happened on June 1st ,less than a month after he stabbed me.
The kid had to be identified by his dental records ...
Now it was I , the former criminal , crying and wondering where the Justice was.
As I am now while I type this . My heart hurts.
Why was this dude set free after four hours when they had evidence he tried to kill me?
My mom was told since there was really no "Eye witnesses" the evidence was circumstantial.
Despite the fact I picked him out , despite the fact someone got a look at the truck and got partial plates , despite the fact when that truck was found it glowed with my blood ... The evidence was just circumstantial.
We were never contacted for anything concerning court and my mother was told by the detectives that they really couldn't hold him for what he did to me but the murder charges from the kid would stick on him.
Had they kept him where he belonged the first time , that kid may have never had to have suffered and died.
A few months after I had gotten out of the hospital , I was parked one night in the car with my pregnant girlfriend.
We were just talking , minding our own business.
Her ex-boyfriend pulls up ,sticks his hand out of the window and starts shooting at me.
He peels out and I chase after him... he lost me.
I end up dropping her off at her house a lil while later and as I am pulling out , he comes out of the shadows and starts chasing me.
My girl screamed and her neighbor comes out , grabs his gun and starts chasing us .
High speed chase through Arlington , apparently at shift change.
There was not a single cop in sight.
I end up losing him and he ends up getting caught and going to the pen.
Not for trying to kill me but for attempted murder on someone else , he was already wanted beforehand...
This dude was in our gang.
He used to be a friend of mine.
We all made some horrible choices during those times.
The stress of all this was overwhelming for my parents.
We ended up finding another house far away from that neighborhood.
My parents just wanted out as quickly as possible.
So we got out ...
And I never heard anything else from the authorities about the man who murdered me .
I believe we were bringing so much hell to the neighborhoods at that time , they may have even felt I got what I deserved.
Who knows the truth...
Years later I heard through the grapevine that some of the family members of my murderer said they made a mistake with me.
I dont think that qualifies as a "My Bad" moment though...
For many years I fantasized about killing that man.
I would dream of different ways to murder him...Revenge consumed me.
Then I looked at the man who stabbed me from his perspective.
He basically came in and sought revenge for the death of his family member...
for years and years this obviously was something that tormented me and due to the violent nature of the act it opened doorways for demons of all kinds...
But I asked myself this , "What if someone killed my brother in law"?
Would I seek revenge? The answer at the time was YES !
I would want to kill whoever took my family member from me and possibly whoever was involved...
Most of us would consider it and many would do it ... Many have done it.
When I put myself in the shoes of the man who did this to me...I saw why he did it.
I am in no way saying I approve of it and I am not saying his action was a correct response...
But I understood the thinking behind it ...
Even though it happened to me , I had matured to the point I could see the motive .
And I forgave him...
I now pray for him...
Honestly speaking , when this book does what it is supposed to do , one day , that man or someone connected to him will eventually read these words ...
I cannot or would not speak on behalf of the other people who suffererd because of this man.
But as for me , I had to let go of the hate...
So if your reading this or you were involved...I forgive you in the name of Jesus Christ.
Wanna hear something tripped out?
This dude and I played together as kids in the early to mid 80's.
We lived in the same apartments ... His sister dated my uncle.
I don't know if he remembered this at the time , I myself didn't find out till later .
I didn't recognize him or the name at first ...
The twist and turns of life never cease to amaze me ...
I also forgave the man who tried to shoot me...
Like I said , we were homies at one time and in the same set , I still pray for him and his family.
He got caught up as a kid and has been in the penal system ever since.
God bless him.
I had to forgive these people and everyone else that had wronged me.
Once I did this , I set myself free from THAT particular bondage and the devil no longer had control of my mind in that area.
The weight that had been on me for so many years had been removed...
The Lord opened my eyes to a whole nother level of maturity and I am very thankfull...
So I say this with all sincerity , PLEASE let that be an example to you and inspire you to forgive whoever has wronged you.
ESPECIALLY if it was just some words...DO NOT LET THE ENEMY SHACKLE YOU ANOTHER SECOND.
Call - email - text -write it down or just let it go from yourself in private if the offending person is no longer around ," I forgive you" ... Get it out somehow and move on with your life.
This does not mean you have to rekindle a relationship , hang out with or even talk to that person ever again.
What it does do is gets that person out of your mind and you free up space for some positive thoughts.
When the enemy tries to bring up the situation again , IMMEDIATELY pray for whoever offended you.
"Lord , Thank you for being with..." And watch how fast the devil flees from you ...Watch the playground clear out...
My friend told me "It is impossible to hate someone your praying for" and he was exactly right...
So I now take the second chance that was given to me and I share my wisdom with you.
I share my wisdom in the hopes that you will learn from my experiences and the horrible choices I made.
I share my wisdom in the hopes that through MY death , you will appreciate YOUR life.
You have a purpose!
God didn't create life for us to waste it.
People will sometimes tell me , "You gotta be tough to survive that"!
But technically , I didn't survive that ...
I fully give all the credit to GOD.
I was just a skinny lil white dude, even the doctor's had given up , what could I have done?
People die from a lot less...
My situation was nothing short of miraculous.
I do not say this with ego , I say it with appreciation.
I am proof a higher power exists...
So if your reading this right now and your claiming a set and you have not been stabbed,shot or beaten yet.
Recognize God has his hand on you and if you do not wake up, it will only be a matter of time before one of the above happens and I didn't even bring in the factor of the law....
I know the saying "Dead or in jail" has lost it's swag ...
But it's still the bottom line in too many lives and must be respected as a truth.
A wise man listens and learns ...
I have robbed houses, did drive-by's, and been to jail and the county more times than I would have ever wanted.
None of it shows toughness , it shows weakness , ignorance and blindness.
In 93 I got sentenced to Ten years of probation and 320 hours of community service for burglary of a habitation and assault with a deadly weapon.
As of 2003 I was fully released from my probation.
I served 10 yrs having to let someone know where I was all the time and I had to live with the fact that if I screwed up again they would send me to prison for the remainder of my time .
I can not blame anything I have suffered or been through on other people because most of my sorrow can be traced back to the choices I made.
And I have dealt with them ... I am still dealing with them.
Ever try and get a good job with a felony on your record?
Think before you act ! Every choice has a consequence... Every choice.
Choose respect and a good name ...
Choose Life ...
Con Respecto...
With Respect...
God Bless...
Scott Johnson
www.scottjohnsononline.com
Tuesday, April 13, 2010
VERBAL VITAMIN 7 ... WAR
The last time we spoke I asked you to forgive whoever has wronged you in the past...
I pray You have done that and you have peeled off another layer of your personal mummy.
Congratulations...:)
But if you HAVE NOT done this , Let me ask you if you heard some of the following statements in your mind.
" This dude is nuts , I am not forgiving so and so..."
" No way in hell I will forgive , No way! , They will pay for what they did to me!"
"See how those who love God are soft ? Quit reading this nonsense! "
"You dont actually believe what he is saying do you?"
Ofcourse I am not writing exactly what went on in some of your minds upon reading my request for forgiveness , But I am hitting in the general area....You know what you thought , when the thought of complete forgiveness was brought up.
For some of you reading , a complete panic came over you...You have been hurt too deeply to let it go...You still havent received Justice...Your still waiting for payback.
Let me ask you this , Where do you think those thoughts are coming from?
Who would stand to benifit from keeping you in bondage to unforgiveness?
When I first started reading the word years ago , I came across ROMANS and it had a great impact on me...Particuarly chapter 7.
It showed me that what I was going through in my mind , Others were also going through and not only that , it was nothing new...
Lets check out ROMANS chapter 7 : 18-25
18. For I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh. I can will what is right, but I cannot do it.
19. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do.
20. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I that do it, but sin which dwells within me.
21. So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand.
22. For I delight in the law of God, in my inmost self,
23. but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin which dwells in my members.
24. Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?
25. Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I of myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.
When I read this years ago , A lightbulb went off in my head.
Ok , So this explains why it is so hard to live right...This explains why everytime I want to stop doing what I am doing , I have extreme difficulty acheiving my goals...
You ever make a goal for yourself?
Quitting smoking or drinking or maybe going on a diet ...For some quick examples...
This also applies to things you want to start...Eating healthier , drinking more water , reading more , working out, etc...
You find that whatever the goal is that will ultimately improve your life for the better is the hardest goal to obtain....
So the majority get depressed and say forget it and give up , It's too hard....
This usually happens the afternoon of January 1st...:)
There are a few people who stick with what they say and end up feeling great about their lives and themselves...And then they bug the hell out of you to change your ways and you either LISTEN and do it OR You avoid that person because what is inside of you isnt cool with what is inside of them...
But ask yourself , why it is so hard to become the best you can be....
What you need to realize is , we are in constant battle within our minds...
Whether or not you acknowledge it , You are in a battle for your mind everyday.
" but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin which dwells in my members."
A large majority of the world are oblivious to this war and just live life with tunnel vision or they choose to accept what has been handed them in life.
There are way too many possible scenarios for the oblivious persons life.
work-home-sports-beer-repeat
work-home-club-repeat
work-club-sex-repeat
and the enemy also loves to put that fear of the unknown in you.
The fear of "IF I do this here , I cant do this anymore..."
So your fear of change ,keeps your wheels spinning in the mud.
endless possibilities and all are real lifestyles...
But if people are not made aware that they have a grander purpose in life , they will not try to acheive it.
If people are not made aware that the voice in their mind telling them they cannot acheive what they are feeling within is a LIAR , Then they will continue to live in a common fashion.
Let me clarify , Were not all meant for hollywood or the stage or to be in the public light even , But we all possess something special about us that is benificial not only to yourself and family but contributes in some positive way to humankind.
Some of you feel a calling but when you decide to take that step in that direction , That voice of FEAR comes in and tells you , You will FAIL! , They will laugh at you! ,Your friends will leave! They wont accept you!...and so you sink back into bondage , You literally allow yourself to be shackled.
When in reality , ALot of The people you fear will leave or wont look at you the same are going through the same thing you are and dont speak about it (Alot of people are living..YOU GO FIRST! Lives)
and if they dont accept what you say , Then you dont need to kick it wit them anyway , ANYONE who would give you hell for bettering yourself is NOT your friend...Lose them or be lost with them.
God did not create us to be robots or to settle...
Within each of us is a divine calling or gift...Everything is already embedded in us , it just boils down to this...Are you willing to go retrieve the gift? are you willing to GO TO WAR within yourself and fight for what God has blessed you with? Are you willing to unwrap the mummy?
Lets travel to ephesians 6:12
"For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high [places]. "
We turn to Dr.Phil and Oprah instead of Psalms and Proverbs.
The WAR...
The old visual of the devil on one shoulder and the angel on the other is alot more realistic than we think it is.
Ok Mr.Johnson , How do we fight this then?
ephesians 6: 13-17
"13. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
14. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; 15. And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
16. Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
17. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: "
READ and Communicate and Believe and you will be equipped to fight the battle.
Once you start doing this , You will begin to transform into who you were born to be , God will start revealing your purpose to you...SEEK
"I just dont know what to do with my life...I dont know why I'm here..."
Take my advice and discover why you are here...
Everyone has a different talent , right now my job is to get you to realize this and recognize where it comes from.
Start paying attention to and challenging the thoughts you have in your mind...
Question where they are coming from and look at them with logic.
We all have 3 voices in our minds at one time...
Call it what you want , I'll call it what it is...
GOOD-EVIL-YOU
This is where the war comes in and depending on which voice you roll with will depend on how victorious you are in the Battle (LIFE)..
Another way to view this is the Devil's job description...
His whole purpose and goal in life is to rob you of your joy...
He has legions of unseen forces working nonstop around the world in the lives of every human on the face of this planet...
This is his Job...So when you hear that negative voice in your mind , recognize who just clocked in and meet them at the time clock..."Say man , You dont work here anymore...Don't make me call security!"
But , If you think about all the hell he has put you through or tricked you into , Go ahead and call security..."I Bind and rebuke you in the name of Jesus Christ!" He can't take that name...PERIOD.
There is POWER in his name..USE IT.
You ARE more than you THINK you are...
We have to pay attention to our thoughts and learn the M.O. of the enemy...
If it is positive and makes sense and will bless , It is of GOD...
ANYTHING having to do with FEAR is of Satan...
POSITIVE=GOD
NEGATIVE=Devil
YOU=THE ONE WHO DECIDES....
From this moment on ....Do not let the enemy keep you shackled...
DISCOVER YOURSELF.
Peace be unto you in the name of Jesus Christ...
Amen
Scott Johnson
www.scottjohnsononline.com
10/04/09
8:49 PM
I pray You have done that and you have peeled off another layer of your personal mummy.
Congratulations...:)
But if you HAVE NOT done this , Let me ask you if you heard some of the following statements in your mind.
" This dude is nuts , I am not forgiving so and so..."
" No way in hell I will forgive , No way! , They will pay for what they did to me!"
"See how those who love God are soft ? Quit reading this nonsense! "
"You dont actually believe what he is saying do you?"
Ofcourse I am not writing exactly what went on in some of your minds upon reading my request for forgiveness , But I am hitting in the general area....You know what you thought , when the thought of complete forgiveness was brought up.
For some of you reading , a complete panic came over you...You have been hurt too deeply to let it go...You still havent received Justice...Your still waiting for payback.
Let me ask you this , Where do you think those thoughts are coming from?
Who would stand to benifit from keeping you in bondage to unforgiveness?
When I first started reading the word years ago , I came across ROMANS and it had a great impact on me...Particuarly chapter 7.
It showed me that what I was going through in my mind , Others were also going through and not only that , it was nothing new...
Lets check out ROMANS chapter 7 : 18-25
18. For I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh. I can will what is right, but I cannot do it.
19. For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do.
20. Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I that do it, but sin which dwells within me.
21. So I find it to be a law that when I want to do right, evil lies close at hand.
22. For I delight in the law of God, in my inmost self,
23. but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin which dwells in my members.
24. Wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death?
25. Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, I of myself serve the law of God with my mind, but with my flesh I serve the law of sin.
When I read this years ago , A lightbulb went off in my head.
Ok , So this explains why it is so hard to live right...This explains why everytime I want to stop doing what I am doing , I have extreme difficulty acheiving my goals...
You ever make a goal for yourself?
Quitting smoking or drinking or maybe going on a diet ...For some quick examples...
This also applies to things you want to start...Eating healthier , drinking more water , reading more , working out, etc...
You find that whatever the goal is that will ultimately improve your life for the better is the hardest goal to obtain....
So the majority get depressed and say forget it and give up , It's too hard....
This usually happens the afternoon of January 1st...:)
There are a few people who stick with what they say and end up feeling great about their lives and themselves...And then they bug the hell out of you to change your ways and you either LISTEN and do it OR You avoid that person because what is inside of you isnt cool with what is inside of them...
But ask yourself , why it is so hard to become the best you can be....
What you need to realize is , we are in constant battle within our minds...
Whether or not you acknowledge it , You are in a battle for your mind everyday.
" but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind and making me captive to the law of sin which dwells in my members."
A large majority of the world are oblivious to this war and just live life with tunnel vision or they choose to accept what has been handed them in life.
There are way too many possible scenarios for the oblivious persons life.
work-home-sports-beer-repeat
work-home-club-repeat
work-club-sex-repeat
and the enemy also loves to put that fear of the unknown in you.
The fear of "IF I do this here , I cant do this anymore..."
So your fear of change ,keeps your wheels spinning in the mud.
endless possibilities and all are real lifestyles...
But if people are not made aware that they have a grander purpose in life , they will not try to acheive it.
If people are not made aware that the voice in their mind telling them they cannot acheive what they are feeling within is a LIAR , Then they will continue to live in a common fashion.
Let me clarify , Were not all meant for hollywood or the stage or to be in the public light even , But we all possess something special about us that is benificial not only to yourself and family but contributes in some positive way to humankind.
