Therefore...

if anyone, if anyone, anyone, anyone, ANYONE

is in Christ, is in Christ, in Christ, CHRIST.

the old has gone! has gone! GONE!

BEHOLD!

the new has come! the NEW has come! =)

(Meditations on 2 Corinthians 5:17)

The BEHOLD! factor = Separates the old life from the new life. It's the turning point. Vision is everything! (BEHOLD=SEE)

He wants it all. He wants to transform, to revive each and every area of our life. This process of submitting to the King and giving over the control of our lives may be painful, letting go maybe painful. But once we let go. BOOM! (Behold!) He takes over and reigns in victory. We come under not just His authority but also His protection and provision. And once we taste and see His goodness we won't want to go back to living for ourselves.

I've heard many famous testimonies of turning points like that, stuff like people coming to the end of themselves hence they give up and call out to God and then God answers by setting them free from various addictions the moment they give their life to Him. Then in gratitude they live a life on fire for their Savior and boldly proclaim His goodness in word and deed. That's so cool! Just shows off God's mighty power to save even those who are seen as the "baddest sinners."

How about the people who don't have such a radical turning point? I guess they didn't fully Behold= SEE. It's all about vision/perception. What you see is what changes you. What your mind perceives, changes your heart, and changes the way you do life.

In other words, it's about the renewal of the mind affecting the state of the heart which then affects the confession of the mouth and your entire lifestyle. That group of people may say the sinners prayer and give their life to God and actually be genuine about it but they may not realize ("behold") that He actually wants all aspects of their lives, as in everything. But God is faithful and He accepts what we give to Him and He extends His grace to us as He lets us know that He actually wants all of us. So once the sinners prayer is said, that's just the beginning of a life of surrender as we come to an understanding that God is a consuming fire and He wants us in totality not just bits and pieces of us, He gives us grace to respond to His longing to have our whole heart, soul, mind and strength.

Thank You Jesus. Thanks for unconditional Love. Your grace is enough for me. Take more and more of me, until you take all of me. I won't turn back because You are my rock and my strength so you shall sustain me. And please restore to me everything that the devil stole from me when I fell for his schemes and took my eyes off You and looked at myself and the world. Thanks Redeemer! =)

A call for repentance.

For many people, me included, surrender is obviously not as easy as it sounds. Why is that? Has to do with strongholds which I'll address in future posts and how to overcome them.

Beauty & the Beast: "To be Human Again"

