Redeeming Life Archives - Page 11 of 31

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In the last decade, I have published over 2 million words on this blog, and I am glad that you have found some of these words to be helpful and encouraging in your own relationship with Jesus.

It is a privilege to write about something I am passionate about, which is helping people see that they caFn have a personal relationship with God without the manipulation, control, guilt, fear, and shame that is central to all religious systems.

But I have recently encountered a big problem on this blog: Blogging starts to get expensive. Very expensive.

Running this blog is expensive

Blogging, like anything else in the world, costs money to do it right.

As my blog has grown, it has also become more expensive to run. When I first started blogging, it cost me about $100 a year to run this blog. That expense was worth it for me.

But within the last year or two, as my blog readership has exploded, so have my expenses. This month, people will read about 250,000 articles on my blog. I am thrilled with the impact this blog is making in the world!

But it is also costing me over $400 a month (about $5000 annually) to keep the blog up and running.

Why does blogging cost so much?

There are “free” or “low cost” ways of blogging (for less than $100 per year). While I used to use these methods, they often crashed under the weight of my readership, and so I have had to steadily upgrade to better web hosting, email service (for my email newsletter), and podcast hosting (for my podcast) so that my site doesn’t crash.

This is a good problem to have because it shows that this blog is helping millions of people around the world each and every year.

I get emails every day from people in various countries who have been helped by the content of this blog. Many of them struggle under the bondage of religion, have questions about the character of God, and desperately need help about how to understand Scripture in light of Jesus Christ. They write to me from all over the world telling me how thankful they are to have found my blog. This blog and my writings are helping liberate thousands of people every month from the shackles of religion so they can enter into the genuine relationship with God they have always desired.

I know that you might have been encouraged by this blog as well.

So I want to do whatever I can to keep my blog up and running.

The problem, however, is that the costs are becoming unsustainable.

While I love blogging and writing to encourage others, the costs are getting to the point where I simply cannot afford it, and I am not sure what to do.

To help defray the cost of blogging, I have tried various things.

I have tried using affiliate links, writing books, and selling advertising.

While each one of these activities brings in a little bit of money each month, they do not even come close to covering the total cost of running this blog.

Monthly Costs:	Monthly Income
$150 – Domain and Hosting	$15 – Book Sales
$40 – Podcast Hosting	$60 – Advertising
$100 – Membership Area	$90 – Membership Income
$70 – Email Newsletter
$80 – Miscellaneous
Total: $440	Total: $165

As you can see, the domain name registration and hosting fees are the largest expense. I have numerous blogs, and (as explained above) I have too many readers to go with entry-level hosting (a good problem to have). Also, I cannot host my podcast files on my site, because the number of downloads I receive would crash my blog. The Membership area expenses include the software and shopping cart features I use to create a secure members-only area on my website. I use an email service to send out my email newsletter and keep track of all the thousands of subscribers. The miscellaneous item includes one-time fees for things like book design and publishing expenses, and software or equipment upgrades.

So altogether, I have about $440 in monthly expenses and $165 in monthly income.

So, I need your help.

I have already cut costs everywhere I can without causing this website to crash, which means I have to find new ways to cover the costs of blogging. Here are my only options:

Accept Donations
Put new blog content in a members-only area and charge a small monthly fee for access.
Make weekly or monthly pleas for people to buy my books so that the blog content can remain free.
Close down this site and cancel the podcast.

Obviously, option 4 is out of the question. I am going with Option 1 and Option 2. Let me tell you about Option 2 first.

Option 2: Membership Area

I recently started a Members-Only area of the website. There is a Free Member’s area (the “Faith” Membership level) which grants you access to all sorts of free eBooks, online theology lessons, and audio downloads.

But the real benefit comes in the Paid Membership levels, which is the “Hope” and “Love” Membership levels. These levels help support the work I am doing here at RedeemingGod.com, but also provide you with numerous benefits as well. I want to thank those who support my work, and so these membership levels provide a way for me to do this.

