SNOW SHIZZLE

This entry was written on 12-23-08

Have you ever gone snow-shoeing??

Well today I tried it for the first time

and I absolutely loved it!

I am at Cindy's parents home in Wausau, Wi

for the holiday. Gary, Cindy's dad, let me use

all of his gear and I got all bundled up for

snow-shoein' adventures and off we went!!

I really loved the time we had...

I had been working so much this

last week, I forgot I hadn't taken

any time for myself lately... woah.

Good thing to do!!

It

has

been

really

nice to

see Cindy...

what a blessing she is to my life.

I have been thinking a lot lately about how much she supports my sustained increase in faith (and I her, hopefully). It is lovely to have someone to bounce thing off of and see how your own thoughts sound. Some time we don't take the time we should to figure out how we are going to approach an idea or thought. I is nice to have someone there to be able to trust to talk too things about and see how they sound... Trust. I love that word. The funny thing is for me that word really means “someone who I can talk to as a total equal and doesn't see themselves as above my thought processes”. Of course the key there is “doesn't see themselves” even though they may be. Cindy often times really surprises me with the things she comes up with. Often times I find myself, cause most of our conversations are pretty free of ego, mesmerized at how she sees something and it helps me to gain a new perspective. Is that how my conversations should be with anyone?

The answer: YES!

And with

Baha'u'llah's

help I am striving

to work on that. So

all of you who have

normal interactions

with me, try to pick up

on it in our next conversation...

never know, I might just trust you

enough to let go and listen.............. :-)

I really love you all. Thanks for reading my thoughts.

Benjamin H.

Justice... ( This is from 4-23-08 I just didn't finish it till now...)

"...verily justice is my gift to thee and the sign of my loving kindness..."

-Baha'u'llah

There are so many times we see inJustice throughout our days.

One could get wrapped up in

their love for Justice that they

could begin to hate inJustice to

the point that they become angry

from its presence, because they don't

know how to deal with it, or they may

just flee not wanting the fear, anger, or

anxiety that can come from it's presence

in our lives.

I have seen people do this.

 I have done this.

I am learning to love inJustice.

Loving it the same way I love the dark.

Without knowing of its existence, I would never appreciate light to the same depth...

Baha'u'llah says to see the good in ALL things.

Wouldn't that include the negative?

And to simply agknowlage injustice

and mildly "appreciate" it's existence

may not be enough. It is a funny

relationship, cause although we

should work for it's abolishment

we can still love it for the perspective

that it offers.

Any thoughts on this anyone?

Service...

I love serving my family...

Today my brother and I went

and picked up some salt for my

Grandmothers water softener.

Also brought her a new chair my mom bought for her. Then

we helped her string up some christmas lights out side.

These simple acts of service I am called on to do for my family are like spiritual food for me. I wonder if they know that...

I

am

so

happy

that

God

made

us

to

feel

good,

no,

great

after

we

serve

others.

It's like a big fat spiritual sandwich.

I love it.

Oh, oh, oh--> THE BEST PART-

I said to my Grandmother

when leaving her house "now

come here and pay me for what

I've done for you with a big hug!"

And she just got all smiley and

happy and gave me a great hug!

I was so happy about that... It

made me feel so

c-o-n-n-e-c-t-e-d

to my family in a way that I

really

appreciated at that moment.

Peace.

NOW GO SERVE YOUR FAMILY AND SEE IF YOU FEEL IT TOO!!

Why thank you God...

When I was a child we said a blessing at my Great Grandma's home before every meal-

"Thank you God for all we eat and 

for this bread and for this meat. 

Help it make us strong and well, 

so of your love we may tell. Amen"

Two things-

1.) I just realized that it is a prayer for teaching. ALL THESE YEARS. Can you believe that? I never thought about it before I wrote this down... Maybe I should type out other prayers which I haven't yet found much meaning for by reading through it alone... 

2.) I have so much more to be thank full for than just that how could a prayer for thanks not include my recognition of God? Furthermore, to be honest this prayer would now be better amended to "and for this bread and for this tofu, temph, seitan, falafel, beans, nuts or other protein replacement product...". (note: I just ate a ruben on rye with temph instead of beef... my thoughts? -- 'Excellent!')

