What we lack

There comes a time
We start to feel
and then we know
our life is real

We took for granted
the simple things
Like hugs and kisses
and what love brings

Unexpected touches
In the middle of the night
Just to tell us
That all is alright

A simple glance
That tells you so
That lets you know
Where ever you go

That someone cares
and they are here
to keep you calm
to ease your fear

but take it for granted
we all will do
and we won't take notice
until it's through

That time in our life
when all was good
when everything looked
just as it should

Now rooms are empty
and nights are long
and we know this isn't
where we belong

We need that love
that calming glow
that love is here
and all we know

Is now it's gone
and we want it back
because all we had
is what we lack

Be the Friend that the spirit requires.......Take care of you and those you love.....

I cherish those
who cherish me
the true blue friends
who will always be

The ones I've earned
the ones I trust
the mettle they are made of
will never rust

I only wish
that I can be
a friend to them
that they are to me.



We must never turn away from a friend. We find we lose our own connection to the spirit when we do. In the song "The Turning Away" by Pink Floyd, the song gives a warning:
On the turning away
From the pale and downtrodden
And the words they say
Which we wont understand
Don't accept that whats happening
Is just a case of others suffering
Or you'll find that you're joining in
The turning away.......

We must never turn away.......

Jesus on Friendship

John 15:12-15 “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you. Greater love has no one than this, which someone lay down his life for his friends. You are my friends if you do what I command you. No longer do I call you servants, for the servant does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you friends, for all that I have heard from my Father I have made known to you.

In everyone's life, at some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into flame by an encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit.

                                                                                      Albert Schweitzer


Friendship is a single soul dwelling in two bodies.

Aristotle

Friendship involves recognition or familiarity with another's personality. Friends often share likes and dislikes, interests, pursuits, and passion. Genuine friendship involves a shared sense of caring and concern, a desire to see one another grow and develop, and a hope for each other to succeed in all aspects of life. True friendship involves action: doing something for someone else while expecting nothing in return; sharing thoughts and feelings without fear of judgment or negative criticism. Trust is essential to true friendship. We all need someone with whom we can share our lives, thoughts, feelings, and frustrations.

True friendship requires certain accountability factors. Real friends encourage one another and forgive one another where there has been an offense. Genuine friendship supports during times of struggle. Friends are dependable. In true friendship, unconditional love develops. We love our friends no matter what and we always want the best for our friends.

Real friendship looks at the heart, not just the "packaging." Genuine friendship loves for love's sake, not just for what it can get in return. True friendship is both challenging and exciting. It risks, it overlooks faults, and it loves unconditionally, but it also involves being truthful, even though it may hurt. Genuine friendship, also called "agape" love, comes from the Lord. This is a rare type of relationship we have in the world today but is essential in helping others and ourselves gain a foothold to climb out of the hardest times of our lives.

I have had friends in my life I never thought I would lose and lost them to whatever things that come into a life unexpectedly and take away what we treasured so dear. At times we never truly understand the value of such friendship until it reaches its terminus.

As a youth, I had a cadre of friends I thought I would never lose. I carried them into high school and things would change ever so slightly and I would lose a few and gain a few due to circumstances of life as we all do. But for some reason, something in my life experience gave me this psychology within that tells me friends are valuable. When I say friends, I mean true friends. Not those who came in with ulterior motives and sought to gain what they could before they left. I mean those who came in with no expectations, gained my trust, and stuck around to nurture a relationship that continues with me no matter how long the absence or the trials  we endure.

Something with me lives in my heart. My core. My soul. I recognize it as the Holy Spirit. It tells me friendship is valuable beyond a complete explanation. It is a need of the human condition that craves interaction that enlightens in the most subtle of ways that we a good time as just that when it actually builds memories that evolve who we are, what we value, and who we become.