Some of you feel a calling but when you decide to take that step in that direction , That voice of FEAR comes in and tells you , You will FAIL! , They will laugh at you! ,Your friends will leave! They wont accept you!...and so you sink back into bondage , You literally allow yourself to be shackled.
When in reality , ALot of The people you fear will leave or wont look at you the same are going through the same thing you are and dont speak about it (Alot of people are living..YOU GO FIRST! Lives)
and if they dont accept what you say , Then you dont need to kick it wit them anyway , ANYONE who would give you hell for bettering yourself is NOT your friend...Lose them or be lost with them.
God did not create us to be robots or to settle...
Within each of us is a divine calling or gift...Everything is already embedded in us , it just boils down to this...Are you willing to go retrieve the gift? are you willing to GO TO WAR within yourself and fight for what God has blessed you with? Are you willing to unwrap the mummy?
Lets travel to ephesians 6:12
"For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high [places]. "
We turn to Dr.Phil and Oprah instead of Psalms and Proverbs.
The WAR...
The old visual of the devil on one shoulder and the angel on the other is alot more realistic than we think it is.
Ok Mr.Johnson , How do we fight this then?
ephesians 6: 13-17
"13. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.
14. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; 15. And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
16. Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked.
17. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: "
READ and Communicate and Believe and you will be equipped to fight the battle.
Once you start doing this , You will begin to transform into who you were born to be , God will start revealing your purpose to you...SEEK
"I just dont know what to do with my life...I dont know why I'm here..."
Take my advice and discover why you are here...
Everyone has a different talent , right now my job is to get you to realize this and recognize where it comes from.
Start paying attention to and challenging the thoughts you have in your mind...
Question where they are coming from and look at them with logic.
We all have 3 voices in our minds at one time...
Call it what you want , I'll call it what it is...
GOOD-EVIL-YOU
This is where the war comes in and depending on which voice you roll with will depend on how victorious you are in the Battle (LIFE)..
Another way to view this is the Devil's job description...
His whole purpose and goal in life is to rob you of your joy...
He has legions of unseen forces working nonstop around the world in the lives of every human on the face of this planet...
This is his Job...So when you hear that negative voice in your mind , recognize who just clocked in and meet them at the time clock..."Say man , You dont work here anymore...Don't make me call security!"
But , If you think about all the hell he has put you through or tricked you into , Go ahead and call security..."I Bind and rebuke you in the name of Jesus Christ!" He can't take that name...PERIOD.
There is POWER in his name..USE IT.
You ARE more than you THINK you are...
We have to pay attention to our thoughts and learn the M.O. of the enemy...
If it is positive and makes sense and will bless , It is of GOD...
ANYTHING having to do with FEAR is of Satan...
POSITIVE=GOD
NEGATIVE=Devil
YOU=THE ONE WHO DECIDES....
From this moment on ....Do not let the enemy keep you shackled...
DISCOVER YOURSELF.
Peace be unto you in the name of Jesus Christ...
Amen
Scott Johnson
www.scottjohnsononline.com
10/04/09
8:49 PM
VERBAL VITAMIN 13 ... ' The Official Letter to the Youth'
VERBAL VITAMIN 13 .... ‘The Official Letter to the Youth’
To: The Young
From: Scott Johnson
What's up? How you doin? Que Paso? What it do?
I have been led to write the youth, the teens, the young of the world a letter.
A letter that will not only address certain issues but will show you how to handle those issues.
I am a 35 year old man, I am by no means old, but I am not Young either...
I am at a very interesting age and whether or not you like it, you will also be at this age someday.
I heard Bishop T.D. Jakes say something recently that has stuck with me.
"It's not the age of the car, its how many miles are on the engine"
Trust me y’all, I have turned my odometer over several times....
I am one of those dudes who constantly think about life.
I am one of the ones who are genuinely "Seeking" so I can find...
"Knocking" at the door of Knowledge till my knuckles bleed....
So please show me some patience and let me tell you what I have found out.
Allow me to share my wisdom with you...
Humans are creatures of Habit and whatever it is you’re going through, someone else has already been through it.
No matter how alone you may feel, 99.9 percent of the time, someone throughout history has suffered the same situation you have ... or the same Joy, Confusion, Love, Hate, etc...
Each generation thinks the previous one is stupid and uncool and this is a cycle that has gone on since the beginning of humanity....
Even young cave dwelling teens felt peer pressure, if you were not rocking T-Rex Slip-ons, you were not popular and you had to eat at the small rock table with the dude who wore the Yak Jacket and Skinny Antelope Jeans.
Your parents looked at your grandparents and laughed. They made fun of their music, their fashion, their hairstyles, etc...
The same way you make fun of your parents when ' I love the 80's' comes on VH1 or you see their yearbooks.
Your parent's music sucks and they have no style and they just don’t understand you and they are completely clueless to the drama that is your life...Right?
But you know what?
Your parents felt the same about their parents and your grandparents their parents and this goes on and on and on......
And when you get older and have children or if you have children now, they will one day think YOU are wack....
And you will find yourself trying to justify your music and fashion to someone who just doesn’t give a damn....
You will find yourself in the same shoes your parents wear...
And the record keeps spinning.....
My name is Scott Johnson and I am going to walk to the DJ Booth, Pick up that record, and break it in half....
My Bad, we are in the digital age....
My Name is Scott Johnson and I am going to walk to the DJ Booth and pour Pepsi on his Laptop and fry the song humanity has cursed us to dance to....
You who are reading this have the opportunity to break the cycle and I am going to show you how.
You can listen to me now or wait till your my age and say "Damn, That dude was right! I just thought he was a crazy old rapper trying to be cool, look at the years I have wasted!" Then you will punch the mirror and cry...
History repeats, unless the cycle is broken...
And you have the opportunity to break it!
And that Boys and Girls is the conclusion of my Intro....
Now we get down to Bidness!
Let's start with...
:POPULARITY:
I have not been in school since 91/92 but I am going to take a risk and say that being popular is still...popular.
Here is the deal with Popularity... If it is natural, embrace it and work it...
If people like being with you for who you are Naturally as a person , then by all means , there is nothing wrong with that.
BUT, if you’re frontin about any issue just to achieve popularity, you are deceiving yourself and your darkness will come to light.
Life has a way of calling you out when your head gets too big or you’re caught in a web of lies.
If you or your family is on a budget and you’re frontin like you got money, you will be put in a situation that shows people you’re broke...
If you’re frontin like your tough and always talking loud, you will be put in a situation where you get your ass kicked in front of the people you talk tough to and around...
Bullies are the biggest Cowards...
Whenever you do or say something that isn’t reality in your life, your lie will be exposed and you will become popular for being the person who tried to be popular but FAILED.
And let me tell you this, It always happens when you least expect it.
Really look at the popular kids and ask yourself why they are popular, and if you’re a popular kid, ask yourself why you are popular.
Is it your material possessions? You’re Looks? Your Sporting or musical talents?
Money and looks can be lost overnight, one house fire (God Forbid) can leave you homeless without your possessions and one scar on your face can ruin your "Beauty”, One Knee injury can end a career and I know firsthand how shady the music industry is... (Unless you’re willing to sound like everyone else out there and lose your individuality and voice.....)
Point is, Be popular for who you are and not what you look like or own or can do.
Be yourself and NEVER try to be who you are not, for the sake of popularity...
Truth be told, Popularity doesn't mean a damn thing in the real world.
Your employer , all the companies your going to pay utilities to , whoever holds your car note , and everyone else you will come in contact with could care less if you were popular ...
Like I said, If it's natural, Use it for good, you have obviously been blessed with leadership skills, do something positive with those skills.
But for you actors... you will never be able to sustain a front forever, so if your not in the "In -crowd”, don’t strive to be. Be proud of yourself as is and work what YOU got to the best of your potential.
And to be real with it, The "In-Crowd" mainly consists of arrogant A-holes and Snobby Chicks anyway. They are sooo consumed with fashion and looks and maintaining an image that they struggle later in life when their age starts to show on their face and body and the reality that their not "Cool" anymore haunts them....They struggle because they lived in and filled their minds with vanity instead of reality...No substance or foundation, now the walls are shakin.
The "In-Crowd" is only temporary... Knowledge of self and love is permanent.
You will always be unhappy when you try to live a life based on someone else’s interpretation of cool.
You will always be unhappy when you try to live a life based on someone else’s interpretation of cool.
You will always be unhappy when you try to live a life based on someone else’s interpretation of cool.
Be the best YOU ... I know that sounds afterschool specialish , but it's the best way to tell you that popularity is a false high and if people do not respect you for who you are as a person , then do not associate with them people.
A true friend is there regardless of physical appearance, financial status, or your situation in life.
So to end the cycle of having to be popular is easy....
Realize it's B.S. and just be yourself..... CYCLE BROKEN.
Next we move on to...
: SEX :
I will not over preach abstinence because I am a realistic man.
Is it the safest way? Of course...
Do I honestly believe that teens on a grand scale will practice abstinence? Not a chance in hell.
You youngins are light years ahead of where we were...
From the cartoons, to the videos to the movies to the music to the cell phones to the commercials and especially the internet, you cats see 100 times more sex and murder than we ever did growing up in the 80's.
You know more than we did at your age and you do more than a lot of us did at your age.
Teen pregnancy and STD's are still relevant, which means....Young People are still having sex.
Please listen...
We can't completely stop y'all from doing it, so I beg you this, if you’re going to do it, PROTECT YOURSELF!
Get some condoms....Be responsible with it!
I do applaud MTV for showing you a glimpse of what teen parenting is like, hopefully it makes you think.
My wife and I had our first child when we were 3 months into our 18th Birthdays....
So I speak to you from experience.
Children are the toughest job on earth...
THE TOUGHEST JOB ON EARTH!
The threat of a life ending disease is always there as well.
I worked with a man whose "Life Partner" had Aids...
He would pick my co-worker up after work...I literally saw the man deteriorate as time went on.
He just got skinnier and skinnier until they put him in the hospital and he died from Aids...
Sex is serious business...
Choosing the right person to share this with is crucial.
Ladies, dudes will tell you ANYTHING to get you.
And A LOT of dudes hit it and quit it...
Some leave you pregnant and never see you again.
Talk about a going away gift huh?
NEVER sleep with a dude to be popular.
Yes, you will be popular, but for all the wrong reasons.
And some dudes will call you Ho or Slut BECAUSE you DON’T sleep with them
Young dudes are immature and act like idiots....You gotta hold your head high and ignore that nonsense.
They use girls and break hearts because they don’t know how to handle love on a mature level, and honestly, even though females mature faster than males, you also are not ready for love at a young age.
Some dudes also have homeboys controlling them like puppets and your "Boyfriend" will act like a jerk to look HARD or show off his PIMP nature in front of his boys....But when he's ALONE with you...How does he act?
The dude is soft like newborn Panda fur....
HOW DO YOU BREAK THIS CYCLE?
You can break it by not giving away your goodies to every idiot that says he loves you and that you’re the "Best he ever had"....
You gotta be smart enough not to fall for game like that....
"Love often leads to sex, but sex rarely leads to love"
D.Stewart
You are young ladies ...You are faced with many different pressures.
Pressure to look this way or that or weigh this much or dress like that....
Not to mention the changes your bodies are going through, mentally and physically.
Add boys to the mix and y'all got a lot going on....
What I want you to understand from this letter is this; you are all beautiful and intelligent.
From The Blackest of Black skin to the Whitest of White and every shade in between.
PLEASE be smart enough to know that the girls in the magazines and videos are not your typical results and once again, they are who they are and YOU are who you are. You can’t be them and vice versa, and really, why would you want to be? You have your own unique gift you have yet to unwrap.
DO NOT let the media and entertainment industry con you into believing that you must look a certain way to be beautiful.
Women can be anything they desire to be... You each have a mind and talents that you are blessed with.
Develop yourself from the inside out...
I believe one of the biggest enemies against females is Insecurity.
Do not be fooled... You will never become who you were born to be if you are always wishing you were born someone else....Give YOU a chance to blossom, you just might end up liking yourself.
Break the cycle of being what the media and horny old men want you to be.
USE YOUR BRAIN...It's the sexiest organ.
Have pride in yourself and do not let a man control how you feel about yourself.
YOU ARE THE WORLD'S DAUGHTERS-MOTHERS-SISTERS and if your not a public Leader, then you are the Leader beside the Leader, You are more important than the world gives you credit for and truth be told, than you give yourself credit for.
The world has enough models and dancers.... We are in need of WOMEN.
And that empowered mindset needs to take shape NOW.
BREAK THE CYCLE!
And before the young men start getting angry with me and calling me a Hater ... Let me holla at y'all.
You must also not be quick to hop into bed with every girl that walks your way.
Just because you have a gun, doesn’t mean you should go around poppin caps for the hell of it.
Pregnancy and disease is just as serious for men and all you gotta do is hook up with the wrong chick ONE time and your whole life is altered...
And I am of the firm belief that if your man enough to make a child, you should be man enough to raise that child.
So if you’re not ready for that responsibility, make sure you are strapped at all times....ALL TIMES or restrain yourself from the company of ladies.
I'm not trying to use scare tactics on you; everything I speak is the honest truth.
Do your researches, visit a clinic, and look around your school...
The threat is real.
Sex is a beautiful gift but it must be handled with caution and maturity and above all else, responsibility.
You are young men, you are also going through changes and you also have pressure upon you.
A young man's mind is mainly made up of food, sex and music and sports.....
This is the majority of what is going on inside the head of young men all across the globe.
But just like I told the ladies about the bad boys, I will tell you about the bad girls.
Some girls are just bad because they choose to be and some girls are bad because they were made that way by dudes doing them wrong.
In the same way some guys will tell a girl anything to get sex, some girls will use sex to get anything from a guy.
You fellas gotta be smarter than that ... if she does it to you like that, she has done it to others.
Some girls lie about being pregnant, some girls lie about not having disease, but truth be told, Men are so controlled by sex, the women don’t have to say too much at all....
And this is a cycle that must be broken....
You are young men who have the opportunity to think things through, to make decisions based on the facts at hand and not because the reward might be sex.
We got enough dudes in the club and rappers pouring drinks on half nekked chicks...
WE NEED MEN! Leaders! Men who do not bow down to peer pressure and follow every trend that comes into style.
We need Men who have respect for women and respect for their own minds and who have goals.
And you guys have the opportunity to start training your minds for victory now.
And I know some of you dudes are laughing at me right now and this is exactly why this cycle of bad relationships and disease and teen pregnancy continues... This is no joke man, this is Life....
Take your time and make sure the girl is on point, this isn’t a race...
But like I said, if you just can’t wait and you’re not trying to hear anything I am talking about, at least hear the part about PROTECTING YOURSELF.
And let me touch on one last aspect of young love.
: THE BREAK-UP :
It kills me inside to know that some people actually kill themselves over someone else.
When you are young and in "Love”, it's like there is a huge magnifying glass on everything.
Everything appears way bigger than it actually is.
No one on this earth is worth taking your own life over.
I have had my heartbroken and I have also been stabbed 6 times.
I have often said I would rather be stabbed again...
Trust me , I know the pain of a broken heart is a pain that cannot be explained , I also wanted to die at one time due to heartbreak....But TRUST ME PLEASE...It will get better and you will laugh again and eventually you will love again.
I picked up a pen and wrote poetry and songs to get all of my sadness and anger and other emotions out of me.
pen , guitar, piano , bible , art , basketball , prayer, friends ,working out ....These are just a few things that help in the healing process...A lot of us don’t have access to instruments , but we all have access to a pen or pencil or green map color....WRITE it down , when it's on paper , it's out of you ....
Then you look back and see how much you have grown.
Turn your feelings around, you will survive and you will come out stronger and wiser...Whatever you do, don't do yourself in, write it down and stay active.
And the most important thing is this, watch out for the gossip.
This is when cats come on message boards talking nonsense and spreading rumors and all that.
