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The Journey of Life: The Roads We Travel — Part 2

The Journey of Life: The Roads We Travel — Part 2

The journey of life can be tough. There are many roads, not all equally healthy. In part 1 of this series we examined Walking in Ignorance, Illiteracy and Infancy. Consider the remaining paths below as you decide the way you will walk through life.

Walking the Line

One short step away from those who walk in infancy is the rule-keeper, a person who thinks he thinks for himself but who is actually doing nothing more than following a list of rules. These individuals put their trust in rule keeping; they focus on the rules — the do’s and the don’ts. They appear loyal, devoted, and committed, but their focus is primarily behavioral not transformational.

As a result, they are often tattletales, seeking to find fault with others in the church and reporting them to authority figures, or spreading tales about the wrongs others are doing. They will often argue with other Christians about whose rules are the right rules and cause division and fragmentation when people don’t agree with them on the rules. These rule-keepers are often the most rigid, thoughtless, and inflexible Christians. They also have little tolerance for others.

These individuals seem to do be doing okay when things are going well in their lives, but, sadly, they have little ability to handle adversity when it arises. When stress suddenly hits — a child diagnosed with cancer, a loved one injured in a car wreck, or the loss of a job — when they have “kept all the rules,” they collapse into doubt: “I don’t understand. I go to church. I have my devotion every morning. I pay tithe faithfully. I eat only the approved foods. I don’t watch the wrong TV shows. I don’t curse, or drink, or use tobacco. I have been doing everything God says; this isn’t supposed to happen. I am supposed to be blessed.”

What happens next? They will either double down into more rigid rule keeping, believing there must be some secret sin they must overcome — thereby further growing their list of rules to keep — or they become disillusioned and simply give up.

The only healthy approach is to realize that God doesn’t run His universe on a rules-based system. As the Creator, God’s laws are the protocols upon which reality works. Learning the truth about God and His methods and entering into a relationship with Him in which one is loved for who they are (a child of God) and not for what they do (keep the right rules) puts a person on the right road — the road to wellness. In that trust relationship, one learns it is about renewing the heart with love for God and for others, not keeping a list of rules.

Rule-keepers focus on walking the line, on carefully managing their behavior according to the rules, while failing to understanding and experience God’s transforming love and methods. I encourage you to understand the reality of God’s universe, experience God’s transforming presence in your life and avoid getting ensnared into the hopeless and discouraging life of rule-keeping.

Walking in Confusion

Some struggling through life’s problems are confused. They say to me, “I just don’t know what to do or who to believe. There are so many different churches, teachings, religions — how do you know what to believe? How can you know what is true?” The younger generation is being told there is no absolute truth, that everyone’s truth is their personal truth, which only instills more uncertainty.

They may have been told that “the Bible is the only source of truth,” but this answer doesn’t work for such individuals because they know there are thousands of different Christian groups who argue back and forth about Bible truth while all claiming the Bible supports their views. So, even if you get them to accept the Bible as truth, they will ask, “Which Christian group is right about what the Bible teaches?”

Some people have told me that they were raised Christian and have since tried Buddhism, Zoroastrianism, or agnosticism but have never found lasting peace. They are deeply confused about what to do or what to believe. And when life’s difficulties arise, they are easily overwhelmed and discouraged.

My approach has been to teach them to love truth, to develop an attitude of wanting to know what is true and to apply it to their life when they understand it. I teach them to start by developing an understanding of God’s design laws. These are the protocols upon which reality is built to operate. These design laws are constants; they never change — so they are powerful touchstones that we can turn to in order to test the various doctrines, belief systems, or ideas being promoted. God’s design laws include: the laws of physics, gravity, and health — but more important, the laws of love, liberty, and worship:

The law of love is the principle of giving upon which all life is built to operate. Any organism or system that refuses to give will die. (See my article “The Little Horn, God’s Law, and How You have been Deceived.”)