On October 3rd of 2014, I wrote on Facebook this status,

I am finally seeing a light at the end of the tunnel. It's on a serious incline and the terrain is rather treacherous but I do see the light. There is no perpetual darkness. Never give up on yourself and never give up on those you are in debt to and their capacity to understand. I really think and feel that I will see the other side of the struggle and I will not compromise my principles to get there.
Thanks be to God.

Little did I know two months later my sister would pass away, I would move to my parents, my marriage would end, I would be separated from my family, I would struggle to get through Masters Courses without internet, I would be laid off twice, feel more alone than I could recall, and struggle to maintain my ability to keep my life in the spirit.

The recent days and months have not only been trying ones for myself but also for those I call friends. One had his day in court and came out the other side vindicated. I and many who sincerely call him friend shared many prayers for God to see him through and our faith was rewarded. Others were dealing with relationships or job loss or loss of significant people in their life and needed the real support that true friendship brings. That act of fulfilling our friendships ultimate duty, (being there) creates a bond that cements who we are to those we value so much.

I remember those who were there for me. I used those moments as a vehicle to maintain my faith and my own belief in who they believed I am. The result was an ability to hang on and make it through to the other side of a dark time where the light awaited. The light of the spirit and the sharing of the spirit through the rare and priceless thing called true sincere friendship. To be one makes us a better person and creates in us an empathetic heart that sees life beyond our own needs and concerns and tells us our true value is to of value to others. It makes us see ourselves as more than separate people leading separate lives and feeling emotions unique to ourselves. We share who we are with those we trust to share those things with and a bond is formed that (whether we see it or not) is founded in spirit and love.

I mention friendship quite a bit in my daily life.  Perhaps it is due to losing friends I never thought I would and how those losses affected me. It was a mourning process I feel in some cases I have yet to come through to other side. Those experiences gave me an insight into the real value of a real friend and how they are not merely interchangeable parts in a sometimes rapidly evolving life. Instead they are the facets we use to create a life of value, of selfless action, of prayerful intercession, and yes, spiritual growth.  The scripture tells us to be in the spirit and represent the spirit in our actions with others. Colossians 3:12-14 Put on then, as God’s chosen ones, holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, and patience, bearing with one another and, if one has a complaint against another, forgiving each other; as the Lord has forgiven you, so you also must forgive. And above all these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony.

To be a friend that comes in the spirit, we must focus on the spirit and not the flesh because the flesh holds pride and ego and the need to be recognized. It is concerned more with itself and it's own needs while disguised as compassion and empathy. We must always be aware of this and examine our ways.

Last night I was told a friend of mine had attempted suicide. I had just visited with her that day. I saw no indication she would do such a thing and I thought long and hard about why the spirit in me didn't recognize my friend and her pain. Was I too caught up in my own issues and my own concerns. I really spent much time that night examining myself. As the scripture says, "Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you--unless, of course, you fail the test?" 2 Corinthians 13:5. and "Let us examine our ways and test them, and let us return to the LORD." Lamentations 3:40. We must be in constant contact with God and the spirit. We must always examine our motives and check to see if we are under the guide of God and his image so we may be there for those who hurt.

We must let go of concerns over self image and who we think others feel about us and release all forms of ego and pride so we can be the friend we need to be. We must release the need to be somebody and the pride of self so that the spirit can have it's way with us.

