Rapture Simply Means Intense Pleasure

Many Christians believe that in the end times, when Jesus comes again, they'll be raptured [1], meaning they'll leave the earth, meet Jesus in the sky, then go to heaven, another dimension, or someplace else.

If that's the case, why does Jesus pray, "... your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven." (Matthew 6:9-13, NIV) Meaning God's kingdom come to earth, God's will be done on earth as it is in heaven. It's all about earth.

Jesus is praying for the benevolent quality of bestowal (where we all seek to benefit others instead of ourselves) to come to earth. Today, we're all immersed in the quality of selfishness, seeking to benefit ourselves.

Rapture [2] actually means joyful ecstasy, which is connected to intense pleasure.

We need to change in three ways:

1. Internal Qualities: Our internal qualities have to change from personal selfishness (where we seek to benefit ourselves) to mutual bestowal (where we seek to benefit others).
2. Perception Of Reality: Our perception of reality has to change so we perceive The Truth, that we're surrounded by love.
3. Pleasure: We need to sense a new intense pleasure, which is a direct stream from God. Rapture.

So don't expect to go anywhere because everything is going to happen right here on earth. However, expect to be transformed.

In everything we do, we should seek to benefit others instead of ourselves.

_________

References:

1. Rapture. www.en.wikipedia.org. Retrieved Nov 12, 2014.
2. Rapture. www.dictionary.com. Retrieved Nov 12, 2014.

Copyright © 2014, Carter Kagume. All Rights Reserved.

Great Distress and Great Tribulation

The Bible and The Quran speak only about our internal qualities, how we'll change from selfishness to bestowal and how - once we're in the quality of bestowal - we'll grow from childhood to adulthood.

When it comes to end-times prophecy, some people think (based on their interpretation of scripture) that they'll leave this earth and go to heaven someplace else - another realm, another dimension etc.

But there's no other place, it's all right here. It's simply a matter of perception. You can either perceive that you're in heaven or you can perceive that you're on earth.

Then there's the concept of revelation: The last book of The Bible is called The Book of Revelation and The Quran talks a lot about what is revealed and what is concealed.

What is revealed? The answer is: The Truth. Our eyes will be opened, we'll wake up, we'll rise from the dead, we'll come out of our graves - meaning we'll enter into the quality of bestowal.

Right now we're immersed in the quality of selfishness and this state is called - being asleep, being blind, being dead, being in the grave etc.

We'll see and perceive The Truth - including the quality of selfishness and the quality of bestowal. The Truth will be revealed to us right here on earth, we wont' have to go anywhere else.

The Bible talks about a time of great distress, as it is written, "For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now - and never to be equaled again." (Matthew 24:21, NIV)

This distress will comes to us in two forms:

1. First, we'll experience labour pains, blows - similar to contractions - that will help us leave the quality of selfishness and enter the quality of bestowal. During the distress of these labour pains, we have to cry out to The One True God, The Infinite God, The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob to help us. He will hear our cry and help us. Then we'll give birth to a new internal quality, the quality of bestowal. Also, we'll go through a change in the perception of our reality. 
2. When we go through a change in the perception of our reality, we'll experience a different kind of distress / tribulation:
• Who we really are will be revealed to us and we'll see that we're immersed in the quality of selfishness, as it is written, "And then the lawless one will be revealed ..." (2 Thessalonians 2:8, NKJV). The lawless one is our internal quality of selfishness. When this happens, we'll realize how much we've hurt others and this will cause us great distress.
• Also, we'll perceive that others are already in the quality of bestowal and that they know everything about us, that we're the only one's in selfishness. This will cause us great distress.
• Also, we'll perceive that the people around us aren't who we thought they were, our families aren't our families and our friends aren't our friends. This will cause us great distress.
• The shock and distress of this spiritual awakening will cause us to flee - we'll leave our jobs, families and lives behind. Jesus spoke of this when He said, "Pray that your flight will not take place in winter or on the Sabbath." (Matthew 24:20, NIV). This flight will also cause us great distress.
• During the distress of these times, we'll have to fake it until we make it. Meaning, we'll have to pretend that everything's okay, until everything becomes okay - until we get past the difficult times, until we adjust to our new perception of reality and until we grow in the quality of bestowal. And everything will be okay, it'll just take time. Also, we have to ask God for help and He will help us.