I have grown quite close to her. She has really taught me many new things. I am so happy for that, thankful too. I will visit some time soon. Hey blog, did I tell you? I found $199 flight to Ireland. I find that a blessing in and of itself. 

WOW.

Lots of blessings going on.

Earlier today I realized that I will be taking a lot of time to get more closely aquatinted with the guitar... Why not? Right? Any thoughts on what songs I should learn? 

Ponderings....

This calm morning as I was thinking about what moving on with life and utilizing action to a degree I have never known before means, I wrote this...

On the lazy path he calls intention creeps and old man 

who's back is soar from being unused. It is a long path 

who's obstacles and hurtles are too much for him to 

bear. He walks around them rather than surmount and 

exert life which he has not. He drinks from the stream 

which is nearest to him, rather than drink of the pure 

water which flows in the river along the path of action. 

He dies a lonely death.

What is beautiful though, is that the benefit 

of action smiles on anyone who is willing to 

vier off another path and walk it's loam. It 

surely will breath new life into whomever 

leaves his mark upon it's dust. For its vivifying 

waters are verily the fountain of youth! 

How long have so many wondered, searched, 

schemed and killed to find this spout bubbling 

from what they knew not came from the wellspring 

of exertion of pure and holy intent. 

You see, true intention is not a path, but 

rather stops along the way on the 

path of action, break points where 

one must access the value of their 

journey, eat their fill of the meal 

of motivation and purpose, only to 

utilize the energy gained from their 

contemplation to continue to set 

out on the path which is life indeed! 

All other paths, like the one our old 

man creeps along, are just marks 

between blades of grass which have 

been made by others in the past who 

have fallen off of the path of action.

It can be said, in my humble estimation, that walking any action, if spurred by motivation to perform an attribute of God, is the only thing that will bring more holy action. We continue to progress if we perform these. Performing them is the only way to “have” them. For what is a loving man if he sits alone and shows no love to himself by conversing with others, or show them love by the same action?

Verily action is the tree of true freedom if its roots are planted firm in the soil of the love of the Blessed Beauty.

Well... time to get to work!!

Praise and thanksgiving be unto Thee.

My brother...

I mention him because he is one of my many blessings.

This guy radiates love.

He knows nothing else.

I am so happy to know such a lover of God.

I saw him nap today with a grin on his face... who does that. Seriously!?

It is frustrating at times that I am his brother. I mean that in the way that I feel incompetent many times. None the less I must realize that I have been blessed and press on that I can be ever more ready to serve him.

I pray God guides me.

I pray.

Woah, This is an amazing into on the Arlington Baha'i Community Website.

I absolutely love it!

Check it out...

clipped from www.arlingtonbahai.org

Junior Youth Groups

Junior youth groups facilitated by trained youth “animators” help youth to develop their latent capabilities and contribute to meaningful service in the community. The groups engage in learning, socializing, arts, sports and service activities. Attention is given to enhancing their powers of expression, recognizing the moral issues underlying everyday decisions and the moral implications of their speech and actions, developing friendships, withstanding negative peer pressure, and building unity and enhancing global citizenship.

If you are interested in participating in a junior youth group your area, please contact us.

Isn't this totally useful?

I am convinced[PERIOD]




I'M OUT.

The Glory of God has officially BLESSED my new home.

I moved into a new place now.
I no longer am a resident of the
"Pasta House" in Minneapolis.
I moved 16 blocks south and am
awaiting the great day my brother
can join me at this awesome dwelling.

Yesterday my home was an
absolute cluster of messes and
mis organization... I brought a
great friend of mine over to see
the "space" and she agreed that
there was definitely "potential"...
But from what I gather, that is all
either of us saw...

:-/

So I:
1.) woke up today
2.) read some words of the BLESSED Perfection (oh that I could comprehend one line...)
3.) then started cleaning

I totally revamped a cluttered front porch into a space which was the eventual site of a beautiful gathering of souls this evening. Then as I had finished cleaning I wished I had someone to share it with...

:-(

But alas I didn't know of anyone who could come and visit, so I just decided to enjoy the fruits of my labors and sip some delicious coffee with milk, a little sugar, and some cinnamon (Celeste Finn taught me. It is a Godsent concoction, trust me!). As I sipped on the beautiful caffeinated wonder, I read the words of Plato (of all people, I know right?). I was very into what I was reading, as one does with such profound material... Even though, I took a moment to look up for some reason or another, maybe to ponder, maybe because my soul felt a twitch, who kno...