So the other night I was watching Beauty and the Beast with my little niece (rather, I watched segments of it as my mum was braiding my hair as I was multitasking on the computer haha). Anyway, I've seen it before, quite a few times since we own the video, but this time I kinda saw it from a different perspective which I wanna share. So buckle up! and let's ride =) (If you have no patience/time then just read the closing remarks :)

~~~Prologue~~~

For those who are not acquainted with this Disney classic here's the Prologue (2.52min) : http://youtu.be/2IZaBeWgFqo

-> So yeah, according the the fairy tale, this one

young Prince had everything his heart desired but one day an Enchantress came along to test him.. He failed the test and was therefore turned into a hideous beast due to a selfish decision he made, the decision not to love. Not only did his decision affect him but also his whole castle and all who lived in it were placed under a powerful spell which would only be broken if he could learn to love another and earn their love in return before the last petal fell. If not he'd be doomed to remain a beast for eternity. "As the years passed, he fell into despair, and lost all hope, For who could ever learn to love...a Beast?

-> This prologue reminded me of yet another prologue, not of a fairy tale this time but of the story of reality. A story of a man and a woman (Adam and Eve) created in God's image enjoying life in the Garden of Eden until the Tempter came along to test them. They failed the test. They choose a candy-coated life sentence. They choose not to abide in the love and harmony created for them, but choose to satisfy their lust and greed hence they choose not life but death. They leave the garden ashamed and under a curse, in fact, all of creation falls under the same curse. The only way to break the curse is through a relationship with Love.

~Love came to the Rescue- The First Coming~

*Belle( "Beauty")- In the story, Belle (Beauty) ended up being separated from her father and got stuck living with the Beast and she later started to fall in love with him despite his obvious flaws. The love of Beauty, the antithesis of his 'beastliness' is what was necessary to break the spell.

*Jesus ("Savior")- In reality, God sent His son not just to live among us but to take upon Himself the punishment of our sin. It is the love and sacrifice of this loving and Holy God that sets us free from the curse.

"But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinne

rs, Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8)

"For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life." (John 3:16)

"This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins." (1 John 4:10)

"To be Human Again" (http://youtu.be/MetM68Lr9U8 )

Once Belle and the Beast started to hit it off, the subjects of the castle were filled with hope for the day that the spell would finally be broken so that they could be set free "to be human again." Here are some of my favorite lines from the scene:

Lumiere:

Ha ha, we, my friends.

The day we have waited for may be at hand!

Cogsworth:

When I'm human again

Only human again

When the world once more making sense

All:

When I'm human again

So sweep the dust from the floor!

Let's let some light in the room!

I can feel, I can tell

Someone might break the spell

Any day now!

All:

Sweep up the years

Of sadness and tears

And throw them away!

Lumiere/Babette:

Shine up the brass on the door!

Alert the dustpail and the broom!

All:

If all goes as planned

Our time may be at hand!

We'll be gliding again!

Stepping, striding as fine as you please

Like a real human does

I'll be all that I was

On that glorious morn

When we're fin'lly reborn

And we're all of us human again!

->This song rings true for reality. It reminds me of this passage.

"I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God.

We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. But hope that is seen is no hope at all. Who hopes for what they already have? But if we hope for what we do not yet have, we wait for it patiently." (Romans 8: 18-25)

(If this passage doesn't make sense just read on, it will make more sense by the end, hopefully :)

*Redemption & Restoration- The Second Coming*

So just when they had started falling in love, Belle had to leave the Beast to be with her father who was ill but she had promised to go back to the beast. The Beast started to lose hope of her return the more she delayed... Belle had ran into complications named Gaston and his angry mob lol, who ended up trying to kill the beast in a battle between Gaston and his mob versus Belle and her castle friends trying to defend the beast. That's what happened right before this clip. Here are my favorite quotes from the clip:

Beast: You came back

Belle: If only I'd come here sooner

Beast: Maybe it's better this way.

Belle:No! Don't talk like that. We're together now.

Everything will be fine. You'll see.

-> Then the beast dies. And undergoes his long-awaited transformation into the handsome Prince he once was. Belle gets to see him as he is and as they reunite in a passionate kiss, the spell is also broken off the castle and its subjects and they are transformed! Their prayer was answered! They were finally reborn! Made human again! In the words of Lumiere, "It's a miracle!" And they lived happily ever after =)

