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milo-my-beloved · 1 year

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things we don't say

A continuation of the some other life 'verse.

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Chapter Six: Matthias

Although Nina keeps calling Matthias their getaway driver, he feels more like a coach driver trapped on a bus filled with hyperactive children. On any other day, he would have told them to shut up by now, but one glance to his left at Nina steals any complaints from his lungs.

Her feet are propped up on his dashboard — another thing he wouldn't allow from anyone else — and her hair is blowing around her face as she sings. The rest of them are only human, but in this moment, she looks like a saint.

"You're the slowest getaway driver I've ever met," she complains, smiling up at him.

"I have a black box," he grumbles. "I can't go any faster."

"Next time, I'm getting Kaz to do it," Jesper decides.

"Next time?" Wylan asks, raising an eyebrow.

Jesper smirks, nudging his fiance's shoulder. "You know what I mean. Besides, we'll have to renew our vows at some point."

"Any excuse for a party," Nina agrees.

The drive to the courthouse only takes twenty minutes, even with Matthias sticking to the speed limits. Jesper throws himself out of the car before he stops moving, but Wylan musters enough patience to wait until they're parked. The two of them make it halfway across the car park before he can put the handbrake on.

"Have they no patience?" Matthias asks, exasperated.

Nina pats his cheek. "You just have too much, hot stuff."

She grins when he blushes. Why must she find such pleasure in flirting?

"Let's go, or they'll get hitched without us," she says.

The courthouse isn't usually open so late, but several of the interns who work there study politics alongside Inej. They find Jesper and Wylan in a corridor outside the room where they'll hold the wedding, speaking rapidly to a freckled man with dark red hair.

"And these are my friends who we'll be living with, Nina and Matthias!" Jesper finishes, gesturing at them.

The man peers up at them. "Well, I must say this whole event is a bit of a surprise, but I'm very proud of you for getting married, son."

Nina and Matthias exchange a look. Is this Jesper's dad?

"It's a pleasure to meet you, Mr. Fahey." Wylan also looks a little dazed.

"Please, call me Colm. You're part of the family too, now."

The officiant steps into the hallway, his eyes darting left and right down the hallway before beckoning them in. He's younger than any of them, probably in his first year, and keeps tugging at his long, black hair.

"Where's Inej?" he asks. "She said she'd be here."

Jesper shrugs. "She's on her way. But this wedding is time-sensitive, so we really can't wait—"

Continue reading under the cut // Continue reading on AO3.

Nina tugs Matthias over to the front row of seats, dragging him into the seat next to Jesper's father. He glances over at Colm Fahey, wanting to ask him how Jesper convinced him to come, but the man looks paler than snow.

"Are you alright, sir?" he asks.

"Oh, yes, yes. I just never thought I'd see the day, that's all. His mother would be so proud. Are they truly in love? Will Wylan make my boy happy?"

He better, after all the effort they'd just put in to make sure this wedding happened. Matthias nods solemnly, hoping that's enough to address all of Colm's worries. He's only met Wylan twice before today, and one of those occasions was this week.

"He's amazing. And you should have seen Jesper when he found out Jan Van Eck was keeping his son from seeing all of us — he nearly stormed over there to give him a piece of his mind," Nina says.

Colm looks over at Wylan, who is fidgeting with something in his pocket while Jesper continues trying to persuade the officiant to start the wedding now.

"The poor lad doesn't sound like he has the loving family that he deserves, so I'm glad he's joining mine. Oh, my." He fishes a handkerchief out of his pocket, dabbing at his eyes.

The officiant crosses his arms, resolute. Evidently, Jesper's persuasion techniques aren't working, and he looks close to the end of his tether.

"We have to wait," Jesper says, retreating over to them with Wylan in tow. "Where are they?"

"Jes, there's something I want to give you," Wylan says.

Jesper raises an eyebrow. "Don't tell me you're getting cold feet."

Wylan produces a ring box from his pocket. It's old, the green velvet on the outside beginning to fray, but Wylan cradles it as if it's the most precious thing in the world. "Quite the opposite, actually."

Jesper carefully plucks it out of his hand, gently opening the lid to reveal a simple gold band. For once in his life, he's speechless.

"It was my mother's," Wylan continues, fiddling with the sleeve of his jumper. "She told me to save it for my special person, and... well, that's you."

Colm dabs at his eyes again. He looks dangerously close to having some kind of emotional-related heart attack.

"Oh, Wy, I love it." Jesper sounds close to crying himself. Wylan guides the ring onto his finger, and then pulls Jesper in for a kiss.

The doors burst open and Kaz and Inej run in. They're both red from running and panting for breath, grinning like idiots and clutching onto each other's hands.

"What did we miss?" Inej asks.

In all but officiality, the wedding, Matthias thinks.

"We wouldn't start without our maid of honour and best man!" Jesper announces, as if he hasn't spent the past ten minutes trying to convince the officiant to do exactly that.

"Let's get married," Wylan says, smiling up at Jesper.

Nina squeezes his hand, and they settle into their seats.

*****

Considering the rest of the evening, the wedding foes smoothly and the rest of them have said goodnight to Colm and are back at their house by midnight.

Jesper and Wylan disappear to their shared room, giggling like children. Inej plants herself on the couch for the night, and Kaz insists on staying up to complete Wylan's tenancy agreement and re-enrollment.

Nina tugs Matthias into their bed, wrapping her warm arms around his chest and lying so close to him he can feel the soft thump of her heart against his back.

"When we get married, we're having a proper ceremony," she says, already drifting off.

"In a church," he agrees.

"With a chocolate fountain."

They fall asleep like that, tightly intertwined in each other's arms, dreaming of their own wedding.

Unfortunately, the entire house is woken up seven hours later by someone attempting to break the door down.

Matthias stirs at the incessant knocking, but it isn't enough to convince him to disturb Nina, who is still latched onto him like a sloth. When their visitor holds the doorbell down, however, he groans and sits up.

"What time is it?" Nina mumbles, rolling over and opening one bleary eye.

"Early. Go back to sleep, little red bird. I'll deal with it."

There's only one person who could kick up this much of a fuss at 7am, and Matthias won't let him bully any of his friends any longer.

Jesper and Wylan are whispering furiously to each other at the top of the stairs. Matthias is too tired to eavesdrop, so he shoulders past them and mutters, "I'll answer it."

Jesper grabs the top of his arm. "It'll be—"

"I know who it is." Matthias shrugs Jesper off easily and descends the rest of the stairs before he can protest further.

Jan Van Eck's cheeks are red with rage when Matthias opens the door. He's flanked by two burly men on either side of him, both looking like they're probably armed.

"Where's my son?" Van Eck demands. "Release him to me right now!"

"Who are you?" Matthias asks, rubbing sleep from his eyes.

"I am Jan Van Eck, and you're holding my son hostage," he splutters.

"Like you held him hostage?" Jesper snaps from the bottom of the stairs. Matthias glances back at him, one arm protectively wrapped around Wylan's trembling shoulders.

So much for pretending to be ignorant, then.

"Please remove yourself from our property," Matthias tries instead.

"Not without my son! I won't have him—" Van Eck pauses, lowering his voice, spit flying out of his mouth. "I won't let him run loose in Ketterdam, ruining my reputation."

"I think you're doing an excellent job of ruining your own reputation, Mr. Van Eck," Inej retorts, leaning on the doorframe leading to the living room. It's the first time Matthias has ever seen her hair down and she's wearing cat print pajamas, but her glare is so fierce he nearly apologises to her out of instinct.

"You're not welcome here. Leave, or I'll call the stadwatch," Matthias repeats.

"Who do you — you children think you are? If you call the stadwatch, they'll take the word of an upstanding mercher over that of a handful of teenagers any day."

"Actually, none of us are teenagers any more." Kaz steps forwards, his eyes as black as ink, those of a shark locking onto its prey. "Or did you forget your own son's age? Besides, I'm sure they'll believe us when we show them the evidence of how you forced your precious son to drop out of university, stole his phone, and refused to let him leave the house."

Van Eck squints at Kaz, clearly not intimidated by the claims. "And what proof do you have of that?"

One moment, Kaz's hands are empty, and the next, he's holding up Wylan's phone for all of them to see. "I think the texts Wylan snuck to Jesper and testimony from his tutor and a guard you posted outside his door should be enough, don't you think?"

Van Eck takes a step forward, but Matthias moves to block his entrance to the house. He jabs a finger in Kaz's direction. "He's my son. He has no right to live here or go to the university if I say so—"

"He's been re-enrolled," Kaz says coldly.

"And our landlord allows the addition of a married partner to join the tenancy agreement at any time," Wylan adds. It's the first thing he's said since his father showed up, and he looks proud of himself.

Van Eck turns his gaze to Jesper for the first time. Wylan's hand is gripping onto his husband's shoulder tightly, the ring that started this mess on clear display. Jesper holds up his left hand too, a shit-eating grin on his face as Van Eck sees his ex-wife's ring glittering against Jesper's dark skin.

"Now you have your explanation, I suggest you leave," Matthias says, squaring his chest. Van Eck brought backup expecting a fight, not to be humiliated by a group of students.

"You — how dare you?" he bellows. "You lied to me! You dare to get married to — to some man—"

Matthias decides he's had enough, and slams the door in Van Eck's face, locking it for good measure.

"If he has any sense, he'll leave," Inej says, yawning and wandering back into the living room.

"And if he doesn't, I'll wait up to call the stadwatch," adds Kaz. He vanishes through the doorway after Inej, closing it softly behind them.

Nina appears at the top of the stairs, rubbing her eyes. "What did I miss?"

Matthias squeezes past a stunned Jesper and Wylan to meet her. "Nothing, dear. I was just coming back to bed."

#grishaverse #shadow and bone #six of crows #helnik #matthias helvar #nina zenik #kaz brekker #inej ghafa #jesper fahey #wylan van eck #wesper #kanej #sabpromptweek2023 #my writing #mmb writes #the things we don't say

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aqpippin · 3 years

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Tell us some HCs for the time between giaw and kof if you like 😊

omg this was fun .. I have a lot but I picked my favourites !

• they move to Boston after graduating high school — Jan studies a bfa at the conservatory, Jackie studies a bs in english education at Boston university

• they live in a small apartment in south end; Jackie works at the public library, Jan works at the Boston children’s museum in the performing arts program

• jan proposes to jackie at home after their undergrad graduation ceremony — she’s done the full set up of flowers and candles and music, and Jackie cries before pulling the ring she got for jan out of her coat pocket

• jan works full time at the museum after graduating, while Jackie studies for another year to get her EdM in English and language arts education

• they travel after Jackie gets her masters, and they end up getting married in Italy along the way

• they move to New York when they get back — and Jackie starts working as a high school English teacher, and jan starts throwing herself into auditions while working for the children’s museum of manhattan on move and groove Tuesdays and feel good Fridays

• jan asks if they can have a baby two years after they get married — and when Jackie says that she isn’t ready, jan comes home with a Russian blue cat she’s named Ivy, dubbing her their ‘practice baby’

#ty Juno!#asks #junosjukebox #fanfic writer friday #giaw/kof verse #also .. those programs from cmom are real and i wholeheartedly believe jan would love working in children’s museums #you cannot convince me otherwise #another day another verse where jan loves children #also the double proposal and the eventual elopement ? queen shit #someone marry me in Italy ASAP

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adamsvanrhijn · 4 years

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Ooh for the director's cut, I'd love to hear about the Jan 12, 1930 letter from "strange how I fit into you (there's a distance erased with the greatest of ease)"--if you need to break it up smaller, please do! I don't know if that's too long :p (or if there's something more interesting in that fic you're dying to talk about, I could have picked anything from it so please feel free to take this as a Star)

it is not nearly as long as it could be!! :-3 i think i can do all of it; let’s see! under a cut regardless. :-3

link to fic: strange how I fit into you (there's a distance erased with the greatest of ease)

yes we use the entire title every time....yes we do

Jan 12, 1930

Dear Richard,

While I wait for you to telephone I thought I would write you a letter anyway. I know I've kept you waiting, and I'm sorry to have done. I've been busy, but you know what that's like.

the scenario here, of course, is that they have scheduled a telephone call (either for this night or on a recurring basis; it’s up to the reader until we get to that point in the other fic in this series, which is a ways out) within the next hour or so & thomas has nothing to do until then so he decides to write. self-explanatory! :-3

the other element is that they don’t write every day or even necessarily on a regular basis anymore, by this point in their relationship. it’s been about 2.5 years since they met and they’ve been going strong, but they’ve also (richard especially) got lives and jobs they have to take care of when they can’t be together, and those can be fairly consuming. it’s right after christmas in this scenario after a very bad winter, and the crawleys are going through a lot! (almost exactly two months earlier: Here in Downton we're not being very optimistic about anything at the moment.) so that’s affecting thomas more than the already-busy time of year normally would be. there is a Lot happpening at the abbey (which will be Gotten To in the fic that prequels/coincides with this one). we’re entering the great depression. work wise he’s been in a better place before. mental health wise he’s been in a better place before. but, he also some good things going for him too, and those are very much things he shares with richard, so.

Speaking of keeping people waiting, your mum told me to tell you to write her back. I'm sure I'll say this to you in an hour but in case I forget there it is. I told her that this is a very busy time of year for you, and she said that when she worked for Queen Victoria they didn't have any of the modern conveniences you do and she still managed to find the time to keep correspondence with her dear mother and father. So, you have no excuse.

i just.......... love richard’s mom lol, love writing variations on her... in this verse she was a royal dresser herself in the ‘80s before she quit to marry mr ellis, yorkshire farmboy childhood sweetheart of her dreams, and have five beautiful & talented children (whom we shall get to shortly). you’re getting OC backstory in this commentary haha.

now, the thing that Matters here for the reader though is that thomas was not only With Richard’s Mother, but that he was without richard present, and that also richard’s mum is close enough to & trusts thomas enough to bother him to harp at her son for him... because she understands that richard’s going to talk to his boyfriend more than he’s going to talk to her. and for thomas that’s huge, but it’s not new to him; the switch happened somewhere in ‘29. but the reader doesn’t get to see that, they only get to see this, so it’s like, epistolary in media res haha.

i’m actually curious to know when the click point in this letter was for people, because it’s been mentioned a few times in comments & in conversations i’ve had since then...!

this letter is really like, a foil to the sept 23 1928 letter, when richard & thomas visit richard’s family together and then thomas writes to him while he’s on his way back. in jan 1930, richard is in norfolk doing his job, hasn’t been north in months except passing through it to get to balmoral castle, etc, so the vibe is different, but i wanted to convey that this has been going on for a while -- thomas is seeing richard’s family on his own on a semi-regular basis, and they’re inclusive of him to the point where they treat him as an extension-of-richard (in the thoughtful, romance-supporting way, not the not-your-own-person way).