When interacting with others, have no expectations of yourself.  You do not have to prove anything or do anything to make the other person happy or more comfortable. Just be love. Be that spirit within.   Experiment with this.
You may well find, that then you behave in a totally natural and useful way.  When you give up your need to be someone or act a certain way to uphold an illusory self concept, or to gain any external (or internal) approval, suddenly you are freed from all anxiety or fear.  You become completely real and authentic.  
From this place your natural state of peace and relaxed joy flows into your interaction, so you benefit the situation without even trying.  A greater power begins to work through you, but can only do this once you let down all of your walls and attempts to be someone. We lose the self and gain the spirit. We in turn become the person God has intended and the life that is the will of God shows in all we do. We release and let go to ironically gain so much as grace is given unconditionally in the love of God in our lives. We in turn are saved from our own prison of despair.
But we must also be aware of the toll helping our friends in need can take on our own spiritual condition. It can weaken us emotionally and put us in a state that is susceptible to the flesh, So we must not neglect our own spiritual condition at the expense of helping our friend because then we lose our own connection with God and our ability to help ourselves and others. We are human here on earth and this aspect of who we are is flawed. It seeks self promotion by it's very nature and we must always make sure of our motives. Show true love. Show integrity of the spirit. Don't talk about helping others. Help them. Be there. Don't tell people you care.  Care. Care also for your relationship with the spirit because without it we find ourselves turning away from those who hurt and need the love of God as it lives within all of us.

To close, Pink Floyd's "On the Turning Away" leaves us with the hope that we can be the friends our friends need when they truly need us.
"No more turning away
From the weak and the weary
No more turning away
From the coldness inside
Just a world that we all must share
Its not enough just to stand and stare
Is it only a dream that there'll be
No more turning away"

Who is with you........?

You live your life as an individualized expression of God here on earth. God, according to scripture, in Genesis 1:27, it is stated quite clearly and it applies to both male and female, "So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them.". So then we must ask ourselves, "What is the image of God?" or better yet, what is God? John 4:24 gives us some insight when it tells us, "God is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in the Spirit and in truth." So, with that being said, we come to understand that God is not the body, not the flesh, but Spirit with a capital S. If we are made in that image are we not also Spirit? The flesh is but a container for our earthly experience. This experience is measured and taken in by seconds, minutes, hours, days, and years. Those experiences are contained in emotions, desires, impulses, reflexes, perceptions, perspectives, opinions, beliefs, confirmations, affirmations, behaviors, decisions, and a list of other influences that go on and on and on. There is purpose to it all or God would not have set this in motion.

So we live our life. Connected to the spirit. Connected to the flesh. Experiencing them both to varying degrees. The range of emotions is ours to feel and share.

Some of us have years to remember. When we say this we are usually referring to some trials or hardships. Some event that takes us to the limit emotionally or tries to test our faith.  It is during this time that we withdraw at times and go within. We seek the comfort of the Spirit and the Spirit sends out to others who also live by the spirit that we are in need. Friendship is a relationship with another that grows over time in ways that give the other a familiarity so we can sense the needs of those we care about. Friends. Not acquaintances. Not a caring stranger, although they too are blessings, but instead, Friends.

Friendship involves recognition or familiarity with another's personality. Friends often share likes and dislikes, interests, pursuits, and passion. Genuine friendship involves a shared sense of caring and concern, a desire to see one another grow and develop, and a hope for each other to succeed in all aspects of life. True friendship involves action: doing something for someone else while expecting nothing in return; sharing thoughts and feelings without fear of judgment or negative criticism. Trust is essential to true friendship. We all need someone with whom we can share our lives, thoughts, feelings, and frustrations.

True friendship requires certain accountability factors. Real friends encourage one another and forgive one another where there has been an offense. Genuine friendship supports during times of struggle. Friends are dependable. In true friendship, unconditional love develops. We love our friends no matter what and we always want the best for our friends.

Real friendship looks at the heart, not just the "packaging." Genuine friendship loves for love's sake, not just for what it can get in return. True friendship is both challenging and exciting. It risks, it overlooks faults, and it loves unconditionally, but it also involves being truthful, even though it may hurt. Genuine friendship, also called "agape" love, comes from the Lord. This is a rare type of relationship we have in the world today but is essential in helping others and ourselves gain a foothold to climb out of the hardest times of our lives.

Those trials are subjective and relative. They are not always on par with Job or Joseph. They are however our own, and it is faith in God and his plan for us as well as the love of friends that know and sense our needs that help us fill the empty spaces and get us through.