*Back to reality: Jesus came, lived among us, demonstrated His love for us by dying on the cross and taking our punishment upon Himself, He rose from the dead thus conquering even death and setting us free from the curse of death, freeing us to be who we were created to be: sons and daughters of God, royalty! He then returned to be with God the Father in heaven where He is preparing a place for us. And He is coming back for us so that we can be with Him forever and we can live happily ever after with Him in His Kingdom of Heaven :D

" See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are! The reason the world does not know us is that it did not know him. Dear friends, now we are children of God, and what we will be has not yet been made known. But we know that when Christ appears, we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is. All who have this hope in him purify themselves, just as he is pure." ( 1 John 3: 1-3)

"Brothers and sisters, we do not want you to be uninformed about those who sleep in death, so that you do not grieve like the rest of mankind, who have no hope. For we believe that Jesus died and rose again, and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.

According to the Lord’s word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so we will be with the Lord forever. Therefore encourage one another with these words." (1 Thessalonians 4: 13-18)

We started with Genesis in the Garden of Eden so let's end in Revelation when Eden is restored: (Revelation 22)

"No longer will there be any curse. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in the city, and his servants will serve him. They will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. There will be no more night. They will not need the light of a lamp or the light of the sun, for the Lord God will give them light. And they will reign for ever and ever." (vs. 3-5)

“Look, I am coming soon! My reward is with me, and I will give to each person according to what they have done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.

“Blessed are those who wash their robes, that they may have the right to the tree of life and may go through the gates into the city. (vs. 12-14)

“I, Jesus, have sent my angel to give you this testimony for the churches. I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star.”

The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let the one who hears say, “Come!” Let the one who is thirsty come; and let the one who wishes take the free gift of the water of life. (vs. 16- 17)

He who testifies to these things says, “Yes, I am coming soon.”

Amen. Come, Lord Jesus. The grace of the Lord Jesus be with God’s people. Amen. (vs. 20-21)

____________Closing Remarks_____________

For me, seeing the bigger picture gives me Hope.

I get discouraged a lot since I'm not as close to God as I used to be. Yeah He still speaks to me through His Word and speaks through me and stuff but communication is possible without intimacy, but I want intimacy as well. Sometimes He seems so far away. So I'm praying that He gives us the power to believe in Him and His promises. He said He'll never leave us nor forsake us- even when we stray He is right there waiting to receive us with arms wide open. I pray that He gives us the power to understand this kind of love and grasp all that He has freely given to us. I pray that He also gives us the power to persevere through all the difficulties of this life (all the Gastons and angry mobs that try to weigh us down and keep us from experiencing God's love).

Listen to this really powerful song:

"You're Never giving up" by Jonathan & Melissa Helser:

"What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?

No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord."

(Romans 8: 31-35, 37-39)

His Love NEVER fails...(1 Corinthians 13).

Be encouraged! Let's place our HOPE in His unfailing love.

He is coming back soon!

Songs:

"Midnight Cry" by Michael English:

• http://youtu.be/XCCetFSra3c

"Yeshua" by Fernandinho:

• http://youtu.be/l0g9RMydGMk

The Source & Goal of Knowledge

{Last Course in the series: Reforming Education, Reforming America: Practicals}

Addressing the spiritual issues should be the first part of the renewal process because that is the root of true and lasting change. Many attempts to reform education take an external approach by trying to find new methods that would work better but I agree with Palmer that, “To find new ways of transmitting knowledge, we must find a new knowledge. To find a better medium we must find a better message.” (Palmer 30) I also agree with Palmer’s conviction that a knowledge inspired by love and striving for truth is what will bring lasting transformation to conventional education.

So, what is this spiritual renewal about? And why is it so necessary?