Don't participate... give those with questions the Rasheed Wallace approach when he didn’t want to receive a fine, "Both teams played hard"... Whose fault was it? "Both teams played hard”, did he cheat on you? "Both Teams Played hard" ....The business is that of you and whoever the other party was and that is the way to break the cycle of all the ignorant aftermath of break-ups.
It didn’t work out...learn from it and Move on, no need to drag it on and start all the he said / she said nonsense....
What is done is done....
You will also address these issues as an adult and I must tell you that the sooner you realize that open and honest communication is the key....the sooner your relationships will improve.
This goes for every relationship you will ever have , from personal to business.
You gotta talk to each other and tell the truth.
If you don’t, life will expose you.
And next on the agenda is....
: ATTITUDE :
One cycle that needs to be broken and can be broken is your attitude.
If you, the youth, realize now, that it's not all about you, you will have greater success in life.
Selfishness will get you nowhere and neither will Laziness.
I completely understand that now more than any other time in our history, they market YOU to US, but all they are really doing is creating spoiled brats who will have great difficulty when they get out in the real world.
You see the commercials and how everything is marketed for you guys?
They make you feel inferior if you do not have the latest cell or clothes....
That is all B.S.
All of it....
And you know who the winner is? The companies....
Your parents are out of pocket to keep you in the latest style and you are constantly trying to keep up with the latest style while some people sit around in an office and determine what that next style should be.... Then they get into cars your parents can’t afford and eat at restaurants your parents can’t afford because your parents have helped pay for their vehicle and lunch so YOU can look good and have the newest phone and clothes that will not be in style next month.....
It's all a cycle of B.S.
They work - You get - companies get richer - we get poorer -Rinse and Repeat.
You are the next generation coming up; you have opportunities to make change.
It's time for you to expect more of yourself and challenge yourselves to be the best you can be.
To quit accepting the mindless music and T.V. and Film they throw at you as the standard.
We need to raise that standard and have creative competition again, Have pride in yourselves and your work.
Not to copy each others styles, but to innovate and Lead.
You guys now have the opportunity to stand up against Racism and show the world that united we can accomplish anything.
You guys now have the opportunity to learn from all of the mistakes that have ever been made and make a conscious choice not to keep those mistakes alive but to make them extinct by choosing not to follow in the footsteps of those who made the mistakes to begin with...
You can break the cycle...
You can start the trend of making intelligence cool.
Why is having an "I don't give a F***" attitude more popular than a positive attitude?
Because when you don't give a F***, you don’t have to work.
That is your scapegoat, it’s acceptable for you to fail because, you don’t give a F***.
You just take whatever is thrown at you and screw up your life through horrible choices and you throw a middle finger in the air , cause you don’t give a F*** and you learn the hard way that what you give in this life is what you get...
Your too cool too care though...
But when you DO Give a F***, you work your ass off.
You sweat and bleed and make sacrifices and you have honor and pride and you make change , not only for yourself but for those around you.
It takes longer , but the reward is greater.
It breaks down like this, the choices you make as a teen and in your 20’s, you spend your 30’s either recovering from or celebrating those choices.
But you don’t think about this and when people try to tell you, you blow them off.
YOU ARE GETTING OLDER EVERYDAY, JUST LIKE I AM!
And I am trying to tell you these things so you can have a better life, so you’re not just smarter in the areas of computers and phones and video games but you are wise beyond your years about life and how to work it because you were smart enough to see through the ignorance at a young age. If I can get through to enough of you and if you get through to your people and so on and so on, we can change the world for the better.... But we can’t change the world until we change our lives and if we change our lives we affect those around us and that changes our households then neighborhoods and then it expands from there....
We got enough people who don’t give a F***
Drive by your neighborhood liquor stores or look at the old school dude still gang bangin or turn on your radio to hear copy cat music or CNN to see war....
We need some people who care and aren’t afraid to be man or woman enough to care.
Intelligence and love is a lot harder and involves more work than ignorance and Hate and the world is full of Lazy people, this explains the unbalanced nature of our lives...But we can Break this Cycle and you as the youth, once again, have the opportunity to make a great change.
I am almost done, but I want to speak on your Parents before I go.
I don’t know your situation at home, if you have both parents or if you’re in a single parent family, but if you have at least one parent that provides for you and listens to you and talks with you, be very thankful, that is a blessing.
Too many households have none that care or have no clue how to talk to you.
I am a parent of 3 children, my oldest just recently turned 17.
I know firsthand that you can be very difficult to deal with, wasn’t too long ago I was there myself and I was selfish douche bag.
I remember being selfish and immature and an A-hole to girls and jail and probation and all of that nonsense I could have avoided if I was only wise enough to listen.
I made horrible choices and I have paid a heavy price, so please learn from me and those around you.
You don’t always have to experience things for yourself, not all things...
You youth must realize that your parents are just as confused about you as you are them.
But when you ignore each other, you just make matters worse and widen the gap of communication to the point that you don’t talk at all....
And I know I don’t know your folks or your household or there style of parenting, but I can safely say, it is better to sit down and talk about everything face to face than it is to slam doors, And if you absolutely cant find anyone to talk to, and if I am wrong about sitting down and talking at your house, hit my inbox, I'll talk to you, I’ll share whatever knowledge I got.
And to you Parents who feel the need to be your child's friend as opposed to their parent, you’re only doing harm.
Somebody needs to be the leader in your household and if it's not you, it will be them.
The one with more knowledge and experience should lead...that should be common sense.
It is possible for you to be a friendly parent with a trusting relationship, but you can’t be a friend who only parents every now and then. There is no solid foundation of respect built and that is bad for both of you.
And to you parents always leaving your kids home alone because you’re at the club, don’t cry or complain when your kid does bad.... The internet and TV is raising him or her, you may not be there Thursday, Friday or Saturday, but you will be present for the court date or the subject of the therapist visits....Get your priorities straight or get a crooked kid.
In closing, I know this has been a long letter, but like I said, I felt led to write it.
I don’t know who all this will reach, but if makes sense to you and you felt what I was saying, please forward it.
I have not written anything that is an untruth, if I have, let’s discuss it.
My main goal with this was to show the youth they hold the key to change in their hands and they have the power to make history by changing the future.
Love
Respect
Knowledge
Intelligence
Hard work
Dedication
Open minds and hearts
These values and emotions should be exalted.
This could be the grassroots beginning of a revolution, you know what to do and how to do it, now all you gotta do is do it.
And Lastly, I know people reading this will be from various backgrounds.
Different races and religions will read my words...
I did my best not to mention religion in the main body of my writing because I wanted to show you that all of this can be accomplished regardless of who you are and where you’re from and what you believe.
But I will end with this, I am a believer in God and through the love and knowledge of God, I have gained my intelligence and learned countless life lessons.
He has healed me and took me to many different levels.
And for those with no parents or for those with bad relationships with your parents , I can say with all sincerity , that faith in Jesus Christ has changed my entire life and he has been a true father figure to me and can be for you if that is what is desired by you.
You speak to the Lord like you would another human, you can’t see him, but he is there.
The spirit is always with you, most call him your "Conscious"...
You follow your "Conscious" or "Spirit" and you connect sincerely with that, and everything changes...
And for those interested in wisdom and learning about life, read Proverbs in your Bible. There are 30, one for each night. If you genuinely seek, you will get answers.
It takes patience and obedience, but you will go on a never ending journey of learning.
I also believe that in the spiritual outlook of a human beings life, Satan attacks the hardest when you’re a teen.
If he can get you to not care or keep you depressed and distracted or keep you Lazy or keep you in rebellion and unbelief, then the Job is soooo much easier later on in life.
The choices you make now, affect the rest of your life.
And by me telling you all of this, and dropping all these life lessons on you, I have angered Hell which makes me a very happy man.
In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray this letter touches your life in a positive way.
Thank you very much for reading.
And once again, if you know someone who could benefit from the writing, please forward it to them.
God Bless
Scott Johnson
www.scottjohnsononline.com
Sunday, April 11, 2010
P.S.
I am including a link to a song called 'Cut My Ties'.
This is a song that deals with the very serious but often neglected topic of suicide.
I ask that you download it and send it to anyone you feel may need it.
We just might save a life :)
'CUT MY TIES'
http://scottjohnson.podomatic.com/entry/2010-04-11T21_00_15-07_00
To: The Young
From: Scott Johnson
What's up? How you doin? Que Paso? What it do?
I have been led to write the youth, the teens, the young of the world a letter.
A letter that will not only address certain issues but will show you how to handle those issues.
I am a 35 year old man, I am by no means old, but I am not Young either...
I am at a very interesting age and whether or not you like it, you will also be at this age someday.
I heard Bishop T.D. Jakes say something recently that has stuck with me.
"It's not the age of the car, its how many miles are on the engine"
Trust me y’all, I have turned my odometer over several times....
I am one of those dudes who constantly think about life.
I am one of the ones who are genuinely "Seeking" so I can find...
"Knocking" at the door of Knowledge till my knuckles bleed....
So please show me some patience and let me tell you what I have found out.
Allow me to share my wisdom with you...
Humans are creatures of Habit and whatever it is you’re going through, someone else has already been through it.
No matter how alone you may feel, 99.9 percent of the time, someone throughout history has suffered the same situation you have ... or the same Joy, Confusion, Love, Hate, etc...
Each generation thinks the previous one is stupid and uncool and this is a cycle that has gone on since the beginning of humanity....
Even young cave dwelling teens felt peer pressure, if you were not rocking T-Rex Slip-ons, you were not popular and you had to eat at the small rock table with the dude who wore the Yak Jacket and Skinny Antelope Jeans.
Your parents looked at your grandparents and laughed. They made fun of their music, their fashion, their hairstyles, etc...
The same way you make fun of your parents when ' I love the 80's' comes on VH1 or you see their yearbooks.
Your parent's music sucks and they have no style and they just don’t understand you and they are completely clueless to the drama that is your life...Right?
But you know what?
Your parents felt the same about their parents and your grandparents their parents and this goes on and on and on......
And when you get older and have children or if you have children now, they will one day think YOU are wack....
And you will find yourself trying to justify your music and fashion to someone who just doesn’t give a damn....
You will find yourself in the same shoes your parents wear...
And the record keeps spinning.....
My name is Scott Johnson and I am going to walk to the DJ Booth, Pick up that record, and break it in half....
My Bad, we are in the digital age....
My Name is Scott Johnson and I am going to walk to the DJ Booth and pour Pepsi on his Laptop and fry the song humanity has cursed us to dance to....
You who are reading this have the opportunity to break the cycle and I am going to show you how.
You can listen to me now or wait till your my age and say "Damn, That dude was right! I just thought he was a crazy old rapper trying to be cool, look at the years I have wasted!" Then you will punch the mirror and cry...
History repeats, unless the cycle is broken...
And you have the opportunity to break it!
And that Boys and Girls is the conclusion of my Intro....
Now we get down to Bidness!
Let's start with...
:POPULARITY:
I have not been in school since 91/92 but I am going to take a risk and say that being popular is still...popular.
Here is the deal with Popularity... If it is natural, embrace it and work it...
If people like being with you for who you are Naturally as a person , then by all means , there is nothing wrong with that.
BUT, if you’re frontin about any issue just to achieve popularity, you are deceiving yourself and your darkness will come to light.
Life has a way of calling you out when your head gets too big or you’re caught in a web of lies.
If you or your family is on a budget and you’re frontin like you got money, you will be put in a situation that shows people you’re broke...
If you’re frontin like your tough and always talking loud, you will be put in a situation where you get your ass kicked in front of the people you talk tough to and around...
Bullies are the biggest Cowards...
Whenever you do or say something that isn’t reality in your life, your lie will be exposed and you will become popular for being the person who tried to be popular but FAILED.
And let me tell you this, It always happens when you least expect it.
Really look at the popular kids and ask yourself why they are popular, and if you’re a popular kid, ask yourself why you are popular.
Is it your material possessions? You’re Looks? Your Sporting or musical talents?
Money and looks can be lost overnight, one house fire (God Forbid) can leave you homeless without your possessions and one scar on your face can ruin your "Beauty”, One Knee injury can end a career and I know firsthand how shady the music industry is... (Unless you’re willing to sound like everyone else out there and lose your individuality and voice.....)
Point is, Be popular for who you are and not what you look like or own or can do.
Be yourself and NEVER try to be who you are not, for the sake of popularity...
Truth be told, Popularity doesn't mean a damn thing in the real world.
Your employer , all the companies your going to pay utilities to , whoever holds your car note , and everyone else you will come in contact with could care less if you were popular ...
Like I said, If it's natural, Use it for good, you have obviously been blessed with leadership skills, do something positive with those skills.
But for you actors... you will never be able to sustain a front forever, so if your not in the "In -crowd”, don’t strive to be. Be proud of yourself as is and work what YOU got to the best of your potential.
And to be real with it, The "In-Crowd" mainly consists of arrogant A-holes and Snobby Chicks anyway. They are sooo consumed with fashion and looks and maintaining an image that they struggle later in life when their age starts to show on their face and body and the reality that their not "Cool" anymore haunts them....They struggle because they lived in and filled their minds with vanity instead of reality...No substance or foundation, now the walls are shakin.
The "In-Crowd" is only temporary... Knowledge of self and love is permanent.
You will always be unhappy when you try to live a life based on someone else’s interpretation of cool.
You will always be unhappy when you try to live a life based on someone else’s interpretation of cool.
You will always be unhappy when you try to live a life based on someone else’s interpretation of cool.
Be the best YOU ... I know that sounds afterschool specialish , but it's the best way to tell you that popularity is a false high and if people do not respect you for who you are as a person , then do not associate with them people.
A true friend is there regardless of physical appearance, financial status, or your situation in life.
So to end the cycle of having to be popular is easy....
Realize it's B.S. and just be yourself..... CYCLE BROKEN.
Next we move on to...
: SEX :
I will not over preach abstinence because I am a realistic man.
Is it the safest way? Of course...
Do I honestly believe that teens on a grand scale will practice abstinence? Not a chance in hell.
You youngins are light years ahead of where we were...
From the cartoons, to the videos to the movies to the music to the cell phones to the commercials and especially the internet, you cats see 100 times more sex and murder than we ever did growing up in the 80's.
You know more than we did at your age and you do more than a lot of us did at your age.
Teen pregnancy and STD's are still relevant, which means....Young People are still having sex.
Please listen...
We can't completely stop y'all from doing it, so I beg you this, if you’re going to do it, PROTECT YOURSELF!
Get some condoms....Be responsible with it!
I do applaud MTV for showing you a glimpse of what teen parenting is like, hopefully it makes you think.
My wife and I had our first child when we were 3 months into our 18th Birthdays....
So I speak to you from experience.
Children are the toughest job on earth...
THE TOUGHEST JOB ON EARTH!
The threat of a life ending disease is always there as well.
I worked with a man whose "Life Partner" had Aids...
He would pick my co-worker up after work...I literally saw the man deteriorate as time went on.
He just got skinnier and skinnier until they put him in the hospital and he died from Aids...
Sex is serious business...
Choosing the right person to share this with is crucial.
Ladies, dudes will tell you ANYTHING to get you.
And A LOT of dudes hit it and quit it...
Some leave you pregnant and never see you again.
Talk about a going away gift huh?
NEVER sleep with a dude to be popular.
Yes, you will be popular, but for all the wrong reasons.
And some dudes will call you Ho or Slut BECAUSE you DON’T sleep with them
Young dudes are immature and act like idiots....You gotta hold your head high and ignore that nonsense.
They use girls and break hearts because they don’t know how to handle love on a mature level, and honestly, even though females mature faster than males, you also are not ready for love at a young age.
Some dudes also have homeboys controlling them like puppets and your "Boyfriend" will act like a jerk to look HARD or show off his PIMP nature in front of his boys....But when he's ALONE with you...How does he act?
The dude is soft like newborn Panda fur....
HOW DO YOU BREAK THIS CYCLE?
