Hollomon Speaks: Thinking Through 2020 & 2021

By Bryan Hollomon Williams

About the Book
Hollomon Speaks: Thinking Through 2020 & 2021 is a thought-provoking collection of essays concerning the author’s life in America at the period. Authentic and direct, the author discusses society and politics, COVID, religion, etc. There is no specific audience or demographic targeted because all can relate to these observations and opinions. The author hopes readers are able to gain new perspectives on various facets of life and that more and more people begin to think as individuals, seek knowledge of things for themselves, and break free from the dead-end conditioning that so many of us were subjected to growing up.

About the Author
Bryan Hollomon Williams is a proud member of the Type 1 Diabetes Community around the world. He was diagnosed December 1, 1990, at the age of fourteen. He considers all Type 1 diabetics his brothers and sisters. Williams loves writing, fishing, and hanging out with family and friends. He is married with four kids: three daughters and a son.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Dorrance Publishing Company
• Release date: Jul 19, 2023
• ISBN: 9798886839531

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The contents of this work, including, but not limited to, the accuracy of events, people, and places depicted; opinions expressed; permission to use previously published materials included; and any advice given or actions advocated are solely the responsibility of the author, who assumes all liability for said work and indemnifies the publisher against any claims stemming from publication of the work.

All Rights Reserved

Copyright © 2023 by Bryan Hollomon Williams

No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted, downloaded, distributed, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, including photocopying and recording, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereinafter invented without permission in writing from the publisher.

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Introduction

I was Catholic, then not.

I was Baptist, then not.

I was Nondenominational, then not.

I was Christian, then not.

Before all these things, I was I am.

Still, I am.

The Word of our Creator was in me before I knew how to formulate a word on my tongue. It was in me prior to birth, prior to ever hearing my parents’ voices, prior to my first church service, and prior to ever seeing a school classroom.

What is in me, that comes from the Great I Am, can’t be religioned out of me, doctrined out of me, corrupted out of me, bribed out of me, bought out of me, or taught out of me.

The first time I fell to my knees and called on the name of Jesus, there was a quickening, and I had to sever no heads to receive it. I had to do no ill to anyone, in order to gain His favor. I had to do no dance; I had to speak in no tongue other than my own; I had to join no religion or denomination; and I had to judge or condemn no one, in order to receive the Holy Spirit.

Out of the abundance of my heart, Hollomon Speaks.

Dedication:

To Helen Hollomon, the grandmother I’ve only ever known by Spirit & whose name I bear….

Judge Not the Oceans…

As I was driving at some point last week, this question dropped into my heart: Why is it that God admonishes us not to judge one another?

Then, my mind ran with it. Maybe it’s because God knows that our hearts and souls are oceans, as great as all Earth’s waters combined. In these oceans are depths of which mankind will never be able to fully see, grasp, or understand the way God does. Turbulent and violent seas still supply and sustain. Growing up on the Gulf Coast, I know what the waters look like when Hurricanes approach. I know what they look like the day after, calm and still providing food for families of fishermen. Judge not the ocean. None can condemn what or who God has yet to.

Think about the ocean. Though each section, region, part of it has different names, it’s still the same body. Now, think about the extent of the ocean that you have personally seen with your own eyes. Compare that crumb to a cookie that equates to three quarters of the earth. You’ve truly seen NOTHING of the ocean and all that is held in its deepest, innermost parts. This is why, I feel, it is not good for us to judge.

I remember having a conversation, at the age of seventeen, with a good friend of mine. He seemed to always have an issue with white people. He didn’t want to have much anything to do with them. I said to him, on this particular day, One day you’re gonna fall hard, and the only hand that will show up to help you, will be white! I will say this to any racist mind and mentality. God has a way of humbling us when necessary, and I promise you, it’s better to work on humbling your own self now and save Him the trouble.