It is about being re-united with our God-given spiritual side that we have neglected, re-united with each other and the world we live in. We need to turn from our materialistic ways and focus on what matters most. Yes we need to focus on the true source of knowledge, the Creator, God. And we need to be reunited with the true goal of knowledge and Wisdom which is love. To love God, and to love each other as we love ourselves. To love communally.

Personally, I was brought up in a Christian family but I still had to search my spirit and decide for myself where to place my faith. I asked myself those questions hard questions “Is there an almighty Creator who has a plan and purpose for his creation or is it just by chance that all life exists? What is the reason for my existence? What is the purpose of my life? Is it just to go to school, get a good job, buy a house, start a family then die? Or is there more to life than that? What impact have I made on those around me?...” I think through asking ourselves such tough questions and searching for the answers we will all find the best place to rest our faith, much better than material things, better than science, better than ourselves, which all fail to satisfy. (Read more about my story: The Bubble)

Who is this God of Wisdom and Love?

Like I said before, He is the Source and Goal of Wisdom.

"The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and knowledge of the Holy One is understanding." (Proverbs 9:10)

...After I answered those questions for myself, this is the reason why I am still a Christian (follower of Jesus). Because He is the Source and Goal of Truth. Truth is a person. So to seek Truth is to be in a relationship with the Truth (God). That's why without a shadow of a doubt, I know. It's one thing to know of someone (facts about someone) and it's another to actually have a relationship with someone. Truth is known personally. God is personal but He is not private. The goal of Truth is not individualistic, it is relational, communal. God and ourselves and others.

Who is this Jesus Christ?

"Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength." (1 Corithians 1: 24a-25)

"The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth." (John 1:14)

Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me." (John 14:6)

What's His purpose?

"No one has ever seen God, but the one and only Son, who is himself God and is in closest relationship with the Father, has made him known." (John 1:18)

"Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign: The virgin will be with child and will give birth to a son, and will call him Immanuel." (Isaiah 7:14)

-> Immanuel means God with us. God the Father sent Jesus (means Savior) to make Himself known to us (the source and goal of knowledge). He became flesh and dwelled among us so that we can relate with Him. He came to fill the gap and in doing so He came to overcome the enslaving systems we had bought into, He came to set us free from this world that has messed us up and that we have contributed to the mess as well. Freedom isn't free. He paid the price (He died on a cross) so that we can have freedom and He also rose from the grave (defeated death). To know Him as we are known.

So now the choice is ours. Will we accept this freedom or not? Will we seek this Wisdom, this Truth, this Jesus, this God? And when we find Him will we allow Him to transform us, to love us? That's what His love does. Will we then allow this transforming love to spread through us to others?

The choice is yours.

Blessed are those who find wisdom,

those who gain understanding,

for she is more profitable than silver

and yields better returns than gold.

She is more precious than rubies;

nothing you desire can compare with her.

Long life is in her right hand;

in her left hand are riches and honor.

Her ways are pleasant ways,

and all her paths are peace.

She is a tree of life to those who take hold of her;

those who hold her fast will be blessed.

(Proverbs 3: 13-18)

"Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you." - Jesus :) (Matthew 7:7)

"Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me." -Jesus :) (Revelation 3:20)

"You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart." -God :) (Jeremiah 29:13)

Seek the LORD while he may be found;

call on him while he is near.

Let the wicked forsake their ways

and the unrighteous their thoughts.

Let them turn to the LORD, and he will have mercy on them,

and to our God, for he will freely pardon.

“For my thoughts are not your thoughts,

neither are your ways my ways,”

declares the LORD.

“As the heavens are higher than the earth,

so are my ways higher than your ways

and my thoughts than your thoughts.

(Isaiah 55:6-9)

So that's the conclusion. ALL WE NEED IS LOVE. Take it from this professor, he used to be atheist before he died but he came back to life and shared his encounter. Check it out.

____________________________________________

(This was the last main course of the series but I'll have more "side dishes" in the future based on the information I've shared so far)

Feel free to share comments or questions =)

It's all about "Me, Myself and I" right?!

Course 3: Individualism

As secularization assists in the spread of the principles of secularism and the dismissal of our spirituality as part of our humanity then we are also striped of our community.