And there I saw them:
1.) Gretchen (my dear Baha'i friend I have known for many years)
2.) Brock (A brand new Baha'i in our community, and Gretchen's soon to be hubby)
3.) Rob (Brock's band mate and great friend)
4.) and Niko (a kid who seriously wowed me with his young [10 yr old] wisdom, which greatly transended his meager years.)

They were all passing by in Gretchen's car...

As they passed by I thought "surely they will stop by if I invite them!". So I call Gretchen and tell her to turn around if she can and they stop in and we have the first ever devotional at my new home!!!! Then we skip off to the Race Unity Day picnic (which was great)!

Later my sister and brother-in-law
come over to help me move some
more stuff, we get way more done
than I thought we would, then we
arranged my new living room...

At this time I am thinking "this is so splendid".

Then I text a ton of people- 10 show up

to:

1.) share music
2.) prayers
3.) have a deep discussion on the history of the Plans of our faith
4.) and so much more...

Wow.

I want to cry I am so happy... I am reflecting on my day as I write this and am realizing that all the things I was questioning prior are now unimportant. I know I am in the right place. Baha'u'llah is guiding me. I must continue to read from the Sacred text morn and eve, do my ablutions, my Obligatory prayer, and my 95 Alla'u'Abha's as well as "observe the ordinances of Him who is the Desire of the worlds" which are outside of the few I mentioned already.

I
was
so
happy
to have people come to my home
and truly leave it
in its new form;
a sanctified place.



Peter Kahn spoke in Canada not to long ago about how the ordinances of the Faith prescribe that a House of Worship have 9 sides, be only sung or spoken in (as opposed to other forms of music), should be a gift for the rest of humanity and so forth... When the Baha'is follow this formula, we have a "sanctified place" because we are following the laws of God in how we treat the space, what it is used for and the like.



Now, he goes on to speak about how
there is a prescribed way we are to
"use" our home. It should be used for
the work of the Cause (i.e. devotionals,
deepening, in the case you have them-
the rearing of children...). I am going to
bed knowing that the Faith was taught
in my home. That there were people who's
souls were genuinely uplifted, who sang
and made music in a spirit of

COMPLETE UNITY.

I felt ONENESS (that is deep kid...)
in my home and all I have to speak now is


Ya Baha'u'llabha!

I can say no more.

I must now finish with my night time reading and go to sleep that I may behold a new day (as time is fleeting) and work toward being able to serve it to my capacity.


Thanks Divine Essence!

Oh my dear blog...

How I've neglected thee...

Truth is, I only have like five minutes to write, but I figure what the heck...

Mountains of love swell in my chest when I study the Creative Word with determination. I was reading a talk by Peter Kahn last night and it was about 'Spirit' and how Baha'u'llah says it is infused into ALL created things.

It is a force that you attract by living according to the
Divine teachings... Just as the Houses of Worship
Derive much of their spiritual endowment from God
by the very fact that they are built in the prescribed
manner of His choosing, and it is used in the manner
He also chose.

And

just as those spiritual places radiate
the love of Baha'u'llah and help us to
find peace, so do we have the ability
to become individuals who radiate that
SAME love thus being individuals who
others can seek, others with a need for

peace.

Much love blog, i am now 2 minutes over my time...

Whoops.

Benjamin

justice...

"...verily justice is my gift to thee and the sign of my loving kindness..."

-Baha'u'llah 

There are so many times we see inJustice throughout our days.

One could get wrapped up in 

their love for Justice that they 

could begin to hate inJustice to

 the point that they become angry 

from its presence, because they don't 

know how to deal with it, or they may 

just flee not wanting the fear, anger, or 

anxiety that can come from it's presence 

in our lives. 

I have seen people do this. 

I have done this. 

I am learning to love in Justice. 

Loving it the same way I love the dark.

 Without knowing of its existence, I would never appreciate light to the same depth... 

Baha'u'llah says to see the good in ALL things. 

Wouldn't that include the negative? 

And to simply agknowlage injustice

and mildly "appreciate" it's existence 

may not be enough. It is a funny 

relationship, cause although we 

should work for it's abolishment 

we can still love it for the perspective 

that it offers. 

