Divine Mutuality
By Xlibris US
()
About this ebook
I came to America in 1970 on Pan American Airways and landed in John F. Kennedy Airport in Queens, New York. I was accompanied by my mother, my older brother, and my older sister. My dad was already in the States since the 1960s, waiting patiently for our arrival. The first song I had the pleasure of listening to on the ride home in a 1965 Thunderbird Fury III was I can see clearly now, the rain is gone. We were only the first set of kids of three more to arrive in the future years to come.
It was the month of December; therefore, my parents had to wait until January to register me in school. In the first week of January 1971, I was registered at Meyer Levin Junior High School. The following year I attended Tilden High school, where I graduated four years later.
Both my dad and mom continuously reminded me that I was not brought in to the United States to have fun. It was a few years after the end of the Vietnam War, I had the choice to enlist myself or go to college. Despite the fact that I was of age to make my own decision, in the family I grew up in, the decision was always Mom and Dads. The US Forces was always a dream for me, especially the coast guard. My mom and dad had the opposite in mind. A few weeks later I was already registering for college at Bernard M. Baruch College of the City University of New York. After my first semester, I told my dad I was planning on selecting philosophy as my major. He did not hesitate to ask me without any reservation, So what is your plan with that major? Go around Manhattan and think?
At that I decided to go for a major in economics and finance. A few years later, after an unexpected incident, I decided to change my major to operational management. It did not take me long to get married after college and started my career. I moved to Florida, where I started my masters program at Saint Thomas University. A year later I stopped to focus on starting a family of my own. I have been in the Sunshine State since. It is unquestionably, to me, a blessing from above that I have always been part of the labor force. It has always been an ultimate dream of mine to one day retire as a writer. I sincerely hope that God will find it as part of the many blessings he has extended to me for that dream to become a reality.
Related to Divine Mutuality
Related ebooks
Get Back Up: The First Step Towards Your Destiny Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBe Authentic, Be Inspirational!: A Practical Guide to Help You Live a More Meaningful Life Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Legend in Your Own Lunchbox Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLife Happens: It’S How You Let It Shape You That Matters Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Sculptor in the Sky Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5It's Not Your Life, It's You: A Deeper Journey Into the Power of Perspective Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsBe the Light that You Are: Ten Simple Ways to Transform Your World With Love Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWe are here to know ourselves: a journey to discover you Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWho Rules Your Mind? Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsChanneling Ezekiel: A Daily Guide to Inner Beauty, Wisdom & Balance Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsDo You Know Why You Can't Feel My Pain? Overcoming the Pain of Separation Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsShe Energy: A self-awareness guide to your natural energy cycle Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsMy Quarantine Musings Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsJournaling Through Awakening: An Inner Voyage to the Remembrance of Who You Are Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsJust Show Up: Ya Gotta Do It Anyway Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Lessons of Love and Life: Awakening to Self-Love and Happiness Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLive Life on Purpose: From Discovery to Practice Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsStand Up!: An Inspiring Account of How God's Message Saved My Life Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsTransparent Moments: “The Mini Book” Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsOrchestrate Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLighten Up, You're Eternal: A Compassionate Guide to Deliberate Creation Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWalking out of Darkness Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsEpiphanies Within: When Mediocre Living Is No Longer Enough Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsFighting Will Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsUnlimiting You: Step Out of Your Past and Into Your Purpose Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsA Journey Within Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsThe Seeking Soul: A Pathway of Spiritual Growth Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsWhat Gives You the Right to Talk of Such Things?: Findings, Insights and Realizations Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratingsLimitless You: Activate Your Soul, Get Out of Your Funk and Start Living Your Best Life Rating: 0 out of 5 stars0 ratings
Self-Improvement For You
A Stolen Life: A Memoir Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Don't Believe Everything You Think: Why Your Thinking Is The Beginning & End Of Suffering Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Boundaries Updated and Expanded Edition: When to Say Yes, How to Say No To Take Control of Your Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Four Loves Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Big Book of 30-Day Challenges: 60 Habit-Forming Programs to Live an Infinitely Better Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Self-Care for People with ADHD: 100+ Ways to Recharge, De-Stress, and Prioritize You! Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5The Gifts of Imperfection: Let Go of Who You Think You're Supposed to Be and Embrace Who You Are Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How to Win Friends and Influence People: Updated For the Next Generation of Leaders Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Think and Grow Rich (Illustrated Edition): With linked Table of Contents Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Wild at Heart Expanded Edition: Discovering the Secret of a Man's Soul Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How May I Serve Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Running on Empty: Overcome Your Childhood Emotional Neglect Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Art of Witty Banter: Be Clever, Quick, & Magnetic Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Mastery of Self: A Toltec Guide to Personal Freedom Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Chop Wood Carry Water: How to Fall In Love With the Process of Becoming Great Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5How to Talk so Little Kids Will Listen: A Survival Guide to Life with Children Ages 2-7 Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Good Girl's Guide to Great Sex: Creating a Marriage That's Both Holy and Hot Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Less Fret, More Faith: An 11-Week Action Plan to Overcome Anxiety Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The Language of Letting Go: Daily Meditations on Codependency Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5A Child Called It: One Child's Courage to Survive Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership: Follow Them and People Will Follow You Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5Organizing for the Rest of Us: 100 Realistic Strategies to Keep Any House Under Control Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5You're Not Dying You're Just Waking Up Rating: 5 out of 5 stars5/5Unfu*k Yourself: Get Out of Your Head and into Your Life Rating: 4 out of 5 stars4/5
Reviews for Divine Mutuality
0 ratings0 reviews
Book preview
Divine Mutuality - Xlibris US
Copyright © 2014 by Jacques Labossiere.