Everybody else says hello and that they miss you and wish you could have come home for Christmas. Surely some of them have put this to you in writing by now but I am passing on the message anyway.

Other notable things from Sunday dinner that I'll try not to ramble on about once I've got you on the telephone:

and so same thing here, really!

worth noting that this day was thomas’s christmastide day off. (despite being three weeks after, but again. stuff goin on with the crawleys.)

thomas is being a little flippant here... ascribing a different emotion to the thing he’s doing than the one he actually has. the fact that the ellises trust & value him is huge for him and he’s taking the responsibility to be the middleman very seriously, but he’s uncomfortable letting on that he feels that way, so he’s sort of downplaying both in put this to you in writing by now And try not to ramble on about. like, richard is Definitely gonna ask him to tell him all about how his family is and he knows it, but he’s also worried about getting any of it wrong/leaving things out etc so he’s putting it down on paper, too. which has the advantage of helping him organise his thoughts before they call! but the lessening-his-own-role-in-this thing is certainly a Thing indeed.

richard knows what he means by it at this point though. :-)

I got to hold Ruthie. Dick, in my forty years of life I have seen some very sweet babies, and you just may have the honour of being uncle to the sweetest of them all. I hope you can come meet her soon. It doesn't feel right that I should get to see your niece before you do.

this is another integrating-thomas-into-the-family thing and also a Giving Thomas Children To Love thing haha. ruthie is of course the newest leaf on the ellis family tree! she’s the daughter of one of richard’s sisters (dorothy, sister 2/3, unmentioned in this fic because she doesn’t bother her brother about doing his laundry for him), she’s a november scorpio, she’s VERY sweet and thomas got a lump in his throat while he was holding her.

those last two sentences... some very sincere thoughts there being expressed in plain language. like, on the one hand this is amazing for thomas and he’s finally, finally got an actual family to feel a part of. on the other hand it is missing a very big piece that is important to him and to everybody else, and thomas has such a strong sense of justice that kind of comes out here. both in the sense of thinking he’s not worthy of what he’s being given (a chronic issue of this thomas) / not knowing his place 100%, and, wanting richard to have what he’s entitled to but can’t access because of the position he’s in. and that’s not a comfortable feeling for thomas, because it’s something he’s powerless to, so there’s a reason he doesn’t dwell on it.

Teddy is about as tall as I am, which I do not remember as being the case the last time I saw him. This is what happens when first footmen breed. Maybe by the time you see him he'll be as tall as you are, which, as I have said in the past, is not actually that much taller than me. Just so we're crystal clear.

teddy is the oldest of richard’s nieces/nephews! he’s the first son of his older brother, who Was A First Footman & he’s like 17 here. again this is really about like, establishing that thomas seeing richard’s family is ongoing and that he’s serving kind of as the link between richard and his own family in a way. they’re really integrating as a couple. which is a BIG part of this fic that matters more once they move in together a few years after this bit but right now we’re laying the ground work for it.

aaaaaaaaand teasing of course. :-3

You must have received yours weeks ago already, but Hannah gave me the scarf she made. I can't believe you managed to keep this a secret from me. I am very impressed with you. Luckily, I did not cry in front of anybody in your family when I opened it but I felt like I could have.

matching handmade scarves!!! yes!!! i guess the thing here is just more thomas-being-an-honorary-ellis stuff but also showing how richard works within his own family... hannah, sister 3/3, worked with him on figuring out/applying what thomas likes, so that’s part one, and part two is that like, she was Expecting to see thomas and to give him his gift in person, whereas she mailed richard’s to get to him in time for christmas. and thomas is aware of that, and for him her waiting to see him and physically put the thing in his hands means a lot and so there’s some overwhelming emotions going on there, as he mentions.

I don't know what you told May and John, but I had only been in the house five minutes when…

…

being sister & brother in law, respectively. i..... wanna get into the thing going on here elsewhere in the series so i’ll let it be for now. sorry !

…well, it is five minutes past. Knowing you I am assuming you'll be calling in the next 2-6 minutes, so here is as good a place as any to stop.

richard stops keeping track of time the second his majesty king george the 5th goes to bed at 11:10pm on the dot and so is pretty much always fashionably late, but thomas has figured out how to adjust and it is something they can tease each other about + share as an injoke. and not only is it teasing but it’s also Correct, in this case at least! :-)

I wish you had been there today. I am thinking of you.

Your loving,

T.B.

and this is just an emotional but understated letter closing from thomas, expressing the truth the whole truth and nothing but the truth, etc. :-3

i’m getting sleepy and now i’m kinda worried this isn’t gonna make sense / is too repetitive etc haha so if you’re dying to know smth else just lmk :’-)

#downton abbey tag #my fanfiction

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antiquecompass · 4 years

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If you’re new here (or been here for a bit longer) you’ll have seen me talk about Journeys ‘Verse. If you’re reading @pawsnread‘s new SongXiao fic set in that world, you may, possibly, wonder what Journeys ‘verse is.

I’ve never really sat down and properly written about how and why it came to be, but since it’s growing again, I thought it was time. Below contains both why I started writing the initial story: CW for discussing death of a close relative and how the ‘verse evolved from there:

Back in 2011 my year started off with a tragedy. At the end of January my beloved grandmother died on my birthday. It was a shock. She’d just had surgery the day before and came out of it fine and well. But a blood clot formed and while I was downstairs with Carrie, my twin sister, I heard my mother upstairs answer the call with an ‘oh no.’ I’ve heard that ‘oh no’ before, when I was six and my father died. When I was nine and my other grandma passed away. I knew those words and that tone and I knew what had happened before my mother had even come downstairs. That started a hell of a year that nearly saw Carrie also die (seriously my life went like this that year: birthday/death Jan 30th--funeral that weekend--home for a few days--Feb 12th/13th started Carrie’s months long battle and hospital stay that didn’t end until April) and just, the entire first half of the year was the worst sort of hell I’d been through in a very long time.

The back-half of the year saw me start to deal with the fall out of all that stress.

And like someone who has been in fandoms for years uncounted, I started writing a fic.

My favorite genre of stories to read outside of fanfic is Fantasy. High Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Southern Gothic Fantasy, Young Adult Fantasy, Historical Fantasy, you name it. I love it. I love it when magic is just an accepted part of life, or when it’s a hidden part of life. When magic exists in the mundane only for people to stumble across it and into something fantastical. Magic in the everyday is a theme that runs through a good portion of my fics (not so much in MDZS/The Untamed, but I’m still new here). It’s a genre I’ve loved since I was a child and the one I will forever be the most drawn to when it comes to the need for escapist pursuits.

So, taking my love for that, and me trying to work through shit, and being a fanfic writer, I started writing a fic where someone from our everyday world dropped through a magical portal and ended up in Faery. It combined an original story idea I’d had bouncing around my head for years with a fandom that I was in the thick of and let me work through some things.

I was active in the HBO War Fandom at the time and through James Badge Dale’s portrayal of Bob Leckie I found a character just enough of a bitter asshole to work with and to deal with grief, of a life lost--not actual death, but the potential of what could have been, or what was. The burden of trying to be who you think you SHOULD be and what you SHOULD want versus who you actually are and what you actually need. The year was hell so the fic stalled out, but that’s when one of my dearest friends, Nat, decided we’d basically do our own Fic Finishing Fest. If it wasn’t for her support, and the support of so many fandom friends I’m still so close to (hello my darling Kailey and the ever-amazing Ray), the fic and the ‘verse would have never seen the light of day.

So the first story of Journeys ‘verse, So Spoke the Wanderer, went up in February of 2012. And as I went into other fandoms, other stories followed. As it stands now stories in Journeys ‘verse go from HBO War to Spartacus to MCU to In the Flesh to the Umbrella Academy and now to The Untamed/CQL/MDZS. On Ao3 you’ll only find the HBO War and Spartacus ones, but if you do a little digging on my tumblr, you’ll find the others.

As for what it’s about?

If you can dream it, be it. Essentially.

Our world, the mortal world, exists as is, but because of the Veils dropping between the worlds four times a year (on each solstice and equinox) there is a long cross-veil travel and trade. People from our world who end up on the Other Side/Faery are called Wanderers. People from that side who end up on ours are called Wayfarers. In each world both of these groups have their own little establishments and communities. Since magic is still ‘hidden’ in our world the Wayfarer establishments serve as sanctuaries, homes, and schools for the Wayfarers who decide to settle down in our world, or have to for political/safety reasons.

Both sides had long-influenced each other: the magical side has a meeting of magic and technology, our side has a few magical things it shouldn’t, and yet does.

There are special people, called Realm Jumpers, who can basically punch a hole through space and time at will, crossing the Veils as needed. They’re rare and it takes a lot of training, but for the right price (or the right friendship), they’ll do it for you.

As for the type of magical creatures?

Sidhe, Dragons (often in human form, but watch out, they’ll still singe you), and Sirens hold the most power. Wizards and Weres are in the second tier.

Oracles are of their own class, largely unconcerned with the politics of either world. They’ve got more important, immaterial things to handle.

Ghosts are real and their own form of Undead. They can either stay resting and wait for a rebirth, or they can linger on as ghosts, becoming corporeal during those Veil Drop days. Ghosts can be made alive again, but there is always a price to pay, and that price varies in each case.

Healers and Reapers and Necromancers. Readers of the Last Thoughts, Sprites, and Goodfellows. Pucks (an entire other class of Goodfellow), Bards, and Minotaurs and so much more. They’re all here and they all mostly co-exist.

And so many Changelings. Children born of human and magical parents or with some seriously magical recessive traits. Changelings are all over both sides of the Divide and a reason why some of those Wayfarer and Wanderer establishments exist.

Most of the Other World we see is concerned with Ville, a major city where the Sidhe Queen lives, or with Merrymec, a village where a Sidhe Prince and his Siren husband live and where a university and library that are a very safe and welcoming place for Wanderers is connected to their manor.

For the MDZS/Untamed fics coming, an entire new aspect of the verse is introduced. The Winter Court is the home of the Winter Sidhe. They exist outside of the political realm and intrigue of the Sidhe Queen, long-ago deciding they’d rather stick to their mountains and focus on their magic and their part of the world than get into all the pointless b.s. of Ville. Our favorite Lans and a few other familiar faces are members of the Winter Court.

In Lotus Pier are the Jiang Wizards, though their family line is a bit more interesting.

The Jins and the Nies are wolves, shapeshifters, and well, their story is for another time.

And the Wens? Either Fire Demons or Healers depending on the branch. So either the problem makers or the ones who have to fix it.

This verse is truly a labor of love and everything I’ve written, probably contains some of the most personal writing I’ve done. I was adrift in 2011, I was 2 years out of grad school with an MA in history and working in a grocery store (where I still am, because, holy shit does life throw some curveballs). I had to move back home, leaving my beloved Boston behind, because I couldn’t afford rent and student loan payments. I felt both stuck and lost at the same time, and a lot of that went into So Spoke the Wanderer, because at the end of the day, some things are about choices, but some things do happen for a reason.

If I hadn’t left Boston and returned home, my sister would’ve died in September of 2010. I was the one who found her after she had a seizure, barely breathing in her bed. If I hadn’t been home, if I hadn’t woken up and gone downstairs---well, choices. And intuition. Sometimes you can’t dwell on the What-Ifs because it’ll drive you mad.

The verse is named Journeys for a reason, from a Frank Turner lyric:

But in the end the journey's brought joys that outweigh the pain.

And as I learned to accept a new lot in life, the stories themselves changed. Not that any of them are dark or tragic, but the subsequent stories are far more light-hearted, and more about hope than the first one.

But the one universal thing in every last one of them: found families.

So, if you’re just coming into Journeys or if you’ve been here for a long time, I hope you enjoy what’s to come. You don’t need to read the previous stories/fandoms to understand the ones that will be posted this year, just treat the unfamiliar names as original characters and you should be fine. (For people who HAVE read the other stories, know that Reaper Roe is going to be showing up, as he always does, in everything.)

Any questions? My askbox is always open.

#long post #personal post #verse: journeys

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go2harsha-blog · 5 years

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Krishna on the Beach

Harsha Prabhu wanders on a beach in Goa and stumbles upon the God of Love

Arambol, Goa, August 2019

The Photoshoot

It was the weekend of the global protest against the destruction and burning of the forests in the Amazon basin, aided and abetted by the Brazilian government.

A few of us decided to hold a pop up demonstration at Arambol beach against this act of environmental vandalism that threatened the livelihood of the indigenous people of Brazil - and 20% of the world’s oxygen supply. The demo would be in the form of a photo shoot, with people holding placards that spelt: SOS Amazon! We needed a quorum of 12 people to hold the placards. Seemed easy enough.

But it wasn’t. It took us a full hour of hustling on the beach to get the magic 12. Many we asked begged off for one reason or another: they did not understand what I said (Russian tourists); they were waiting for someone; they had to be somewhere else; they had to discuss it with their group before agreeing to participate. Some of these procrastinators were clearly entitled, middle class Indian tourists from major metros, visiting Goa as part of a package tour, sporting t-shirts with the tour logo. Somehow, we managed to find 12 souls willing and able to be a part of the the visual petition against the Amazon destruction.

After the photoshoot I wandered along the beach. Then I heard the sound of bells. Turning, I saw a group of men striding down the beach. One of them was carrying something on his head; the others were playing zills and chanting “Radhe Krishna ki jai!” (Hail Radha and Krishna).

The man who was carrying an idol of Krishna - Bal Krishna, Krishna as a child - placed it on the beach. His companions dug holes in the sand and placed incense sticks, to light which they borrowed my lighter. Slowly, people gathered around the idol; bits of camphor were burnt as offerings; prayers offered.

There was a large group of young boys who were playing in the sand nearby. Ever the opportunist for a photo grab, I went up to them and, addressing the biggest boy, asked: “Have you heard of the burning of the forests in the Amazon in Brazil?” “Yes” , he replied “ I saw it on the news.” “Would you like to help us stop it?” I asked him. “How?” he asked. “Simple. Just join with your friends in holding these placards,” I replied, “ I’ll take a photo and send it to the Brazilian government.”