Any thoughts on this anyone?

Just realized- some of you that read my blog may not have seen this video from-

my youtube page.

So, HEEEERE you go!

The intro is a lil long winded, but I hope you enjoy it anyhow...

Peace.

5:28 am...

I wonder what today will bring...

Undoubtedly there will be placed in my path things to learn from,

guidance, assistance,

possibilities, opportunities,

obstacles, etc.

I wonder about all these things and how few I actually catch vs. what's really there...

huh.

I am excited to go see my Dad today. He is in the VA Hospital again...

I don't like telling people about my Dad and his sickness
and how bad he is doing at any given time... It is weird to
be told "we don't know if he will make it through the night"
or similar things, but every month or two having to hear
that gets a little more than weird. It seems intolerable...
I have a friend who has been dealing with these things
for much longer than I, she has so much patience...

But alas, I know I have been given everything
I need to cope, deal, succeed, and be just fine with it.

Thanks Baha'u'llah.




~me~

Another Wednesday, another noodle...

A few years back a couple of my good friends began a weekly get together for all people. Turned out to be a great place to socialize with neighbors, peers, co-workers, family and friends, as well as a great way to teach people about the Baha'i Faith! The creators found pasta was something they could both buy for a low price, as well as please a lot of mouths by keeping it a vegetarian menu.

The title of this would be auspicious endeavor?

'PASTA NIGHT'

(has a nice ring to it eh?)

simple.

direct.

concise.

Why do I bring it up?

(note: I knew you would ask!)

Well, this is a pretty fantastic time to bring it up actually! It is Wednesday.

----------- ----------- ------------ ------------ ----------- ------------- ------------- -------------

(please fold and tear your screen at the dotted line)

I just saw some kids getting off the
bus outside before I came upstairs
to write this, they are all Jr. Youth.
They were asking "Hey, when can
we come to Pasta Night?" there
were 8 of them! I was like "Dudes
and Dudettes! It's tonight!!
Come at 7pm!!". So that's pretty
sweet. Hopefully they all
wanna/can come...

Whateves, we keep that in Baha'u'llah's hands and keep on keepin' on.

That's just how we do.

detachment

(hopefully I have some left... scarce these days...)

So now it is time to tidy up what the last couple days of irresponsible living have reeked on our apt (as i look around it seems about 15 mins worth of work) and then it is time to go to the store, and come home to cook up some pasta!

Totally diggin' it.

Still.

Thanks only to the Dayspring of the morn of Reality.

Kickin' it at work...

I love my job...

I got here at 6:00 am and drank coffee and read a book (seinfeld)
till 7:48, which is when the first plane came in that I had to work on, or under to be precise.

Now I am blogging about it on my blackberry.

Why?

Well, I'll tell a why--

cause I have no work to do at the moment!

Oh! A plane just arived, see ya later blog.

*waves*

Benjamin

Phillips Jr. Youth Class #2

So. Katie and I began our adventures at one apt building today trying our hands at a Jr. Youth class...

There were only 2 of the 6 youth there today.

But, it was FANTASTIC. I LOVED IT.

The youth were so happy to learn out of the book, to read out loud to each other and practice articulation. It was blessed. We laughed together and talked about family, which is what the first lesson is inside of 'Breezes of Confirmation'.

We also sang 'O Lord, My God' with them... Awesome.

--overall--

Dope session. Can't wait to do it again.

Reflections on Teaching with Anna's Presentation II

Here we go.

Great time. Today Marjan and I went out for a couple of hours, and although we did encounter an individual who was hurt and angry by life, the next substantial meeting with a man in a park was AWESOME. He was Native American and talked about how he just is kinda "neutral" on religious stuff. We talked with him in a great conversation for a while, in which he invited us to a pow-wow (sweeeet), and then Marjan delivered Anna's Presentation.

I love watching someone
else do this presentation.
It is so amazing to see someone
else teach about the Baha'i
Faith. Cause you know how
you would do it if it was you,
but to see someone else
get really into it is so great!

--Random thought--

I love the idea of the "medicine wheel" in Native culture. To me I like to think of it as the bringing together of all the colors and cultures of people into one "hoop", one way that will heal the world (maybe one universal cause, one common faith?)

Back to teaching...