On October 3rd of 2014, I wrote on Facebook this status, I am finally seeing a light at the end of the tunnel. It's on a serious incline and the terrain is rather treacherous but I do see the light. There is no perpetual darkness. Never give up on yourself and never give up on those you are in debt to and their capacity to understand. I really think and feel that I will see the other side of the struggle and I will not compromise my principles to get there.
Thanks be to God.

Little did I know two months later my sister would pass away, I would move to my parents, my marriage would end, I would be separated from my family, I would struggle to get through Masters Courses without internet, I would be laid off twice, feel more alone than I could recall, and struggle to maintain my ability to keep my life in the spirit.

This year has been one of my toughest ever. I lately have broken down and felt as tired and as weak and as alone as I ever have. So I reach out. I reach out to God and the Spirit. God, in turn, gives us strength in friendship. We as Christians must be cognizant and aware of the struggles of those we love and care for. We must be able to lose ourselves in the love and care for those among us who suffer. I try to reach out and be there for friends both old and new. I feel at times that I am inadequate and that my efforts are so small compared to what I receive in blessings and grace. So I try. I pray. I constantly check my motives so I may be of use. Still even today I feel I am short changing the spirit and capable of more in terms of helping my friends.
Last night I was told a friend of mine had attempted suicide. I had just visited with her that day. I saw no indication she would do such a thing and I thought long and hard about why the spirit in me didn't recognize my friend and her pain. Was I too caught up in my own issues and my own concerns. I really spent much time that night examining myself. As the scripture says, "Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you--unless, of course, you fail the test?" 2 Corinthians 13:5. and "Let us examine our ways and test them, and let us return to the LORD." Lamentations 3:40. We must be in constant contact with God and the spirit. We must always examine our motives and check to see if we are under the guide of God and his image so we may be there for those who hurt.
There have been times in your life when you have known pain, loneliness, sadness, difficulty, doubt, hopelessness, and there was another side to it where we came through and the grace of God was revealed. The acts of our Christian friends are those we remember and build our own behaviors upon to help others.
There is a need for us to be friends to those who are close to us not only in times of joy but especially in times of need and trouble. Those are indeed the days we will be needed the most and reflect the love of the spirit that lives within us in ways God always intended us to demonstrate. We cannot be Christians and fully experience the spirit without having compassion, empathy, and a desire to be there for those who hurt. Faith without works is dead says the book of James and it tells us we must put into action the love we are given by God and the spirit so it can bring more to him and the care can be returned to others.
God's Word tells us that a friend sticks closer than a brother, and that in order for one to be a friend, one must show themselves friendly. Proverbs 18:24 tells us the difference between worldly companions and the friends who live in the spirit. " A man of many companions may come to ruin,
but there is a friend who sticks closer than a brother." We must be closer than a brother to those we call friends and it is our duty to be the Christ with in for those in need. 
We must lose ourselves and focus our love upon our friends and those who hurt and the grace of God will be experienced. We must have the faith that God has us. Then we turn to our friends and give of ourselves. We can't become caught up in who we are and what the flesh desires or we will fail to delight ourselves in the Lord. We must let go of concerns over self image and who we think others feel about us and release all forms of ego and pride so we can be the friend we need to be. We must release the need to be somebody and the pride of self so that the spirit can have it's way with us.
When interacting with others, have no expectations of yourself.  You do not have to prove anything or do anything to make the other person happy or more comfortable. Just be love. Be that spirit within.   Experiment with this.
You may well find, that then you behave in a totally natural and useful way.  When you give up your need to be someone or act a certain way to uphold an illusory self concept, or to gain any external (or internal) approval, suddenly you are freed from all anxiety or fear.  You become completely real and authentic.
From this place your natural state of peace and relaxed joy flows into your interaction, so you benefit the situation without even trying.  A greater power begins to work through you, but can only do this once you let down all of your walls and attempts to be someone. We lose the self and gain the spirit. We in turn become the person God has intended and the life that is the will of God shows in all we do. We release and let go to ironically gain so much as grace is given unconditionally in the love of God in our lives. We in turn are saved from our own prison of despair.
But we must also be aware of the toll helping our friends in need can take on our own spiritual condition. It can weaken us emotionally and put us in a state that is susceptible to the flesh, So we must not neglect our own spiritual condition at the expense of helping our friend because then we lose our own connection with God and our ability to help ourselves and others. We are human here on earth and this aspect of who we are is flawed. It seeks self promotion by it's very nature and we must always make sure of our motives. Show true love. Show integrity of the spirit. Don't talk about helping others. Help them. Be there. Don't tell people you care.  Care.
 The question is: what type of friend do you desire to be?