The third vice, individualism, replaces community since science and technology are sought as the “Providence of man” thus freeing us from the bonds that once held us dear, the bonds of love. The Dalai Lama makes a similar observation by stating, “We find modern living organized so that it demands the least possible direct dependence on others.” (Dalai Lama 7) David Orr also notes that, referring to teenagers,“They mirror the larger self-indulgence of a society organized by machines, quick gratification and excessive individualism.” (Orr 174) This is a sad reality since with more knowledge there should be more compassion, and a stronger drive to use our knowledge to help people more, to take better care of our environment; not to degrade ourselves and abuse the environment. In the words of David Orr, “ It makes far better sense to reshape ourselves to fit a finite planet than to attempt to reshape the planet to fit our infinite wants.” (Orr 239) It is ironic that it is the people we deem intellectuals are the same ones that cause the most damage on planet earth. Palmer call this aspect “the failure of modern knowledge.”(Palmer 9)

Peter Maurin, author of Easy Essays,said “Education should not just reflect society but shape it” (Lecture 6/2) Unfortunately American education reflects society more than it shapes it. David Orr agrees with this observation by stating that, “educational institutions, more often than not, reward ...safe conformity to the prevailing standards. Educational institutions are not widely known for encouraging boat rockers....” (Orr 231) So as our culture deifies science and overlooks spirituality, the educational system follows suit and stresses objectivity and dismisses subjectivism instead of emphasizing a combination of the two. Palmer informs us that the root meaning of “objective” is to “put against, to oppose.” He warns, “This is the danger of objectivism: it is a way of knowing that places us in a adversary relation to the world...we are not required to change so that the whole community might flourish; instead, the world must change to meet our needs.” (Palmer 68)

West Jackson said that, “Education should be about the transmission of lasting values.” (Lecture 5/17) Values are spiritual (not physical/material). The Bible says, “the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.” (Gal. 5. 22-23) There is no law against such values, there is nothing in the constitution that condemn any of those values.

As Wendell Berry would say, “By choosing it what are we choosing against?” (Lecture 4/14) By choosing the secularized route and by adopting the vices of secularism and making them our values we are choosing against those dear values. By choosing to be materialistic we forget our spirituality and that is where true values such as love for our neighbors takes root and thrive. Secularization has stripped off the top soil that is needed for the “fruit of the spirit” to grow.

Practicals

So what can be done within the educational system to change this trend, to stop reflecting society and start shaping it?

As Palmer stresses, “We need “wholesight,” a vision of the world in which mind and heart unite...Only as we can see whole can we and our world be whole.” (Palmer xi)

A “spiritual revolution,”(Dalai Lama 17) needs to take place. So what does a spiritual revolution look like? What does “spiritual renewal” (Orr 59) entail?

->I think that this renewal first starts at the individual level. It starts by everyone taking responsibility for how each of us has contributed to the problems in our culture and in the vices that we have cherished; by admitting that we have neglected our spirituality which is just as much, if not more, a part of our humanity than our physical, material bodies.

->This revolution then proceeds by asking hard questions those questions that we avoid since we may be afraid of the truth that lies behind the question. We avoid asking ourselves hard questions for example, questions about spirituality, because the act of asking them is admitting ignorance,the same ignorance that we thought was cured by education and advances in science and technology. David Orr claimed that it is a “myth that ignorance is a solvable problem. Ignorance is not a solvable problem; it is rather an inescapable part of human condition. We cannot comprehend the world in its entirety.” (Orr 239)

->What's this spiritual revival thing about? And why is it so necessary?

Find out in the last course of the series: The Source & Goal of Knowledge. 

Taste Surrender, See Freedom =)

"Taste and see that the LORD is good; blessed is the one who takes refuge in him." (Psalm 34:8)

“My soul glorifies the Lord and my spirit rejoices in God my Savior...for the Mighty One has done great things for me— holy is his name. " :-)

(Mary's Song in Luke 1)

Thank you God for all that you have done for me so far! You're so great! And I don't even deserve it. You're so gracious! And I'm excited for what you're yet to do! (for there is much to be done)