 

The law of liberty is the design protocol required for love to function in relationships. Love only exists in the atmosphere of freedom. Violate freedom — for instance, threaten to kill someone who doesn’t love you — and love will be damaged, rebellion will be instilled, and individuality will be eroded. (See my presentation “God’s Principle — The Law of Love and Liberty.”)

 

The law of worship is the principle of modeling; i.e., by beholding we become changed. We actually will become like the God we admire and worship, neurobiologically and characterologically. This is why it is critical to come to the truth about God. If we believe lies about the Creator, worshiping a God who is other than love — a tyrant who uses his power to torture and kill — then rather than being restored to true godliness we are damaged to become more selfish, fearful, and tyrannical.

People who walk in confusion are those who cannot differentiate truth from error, who get overwhelmed by the plethora of divergent ideas, and who haven’t understood God’s design laws. If you want to break out of this cloud of confusion, I encourage you to pursue God’s design laws and to harmonize Scripture with those laws and how life actually works.

Walking Alone (wandering away)

Some people have gained a knowledge of God and know his methods and principles; they have understood His character, laws, protocols, and how life is to be lived. They have experienced His peace in their lives and feel confident in their abilities to practice God’s methods; and so they set out on their own to live godly lives. They create routines for life, not focusing on rules, but on the principles of God. But then, slowly at first, they stop spending time with God. They haven’t purposely chosen to rebel against God; they would be shocked to think that they are anything but a loyal follower of God. However, over time, their life got busy with responsibilities and, somewhere along the way, they lost touch with God without even noticing. Then one day they burn out, find themselves overwhelmed, have problems that have piled us and feel crushed under the weight and stresses of life.

Those who walk alone have gotten busy with life, or mission, or responsibilities and have slowly wandered away from God. If you find yourself in this situation, choose to spend time with God every day — take walk in nature, meditate regularly on His word, sing songs of praise, and join in Bible study and Christian fellowship. I encourage you to reconnect with your Creator and Savior today.

Walking in Rebellion

These are people who have had a knowledge of God but for various reasons have chosen to reject that truth and replace it with some lie:

For although they knew God, they neither glorified him as God nor gave thanks to him, but their thinking became futile and their foolish hearts were darkened. Although they claimed to be wise, they became fools and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images made to look like mortal man and birds and animals and reptiles (Romans 1:21–23 NIV84).

 

You must understand that in these last days some people will appear whose lives are controlled by their own lusts. They will mock you and will ask, “He promised to come, didn’t he? Where is he? Our ancestors have already died, but everything is still the same as it was since the creation of the world!” They purposely ignore the fact that long ago God gave a command, and the heavens and earth were created (2 Peter 3:3–5 GNT).

Such people never find peace, health, or happiness because peace, health, and happiness are only possible in harmony with God and His methods for life. Sadly, there is little to do for people who willfully reject truth and choose lies other than to set them free to reap what they have chosen — which will be pain and suffering. Sometimes, in that suffering, people will realize that the path they have chosen (to reject the truth about God) is the wrong path and return to God, as in the parable of the Prodigal Son.

Walking with God
Enoch walked with God; then he was no more, because God took him away (Genesis 5:24 NIV84).

 

This is the goal; this is the way; this is the only path of health and life — to walk with God so closely that this world of selfishness is cut out of our hearts and we are fully united with God, such that we are ready to walk right into heaven!

Each and every day, spend time with God. Use the integrative evidence-based approach: read the Scripture, always harmonizing it with God’s revelations in nature and how life actually works. Spend time meditating on each of God’s design laws. Contemplate the God who built reality and the protocols He instilled in His creation. Meditate on nature — look at the beauty, symmetry, constancy, and the immeasurable complexity and diversity. Spend time contemplating the life of Christ and realize that you are watching our Creator — meditate on His character, methods, and principles. Talk with God daily and open your heart to Him, spending quiet time listening to Him.