Father and son

To be a dad 

To be a son

Takes two to know 

Just how it's done

One will grow

One will learn

One will watch 

One's every turn

Then he'll do

Just what he wants

Giving in 

To tempts and taunts

The pressure of peers

The want of friends

The guidance of 

The blowing winds

That is where 

The father can see

The son's own need 

To belong and be

But learn he must 

And be his own

The vines that grow

From seeds he's sown

Are the result of lessons 

Learned from life

Not just from the father

And his caring wife

The father needs 

To know one thing

The smiles and tears

A son may bring

Are gifts from God 

And signs to see

This son you have 

Will soon be free

To live his life

All by himself

No longer sitting

On the parental shelf

So let him go 

And trust the Lord

To care for the boy

You've loved and adored

It's his life now

And his to live

Advice and love 

Is what you'll give

Never forget

That he's your son

That God picked you

To be the one

To take his hand

And guide his walk

When he was young 

And learning to talk

Now your job 

Is to let him go

You've done the best 

With all you know

How can you tell? When is the Christian not a Christian and how can we get back.

"Examine yourselves to see if you are in the faith. Test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is within you? Unless of course, you fail the test."
2 Corinthians 13:5
"and to make it your ambition to lead a quiet life: You should mind your own business and work with your hands, just as we told you,"
1 Thessalonians 4:11
"Woe to you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites, because you devour widows' houses, and for a pretense you make long prayers; therefore you will receive greater condemnation."

Matthew 23:14

7 “Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.

3 “Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother’s eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye?"

Matthew 7:1-3

"The person with the Spirit makes judgments about all things, but such a person is not subject to merely human judgments,"

1 Corinthians 2:15

28 One of the teachers of the law came and heard them debating. Noticing that Jesus had given them a good answer, he asked him, “Of all the commandments, which is the most important?”

29 “The most important one,” answered Jesus, “is this: ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one.[a] 30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’[b] 31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’[c] There is no commandment greater than these.”

Mark 12:28-31

Being a Christian for me takes two qualities known as virtues by many. Humility and Integrity. Be who you are. Know who you are. Say who you are. Be capable of seeing your flaws and your shortcomings and be able to admit them to others in such a way that you are not diminishing yourself but instead correcting the course you must take to delight yourself in the Lord. We must be humble servants but not shrinking violets to the world around us. We must help our brothers and sisters in Christ when helping is not a hinderance. What I mean there is we must recognize that all humans here on this earth are on their own spiritual quest. Their own path to God. They experience their own trials and troubles. Their own mistakes. We must not become a crutch for enabling but instead a guide for what they must do to experience their own growth in a sincere and profound way. Our testimony is our most valuable tool in bringing others to the Spirit and Christ. When you tell your story of how God has worked a miracle in your life, or how he has blessed you, transformed you, lifted and encouraged you, perhaps even broken and healed you, no one can argue or debate it. You go beyond the realm of knowledge into the realm of relationshipwith God.

You tell in a way so as not to push away, but to bring others in. You express your life and what you have experienced. You explain the moment you came to Christ and why. You explain how at that moment you went from 51 percent flesh to 51 percent spirit. He became more and you became less. You can reference that event to the scripture found in John 3:30. We are all individualized expressions of God here on earth. We are made in his image. Not flesh and bone as some out there may perceive it to be but instead spirit. That is where we must live. 

