March 2011
It is always a joy to come
to you with another Monthly View. The Lord
has a wonderful month of blessings in store
for us by faith. "I pray that God,
Who gives you hope, will keep you happy
and full of peace as you believe in Him.
May you overflow with hope through the power
of the Holy Spirit."1
We're All Connected
A study in restorative
justice must go back to the beginning of
time to see how things were, in order to
restore things back into a former state
of righteousness. We're all connected to
one another, whether you believe in the
theory of evolution, or in God's creation
of mankind. My faith is based on God's Word,
where He says:
"Let Us make man in Our
image, according to Our likeness; let
them have dominion over the fish of the
sea, over the birds of the air, and over
the cattle, over all the earth and over
every creeping thing that creeps on the
earth. So God created man in His own image,
in the image of God He created him, male
and female He created them. Then God blessed
them, and God said to them, 'Be fruitful
and multiply; fill the earth and subdue
it, have dominion over the fish of the
sea, over the birds of the air, and over
every living thing that moves on the earth.'"2
According to Scripture,
we are all connected to our Creator and
to one another as individuals, with dominion
over everything. The Psalmist David, sang:
"You have crowned man with glory and
honor."3 God's
creation was made perfect, and man was created
righteous and holy. He was given authority
to carry out justice according to God's
will and standard. But also, he was given
free-will to make his own choices. Therefore,
we are given the responsibility to be accountable
to God and to one another.
Ignorance of God's Intentions
In the Garden of Eden,
Adam and Eve experienced love as the divine
flow. It was God's intention for them to
have children that would populate the world
and reflect His image. As a family of individuals,
they were created to relate in love, respect,
care, trust, and humility. But God, in His
omniscience, knew that His perfect plan
would not last long and that He would have
to provide restoration for broken relationships.
Could it be our ignorance without the knowledge
of God causing our lack of empathy as a
society? In my book Manson's
Right-Hand Man Speaks Out!, I wrote
the following:
"The empathy I've developed
over the years didn't come in a flash.
The Lord began to show me that every life
-- man, woman, or child is made in the
image of God and is of enormous value
in His eyes. This thought was entirely
missing at the time of my crime, even
though my mother had tried to teach me
to live for others.
It takes God to show
a person the value of life. I know many
people who are clueless about the pain
they've caused because they haven't admitted
their own pain; instead, they medicated
it daily with drugs, sex, and the like.
I was concerned that I didn't know how
to feel about my victim's deep pain and
knew I needed help. I began to see that
as my view of God changed, my view of
my victims changed." (Chapter
6, The Victims)
Restorative justice is
a wake-up call for offenders like myself.
I was asleep spiritually. I was "...destroyed
for lack of knowledge because I had rejected
knowledge."4
My pride, rebellion, and self-centeredness
brought destruction to the lives of my victims,
their families and mine, and to society
at large.
The Great Disconnect
It wasn't long after creation
that man fell into sin through disobedience.
You'll recall how Eve gave way to the serpent's
temptation to eat of the tree of the knowledge
of good and evil.5
In her and Adam's weakness, they ate of
the forbidden fruit. As a result, "...sin
entered the world, and death spread to all
men."6
The inherent propensity
to sin entered the human realm, and men
became sinners by nature from the moment
of conception. Again the Psalmist David
verifies: "Behold, I was brought forth
in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived
me."7 As a result,
we are born spiritually dead or separated
from God.8 Therefore, humans are not sinners
because they sin, but rather they sin because
they are sinners. This makes it impossible
for men to please God.
Though I went to church
religiously as a youth, I sought only to
please my parents, teachers, coaches, and
peers. I became an approval seeker, which
drove me to failure, fearful of rejection,
and perfectionism. I ran to California seeking
medication for my pain through drugs, sex,
and rock 'n roll. I failed miserably, by
turning my back on my parents and moving
in with the Manson Family. I was looking
for love and acceptance. I had no idea that
faith in God and His plan of salvation was
what would connect me to God.
Connection Through Faith
When I dropped out of society
in the '60s, I was not only disconnected
spiritually, but had become disconnected
socially. Those in the Manson Family were
the "us," and the outsiders were
the "them." This became the seed
bed for creating victims. The words of the
serpent took root in our minds and brought
forth death. Like the Apostel Paul said:
"I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent
deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your
minds may be corrupted from the simplicity
that is in Christ."9
I had no idea that "...without
faith it is impossible to please God, for
he who comes to God must believe that He
is, and that He is the rewarder of those
who diligently seek Him."10
This truth (planted in my heart) would have
healed my heart of approval seeking, supplied
my need for love and acceptance, and set
me free from sin.11
God's grace has made it
possible for sinners to be accepted by God
through faith in the death, burial, and
resurrection of Christ, forgiving our sins.
"For He has rescued us from the one
who rules in the kingdom of darkness, and
He has brought us into the Kingdom of His
dear Son. God has purchased our freedom
with His blood and has forgiven all our
sins."12
A Prayer For You ...
Heavenly Father, I am disconnected
from you. I am sick and tired of creating
victims. Like David prayed, I am a sinner
because I was conceived in sin as a child
of Adam. I have been seeking acceptance
from people only to find none. I believe
You accept me solely because Your Son died
on the cross for my sin. I confess with
my mouth the Lord Jesus Christ, and I believe
in my heart that He rose from the dead to
provide the gift of righteousness by faith.
Come into my heart, Holy Spirit, so I can
experience You as a Child of God. Thank
you for this amazing grace, faith, hope,
and love. Amen!"
RELATED LINK:
Opening
The Door To Forgiveness
Scripture References:
Acknowledgement: A special thanks
to Sherry for transcribing this months view!
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