Each day, tell God, “Father, I want a heart and mind that is sensitive to truth because all truth leads back to you. Help me see, comprehend, and assimilate your truth at the earliest possible moment that I am capable. Expand my mind to discern ever deeper insights into your kingdom and methods. Change me; take away the longing for selfishness and worldliness and instill your love for life, health, goodness, and people. May it no longer be my fearful self who lives, but may your character of love live in me!”

Tell God of your heartaches, anger, resentments, hurts, frustrations, aspirations, longings, and desires — but then in humbleness ask God to clean them up, to run all your longings and emotions through His cleansing love, to improve and strengthen the healthy desires, and to remove and eliminate any destructive desires.

Always give Him thanks — for who He is, for how He governs (upon the laws of love and liberty), for the evidences He has provided, for what He has achieved through Jesus for our salvation, for His love for you, and for His eternal love that never ends and never fails.

Then share with others your love for God and the truth you know about God. Make life a journey in which you walk with God every day, knowing that no matter how difficult your road, you will never travel it alone!

 

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God lead me to your book “The God-Shaped Brain” while I was searching for another book about the brain and then to your interview about your book on HeartWise Ministries [where] I found out about [Come And Reason Ministries]. I’m now devouring the webcasts of your Bible studies. I have been so greatly blessed and I thank God so much for your courage to speak the Truth in love no matter what. Listening to you contrast the two opposing systems (laws) and digging deep to unearth the hidden treasures in the Bible makes me so incredibly happy and I feel very blessed to be part of your Bible Study Group although I live far away. I am just so excited that there is a group of people that is spreading the Truth about the character of God and it saddens me how few realize what our Father in Heaven is really like.

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I was brought up in a different faith and have been petrified my whole life of God. I believed that I would burn in hell for eternity. When I was 12 I started pursuing the things of this world, but for the next 45 years the Spirit was always calling me, as I knew there was a God through nature. I could see the vast sea of stars in the universe and knew there was something bigger out there. Five years ago, through a Revelation seminar, I was blessed to learn about God’s character and government.

Then I found Come and Reason Ministries and have come under some extreme pressure when I speak about the ministry. One time a member sent me an internet article titled “Whats wrong with Tim Jennings?” I asked her what she thought of it and she said “I don’t know, I didn’t read it.”

I have always wanted to find out for myself the truth about God, so I stayed with the Design Law construct and have been liberated to understand the big picture. Once we consider Design Law, all other Bible stories and prophecies seem to fit perfectly. It is truly beautiful to see people grasping how God operates this Universe of Love and the liberation it has provided in their lives. It blows my mind to see how consistent Design law is with what our founders believed. I hear statements like “This makes so much sense.”

Tom W., Mt. Pleasant, MI, USA

 

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I’ve been very blessed by “The God Shaped Brain” and this ministry, through video and podcast, over the last few years. It’s truly opened up my eyes more to the truth about God and the importance of that truth in the present world. The message is so inviting, freeing and enlightening and MORE people need to know about it. I believe it is the last message that can truly, not only prepare a people for salvation and translation, but vindicate the character of God.

Michael V., Yonkers, NY, USA

 

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I am just writing to say that I have been so blessed by the teachings of Come And Reason Minitries recently. I watched last week’s bible study lesson on Youtube and am thankful that the error in the printed lesson guide you use was pointed out and this week’s study was of equal benefit, if not more so. My understanding of God’s nature has been very confused of late and I am so grateful for clarity in this matter. I have never really fully understood previously how a good God can cause bad things to happen and now I realise that He doesn’t, it’s a natural consequence of sin. May the almighty Father and His Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ, continue to bless your ministry.

Laura P., United Kingdom

 

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We listen to your bible studies lessons in our class in Montana. You actually were the main reason I decided to get a laptop, so I can go to your site and listen, read, learn, and print the class notes. I am so grateful to learn the correct view of God and his character. Now, to just have others have an interest in knowing, so I can share it with them. Good thoughts your way.