As time passes, we'll adjust to our new perception of reality, we'll grow in the quality of bestowal and we'll enter into greater adhesion with The Creator. Also we'll experience spiritual pleasure, rapture.

Also, as time passes, our perception of reality will also change, we'll begin to perceive new things. In an advanced state, we'll perceive that we were always in bestowal and never in selfishness. This will alleviate our distress and we'll learn to accept that there is none else besides Him.

Do not be afraid, God is with us.

Copyright © 2013, Carter Kagume. All Rights Reserved.

What's That Emptiness Within Us?

There's an emptiness within people, a deep loneliness, a hole that's unfulfilled, a feeling of isolation and disconnection, an unhappiness they people can't seem to shake.

People have tried everything to fill that emptiness:  relationships, family, work, money, religion, adventures, new experiences, sex, drugs, music, alcohol, gambling, food, power, knowledge, honour, fame etc. All these pleasures are fleeting and people remain unfulfilled.

Today, we're all immersed in the quality of selfishness, seeking to benefit ourselves. In this state, any pleasure we feel is fleeting and it quickly fades away. So we remain unfulfilled.

The reason we're unfulfilled is because we've been looking for love in all the wrong places. Love is about connection with others and we've been immersed in ourselves.

Love is when you seek to benefit others instead of yourself. This is the quality of bestowal.

The quality of bestowal is God's quality and God is love. If our internal qualities change from selfishness to bestowal, we'll become similar to God in quality.

In this way we'll connect to God in quality and we'll connect to each other in mutual responsibility - we'll seek to benefit others instead of ourselves.

When we taste this true connection, the connection with God and the connection with each other, we'll sense a new kind of pleasure, spiritual pleasure, and this pleasure comes directly from God Himself. This pleasure will fill us completely and the emptiness within us will disappear.

We're all one family and we have to start behaving like one family. We have to treat each other with respect, dignity, compassion and love. We have to seek to benefit others instead of ourselves.

Copyright © 2013, Carter Kagume. All Rights Reserved.

Pleasure

Life is about pleasure.

Pleasures Of This World

In this world, we have five senses (sight, sound, smell, taste and touch) and we receive pleasure when we see beauty, hear music, smell flowers, taste food and when we touch or are touched.

We get pleasure from food and sex, but also from family, money, honor, knowledge and power. All of life is based on pleasure, in one form or another.

The pleasures of this world are fleeting, meaning, once you've acquired them, they quickly fade away and people remain strangely unfulfilled.

Because of this, people chase after more, thinking that more will make them happier. More money, a better car, a bigger house, a bigger yacht, a better lover etc., but these pleasures don't last.

So, people have sought after the pleasures of status and pride. They want to be seen by others as being more successful, having nicer or more expensive things, being more important, being better than others, having things that are rare or unique or more beautiful.

It's all a show, a game of smoke and mirrors. Nothing is based on real fulfillment because it's a status competition against others, as opposed to genuine personal fulfillment and happiness.

Spiritual Pleasure

Spiritual pleasure is real and the fulfilment is long lasting.

When you begin to change your internal qualities from selfishness to bestowal and you seek to benefit others instead of yourself, you come outside of yourself and live in the needs and desires of the people around you.

You feel the pleasure of other people when you benefit them. So you not only live in their needs and desires, but you also live in their pleasures. You sense the pleasure of other people.

Also, the quality of bestowal (seeking to benefit others) connects you to God in quality and as a result you sense spiritual pleasure that comes directly from God. Rapture.

Spiritual pleasure is very intense and it's greater than all other pleasures combined. Spiritual pleasure is a game changer because it eclipses all the pleasures of this world.

If we all enter into bestowal and seek to benefit others instead of ourselves, the way we sense pleasure will change. We'll sense spiritual pleasure, which will transform all of us completely.

Copyright © 2013, Carter Kagume. All Rights Reserved.

What Does It Mean To Be Born Again?

Jesus replied, "Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again." (John 3:3, NIV)

What does it mean to be born again? Being born again can mean several things: your internal qualities are born again, the way you sense pleasure is born again and your perception of reality is born again.