You can break it by not giving away your goodies to every idiot that says he loves you and that you’re the "Best he ever had"....
You gotta be smart enough not to fall for game like that....
"Love often leads to sex, but sex rarely leads to love"
D.Stewart
You are young ladies ...You are faced with many different pressures.
Pressure to look this way or that or weigh this much or dress like that....
Not to mention the changes your bodies are going through, mentally and physically.
Add boys to the mix and y'all got a lot going on....
What I want you to understand from this letter is this; you are all beautiful and intelligent.
From The Blackest of Black skin to the Whitest of White and every shade in between.
PLEASE be smart enough to know that the girls in the magazines and videos are not your typical results and once again, they are who they are and YOU are who you are. You can’t be them and vice versa, and really, why would you want to be? You have your own unique gift you have yet to unwrap.
DO NOT let the media and entertainment industry con you into believing that you must look a certain way to be beautiful.
Women can be anything they desire to be... You each have a mind and talents that you are blessed with.
Develop yourself from the inside out...
I believe one of the biggest enemies against females is Insecurity.
Do not be fooled... You will never become who you were born to be if you are always wishing you were born someone else....Give YOU a chance to blossom, you just might end up liking yourself.
Break the cycle of being what the media and horny old men want you to be.
USE YOUR BRAIN...It's the sexiest organ.
Have pride in yourself and do not let a man control how you feel about yourself.
YOU ARE THE WORLD'S DAUGHTERS-MOTHERS-SISTERS and if your not a public Leader, then you are the Leader beside the Leader, You are more important than the world gives you credit for and truth be told, than you give yourself credit for.
The world has enough models and dancers.... We are in need of WOMEN.
And that empowered mindset needs to take shape NOW.
BREAK THE CYCLE!
And before the young men start getting angry with me and calling me a Hater ... Let me holla at y'all.
You must also not be quick to hop into bed with every girl that walks your way.
Just because you have a gun, doesn’t mean you should go around poppin caps for the hell of it.
Pregnancy and disease is just as serious for men and all you gotta do is hook up with the wrong chick ONE time and your whole life is altered...
And I am of the firm belief that if your man enough to make a child, you should be man enough to raise that child.
So if you’re not ready for that responsibility, make sure you are strapped at all times....ALL TIMES or restrain yourself from the company of ladies.
I'm not trying to use scare tactics on you; everything I speak is the honest truth.
Do your researches, visit a clinic, and look around your school...
The threat is real.
Sex is a beautiful gift but it must be handled with caution and maturity and above all else, responsibility.
You are young men, you are also going through changes and you also have pressure upon you.
A young man's mind is mainly made up of food, sex and music and sports.....
This is the majority of what is going on inside the head of young men all across the globe.
But just like I told the ladies about the bad boys, I will tell you about the bad girls.
Some girls are just bad because they choose to be and some girls are bad because they were made that way by dudes doing them wrong.
In the same way some guys will tell a girl anything to get sex, some girls will use sex to get anything from a guy.
You fellas gotta be smarter than that ... if she does it to you like that, she has done it to others.
Some girls lie about being pregnant, some girls lie about not having disease, but truth be told, Men are so controlled by sex, the women don’t have to say too much at all....
And this is a cycle that must be broken....
You are young men who have the opportunity to think things through, to make decisions based on the facts at hand and not because the reward might be sex.
We got enough dudes in the club and rappers pouring drinks on half nekked chicks...
WE NEED MEN! Leaders! Men who do not bow down to peer pressure and follow every trend that comes into style.
We need Men who have respect for women and respect for their own minds and who have goals.
And you guys have the opportunity to start training your minds for victory now.
And I know some of you dudes are laughing at me right now and this is exactly why this cycle of bad relationships and disease and teen pregnancy continues... This is no joke man, this is Life....
Take your time and make sure the girl is on point, this isn’t a race...
But like I said, if you just can’t wait and you’re not trying to hear anything I am talking about, at least hear the part about PROTECTING YOURSELF.
And let me touch on one last aspect of young love.
: THE BREAK-UP :
It kills me inside to know that some people actually kill themselves over someone else.
When you are young and in "Love”, it's like there is a huge magnifying glass on everything.
Everything appears way bigger than it actually is.
No one on this earth is worth taking your own life over.
I have had my heartbroken and I have also been stabbed 6 times.
I have often said I would rather be stabbed again...
Trust me , I know the pain of a broken heart is a pain that cannot be explained , I also wanted to die at one time due to heartbreak....But TRUST ME PLEASE...It will get better and you will laugh again and eventually you will love again.
I picked up a pen and wrote poetry and songs to get all of my sadness and anger and other emotions out of me.
pen , guitar, piano , bible , art , basketball , prayer, friends ,working out ....These are just a few things that help in the healing process...A lot of us don’t have access to instruments , but we all have access to a pen or pencil or green map color....WRITE it down , when it's on paper , it's out of you ....
Then you look back and see how much you have grown.
Turn your feelings around, you will survive and you will come out stronger and wiser...Whatever you do, don't do yourself in, write it down and stay active.
And the most important thing is this, watch out for the gossip.
This is when cats come on message boards talking nonsense and spreading rumors and all that.
Don't participate... give those with questions the Rasheed Wallace approach when he didn’t want to receive a fine, "Both teams played hard"... Whose fault was it? "Both teams played hard”, did he cheat on you? "Both Teams Played hard" ....The business is that of you and whoever the other party was and that is the way to break the cycle of all the ignorant aftermath of break-ups.
It didn’t work out...learn from it and Move on, no need to drag it on and start all the he said / she said nonsense....
What is done is done....
You will also address these issues as an adult and I must tell you that the sooner you realize that open and honest communication is the key....the sooner your relationships will improve.
This goes for every relationship you will ever have , from personal to business.
You gotta talk to each other and tell the truth.
If you don’t, life will expose you.
And next on the agenda is....
: ATTITUDE :
One cycle that needs to be broken and can be broken is your attitude.
If you, the youth, realize now, that it's not all about you, you will have greater success in life.
Selfishness will get you nowhere and neither will Laziness.
I completely understand that now more than any other time in our history, they market YOU to US, but all they are really doing is creating spoiled brats who will have great difficulty when they get out in the real world.
You see the commercials and how everything is marketed for you guys?
They make you feel inferior if you do not have the latest cell or clothes....
That is all B.S.
All of it....
And you know who the winner is? The companies....
Your parents are out of pocket to keep you in the latest style and you are constantly trying to keep up with the latest style while some people sit around in an office and determine what that next style should be.... Then they get into cars your parents can’t afford and eat at restaurants your parents can’t afford because your parents have helped pay for their vehicle and lunch so YOU can look good and have the newest phone and clothes that will not be in style next month.....
It's all a cycle of B.S.
They work - You get - companies get richer - we get poorer -Rinse and Repeat.
You are the next generation coming up; you have opportunities to make change.
It's time for you to expect more of yourself and challenge yourselves to be the best you can be.
To quit accepting the mindless music and T.V. and Film they throw at you as the standard.
We need to raise that standard and have creative competition again, Have pride in yourselves and your work.
Not to copy each others styles, but to innovate and Lead.
You guys now have the opportunity to stand up against Racism and show the world that united we can accomplish anything.
You guys now have the opportunity to learn from all of the mistakes that have ever been made and make a conscious choice not to keep those mistakes alive but to make them extinct by choosing not to follow in the footsteps of those who made the mistakes to begin with...
You can break the cycle...
You can start the trend of making intelligence cool.
Why is having an "I don't give a F***" attitude more popular than a positive attitude?
Because when you don't give a F***, you don’t have to work.
That is your scapegoat, it’s acceptable for you to fail because, you don’t give a F***.
You just take whatever is thrown at you and screw up your life through horrible choices and you throw a middle finger in the air , cause you don’t give a F*** and you learn the hard way that what you give in this life is what you get...
Your too cool too care though...
But when you DO Give a F***, you work your ass off.
You sweat and bleed and make sacrifices and you have honor and pride and you make change , not only for yourself but for those around you.
It takes longer , but the reward is greater.
It breaks down like this, the choices you make as a teen and in your 20’s, you spend your 30’s either recovering from or celebrating those choices.
But you don’t think about this and when people try to tell you, you blow them off.
YOU ARE GETTING OLDER EVERYDAY, JUST LIKE I AM!
And I am trying to tell you these things so you can have a better life, so you’re not just smarter in the areas of computers and phones and video games but you are wise beyond your years about life and how to work it because you were smart enough to see through the ignorance at a young age. If I can get through to enough of you and if you get through to your people and so on and so on, we can change the world for the better.... But we can’t change the world until we change our lives and if we change our lives we affect those around us and that changes our households then neighborhoods and then it expands from there....
We got enough people who don’t give a F***
Drive by your neighborhood liquor stores or look at the old school dude still gang bangin or turn on your radio to hear copy cat music or CNN to see war....
We need some people who care and aren’t afraid to be man or woman enough to care.
Intelligence and love is a lot harder and involves more work than ignorance and Hate and the world is full of Lazy people, this explains the unbalanced nature of our lives...But we can Break this Cycle and you as the youth, once again, have the opportunity to make a great change.
I am almost done, but I want to speak on your Parents before I go.
I don’t know your situation at home, if you have both parents or if you’re in a single parent family, but if you have at least one parent that provides for you and listens to you and talks with you, be very thankful, that is a blessing.
Too many households have none that care or have no clue how to talk to you.
I am a parent of 3 children, my oldest just recently turned 17.
I know firsthand that you can be very difficult to deal with, wasn’t too long ago I was there myself and I was selfish douche bag.
I remember being selfish and immature and an A-hole to girls and jail and probation and all of that nonsense I could have avoided if I was only wise enough to listen.
I made horrible choices and I have paid a heavy price, so please learn from me and those around you.
You don’t always have to experience things for yourself, not all things...
You youth must realize that your parents are just as confused about you as you are them.
But when you ignore each other, you just make matters worse and widen the gap of communication to the point that you don’t talk at all....
And I know I don’t know your folks or your household or there style of parenting, but I can safely say, it is better to sit down and talk about everything face to face than it is to slam doors, And if you absolutely cant find anyone to talk to, and if I am wrong about sitting down and talking at your house, hit my inbox, I'll talk to you, I’ll share whatever knowledge I got.
And to you Parents who feel the need to be your child's friend as opposed to their parent, you’re only doing harm.
Somebody needs to be the leader in your household and if it's not you, it will be them.
The one with more knowledge and experience should lead...that should be common sense.
It is possible for you to be a friendly parent with a trusting relationship, but you can’t be a friend who only parents every now and then. There is no solid foundation of respect built and that is bad for both of you.
And to you parents always leaving your kids home alone because you’re at the club, don’t cry or complain when your kid does bad.... The internet and TV is raising him or her, you may not be there Thursday, Friday or Saturday, but you will be present for the court date or the subject of the therapist visits....Get your priorities straight or get a crooked kid.
In closing, I know this has been a long letter, but like I said, I felt led to write it.
I don’t know who all this will reach, but if makes sense to you and you felt what I was saying, please forward it.
I have not written anything that is an untruth, if I have, let’s discuss it.
My main goal with this was to show the youth they hold the key to change in their hands and they have the power to make history by changing the future.
Love
Respect
Knowledge
Intelligence
Hard work
Dedication
Open minds and hearts
These values and emotions should be exalted.
This could be the grassroots beginning of a revolution, you know what to do and how to do it, now all you gotta do is do it.
And Lastly, I know people reading this will be from various backgrounds.
Different races and religions will read my words...
I did my best not to mention religion in the main body of my writing because I wanted to show you that all of this can be accomplished regardless of who you are and where you’re from and what you believe.
But I will end with this, I am a believer in God and through the love and knowledge of God, I have gained my intelligence and learned countless life lessons.
He has healed me and took me to many different levels.
And for those with no parents or for those with bad relationships with your parents , I can say with all sincerity , that faith in Jesus Christ has changed my entire life and he has been a true father figure to me and can be for you if that is what is desired by you.
You speak to the Lord like you would another human, you can’t see him, but he is there.
The spirit is always with you, most call him your "Conscious"...
You follow your "Conscious" or "Spirit" and you connect sincerely with that, and everything changes...
And for those interested in wisdom and learning about life, read Proverbs in your Bible. There are 30, one for each night. If you genuinely seek, you will get answers.
It takes patience and obedience, but you will go on a never ending journey of learning.
I also believe that in the spiritual outlook of a human beings life, Satan attacks the hardest when you’re a teen.
If he can get you to not care or keep you depressed and distracted or keep you Lazy or keep you in rebellion and unbelief, then the Job is soooo much easier later on in life.
The choices you make now, affect the rest of your life.
And by me telling you all of this, and dropping all these life lessons on you, I have angered Hell which makes me a very happy man.
In the name of Jesus Christ, I pray this letter touches your life in a positive way.
Thank you very much for reading.
And once again, if you know someone who could benefit from the writing, please forward it to them.
God Bless
Scott Johnson
www.scottjohnsononline.com
Sunday, April 11, 2010
P.S.
I am including a link to a song called 'Cut My Ties'.
This is a song that deals with the very serious but often neglected topic of suicide.
I ask that you download it and send it to anyone you feel may need it.
We just might save a life :)
'CUT MY TIES'
http://scottjohnson.podomatic.com/entry/2010-04-11T21_00_15-07_00
VERBAL VITAMIN 12 ... Lesson 2
Welcome to the final Verbal Vitamin of the year 2009...Lesson 2 of 2.
Ask most anybody , Believers in Christ or not ... and they will admit to having a certain amount of regret in their life.
Not only regret , but alot of us walk around daily with guilt upon us ...the amount varies from person to person.
also ,everyone , Believers in Christ or not ... Will admit to the existence of sin.
Even the most Godless man will admit evil exists..
and also... good.
If you have heard anything about Jesus at all , then you have probably heard something like....
"God's only begotten son" "Savior" "He died for our sins so that we may live" etc...
The most basic knowledge associated with Jesus , is that he died for our sins....
"To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins. "
Acts 10:43
You see it on bumper stickers , T-shirts , Church signs ..."He died for us" or "His blood was shed for us"...
This message was so realisticly driven home in "The Passion of the Christ" , That some people left the theater and went straight to get saved ...
We are aware with what Jesus is connected to.. Whether you believe in him or not , You at least know his rep or have heard the "rumors"..
So....If you ask the basic believer what Jesus accomplished ,in a nutshell , he will more than likely say...
God sent his son here to die as a replacement for the sins of humanity.
SO with ONE ACT , the sins of humanity have been forgiven , correct?
This is what the general consenus is right?
Then tell me why we as a human race still battle guilt over sins on a daily basis?
Why do we still feel unworthy ? Undeserving ?
I have met a few people in my time who have told me that they have gone too far to come back to God.
They felt they had been beyond the acceptable level with the Lord and so they never got a relationship with God because they felt he wouldnt mess with these "Sinners" anyway...
We all know people like that... "Heaven wouldnt take me! "
Alot of these people are called "uncles" :)
There again , Let me remind you, Paul (A former Christian Murderer) wrote the majority of the New Testament.
It's never too late...
One night this really hit me , he opened my mind to something...
I started thinking , If God forgives me ... Why can't I forgive myself ?
Why do I still roam around with guilt/regret from my past?
So I started conversating with myself ...
You believe in God ? You Know I do ! Orite then , what did Jesus come to do ? Die for our sins ... Our sins are wiped clean right? God doesnt remember your past right ? Thats what it says ... SO if the one who is in Heaven forgives you and is not worried about what you did , then why are YOU still thinking about it daily? .... He says your sins are remembered no more ... Then why are YOU holding onto them ?
So this awakening got me thinking about things ...
The wheels started turning and this all made sense to me , it couldn't be disputed...
I started conversating again...
Can you go back and repair what happened or what you did ?
no....
Did you learn from your mistakes?