Among these benefits are more free eBooks and free online theology courses. More benefits and courses are coming soon. Go here to become a Member of RedeemingGod.com.

Nevertheless, some people just want to give and do not care too much about receiving the extra benefits of membership. If so, you can make a donation below…

Option 1: Accepting Donations

While I am not a non-profit organization (I am not a 501c3), I have decided to accept financial gifts from those who appreciate how my writing has helped them gain a clearer picture of God and a deeper understanding of how to follow Jesus outside of religion, and who want this same message to continue to be freely offered to others.

I am not asking for donations to cover the time I spend on this blog. I put my blood, sweat, and tears into this blog because I am passionate about showing people a way to break free from the shackles of religion and see God in a whole new light.

Yet I am happy to accept your help in covering the growing expenses of this work.

So if you believe in the impact my blog and podcast are having on others around the world and you would like to partner with me to keep it going, I would greatly appreciate any support you can provide below.

A monthly gift of $10 or $20 would be of great help, or a one-time gift of $50 or $100. Please note that since I do not have 501(c)(3) non-profit status, these gifts are not tax deductible. (I looked into becoming a 501(c)(3), but it would cost even more money I do not have…)

If you benefit from this blog, know that it also benefits thousands of others around the world every single day. But since it is not free to run this blog, would you please consider how you can support this site?

Thanks for reading, and for partnering with me in any way you can. You can make a one-time or a monthly gift through the form below.

Help RedeemingGod.com
Liberate People from Religion

Your support helps over 250,000 people each month discover the love of God
and find freedom from the shackles of religion.

Make a Monthly Gift

One-Time Gift

*All donations are processed through the secure Redeeming Press credit card processing company.

So far, I’m not using drugs

By Sam Riviera

2 Comments

Below is the third letter in the series, “Letters To Dad.” They are written by Sam Riviera, and are based on the true stories of people he actually knows in real life.

Dad,

At least that’s what I’ve called you the last few years. You’ll probably be the only person I’ll ever call dad, even though you were my foster dad. According to grandma, if my mom knows who my real dad is she’s never said. She probably doesn’t know. Grandma says mom was strung out most of the time around the time she got pregnant with me so who knows who my real dad is. I’ll probably never know.

Grandma says it’s a wonder I ain’t in prison or some institution. All the meth mom was using when she was pregnant with me shoulda fried my brain. Well, I didn’t do great in school and spent a lot of time in the counselors office, but I’ve managed to stay out of jail. So far…

You told me I could go live with grandma or some other relative. That isn’t happening. No one wants me or has space for me. Grandma thinks I should be able to find a job. I’ve tried, but they tell me I don’t have any experience and they’re looking for people with experience. How much experience do you need to wipe off tables and take out the garbage?

I think grandma’s afraid she’ll have to support me. She barely gets by on her Social Security check and her landlord is threatening to raise her rent. She says she can’t pay more and doesn’t know where she can find another place for what she can afford, so she can’t have another mouth to feed and a big guy like me must eat a lot.

There’s this place for homeless and runaway kids where I can get a hot meal every night. They have showers and used clothes and a few other things. I got a backpack and I’m hoping for a sleeping bag. There’s a place I sleep up under a freeway bridge behind some bushes. It keeps me dry when it rains.

I was trying to sleep on the street, but it’s too dangerous. I couldn’t find anyone to hang with and you can’t sleep on the street alone. You’ll get kicked in the head when you’re trying to sleep and they take your stuff. You can’t get any sleep.

A guy I know down there said there was a shooting on the other side of the street last Saturday. Ten cop cars showed up. They ran everyone off the block and took what you couldn’t carry. The next night there was a stabbing in the alley around the corner. Some guy died. More cops. This stuff doesn’t even make the news. Like anyone cares when a homeless person gets murdered. Bad for the tourist business. Pretend it doesn’t happen. We’re not real people.