1. YOUR INTERNAL QUALITIES ARE BORN AGAIN:

Your internal qualities have to change from selfishness to love of others, meaning you have to seek to benefit others instead of yourself.

When you're in selfishness you're not in the Kingdom of God. You see the Kingdom of God only when your internal qualities are in love of others.

First, you're born with the quality of selfishness, then you're born with the quality of love of others. Your internal qualities are born again.

Some people say they're "saved." What does it mean to be saved? It means you're saved from the quality of selfishness that keeps you separated from God. You enter the Kingdom of God and the quality of love of others. God saves you and brings you back to Him.

2. THE WAY YOU SENSE PLEASURE IS BORN AGAIN:

When you're in selfishness you sense the pleasures of this world and the five senses - food, sex, family, money, honor, knowledge and power.

When you're in love of others (seeking to benefit others instead of yourself), you sense the pleasures of the Kingdom of God. This pleasure is very intense and is greater than all other pleasures combined, rapture.

First, you sense the pleasures of this world, then you sense the pleasures of the Kingdom of God. The way you sense pleasure is born again.

3. YOUR PERCEPTION OF REALITY IS BORN AGAIN:

When you're in selfishness, you perceive a selfish world. Then you go through a change in the perception of your reality and you perceive an altruistic world. Your perception of reality is born again.

"Born again" can mean several things: your internal qualities are born again, the way you sense pleasure is born again and the way you perceive reality is born again.

Copyright © 2013, Carter Kagume. All Rights Reserved.

Gender and Sexuality In The Bible and The Quran

Gender and sexuality is an important part of humanity. There are two genders (male and female) and there are different sexual orientations - heterosexual, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transsexual/transgendered, asexual and others.
 
There's a lot of confusion about gender and sexuality, especially when it comes to religion, The Bible and The Quran. The confusion stems from the fact that people think The Bible and The Quran are talking about our physical world when in fact the books are talking about our internal qualities.

Before we can understand the true meaning of gender and sexuality, we first have to understand the concept of internality and externality.
 
INTERNALITY AND EXTERNALITY
 
There are two realms to consider:
1. The realm of our inner qualities, our internality, and
2. The realm of our physical world, our externality

Internality and externality are connected in two ways:
1. Our internal qualities create our external physical world, and
2. Our internal qualities are represented by our external physical world

1. Internality Creates Externality

There is a cause and effect relationship between our inner qualities and our external physical world: who we are on the inside determines what we create on the outside.
 
If our inner qualities are selfish, we create a selfish world. If our inner qualities are altruistic, we create an altruistic world.
 
Today, everyone's immersed in selfishness, seeking to benefit themselves. Because we're selfish, we've created a selfish world, which now lies broken.
 
To fix the world, we have to change our inner qualities from selfishness to love of others, seeking to benefit others instead of ourselves.
 
If our internal qualities change, the world will change because we'll rebuild the world based on our new inner qualities -  mutual responsibility and concern for others.

2. Internality is Represented by Externality

Our internal qualities are made up of desires, thoughts, intentions, emotions and other forces. Our physical world is made up of land, oceans, rocks, plants, animals, people, air etc.

While they're different, they're interconnected. There is a parallel story that exists between them, in that the physical world represents the journey of our internal qualities.

For example, the physical ocean represents a force within you called 'ocean'. What you see outside of you represents something inside of you.

With respect to gender, if you see a man, he represents a force within you called 'man'. If you see a woman, she represents a force within you called 'woman'.

With respect to sexuality, if you see a lesbian, she represent a force within you called 'lesbian'. Everything that you see outside of you represents a force within you.

This means that we're all interconnected. I'm a part of your physical world so I represent a force within you. You're a part of my physical world so you represent a force within me.

I tell the story of your internality and you tell the story of my internality.

In fact my entire world represents my internal qualities and your entire world represents your internal qualities.

If my world tells my internal story and I'm different from you, and your world tells your internal story and you're different from me, we must be living in two different worlds. In fact, there must be many different worlds because we're all different.

Since I'm in your world and you're in my world, our worlds must overlap to some degree, but beyond that, they're different worlds.

In this way, everything you see outside of you is LITERALLY you, because it tells the story of your internal qualities. You and your physical world are ONE.

