Air of Happiness

WARNING: With this message I dare to venture into the forests of science and psychology, begging my Boss to place each foot exactly where it should land because otherwise I’ll get lost, take you with me, and we will never find in these woods the pebble of bright light we want for our journey to immortality.

‘Be Prepared’ is a good motto for space travelers, Scouts, and immortals. For the moon as for the land of immortality we probably can’t go there if we don’t know how to be there. I once thought that when the immortal gets his or her brand new body, on the way to the new earth, it will be all ready for the future oxygen-free atmosphere, but now I’m not so sure. I wonder if some aspiring immortals will still need oxygen and hence will fall by the wayside.

Earth, air, fire, and water, breathe of life. Oxygen has a lot to do on this old planet. It even causes decay. When I started thinking seriously about the immortal world I figured that humankind will no longer need oxygen and blood. I went only so far with that line of thinking when I fell right back to the matter of pride because pride and oxygen have so much in common. Imagine for a moment that pride is oxygen. Both seem to be essential for life on old earth and neither immortalizes us. In fact, to depend on pride and oxygen is a sure way to stay mortal.

Like oxygen, pride is essential for the mortal life. Mortals puff themselves up like swollen little chicks with pride for their achievements, beauty, talent, possessions and whatever power can be evoked. And yet, God’s friend James (4:6) writes that God resists the proud. In fact, keyword search ‘pride’ in the Good Book and it is all bad. Pride keeps the mortal going strong, but it is deadly for the immortal. Pride is the source of anger, resistance to criticism, jealously, vanity, and hypocrisy. Pride causes self delusion because it is what makes us blind to our own failings.

It took me a long time to accept how treacherous pride is for the aspiring immortal. I didn't want to believe it. I was proud of my reasons for pride. When I started to try to become small enough to squeeze through the very narrow gate to the immortal world I could see that pride was my fattening enemy and not my friend. Now I try hard to be aware of my pride. I can see pride seep in via many disguises, and that it is the source of most if not all of my anxieties and conflicts. I think God hates human pride because it keeps us from trusting Him exclusively. Perhaps the meek and poor in spirit are blessed because they have fewer opportunities to fall into the pride pit.

It’s not that God wants His immortal children to be specks of dirty dust, groveling for bits of life to cling to, but rather to be concentrated particles of light. Envision uranium, diamonds and flecks of gold which are of infinite value, purpose and capability. After all, we are all made of tiny cells and elements, not of anything large. Small is good. Be a bright light but don’t look at yourself, shine on and for others. In this way immortals will illuminate this world and the one without the sun.

Aspiring immortal, the message for the day is to breathe Jesus and eat plenty of humble pie to shrink.