....yes
So when you run around here and say your a believer , but yet you still fight against regret and guilt , wouldnt that be a slap in the face of what Christ came here for ?
Yes sir , I guess it would....
Live-Learn-Evolve....Live NOW and not THEN and tell others of your mistakes in the hopes they can avoid some of the same traps you fell in...
The cycle of the life of the wise...
So these thoughts started changing me...Conversating with the spirit within me opened my eyes....Yet again.
What is done is done and there is absolutely nothing that can be done other than learn from what has been done so you do not repeat the same foolishness... when you do what it do....DIG?
One day my wife had the T.V. on and there was a Preacher named Joseph Prince preaching.
http://josephprince.org/
His style made logical sense and he was very humorous...Captivating as a speaker.
So I started watching him on the regular.
He basically preaches on the Grace of God and Faith and this has taught me more than I could've imagined or let me say , He has opened my eyes with his teaching and it has changed my life....
The other day , as he was preaching on Grace , I suddenly...Got it.
It all made sense to me...
Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses.
Acts 13:38-39
And by him all that believe are justified from all things....Think about that...Absorb it..
People attach rules and regulations that society deem acceptable , that humans deem to be law and this has become a great tool of the enemy because it keeps us in bondage.
It keeps us chained to our past or feeling unworthy of something better .
Because we as humans ....FAIL...In the eyes of fellow humans ..
And this is where the enemy gets us...
Your listening to that ? Your not a true believer...
I saw you drinking beer at Chilis ? Your not a true believer ...
Your watching that? Your not a true believer....
Your eating meat? Your not a true believer....
You dropped an F-bomb? Your not a true believer...
etc..etc...etc...etc...
I am not endorsing any of this , but at the same time it is my firm belief that these things are minuscule on God's Agenda...
And you might see me sipping an Ice cold Budweiser and eating a chicken fried steak...Afterwards , On the way home , I am probably gonna be listening to some metal..
Do these actions make me love my Lord any less or him love me any less ?
If you feel it will , Then you are distracted.
Is the man in the suit more acceptable to God than the man in T-shirt and Jeans?
Is the man who is on "prescription" pills found more favorable than the one on herb?
Is the woman with short hair less of a saint than the one with long?
It is my firm belief that the way we treat each other is of greater importance than our personal likes or habits...
Because truth be told ,
EVERY SINGLE INDIVIDUAL ON PLANET EARTH HAS SOMETHING THAT THEY DO IN THEIR PRIVATE LIVES ....
Everyone of us has a vice....And if you really wanna get dirty with it , The rich have the nastiest habits and dirtiest laundry , yet are the quickest to judge.
I no longer care how you view me ... Life is bigger than your perception of who I am supposed to be...
And I challenge the naysayers to show me where I have spoken falsely...
Everyone has a different view of what makes a true beliver in God....And everyone feels that there way is correct.
Same way we have views on what makes a real man or woman.
Some believe if you dont speak in tongues , you go to hell.
Some believe you handle snakes to prove your belief (BTW , That wasn't in the earliest text , Ya'll can quit that at anytime now)
Some believe you have to do or say certain things in order to be forgiven , they confess to another human being to be handed out a human punishment
to appease a Spiritual God who has already Forgiven you of all debt....Does that make sense?
WHEN YOU LIVE TO UPHOLD YOURSELF FOR THE APPROVAL OF MAN - YOU WILL ALWAYS FAIL.
WHEN YOU LIVE TO UPHOLD YOURSELF FOR THE APPROVAL OF MAN - YOU WILL ALWAYS FAIL.
WHEN YOU LIVE TO UPHOLD YOURSELF FOR THE APPROVAL OF MAN - YOU WILL ALWAYS FAIL.
Every church and every pastor and teacher and philospher and religion have a certain way they do things and a certain way of dealing with it's sinners.
They have there ways to condemn you ... But most of us dont need any help , we condemn ourselves just fine.
The Gospel is preached and Jesus is told to be the one who has forgiven all sins through his bloodshed , but no one takes that part seriously or grasps what that truly means.
We still run around trying to be pleasing in the eyes of mankind....to look like were pleasing to God.
"But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together. Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets."
Matthew 22:34-40
QUIT BEING DISTRACTED AND EVOLVE !
WHEN YOU LIVE BY AND OBEY THE SPIRIT WITHIN - YOU WILL ALWAYS PROSPER.
WHEN YOU LIVE BY AND OBEY THE SPIRIT WITHIN - YOU WILL ALWAYS PROSPER.
WHEN YOU LIVE BY AND OBEY THE SPIRIT WITHIN - YOU WILL ALWAYS PROSPER.
Here is the good news for you believers...
My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
1 John 2:1-2
http://www.gotquestions.org/propitiation.html
When you break that down it is saying...
Look ya'll , You know right from wrong , The Holy spirit in you shows you this...Now , Try to listen to that spirit and do right...BUT , If you screw up and get ignorant for a minute , dont walk around in depression and feel like a worthless loser the rest of your days ,BECAUSE , Jesus has already got you covered.
This is why he came here....This is why he suffered...You yourself have read it...Now you just gotta believe it...Life is trial and error...This is why learning from the mistakes of others is spoken of so highly , it shows you are wise.
Joh 10:10
The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
Abundant Life? This is why he came?
Where is this abundant life he speaks of?
Most of us will never see it because were too distracted by laws and religion and wrapped up in guilt and shame and embarrasment and every other feeling the THIEF can use against us to keep us from living life , guilt free and happy He robs our Joy and destroys dreams and confidence.
He keeps us worried that everything were doing is so bad that we lose sight of the good we were promised.
What is keeping you from living an abundant life? Dont just say money , Break it all the way down and search your soul.
Clean out your skull...
After the fact that the price has been paid really sunk into me , I felt free ya'll.
I felt like a dark weight has been lifted off of my brain.
I have learned from my past , I have given my future to God and I trust him to guide me and I am now trying to live in the Present.
This is the point of this message...
If you believe in Christ , Step your game up...
Really comprehend what he did and accept the fact there is no act you can commit that will Make you worthy..
You have already been made worthy , accept it and free yourself.
Your good enough , your smart enough and dog gone it , people like you...so I've heard :)
Once you walk closer with your spirit , You will be able to see more clearly all the various ways the enemy works.
and when you can see his tactics , You can overcome them and move beyond your current level.
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
Matthew 5:16
I personally believe that if we are God's greatest creation he might like to see all of us living up to our full potential.
See us really do what we were created to do...
Cant the masses see were doing 20 on the autobahn of our minds ?
Lets push the pedal on our faith and mental and see how fast this baby goes!
"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?
Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it. And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine: For he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. "
Matthew 7:1-29
So I will leave you with this...God loves you and has a plan for you and he speaks to you daily... Open your inner ear and listen.
For further proof of his existence , Just look at the sky every morning and evening...
Look at the sun and the clouds and all the colors and think about how it all works and marvel at the genius and the mystery...
I stand in awe of it...
My Father in Law Martin says it's like a fresh painting every day...And it is.
This is bigger than us all and we are all here for something...just BELIEVE...
But without faith it is impossible to please him : for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
Hebrews 11:6
Look inside of yourselves....Your not alone.
I pray in the name of Jesus Christ I have blessed whoever has read my words...
I truly appreciate your time ...And I hope in some way I have touched your heart and your mind.
Thank you for reading.
I was trying to think on how to end this series ......and I have decided to go with a Reverse Soprano ending.
So when you get done reading... Take a deep breath and Close your eyes ... Exhale and see the light.
...and that is how we will end our groundbreaking drama...
PEACE
GOD BLESS
RESPECT
SCOTT JOHNSON
12/11/09
5:29 AM
Ask most anybody , Believers in Christ or not ... and they will admit to having a certain amount of regret in their life.
Not only regret , but alot of us walk around daily with guilt upon us ...the amount varies from person to person.
also ,everyone , Believers in Christ or not ... Will admit to the existence of sin.
Even the most Godless man will admit evil exists..
and also... good.
If you have heard anything about Jesus at all , then you have probably heard something like....
"God's only begotten son" "Savior" "He died for our sins so that we may live" etc...
The most basic knowledge associated with Jesus , is that he died for our sins....
"To him give all the prophets witness, that through his name whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins. "
Acts 10:43
You see it on bumper stickers , T-shirts , Church signs ..."He died for us" or "His blood was shed for us"...
This message was so realisticly driven home in "The Passion of the Christ" , That some people left the theater and went straight to get saved ...
We are aware with what Jesus is connected to.. Whether you believe in him or not , You at least know his rep or have heard the "rumors"..
So....If you ask the basic believer what Jesus accomplished ,in a nutshell , he will more than likely say...
God sent his son here to die as a replacement for the sins of humanity.
SO with ONE ACT , the sins of humanity have been forgiven , correct?
This is what the general consenus is right?
Then tell me why we as a human race still battle guilt over sins on a daily basis?
Why do we still feel unworthy ? Undeserving ?
I have met a few people in my time who have told me that they have gone too far to come back to God.
They felt they had been beyond the acceptable level with the Lord and so they never got a relationship with God because they felt he wouldnt mess with these "Sinners" anyway...
We all know people like that... "Heaven wouldnt take me! "
Alot of these people are called "uncles" :)
There again , Let me remind you, Paul (A former Christian Murderer) wrote the majority of the New Testament.
It's never too late...
One night this really hit me , he opened my mind to something...
I started thinking , If God forgives me ... Why can't I forgive myself ?
Why do I still roam around with guilt/regret from my past?
So I started conversating with myself ...
You believe in God ? You Know I do ! Orite then , what did Jesus come to do ? Die for our sins ... Our sins are wiped clean right? God doesnt remember your past right ? Thats what it says ... SO if the one who is in Heaven forgives you and is not worried about what you did , then why are YOU still thinking about it daily? .... He says your sins are remembered no more ... Then why are YOU holding onto them ?
So this awakening got me thinking about things ...
The wheels started turning and this all made sense to me , it couldn't be disputed...
I started conversating again...
Can you go back and repair what happened or what you did ?
no....
Did you learn from your mistakes?
....yes
So when you run around here and say your a believer , but yet you still fight against regret and guilt , wouldnt that be a slap in the face of what Christ came here for ?
Yes sir , I guess it would....
Live-Learn-Evolve....Live NOW and not THEN and tell others of your mistakes in the hopes they can avoid some of the same traps you fell in...
The cycle of the life of the wise...
So these thoughts started changing me...Conversating with the spirit within me opened my eyes....Yet again.
What is done is done and there is absolutely nothing that can be done other than learn from what has been done so you do not repeat the same foolishness... when you do what it do....DIG?
One day my wife had the T.V. on and there was a Preacher named Joseph Prince preaching.
http://josephprince.org/
His style made logical sense and he was very humorous...Captivating as a speaker.
So I started watching him on the regular.
He basically preaches on the Grace of God and Faith and this has taught me more than I could've imagined or let me say , He has opened my eyes with his teaching and it has changed my life....
The other day , as he was preaching on Grace , I suddenly...Got it.
It all made sense to me...
Be it known unto you therefore, men and brethren, that through this man is preached unto you the forgiveness of sins: And by him all that believe are justified from all things, from which ye could not be justified by the law of Moses.
Acts 13:38-39
And by him all that believe are justified from all things....Think about that...Absorb it..
People attach rules and regulations that society deem acceptable , that humans deem to be law and this has become a great tool of the enemy because it keeps us in bondage.
It keeps us chained to our past or feeling unworthy of something better .
Because we as humans ....FAIL...In the eyes of fellow humans ..
And this is where the enemy gets us...
Your listening to that ? Your not a true believer...
I saw you drinking beer at Chilis ? Your not a true believer ...
Your watching that? Your not a true believer....
Your eating meat? Your not a true believer....
You dropped an F-bomb? Your not a true believer...
etc..etc...etc...etc...
I am not endorsing any of this , but at the same time it is my firm belief that these things are minuscule on God's Agenda...
And you might see me sipping an Ice cold Budweiser and eating a chicken fried steak...Afterwards , On the way home , I am probably gonna be listening to some metal..
Do these actions make me love my Lord any less or him love me any less ?
If you feel it will , Then you are distracted.
Is the man in the suit more acceptable to God than the man in T-shirt and Jeans?
Is the man who is on "prescription" pills found more favorable than the one on herb?
Is the woman with short hair less of a saint than the one with long?
It is my firm belief that the way we treat each other is of greater importance than our personal likes or habits...
Because truth be told ,
EVERY SINGLE INDIVIDUAL ON PLANET EARTH HAS SOMETHING THAT THEY DO IN THEIR PRIVATE LIVES ....
Everyone of us has a vice....And if you really wanna get dirty with it , The rich have the nastiest habits and dirtiest laundry , yet are the quickest to judge.
I no longer care how you view me ... Life is bigger than your perception of who I am supposed to be...
And I challenge the naysayers to show me where I have spoken falsely...
Everyone has a different view of what makes a true beliver in God....And everyone feels that there way is correct.
Same way we have views on what makes a real man or woman.
Some believe if you dont speak in tongues , you go to hell.
Some believe you handle snakes to prove your belief (BTW , That wasn't in the earliest text , Ya'll can quit that at anytime now)
Some believe you have to do or say certain things in order to be forgiven , they confess to another human being to be handed out a human punishment
to appease a Spiritual God who has already Forgiven you of all debt....Does that make sense?
WHEN YOU LIVE TO UPHOLD YOURSELF FOR THE APPROVAL OF MAN - YOU WILL ALWAYS FAIL.
WHEN YOU LIVE TO UPHOLD YOURSELF FOR THE APPROVAL OF MAN - YOU WILL ALWAYS FAIL.
WHEN YOU LIVE TO UPHOLD YOURSELF FOR THE APPROVAL OF MAN - YOU WILL ALWAYS FAIL.
Every church and every pastor and teacher and philospher and religion have a certain way they do things and a certain way of dealing with it's sinners.
They have there ways to condemn you ... But most of us dont need any help , we condemn ourselves just fine.
The Gospel is preached and Jesus is told to be the one who has forgiven all sins through his bloodshed , but no one takes that part seriously or grasps what that truly means.
We still run around trying to be pleasing in the eyes of mankind....to look like were pleasing to God.
"But when the Pharisees had heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, they were gathered together. Then one of them, which was a lawyer, asked him a question, tempting him, and saying, Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets."
Matthew 22:34-40
QUIT BEING DISTRACTED AND EVOLVE !
WHEN YOU LIVE BY AND OBEY THE SPIRIT WITHIN - YOU WILL ALWAYS PROSPER.
WHEN YOU LIVE BY AND OBEY THE SPIRIT WITHIN - YOU WILL ALWAYS PROSPER.
WHEN YOU LIVE BY AND OBEY THE SPIRIT WITHIN - YOU WILL ALWAYS PROSPER.
Here is the good news for you believers...
My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous: And he is the propitiation for our sins: and not for ours only, but also for the sins of the whole world.
1 John 2:1-2
http://www.gotquestions.org/propitiation.html
When you break that down it is saying...
Look ya'll , You know right from wrong , The Holy spirit in you shows you this...Now , Try to listen to that spirit and do right...BUT , If you screw up and get ignorant for a minute , dont walk around in depression and feel like a worthless loser the rest of your days ,BECAUSE , Jesus has already got you covered.
This is why he came here....This is why he suffered...You yourself have read it...Now you just gotta believe it...Life is trial and error...This is why learning from the mistakes of others is spoken of so highly , it shows you are wise.
Joh 10:10
The thief cometh not, but for to steal, and to kill, and to destroy: I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.
Abundant Life? This is why he came?
Where is this abundant life he speaks of?
Most of us will never see it because were too distracted by laws and religion and wrapped up in guilt and shame and embarrasment and every other feeling the THIEF can use against us to keep us from living life , guilt free and happy He robs our Joy and destroys dreams and confidence.
He keeps us worried that everything were doing is so bad that we lose sight of the good we were promised.