Library of Congress Control Number: 2014909838
ISBN: Hardcover 978-1-4990-2950-5
Softcover 978-1-4990-2949-9
eBook 978-1-4990-2951-2
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without permission in writing from the copyright owner.
Scriptures were taken from the New World Translation of the Holy Scriptures, copyright 1961, 1970, 1981, 1984, 2013, Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania. Used with permission. All rights reserved.
Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.
Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.
A production of New Millennium Marketing Group, Inc. (numgihc.com)
Rev. date: 11/24/2014
Xlibris
1-888-795-4274
www.Xlibris.com
552533
CONTENTS
Acknowledgement
Prologue
Introduction
Chapter 1 How It All Began
Chapter 2 The Account of the Garden
Chapter 3 Controlling Our Emotions
Chapter 4 Mysticism of the Spiritual World
Chapter 5 Beware of Uncompromised Comfort
Chapter 6 Who Is Satan the Devil?
Chapter 7 Mystical Encounter
Chapter 8 How Did God Become?
Chapter 9 Understanding God’s Wisdom
Chapter 10 A Mutualistic Relationship
Chapter 11 Divine Empowerment
Chapter 12 Benefiting from the Fruits of the Spirit
Chapter 13 Acquiring the Fruits of the Spirit
Chapter 14 Which God Do You Serve?
Author’s Inspiration
About The Author
Acknowledgement
I t would be highly unfair not to give credit to the people closest to me who have been subjects to this opus from the minute I decided to start it. A sincere thanks to my wife of thirty-four years, who stood with me through thick and thin, and she reminds me all the time that we have been surviving through mostly thin. Cherie, there is no better wife out there. I am most fortunate to know that you are in my corner. Cherie, I love you without reservation, and you can take that to the bank. Thank you to a great daughter, Jen, who is no longer dwelling in the nest; she made several attempts to exit, and due to her tenacity she finally got her own place–baby you made us proud.
Thank you to a model son, a student who graduated from the University of Miami, his dream school from the day he was able to pronounce the word school. Jay, it would be deceiving on my part to tell you to study whatever your heart desires. From the day you were born, I have always visualized you as the future doctor of the family. I had to share that with you. Nonetheless, a father’s love for his son is usually understood between the two. I will love you regardless of the outcome. Also, thank-you to Ely, my youngest son, who many believed was born as a miscalculation on our part because he is twelve years apart from his older brother. Lolo, you are not a miscalculation; you were very well planned. We are happy to have your company. I know your mom considers you as the best companion ever.
Another person who inspired me that I cannot discredit is Roger Duclos, my cousin-in-law. When I told Roger of my intention to write this book, he said to me that it is easier than I think. Just be serious about it and write away.
Thank you, Roger! Finally, I want to extend a special thanks to all my brothers, sisters, and cousins. Forgive me, guys; you know how long it will take if I start to write names down. Thanks to this close relationship with my siblings and relatives, I have learned le savoir vivre.
PROLOGUE
T his book is an avenue to express a collection of ideas based on personal experiences and opinions that others can hopefully benefit from. It is not intended to influence the readers, nor is it intended to change the reader’s point of view or philosophical standpoint on the subject matter or other subjects that will be discussed.
As human beings some powerful forces that are the energizing elements of our existence keep us motivated throughout life. Forces that, if absent, will make us stay in bed and wish for death. I am hoping that I will be able to form a relationship close enough with my readers that will lead to a trusting bond that will allow us to nourish in a positive manner these forces that are the guiding light of our day-to-day existence. Throughout the book we will continue to discuss in great detail how these forces that affects us as individuals.
Rest assured you will be privileged to the writer’s true inhibition and some experiences that are authentic in nature. I beg, the reader, not to judge the writer or at least to limit their criticism; for while experiencing these critical moments, I was focused and never lost sight of the purpose of my journeys.
jl%20pic.tifINTRODUCTION
O n my fiftieth birthday, I realized that it looked like as if it were yesterday I was in high school, trying to keep up with all my friends’ bad habits, and today I am already fifty. I started to take an inventory of some of the things I have done and to reanalyze the outcome of these contributions. I concluded that, while I am not necessarily sorry for any of my past contributions or behaviors, I am not necessarily thrilled either. I have taken into account that, if my days were to end tomorrow, I have left nothing behind to measure the legacy of my existence. At that point the idea of writing this book was conceived. The average person is satisfied with their daily living. Waking up in the morning, going about their daily routine, and suddenly it is time to go to bed again. Never has it come to mind, why are we doing these activities every day? Routinely they continue day after day after day until it is the time for that permanent trip—death.