“Yes, yes,” he shouted and turned to explain to the rest of his friends what was proposed. Before I could say ‘Krishna’ I had 12 eager and willing young participants in the photoshoot. In an attempt to get them all in the frame I almost stumbled onto the Bal Krishna image on the sand.

Krishna Lila

It was only then that I realised the young boys where part of a group that had come to participate in the Krishna ritual on the beach. In my mind’s eye, I saw them as the gopas (cow-herders) of Vrindavan, Krishna’s accomplices in his childish pranks, which, to the devotee, is an expression of the God’s ‘Lila,’, life as play.

And play they did, that evening on the beach, first the young boys, then the older youth and some men joining in. Games of tag, of skill and strength and guile. Then they attempted to smash the ‘Dahi Hundi’, the pot of yogurt - an object of mischievous fascination for Bal Krishna, called ‘Maakhan chor’, the butter-thief - held tantalizingly out of reach by a man wielding a rope and pully. Both groups of young boys and older youth managed to smash the Hundi, splattering themselves and those nearby with yogurt.

Where were the gopis (milk-maids) in all this play? Some stood by watching, like the ladies from Rajasthan, looking, with their aquiline features, nose rings and veils, like they had stepped out of a Kishangarh miniature, the 18th-century school of painting from Rājasthan, celebrating Krishna as a lover. Other gopis, possibly tourists from interstate or overseas, cavorted in the sea, holding hands in the water, playing their water games, framed by the setting sun.

Then it was time for more prayers and - as the sun set and the horizon turned maroon - time for the ‘Visarjan,’ the ritual immersion of the Krishna idols - the Bal Krishna being joined by a Krishna playing the flute - in the sea.

Who is Krishna?

Yesterday was Gokulashtami , the birthday of Krishna. Today is Visarjan. Who is Krishna, this God who was born yesterday and is committed to the waters the very next day?

Who is Krishna? This question bedevilled Arjun, the hero of the Mahabharata war, contemplating the field of battle. Is he my charioteer? My devoted friend and wise councillor? Or is he a God whose true face I dare not see?

There are many Krishnas; you can pick and choose.

There’s the culture hero of the Ahir, a tribe of pastoralists found in north and western India. The Ahirs are mentioned in the Mahabharata and some Ahir claim descent from the Yadava clan of Krishna.

There’s Bal Krishna, the baby Krishna, whose exploits form the material of songs mother’s sing to their children, whose devotion parallels the cult of baby Jesus.

There’s Krishna the lover, flirting shamelessly with the gopis of Vrindavan, all the while knowing his heart is with Radha, another man’s wife, in an erotic wheel-within-wheel of transgression, celebrated in much Indian song, dance and art.

There’s the Krishna of the Bhagvad Gita, Arjun’s initiator into the terrifying mysteries of cosmic time, including the need to do one’s caste-defined, destiny-propelled duty, regardless of the consequences (nishkamakarma).

This was the Krishna that troubled M K Gandhi, possibly the greatest Vaishnav (Krishna devotee) of them all in recent times. The arguments in the Geeta rationalising violence, no doubt the work of Brahmins versed in the arts of sophistry in defence of the status quo, stuck in Gandhi’s throat. Gandhi would have agreed with D D Kosambi, polymath and Marxist historian, who said: ‘This slippery opportunism characterizes the whole book. Naturally, it is not surprising to find so many Gita lovers imbued therewith. Once it is admitted that material reality is gross illusion, the rest follows quite simply; the world of "doublethink" is the only one that matters.’

Bhakti

There’s the Krishna of the Bhakti saints, the social movement that was anti-caste, that talked up love for one’s fellow human as the highest goal.

The Bhakti saints came from all castes. Nammalvar was a peasant. Namdev was a tailor. Gora was a potter. Cokha Mela was Dalit. So was Ravidas, guru of Mirabai and contemporary of Guru Nanak. Jyaneshwar, who introduced the Gita to Marathi-speakers, committed ritual suicide. Tukaram, the greatest Marathi Bhakti poet of them all, was a peasant, who ran afoul of Brahmins, and is supposed to have drowned himself in the river Tungabhadra. There’s more than a hint that he was murdered by caste Hindus. Luckily, his abhangas (poems) survived…

What made Bhakti so radical?

Here is Chandidas, the 15th century Bengali poet:

"Shobar upor manush shotto tahar upore nai,” (“Above all is humanity, none else”).

Or Kabir, possibly the greatest of India’s many poet-saints, also from the 15th century, and a Muslim to boot, though not a practicing one by the looks of it. He wrote in the vernacular and, even to this day, his poems explode in the face, like existential firecrackers.

Saints I see the world is mad.

 If I tell the truth they rush to beat me,

 if I lie they trust me. — Kabir, Shabad 4, Translated by Linda Hess and Shukdeo Singh

Or this:

Saints I've seen both ways. 

Hindus and Muslims don't want discipline, they want tasty food. 

The Hindu keeps the eleventh-day fast, eating chestnuts and milk. 

He curbs his grain but not his brain, and breaks his fast with meat. 

The Turk [Muslim] prays daily, fasts once a year, and crows "God!, God!" like a cock. 

What heaven is reserved for people who kill chickens in the dark?… 

— Kabir, Śabda 10, Translated by Linda Hess and Shukdeo Singh

Or this one:

If God be within the mosque, then to whom does this world belong?

 If Ram be within the image which you find upon your pilgrimage, then who is there to know what happens without?… 

— Kabir, III.2, Translated by Rabindranath Tagore and Evelyn Underhill

Interestingly, Kabir ran afoul of both Muslims and Hindus during his lifetime. It is said that, upon his death, both sets of believers fought over his corpse. When they lifted his shroud, all they found were flowers.

Knowing the pain of others

Here is Narsi Mehta, the 15th century Gujarat poet-saint, with a song that was a favourite of M K Gandhi:

Vaishnav jan to tene kahiye je/ Peed paraayi jaane re /Par-dukhkhe upkaar kare toye /Man abhimaan na aane re

Only he is a true Vaishnav Who knows the pain of others Does good to others without letting pride enter his mind.

Indian PM Modi also claims to love ‘Vaishnava jan to.’ He launched a version of the song in October 2018, sung by artists from 40 different countries, as the start of the year-long celebration of the 150th birth anniversary of Gandhi.

Does Modi know the pain of others?

This was his reply to a Reuters journalist in 2013, when asked what he felt about the communal carnage in Gujarat that lead to over a thousand deaths, mainly, but not only, Muslims, and the displacement of many more while he was CM in 2002: “If someone else is driving a car and we’re sitting behind, even then if a puppy comes under the wheel, will it be painful or not? Of course it is.”

Does Modi know the pain his policies, including demonetisation and high GST rates, have caused his people? The pain of all those who have lost their jobs due to an economy in shambles, largely due to the wreaking-ball of his government’s own policies? Does he know the pain of the farmers who commit suicide due to failing crops, drought and the inability to pay back loans? Or the pain of all the human rights defenders and tribals who languish in jail on trumped up charges? And what about the pain of the Kashmiri people?

What about the pain of Gandhians? The fact is that M K Gandhi himself was assassinated by a Hindu ring wing terrorist, a member of the Hindu Mahasabha, an off-shoot of the RSS, the very organisation that Modi belongs to.

What about the pain of all those people - mostly Muslim, Dalit or Christians - who have been lynched in India by mobs yelling “Jai Shree Ram”?

In July this year, eminent writers, filmmakers and intellectuals wrote an open letter to PM Modi, beseeching him to act, saying: "It is shocking that so much violence should be perpetrated in the name of religion! These are not the Middle Ages! The name of Ram is sacred to many in the majority community of India. As the highest Executive of this country, you must put a stop to the name of Ram being defiled in this manner.”

Modi has yet to respond to the letter.

Clearly, when it comes to knowing the pain of others, Modi has a lot of catching up to do.

Krishna the Redeemer

The Krishna story should make all tyrants everywhere worried.

For Krishna is also the redeemer. He comes to deliver the people of Dwarka from the rule of the evil tyrant Kamsa. Indeed, all tyrants dream of everlasting rule, but Kamsa himself hears a voice that tells him his end is near. This sets into play the whole Krishna myth, of the child abandoned by the palace, like Moses was among the bullrushes, a foundling fostered by another family, who grows up to avenge wrongs and claim his rightful throne.

According to Joseph Campbell: ‘The work of the incarnation is to refute by his presence the pretentious of the tyrant ogre.’

Further, Krishna, as the God of Love, refuses to allow himself to be weaponised by the armies of the Hindu Right, as opposed to the fate of poor Ram, where “Jai Shree Ram” has become a rallying cry of the lynch mobs.

Ironically, the actual form of greeting in parts of North India is “Jai Sia-Ram”; ‘Sia’ being a short form for ‘Sita’. But there’s no use for Sita, the Goddess of the Earth and Ram’s wife, in the hyper masculine world of Hindutva politics. The Goddess - and women - are the first casualties in Hindutva’s Raas Lila (sacred dance, dedicated to Radha-Krishna), where rape is a political tool to terrorise and subjugate people, sanctioned by V D Savarkar, the father of Hindutva ideology.

For Krishna devotees, Krishna is nothing without Radha; therefore it’s always “Jai Radhe-Krishna.” Behind Krishna stands the Mother Goddess. Vrindavan, the scene of the Krishna idyll, is the sacred grove (vana) of the Goddess Vrinda, another name for the Tulasi (holy basil) tree. To this day, the marriage of Krishna to Tulasi is celebrated every year in Vrindavan as Tulasi Vivaha. And even in Goa, for my landlord, Pritesh, was married to three Tulasi trees before he got a wife. Thus does the Great Mother break through Hinduism’s patriarchal bonds.

And it’s not just Hindus who worship Krishna.

According to literary critic Kuldeep Kumar, writing in The Hindu: ‘Many Muslim poets, the most notable among them being Raskhan, wrote devotional poetry to celebrate the Krishna legend and to rejoice in his bhakti. Abdur Rahim Khan-e-Khana, who is known in Hindi literature simply as Rahim, wrote many Barwais, Dohas and Sorthas in praise of Krishna. For example, this couplet is worth reading.

Jihi Rahim man aapno keenho chandra chakor Nisi baasar laago rahai Krishna chandra kee or (The way chakor always looks at the moon, similarly my face is always towards Krishna’s face that is as beautiful as the moon is). ‘ Chakor is a kind of partridge.

Passion Play

The passion play I witnessed on the beach was part of an ancient story, of the birth and sacrifice of a God. Like the Greek hero, Achilles, Krishna dies when an arrow pierces his heel, betraying his tribal, pagan origins. The culture hero dies, but the energies of an archetype never die, but live on, forever green in the hearts of men and women.

Surely Krishna - the hero with a hundred faces - will come to the aide of his people, wherever they may be, on a beach, in a temple, in the factories, on the land, in the forest, the vana, his favourite playground - or at the next political or environmental protest.

In a time of human-induced climate chaos and species extinction, driven by corporate fascism’s dystopian republic of greed, ruled by the global police state, the Radha- Krishna myth - of the world as a garden of plenty, as a playground for the divine erotic impulse to manifest, of love as the highest form of worship - is a very compelling counter-image.

Another world is possible. Krishna tells us it is.

While lovers of radical equality and seekers of bliss rejoice, tyrants everywhere better beware. Even as we speak, Krishna is on his way to Dwarka…

Pics: Harsha Prabhu

A note on the photoshoot:

Amazon photoshoot, Arambol, Sat 24 Aug 2019

SOS AMAZON! SOS CLIMATE EMERGENCY! Arambol, Goa, India Sat 24 August 2019

Members of Extinction Rebellion Goa staged a pop up demonstration at Arambol beach in solidarity with the native people of Brazil’s Amazon basin, whose forests are being burnt by the Brazilian government to facilitate development projects, including roads and big dams, in an ecologically sensitive bio region.

The burning forests of the Amazon are also a matter of grave concern as they supply 20% of the world’s oxygen. These forests are characterised as the lungs of the planet, taking in carbon dioxide and breathing out oxygen.

In addition, this wanton destruction feeds into the cycle of human-induced climate change. With the accelerated melting of the Greenland ice field via global warming predicted to raise sea levels by a frightening 25 feet, coastal communities like Goa are at special risk of being inundated by such irresponsible actions.

Activists also pointed out that India’s environmental record too was a scandal, with the continued destruction of forests, especially in the Western Ghats, leading to flooding in several states, including Goa, Maharashtra, Karnataka and Kerala. In Mumbai, the Aarey Forest in the centre of the city, also earmarked for development, and coastal mangrove destruction, are causing environmental stress on one of the world’s mega cities, also subject to periodic flooding.

India ranks among the bottom five countries on the Environmental Performance Index for 2018, according to a biennial report by Yale and Columbia Universities and the World Economic Forum. India also has the dubious distinction of overtaking China and Russia as the world’s top sulpha dioxide polluter, according to a Greenpeace report released on 19 August 2019. Sulpha dioxide is a by-product of coal-based electricity generation. Fossil fuels are also the key culprits in the global warming feedback loop and the proliferation of plastic pollution world-wide, including on Goa’s beaches.

With extreme weather events - like drought followed by floods in India - the norm, activists worldwide are calling upon governments to address the climate emergency, stop the reliance on fossil fuels and rapidly move towards adopting sustainable solutions to meet world energy needs.

The Brazil solidarity action - which included Arambol youth and local and international visitors - was part of a global weekend of similar demonstrations to put pressure on world governments to act now before it’s too late!

Pic: Harsha Prabhu, Design:Camelia Oberoi

#SOSAmazonia #SaveOurForests #ClimateEmergency #extinctionrebellion #extinctionrebellionindia #extinctionrebelliongoa #arambol #goa #DeclareClimateEmergency #SaveAareyForest #SaveWesternGhats

#sosamazon #krishna #radharani #lila #gokulashtami #gopi #gopa #bhakti #photography #goa #arambol #climate emergency #species extinction #extinctionrebellion

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legionnairelass · 5 years

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Losh Things That I Have Thought Very Hard About Writing But Have Not Because I Am A Lazy Child

Feel free to use any of ideas these yourself, but keep in mind I might use them at some point in the future. Tell me which is your favorite!!!!

A Brainy x Lyle thing in which Brainy is a princess in a tower guarded by a Dragon!Koko and Lyle is an assassin on the run who gets caught by Koko and then Brainy and Lyle bicker a whole ton because Brainy wants to leave and see the world but Lyle wants to stay so he can hide from the assassins.