What is keeping you from living an abundant life? Dont just say money , Break it all the way down and search your soul.
Clean out your skull...
After the fact that the price has been paid really sunk into me , I felt free ya'll.
I felt like a dark weight has been lifted off of my brain.
I have learned from my past , I have given my future to God and I trust him to guide me and I am now trying to live in the Present.
This is the point of this message...
If you believe in Christ , Step your game up...
Really comprehend what he did and accept the fact there is no act you can commit that will Make you worthy..
You have already been made worthy , accept it and free yourself.
Your good enough , your smart enough and dog gone it , people like you...so I've heard :)
Once you walk closer with your spirit , You will be able to see more clearly all the various ways the enemy works.
and when you can see his tactics , You can overcome them and move beyond your current level.
Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven.
Matthew 5:16
I personally believe that if we are God's greatest creation he might like to see all of us living up to our full potential.
See us really do what we were created to do...
Cant the masses see were doing 20 on the autobahn of our minds ?
Lets push the pedal on our faith and mental and see how fast this baby goes!
"Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you: For every one that asketh receiveth; and he that seeketh findeth; and to him that knocketh it shall be opened. Or what man is there of you, whom if his son ask bread, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your Father which is in heaven give good things to them that ask him?
Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock. And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand: And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it. And it came to pass, when Jesus had ended these sayings, the people were astonished at his doctrine: For he taught them as one having authority, and not as the scribes. "
Matthew 7:1-29
So I will leave you with this...God loves you and has a plan for you and he speaks to you daily... Open your inner ear and listen.
For further proof of his existence , Just look at the sky every morning and evening...
Look at the sun and the clouds and all the colors and think about how it all works and marvel at the genius and the mystery...
I stand in awe of it...
My Father in Law Martin says it's like a fresh painting every day...And it is.
This is bigger than us all and we are all here for something...just BELIEVE...
But without faith it is impossible to please him : for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and that he is a rewarder of them that diligently seek him.
Hebrews 11:6
Look inside of yourselves....Your not alone.
I pray in the name of Jesus Christ I have blessed whoever has read my words...
I truly appreciate your time ...And I hope in some way I have touched your heart and your mind.
Thank you for reading.
I was trying to think on how to end this series ......and I have decided to go with a Reverse Soprano ending.
So when you get done reading... Take a deep breath and Close your eyes ... Exhale and see the light.
...and that is how we will end our groundbreaking drama...
PEACE
GOD BLESS
RESPECT
SCOTT JOHNSON
12/11/09
5:29 AM
VERBAL VITAMIN 12 ... Lesson 1
Welcome to the final Verbal Vitamin of the year...Lesson 1 of 2.
I will start this off with some knowledge the Lord has blessed me with recently.
A new trail has been made in my mind.
I have spoken on having 3 voices within every human being...Good-Bad-You or God-Devil-You.
Whether or not you believe in God , You cannot dispute the fact that these voices exist and present us with multiple choice scenarios in our daily lives.
Like many of you , I have struggled to understand the concept of "The Trinity"...
But God has enlightened me.
I have been, for quite some time , in complete agreement that the good voice within us all is the holy spirit of God...
( Most of you refer to this voice as "Your concious" )
Which would obviously mean that your negative thoughts would be influenced by a negative force.
and there you are...Stuck in the middle with you :)
Now let me flip the script right quick...
Why do so many "Christians" fail ?
Why do so many "Believers" fall out of love with God?
This was an answer I was seeking from The Lord because I was struggling...I was in that , "Where is God at ?" mode...
Feeling lonely and abandoned and I began to question and like usual , when I began to question , He begins to answer.
GOD is The Father - The Boss - The Creator.
Jesus is the SON - mediator and savior
and The Holy spirt is ever present to guide our behavior.
and they are all forms of each other...
When you discover God , You get this high about you.
When you Hear from God , You change , you have a realization that you are not alone in the universe , You get a pep in your step , your telling people about it , your excited , YOU were given SOMETHING in YOUR LIFE that is REAL.
Some of us know in that moment that were not alone , others know exactly what there purpose is , Others get a word of instruction or encouragment or prophesy , some get all of the above at once...
So you get High...
Walkin around like Jay...We are really High .. Really Really High...
But this high is different than any street drug can give , any sexual relationship can satisfy , or fantasy could compare...
This high last from periods ranging from days to years...This is a Soul High...Supplied by God....THE FATHER
This is a huge hit that stays with you , But like every high...It eventually wears off ...
Some of you read that I went to see a prophet and Got a word ..... well this word got me high.
The Lord spoke some great things concerning me.
So here I am , expecting these things to occur like ,right away ,and when they did not , my impatience and anger took over.
(This also taught me a lesson about wanting to know ... there is a distinct peace in not knowing)
So I was having a withdrawl from my high... Ya'll following me?
God speaks to you in some form or fashion and it impacts your life greatly , and then , it gets quiet....
So what I was seeking God about was "Where are you in those quiet times?"
This is where the opening of the eyes occured...
Imagine a timeline of your life...A straight line...
Now take every one of your life changing events and make them Soild big circles on your line.
Where is God in between these circles?
You discover him , Your life changes , and now your wondering where he is at....
He never left...
and if you seriously stop and look and reflect , you will see how it was you got by in between the big circles and what you learned in the process...He was there through it all , Whether you acknowledged his presence.
Let me explain.
When you hear that grand message or get that grand revelation , this is GOD THE FATHER speaking.
He gives you an eye opening hit of life and the high is not comparable...
After you get this high potent awakening , You are now constantly looking to acheive the same level of high that you got the first time (or the last time) you felt a great move of God in your life...Like any other high you enjoy , You want to feel that way again...and when you dont , You start to feel that God has left you alone and you start trying to do everything yourself because you havent "Gotten High" like you did before and you start to withdrawl and this is where the enemy moves in the troops...
Impatience , questions of sanity , anger , bitterness , confusion , loneliness .... I know of these emotions , I got my knowledge in the storm , Feel me?
we start doubting what we heard and the enemy moves in and you may even start doubting God's presence alltogether ....
How can we let this happen to us ? We were JUST on fire with belief !
We were JUST convinced we had a life changing expierience !
How can this roller coaster be going down now ?
Because were looking for the same high to occur EVERYTIME and GOD does NOT work like this....
So where is he ?
He is working on what he told you or showed you or promised you or whatever "Deal" ya'll made , The FATHER is doing what needs to be done to fulfill the agreement he has made with his child (You) in the initial or last meeting....And depending on what was said by either party , Your next big "High" could be a good minute.
SO , In the QUIET times , We are dealing with the HOLY SPIRIT of The Trinity...Just like we always have , But since society would rather say "concious" , we do not equate this with the 3rd being in the trinity and many therefore dont recognize the God within themselves...That voice within that pushes you for your BEST.
and JESUS the SON made manifest in the flesh was the one who enabled us to be in this position to begin with.
JESUS was / is the loophole in this cosmic game of chess... I mean that with no disrespect, it is what it is.
and there is your Trinity...
THE FATHER hits you with something Amazing and then goes to work FOR you , meanwhile , the Holy spirit within , goes to work , ON you....
So while the Father is preparing the path , the spirit is preparing the person to walk on that path... Praise God! That is some deep knowledge right there ya'll.
Problem is , we drown out the voice of the spirit because were expecting to hear the Voice of The Father every time.
We are not alone in the quiet times , in fact it is the opposite , this is when the spirit of the Lord is closest to us ...
But we walk around with blind eyes and deaf ears wondering where he is at and all the time he is trying to get your attention from the inside.
Think back to ANY hardship / sorrow / heartache/ bout of depression/ As nasty as you felt , there was a voice inside of you that TRIED to help you and encourage you.
But everytime that voice spoke , another voice would enter and tell you ,YOU didnt feel like doing or saying anything or you just hated the world and so many times we just surrender to the voice thats filling us with self pity/ anger/ or emotion #13 Mike Muir spoke of , and it drags us further into a form of Hell...
"I excuse myself- I'm used to my little cell - I amuse myself in my very own private hell"
Alice in Chains
UNTIL someone or some expierience opens your ears/eyes and the voice of the spirit is dominant again...You have your "Awakening"..
Some suppress the voice of the spirit till it's inaudible or they just completely ignore it , which often leads to very bad places or death...
Point is this , After The Father speaks, pay attention to what is going on in your mind , your gut , your concious....
Because now the spirit is just not dealing with our daily bread , you have a mission and the faster you do what your spirit leads you to do , the faster you will recieve what it is you have been seeking...So quit asking what is taking so long for your blessing and start asking , what steps you need to take to handle the blessing you are seeking...
EXAMPLE : Everynight for YEARS , My spirit would tell me , "Scott , Once you quit smoking cigarettes , everything changes" ...Everynight I would say "Yeah , I know" and I would go through the routine of hating myself and feeling like a prisoner to the nicotine and making empty promises...
Where would I be today had I listened to my spirit all of those years ago?
Everyone on earth KNOWS what they gotta do , You have that voice , same as I do... The longer we fight our spirit , The longer it takes to get where we are going.
We are drowning and yet we get angry or supress the voice when the spirit tries to pull us out of the water...So we flop around like insane salmon and get angry with GOD...When all along he is like "Hey man , I'm waiting on you! Get this part done and remove that layer so I can take you where I told you I would !"
He is everpresent with us...
See how this works?
GOD speaks to you in a profound way...After that , follow your spirit , get in touch with the God inside of you and be obedient.
Then you get what you asked for and God speaks again...and this continues forever until the next stop on your journey....
This is how we evolve into what we were truly born to be...But it works both ways , You gotta put in your work also.
This knowledge is groundbreaking for me , Maybe you or someone you know already knew this ....If you did , why didn't you tell us?
This God given knowledge helped me out tremendously , because it opened my eyes to what I was doing wrong.
I was allowing the enemy to come in and rob my blessings by distracting me and taking up valuble mind time.
So instead of walking around like "Where is God ? He dont love me no more ! What did I do wrong? What did I say? Why arent you talking to me? Do you even exist? "
All that nonsense...That would drag me down and distract me...
I am now at peace ... The Father Spoke and I am listening to my spirt till the Father does what he does ...
Then that high will come again....
This was important to me to share because this goes back to the question I asked earlier...
Why do so many fail?
The time after God speaks is a crucial time...If your new in your faith or you lack patience , This could make or break you as a "believer".
This is the time that the enemy works very hard to distract you and steal your joy.
YOU MUST BE PATIENT AND ON GUARD...I have learned this the hard way.
This is why Jesus speaks of the seed that was cast on stony ground...The roots dont run deep , they wither and die.
Because they lack the knowledge and patience to understand , God never stops working , and they stop running the race halfway through and never taste of the victory that was almost theirs...
I was one of these people.
Now I am on a whole nother level and it feels great...
SO if your on the same level I am , Please take this teaching with you and share it.
God is never absent from you , Your ignoring his inner voice because your expecting that outer voice.
The Outer voice will come back when you finish what the inner voice is telling you to do.
Which brings me back to what I started with... The 3 Voices.
You know what's right and wrong and you know when you get a "Feeling" about something....
Learn to listen to and work with your spirit...in "The quiet times" ....
I pray this blesses you and gives your mind some peace.
Thanks to everyone who hits my inbox with prayer request and your thoughts and your worries and your questions....
I appreciate you and will always give you the Best/Honest/Logical advice I can give.
God Bless
Scott Johnson
I will start this off with some knowledge the Lord has blessed me with recently.
A new trail has been made in my mind.
I have spoken on having 3 voices within every human being...Good-Bad-You or God-Devil-You.
Whether or not you believe in God , You cannot dispute the fact that these voices exist and present us with multiple choice scenarios in our daily lives.
Like many of you , I have struggled to understand the concept of "The Trinity"...
But God has enlightened me.
I have been, for quite some time , in complete agreement that the good voice within us all is the holy spirit of God...
( Most of you refer to this voice as "Your concious" )
Which would obviously mean that your negative thoughts would be influenced by a negative force.
and there you are...Stuck in the middle with you :)
Now let me flip the script right quick...
Why do so many "Christians" fail ?
Why do so many "Believers" fall out of love with God?
This was an answer I was seeking from The Lord because I was struggling...I was in that , "Where is God at ?" mode...
Feeling lonely and abandoned and I began to question and like usual , when I began to question , He begins to answer.
GOD is The Father - The Boss - The Creator.
Jesus is the SON - mediator and savior
and The Holy spirt is ever present to guide our behavior.
and they are all forms of each other...
When you discover God , You get this high about you.
When you Hear from God , You change , you have a realization that you are not alone in the universe , You get a pep in your step , your telling people about it , your excited , YOU were given SOMETHING in YOUR LIFE that is REAL.
Some of us know in that moment that were not alone , others know exactly what there purpose is , Others get a word of instruction or encouragment or prophesy , some get all of the above at once...
So you get High...
Walkin around like Jay...We are really High .. Really Really High...
But this high is different than any street drug can give , any sexual relationship can satisfy , or fantasy could compare...
This high last from periods ranging from days to years...This is a Soul High...Supplied by God....THE FATHER
This is a huge hit that stays with you , But like every high...It eventually wears off ...
Some of you read that I went to see a prophet and Got a word ..... well this word got me high.
The Lord spoke some great things concerning me.
So here I am , expecting these things to occur like ,right away ,and when they did not , my impatience and anger took over.
(This also taught me a lesson about wanting to know ... there is a distinct peace in not knowing)
So I was having a withdrawl from my high... Ya'll following me?
God speaks to you in some form or fashion and it impacts your life greatly , and then , it gets quiet....
So what I was seeking God about was "Where are you in those quiet times?"
This is where the opening of the eyes occured...
Imagine a timeline of your life...A straight line...
Now take every one of your life changing events and make them Soild big circles on your line.
Where is God in between these circles?
You discover him , Your life changes , and now your wondering where he is at....
He never left...
and if you seriously stop and look and reflect , you will see how it was you got by in between the big circles and what you learned in the process...He was there through it all , Whether you acknowledged his presence.
Let me explain.
When you hear that grand message or get that grand revelation , this is GOD THE FATHER speaking.
He gives you an eye opening hit of life and the high is not comparable...
After you get this high potent awakening , You are now constantly looking to acheive the same level of high that you got the first time (or the last time) you felt a great move of God in your life...Like any other high you enjoy , You want to feel that way again...and when you dont , You start to feel that God has left you alone and you start trying to do everything yourself because you havent "Gotten High" like you did before and you start to withdrawl and this is where the enemy moves in the troops...
Impatience , questions of sanity , anger , bitterness , confusion , loneliness .... I know of these emotions , I got my knowledge in the storm , Feel me?
we start doubting what we heard and the enemy moves in and you may even start doubting God's presence alltogether ....
How can we let this happen to us ? We were JUST on fire with belief !
We were JUST convinced we had a life changing expierience !
How can this roller coaster be going down now ?
Because were looking for the same high to occur EVERYTIME and GOD does NOT work like this....
So where is he ?
He is working on what he told you or showed you or promised you or whatever "Deal" ya'll made , The FATHER is doing what needs to be done to fulfill the agreement he has made with his child (You) in the initial or last meeting....And depending on what was said by either party , Your next big "High" could be a good minute.
SO , In the QUIET times , We are dealing with the HOLY SPIRIT of The Trinity...Just like we always have , But since society would rather say "concious" , we do not equate this with the 3rd being in the trinity and many therefore dont recognize the God within themselves...That voice within that pushes you for your BEST.
and JESUS the SON made manifest in the flesh was the one who enabled us to be in this position to begin with.
JESUS was / is the loophole in this cosmic game of chess... I mean that with no disrespect, it is what it is.
and there is your Trinity...
THE FATHER hits you with something Amazing and then goes to work FOR you , meanwhile , the Holy spirit within , goes to work , ON you....
So while the Father is preparing the path , the spirit is preparing the person to walk on that path... Praise God! That is some deep knowledge right there ya'll.