Yesterday at church, the sermon was entitled, "A Mary Christmas" and it was based on Luke 1. Just want to share my thoughts about that passage. Mary sung a song ( Luke 1:46-55) after the Angel gave her the news that she would supernaturally conceive and give birth to Jesus. At first she was astonished at the news, she was "greatly troubled at his words." “How will this be,” Mary asked the angel, “since I am a virgin?” (vs. 34)

Many times, things seem impossible: how will this person/situation ever change? I've had this habit/problem/struggle for so long, how can I ever be free? How can I overcome this? How will I be set free? How will I get close with God (again or for the first time)? It makes no sense at all. Let's be logical, it seems impossible.

I have some good news for us! It's not up to us.

When Mary asked the angel, "How will this be" she was focused on her limitations, "since I am a virgin."

But the angel shifted her focus off herself by saying, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you... For nothing is impossible with God."

GOOD NEWS!

It's not about us! Freedom doesn't hinge upon our own strength or lack of it.

It's about God. How He works in us through His Holy Spirit. It's about His Power to set free, to heal, to restore, to do the impossible.

So all we have to do is surrender to His Power. Like Mary did: (she humbled herself )

“I am the Lord’s servant,” Mary answered. “May your word to me be fulfilled.”

Let's imitate Mary, let us humble ourselves before Him. Let's admit defeat. We are not all-powerful. He is. Let's let Him fight our battles for us. He is able!

Then she sung a song to praise God even before He did what He said He was going to do. I think we should do the same. Learn to rest. To have faith. To be pregnant with hope for what God is going to do. To be confident that He will fulfill His Word to us even when we don't see it at the present moment. Let's praise Him where we're at, He surely won't leave us here.

"Do not be afraid or discouraged because of this vast army. For the battle is not yours, but God’s." (2 Chronicles 20: 15b)

This is what the Sovereign LORD, the Holy One of Israel, says: "In repentance and rest is your salvation, in quietness and trust is your strength"

(Isaiah 30:15a)

"The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still." (Exodus 14:14)

Let go and Let God.

"Remedy" by Dominic Balli: http://youtu.be/RBkVmQZRhEs

(Look up the lyrics if you can't hear them. So powerful! )

• 
  

Prayer:

"For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith." (Ephesians 3:14-17a)
___________________________________________________________________________

What's on the Pedestal?

On the Source of Knowledge

The second principle of secularism states that “Science is the available Providence of man". So in this secularized society, Science is on the pedestal. In his book Ethics for the New Millennium, the Dalai Lama further explores this issue. He wrote that, “Many people, believing that science has “disproved religion,” make the further assumption that because there appears to be no final evidence for any spiritual authority, morality itself must be a matter of individual preference.”(Dalai Lama 10)

Paul Cozby, a Psychology professor at Calstate Fullerton, in his book, Methods in Behavioral Research, he explains the different methods of acquiring knowledge. These methods include: tenacity, intuition, authority, faith, rationalism, empiricism and the scientific method. (Cozby Chapter 1) He then goes on to say,“some beliefs cannot be tested hence are beyond the realm of science. In science, however, ideas must be evaluated on basis of available evidence that can used to support or refute ideas.” (Cozby 6) So even though all the various methods of acquiring knowledge listed above are different from each other and are all valid to some extent, science has been exalted while the other methods have been dismissed as “primitive" methods.

And as secularization, materialism and empiricism are increasingly emphasized and as science is deified we ignore what the Dalai Lama refers to as our “inner dimension,” our spirits. The secular ground that has been created, prevalent in most American classrooms, leaves no room for the spiritual being.

The term ‘spiritual’ means “relating to God and relating to a person’s beliefs as opposed to his or her physical or material needs.”(Oxford dictionaries) It also means having the nature of ‘spirit’ which is the non-physical part of a person that is the seat of emotions and character; the soul.” (Oxford dictionaries) Since the spirit is the seat of moral nature it is also the seat of ethics. As science and technology advances, the influence of religion is weakening in America and there is a decline in ethics.“Science has replaced religion as the final source of knowledge...yet it does not address issues of how to lead a life a moral life.” (Dalai Lama 10) David Orr also expresses disapproval and states that,“Science and technology cannot solve all our problems, but a “spiritual renewal” is also necessary.” (Orr 59)

Concluding thoughts:

• Science and technology fails to satisfy.
• There's something being excluded: Our spirits. Our spiritual side is left unattended.

(This has been a side dish in the series entitled: Reforming America, Reforming Education. There's more courses to come. Stay tuned...)