If you're racist, sexist, homophobic or hate anyone or anything outside of you, you actually hate yourself because everything outside of you represents your inner qualities.
 
GENDER

Gender can be very confusing for two reasons:
1. Gender is relative, meaning it's determined relative to something else, and
2. Gender can change.

I'll explain.

There are two forces in Nature, a male force and a female force. The male force is God and the female force is all of creation.

The male force wants to give and the female force wants to receive. As such the action of giving is generally considered male and the action of receiving is generally considered female.

But there are exceptions: if you're giving to receive this is considered female and if you're receiving to give, this is considered male. So giving is not always considered male and receiving is not always considered female. Confusing, I agree.

Relative to God, all of creation is considered female and God is considered male. In front of God, men and women are considered equal because we are all creation.

In physical creation we see men and women and barring any exceptions, genders don't change.

Physical men and women have internal qualities and these qualities have male and female genders. Since our internal qualities change, our internal genders change.

If I see a physical man, he represents a force within me call 'man'. If I see a physical woman, she represents a force within me called 'woman'.

A physical man has an internal male force and an internal female force. A physical woman has an internal male force and an internal female force.

With respect to our internal qualities, the quality of selfishness is generally considered female and the quality of altruism/giving/love of others is generally considered male.

Here's an example of how physical gender is connected to the gender of our internal qualities:
1. A physical woman with an internal quality of selfishness is considered female.
2. A physical woman with an internal quality of love of others is considered male.
3. A physical man with an internal quality of selfishness, is considered female.
4. A physical man with an internal quality of love of others, is considered male.
 
But of course gender is relative. Within the quality of selfishness and altruism are different states, each with its relative gender:
   1. Selfishness (female)
       a. Receiving to Receive (female) - You receive thinking only of yourself
       b. Bestowing to Receive (male) - You give to get praise, glory, honor, status
   2. Altruism (male)
       c. Bestowing to Bestow (female) - You give with no consideration for yourself
       d. Receiving to Bestow (male) - You receive thinking of others

The Tree of Life explains our internal qualities and shows how gender is relative:

1. Keter - is considered male

2. Chocmma (Aba, Father) - is considered male
    This state is called receiving to bestow, and is considered adulthood.
    This state is the father, so it's considered male.
    However, this state uses female vessels, so it's considered female.
    Also, this state receives, which is considered female.
    But because it's receiving to bestow, it's considered male.
    In summary, this state is sometimes called male and sometimes called female.
    Confusing, I agree.

3. Bina (Ima, Mother) - is considered female
    This state is called bestowing to bestow, and is considered childhood.
    This state is the mother, so it's considered female.
    However, this state uses male vessels, so it's considered male.
    Also, this state gives/bestows, which is considered male.
    But because it's bestowing to bestow, it's considered female.
    In summary, this state is sometimes called male and sometimes called female.
    Confusing, I agree.

4. Zeir Anpin (son) - is considered male, but also has female forces
5. Malchut (daughter) - is considered female, but also has male forces

It's important to note that there's a difference between receiving and selfishness. Receiving isn't the problem, selfishness is. You can actually receive in order to give as in the state of receiving to bestow. Selfishness is when you think only about yourself.
 
The purpose of creation is to bring us from selfishness to altruism/love of others so we can know God's qualities. Our internal qualities are very important because they determine our proximity to God. If our internal qualities are in selfishness we're considered far from God and if our internal qualities are in love of others we're considered close to God.
 
The Bible and The Quran speak only about our internal qualities and how we can change from selfishness to love of others to get closer to God.

Whenever a man or woman is mentioned in The Bible or The Quran, it's not talking about our physical world, it's talking about our internal qualities.

The purpose of this detailed explanation on gender is not to intentionally confuse, but to show that gender is a relative thing and when reading The Bible or Quran, any references to males or females has to be taken in context to understand specifically what is being explained.

Gender in The Bible

Here's a verse from The Bible: "23 For the husband is the head of the wife as Christ is the head of the church, his body, of which he is the Saviour. 24 Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit to their husbands in everything." (Ephesians 5:23-24, NIV)

The husband (male) is the quality of love of others (male) and the wife (female) is the quality of selfishness (female). To say that the husband is the head of the wife is to say that the quality of love of others is greater than the quality of selfishness and we should submit to the quality of love of others instead of the quality of selfishness.