Galatians 5:17 tells us..........For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever you want.

If I am going to give a lesson of what a Christian is then I must give an idea of what one is not. There is no better verse than the one found in Galatians written by Paul. 19Now the deeds of the flesh are evident, which are: immorality, impurity, sensuality,20idolatry, sorcery, enmities, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, disputes, dissensions, factions, 21envying, drunkenness, carousing, and things like these, of which I forewarn you, just as I have forewarned you, that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.…

When you lose people to their end of life here on earth you go through the loss in your head. You cope with it. You get to a place where you can rationalize the entire thing in the spirit. God made man in his image right? God's image is not flesh, correct? Ashes to ashes and dust to dust. The bible constantly tells us of the conflict between the flesh and the spirit so it is rather obvious if God is spirit then God is surely not flesh. Flesh is merely a container. The lightbulb so to speak that is supposed to emanate it's light upon the world. When it is through, the bulb goes into the trash or is buried so to speak. But that energy. That spirit. That light. That God in all of us never dies. It merely returns to God and it reflects itself in it's purest form........love.......upon all who knew it when it was contained by the flesh that bound it to this world. 

I now have entered a spiritual relationship with those whom I loved so much on this side yet now half of us is here and their half is totally in the spirit. That is the blessing. They now know what it means to become less so he  (God) can become more. 

We who follow Christ, follow God. We who follow God, seek the Spirit within that is the God image in all of us. To know that aspect of who we are is to know all of the people who in spirit now surround us, smiling as the spirit can at our quest for love in our lives to dominate all that we do. Currently I am a spiritual being having a human experience and I am flawed and I am 51 percent flesh. I need to become less and he shall become greater. We all should do as well. Follow Paul and know he was the greatest apostle and he too struggled. If he struggles then surely I we should too. Don't get down. Get right.

FRIENDS......

A poem for you

A poem for me

A poem that ryhmes 

To help us see

That friends are good 

and what we need

they see the heart

before it bleeds

they see concern

within our mind

they come to us 

and they always find

the words to say

the way we feel

the things they do 

are always real

never fake 

cuz who needs that

a lamb at first

but really a rat

never do we 

ever feel 

that what friends do

could ruin the deal

made in secret

without a word

done in silence

and never heard

but always felt

and always known

and by their actions

it's always shown

the reality of friendship

the invaluable gold

the thing you grasp

and is never sold

because friendship is forever 

and always yours

through the toughest storms

they reach the shores

they help you through

the toughest times

what they do 

transcend all ryhmes

so read this poem

but know its's more

than words put down 

one, two, three, four...

Life goes deeper

and friendship too

it lasts forever

until life is through

So treasure all

the friendships made

because all they give

can't be repaid

THANK YOU TO ALL MY FRIENDS

Focus

If you think there aren't enough hours in the day.
Pray. Stop. Think. What is truly important? Focus on those things. Then do what is good.

"Finally brothers and sisters, what ever is true, what ever is noble, what ever is right, what ever is pure, what ever is lovely, what ever is admirable- if anything is excellent or praise worthy, think about such things."
Philippians 4:8

Four quotes to help you understand there is a hidden purpose to your life. One for you to reveal to yourself through the flow of your own life. We "Row Row Row the boat gently DOWN the stream" not up. When we find out life on struggle or on fight, we are fighting the current or the flow of our life. Go with it. Reduce the stress. I am not saying we should be victims. I understand we must LIVE.
"Before enlightenment, chop wood, carry water. After enlightenment, chop wood, carry water."
Do what you KNOW is right. Things will fall into place.

I thought on a good morning quote this a.m. But this is all I kept coming back to. Seriously. What is important to you? What is the small stuff? What is REALLY important? Let go of the excess. Hold on to the REAL stuff. Focus. 

Get through the BS. 
Be love in all of it. 