I guess I understand. The foster kid checks you got for me stopped when I aged out of the system. You have other kids and your job doesn’t pay much. You said it’s time for me to make it on my own. So far that looks like dinner at the homeless kids place, sleeping under a bridge, and hoping I won’t get stabbed. I’m trying to follow up with several places that are supposed to help people like me, but they really don’t have any place for me to live or work.

So far, I’m not using drugs. I don’t have money and I’m not selling my body or dealing for the privilege of getting messed up by drugs. You don’t know what it’s like down here. It’s a lot more messed up than you know. There are a few people who care, but they don’t have a place for me to get off the street. The system is totally messed up. Guess I’m luckier than most. So far…

Tony

Letters to Dad

By Sam Riviera

5 Comments

Sam Riviera is a frequent and popular contributor to this blog. Many of his posts on loving your neighbors and ministering to the homeless are consistently among the most popular articles on this blog. As I type these very words, one of his articles about homeless people has received several thousand pageviews in just two days.

Based on his many years of friendship with lots of homeless people in San Diego, Sam Riviera has learned the stories of several of them, and, with their permission, is writing their stories in the form of letters to their dads. These are the letters that they might have written to their dads.

Below is a brief explanation of the purpose of these letters, and some links to resources for you to learn more and get involved.

What is the purpose of writing the Letters to Dad?

First of all, hopefully they will open the eyes of parents who are considering throwing out or abandoning their kids. Many parents do not know what life on the streets is going to be like for their kids. These letters will let them know.

Many of these children will survive by selling their bodies.

Many will become thieves.

Many will become addicts.

Some will never make it off the streets alive.

Secondly, hopefully they will open the eyes of those who follow Jesus to what is happening across America to homeless and runaway teens.

Can we allow this to continue?

Why are there so few temporary and even fewer long-term beds (shelters) for these kids? (The kids usually are not safe in adult shelters.)

Do we have anything to say to “Christian” parents who are about to or already have thrown out their kids because they’re gay, on drugs, having sex or doing other things the parents do not accept?

Religion and the Homeless

One tragic thing to note is that there is a significant relationship between religion and the homeless, runaway kids.

Conservative Christian parents tend to throw out kids who go against their religious beliefs. Often the kids run away before their parents figure out the kid is gay, pregnant, using, a thief, etc. The kids are often afraid of how their parents will react. Sometimes they’re embarrassed or ashamed. Almost always they don’t want to talk to their parents about the “problem.”

If You Are a Parent…

This series of letters is not intended to pile guilt on the parents of troubled teens. Instead, they hopefully serve as a reminder for all parents to:

Tell your children often that you will always love them, no matter what, and that they can always come to you with anything.
Do not judge the homeless person or drug addict we pass on the street. Some of them lived through hell at home before entering into the hell on the streets.

The Goal of this Series

I would love it if the series could open up the conversation nationwide and send kids and parents to those organizations that can help, regardless of where they are at in the continuum the letters will describe.

I would also love it if the series would result in more beds available nationwide for homeless and runaway kids in our country.

We believe in this cause, and have made provisions in our trust to fund homeless and runaway teen programs, especially those with dedicated beds. Maybe this series of letters will encourage others to do the same.

A List of all the “Letters to Dad”

More Resources about Troubled Teens

Although statistics vary, and probably no one knows the exact number of runaway and homeless youth in the USA who are living in the streets, alleys, canyons, beaches, parks, under bridges and any other place they can find, almost everyone agrees there are at least one million homeless and runaway kids in our country. This number does not include those who are “couch surfing”, living temporarily with friends.

The purpose of the “Letters to Dad” series is to tell the stories of a cross-section of these kids. Why are they homeless? Where are they sleeping? How are they surviving? What happens to them when they’re homeless? Why are they invisible to many of us? How can we help them survive and ultimately get off the street?

Below you will find links to numerous sites that give statistics and information about homeless and runaway youth, including programs that provide services to these kids. You may not agree with some of the beliefs shared on these links. We do not agree with all of them. They are here for your information. Explore them and use the information and resources you find useful.