Dirk Morgna as Freddie Mercury.

An au where Tinya is a siren and Jo is a merman who gets caught in a pool on her island. Tinya finds him after a while and nurses him back to health and they fall in love after working through all the racist and uniformed bs they’ve been taught about each other’s species.

Dream Girl and Dream Boy having a conversation (threeboot verse) after Nura is resurrected and resumes her position on the Legion roster. It is revealed they have known each other for quite some time, and have once been quite close, although they have drifted away. Nura apologizes for taking his spot, and talks Rol out of going to work on Winath, promising to find something for him to do in the Legion.

The Legionnaires as the cast and crew of a 31st century holoshow about the Titans.

Another Brainy x Lyle au where the Legionnaires attend the Legionnaire Academy of Music and Querl is the token prodigy composer until Lyle Norg joins halfway through a semester and ruins everything by composing music equal to his with rhythms and melodies and harmonies Querl hadn’t even considered. It infuriates him. Ayla thinks the whole thing is hilarious.

Snapshots of post-5YL (but without the reboot so the whole SW6 thing is still intact) Shvaughn/Sean Erin visiting Dirk Morgna’s grave at different points of his/her life (proposing to Jan, then marrying him, SW6 Dirk leaving the Legion to get married, Jan dying, the grandchildren being born, ect.) first just to yell at him, then to keep him updated on SW6 Dirk, and on and on until talking to the disgraced Legionnaire’s headstone became a sort of therapy. (Note: for this fic Shvaughn/Sean would be genderfluid switching genders once every long while)

Laurel Gand (Andromeda vers.) as the newest reincarnation of an ancient warrior protectress and guardian of the kingdom. Kara Dox, the reincarnation before Laurel, had been incredibly beloved, and had sacrificed her life to slay a great evil. Laurel chafes under Kara’s legacy and shadow, and detests her life stuck in an empty castle, living as the ward of the kingdom’s uncaring ruler, and Kara’s beloved lover, Querl Dox.

Small vignettes of the Legionnaires in a Harry Potter au through the Deathly Hallows and the Battle of Hogwarts (Querl trapped in the Room of Requirement to avoid the Carrows wondering about the fate of Lyle who was on the run, Brin and Jo comforting first years while Tinya is being tortured both of them wishing they could trade places with her, Imra Rokk and Garth trapped together in the dark dungeons of Malfoy Manor, Dirk (a newly minted Death Eater) assigned to forcefully glean information from a captured auror Shvaughn Erin, Ayla falling out of her hammock in the Room of Requirement every night screaming for Garth or Mekt or Reep or Salu or anybody, Nura kissing a sleeping Thom on the cheek then jumping from the top of Hogwarts tallest tower to prevent the Dark Lord from discovering her prophecies about him) that tell the story of how the Dark Lord was defeated from their prospectives, with little flashbacks to happier times demonstrating how the Legionnaires lives at Hogwarts are intertwined without there really being a ‘Legion’.

The Parent Trap feat. triplets Laura, Lauren, and Laurie.

(In a universe where some stupid D.C. event collided all the Legions, like Legion of 3 Worlds but permanent) A quick one-shot about stressed out SP Chief Sean Erin returning to his home in the wee hours of the morning to find all the lights on and his husband, original continuity Jan sprawled out asleep on the couch with all the other younger Jan Arrahs cuddling on him and a couple teen to young adult Shvaughn/Sean Erins snoring in nearby armchairs, a homemade Father’s Day present on the coffee table.

Rokk Krinn, a self-proclaimed Tory, but unbeknownst to his wonderful Tory wife Lydda Jath, a undercover spy for George Washington in an American Revolution au.

The story of Salu Digby and Ayla Ranzz. How they made formed their band, fell in love, got famous, fell out of love, broke up their band, went through some shit and, finally, fell back in love. (So basically Salu and Ayla as 31st century Paul McCartney and John Lennon but with a bit more romance).

X-Men au where the Legionnaires are a group of homeless mutants living in a shack in the woods Box-Car children style.

Jenni and Bart having a serious talk about the consequences of many 31st century pronouns (including the ones that Bart uses) not translating easily into 20th century English, The Flash and Max Mercury just not getting it and other time-swap gender-related issues. (Set during the Impulse/XS crossover.)

Brainy x Lyle Soulmate au where different species have different sorts of soul marks that they get at different times. Brainy’s had his, Lyle’s name in binary, since birth like most Coluans, but he still begrudgingly stays up till 2:19am on Lyle’s eighteenth birthday to watch the first words he ever said to the human appear on Lyle’s arm in Querl’s own handwriting.

Night Girl, under the cover of Shadow Lass’ dark field, uses her superhuman strength to do some (sexytimes!!) manhandling that Tasmia will never admit loving.

CW’s Saturn Girl, in her weird purpley black leather outfit, and with blond hair (after a prank with shampoo and hair dye) gets mistaken for Batgirl, and gets attacked by some thugs. Steph Brown, the legit Batgirl, swoops in to save the day, but finds Imra handling herself quite nicely. Together they kick names and take butt, and then finish up with a delicious burger from one of the multitude of restaurants around Gotham who willingly give free food to any and all Batkids.

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airadam · 3 years

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Episode 144 : Multiples Of Twelve

"It ain't f-ing sensible."

- Strategy

I ended up completely changing the selection this month when, taking the lead from a few tracks I was considering, I decided to go with an all-downtempo selection - a continuous unbroken mix once the first lyric hits. That said, there's a serious mix of genres so you get a bunch of variety inside the hour-long show! Get yourself plugged in...

RIP to the legendary Chi Modu - the man responsible for some of the most iconic images in the culture.

Twitter : @airadam13

Twitch : @airadam13

Playlist/Notes

Duett : Video

An extremely short track to open things, just for the flavour! Duett, is a UK synthwave artist (only one person, despite the name) who has released some amazing records channeling that electronic 80s vibe. This one is drawn from the "O U T L I N E S" mini-album from last year - all tracks that were done in a day each - and is a bite-size motif that you could imagine as the sonic logo for a film company or TV station from the VHS era.

Meyhem Lauren ft. Hologram & Big Body Bes : Lexus In The Lobby

I was originally saving this for a future mix, but even though it would have fit perfectly thematically, it's so much slower than pretty much everything else that it may not have ultimately made the cut. This is an absolute gem from the original "Glass" EP, with Harry Fraud on production building an absolute vibe with a quality sample that may be familiar to German listeners and some heavy 808 action. Meyhem Lauren is of course the best MC on the cut but Hologram on the first verse definitely kicks a memorable opening quatrain!

Mikhail Chekalin : As If It Was Not From Here

Going super left-field early for this instrumental bed! Chekalin was a radically-innovative composer from Russia who was not embraced by the Soviet government - they felt his work was too "Western" and while his music was heard by some plugged-in people in the outside world, he wasn't able to tour internationally or release his music outside the USSR. Thankfully for music lovers, times have changed and the "ГАР001: Михаил Чекалин «Экзальтированная Колыбельная 1979 – 1987»" collection (don't even think about asking me to pronounce that) is now available on Bandcamp, and is a great collection of his electronic work - his own take on what could be done with the synths of the time. His sound is a worthy companion to the other greats who were also experimenting at the time, from Jan Hammer to Jean Michel Jarre.

TY ft. Rootz & Deborah Jordan : Eyes Open

It's been a year this month since TY passed and I was glad to find one of his tracks fitting into this pace perfectly, one from his excellent final LP "A Work Of Heart". He was always an excellent MC from the first to the last, and he does himself proud here, spitting thoughtful lyrics with a rapid sharp flow. OG Rootz (formerly Durrty Goodz) is a solid complement, and Deborah Jordan adds a vocal decoration that puts the whole self-produced track over the top. I do like the unexpected switch to French for the hook later in the song too, just *chef's kiss*.

Bumpy Knuckles : Step Up

If you're a real Hip-Hop geek, the highlight on this track might just be the brilliant cuts by DJ Rukas on the hook, not only sharp but incorporating a very clever manipulation of a line from the stone-cold classic "Top Billin'" by Audio Two. Bumpy Knuckles goes in with a quasi-double-time flow in typically rugged fashion over the production of BeatBanga, who gets his only Discogs credit in fine style. You can find this on the "Konexion" album, which is well worth having.

Flatbush Zombies : Laker Paper

It might not be the most conscious track in the world, but it does have the exact type of sonic energy to fit into this spot! Despite the production style (courtesy of Erick Arc Elliott) and the track title, the clue is in the name - this is a trio from Brooklyn who released this cut on their debut mixtape "D.R.U.G.S". They don't try to dazzle with a quick flow on this beat, they stick to their style and settle into it at its native speed.

Samantha James : Come Through

Even for those who might not be into a record like this most of the time, I thought that bassline and the underlying lazy drum break might draw you in! This track was one of the highlights of the 2007 "Rise" LP from LA-based Samantha James. If you like a varied electronic music album, it's one you should check out - a little house, a little broken beat, some singer-songwriter vibes, a showcase for a singer comfortable with working with different production types.

Jake One : Evelen Gravest

We bridge the first and second mixes with a beat from the man Jake One, taken from his free gospel-themed "#PrayerHandsEmoji" beat tape. It'd be worth a purchase, but for zero dinero it's a must-have!

Kano : Ps & Qs

Coming out of East Ham, London, this is one of the early breakthrough grime tracks from a pioneer of the scene. This 2004 debut 12" release was a bit hit on the underground and helped Kano build momentum into the release of his "Home Sweet Home" album. DaVinche's big bombastic beat is an iconic one - a perfect underscoring for Kano, and can still mash up a dance even today.

DJ Quik ft. Hi-C and James DeBarge : Ev'ryday

One of my favourite cuts from Quik's 2002 "Under Tha Influence" LP (which, being a relentless perfectionist, he probably hated the minute he finished it). At the time there really wasn't much, if anything, out that sounded like this, and it was interesting to hear a musician and engineer of his skill level bring that to that double-time style. That stuttering bass and the skipping drum pattern work together brilliantly, and James DeBarge coming through with that hook might just be the vocal highlight.

Strategy : LengBreak

Time flies, and it's already been ten years since the release of the "Pre-Season Training" mixtape from Salford's Strategy, who continued to build his skills in fine style. "Bleep Test" and "Kill 'Em" were the standout tracks for me, and this one kind of passed me - maybe it was my personal taste in beats, maybe it was that I just didn't smoke! I gave it another listen this month and very much deserves a proper airing. One question for those of you who partake - all these years later, how do those prices sound? 🙂

Tobe Nwigwe ft. Royce Da 5'9" and Black Thought : Father Figure

Easily one of the best and most unique MCs to emerge in years, you'll have heard Tobe on this podcast a few times before and his collective have continued to impress and to elevate their profile. This killer is from last year's "Cincoriginals" album, and it's a meeting of heavyweight MCs. The fact that Tobe holds his own against both Royce and Thought, who is widely regarded as the MC's MC, while maintaining his own style, shows that he deserves all the praise he's been getting and more. Nell on production, as always, with the heavy low end for your system.

9th Wonder : Black Album Rejects, Track 15

One more of the instrumentals that 9th Wonder brought to Jay-Z for "The Black Album" that was ditched in favour of the brand-new "Threats" beat that launched him into the consciousness of many. The "rejects" were still dope as anything though.

Children of Zeus : No Love Song

Brand new Zeus! If you know what's good for you you'll be going to place a pre-order for the upcoming "Balance" album, but we've got this as an appetiser for now. Beat Butcha provides the laid-back soulful groove on which Tyler and Konny emphatically don't give you the love song that most other artists would given the same production. If you've been following this podcast, you would have first heard CoZ in the SoundCloud days, and it's been amazing to see this Manchester crew continue to produce great music - and the rest of the world catch up!

Corinne Bailey Rae : Walk On

Representing the city of Leeds lovely, Corinne Bailey Rae is a fine musician who brings the quality every time out. Her third LP, "The Heart Speaks In Whispers", was a worthy follow up to "The Sea", and saw her pairing with Steve Brown on production. This starts with a jazz club reserve and builds from there as she offers inspiration to keep on pushing through difficult circumstances - a message certainly relevant to the current time.

Rae & Christian ft. Lisa Shaw : Should Have Known

I'd somehow forgetten I even had this one! Lisa Shaw is best known for her deep house career, but her sublime voice is a versatile one and she's also on some soulful/downtempo stuff like this Manchester production from the Grand Central Records founding duo. The "Central Heating 2" compilation might be worth owning for this alone.

Zero 7 : Spinning

We finish a coincidentally all-UK segment with a track that didn't make the cut for the original UK release of the "Simple Things" album (twenty years ago!), but I believe was on the US version (plus the recent special edition release) as well as on the B-side of the "I Have Seen" 12". Sophie Barker takes the vocal reins, and it's a beautiful song.

L'indécis x sad toï : Dog Days

For the final instrumental break, we go to the Chillhop label, which specialises in releasing this kind of material - in this case, on the "Chillhop Essentials - Fall 2018" compilation. This track is an all-French connection, with sad toï (sic) alongside Grenoble's L'indécis for a relaxed and partly-acoustic beat that suits a lazy summer day just as much as the autumn.

Scritti Politti : Brushed With Oil, Dusted With Powder

"The day began to decline" - I think many of us can relate to that feeling! One more UK track to close the episode, and this is the one that I think will divide listeners the most. Personally, I love this. It's one of those tunes where no-one seems to agree on the exact meaning of the lyrics, but when Green sings "...some keys they found there"...well, that could be read multiple ways! This was a great close to the "Anomie & Bonhomie" album, with a long instrumental outro to cool us all the way out at the very end of the episode.

Please remember to support the artists you like! The purpose of putting the podcast out and providing the full tracklist is to try and give some light, so do use the songs on each episode as a starting point to search out more material. If you have Spotify in your country it's a great way to explore, but otherwise there's always Youtube and the like. Seeing your favourite artists live is the best way to put money in their pockets, and buy the vinyl/CDs/downloads of the stuff you like the most!

Check out this episode!