R. N., MT, USA

 

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Your teachings about our heavenly Father have changed my life. Thank you sooooooo very very much! I know He’s doing some serious healing in my heart and life and I look forward to each new day to learn something new about Him and to just hear you speak about Him. Thank you, forever.

Nancy S.

 

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I borrowed “Healing The Mind” DVDs from a friend and showed them at my home for a small gathering of women friends. Neither of my friends are Adventist, but they both enjoyed and embraced the messages you taught. In fact, one of the ladies prayed out loud in our group and that was the first time she had ever had public prayer.

J.B. ,Dalles, OR, USA

 

Testimony 60

Just watched watched lesson 10 in the 1st quarter 2021 bible study classs on Isaiah. I want to thank you for your intellectual spirituality; it’s not an oxymoron! From the point of view of a teacher I also enjoy seeing how much personal pleasure you clearly take in not just tasting, but feasting on God’s word – it reminds me of Jeremiah not being able to hold it in! It makes me smile that your cup is so full and overflowing that you make it to Tuesday’s lesson (on a good day). It just goes to show the richness of God’s Word.

God bless the Come and Reason Team from our church here in Great Britain.

Andrew H., Great Britain

 

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I truly believe that to know who God really is the first step to understand ourselves in a balanced and kind way, so the healing can take place. Your approach really makes sense – Thank you for your ministry!

A.M., Pittsburg, PA, USA

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I’m a youth leader in South Africa. We as a youth group are currently using a lot of the material on the Come and Reason site. Since we’ve started using the material, our youth group has grown.

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Testimony 55

I was born [into the church], then I left it for many years. 10 years ago, I came back, but I could not take the hypocrisy and the lack of answers to the missing pieces. I struggled, but I did not abandon my commitment to know the truth. God is leading me to the simple understanding of his relevance and I am relearning what the church taught me as a youth… that he loves me, that he has led me to a knowledge of him such as I have never known. He is using Dr. Jennings to connect the dots that are now so apparent and hiding in plain sight!

Dean P., Arlington, TX, USA

 

Testimony 49

I came into the church at 21, but that is as far as it went. I was so confused about what love is. I couldn’t find it in the bible, because I am not a person that can read between the lines. I have no logic. I have read many, many books; trying to figure out the crux of the matter. They were helpful, but something was still missing. I have become very frustrated to the point of crying out to God, “Where can I go?”  I needed some basics.

I found two books, written by Timothy Jennings, MD, to be very helpful. God showed me that I had lived my whole life in fear. I didn’t even see it. Now, I do. God is so good.  I discovered the “The Remedy”  Dr. Jennings new book, “The God-Shaped Heart!” Oh, I was so excited, I purchased them right away.

I can get rid of most of my books, because “The Remedy” brings the Love of God out so clearly, even I can’t miss it. Now, I want to sit and read my Bible. Wow, what a revelation! It is just simply Awesome! I am so grateful to Jehovah Almighty for hearing my prayer for more understanding! I am so encouraged!

Jackie S.

 

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The message [of Come And Reason Ministries is] for all Christians (and those who may become Christians) and not just Adventists or any other group. It is difficult to imagine why any [anyone] with intellectual and spiritual honesty could find fault with the way you explained the healing substitution concepts and the truth about God’s character, though I know some will reject and criticize. On behalf of those in our group near Tacoma, WA, thank you and your staff for all of the hard work and for sharing the Gospel in this manner. God’s message of healing love will be carried to the whole world and then Jesus will come – He promised it.

Terry U., Tacoma, WA, USA

 

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Your message of design law vs imperial law is so uplifting and makes so much sense- it is a game changer for me. The fact that Jesus’s death is not a big payment by an angry God is , quite frankly, a relief.

Laura G., London, Ontario, Canada

 

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