We will continue to add more links to information and resources as the series continues. If you are aware of sites with information or resource for homeless and runway youth, post the links in a comment on any of the “Letters to Dad.” We will review the sites and add the most helpful ones to the links below.

Some of these sites are Christian. Some are not. While we have reviewed each site, we have not read all of the thousands of posts and articles that can be accessed through these links. We cannot attest to the accuracy of the statistics these sites report. Remember, some of the information is statistical, based on the statistics gathered by that site. Some of the information is based on experience, interviews and opinion.

Statistics vary by location and when the statistics were gathered. At least one runaway and homeless teen program of which we are aware, for example, reports that their group usually consists of about 10% LGBTQ teens, while another program in another city reports that their group is usually about 60% LGBTQ. Gender, age, economic background, race and many other demographics vary widely in the homeless and runaway youth population, and vary by program and location. What do these kids have in common? They are trying to survive in difficult circumstances. Most of them do not have a place they can call home.

Links about Homelessness in America

Information about Homeless Foster Youth Who Have Aged Out of the System

Facts about LGBT Homeless Youth and Related LGBT Resources

Salvation is Like a Seven-Foot Invisible Rabbit

By Jeremy Myers

18 Comments

This is a guest post by Peter Rouzaud. Peter recently started reading this blog, and then later discovered that he and I live in the same town! So we met for coffee and he shared with me some of his articles he has written. Below is one of these articles.Peter has also written a book called Finding Perfect Peace which can be found on Amazon.

Have you ever seen the movie “Harvey“?

It’s a great old movie, staring Jimmy Stewart. Stewart plays Elwood P. Dowd, an eccentric whose good friend is a seven-foot rabbit that talks. The only problem is that Dowd is the only one that can see or hear his friend Harvey. Understandably, this creates lots of problems for Dowd.

Now just imagine if this were possible: Imagine that you had a friend that no one could see, no one else could hear, yet whom you could see and hear perfectly. How would this make you feel? Among other feelings, I think it would make you feel special. But you would certainly have trouble communicating to others who and what your friend was.

This, I think, is a great example of ‘faith in Christ.’ No matter what I say about Him. No matter how passionate I am in my explanations, it is impossible for me to adequately describe who Jesus is to me. I may say to you, “Jesus told me something today’. Or, “Jesus is helping me in this way today.” Or, “Jesus did something very great in my life today.”

If you grew up in the church, you might understand what I mean. On the other hand, you might look at me as if I said that Harvey the seven-foot rabbit did and said all these things.

Each of us have experiences with Jesus that make sense to us, but which are difficult, if not impossible, to explain to other people. But this does not mean our experience with Jesus is a figment of our imagination.

Spiritual Experiences and the Christian

Before I go on, let me say that I am not advocating or promoting purely unsubstantiated, subjective experiences. Every religion has it’s esoteric experiences. Voodoo has its emotional trances. Mormonism has its ‘burning in the bosom.’ Pentecostalism has its tongues and prophetic utterances. All these use such experiences to claim legitimacy and to validate the “faithful.” But this is not what I am talking about.

Neither am I saying that ‘all personal experiences are somehow OK and right for the individual and we should not judge others experiences; because they are just as legitimate as our own.’

No, what I am saying is that God can give you an experience that is unique to you, and He can give me an experience that is unique to me. And just as I have to trust my experience, you have to trust your own! And just as neither one of us can fully understand or share the experience of the other, so also, neither one of us can directly challenge or invalidate the experience of the other.

A Validation of Your Experience with God

Here are some thoughts which validate your unique experience with God:

It’s is impossible for God to lie (Num 23:19)
God said that if you seek Him with your ‘whole’ heart you would find Him (Prov. 2:1-10)
Jesus said that God wants us to worship Him is Spirit and in truth (John 4:24)
The apostle John said that the Spirit of God would lead us into all truth (1 John 2:27 )
Jesus said that , ‘all that came to Him, he would not cast us out (John 6:37)
Jesus said that he would actually live inside us by his Spirit (John 14:16-17)

Essentially, all religion is subjective; none of it can be scientifically proven to be genuine.