So, now I have a POW-WOW
(its about 1/3 of the way down
on the link page)to
attend on the 10th and 11th!!!
So excited! SOO excited! Maybe
at the event we will meet some
folks to talk about the Faith too,
or just experience their culture
with them. He was so inviting
and said it was for all people...
Awesome.

Later we went to Pouderhorn Park at like 36th st and 13th Ave. It was cool, we saw one of Marjan's old classmates who she got to re-connect with and a bunch of kids she was with that were showing us how to dance to "Soldier Boy". What is it with kids and this song? We need to get them some different Hip Hop. NOW.

Oh, and we sat to a man who spoke Amharic, so he wasn't down to chat because of the barrier of language. I asked him if he knew of Baha'u'llah, and he said he was from Ethiopia. Then I said the name of the Jesus, then the Prophet Mohammad, then Baha'u'llah, and he just shrugged like "I don't know what you mean". But we could agree that it was a glorious day, and Marjan and I were on our way...

Then we finished up with some lovely snacks from a local Dairy Queen.

---------------------------

Marjan always likes to say the Tablet of Ahmad before we go teaching... Amazing prayer! I love that...

It is such a powerful prayer... Such a great way to remember to allow people to accept or reject what you offer, and leave it at that...

Phillips Jr youth class #1

Beginning a Jr Youth class is amazing. It can be so intimidating, but once action takes place, the momentum is really driving.

A friend and I just had the bounty of helping to start a new Jr. Youth class in Minneapolis in the Phillips neighborhood. How fun. Seriously!

We met with the parents last week and they were all excited. We taught them a lil about the Baha'i Faith, they all seemed relatively interested, and signed all the kids up.

Total kids- 6
Total time-7wks (pilot project)
Ages-7, 10, 10, 10, 10, 15 (admittedly some a lil young, but it's all good.)

If you or anyone you know would want to help with this Jr Youth class after the 7 wk pilot project is finished, CONTACT ME!!!

Yeah, so then tonight Katie and I went there for planing and ended up talking to 3 parents and a grandparent of the kids, overall, good planning session. I am going to put a prayer for parents to music and also find some recycling center in the TC's and see about getting a tour arranged for the kids. Katie is going to see if a there are any exhibits in the area talking about recycling. We will descuss with the kids tomorrow if they want to use recycling as their main project or not.

Here we to!

Reflections on Teaching with Anna's Presentation I

Today Marjan and I went to North Minneapolis to see if there were any receptive places there, where people would want to hear about the Baha'i faith. Not really "door knocking" just talkin' to folks on the street.

Things I learned:

I think that if I am sitting while the other person
with me is standing doing the presentation, that I
am much more inclined to just focus on being
present, saying a prayer in my heart for the situation,
and just be supportive in that way (which we have
found to be a great way to support the other person
delivering the presentation so you don't "kill the flow"
for them)

I am intimidated to walk around a mostly black community, but was much more relaxed once we were doing it.

It really helps to be WITH a friend and not be on your own so that you have that "support"; that person to reflect with each time.

When you say "Can I share more about
the Baha'i Faith with you?" you end up
feeling so much more alive, so much more
motivated, when those words have crossed
your lips. "It is in their hands now" Marjan
said.

Teaching the faith with someone you have diversity with in any way racially, sex, or age can really help, because, my thinking is, that the benefit derives from being able to touch more people. That is to say, if two white, 25 yr old, females go to teach, they may find in this theory, that if one of them was of a different race or gender or just 10 yrs older or younger, they would have more to share with more people in way of "relation"- until it is fully understood in the conversation that we are all human and in that there is enough...

-end of learning so far-

Just wanted to pause to write some things that I am curious about.

I am first curious to go up to someone and after having introduced my self and friend(s) saying "HEY! Have you heard about the Baha'i Faith yet?" only, in a genuinely energetic and inspired way! Why wouldn't I be excited? I mean, if this is the Day of God, how are you going to deliver this to people, a dry quiet "here ya go..." or are you going to be more successful being a vibrant soul? I think I would be more inclined to believe that being a "vibrant soul" (which by the way I just realized having that on a t shirt while teaching would ROCK MY SOCKS OFF!!) while teaching is a far better way...