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lazaroschamberger20 · 4 years

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Magic Tree House: Books 1 and 2: Dinosaurs Before Dark, The Knight at Dawn Audiobook

[Audio Books] Magic Tree House: Books 1 and 2: Dinosaurs Before Dark, The Knight at Dawn Audiobook by Mary Pope Osborne

Books 1 and 2 of the New York Times bestselling Magic Tree House series! Dinosaurs Before Dark: Where did the tree house come from? Before Jack and Annie can find out, the mysterious tree house whisks them to the prehistoric past. Now they have to figure out how to get home. Can they do it before dark…or will they become a dinosaur’s dinner? The Knight at Dawn: A castle with a secret passage! That's what Jack and Annie find when the Magic Tree House whisks them back to the Middle Ages for another wild adventure. In the Great Hall of the castle, a feast is under way. But Jack and Annie aren't exactly welcome guests!

Did you know that there’s a Magic Tree House book for every kid?

Magic Tree House: Adventures with Jack and Annie, perfect for readers who are just beginning chapter books Merlin Missions: More challenging adventures for the experienced reader Super Edition: A longer and more dangerous adventure Fact Trackers: Nonfiction companions to your favorite Magic Tree House adventures

Have more fun with Jack and Annie at MagicTreeHouse.com!

'Osborne's narration is low-key and well-paced. A great way to introduce children who are reluctant readers or can't yet read to this highly entertaining book series and to reading in general.'--Chicago Parent “Osborne's soothing, beautifully articulated voice and knack for characterization are reliably pleasing.'—AudioFile

Download Magic Tree House: Books 1 and 2: Dinosaurs Before Dark, The Knight at Dawn Audiobook by (Mary Pope Osborne)

Duration: 1 hours, 30 minutes

Writer: Mary Pope Osborne

Publisher: Listening Library (Audio)

Narrators: Mary Pope Osborne

Genres: Mary Pope Osborne

Rating: 4.88

Narrator Rating: 0

Publication: Tuesday, 01 July 2003

Magic Tree House: Books 1 and 2: Dinosaurs Before Dark, The Knight at Dawn Audiobook Reviews

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sabriputrinada · 4 years

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Free Read Magic Tree House: Books 1 and 2: Dinosaurs Before Dark, The Knight at Dawn audiobook download Book by Mary Pope Osborne

[Book] Magic Tree House: Books 1 and 2: Dinosaurs Before Dark, The Knight at Dawn audiobook download by Mary Pope Osborne

Did you know that there’s a Magic Tree House book for every kid?

Have more fun with Jack and Annie at MagicTreeHouse.com!

Free Download Magic Tree House: Books 1 and 2: Dinosaurs Before Dark, The Knight at Dawn audiobook download by (Mary Pope Osborne)

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Publisher: Listening Library (Audio)

Narrators: Mary Pope Osborne

Genres: Mary Pope Osborne

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todaydreambelieversfic · 7 years

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Author Spotlight: KlaineShip2 day 1

And now for someone a little different... Klaineship2 is a fic translator who translates her favourite fic into German.

DAY 1: Meet the author

First of all I want to thank @damnpene and @spaceorphan18 for finding me worthy to stand in the Author's Spotlight. I feel humbled to be included in the circle of fandom authors, though I don't write original fic myself but I translate them into German.

1. Why Klaine?

In Germany Glee season 1-4 aired from Jan 2011 through Nov 2013. I loved the music. It reminded me of the tv-series 'Fame – Der Weg zum Ruhm' that I had once loved watching (it was about a New York Performing Arts-HighSchool – who remembers kindhearted keyboarder Bruno Martelli or rebellious Leroy Johnson?) and I tried not to miss an episode. Of course it was the German Dub version and while Kurt's German voice is very similar to Chris's, the German speaker overdid it a bit with Kurt's uppity attitude and it took me some time to warm up to him. But when the bullying got worse I connected to him because I'd also experienced bullying during my school days. When Blaine Anderson entered the scene I fell under the spell of the love those stupid boys shared for one another (like you all did, too).

In 2014 Germany stopped airing for whatever reason and I had to wait for the UK-DVD release of Season 5 in October to continue watching (Don't tell me about internet possibilities to watch series from other countries – I am a computer dummy and never knew how to do that) In the meantime I had purchased the Season 1-4 DVDs as well and watched it over and over again in English which made so much more sense to me. During that long break I started to search the internet and found the glee.wiki pages. During a discussion there someone mentioned fanfiction and listed his favourite 5 AUs, including @flamingmuse 's 'Near Misses', which led me to her livejournal, where I fell in love with her fics, which led me to AO3 and that was when I fell into the rabbit hole that is fanfiction, and I didn't find a way back since. When I read a particular entrancing line I sometimes wanted to know what it would sound like in German and tried to translate it. In January 2016 I finally started with a short 600 word story just to see if I could do it, because I am not a professionell interpreter and, well, I kind of liked it and continued translating my favourite stories.

2. What draws you to the kinds of stories you translate?

At first I only read canon compliant stories to fill in all the logical gaps and give me a bit of understanding what went on in those boys heads but then I found some very inspiring AUs as well and I indulged myself in sweet and angsty stories.

So the most important to me are the missing scenes and I started to post translations of my favorite ones for each season. Season 1-3 are completed, and I'm going to start on Season 4 in a couple of days. I am very particular about them being really canon compliant. There are several authors who I adore for these wonderful pieces. These fics don't always have to reveal any specific insights, I love fluffy domestic Klaine just as much and of course some sexy Klaine once in a while.

In AUs I love it when they have really realistic story lines and are not just that overly lovey-dovey stuff. A good AU for me is not just Kurt and Blaine and Love/Sex but real life background. My favourite AUs tell stories about Kurt and Blaine going through very angsty and dark times (like misunderstanding, injury, depression, crime aftermath or immigrant politics) struggling and hurting a lot but coming out of it as stronger and better people. There is also Firefighter!Blaine or Deaf!Blaine but always with a lot of background and context. This background and context is also very interesting to me for a better understanding of US culture (e.g. college / Broadway / Immigrant situation) or to compare it to Germany (e.g. health system / fire department / Deaf Culture)

What kind of stories do you most enjoy? Do you translate fluff? Angst? Sex? Have you ever translated anything way outside your usual wheelhouse? Do you prefer to translate AUs or fic that’s consistent with canon?

Starting with the last question: as I said in the previous answer. I enjoy both: canon compliant stories and AU's with complex storylines and a lot of realistic background, but also domestic every day life with a bit of sex to spice it up once in a while.

Something way out of my comfort zone would be Dom/Sub or hard sex kinks and I never translated that.

But I do translate fluff, angst and sex of course, though I was quite nervous when I posted my first sex scene. It's not always easy to find the proper words to transport the vibe of the situation into another language and I never wanted it to just be vulgar. Since May 2017 I have the wonderful @klaine-rants as a beta and it makes things much much easier when you have someone to discuss it with.

Is there anything you avoid that's particularly hard?

It's particularly hard to translate wordplays or puns though up to date I always managed to find a German equivalent (*knock on wood*). What I completely avoid are topics that include a lot of technical terms or specialized phrases from businesses or branches I know nothing about. Like I really enjoyed 'The Sweet DREAMers' Verse' by @perryavenue about undocumented immigrants but I don't think I could properly translate all those specific terms concerning the administration laws, regulations or institutions. I had a very interesting conversation with her concerning US immigrants politics vs European/German including WW II but still I'd never dare to translate it. Same goes for @adiwriting‘s 'A Minute From The Deep End' which deals with judicial proceedings and court trial.

What do you feel like you bring to the story?

Glee and especially Klaine have many German fans, but not everybody can read the fanfiction in English. By translating it I can share my favourite stories with many German fans who wouldn't have the opportunity to read these stories in their original language. Of course these readers aren't usually on AO3 (understandably, my stories there have not many hits) , which is why I post the translations on www.fanfiktion.de , too. It is the German equivalent of AO3 and my name there is Klaineship https://www.fanfiktion.de/u/Klaineship as well. My translations (which are always linked to the original, as I'd like to point out) have many many hits there and lots of comments and discussion.

Sometimes there is an educational aspect as well. Particularly with my first big multi-chapter-translation of the 'Hearing Verse' by @adiwriting I had to do a lot of research concerning Deaf Culture, Sign Language, educational issues and so on and I provided my readers with a lot of information about similarities and differences between our countries concerning Deaf Culture and Deaf Communities in footnotes after each chapter. If I hadn't translated that story I would never have learned so much about this topic (including a bit of American and German Sign Language). So I think by translating I spread a lot of information to many readers who had never been in touch with Deaf Community before (just like me).

Do you communicate with the author as you go?

Of course! If I like a story I leave kudos and if I love it I leave a comment as well and normally this is my best chance to ask for permission for translation. Only in one case have I gotten a no for an answer, usually the author is thrilled to have their story translated.

Unfortunately some authors don't answer comments in general or my request in particular, and I'll never know, if they just didn't get my request or if they really don't want the translation. So please, if you don't want it, just say so, but don't leave me with 'what if'.

When I started the big multi chapter Hearing Verse almost a year ago, I had a lot of questions concerning Deaf Communities and education of Deaf children and I communicated a lot with @adiwriting who finally even gave me access to all her spreadsheets and timelines concerning that universe.

The only reason I got a Tumblr account about a year ago was to have a better possibility to get in touch with 'my' authors. And there are some authors who even comment on my translations and leave kudos there wich is the greatest praise I could ask for. Thanks to all of you. You are the best!

But unfortunately there are also some authors who not even link their work back to my translation although they get a notification from AO3 as soon as I post. Of course I know that they are not obligated to do so, but they ask me to link my work and I always do and I would truely appreciate if they linked it back as well, so that potential readers see that there is a German version available.

#author spotlight #translator

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hallof-fire · 5 years

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The Importance of Church Community

a write up of a talk I gave

Today I wanted to take a look at Psalm 127, a psalm “of Solomon.” Most likely this means it was written by Solomon, but some commentators have made the case that it was parting guidance for Solomon by David. Whichever it was, we know that Solomon had a lot of experience with the topics in it!

Unless the Lord builds the house, the builders labor in vain. Unless the Lord watches over the city, the guards stand watch in vain. In vain you rise early and stay up late, toiling for food to eat— for he grants sleep to those he loves.

Children are a heritage from the Lord, offspring a reward from him. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are children born in one’s youth. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full of them. They will not be put to shame when they contend with their opponents in court.

I don’t know about you, but this psalm is incredibly familiar – except as two different things. Whenever I hear pieces of this psalm, I never hear the whole thing. We have the “builders building in vain” wall hangings and the arrow-filled “heritage of children” plaques, but what does it mean to look at the entire psalm together? How does that change how we may read it?

It is quite easy to see the first half talking about where our dependence lies, but that theme actually is there throughout. When we look at this psalm, we see that Solomon is telling us that people depend on many things – architects, materials, resources, craftsmen, walls, weapons, gates, physical abilities, personal successes, hard work, and family.

These two parts together also give us some questions and answers. Who do we build homes for? What are cities for? We build a home as a place for a family to live. We build cities for families to live together in safety and to interact with one another. We work hard to care for our families, to earn a living that will feed many mouths and have clothing for everyone. Read together, these two sections are strengthened into a psalm that overall looks to God as providing for the family unit. The central verse notes that the Lord is the one blessing and gifting the family in the form of children. The first half involves adults caring for family, and the second half is the children carrying on the legacy of the family that came before them.

The talk last week was about the unity of believers and how unity is a blessing that comes from God, with the ultimate result of life forevermore. As we see also in this psalm, family is a blessing that comes from God. Wealth and circumstance may be determined by other things, but even the poor Israelites could have children if God gave them, and so show the favor they had from God.

One of my favorite holidays growing up was Thanksgiving. For my family, Thanksgiving was the holiday to get together for. Easter and Christmas were done in our own immediate groups, but at Thanksgiving my mom’s entire side of the family would descend on my aunt’s house for the whole day. We’d all show up with some dish – never missing out on cheesy potatoes and scalloped corn – at about 11 in the morning. Then there was a lot of “helping” whoever was in the kitchen with the turkey, while we kids would run around wherever was most inconvenient. Eventually when all the food was ready all 40 of us or so would fill the long dining-and-living room to say grace and get the food. Every possible space would be filled with tables to eat at, though once lunch was over the people at the ping pong table would need to move so we could play around the world. Everyone would stay the rest of day, playing card games and board games. I can always remember Thanksgiving being filled with laughter. One of my fondest memories is right after we all learned how to play “The Couch Game.” If you never played this, it’s partly musical chairs and partly a memory name game where you try to fill a couch with your teammates. The important thing is, if you don’t know everyone’s name, you are going to have a hard time winning. This year my cousin’s boyfriend was meeting the extended family for the first time, and the poor man got pulled into this game not knowing anyone’s name…and not being nearly as competitive as the rest of us. We still welcomed him in in our family’s traditional mode of giving him a hard time and his team trying to make house rules in his favor. My family could have a great time together with just a few pieces of paper and a bunch of chairs. Thanksgiving was always a place of belonging, of having the people around you caring for you in so many different ways, from providing food to the generations watching and playing with one another to teaching you games.

How do you care for your family?

These days, I care for my family by telling my kids about Jeremiah, by cooking a meal for them after work, or by praying for their needs in the morning.

Did you know I had kids? I have, on average, 15-20. They’re 4 th and 5 th graders at my church. And while yes, I have occasionally cooked for my roommate, I frequently invite friends over for dinner and love to cook meals for them. And while I’m not as consistent as some of the others in this room, I try and make it to the daily prayer meetings in the prayer room to pray for staff in this office and around the country. Can you see where this is going? You may have thought it a bit odd that this single woman with no kids has chosen to talk about a psalm that is about family and children. But when we look at what’s going on in the passage and how bringing Jesus into it changes everything, I hope it makes more sense.

In Isaiah, God gives a promise to the foreigners and eunuchs, a promise that resonates strongly with the Ethiopian in Acts:

“To the eunuchs who keep my Sabbaths, who choose what pleases me and hold fast to my covenant— to them I will give within my temple and its walls a memorial and a name better than sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name that will endure forever.

When we become Christians, our family is no longer limited to those who share our DNA. Instead, we are part of a large home that is connected by belief and a promise. Our name is no longer dependent on biological children who will continue a family lineage, but instead our memorial and name is wrapped up in everything that God is doing in the world, enduring forever. I may not have kids to pass my card games on to, but I do have kids that I can pass scripture on to, kids that I know and love and help to grow and develop into godly men and women. I may not have the close family Thanksgiving anymore as everyone has spread across the country, but I can choose to bring my spiritual brothers and sisters into my apartment and overflow my own dining and living room.