This is not to say that all religion is valid; only that God is the one that judges its validity. But aside from its subjective nature, pure religion must have its source from God. And if the source is from God, I don’t have any control over your experience. I may have an opinion about it, but ultimately, your experience is between you and God.

Experience is a part of Relationship

God wants a relationship with his children (us humans). But just as with any relationship, there are conditions for how that relationship begins and continues.

But a problem arises among Christians when I begin to think that the conditions and experiences of my relationship with God are normative for all other children of God. We get into trouble if I think that my relationship with God is what every other relationship with God should look like.

But this expectation does not match any other relationship in life. While there are similarities in all marriages, no marriage relationship began or continued to develop like any other marriage relationship. Every marriage is unique. In the same way, While there may be some similarities in all parent-child relationships, no parent-child relationship progressed or grew like any other parent-child relationship.

So if my marriage looks nothing like your marriage, do I have any right to say that you are not, in fact, married? No!

But this is what we sometimes to as Christians.

I look at how I became a child of God and if your story of how you became a child of God does not match up with mine, I might be tempted to think that you are not, in fact, a child of God at all! Or if I have certain experiences in my relationship with Jesus, but you don’t share those experiences at all, I might be tempted to think you don’t have a relationship with Jesus. In both cases, you might think the same thing about me. And if we get to arguing about this, it’s going to cause divisions and problems.

Thankfully, God has it all figured out

One thing we can be sure of, and this is what we must hold to, is that God knows every man intimately, and He promised to reveal Himself to any man who wants to know Him.

So it matters little what I think of your experience with God. Nor does it matter what you think of my experience. What matters is what God sees deep down in our heart.

The tricky part, however, is what we see from Elwood P. Dowd. Though his belief in Harvey made him different, I am certain that it is not God’s intent just to make us different from the world. His intent is more complicated than that.

I have found that my relationship with God does make me different, but there is the huge distinction. Harvey made Dowd different according to Dowd’s own propensities, but Jesus makes each of us different according to God’s propensities and His character. This is never easy, and there is a strong part of me that continually fights this change. But change I do, not just outwardly, but deep inside.

And, by the way, this is how I know that my relationship with my “invisible friend” is genuine: my propensities change into something I never wanted or imagined.

To try to convince anyone of this subjective experience is futile, and a waste of time. The fact is, God does a better job, we only need to ask Him to reveal Himself to us, and if our heart is honest, He will.

Are you uncomfortable with comparing your relationship with Jesus to Dowd’s relationship with an invisible, talking rabbit? Explain why in the comment section below.

Or maybe it gives you comfort to know that your relationship with Jesus has been tailor-made to fit you and your personality, and to bring you into a deeper relationship with God, so that what you experience with God will not ever be duplicated or matched by any other person you encounter? Maybe this gives you the freedom to stop trying to “measure up” to the experiences of others.

Where’s My Comment?

By Jeremy Myers

1 Comment

Ever wonder what happened to your comment?

If it’s the first time you commented, it automatically went into pending. Otherwise, our spam checker probably tossed it into the spam folder.

We get hundreds of spam comments most days.

Do you want to buy athletic shoes, jerseys, fairy dolls, power tools, short pink prom dresses, Viagra, Cialis or other questionable drugs? Are you interested in live sex, video sex. polygamy, group sex, sex cams, sex toys and every imaginable kind of pornography and some you probably haven’t imagined?

Would you like to hear what Satan, Santa, demons, or angels have to say and sell? Are you interested in ads in Japanese, Chinese, German, French, and more?

If your comment disappears, be patient. We try to check the pending comments and the spam folder several times every day, looking for legitimate comments. If it looks like a legitimate comment, it will probably be approved. Refer to our Comment Policy for more.

Some comment spam is nonsensical.

It is probably left by “spam bots” which are computer programs that leave spam comments in the attempt to create links back to other websites. These spam comments usually contains links to sites that are selling something.