One thing that I am almost certain of is that, after reading this book, you will start questioning the purpose of your daily activities, your contributions to society, or perhaps even your existence. Perhaps you will even reach the point to wonder what the driving forces are behind the daily propeller that routinizes one’s existence. What really makes you want to get up in the morning? This may not appear significant to you. I don’t intend to ask of you to accept my words at face value. Therefore, it is my intention to authenticate and validate statements that will be made in this book to the best of my ability. Please pay close attention to the debate that will be taking place between the obvious and the eclectic aspect of the subject matter.
Imagine you wake up one day, and out of the blue you have no desire to go to work or even continue to live, for that matter. Therefore, at this point the life force within begins to regress and no longer finds reasons to continue. I have hope that you will not come to experience such a dreadful encounter.
My grandmother passed away twenty-seven years ago. I remembered that every morning she woke up, she would walk to the front door, open her arms, look toward the heavens, and exclaim a relief from within followed by these phrases: Thank you for giving me another day, but I can’t see why, I am no use to anyone anymore.
Certainly she knew there was a driving force that allowed her to be on her feet for another day. She also realized that she was not getting up for the same reasons anymore. There is the desire in every single one of us to be a productive element to our fellow men, the need to feel useful, productive and competitive is one of the driving forces.
As a younger man, I found that it was always questionable on my part as it relates to the validity and the sanctity of her daily routine and practice. Some biblical research reveals that this format of requesting that God help speeding up one’s life or requesting for death from the highest divine authority is not new. The prophet Elijah felt that all his effort and sacrifice amounted to nothing, and to him it was not worth it to experience another breath of life. The prophet felt alone in his struggle and truly felt discouraged. In 1 Kings 19:4 the account recaps the prophet’s words at the end of the verse: It is enough! Now, O Jehovah take my soul away, for I am no better than my forefathers.
These phenomena fuel our desire to get up and go. When these feelings are absent or if one has the perception that these feelings are no longer animated within, the interests in the daily activities and the quality of life diminishes.
Be not ignorant to the fact that this subject or at least some of the issues that will be discussed will be highly controversial especially with regard to the divine powers or even when God and religions come into the arena. Some close friends and associates whose point of view differs or with a point of view on the opposite spectrum will no longer consider my input or even validate my contribution at the gatherings we so often have. At this point it is important to bring to light that a subject of this magnitude cannot be discussed or argued without bringing God or religion as essential elements of the subject. I must start enumerating the elements that are considered as the driving forces that energize us to the extent of wanting to get up and go on a daily basis. We cannot ignore the fact that we are continuously competing with each other to get someone else’s favor. You will be introduced in a flash to some peripherals that will set some of the ethos for what you will be experiencing. The subject matter is somewhat complex in nature, for many of the discussions are empirical. It involves some research, personal opinion and not necessarily clear and hard, evidences. Therefore, it is highly likely to be subject to a lot of personal experiences and incidents; as a matter of fact, be ready to be exposed to exactly that.
Therefore, I ask my readers to try to refrain from drawing quick conclusions as you peruse through the passages of this book, for you will absolutely come face to face with extreme perplex moments of an unexplainable magnitude. When that happens, take it as your sign for a break to digest what you are reading.
image_1.jpgFiftieth birthday
CHAPTER 1
How It All Began
M y son Jay was sixteen years old, when we had a couple of Jehovah’s Witnesses in our living room who were studying the Bible with us. They explained the events that took place in heaven before the creation of the earth, the events that led Lucifer known as Satan to lose his heavenly heritage. The Witnesses explained that Lucifer was the most magnificent of all the angels. Jay stood up and said to the Witnesses, If I understand you well, the challenges that we are in today has nothing to do with us. The conflict is really between God and Satan, and we happen to be right in the middle.
The story, as I understood, goes as follows: Lucifer, the angel of light, was the most beautiful of all the angels. He stood there and realized that all the glories were given to God. Ambitious of his Creator’s power and glory, he began to insist that the angels and the other celestial beings give him the praise and the glory. He formed his own army with some other angels who rebelled against God. God became unhappy of his behavior and chased him out of heaven by kicking him below on earth, as indicated in Revelations 12:9: So down the great dragon was hurled, the original serpent, the one called devil and Satan, who is misleading the entire inhabited earth, and his angels were hurled down with him.
As a matter of personal opinion and also being the rebels that they are, it may not necessarily be that they are all dwelling here on our planet, Earth.
It is important to notice that God felt it necessary to protect his heavenly family and in essence did what any father would do with an unruly son. In fact, in Revelations, it is stated that in no uncertain terms was there any longer a place for them in the heavens. Once below, he continued his crusade by misleading those who are faithful to God to be on his side. He makes evil look attractive to persuade good people to join him. Presumably his goal is to recruit the most to create a stronger army to defeat God and his angels.
The powerful energetic force that was talked about earlier, gives you as an individual human being, the strength to wake up and start your day; you begin your day with the most honorable intentions yet experience dishonorable results. Your conscience is telling you that you have done drastically wrong; ultimately you believe that you have. What you fail to realize is that you have a negative force working against you from the start. If one had the chance to