In the Kitáb-i-Aqdas, Baha'u'llah states:

"Consort ye then with the followers of all religions, and proclaim ye the Cause of your Lord, the Most Compassionate; this is the very crown of deeds, if ye be of them who understand."

I am so happy to have been a part of that in some small way... And feel so blessed that I am even able to try!

Thanks, O Divine Source of Inspiration!

Nice to meet you!

I just met an elderly Baha'i couple yesterday... Amazing couple... Amazing.

Heres the scoop:

The husband (2 months older than his wifes father...) found that his would-be-bride's parents would not give them consent due to his being 25 years older than her. He finally won their confidence when he promised them he would take care of her his entire life and that he would see to it that she wasn't left alone. The parents then consented, putting their faith in a man who was older than they, to now take care of their only daughter.

The man soon altered his diet to include only organically grown foods. In conjunction with his diet, his rigorous exercise played a large part in his being told by his DOCTOR at 65 that he had the body of an 18 yr old guy!

His wife and him soon had three wonderful children who would grow up to serve this beloved Cause in three very diverse capacities. His wife would get very ill around her 55th year and begin to need personal care every day. He learned how to do all of this and was her aid in her time of great sickness. She was expected only to decline. Would she? No. He waited on her hand and foot until she became better.

He is now 94 while she is soon celebrating her 70th birthday.

These two were just graced with the blessing of moving to a beautiful assisted living home which looks out over a large lake. I saw them when they first walked in. They had never seen it before. It had after all been arranged by their daughter because they were both to sick to go and see it for themselves prior to their move. I never saw two people seem to feel so blessed, but owning the detachment that if it was all taken from them tomorrow they would still shine that "blessed" feeling. They just love. They see the great in everything.

She told me stories of when she was younger having traveled to Haifa to the Baha'i World Congress and sharing a cab with some of the Afnan (family of the Bab, the forerunner of Baha'u'llah who is the Prophet-Founder of the Baha'i Faith). She spoke of her children and all the great things they had done. She spoke of her blessing at having such a kind and caring husband who she feels so happy to watch over, now that he needs some watching over as well.

Both saints in each others lives and in the world.

Indeed this Institution of Marriage that they created really did serve humanity.

I love it.

-END OF TRANSMISSION-

home sick...

Meh, being home sick from work is cool...

(note: tons of sweet links at end of post!!)

It's like a free day that you would have never expected, with all it's usual drawbacks and/or limitations of

1. being sick
2. not going out so as not to infect others
3. not going out so as not to get worse
4. being more lethargic than usual
5. having really yellow pee cause of all the extra vitamin C you are taking

Wait. Is that last one a limitation or drawback... *thinks*

Anyhow, here are all the things you can do that are not normally acceptable when you are well... generally speaking of course

• waisting your time reading fun crap
• walking on tip toes in ur kitchen seeing the world from a different perspective (amazing)
• laying around watching all the crap movies
  
• downloading podcasts
  
• blowing spit bubbles...
  
• calling random 1-800 #'s

(secret: I actually wrote this whole blog post based on about 5 minutes walking around in my kitchen on my tip toes and it was AWESOME! Seriously, try it. You will like it!)

Sweet. I know you are going to try this.

Other things you could do while sick (with some helpful links!)

1. reaserch world records and break one!!
2. organize your entire junk drawer!!
3. read OLD blog entries of people you never would have before!!
4. make a collage!!
5. make fun, fast food creations (but remember you ARE sick already)!!
6. take even more vitamin C and see if your pee can turn nuclear.

Basically,

remember that today is your day!

You are sick!

Take a moment to be completely random and have fun, after all, happiness heals!

And then the Master penned these words...

"Oh! that I could travel, even though on foot and in the utmost poverty, to these regions and raising the call of Ya Baha'u'l-Abha in cities, villages, mountains, deserts, and oceans, promote the Divine Teachings! This, alas, I cannot do! How intensely I deplore it! Please God, ye may achieve it."

--America and the Most Great Peace, p. 78 [part of The World Order of Bahá'u'lláh]

Before I start I am going to read this one last time... *reads again from the words above*

`Abdu'l-Bahá wrote these words when speaking to the American Baha'is about traveling around the globe...

totally awesome.

[AND WHAT'S MORE IS...]

Much more historically significant?

