Whenever I say what I have to tell you today, regardless of what it is, I'll be exercising one of the liberties that our nation provides and that everyone on earth deserves...the freedom of speech. It is my right to express my opinion, and I do it often. I'm sure you do the same. If I don't like the way you fix your hair, although it may be unwise for me say it, I have a legal right to let the whole world know how I feel. There's just something about letting other people know how we feel about whatever is on our minds that gives us a feeling of satisfaction...like we've released a pressure valve that allows us to blow off some steam.
Now I'm not an argumentive type of person, so if you express your opinion to me, and I disagree with you, chances are I'll exercise the right that I have to remain silent. (That's a right we don't take advantage of often enough.) So if it's an argument you're looking for, you should probably express your opinion to someone else. That leads me to this question: What is our real purpose for letting our views be known? Are we looking for someone to agree with us so it will give us a confirmation that our opinions are not ours alone? Are we trying to convince others that our way is correct and if they have a different opinion, they need to change it so that it will be more in line with our view? Here's the truth of the matter: I really want to express my opinion more than I want to hear yours. I'm not saying that I have no interest in what you have to say; in fact, the exact opposite is true. I do want to know how you feel, and obviously, you also want to know how I feel, or you wouldn't be reading this article. However, what I really want to know, far more than anything else, is the truth. I've often heard it said that there are three ways to do everything--your way, my way, and the right way. None of our opinions are worth a hill of beans if they don't line up with the truth.
The two topics where people in general are the most vocal with their views and where they can usually get other people stirred up the quickest are politics and religion. In politics, we normally have opposite opinions between the liberals and conservatives, or the Democrats and Republicans. I know that neither side is right 100% of the time, and I also know that people on both sides are very passionate about their views, but somewhere in there is a way that's best, and that's what I'm looking for. One thing I've learned, however, is that I'll never know which way is right unless I approach the subject with an open mind. I'm afraid that all too often, we form our views, and then go searching for facts to back them up. That's even true on the topic of religion. I'm convinced that sometimes we form our beliefs and then go to the Bible to find scriptures to help us prove our point, and, believe it or not, it's not that hard to do if we take isolated scriptures out of context and interpret them to match up with our pre-conceived notions. What we should do is go to the Bible first and study it with a completely open mind, reading each verse within its context and accepting the intent of the writer when he penned those words. I was still a fairly young man when my dad passed away, and one day, not long after that, I was thinking about him as I was alone in my vehicle, and it dawned on me that I believed the way I did because he and my mom had brought me up that way. I said to myself out loud, "That's not good enough." I do believe that my parents raised me right, but it was something I had to find out for myself. I had to base my beliefs on truth and not on my heritage. My entire attitude changed at that moment.
Have you ever stopped to think about truth? Truth is pure. There are no imperfections found in truth. Truth doesn't have degrees. A statement is either true, or it's false. It's incorrect to say that something is 98% true, because a statement that is 98% true is 100% false. So, feel free to express your opinions to me, and I'll listen to them, if you'll listen to mine. Please understand, however, that my ultimate quest is not for anyone's opinion, just truth. Because, you see, one thing that I've learned in this search for what is real and pure is that my freedom comes from knowing the truth. Therefore, the absence of truth equals the absence of freedom. Nothing else matters.
Preston
Now I'm not an argumentive type of person, so if you express your opinion to me, and I disagree with you, chances are I'll exercise the right that I have to remain silent. (That's a right we don't take advantage of often enough.) So if it's an argument you're looking for, you should probably express your opinion to someone else. That leads me to this question: What is our real purpose for letting our views be known? Are we looking for someone to agree with us so it will give us a confirmation that our opinions are not ours alone? Are we trying to convince others that our way is correct and if they have a different opinion, they need to change it so that it will be more in line with our view? Here's the truth of the matter: I really want to express my opinion more than I want to hear yours. I'm not saying that I have no interest in what you have to say; in fact, the exact opposite is true. I do want to know how you feel, and obviously, you also want to know how I feel, or you wouldn't be reading this article. However, what I really want to know, far more than anything else, is the truth. I've often heard it said that there are three ways to do everything--your way, my way, and the right way. None of our opinions are worth a hill of beans if they don't line up with the truth.
The two topics where people in general are the most vocal with their views and where they can usually get other people stirred up the quickest are politics and religion. In politics, we normally have opposite opinions between the liberals and conservatives, or the Democrats and Republicans. I know that neither side is right 100% of the time, and I also know that people on both sides are very passionate about their views, but somewhere in there is a way that's best, and that's what I'm looking for. One thing I've learned, however, is that I'll never know which way is right unless I approach the subject with an open mind. I'm afraid that all too often, we form our views, and then go searching for facts to back them up. That's even true on the topic of religion. I'm convinced that sometimes we form our beliefs and then go to the Bible to find scriptures to help us prove our point, and, believe it or not, it's not that hard to do if we take isolated scriptures out of context and interpret them to match up with our pre-conceived notions. What we should do is go to the Bible first and study it with a completely open mind, reading each verse within its context and accepting the intent of the writer when he penned those words. I was still a fairly young man when my dad passed away, and one day, not long after that, I was thinking about him as I was alone in my vehicle, and it dawned on me that I believed the way I did because he and my mom had brought me up that way. I said to myself out loud, "That's not good enough." I do believe that my parents raised me right, but it was something I had to find out for myself. I had to base my beliefs on truth and not on my heritage. My entire attitude changed at that moment.
Have you ever stopped to think about truth? Truth is pure. There are no imperfections found in truth. Truth doesn't have degrees. A statement is either true, or it's false. It's incorrect to say that something is 98% true, because a statement that is 98% true is 100% false. So, feel free to express your opinions to me, and I'll listen to them, if you'll listen to mine. Please understand, however, that my ultimate quest is not for anyone's opinion, just truth. Because, you see, one thing that I've learned in this search for what is real and pure is that my freedom comes from knowing the truth. Therefore, the absence of truth equals the absence of freedom. Nothing else matters.
Preston
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