Watch:

Michael Sherman on the Colbert Report: http://www.colbertnation.com/the-colbert-report-videos/391554/july-11-2011/michael-shermer

♫ It's all about the MONEY!?? ♫

(Course 2 in "Reforming the American System, Reforming Education": Materialism)

Materialism is referenced in the first principle of secularism, “Improvement of this life by material means.” This vice has been indoctrinated through “The American dream” which is then passed down from generation to generation by most Americans and which attracts and is fervently sought after by many immigrants and prospective immigrants around the world.

The goal of education has become materialistic. Many students when asked why they are and should be in school have the same response: "To get the education they need to get into higher paying jobs so that they can make more money, and live a happy, comfortable life with their loved ones." As David Orr puts it, “Education has been whittled down to smaller purposes of passing tests and ensuring large “ lifetime earnings.”” (Orr 61) In short, the American dream tells us that Education is money-oriented since "money buys happiness". There is nothing wrong with pursuing happiness but this kind of view of education is fueled by greed. Instead, a better view of the goal of education should be, to gain wisdom and knowledge so that we can better serve each other and live in harmony with our environment as well. As Palmer puts it, “The goal of knowledge arising from love is the reunification and reconstruction of broken selves and world.” (Palmer 8)

In the Bible, we come across the story of King Solomon, one of Israel’s early kings. In the story God asks Solomon to ask him for whatever he wanted. Solomon asked for “a discerning heart to govern the people and to distinguish between right and wrong.”(New International Version, 1 Kings 3.9) God was pleased with his request and granted him not just the wisdom and discernment that he asked for but wealth, riches and honor as well. There is much to be learnt from that story. First, it reiterates the point at hand, that our quest for knowledge and wisdom should be driven by a desire to serve others and not just ourselves. Another lesson we can derive from Solomon’s story is that as we seek knowledge for the purpose of love and service to others, it is then that we shall be granted happiness for ourselves (*importance of priorities...It also says something about The Source and the ultimate Goal of Wisdom -upcoming post!)

Does Money Buy Happiness?- The Social Psychology of Materialism

The UCLA / American Council on Education conducts an annual

survey of nearly a quarter million entering collegians. In 1970, 39% of the incoming freshmen wanted to "be very well off financially" over " to develop a meaningful philosophy of life" and in 2009 that number went up to 78% !!! Myers observes that materialism is up and spirituality is down. He remarks, " Think of it as today's American Dream: life, liberty, and the purchase of happiness."

So does money really buy happiness? Are rich nations happier? Ronald Ingelhart finds that the income-happiness correlation is "surprisingly weak." Since

1957, Americans are now twice as rich but no happier. The divorce rate has doubled. Teen suicide rate has more than doubled, and more people than ever (especially teens and young adults) are depressed. David Myers, a social Psychologist, calls this "The American Paradox" -"soaring wealth and shrinking spirit." He states that: "More than ever, we have big houses and broken homes, high incomes and low morale, more comfortable cars and more road rage. We excel at making a living but we often fail at making a life. We celebrate our prosperity but yearn for purpose. We cherish our freedoms but long for connection. In an age of plenty we feel spiritual hunger." (Myers, 2009)

More social Psychologists confirm this finding that materialism fails to satisfy. That people who strive most for wealth tend to live with lower well-being.

"Seek extrinsic goals- wealth, beauty, popularity- and you may find anxiety, depression, and psychosomatic ills." (Eckersley, 2005; Sheldon & others, 2004)

"Those who strive for intrinsic goals such as intimacy, personal growth, and contribution to the community, experience a higher quality of life." (Tim Kasser, 2000,2002)

"People who identify themselves with expensive possessions experience fewer positive moods." (Emily Solberg, Ed Diener and Michael Robinson)

Need I say more? By the way I didn't search for this information in some "religious" publication. It's from the last chapter of my Exploring Social Psychology textbook (by David Myers). So if you don't want to hear this from me then take it from the "professionals."

"The challenge for wealthy nations, then is to foster improving standards of living without encouraging materialism and consumerism that displaces the deep need to belong." (David Myers) How??

If it's not all about the money, then what is it all about???
Stay tuned for the concluding course of the series.
But first here's a side dish: Science on the Pedestal and  the next course: Individualism.