In his book, You Are What You Love: The Spiritual Power of Habit, James KA Smith talks about how participating baptism should change how we think about who becomes family. I grew up in the United Methodist tradition, so I pulled out the particular section of the baptismal office that illustrates what the congregation says in response to a new believer being baptized:

With God's help we will proclaim the good news and live according to the example of Christ. We will surround these persons with a community of love and forgiveness, that they may grow in their trust of God, and be found faithful in their service to others. We will pray for them, that they may be true disciples who walk in the way that leads to life.

We can see from this text that the entire church commits to be a community that will help this new believer grow in their trust of God and be faithful in service. Smith highlights this role of the congregation with these thoughts:

“The rituals of political liberalism (whether one is ideologically more “liberal” or more “conservative”) paint a picture of the family as the incubator of good citizens, dutiful producers, and eager consumers at the same time that it shuts up the family in a private, closed home as part of the American ideal of independence.”

“If Christian congregations are truly going to live out of and into the significance of baptism, they will need to become communities in which the bloodlines of kin are trumped by the blood of Christ--where “natural” families don’t fold into themselves in self-regard.”

(These are just two quotes from about five excellent pages on this topic, so I highly recommend finding this book and reading it.)

What Smith highlights is the idea that churches have internalized, that once we have a “family unit” we’re expected to be self-sufficient. We are now independent nuclear families who come to church and talk with the people a few seats down from us, but who make sure we’ve cleaned and picked up the house before people come over, or that we have a toolbox full of all the things we might need for everyday projects. After all, asking someone to borrow their hammer or drill can feel like we haven’t quite made it, that we’re not really as together as we should be.

And I know right now some of you are like me, thinking “oh I’ve totally asked to borrow someone’s drill” or “I’m okay with people seeing my mess.” And granted, working in ministry and the limited budget that often accompanies that does help us press into this.

But over the course of this past year, God has been talking to me a lot about how much independence I like to have, and just how little I depend on others. This was vividly brought home to me right around Jan 1. And no, this is not about Urbana. Some of you have heard the dryer saga of my apartment, but right as I was doing all my laundry to prepare to leave for Christmas and Urbana at the end of December, my dryer died. It still turned, still acted like it was working, but it wouldn’t actually dry clothes. I exasperatedly toted my wet laundry to the nearby laundromat and made a call to our maintenance, hoping that it would be taken care of by the time I returned from St. Louis.

It was not.

Aside from making yet another phone call, what would your reaction be? Do you have a first immediate thought? Mine was – well, I could go to the laundromat, but who knows how long this will take. Our management is notorious for not managing. That’s a lot of hauling loads back and forth. I’m going to go get an indoor drying rack.

So off I went to the store, got a reasonable rack that could hold a smaller sized load of laundry, and went about my business. Anyone else likely to have chosen that route?

My roommate asked our neighbors if she could use their dryer.

Who thought about that option?

It had not crossed my mind – I would say not in a million years, but certainly literally not in weeks. I knew the dryer was out in Dec, I knew there was a chance it might not be fixed, and yet not once during that whole time had I considered asking someone if I could use theirs. I only thought about the ways that fit into my independent life. (I did, after that, use other people’s dryers three separate times while we waited two months for it to be fixed.)

In this psalm, the blessing of children is very like the blessing of the in-unit dryer. They offer the ideal of an independent family unit. When you have kids, they’ll look after you when you’re old and can’t do all the things you used to. Like the arrows the warrior shapes with skill, aims, and directs, your kids will watch out for you when they are adults, and they can carry on your family name and legacy. But some people don’t have in-unit dryers. Some people’s dryers break. Some people don’t have kids. Some people have broken relationships with their kids.

What do we do then?

We, as the church, need to do better at living out the call in scripture to consider ourselves as brothers and sisters. We need to take seriously the promises in Isaiah 54, and to enlarge our tents. Church fellowship is not something that we should “fit in” around our family life or our goals and plans. It is an integral part of discipleship, of understanding who we are as adopted children of God, and of our witness to a world that is so hungry for intimacy and connection.

But it’s hard. Family implies mess. When you live with a family, you’re in the same house, multiple people trying to use the bathroom at the same time, dishes piling on the counter, everyone’s stuff scattered around places, long discussions on just which movie to watch on Netflix, and so on. It’s not always peaceful and arguments happen. People get frustrated with one another and conflict arises. We air our dirty laundry. When we already have that with our families or roommates, it can be easy to choose to step away from it within the church! But that’s not what we’re called to.

This is why understanding that this whole psalm is based on depending on God is so fundamental. We can’t do this on our own, and we’ll come apart if we try. Now, I always like it when the application is something like study your Bible, pray, think about something…you know, things that you can do on your own without having to talk to other people. But I am challenging all of us to grow in our dependence on God by doing it with others. And this isn’t even doing those things like praying or reading the Bible with others (though those are good and I encourage you to do them). I’m talking about doing the things that are a little uncomfortable and stretching, the things that open up the possibilities for a messy family – but can lead to the depth of family love, too.

What is something you are gifted in? What material objects are you wealthy in? What can you offer to other people? I’ve lately taken to offering organization to my friends. As someone who actually enjoys cleaning and organizing – truly, a gifting from God – and who is wealthy in time without having an immediate related family to care for, I can bless my church family struggling to “do it all” and “be good homemakers” by dusting, vacuuming, arranging medicine closets and pantries for easier access, folding clothes… How can you care for your family in a way that makes the world wonder what is different about you?

#church #christianity #singleness and families

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everlasting-gospel · 5 years

Text

New Post has been published on Present Truth

New Post has been published on https://presenttruth.info/the-source-of-love-jan-mar-2019/

The Source of Love - Jan-Mar 2019

The world is earnestly longing for something that is increasingly rare in our world today. The Bible says, “For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now” (Romans 8:22). “For the earnest expectation of the creature waiteth for the manifestation of the sons of God” (Romans 8:19). The world is waiting for God’s children to be manifested. How are they manifested? Jesus explained, “By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another” (John 13:35). The world is longing to see pure, unselfish love. This is unusual in a world where “the love of many” is growing “cold” (Matthew 24:12).

God’s true children are known more for their love than anything else. The Bible says, “Now the purpose of the commandment is love from a pure heart, from a good conscience, and from sincere faith” (1 Timothy 1:5, NKJV). All of God’s instructions can be summed up in two things, love God with all your heart, and love others as yourself. Jesus said, “On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets” (Matthew 22:40). Love is the foundation of everything. “Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law” (Romans 13:10).

John exclaimed, “We know that we have passed from death unto life, because we love the brethren. He that loveth not his brother abideth in death” (1 John 3:14). The identifying mark of all those who have the life of God flowing through them is that they genuinely and unselfishly love God and others. Without that love, it does not matter how many religious ceremonies you perform, how correctly you know the teachings of the Bible, or even if you can heal the sick and raise the dead. Without love in your hearts you are destined for eternal death (Matthew 7:22, 23; 1 Corinthians 13:1-3).

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Jesus shared a story, “A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead. And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side. And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side. But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him, And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him” (Luke 10:30-34).

Three men passed by this injured man, but only one took care of him. The real difference between these men was not what they did, but how they felt about the wounded man. The Samaritan “had compassion on him” which moved him to action. The Levite and Priest would have done the same thing if they had compassion for him. The compassion, or love, was the difference between these men. It is love, or the lack thereof, that will be the determining factor between those who live forever with God and those who perish (Matthew 25:31-46).

Tracing Love to its Source

So love is what we need if we want to live forever, but how do we get it? Have you ever known someone you really don’t like very much, and you wanted to change the way you feel about them? How did that work for you? Love is not something we can generate on our own. In fact, the Bible says, “Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love” (1_John 4:7, 8). Love is from God. There are a lot of counterfeits, but true love comes only from God. If you see unselfish love, you can be sure God is the source.

One thing we learn here is that those who have pure love are born of God. Being born again is a requirement to have this type of love. This is not an optional step (John 1:3); it must occur before true love can be manifested in our lives. (Please request a free copy of You Must be Born Again, to get more information on this vital step in the Christian walk. This is also available for download at https://presenttruth.info/product/you-must-be-born-again.)

Another thing we learn from 1 John 4:7, 8 is that all those who love, know God. There is a direct connection between loving and knowing God. More specifically those who love know first that God loves them. “We love him, because he first loved us” (1 John 4:19). Our ability to love others is directly connected to our knowledge of God’s love for us. He is the source of love, we are a channel. For us to truly love others, His love must flow through us, which starts with knowing His love. The greater our knowledge of His love, the greater we will love others.

This knowledge of God’s love is supernaturally imparted to us by the Spirit of God, and then grows each day by the same Spirit directing our thoughts to see God’s love where we could not see it before. The Bible says, “…the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us” (Romans 5:5). “And the Lord direct your hearts into the love of God, and into the patient waiting for Christ” (2 Thessalonians 3:5). When God delivered me from drugs and alcohol, it was the thought of God’s love for me that started the transformation and enhanced it every day (Romans 2:4). It was as if I was living in black and white, and God suddenly turned on the color. I began to see signs of God’s love everywhere I looked. The Spirit of God was directing me to see His love which deepened my love for Him. (Please contact us for a free copy of Rescued from Addiction where I share my personal testimony of God’s amazing, transforming love. This is also available for download at https://presenttruth.info/product/rescued-from-addiction-a-personal-testimony.)

Deepening our love for God by revealing a greater knowledge of His love is what He is seeking to accomplish in this world. Look at what the Bible says will be the result of this work: “For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, That he would grant you, according to the riches of his glory, to be strengthened with might by his Spirit in the inner man; That Christ may dwell in your hearts by faith; that ye, being rooted and grounded in love, May be able to comprehend with all saints what is the breadth, and length, and depth, and height; And to know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge, that ye might be filled with all the fulness of God” (Ephesians 3:14-19).

Notice the chain here:

1) Strengthened by His Spirit

2) Christ dwelling in your heart

3) Rooted and grounded in love

4) Comprehension of His love grows

5) Filled with all the fullness of God

God wants us to be filled with all the fullness of God. For this to happen our understanding of His love must grow. In fact, our growth in Christ is in proportion to our understanding of God’s love. Love is the agent God uses to expel sin from the heart. Are you struggling with addiction? You need a greater revelation of God’s love. Are you losing your temper? You need a greater revelation of God’s love. Are you failing in your relationships? You need a greater revelation of God’s love. Whatever your problems in life, you need a greater revelation of God’s love. The more of God’s love you see, the more of His love will flow through you (Matthew 6:22). Our love for God is dependent on knowing His love for us.

The Greatest Gift

Right after John explained that we must know God before we are able to love (1 John 4:7, 8), he wrote, “In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins” (1_John 4:9-10). God demonstrated His great love by giving His most valuable gift. “He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?” (Romans 8:32). Since God is willing to give His Son, we can be sure He will give everything for us.

Abraham was asked to give the ultimate sacrifice. God told him, “Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of” (Genesis 22:2). God could not have asked him to give a greater sacrifice. Abraham willingly obeyed the command, yet God stepped in to keep him from harming his child (verse 10-12). This tested Abraham’s loyalty to the extreme. If God would have asked him to sell everything and give to the poor, we can be sure he would have done it. How do we know? He was willing to give something greater! If he was willing to give the greatest gift, then we can be sure he would have given everything else.

The incredible selflessness of the son to give his own life was secondary to the father who was willing to give his son. Some fathers don’t love their children very much, so they may sacrifice their children to selfishly cling to their own lives. But for Abraham it was not that way. Abraham loved his son immensely; in him rested all his hopes for the future (Genesis 15:2-6). The focus of Abraham’s story in this test was on the father’s love, not the son. Abraham’s willingness to give his son was a greater sacrifice than if Abraham would have given his own life. I am certain that Abraham would have been much more willing to die than to participate in the death of his son.

This story was not given just to show Abraham’s dedication, but to teach the world a lesson about God’s great love. This was a demonstration of how much God is willing to do for us. God’s love for His Son far exceeds Abraham’s love for Isaac (John 3:35; 5:20), and still God is willing to give Him up for us. It was a struggle, even for the King of the universe, to yield up His only begotten Son. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). The love on the part of our Father in giving His Son is greater than if He would have died Himself, which would have been impossible (1 Timothy 6:13-16).

One of the saddest statements I have ever read was found on a church sign that said, “God condemns, but Jesus saves.” This is very far from the truth! It is terrible that this was put on the front of a church. It presents God as if He is eager to condemn us and Jesus stepped in to save us from His Father. It was the Father who sent His Son to save us! “For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved” (John 3:17). The Son was here on a mission to save the world for His Father, not from His Father. “For the Father himself loveth you…” (John 16:27).

The Key to Victory

Right after John expressed the amazing love of God in giving His Son, he wrote, “For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith. Who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God?” (1 John 5:4, 5). Our ability to overcome is dependant upon believing that “Jesus is the Son of God.” Why is this so important? The Sonship of Christ is the key to knowing God’s love. If Jesus is not God’s Son, what happens to the love of God? Suppose He was just a human, what then? God’s love would be reduced to “God so loved the world that He gave a human.” That would be some amount of love, but it would fall far short of the reality of giving His Son. He could remain selfish and give a human. What if Jesus was an angel? Again, we would have the same problem.

Our understanding of God’s love is directly connected to the value of the gift He gave for us. If it was anything less than His most valued possession, we could not be sure He loves us with all His heart. If we cannot see that He loves us with all His heart, then it will be impossible for us to love Him with all our hearts. Yet, this is the first and greatest commandment (Matthew 22:38). What if Jesus was God’s best friend? Would that change things? Suppose I tell you “I love you so much that I am going to send my friend to die for you?” What would you think then? You may appreciate my friend’s love, but you would question my love. You might ask, “Why don’t you come yourself instead of sending your friend?” But if I said, “I love you so much I am going to send my only begotten son to die for you.” Would that be different than me sending my friend? Of course it would!

It is extremely important to know who Jesus is in relation to His Father, for this is the key to understanding the Father’s love. This verse is worth repeating: “He that spared not his own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall he not with him also freely give us all things?” (Romans 8:32). This shows that God gave His greatest possible gift when He sent His Son into the world. “In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him” (1 John 4:9). God sent His only begotten Son into the world. That means He had an “only begotten Son” prior to sending Him into the world. He did not send His friend into the world to pretend to be His Son. Nor did He send Himself into the world to pretend to be His own Son. Instead, He “sent His only begotten Son into the world.”