The Image of God within and the Battle between the flesh, the world, and who we really are.

The world is populated with humans. An obvious statement. In the scripture it states that during the creation of all things, when it came time to make man as the word calls us, God chose to make man in his image. In God's image. What exactly is the image of God? Does anyone who walks the earth have a tangible image that they can share with the rest of the world as to what the likeness of God may actually be. If you follow the fresco in the cistene chapel then you have this idea of God being some kind of anthropomorphic old man. A semblance of one of the members of ZZ Top (not the drummer mind you) with flowing beard and the face of an elder that observes all and judges all. It is Micheangelo's contribution to our limited understanding of who or what God is. But if we read the scripture with a desire to understand and we pray for wisdom for comprehension of the word we find that over and over God is based in Spirit. That is God's focus. 

1. John 4:24King James Version (KJV) God is a Spirit: and they that worship him must worship him in spirit and in truth.
   
   
   God is spirit. God is not flesh. As a matter of fact, the word of God. The teachings of Christ, the writings of Paul, and on and on state the dichotomous relationship between the flesh and the spirit. Paul tells us over and over about the conflict between flesh and spirit. In Romans he gives the sometimes almost comical discription of his battle with the flesh. 
   Paul describes in the Book of Romans a much deeper frustration—one with which onlyChristians can identify and one with which all Christians can identify. The Christian’s agony comes from realizing that our sinful flesh refuses to respond to the requirements of God’s Law. Those things which we as Christians despise we find ourselves doing. Those things which we as Christians desire we fail to accomplish. No matter how much we may wish to serve God in our minds, we find ourselves sinning in our bodies. As Paul describes his frustration in Romans 7, with his mind he desires to serve God. He agrees with the Law of God and rejoices in it. He wants to do what is right, but his body will not respond. He watches, almost as a third party, as sin sends a signal to his body, and as his body responds, “What would you like to do?” Paul finds, as we do, that while our fleshly bodies refuse to obey God and do that which we desire and which delights God, they quickly and eagerly respond to the impulses and desires aroused by sin. 
   So we find that the flesh is temporal and it is of this earth. It desires what is of the earth. Because it originates here. It also terminates here. Ashes to ashes and dust to dust. Furthermore, the flesh is something we must be constantly vigilant over or it will run roughshod over our lives in a never ending demonstration of impulsivity and selfish behavior. 
   Once again, Paul tells us in his letter to the Galatians about the stark contrast between the spirit and the flesh. 
   In Galatians 5: 13-23 he explains the conflict and the differences. 

   13 You, my brothers and sisters, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the flesh[a]; rather, serve one another humbly in love. 14 For the entire law is fulfilled in keeping this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”[b] 15 If you bite and devour each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.

   16 So I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. 17 For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the flesh. They are in conflict with each other, so that you are not to do whatever[c] you want. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.

   19 The acts of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God.

   22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness,23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.

   But we as Christians are enlightened in the regard that when we accept Jesus Christ as our one and only we also get the whole package. We get the father, whom Christ continuosly spoke of in his teachings and we get the Holy Spirit or as Jesus sometimes referred to it as The Comforter. Evidence of the comforter occupying the very psyche' of the committed Christian was demonstrated on the day of Pentecost when many were overcome with the spirit that lives within each and every one of us. The Spirit. The image of God. We are all individualized expressions of God right here on earth. But because we currently do not exist on the spiritual plane as so many of us who once walked this earth now do, we have this container. This body. This flesh that carries our spirit to and fro as we live our human experience here on earth. This flesh. The flesh that depending on your geographic origins contains certain degrees of what scientists refer to as melanin. 
   Melanin ⁱ/ˈmɛlənɪn/ (Greek: μέλας - melas, "black, dark") is a broad term for a group of natural pigments found in most organisms (arachnids are one of the few groups in which it has not been detected). Melanin is produced by the oxidation of the amino acid tyrosine, followed by polymerization. The pigment is produced in a specialized group of cells known as melanocytes.
   