Problem is , we drown out the voice of the spirit because were expecting to hear the Voice of The Father every time.
We are not alone in the quiet times , in fact it is the opposite , this is when the spirit of the Lord is closest to us ...
But we walk around with blind eyes and deaf ears wondering where he is at and all the time he is trying to get your attention from the inside.
Think back to ANY hardship / sorrow / heartache/ bout of depression/ As nasty as you felt , there was a voice inside of you that TRIED to help you and encourage you.
But everytime that voice spoke , another voice would enter and tell you ,YOU didnt feel like doing or saying anything or you just hated the world and so many times we just surrender to the voice thats filling us with self pity/ anger/ or emotion #13 Mike Muir spoke of , and it drags us further into a form of Hell...
"I excuse myself- I'm used to my little cell - I amuse myself in my very own private hell"
Alice in Chains
UNTIL someone or some expierience opens your ears/eyes and the voice of the spirit is dominant again...You have your "Awakening"..
Some suppress the voice of the spirit till it's inaudible or they just completely ignore it , which often leads to very bad places or death...
Point is this , After The Father speaks, pay attention to what is going on in your mind , your gut , your concious....
Because now the spirit is just not dealing with our daily bread , you have a mission and the faster you do what your spirit leads you to do , the faster you will recieve what it is you have been seeking...So quit asking what is taking so long for your blessing and start asking , what steps you need to take to handle the blessing you are seeking...
EXAMPLE : Everynight for YEARS , My spirit would tell me , "Scott , Once you quit smoking cigarettes , everything changes" ...Everynight I would say "Yeah , I know" and I would go through the routine of hating myself and feeling like a prisoner to the nicotine and making empty promises...
Where would I be today had I listened to my spirit all of those years ago?
Everyone on earth KNOWS what they gotta do , You have that voice , same as I do... The longer we fight our spirit , The longer it takes to get where we are going.
We are drowning and yet we get angry or supress the voice when the spirit tries to pull us out of the water...So we flop around like insane salmon and get angry with GOD...When all along he is like "Hey man , I'm waiting on you! Get this part done and remove that layer so I can take you where I told you I would !"
He is everpresent with us...
See how this works?
GOD speaks to you in a profound way...After that , follow your spirit , get in touch with the God inside of you and be obedient.
Then you get what you asked for and God speaks again...and this continues forever until the next stop on your journey....
This is how we evolve into what we were truly born to be...But it works both ways , You gotta put in your work also.
This knowledge is groundbreaking for me , Maybe you or someone you know already knew this ....If you did , why didn't you tell us?
This God given knowledge helped me out tremendously , because it opened my eyes to what I was doing wrong.
I was allowing the enemy to come in and rob my blessings by distracting me and taking up valuble mind time.
So instead of walking around like "Where is God ? He dont love me no more ! What did I do wrong? What did I say? Why arent you talking to me? Do you even exist? "
All that nonsense...That would drag me down and distract me...
I am now at peace ... The Father Spoke and I am listening to my spirt till the Father does what he does ...
Then that high will come again....
This was important to me to share because this goes back to the question I asked earlier...
Why do so many fail?
The time after God speaks is a crucial time...If your new in your faith or you lack patience , This could make or break you as a "believer".
This is the time that the enemy works very hard to distract you and steal your joy.
YOU MUST BE PATIENT AND ON GUARD...I have learned this the hard way.
This is why Jesus speaks of the seed that was cast on stony ground...The roots dont run deep , they wither and die.
Because they lack the knowledge and patience to understand , God never stops working , and they stop running the race halfway through and never taste of the victory that was almost theirs...
I was one of these people.
Now I am on a whole nother level and it feels great...
SO if your on the same level I am , Please take this teaching with you and share it.
God is never absent from you , Your ignoring his inner voice because your expecting that outer voice.
The Outer voice will come back when you finish what the inner voice is telling you to do.
Which brings me back to what I started with... The 3 Voices.
You know what's right and wrong and you know when you get a "Feeling" about something....
Learn to listen to and work with your spirit...in "The quiet times" ....
I pray this blesses you and gives your mind some peace.
Thanks to everyone who hits my inbox with prayer request and your thoughts and your worries and your questions....
I appreciate you and will always give you the Best/Honest/Logical advice I can give.
God Bless
Scott Johnson
VERBAL VITAMIN 10 ... The B.I.B.L.E
Verbal Vitamin 10 the B.I.B.L.E
Not just a track on the GZA Classic...Liquid Swords.
But there are Basic Instructions before leaving earth contained within the pages of the world’s most sold-debated-loved-hated book...The Holy Bible.
My own personal journey with the Bible is something I am figuring out.
I grew up going to church with my Grandmother (maw maw R.I.P) and then my mother and when I moved to Texas from W.Va and found my earliest friend, Mike Blume, His mother Bea took us kids to church on a somewhat regular basis...She would pull up in her car to wherever we were playing at and pile us in and take us to church...So this lady would walk in with 3 or 4 sweaty kids wearing Ozzy and Motley Crue shirts, But she didn’t care... (Or at least didn’t show it), what she cared about was these kids learning who Jesus was and is and making sure we had some knowledge of GOD.
(Then afterwards...It was PANCHOS time, a few of ya'll have raised the flag :)
I knew in my heart I had a calling at this early age, But when I fell into those teenage years I went WAY LEFT...We all did.
It took me getting stabbed and going through all of that drama to pick up my Bible again.
And so from the age of 17 to my mid 20's I read the Bible on a pretty regular basis.
At one point I would carry that lil red book in my back pocket...I was learning scripture , I was teaching people what I knew , I was even memorizing revelation...Then all the stuff happened with me and the church and I just slowly chilled out on it for almost a decade...
During these last few years I have been on a journey for truth...
I began speaking to God in a manner that some might find offensive...I questioned him.
I questioned him often, because my friends, you don't get answers until you question.
My argument always was and is, if I am supposed to dedicate my entire life to you and rep you, then your going to need to speak with and guide me.
I am not gonna claim you and put in work if your not doing the same for me.
In other words, a true relationship is needed….50/50.
This means I want the TRUTH about you...
I had already heard the Bible was full of contradictions...I heard this when I was young.
And as I grew more spiritual I began to question things myself...Like why GOD would want women to keep their mouth shut or to not be teachers in church...This did not make logical sense to me.
I figured, if you’re GOD and your main goal is to let people know about you and that they need to
Accept in and believe in your son in order to get to the Promised Land, You would take anyone willing to step out like that, as long as there intentions are pure and truthful, why would it matter the gender?
Then I started understanding that the words written in the Bible were written by men.
A man wrote this and if a man wrote this, due to my experience with human beings, it was a pretty safe bet there was mistakes in it.
Not only mistakes but personal views and opinions...So I began looking at how things were written, Ok, Did JESUS say this? Or did the author say this? Because if this is something the author said and didn’t say that it came from God himself, then that tells me that this is HIS interpretation and views on the matter...
So after my Dad died in September of 08, I again, Picked up the Bible.
My Father in law, Martin, would always come over to my house and quote proverbs to me.
This got me interested in reading proverbs and understanding them for myself.
So I challenged myself to read a few a night...and I genuinely began seeking knowledge and wisdom.
I began seriously praying for and seeking it and this other mental level started for me when I began to take proverbs and knowledge seriously.
PROVERBS 8
10. Take my instruction instead of silver, and knowledge rather than choice gold; 11. For wisdom is better than jewels, and all that you may desire cannot compare with her. 12. I, wisdom, dwell in prudence, and I find knowledge and discretion. 13. The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil. Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate. 14. I have counsel and sound wisdom, I have insight, I have strength. 15. by me kings reign, and rulers decree what is just; 16. By me prince’s rule and nobles govern the earth. 17. I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me. 18. Riches and honor are with me, enduring wealth and prosperity. 19. My fruit is better than gold, even fine gold, and my yield than choice silver. 20. I walk in the way of righteousness, in the paths of justice, 21. Endowing with wealth those who love me, and filling their treasuries.
32. And now, my sons listen to me: happy are those who keep my ways. 33. Hear instruction and be wise, and do not neglect it. 34. Happy is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my gates, waiting beside my doors. 35. for he who finds me finds life and obtains favor from the Lord; 36. But he who misses me injures himself; all who hate me love death."
Reading proverbs daily changed me and took me to another level.
All the while though, my verbal communication was STILL more than what I was reading.
So I accepted the Bible and knew it was a powerful tool but at the same time, I knew there were some things wrong with it.
One night we went to Borders and as I was walking by the religious aisle, a book caught my eye...
"Misquoting Jesus, Who changed the Bible and why"...by Bart D.Ehrman
Wow, this is exactly what I have been dwelling on ...This book can hold some truth...BUT, I didn’t get it.
Some time went by and the Book was still heavy on my heart...
(That is how God works, with me at least; He will keep something heavy on my spirit until I do what he is leading me to do)
SO, I went back and got the book...
I read a little bit of it and then sat it down....for many months...
After finishing Violent Faith, I sought The Lord as to what to do next...READ, work out and Practice was what I was told…
So I picked this book up again, and finished it a few days ago.
I will now share with you, some of the truth discovered within these pages.
Everything I am quoting is from "Misquoting Jesus, Who changed the Bible and why"
Let me start with the Women.
“Modern Scholars have come to recognize that disputes over the role of women in the early church occurred precisely because women HAD a role – Often a significant and publicly high profile role. Moreover, this was the case from the very beginning, starting with the ministry of Jesus himself.”
“For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, neither slave nor free; there is not male and female; for all of you are one in Jesus Christ.”
(Gal. 3:27-28)
“The equality in Christ may have manifested itself in the actual worship services of the Pauline communities. Rather than being silent “Hearers of the word,” women appear to have been actively involved in the weekly fellowship meetings , participating , for example, by praying and prophesying, much as the men did (1 Corinthians 11)”
“In some churches it was the equality in Christ that was emphasized; in others it was the need for women to remain subservient to men. And so in some churches women played very important, leadership roles; in others, their roles were diminished and their voices quieted.
Reading later documents associated with Paul’s churches, after his death, we can see that disputes arose about the roles women should play; eventually there came an effort to suppress the role of women in the churches altogether.
“This becomes evident in a letter that was written IN PAUL’S NAME.
Scholars today are by and large convinced that 1 Timothy was not written by Paul but by one of his later, second-generation followers.”
“11. Let a woman quietly receive instruction with entire submissiveness. 12. But I do not allow a woman to teach or exercise authority over a man, but to remain quiet. 13. For it was Adam who was first created, [and] then Eve. 14. And [it was] not Adam [who] was deceived, but the woman being quite deceived, fell into transgression. 15. But [women] shall be preserved through the bearing of children if they continue in faith and love and sanctity with self-restraint.”
1 Tim. 2:11-15
And also
1 Corinthians 14:34-35
“34. Let the women keep silent in the churches; for they are not permitted to speak, but let them subject themselves, just as the Law also says. 35. And if they desire to learn anything, let them ask their own husbands at home; for it is improper for a woman to speak in church.”
And so on the basis of a combination of evidence – several manuscripts that shuffle the verses around , the immediate literary context, and the context within 1 Corinthians as a whole – it appears that Paul did not write 1 Cor. 14:34-35
One would have to assume, then, that these verses are a scribal alteration of the text, originally made, perhaps as a marginal note and then eventually, at an early stage of the copying of 1 Corinthians, placed in the text itself.
This view came to be incorporated into the text itself, by means of textual alteration.”
And they also tried to take out the only place in the New Testament where a woman was referred to as an apostle.
Romans 16:7
Paul is referring to a woman named Junia; even though in some modern English Bibles translators continue to refer to this female apostle as if she were a man named Junias.”
Pretty Wild Right?
This was important for me to share with the ladies , I have always heard growing up that a woman shouldn’t preach, This always tripped me out when I saw female preachers…I wondered did they ignore that part or what?
Then like I said, I started questioning things and when I read all of that in the book, I wanted to share. I wanted to enlighten those ignorant to facts, just like I have been enlightened.
Don’t ever let a man tell you that you can’t worship or speak your knowledge on Christ.
If you feel it within, Step out boldly!
I also learned that MARK is the oldest of the Gospels and Mark was the template for Matthew and Luke.
John is a completely different and radical gospel in itself.
I also learned the last 12 verses of Mark were added later.
So I am now reading Mark and studying it and getting a better idea of who Jesus was from the oldest of the gospels, the most accurate of them according to textual critics.
and I am trippin out and questioning why Jesus always told the demons to shut up and would not let them speak , Because as it is written , The demons knew his identity...The son of God. Why didn't Jesus want this known? My opinion right now is that the demons may have helped convince everyone in Christ and everyone couldnt be convinced because the crucifixion HAD to happen....As of right now , These are my thoughts on that.
And Finally I will leave you with the Top Ten verses that were not originally in the New Testament.
I am not typing them for you, I have copied enough J
DO SOME RESEARCH!
1. 1 John 5:7
2. John 8:7
3. John 8:11
4. Luke 22:44
5. Luke 22:20
6. Mark 16:17
7. Mark 16:18
8. John 5:4
9. Luke 24:12
10. Luke 24:51
Also from the book
" To be sure, of all the hundreds of thousands of textual changes found among our manuscripts, most of them are completely insignificant , immaterial , of no real imporatance for anything other than showing that scribes could not spell or keep focused any better than the rest of us."
He follows this by speaking on the importance of the interpretation of the scriptures that HAVE been changed...
Which I have given you the most profound ones...
Once again, “Misquoting Jesus” was a very interesting read for me and part of my journey I am on. I recommend it.
Once the author really started discovering and researching the manuscripts and from reading them in Hebrew and Greek, He saw so much he didn’t like, He lost faith in the Lord.
And I could easily see how discovering some of these additions and what they omitted would shake a person…Make them question their faith.
But for me, it has increased my faith and relationship and brought me a step closer to the truth.
I WELCOME science with my faith...And I welcome discovering the deeper truth.
For one, there is nothing changed within the Bible that takes away from the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
This is obviously very important to any believer…
And for my other obvious reason, books and programs that “Reveal” the bible, always leave out the most important element…The Spiritual Element…
Yes the Bible is not PERFECT in a scientific way or a literary way and probably other ways I dont know of , But if you lose faith because of this , this personally tells me that you may have great knowledge of the scripture but you seriously lack a personal relationship with God...Your ears are not sensitive to the spirit within you.
You are a textbook believer...and not a spiritual being...
DESPITE the "Mistakes" there is absolutely no way to deny that the words contained within the Bible have completely transformed countless lives.
As I have pointed out before , This book contains timeless knowledge and wisdom...Timeless
These people leave out the impact it has on a personal/ Spiritual level.
How you can pick it up and read for a lil while and something inside of you will begin speaking to you...
Or the times you read and what you read dealt directly with an issue you were facing or described you or someone you know...
Or the feelings of comfort and peace they can bring to a crushed heart or broken spirit...
How the words can empower you and give you hope...
How they can open up your mind to a higher level of knowledge..
or how sometimes the Lord will tell you to read a scripture and it's EXACTLY what you needed or how he will tell someone else to tell you to read a certain scripture or he tells you to tell someone else...Whoever / However , someone is going to be impacted by the words contained.
So never allow the physical to override the supernatural that comes along with this book.
Often times when your reading , this is the best time to hear God's voice , This is where the spirit starts teaching you...
SO , the word is the doorway...The word is the doorway.
Even though I had not read the word on a regular basis in a very long time and I grew leaps and bounds from the verbal , I had to ask myself honestly how I got to that point.
Rom 10:17
So faith [comes] from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.
If I had never heard the Word (from the Bible AND my inner spirit) , I would have never knew God.
So there again , I couldnt deny the power of the Bible , Because if I hadn't heard or read first , I would have never gained the faith to be where I am today.
So my conclusion is this.
No matter what is revealed about the Bible , There is no way the spiritual and Wisdom and supernatural power can be denied...