We’ve been collecting a few short excerpts from some G rated spams (minus the sales links) that have come in recently and thought you might find them amusing. I have added my own “reply” to these spam comments:

Woh I am lucky to find this website. I do not even know how I ended up here. I was walking down the street wearing glasses when the prescription ran out. Yes, this has now happened to me 3 times.

Woh! I am reading your comment while wearing glasses, and now I think I need a prescription. Do you recommend anything good?

This may not be the best place to ask this, but I’d like to buy a limo in Orlando. My relatives all the time say that I am killing my time here at net.

No, this was not the best place to ask that question. In fact, it may have been the worst place. You should definitely listen to your relatives.

I want to start a blog for some adult oriented, romantic fantasy literature. I’m going to watch out for brussels. Don him with a vasovagal syncope. You should deplete the remedy barely after talking to the doctor, who “provides” artificial light during the shorter winter days so your chickens will continue to lay, therefor accelerating the process of healing.

I think you meant brussel sprouts. The chicken captain says the shoe goo won’t work in his radio any more and if you could put more cream in the coffee, the notebook will no longer lose all the pages. grass.

This my friend is what a real Bavarian Illuminati controller looks like on paper and you will never see him on TV flashing mason gang signs. They pray to Tortilla Jesus. They give thanks and praise to the Holy Virgin Grilled Cheese Sammitch. He their first draft pick. The doctrine raises serotonin within the head.

If the Holy Virgin Grilled Cheese Sammitch was the first draft pick of the Bavarian Illuminati, I doubt Tortilla Jesus is going to help them win many games.

Yesterday, while I was at work, my cousin stole my iPad and tested to see if it can survive a 40 foot drop, just so she can be a youtube sensation. I need a spet in this house to resolve my problem.

Hmmm. Maybe you should see if your cousin can survive a 40 foot drop. That will make both of you a YouTube sensation.

This post is very unearthly. I enjoy your writing type, do maintain on writing! What a information of un-ambiguity and preserveness of precious experience regarding unpredicted emotions. Thank you for the auspicious writeup. It in fact was a amusement account. Sketches are in fact pleasant source of teaching instead of content.

Your comment is unearthly as well, and is full of ambiguity and amusement. It also appears that some comments are written by brain-dead individuals.

I am waiting for my visa. Can you tell me when it will approve? Trained of to them of money of you road done. I’m looking for clothing and style ideas at a reasonable prices for a woman over 25.

I sort of hope your visa is never approved…

At this moment I am going away to do my breakfast, afterward having my breakfast coming yet again to read more news. Let me take a nap.

I think you may need more than a nap.

Spam Comments

After considering such wisdom, shall we all give praise to the Holy Virgin Grilled Cheese Sammitch? If that interests you, you may want to check out the movie “Henry Poole Is Here”, a great family movie.

As for your normal comments, if you leave one, and it doesn’t appear right away, be patient. I, or my moderator, will get to it soon.

How would you respond to some of the spam comments above? Leave you own comment below. Feel free to be snarky!

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Running this blog is expensive

Why does blogging cost so much?

To help defray the cost of blogging, I have tried various things.

So, I need your help.

Option 2: Membership Area

Option 1: Accepting Donations

Make a Monthly Gift

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*All donations are processed through the secure Redeeming Press credit card processing company.

So far, I’m not using drugs

Letters to Dad

What is the purpose of writing the Letters to Dad?

Religion and the Homeless

If You Are a Parent…

The Goal of this Series

A List of all the “Letters to Dad”

More Resources about Troubled Teens

Links about Homelessness in America

Information about Homeless Foster Youth Who Have Aged Out of the System

Facts about LGBT Homeless Youth and Related LGBT Resources

Salvation is Like a Seven-Foot Invisible Rabbit

Spiritual Experiences and the Christian

A Validation of Your Experience with God

Experience is a part of Relationship

Thankfully, God has it all figured out

Where’s My Comment?

We get hundreds of spam comments most days.

Some comment spam is nonsensical.

Spam Comments

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