THIS:

---->what was said before and after this statement<----

Here is the statement in its entirety-

"The hope which `Abdu'l-Bahá cherishes for you," He thus urges them, "is that the same success which has attended your efforts in America may crown your endeavors in other parts of the world, that through you the fame of the Cause of God may be diffused throughout the East and the West and the advent of the Kingdom of the Lord of Hosts be proclaimed in all the five continents of the globe... Thus far ye have been untiring in your labors. Let your exertions, henceforth, increase a thousandfold. Summon the people in these countries, capitals, islands, assemblies and churches to enter the Abhá Kingdom. The scope of your exertions must needs be extended. The wider its range, the more striking will be the evidences of Divine assistance... Oh! that I could travel, even though on foot and in the utmost poverty, to these regions and, raising the call of Yá Bahá'u'l-Abhá in cities, villages, mountains, deserts and oceans, promote the Divine teachings! This, alas, I cannot do! How intensely I deplore it! Please God, ye may achieve it." And finally, as if to crown all His previous utterances, is this solemn affirmation embodying His Vision of America's spiritual destiny: "The moment this Divine Message is carried forward by the American believers from the shores of America and is propagated through the continents of Europe, of Asia, of Africa and of Australasia, and as far as the islands of the Pacific, this community will find itself securely established upon the throne of an everlasting dominion. Then will all the peoples of the world witness that this community is spiritually illumined and divinely guided. Then will the whole earth resound with the praises of its majesty and greatness."

(All italics, bolding and enlargements of words was my own emphasis)

All of the things I bolded, were so amazing, cause the American Baha'i community of the PAST (before most of us were alive) DID these things FOR US!

IT WAS they WHO were the "Knights of Bahá'u'lláh"

THEY were the great number of Baha'i "Pilgrims" who were charged with GREAT TASK that `Abdu'l-Bahá layed down for them!

That's SOOOOOO cool that they did that!

and now,

if you look at it historically, WE, THE CURRENT AMERICAN BAHA'I COMMUNITY are now reaping the benifits and rewards of all that
Great work!

AND!!!

Now, at the end of the statement the Master says- "Then will all the peoples of the world witness that this community is spiritually illumined and divinely guided. Then will the whole earth resound with the praises of its majesty and greatness."


YO! "this community" is us! We are now on the other side of the hurtle of spreading the Cause to all the regions of the world! How cool is that!?!

NOW.

Q. What do we do?

A. Well, exactly what Bahá'u'lláh, blessed is His name, would have us do!

THE FIRST STEP WAS to keep the fire of the faith going in the land of its birth and surrounding areas [DONE.]

THE SECOND STEP WAS to spread the teachings to the west that with their freedom and ability they could teach freely to the rest of the world. [DONE.]

THE THIRD STEP WAS for those souls in the west TO SPREAD THE CAUSE of GOD throughout the world to where? everywhere, cause Bahá'u'lláh, blessed is His name, said that without the Baha'i faith being universal, that it would NEVER succeed. So this HAD to happen. [DONE.]

THE FORTH STEP WAS to create an institute course that would be able to reach millions of people, did I say millions, cause I meant billions! [DONE.]

LASTLY FOR NOW...

THE FIFTH STEP IS implementing the institute on a local level so we can have growing Baha'i communities which will be able to soon grow in their strength!!!!!

peep this

"The elements required for a concerted effort to infuse the diverse regions of the world with the spirit of Baha'u'llah's Revelation have crystallized into a framework for action that now needs only to be exploited."

(Universal House of Justice- 27 December, 2008)

the Baha'i Faith is growing fast. it will only get faster.

Yo!

Back to my original point (now that you are back from our little journey) THIS IS WHAT THE MASTER IS REFERRING TO at the end of the statement, the work we are doing RIGHT now!



The courage and audacity that the Baha'i community is
showing by going out and serving our communities, the
likes of which (yes even here in Minneapolis, MN) the
world has never seen.

We are teaching with a new vigor, we have learned
to connect with Baha'u'llah, blessed is His name,at such
a level that we are doing thing so praiseworthy that the entire world is slowly, and more recently quickly,
recognizing!

AAAHHHHHH! THis is it! we are so close to


THE Most Great Peace YOU can taste it in the


like the tantalizing scent of a rain


storm soon setting in!

let it rain.