So many of us have judged the waters of many oceans and written them off, based on one ill experience, based on looks, and based on hearsay. We fill the cloud of unknowing with assumption and stereotype, turning our attention to a self-created movie screen of an imagined ocean of all the things we say it should contain. All the while, we lose the person whom we should have taken more time to get to know…

Morning Thought Stirrer…

If we observe phenomena closely, it cannot be thought that anything between heaven and earth is really different. If we see differences, it is due to the narrowness of our vision…. This is like Mount Fuji being concealed by a tree thick with branches and leaves, and my not being able to see it. But how can Mount Fuji be concealed by a single tree? It is simply because of the narrowness of my vision and because the tree stands in the way of my vision that Mount Fuji cannot be seen. We go on thinking that the tree is concealing Mount Fuji. Yet it is due to the narrowness of my vision - Takuan Soho -

My take:

Mount Fuji = The Greatness of our Creator; Truth of the Universe; The True Purpose of Mankind; Wisdom that Could’ve Saved the Planet; The True means of Peace on Earth and Good Will among men, etc.

The Tree = Politics/Politicians, Material Gain, Money, Denominations, Technology, Selfishness, Corrupt Preachers and Teachers, Ignorance, Laziness, Bias, Traditions laced with evil, Lust, Sloth, Anger, Greed, Gluttony, Pride, Envy (There is a reason they are called deadly), etc.

Those who have ears to hear, let them hear….

Capacities…

Earlier this week, I revisited Tao Te Ching by Lao-tzu (Laozi). From there, I listened to two audio books: The Unfettered Mind by Takuan Soho and The Art of Peace by Morihei Ueshiba. I won’t bore you all with the history I have with Tao Te Ching," but I will say that it set me on an ongoing quest for a greater knowledge of and relationship with Yahweh, Creator of the Way. This quest resides outside of religion, denomination, tradition, race, culture, country, and all the ways mankind has used to divide mankind, destroy mankind, and defend evil. Ultimately, I was led to Jesus Christ, the Way, the Truth, and the Life. For Christ is the portal to the One True God, Yahweh.

All week, capacities has been on my mind. Inspired by the aforementioned books, I decided that I would work on not being judgmental toward anyone or any situation, but to be better about understanding the underlying issues and drivers of certain behaviors and actions in people. Even while dying on the cross, Jesus said Father, forgive them, for they know not what they do. With that being said, I’m hearing DJ Jubilee in my mind more often, saying, Stop! Paaaause… as I come across things upon which I’d normally place baseless judgment.

In order to put such judgment out of practice, I’ve prayed that Yahweh increase the capacity of my heart to hold more love and compassion; that He increase the capacity of my spirit to discern more and discern more quickly; that He increase the capacity of my mind to hold more peace and understanding. It is my belief that increased capacities of such things will only help us all at being better human beings toward one another, even if you don’t believe as I believe. You don’t have to believe in any god to know right from wrong, good from evil, and love from hate. You don’t have to believe, as I believe, to simply want to know more than what schools, churches, and your families teach or have taught. For all knowledge we have gained thus far, is partial. Learning and growth is eternal.

This morning, as I am compelled to put something in writing, concerning my thoughts on capacities, 1 Chronicles 4:9–10 comes to mind. How many of you remember the trend/craze, surrounding the Prayer of Jabez. Bruce Wilkinson wrote a book about it, but it is not his book I want to talk about. Back when this trend was the thing to be about, in the Christian world, every person I spoke to, who practiced this principal of prayer and faith, did so in hopes of some material or monetary gain. So did I. These were the territories we wanted increased. These are the territories for which pastors encouraged that we pray, tithe, and give everything.

This is the New International Version of the Prayer of Jabez: Now Jabez was more honorable than his brothers, and his mother called his name Jabez, saying, ‘Because I bore him in pain.’ And Jabez called on the God of Israel saying, ‘Oh, that You would bless me indeed, and enlarge my territory, that Your hand would be with me, and that You would keep me from evil, that I may not cause pain!’ So God granted him what he requested. This is the only mentioning of Jabez in the Bible, and there is no context to provide us with what Yahweh actually granted Jabez.

Imagine the territories which Yahweh desires to increase in us having nothing to do with money, land, and material things. His every Word, Jesus Christ, whom Christians claim to follow and live by, said to us Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moths and vermin destroy, and where thieves break in and steal (Matthew 6:19). Then, He tells us of the Greatest Commandments of them all: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with