   
   In the skin, melanogenesis occurs after exposure to UV radiation, causing the skin to visibly tan. Melanin is an effective absorber of light; the pigment is able to dissipate over 99.9% of absorbed UV radiation.^[1] Because of this property, melanin is thought to protect skin cells from UVB radiation damage, reducing the risk of cancer. Furthermore, though exposure to UV radiation is associated with increased risk of malignant melanoma, a cancer of the melanocytes, studies have shown a lower incidence for skin cancer in individuals with more concentrated melanin, i.e. darker skin tone. Nonetheless, the relationship between skin pigmentation and photoprotection is still being clarified.^[2]
   
   
   So with that being said we still remain this image of God which is Spirit, encapsulated by this flesh, which can be of varying levels of melanin which is a result of the origin of your flesh on this planet. So, in areas such as Norway or Finland we have little need for large quantities of melanin because of the climate, but in hot climates that are located closer to the equator, we find the container of our Spirit, or connection to God, having more melanin as a means of adaptation and survival. That's it. There is no classification in the scripture that states people with this amount of melanin in their flesh have some advantage over others over varying degrees of melanin. It is simply a shade of the cover that is temporary that houses our spirit which is eternal. Yet here we are in this world, being directed by the flesh in ways so subtle we at times can hardly take notice. We separate and divide. We assign one another to these collectives. These groups. This "US" and "Them" mentality which is the most anti-spirit act we can direct ourselves to. It literally ignores and diminishes the very image of God that lives within each and every one of us. Instead of brothers and sisters in Christ and a family of the Spirit we see the blacks, the whites, the hispanics, the asians, the this, the that. What ever separates and what ever divides. It is our way of classifying the world around us. We see things as not like us or just like them and it bleeds like a cancer into the very fabric of our lives. We fail the test. We even forget the test. We instead rally in large groups to take up for our kind and simultaneously denegrade the others. Those who oppose us. We fail the test. 
   
   
   That test that tells us where we are in Christ and whether we are Spirit focused or flesh focused.

   2 Corinthians 13:5New International Version (NIV)

   5 Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you—unless, of course, you fail the test?

   There are leaders out there who claim to be ministers. Men of God. Men of the word. Men of the spirit. Yet they advocate the flesh. The melanin in the body that encapsulates our Spirit as we have a human experiience here on earth. They fail the test. They serve to separate us from the spirit in their own ignorance as others who are weak in their walk follow them and stumble in ways that may permanently affect their relationship with God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit. It is a sin of the worst kind. A missing of the mark. The word sin being an anglo saxon word referring to archery which means to miss the mark. To not hit the target or the bullseye. Well, this sin, this reliance upon identifying ourselves based on the color of our skin rather than the image of God that lives in each one of us is a form of separation that I personally fight against. I know the flesh is my enemy when it comes to my relationship with God. I know I am also human and subject to stumble but the spirit convicts and corrects. As Christ told us he came not to abolish the law but to fulfill it. The spirit within if we have that faith of a mustard seed will direct our paths if only we let it. Against the Spirit there is no law. We need to see this world as spirit. We need to see the people who walk this earth with us as Spirit no matter there melanin quantity. Right now the flesh is having it's way with this nation and we are divided. We need to pass the test. Let us refocus our perspective on who we really are and start representing the spirit within each of us. No more divisions. No more collectives. All of us a Spirit that will never die but instead will be a part of the kingdom when we leave this flesh behind. 

   Remember, the flesh will separate us from God at the first opportunity. Yet we have the spirit right here. Right inside of who we really are. He must become greater, and I must become less. He being the spirit and I being the flesh. The scripture is not just a bunch of letters or stories or proverbs. It is the word. It was what became flesh when Jesus walked the earth. We must study it in order to live it and reflect it in our lives. I pray we all give the time to see ourselves as Spirit before the flesh indentifies us itself.