Unwavering Faith

At my work, I am able to consume audio content in large amounts and so I began listening to the debates and discussions that took place on the YouTube channel Jubilee, a show called Middle Ground.  Basically, a group got together that comprised of 6 individuals, 3 for the topic and 3 against it. They discussed every topic under the sun, from politics or religion to pro-life and pro-sex work. I found the conversations insightful, and it continued to prompt thoughts in my mind as to what truth was.  Much of what I was taught as truth I learned was really an interpretation of a perception of reality. In short, the truths I was taught were merely opinions. Like should a woman have an abortion. The church says no unless the circumstances are extreme. But why can’t the woman decide that for herself? Should men masturbate? The church says no unless you have a leader that thinks it is ok (Leadership Roulette is a real thing). But why can’t that be something a person decides to do? Is ...

I had many good friends growing up, both in New Zealand and in Australia. Some in the church, and some outside the church. One such friend, we would spend time mucking around on games, making movies, and hanging out at church.  As the years went on, we lost touch, reconnected, lost touch again and reconnected again. It was a friendship I enjoyed but sensed might have been changing. The last contact I had with him however left me with some unsure feelings. I remember we talked about his trip, and I noticed he had fresh tattoos. Now, in the church, the leaders made it clear that getting a tattoo was not encouraged and that our body should not be “defaced.” This was the strong language used during my upbringing; that the body was a temple, and would you graffiti the temple walls? It was brought to my attention that I was looking but not looking at his tattoos and I felt bad.  Years and years later, I lost contact with him and felt guilty that that was our last contact. I then saw...