Near the end of his gospel, John wrote, “And many other signs truly did Jesus in the presence of his disciples, which are not written in this book: But these are written, that ye might believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God; and that believing ye might have life through his name” (John 20:30, 31). John emphasized that the whole reason he took the time to write his gospel was to get across one point, “Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God,” so that you might have life through Him. John knew that this is the key to victory in our lives because it reveals the incredible love of God.

Jesus also emphasized this fact when He asked His disciples, “Whom do men say that I the Son of man am? And they said, Some say that thou art John the Baptist: some, Elias; and others, Jeremias, or one of the prophets. He saith unto them, But whom say ye that I am? And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God. And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven. And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Matthew 16:13-18).

Jesus was so excited about Peter’s confession that He exclaimed, This revelation came from “my Father in heaven,” and “upon this rock I will build my church.” The rock Jesus was referring to was the confession Peter made about Jesus. The rock is not just Jesus, but Jesus as “the Christ, the Son of the living God.” The foundation of God’s church is the identity of Jesus as the only begotten Son of God. Everything hinges upon this truth, for this is the key to understanding God’s love.

At the beginning of His public ministry, God proclaimed about Jesus, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17). Jesus went directly away from that proclamation and Satan came to Him saying, “If thou be the Son of God,…” (Matthew 4:3), and again, “If thou be the Son of God,…” (Matthew 4:6). Jesus knew who He is, and had just heard His Father proclaim it from heaven. His success here was dependent upon His knowledge of His identity. Our success is also dependent upon knowing His identity, which gives us our identity as God’s children. “And because ye are sons, God hath sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, Abba, Father” (Galatians 4:6).

Perhaps you are wondering why the Bible stresses the sonship of Christ so emphatically. If He is anyone other than “the only begotten Son of God” (John 3:18), the whole plan of salvation crumbles and God’s love is left in question. This would leave us unable to love God with all our hearts, for our love is directly dependent upon knowing God’s love for us (1 John 4:19).

Truly the Son of God

John the Baptist was sent to prepare the way for Christ. He proclaimed, “And I saw, and bare record that this is the Son of God” (John 1:34). Nathanael, a man of whom Jesus said, in him “there is nothing false” (John 1:47, The Bible in Basic English), proclaimed, “Rabbi, thou art the Son of God” (John 1:49).

Jesus said of Himself, “I said, I am the Son of God?” (John 10:36). When His disciples were amazed by His authority over the storm, “Then they that were in the ship came and worshipped him, saying, Of a truth thou art the Son of God” (Matthew 14:33). Martha said to Jesus, “I believe that thou art the Christ, the Son of God, which should come into the world” (John 11:27). Even the devils knew who Jesus is, and proclaimed “Thou art Christ the Son of God” (Luke 4:41; See also James 2:19).

When Jesus was condemned to die, the main accusation was “We have a law, and by our law he ought to die, because he made himself the Son of God” (John 19:7). The Jewish high priest said, “I adjure thee by the living God, that thou tell us whether thou be the Christ, the Son of God” (Matthew 26:63). When He was on the cross some jeeringly said, Thou that destroyest the temple, and buildest it in three days, save thyself. If thou be the Son of God, come down from the cross” (Matthew 27:40). The chief priests said, “He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God” (Matthew 27:43). When Jesus finally died, a Roman soldier said, “Truly this man was the Son of God” (Mark 15:39).

After His resurrection the disciples referred to Jesus as God’s “holy child” (Acts 4:27, 30). When Philip was teaching an Ethiopian man who wanted to be baptized, he said to him, “If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God” (Acts 8:37). Immediately after Paul was converted, “…straightway he preached Christ in the synagogues, that he is the Son of God” (Acts 9:20). Paul proclaimed, that Jesus was “declared to be the Son of God with power, according to the spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead” (Romans 1:4). He also wrote, “Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession” (Hebrews 4:14).

John wrote, “Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him, and he in God” (1 John 4:15). “He that believeth on the Son of God hath the witness in himself: he that believeth not God hath made him a liar; because he believeth not the record that God gave of his Son. And this is the record, that God hath given to us eternal life, and this life is in his Son. He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life” (1 John 5:10-12).

The Scriptures powerfully proclaim Jesus to be the actual, literal, only begotten Son of God. The Father Himself declared from heaven twice, “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17; 17:5; 2 Peter 1:17). What are we to make of this? It would appear that God wants us to believe that Jesus is His true Son. What does this mean?

The Son of God

When Jesus came into this world He became “the son of man” (Matthew 18:11), but His mission on earth did not change His status as the Son of God. It is true that on earth He had no earthly Father, but His birth on this earth is not what made Him the Son of God, for He was God’s Son before coming into the world (John 1:15; 6:62; 8:42; Joshua 5:13-15). “For God sent… his Son… that the world through him might be saved” (John 3:17). “And we have seen and do testify that the Father sent the Son to be the Saviour of the world” (1 John 4:14). “In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him” (1 John 4:9). The sonship of Christ was not dependent upon Him coming into this world. If Jesus would have never left his seat “on the right hand of God” (Colossians 3:1), He would still be God’s Son. When God gave His Son to be born of a human, that alone was a great sacrifice, yet He “humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross” (Philippians 2:8). He will forever bear the weight of humanity upon Him.

For all eternity it will be possible that “one shall say unto him, What are these wounds in thine hands? Then he shall answer, Those with which I was wounded in the house of my friends” (Zechariah 13:6). He says, “Can a woman forget her sucking child, that she should not have compassion on the son of her womb? yea, they may forget, yet will I not forget thee. Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me” (Isaiah 49:15). God’s love is amazing! It is thrilling to behold!

In the eighth chapter of Proverbs Wisdom is said to have a mouth and love (Proverbs 8:1, 8, 17). Who is Wisdom? “But unto them which are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God.… But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption” (1 Corinthians 1:24, 30). “Wisdom” is a title that is applied to God’s Son, just as He also has the title, “the Word of God” (Revelation 19:13) because He speaks for God (John 3:34). Jesus is an actual Person, not just God’s knowledge, even though He has the title of Wisdom.

The Son of God declared concerning Himself, “When there were no depths, I was brought forth; when there were no fountains abounding with water. Before the mountains were settled, before the hills was I brought forth” (Proverbs 8:24, 25). The Geneva Bible says, “When there were no depths, was I begotten, when there were no fountains abounding with water. Before the mountains were settled: and before the hills, was I begotten.” The Bible in Basic English plainly says, “When there was no deep I was given birth, when there were no fountains flowing with water. Before the mountains were put in their places, before the hills was my birth.” That is astounding! Jesus claims that He was born before anything was created. The definition for the form of the original Hebrew word used here is “to be born, to be brought forth” (Gesenius’ Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon). This verb in this form is only used three places in the Bible, and here are the other two Scriptures where it is used: “Art thou the first man that was born? or wast thou made before the hills?” (Job 15:7). “Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me” (Psalm 51:5). As we can plainly see, the term “brought forth” in Proverbs 8:24, 25 can mean nothing other than being begotten, or born.

Let us continue reading in Proverbs chapter eight and learn more about the characteristics of God’s dear Son. “While as yet he had not made the earth, nor the fields, nor the highest part of the dust of the world. When he prepared the heavens, I was there [See John 1:1-3]: when he set a compass upon the face of the depth: When he established the clouds above: when he strengthened the fountains of the deep: When he gave to the sea his decree, that the waters should not pass his commandment: when he appointed the foundations of the earth: Then I was by him, as one brought up with him: and I was daily his delight, rejoicing always before him; Rejoicing in the habitable part of his earth; and my delights were with the sons of men.… For whoso findeth me findeth life, and shall obtain favour of the Lord. But he that sinneth against me wrongeth his own soul: all they that hate me love death” (Proverbs 8:26-36).

The speaker here says that He was brought up with the Lord and was daily His delight, and rejoiced always before Him. This is a real Person. He then says, “For whoso findeth me findeth life.” John wrote, “He that hath the Son hath life; and he that hath not the Son of God hath not life” (1 John 5:12). Jesus Christ is the one speaking about Himself in Proverbs chapter eight. He is truly the Son of God, just as John wrote, “the Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love” (2 John 1:3).

The terms Father and Son, by definition, indicate the existence of one before the other. This may be why the Father is called, “the Ancient of days” (Daniel 7:9, 13). This was the understanding of the Israelites. In the book of Proverbs we read: “Who hath ascended up into heaven, or descended? who hath gathered the wind in his fists? who hath bound the waters in a garment? who hath established all the ends of the earth? what is his name, and what is his son’s name, if thou canst tell?” (Proverbs 30:4). When Jesus was here the Jews did not dispute the fact that God has a Son, they disputed Jesus’ claim to be God’s Son.

The disciples and apostles of Christ’s day, along with the large majority of Christians who lived in the first few centuries after Christ’s death, understood Jesus to be the literal, begotten Son of God without any mysterious definition attached to these words. For example, Justin Martyr (110-165 AD), quoting from Proverbs 8, refers to Christ in the following statement:

“The Lord… begets me before all the hills.” He adds: “You perceive, my hearers, if you bestow attention, that the Scripture has declared that this Offspring was begotten by the Father before all things created; and that that which is begotten is numerically distinct from that which begets, any one will admit” (Justin Martyr, Dialogue with Trypho, Chapter 129).

Novatian (210-280 AD) wrote, “God the Father, the Founder and Creator of all things, who only knows no beginning, invisible, infinite, immortal, eternal, is one God;… of whom, when He willed it, the Son, the Word, was born… the Father also precedes Him,… Because it is essential that He who knows no beginning must go before Him who has a beginning;… [The Son has] an origin because He is born, and of like nature with the Father in some measure by His nativity, although He has a beginning in that He is born, inasmuch as He is born of that Father who alone has no beginning” (Novation, Ante Nicene Fathers, Volume 5, On the Trinity, Chapter 31).

The vast majority (at least 279 of 318) of the bishops at the Council of Nicaea in 325 AD were led by Eusebius of Caesarea, who quoted Proverbs 8 as referring to Jesus, and maintained that He was literally “begotten… the first and only offspring of God” (Eusebius’ Ecclesiastical History, Chapter 2, page 15).

Some people have mistakenly concluded that God used the terms “Father” and “Son” to get across to our feeble minds a divine relationship (not Father and Son) that they could not possibly explain in our language. To come to this conclusion one would have to assume that God just happened upon this strange type of beings who have a strange language and manner of reproduction, and then was left struggling to explain Himself to these strange creatures. You would have to forget that God created our language and designed our manner of reproduction, after He already had a Son. God designed us with the ability to have a son, and then He exclaimed of Jesus, “This is my beloved Son…” (Matthew 3:17; 17:5). He made us this way on purpose so we could say, “I get it, I know what a son is.” God means what He says even regarding our human relationships of father and son that He designed in His own image.

According to the Bible, Jesus Christ was begotten, which literally means born, before anything was created—long before God sent Him into the world (Colossians 1:15-17). How He was begotten is not for us to know (Deuteronomy 29:29), but God wants us to realize that He and His Son have a close, genuine, father-son relationship that is not just a role, or an act. It is this fact that guarantees Jesus to be just like His Father, and guarantees that God giving His Son was the ultimate sacrifice, proving beyond a shadow of a doubt that “God is love” (1 John 4:8).

The Son Highly Exalted

The first chapter of Hebrews contains the strongest collection of verses used to prove the exalted nature of Christ above all creatures. Paul wrote, “God, who at sundry times and in divers manners spake in time past unto the fathers by the prophets, Hath in these last days spoken unto us by his Son, whom he hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the worlds” (Hebrews 1:1, 2).

God appointed His Son to be the heir of all things. An heir is “one who receives his allotted possession by right of sonship” (Thayer’s Greek Lexicon). All things the Son has, He received from His Father, including life itself. Jesus said, “For as the Father hath life in himself; so hath he given to the Son to have life in himself.” (John 5:26).

Continuing in Hebrews we read, “Who being the brightness of his glory, and the express image of his person, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself purged our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high” (Hebrews 1:3).

An image is a likeness of the original. In this case, Jesus is called, “the express image” of His Father. Thayer’s Greek Lexicon defines this as a, “precise reproduction in every respect.” As the Son of God, Jesus Christ is the image, or reproduction, of His Father. It is impossible to be an image and the original at the same time. You can be one or the other, but not both. Would it be right or proper to say that the Father is the image of the Son? No, and that is likely why He is never referred to in this manner, because He is the original. People have approached me saying, “Your son looks just like you.” It would be rare for a person to say, “You look like your son.” Why? My son is the image of me, not the other way around, because I came first.

Continuing, Paul wrote, “Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they” (Hebrews 1:4). By right of sonship, Jesus Christ received a more excellent name than the angels. Angels are not literal sons, and therefore do not receive what Christ naturally inherits because He really is God’s Son.

Paul continued, “For unto which of the angels said he at any time, Thou art my Son, this day have I begotten thee? And again, I will be to him a Father, and he shall be to me a Son?” (Hebrews 1:5). Notice the argument Paul uses to distinguish Jesus from the angels. Over and over again he argues that Jesus is better because He is the Son of God, because He was “begotten,” because He is “the express image” of His Father, because He is the “heir of all things,” because He naturally receives an “inheritance” from His Father.

Paul wrote, “And again, when he bringeth in the firstbegotten into the world, he saith, And let all the angels of God worship him. And of the angels he saith, Who maketh his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire. But unto the Son he saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom” (Hebrews 1:6-8). Here, Paul is telling us that Jesus is divine because He is really God’s Son. His language used to emphasize this is abundantly clear. Jesus is better than the angels because He was literally born of His Father, which cannot be said of any of anyone else.

When Paul comes to the point of Jesus being called God, he wrote, “But unto the Son he [the Father] saith, Thy throne, O God, is for ever and ever: a sceptre of righteousness is the sceptre of thy kingdom. Thou hast loved righteousness, and hated iniquity; therefore God, even thy God, hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows” (Hebrews 1:8, 9). As the Son of God, Jesus is, by right of inheritance, God by nature. A true Son of God could be nothing else or nothing less than God.

There is a law in nature that creatures can only have offspring “after their kind” (Genesis 1:24, 25). The offspring of a dog is always a dog, the offspring of a bird is always a bird, the offspring of a human is always a human, and the offspring of God, naturally is God. It is right and proper to refer to Jesus Christ as “God,” for God, the Father Himself calls Him, “God.” Yet, in the same breath, the Father makes it clear that He is the God of His Son. He says, “thy God, hath anointed thee…” Jesus is God, yet He has a God above Him who is also His Father.