IF you spend time and seek...This book will elevate every area of your life.
there is a deeper level that comes after the Bible but the Bible is your "Ground Zero".
I had previously said that the author had recommended the HOLMON Study Bible .( which I have and is excellent at being as acurate as possible )
I have to correct my mistake , The Author says the Harper Collins Study Bible is his reccomendation.
Whatever Bible you possess , It wont do you a bit of Good till you crack it open and apply it to your life...
Out of those words , God speaks...I do not fully understand how...But I do understand it brings understanding :)
I highly suggest to anyone who would like to help me start the trend of intelligence to start by reading your proverbs...
God Bless you all and Thanks for reading and please believe I will always do my best to give you the honest truth...
I seek it and I am hungry for it and he is revealing things to me , which in turn , I reveal to those interested.
As always , If you have knowledge , Please share.
Peace and Blessings
Scott Johnson
11-12-09
3:51 AM
P.S.
I felt led to remind the reader , That these are my views and opinions and I sincerely try to present them to you in a way that cannot be argued against.
A way so logical that everyone can see the truth I speak.
But in the end , This is my interpretation...Everyone takes something different from the word of God , which is why we have so many religions and false doctrines now.
So my mission is to get rid of all disctractions and find out what exactly Jesus said to do and follow THAT.
And from my knowledge up to this point , THAT IS ... LOVE
Love Yourself , Love your neighbor , Do not exalt anything in your life to a God like status other than God himself.
If you really think about , The majority of us follow the ten commandments....I believe the enemy comes in and distracts believers with so much religion and Dogma they fail to see the simplicity of the message...LOVE.
We get tied up in trying to out shine each other instead of elevating each other...
We are covered by Grace...Accept , Believe , Love and everything else will into place in your life.
If what your doing is not right , You will lose the desire to do it and you wont even miss it when it's gone.
You can't buy your way in , donate your way in , dress your way in , etc...
Just BELIEVE and LOVE.
Point is , These are my beliefs and I give them to you. Accept them or not..
I believe I am right....Then again , So do suicide Bombers...
Find out Your truth , do your research and Never tell me it aint real if you havent sincerely spent some time with it.
SEEK AND YOU WILL FIND!
Not just a track on the GZA Classic...Liquid Swords.
But there are Basic Instructions before leaving earth contained within the pages of the world’s most sold-debated-loved-hated book...The Holy Bible.
My own personal journey with the Bible is something I am figuring out.
I grew up going to church with my Grandmother (maw maw R.I.P) and then my mother and when I moved to Texas from W.Va and found my earliest friend, Mike Blume, His mother Bea took us kids to church on a somewhat regular basis...She would pull up in her car to wherever we were playing at and pile us in and take us to church...So this lady would walk in with 3 or 4 sweaty kids wearing Ozzy and Motley Crue shirts, But she didn’t care... (Or at least didn’t show it), what she cared about was these kids learning who Jesus was and is and making sure we had some knowledge of GOD.
(Then afterwards...It was PANCHOS time, a few of ya'll have raised the flag :)
I knew in my heart I had a calling at this early age, But when I fell into those teenage years I went WAY LEFT...We all did.
It took me getting stabbed and going through all of that drama to pick up my Bible again.
And so from the age of 17 to my mid 20's I read the Bible on a pretty regular basis.
At one point I would carry that lil red book in my back pocket...I was learning scripture , I was teaching people what I knew , I was even memorizing revelation...Then all the stuff happened with me and the church and I just slowly chilled out on it for almost a decade...
During these last few years I have been on a journey for truth...
I began speaking to God in a manner that some might find offensive...I questioned him.
I questioned him often, because my friends, you don't get answers until you question.
My argument always was and is, if I am supposed to dedicate my entire life to you and rep you, then your going to need to speak with and guide me.
I am not gonna claim you and put in work if your not doing the same for me.
In other words, a true relationship is needed….50/50.
This means I want the TRUTH about you...
I had already heard the Bible was full of contradictions...I heard this when I was young.
And as I grew more spiritual I began to question things myself...Like why GOD would want women to keep their mouth shut or to not be teachers in church...This did not make logical sense to me.
I figured, if you’re GOD and your main goal is to let people know about you and that they need to
Accept in and believe in your son in order to get to the Promised Land, You would take anyone willing to step out like that, as long as there intentions are pure and truthful, why would it matter the gender?
Then I started understanding that the words written in the Bible were written by men.
A man wrote this and if a man wrote this, due to my experience with human beings, it was a pretty safe bet there was mistakes in it.
Not only mistakes but personal views and opinions...So I began looking at how things were written, Ok, Did JESUS say this? Or did the author say this? Because if this is something the author said and didn’t say that it came from God himself, then that tells me that this is HIS interpretation and views on the matter...
So after my Dad died in September of 08, I again, Picked up the Bible.
My Father in law, Martin, would always come over to my house and quote proverbs to me.
This got me interested in reading proverbs and understanding them for myself.
So I challenged myself to read a few a night...and I genuinely began seeking knowledge and wisdom.
I began seriously praying for and seeking it and this other mental level started for me when I began to take proverbs and knowledge seriously.
PROVERBS 8
10. Take my instruction instead of silver, and knowledge rather than choice gold; 11. For wisdom is better than jewels, and all that you may desire cannot compare with her. 12. I, wisdom, dwell in prudence, and I find knowledge and discretion. 13. The fear of the Lord is hatred of evil. Pride and arrogance and the way of evil and perverted speech I hate. 14. I have counsel and sound wisdom, I have insight, I have strength. 15. by me kings reign, and rulers decree what is just; 16. By me prince’s rule and nobles govern the earth. 17. I love those who love me, and those who seek me diligently find me. 18. Riches and honor are with me, enduring wealth and prosperity. 19. My fruit is better than gold, even fine gold, and my yield than choice silver. 20. I walk in the way of righteousness, in the paths of justice, 21. Endowing with wealth those who love me, and filling their treasuries.
32. And now, my sons listen to me: happy are those who keep my ways. 33. Hear instruction and be wise, and do not neglect it. 34. Happy is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my gates, waiting beside my doors. 35. for he who finds me finds life and obtains favor from the Lord; 36. But he who misses me injures himself; all who hate me love death."
Reading proverbs daily changed me and took me to another level.
All the while though, my verbal communication was STILL more than what I was reading.
So I accepted the Bible and knew it was a powerful tool but at the same time, I knew there were some things wrong with it.
One night we went to Borders and as I was walking by the religious aisle, a book caught my eye...
"Misquoting Jesus, Who changed the Bible and why"...by Bart D.Ehrman
Wow, this is exactly what I have been dwelling on ...This book can hold some truth...BUT, I didn’t get it.
Some time went by and the Book was still heavy on my heart...
(That is how God works, with me at least; He will keep something heavy on my spirit until I do what he is leading me to do)
SO, I went back and got the book...
I read a little bit of it and then sat it down....for many months...
After finishing Violent Faith, I sought The Lord as to what to do next...READ, work out and Practice was what I was told…
So I picked this book up again, and finished it a few days ago.
I will now share with you, some of the truth discovered within these pages.
Everything I am quoting is from "Misquoting Jesus, Who changed the Bible and why"
Let me start with the Women.
“Modern Scholars have come to recognize that disputes over the role of women in the early church occurred precisely because women HAD a role – Often a significant and publicly high profile role. Moreover, this was the case from the very beginning, starting with the ministry of Jesus himself.”
“For as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, neither slave nor free; there is not male and female; for all of you are one in Jesus Christ.”
(Gal. 3:27-28)
“The equality in Christ may have manifested itself in the actual worship services of the Pauline communities. Rather than being silent “Hearers of the word,” women appear to have been actively involved in the weekly fellowship meetings , participating , for example, by praying and prophesying, much as the men did (1 Corinthians 11)”
“In some churches it was the equality in Christ that was emphasized; in others it was the need for women to remain subservient to men. And so in some churches women played very important, leadership roles; in others, their roles were diminished and their voices quieted.
Reading later documents associated with Paul’s churches, after his death, we can see that disputes arose about the roles women should play; eventually there came an effort to suppress the role of women in the churches altogether.
“This becomes evident in a letter that was written IN PAUL’S NAME.
Scholars today are by and large convinced that 1 Timothy was not written by Paul but by one of his later, second-generation followers.”
“11. Let a woman quietly receive instruction with entire submissiveness. 12. But I do not allow a woman to teach or exercise authority over a man, but to remain quiet. 13. For it was Adam who was first created, [and] then Eve. 14. And [it was] not Adam [who] was deceived, but the woman being quite deceived, fell into transgression. 15. But [women] shall be preserved through the bearing of children if they continue in faith and love and sanctity with self-restraint.”
1 Tim. 2:11-15
And also
1 Corinthians 14:34-35
“34. Let the women keep silent in the churches; for they are not permitted to speak, but let them subject themselves, just as the Law also says. 35. And if they desire to learn anything, let them ask their own husbands at home; for it is improper for a woman to speak in church.”
And so on the basis of a combination of evidence – several manuscripts that shuffle the verses around , the immediate literary context, and the context within 1 Corinthians as a whole – it appears that Paul did not write 1 Cor. 14:34-35
One would have to assume, then, that these verses are a scribal alteration of the text, originally made, perhaps as a marginal note and then eventually, at an early stage of the copying of 1 Corinthians, placed in the text itself.
This view came to be incorporated into the text itself, by means of textual alteration.”
And they also tried to take out the only place in the New Testament where a woman was referred to as an apostle.
Romans 16:7
Paul is referring to a woman named Junia; even though in some modern English Bibles translators continue to refer to this female apostle as if she were a man named Junias.”
Pretty Wild Right?
This was important for me to share with the ladies , I have always heard growing up that a woman shouldn’t preach, This always tripped me out when I saw female preachers…I wondered did they ignore that part or what?
Then like I said, I started questioning things and when I read all of that in the book, I wanted to share. I wanted to enlighten those ignorant to facts, just like I have been enlightened.
Don’t ever let a man tell you that you can’t worship or speak your knowledge on Christ.
If you feel it within, Step out boldly!
I also learned that MARK is the oldest of the Gospels and Mark was the template for Matthew and Luke.
John is a completely different and radical gospel in itself.
I also learned the last 12 verses of Mark were added later.
So I am now reading Mark and studying it and getting a better idea of who Jesus was from the oldest of the gospels, the most accurate of them according to textual critics.
and I am trippin out and questioning why Jesus always told the demons to shut up and would not let them speak , Because as it is written , The demons knew his identity...The son of God. Why didn't Jesus want this known? My opinion right now is that the demons may have helped convince everyone in Christ and everyone couldnt be convinced because the crucifixion HAD to happen....As of right now , These are my thoughts on that.
And Finally I will leave you with the Top Ten verses that were not originally in the New Testament.
I am not typing them for you, I have copied enough J
DO SOME RESEARCH!
1. 1 John 5:7
2. John 8:7
3. John 8:11
4. Luke 22:44
5. Luke 22:20
6. Mark 16:17
7. Mark 16:18
8. John 5:4
9. Luke 24:12
10. Luke 24:51
Also from the book
" To be sure, of all the hundreds of thousands of textual changes found among our manuscripts, most of them are completely insignificant , immaterial , of no real imporatance for anything other than showing that scribes could not spell or keep focused any better than the rest of us."
He follows this by speaking on the importance of the interpretation of the scriptures that HAVE been changed...
Which I have given you the most profound ones...
Once again, “Misquoting Jesus” was a very interesting read for me and part of my journey I am on. I recommend it.
Once the author really started discovering and researching the manuscripts and from reading them in Hebrew and Greek, He saw so much he didn’t like, He lost faith in the Lord.
And I could easily see how discovering some of these additions and what they omitted would shake a person…Make them question their faith.
But for me, it has increased my faith and relationship and brought me a step closer to the truth.
I WELCOME science with my faith...And I welcome discovering the deeper truth.
For one, there is nothing changed within the Bible that takes away from the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
This is obviously very important to any believer…
And for my other obvious reason, books and programs that “Reveal” the bible, always leave out the most important element…The Spiritual Element…
Yes the Bible is not PERFECT in a scientific way or a literary way and probably other ways I dont know of , But if you lose faith because of this , this personally tells me that you may have great knowledge of the scripture but you seriously lack a personal relationship with God...Your ears are not sensitive to the spirit within you.
You are a textbook believer...and not a spiritual being...
DESPITE the "Mistakes" there is absolutely no way to deny that the words contained within the Bible have completely transformed countless lives.
As I have pointed out before , This book contains timeless knowledge and wisdom...Timeless
These people leave out the impact it has on a personal/ Spiritual level.
How you can pick it up and read for a lil while and something inside of you will begin speaking to you...
Or the times you read and what you read dealt directly with an issue you were facing or described you or someone you know...
Or the feelings of comfort and peace they can bring to a crushed heart or broken spirit...
How the words can empower you and give you hope...
How they can open up your mind to a higher level of knowledge..
or how sometimes the Lord will tell you to read a scripture and it's EXACTLY what you needed or how he will tell someone else to tell you to read a certain scripture or he tells you to tell someone else...Whoever / However , someone is going to be impacted by the words contained.
So never allow the physical to override the supernatural that comes along with this book.
Often times when your reading , this is the best time to hear God's voice , This is where the spirit starts teaching you...
SO , the word is the doorway...The word is the doorway.
Even though I had not read the word on a regular basis in a very long time and I grew leaps and bounds from the verbal , I had to ask myself honestly how I got to that point.
Rom 10:17
So faith [comes] from hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ.
If I had never heard the Word (from the Bible AND my inner spirit) , I would have never knew God.
So there again , I couldnt deny the power of the Bible , Because if I hadn't heard or read first , I would have never gained the faith to be where I am today.
So my conclusion is this.
No matter what is revealed about the Bible , There is no way the spiritual and Wisdom and supernatural power can be denied...
IF you spend time and seek...This book will elevate every area of your life.
there is a deeper level that comes after the Bible but the Bible is your "Ground Zero".
I had previously said that the author had recommended the HOLMON Study Bible .( which I have and is excellent at being as acurate as possible )
I have to correct my mistake , The Author says the Harper Collins Study Bible is his reccomendation.
Whatever Bible you possess , It wont do you a bit of Good till you crack it open and apply it to your life...
Out of those words , God speaks...I do not fully understand how...But I do understand it brings understanding :)
I highly suggest to anyone who would like to help me start the trend of intelligence to start by reading your proverbs...
God Bless you all and Thanks for reading and please believe I will always do my best to give you the honest truth...
I seek it and I am hungry for it and he is revealing things to me , which in turn , I reveal to those interested.
As always , If you have knowledge , Please share.
Peace and Blessings
Scott Johnson
11-12-09
3:51 AM
P.S.
I felt led to remind the reader , That these are my views and opinions and I sincerely try to present them to you in a way that cannot be argued against.
A way so logical that everyone can see the truth I speak.
But in the end , This is my interpretation...Everyone takes something different from the word of God , which is why we have so many religions and false doctrines now.
So my mission is to get rid of all disctractions and find out what exactly Jesus said to do and follow THAT.
And from my knowledge up to this point , THAT IS ... LOVE
Love Yourself , Love your neighbor , Do not exalt anything in your life to a God like status other than God himself.
If you really think about , The majority of us follow the ten commandments....I believe the enemy comes in and distracts believers with so much religion and Dogma they fail to see the simplicity of the message...LOVE.
We get tied up in trying to out shine each other instead of elevating each other...
We are covered by Grace...Accept , Believe , Love and everything else will into place in your life.
If what your doing is not right , You will lose the desire to do it and you wont even miss it when it's gone.
You can't buy your way in , donate your way in , dress your way in , etc...
Just BELIEVE and LOVE.
Point is , These are my beliefs and I give them to you. Accept them or not..
I believe I am right....Then again , So do suicide Bombers...
Find out Your truth , do your research and Never tell me it aint real if you havent sincerely spent some time with it.
SEEK AND YOU WILL FIND!
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