You guys! Yesterday there
were Baha'is giving a speech
at THE U OF M about the
Faith to many people!

(IT GOES WITHOUT SAYING OUR BAHA'I BROTHERS AND SISTERS IN

OPPRESSED
NATIONS

WOULD GIVE ANYTHING TO DO THAT IN THEIR NATIONS, and indeed they have AND ARE!)

Today a jr youth group was started in Minneapolis! As a result 5 more jr youth (at least) are going to learn what it is to live a life of service.

thats peace.



There are already many children AND parents learning about Baha'u'llah, blessed is His name, each week right here, that don't even live in Baha'i homes. I was a part of this community when it was once the common perception that we didn't know how the heck any of this would/could happen! Now it is happening...

REMEMBER this:

"It is always harder to see greatness when you are in the midst of it and it is all that surrounds you, than when you are at a distance." ~me

Let us be greatful we are in it's midst!!

Let us CELEBRATE!

[ S E R I O U S L Y ]

Seeds have been planted for years... it is time for us to harvest what rightfully belongs to Baha'u'llah, blessed is His name,; the "cities of the hearts of men"!!!!!

be there the end
of may for our next IPG

Do they EVEN know...

Do they even know that they are the ones who inspire me? Do they know that their actions are a huge part of the impetus for my progressions through actions?

Could you imagine living 160 years later than a manifestation of God and finding out you are related by blood to the first few believers in His Cause?

Now peep this, on a much deeper level what if you were to understand through the writings of the core of your faith that you were a direct SPIRITUAL decedent of courage gifted souls, souls who's very breaths were breathed that they may speak to another about the Greatness of the Day in which they live, ones who would overcome the most weighty of obstacles and torturing that their Beloved Cause may see another day, the ones who had the complete and total honor of being called 'Dawnbreakers'!?! Because if "reality" is actually very much spiritual and not physical, wouldn't a "spiritual dependence" be far more deep, far more impressive, far more part of your soul and what makes up who you REALLY are?

Well, yeah, that happened.

And you are what makes up the world around me. The closest people to me in my life. My dearest friends. I see you act, I see you move, I see you change for the better, I witness you being Spiritual Decendents of those amazing Dawnbreakers, and it touches me. It not only touches me but is, as I said before, part of the impetus for positive change and movement in my life. What more inspiration do I need than you? Why would I ask for any more? You don't know that I look up to you, perhaps because I haven't cared to give anyone that burden, but I say it here cause I feel you should know.

Your collective attributes resembles what some call God. I see beauty in your individual dedications to whatever it is that you dedicate yourself, your time and your lives too. I have been told that sometimes when I am this straight forward with people, even close friends, that it can make people shy away, that maybe it is TOO sincere. Thus I write this on my blog. You can skim over it, know I am talking about you, and leave it at that, or you can comment about this, or give me a call. Doesn't matter to me in the slightest, I just wanted you all to know this about how I feel for you.

MUCH love my BeLOVEd Friends!

Benjamin

An ever advancing civilization?

My thoughts on this are that I feel we need to understand that our world right now is still a "group" of people trying to get to the final stages of group dynamics when we can finally (only then) begin the process that will lead to world peace; it's just bigger than any other group that humanity has ever witnessed, thats all... No pressure.

It is found in group dynamics that there are certain levels of collective levels of "understanding" that take place, one of these earlier phases is "storming". The gloom and doom that news usually preaches is only their mistaken understanding of a process that our world will inevitably pass through on our way to eventual (more importantly, inevitable) peace.

This insightful wiki article explains the process quite nicely... in the second paragraph under "Storming" it states: "In some cases storming can be resolved quickly. In others, the team never leaves this stage. The maturity of some team members usually determines whether the team will ever move out of this stage. Immature team members will begin acting out to demonstrate how much they know and convince others that their ideas are correct. Some team members will focus on minutiae to evade real issues"

Isn't that a statement of what our world is going through? My point isn't to just call people immature and leave it at that, no, quite the contrary... This is a NECESSARY phase, we must realize this, and immature action is a characterizing feature of it. When we inevitably move to the next phases, those immature actions (or in most cases: immature re-actions) will be turned into informed decisions which then will fuel further action!

Beautiful!

In the words of Garth from 'Waynes World': "It's almost tooo easy!"

Love you all, and thanks again inspiration stop