Paul wrote, “That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him” (Ephesians 1:17). Jesus said to Mary, right after His resurrection, “Touch me not; for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethren, and say unto them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God” (John 20:17). Jesus told His disciples that His God is the same God as their God. He also explained who this God is, the Father. He assured the disciples that His Father, is also our Father, and His God is also our God.

Long after His resurrection, Jesus promised, “Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name” (Revelation 3:12).

Paul wrote, “But I would have you know, that the head of every man is Christ; and the head of the woman is the man; and the head of Christ is God” (1 Corinthians 11:3). In explaining heirarchy, Paul stopped when he came to God. Why? He can’t go any higher! The Father is “the most high God,” and is the head of Christ. The Father is the only being in the Bible given the titles, “most High” (Mark 5:7) or “the Highest” (Luke 1:32).

The Bible says there is, “One God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all” (Ephesians 4:6). And again, “As concerning therefore the eating of those things that are offered in sacrifice unto idols, we know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is none other God but one. For though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or in earth, (as there be gods many, and lords many,) But to us there is but one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we in him; and one Lord Jesus Christ, by whom are all things, and we by him” (1 Corinthians 8:4-6).

The Bible is clear that “there is but one God, the Father,” and “there is none other God but one.” Jesus proclaimed the same in His closing prayer at the Last Supper: “These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his eyes to heaven, and said, Father,… And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent” (John 17:1-3). Jesus said His Father is “the only true God.” That would mean there is none other “true God,” but what does that mean. The Greek word translated “true” here is also used in Hebrews where Jesus is said to be “A minister of the sanctuary, and of the true tabernacle, which the Lord pitched, and not man” (Hebrews 8:1-2). Here the word “true” is used to distinguish the original from its likeness or image. The original tabernacle is the one God pitched in heaven, and the image or copy is the one Moses built on earth. There is only one true (original) tabernacle.

The Father is the “only true [original] God,” and His Son is the “express image” of “the invisible God” (Hebrews 1:3; Colossians 1:15). This in no way detracts from the exalted nature of the Son of God, for He was “in the form of God” and the Father has “highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name” (Philippians 2:6, 9).

(For more information on the love of God in giving His Son, request God’s Love on Trial, Understanding the Personality of God, and Answering Objections. These are all available for free download at https://presenttruth.info.)

Conclusion

The Bible declares that love is the foremost identifying characteristic of God’s people. All of the ceremonies and rituals no matter how strictly observed are useless without God’s love in our hearts. The presence of love in our hearts is the sign that we have “passed from death unto life” (1 John 3:14). All true, unselfish love only comes from God, and we can have it by being born again and knowing God’s love for us (1 John 4:7-19). Our ability to love is in proportion to our knowledge of God’s love for us.

This love is demonstrated in many ways, but the incredible love of God in giving His Son is unparalleled in the universe. It is this great gift that will be the theme of our study for eternity. The Bible links our ability to love others and overcome the world to knowing that God gave His Son to die for us (1 John 4:7; 5:5; Romans 5:8). Knowing the identity of Jesus Christ as the Son of God is the key for us to see our standing before God as His beloved children. “Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another” (1 John 4:11).

Failing to find words to adequately express the amazing love of God, John simply said, “Behold, what manner of love the Father hath bestowed upon us, that we should be called the sons of God…” (1 John 3:1). Behold the love of God! Spend a thoughtful hour each day contemplating the unspeakable gift of God. “Thanks be unto God for his unspeakable gift” (2 Corinthians 9:15). Any man-made theory about the identity of Jesus that diminishes the great gift God gave for us, must be viewed with suspicion. “…let God be true, but every man a liar” (Romans 3:4). That includes me! Don’t take my word for anything, but accept God’s word for everything, for He “cannot lie” (Titus 1:2). I pray that we will accept what the Bible says about Jesus and fall in love with God more and more each day.

The key to success in this life and access to the life to come is knowing God’s love. This knowledge will improve every aspect of your life. The greater your knowledge of His love, the greater you will succeed in life (Daniel 11:32). You will still have trials and tribulation, but it is so much easier to handle knowing you are loved by the Creator of all things, who made the vast galaxies and complex cells, and thought the universe needs one of you too. God does not promise to remove all difficulties from your life, but He does promise to be with you through it all (Matthew 28:20; Hebrews 13:5; John 14:18). Do everything in your power to increase your knowledge of God’s love, for this will trickle down to the way you treat everyone around you.

One thing that I have found to be very helpful is listening to the Bible often. This can easily be done by downloading a free MP3 copy from www.audiotreasure.com. I have put it on my phone and play it almost all the time. My son asked me, “How many times have you heard that, Dad?” I don’t know, but it has been a lot. I have learned so much this way, and learn new things every time I listen. A really nice thing about listen-ing to it is you can get a large context of what the Bible is saying. If you cannot access it on a computer, get someone to help you. You can also call them to get a CD at 757-741-8457.

Regardless how you do it, focus on enlarging your knowledge of God’s love, and ask Him to show you more each day. The last message of mercy to be given to the world is a revelation of God’s character of love. I pray that you will be blessed with many reasons to rejoice after seeing a deeper picture of God’s love every day.

(I pray that you have been blessed by this article. It will be available as a booklet to share with your friends and family. Editor)

#Character #Forgiveness #Identity #Love #Salvation #Son of God #Sonship #Source

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epiphenomenal · 7 years

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hi guys. sorry for the long absence. i've had various r/l things going on, including a new job -- but tbh i’ve also found it hard to have fannish feelings about anything except the end of the band of my life, kent. the following is an incredibly tl;dr explanation. please don't feel obliged to read it; i think i wrote this mainly for myself.

i. origins

there are two stories, i guess. one begins in 2003 with teenage!jan discovering a curiously-labelled song on file-sharing software. someone had frontloaded the filename with familiar bands: REM, radiohead, the smashing pumpkins, etc. so i downloaded what turned out to be the english version of kent's 747, and realised i had to listen to more of their work.

i soon discovered they were a swedish band, and that their english experiment had been short-lived. but their swedish songs were fantastic (both before and after i looked up the lyrics), so i kept listening.

and they say the town's become silent and ugly and deserted, darling that it's going to be a long cold winter i've learnt that longing is worst when one's slept like a child through an ice-cold winter

you're my hero for you dare to be honest you're my hero for you're just as weak as me come and help me, i need you -- again, again, again (x)

i ordered all their albums online -- you know it's love when you stop pirating. for most music loves, it might have stopped there. except for the other story, which starts in the late 1980s (or officially in 1990).

i read about the band's origins, and there was something compelling about that, too. how they grew up in a small grey industrial ghost town, where music was an escape. how they had lofty dreams and moved to stockholm and tried and failed and kept trying for years, until they got their big break. how they went from strength to strength after that, winning awards and a devoted fanbase, and eventually being called "sweden's biggest rock band". (but also how, after two english-language albums and gruelling international tours, they had to give up on that front.)

i loved them with the intensity teenagers are capable of. i read all i could find in english, and then (back when machine translation was poor and google translate didn't even exist yet) read more with the help of a swedish-english dictionary and what grammar i managed to learn.

kent also had a close relationship with their fans. their frontman, joakim berg, frequently hung out on their official forum. ahead of each album release, the band took questions directly from fans and answered them (often hilariously) on their website -- which, incidentally, was a fansite that the band noticed and asked to become their official website.

in 2005, they released their first new album since i'd started listening to them: du & jag döden or 'you & i, death', a masterpiece from the irresistible opening track all the way till the magnificent album closer, which remains my favourite song ever. i pre-ordered the album online and played it on loop for days and have never recovered.

do you remember our blood-oath, our law? our stupid crusade against an equally foolish town i remember everything like nails against glass but you just laugh at me, reduce everything to a joke yet i see in your anxious posture, your hunted gaze that it feels that it's a long way home (x)

ii. journeys

in the autumn of 2007, kent released their next album, tillbaka till samtiden; i went to the UK for university, on a scholarship. that december, i went to sweden and saw kent live for the first time -- something i'd never imagined would be possible, back when i first discovered their music. it was magical. they were magical. that energy, those songs i'd loved for years, the crowd roaring along on all the classic lines -- singing but darling we’ll all die someday with thousands of other fans, not in sadness but in triumph. but also: jocke's incredibly dorky dancing, the band's camaraderie on stage, how they connected with the crowd. i fell a little in love with their guitarist, sami sirviö, and his dramatic guitar-playing -- something from which i have never recovered either.

the next spring, i travelled alone to sweden to see them again, three times.

kent wasn’t just the soundtrack to my ~formative years; they’re linked inextricably to the start of my uni-era travels, and to trips i’ve taken since. they were also a constant, of sorts: one could always expect another album within a couple of years. there was always something to look forward to.

and the thing about kent -- and being a kent fan over the years -- is that they have always moved forward. unlike some bands which retread the same sonic territory, kent saw each new album as a musical departure from the next (often to their fans’ dismay; but kent always said that they made music for themselves, and i admired that kind of integrity, too). their lyrics also evolved: from adolescent anxiety and desperation, to urban isolation and middle-aged middle-class angst (not least given their working-class origins), protesting against a society that seemed to be losing its old ideals of solidarity and kindness.

in late 2009, during my final undergraduate year, they released the album röd. in the easter vacation before my final exams, i went to sweden and norway for four concerts. i didn't know when i would get to see them again.

(just half a year after röd, they casually released another album, en plats i solen. other things they’ve done: released songs for charity, from a quietly devastating song about domestic violence for Save the Children, to one for the National Organisation for Women's and Girls' Shelters in Sweden; released a song for free online as a christmas present for fans, without the knowledge of their record label, and laughed with fans on the forum about that; taken shoe-selfies on a couch together.)

darling, that we want most of all is something that can never be ours november is a wall of wet concrete where a naive dream of escape is born to crash and then die but heroes and heroines stay standing they spit hard into the wind and they warm our hands so we don't lose our grip on the love we have a right to (x)

i returned from the UK and started work in 2011. in 2012, kent released jag är inte rädd för mörkret, which opens with one of their most beautiful songs. (instead of doing promotional interviews, they held a press conference and invited fans and forum regulars and bloggers, not just the media.) i flew alone to stockholm that summer, for a concert on a sprawling green lawn. the setlist was incredible and included one of my favourite songs, which i'd hoped for years to hear live. there were fireworks at the end. the forty-minute walk back towards town, amongst other fans, felt like it took no time at all.

2014 started out tough for me for various reasons, and kent's new album tigerdrottningen was very welcome, though i didn't manage to see them live that tour. they were more political than ever before. their first single was a blistering critique of sweden today; at a summer festival they held (yes, they held their own festival, and invited artistes they loved -- mostly women, incidentally, something the media noticed but the band themselves never pointed out), they exhorted the crowd to vote the right-wing SD party out of parliament. my favourite track off the album describes stockholm as a "guaranteed solidarity-free New Moderate desert" -- but also contains a verse that gains a lot of poignancy in retrospect:

i hear the bass from the car at the red lights, i know that song like a knife to the heart -- i wrote it 200 summers ago i stand as if frozen at the crossing, and regret (x)

iii. endings

on 13 march 2016, kent posted a video full of references to previous albums and songs.

youtube

after 26 years together, they were calling it a day.

their final album, då som nu för alltid, was a summary and a farewell. they said goodbye with a final tour: 28 gigs in four months across four countries.

i used half my annual leave to catch five concerts in october. each one was amazing. from the breathtaking introduction and epic visuals, to the setlist, to -- of course -- the band themselves. how much energy they poured into their music. the smiles they traded on stage, how they’d play while facing each other. how jocke presented his fellow band members to the audience, night after night, and told stories from their earliest days together; how, night after night, he told them he loved them.

the band members' love for each other, how they call themselves a family and have always felt it was them against the world -- that's one of my favourite things about them. and i have a lot of feelings about the stories jocke told: how he and sami went from disliking each other at first sight to sharing a rockstar dream; how he and bassist martin sköld spent hours talking about everything in life; how important their drummer, markus mustonen, was in making them feel like they were finally a real band.

the farewell tour was also filled with love between the band and the fans. how jocke bantered with fans near the front. how, in setlist staple jag ser dig ('i see you'), the fans got their moment on the big screen. how the fans have always taken jocke's cue during set-ender 747, turning stadiums into seas of waving arms, right after jocke sings to us, repeatedly, you keep us alive -- additional lyrics only present in live renditions of the song. how, after each concert, the band came down and gave out roses to fans in the front row.

in december, i flew out again for their last three concerts in stockholm. during the first two, for which i had standing tickets, there was just such a pure joy and euphoria at being there, in the moment, with fellow fans, amid their music. they performed a completely new song, because kent is the sort of band which does that sort of thing during their last three concerts ever.

at their final concert, on dec 17, i had a seated ticket for the only time this tour. i watched their farewell from a distance, but that also allowed me to grasp the scale of this: being there amongst 38,300 fans, saying goodbye together. during the ironic political ballad sverige we held up our phones, as we'd done throughout the tour, and the arena was full of stars.

the day after, the band released a final video, a beautiful summary of the farewell tour which included the voices of fans. it was a music video for the song which ends their last album, and which also closed every concert that tour: den sista sången or 'the last song'. just to make the message perfectly clear, the song (and by extension, every farewell concert) ends on these lines:

this is the last time, the last time we're meeting the last song, the last song i'm giving you (x)

youtube

iv. epilogue

on dec 26 and 27, a two-part documentary on the band's final years was released. it's a very well-made documentary, from cinematography to its on-point song choices, filled with interviews and amusing moments, giving a summary of the band's history and a look at the long farewell stretch. the documentary also contained some sad revelations about why the band had chosen to call it a day, and i spent january and february processing this, basically.

on feb 28, kent won their final two swedish grammy awards. they gave cute thank-you speeches and joked around in the backstage interviews. it provided a kinder sort of closure, compared to the documentary's bittersweet ending.

i still have far too many feelings about these guys and their journey. but it's now been a year since the farewell announcement, and though i'll never get over this band, i should really move forward too.

#this really ended up tl;dr #and yet i could still write a million more posts about #kent the band #though i... won't #also yes i know i've been extremely fortunate and privileged #to be able to afford to catch so many of their concerts #anyway i... will try to return to tumblr now #if i remember how haha

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