The Debacle

Our Downward Trip from Paradise into the Valley of Tears

Like foolish children, Adam and Eve ran away from their home with God in paradise and took us with them into the Valley of Tears. The Valley of Tears is not a nice place.

To induce us to exit Eden and enter the Valley of Tears, the serpent sugarcoated the Valley of Tears with the illusion of deification - that we would become gods without God there (Genesis 3:5). The sugarcoating appealed to our sweet tooth. The promise of the power of God drew us away from God in paradise and into the godlessness of the Valley of Tears. The sugarcoating that the serpent poured over the sour truth of the Valley of Tears distorted our perception of reality. Rationality steers the ship. The truth is the fuel of our rationality. When fueled by the the truth, our rationality steers us in the right direction. When the fuel of truth is fouled by illusion, our rationality leads us astray (John 8:44).  

 
Featured
Stewing in the Evils of the Valley of Tears makes firm our Grip on the Gift of Paradise
Stewing in the Evils of the Valley of Tears makes firm our Grip on the Gift of Paradise
Read More →
Stewing in the evils of the valley of Tears Defangs the Serpent
Stewing in the evils of the valley of Tears Defangs the Serpent
Read More →
The Gift of Paradise
The Gift of Paradise

Is the problem that God is trying to solve us getting the gift of paradise or us keeping it? What does the evidence tell us?

Read More →
Cognitive Reorganization
Cognitive Reorganization

Instead of trying to reorganize God’s thinking around our plan for ourselves, is it possible to reorganize our thinking around God’s plan for us? Can we pivot around God instead of trying to get God to pivot around us? Can we regroup and sally forth into the Valley of Tears with an understanding of what God wants us to do not what we want done?

Read More →
God's Rescue Plan Boils Down to Putting Us in Intimate Contact With The Truth
God's Rescue Plan Boils Down to Putting Us in Intimate Contact With The Truth

“And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:32). Intimate contact with the truth is the means by which God is trying to save us. Illusions distort our perception of reality. Intimacy with the truth - both the sour truth and the sweet truth - shatters the illusions that distort our perception pf reality.

Read More →
What is the solution to the “bitterness” problem?
What is the solution to the “bitterness” problem?

Our solution to the problem of bitterness is different than God’s solution. We want God to remove the bitterness from the Valley of Tears or to remove us from the bitterness. God is of a different opinion (John 17:15). God wants us to dilute the bitterness of the Valley of Tears with love as sugar cubes dilute the bitterness of a cup of bad coffee. Only by loving do we fill the earth with the knowledge of God as the waters cover the sea (Isaiah 11:9) (Habakkuk 2:14).

Read More →
Don't tell us what you found; show us where to look
Don't tell us what you found; show us where to look

Don’t tell us what you found; show us where to look. Let us discover what you found for ourselves.

Read More →
God wants us to dilute the Bitterness of the Valley of Tears with the Sweetness of Love
God wants us to dilute the Bitterness of the Valley of Tears with the Sweetness of Love

God wants us to pour the sweet syrup of love into the bitterness of the Valley of Tears. Our perception of the solution to our dire predicament in the Valley of Tears is different than God’s. We want him to remove the bitterness. He wants us to dilute it. There is a difference in opinions. His prevails.

Read More →