Gender in The Quran

Here's a verse from The Quran: "Men are in charge of women by [right of] what Allah has given one over the other and what they spend [for maintenance] from their wealth. So righteous women are devoutly obedient, guarding in [the husband's] absence what Allah would have them guard. But those [wives] from whom you fear arrogance - [first] advise them; [then if they persist], forsake them in bed; and [finally], strike them. But if they obey you [once more], seek no means against them. Indeed, Allah is ever Exalted and Grand." (Quran 4:34, Sahih)
 
Men (male) is the quality of love of others (male) and women (female) is the quality of selfishness (female). To say that men are in charge of women is to say that the quality of love of others is greater than the quality of selfishness and we should be in the quality of love of others, not the quality of selfishness.

Righteous (male) women (female) are those desires that have changed from selfishness (female) to love of others (male). Whereas arrogant (female) women (female) are those desires that are still in selfishness (female).

The Quran gives advice on how to convert selfish desires (arrogant women) to the quality of love of others - advise them, forsake them in bed, and strike them. These are internal discernments where you work to rise above your selfish nature: advise them (acknowledge that the desires are selfish), forsake them in bed (do not be with them in the quality of selfishness) and strike them (force them to convert from selfishness to the quality of love of others).

This verse is very controversial because people think The Quran is saying you should strike/hit a woman. But The Quran is not talking about our physical world, it's talking about our internal qualities. The arrogant woman is our selfish nature and The Quran is saying that we should convert our selfish nature to love of others. The Quran is not saying that you should hit a woman.

SEXUALITY

Remember, our internal qualities create our physical world and our physical world represents our internal qualities through parallel stories.
 
Sexuality is one type of parallel story. The different types of sexual orientations that you see outside of you represents specific forces within you.
 
Our inner qualities are continually changing as we move from selfishness to love of others. This means you can change from a lesbian, to a bisexual, to a gay, to a transgendered all within a few minutes as you move from one internal force to another.
 
Here's an explanation of some sexual orientations:
 
Heterosexual
 
As our internal qualities change from selfishness to love of others, there's an internal state where a female force connects to a male force. This is represented in the physical world as a heterosexual.

Lesbian

As our internal qualities change from selfishness to love of others, there's an internal state where a female force connects to a female force. This is represented in the physical world as a lesbian.

Gay

As our internal qualities change from selfishness to love of others, there's an internal state where a male force connects to a male force. This is represented in the physical world as a gay.

Bisexual

As our internal qualities change from selfishness to love of others, there's an internal state where a female force connects to a male and female force. This is represented in the physical world as a bisexual.

Transsexual/Transgendered

As our internal qualities change from selfishness to love of others, there's an internal state where a female force transforms to a male force. This is represented in the physical world as a transgendered.

There's more to consider:

Asexual

Everyone has an empty space in their heart that only God can fill. In the physical realm people try to fill that empty space with various pleasures (food, family, money, honor, knowledge, power), and sexual pleasure. This only leads to greater disappointment as people remain unfulfilled. People are looking for love, but don't find it.

We hear a lot about having a healthy sex life, which may lead people to feel obligated to have sex. But it's okay to admit you're not interested in sex - perhaps you never were, no longer are, it doesn't fulfill you anymore, you're not attracted to people sexually or there may be other reasons. It's okay to say you're asexual.

If you're no longer interested in sex and all the pleasures of this physical world no longer satisfy you, it means you're ready for a new kind of pleasure - spiritual pleasure.

Rapture - Spiritual Pleasure

Spiritual pleasure is real. It's very intense and is greater than all other pleasures combined.

You acquire spiritual pleasure by changing your inner qualities from selfishness to love of others, by seeking to benefit others instead of yourself.

Changing your inner qualities to love of others connects you to love, love connects you to Godliness, Godliness connects you to God and God connects you to spiritual pleasure and fulfillment.

Since you were always looking for love, you become fulfilled in two ways:
1. You find love and God fills the empty space in your heart, and
2. You sense intense spiritual pleasure that satisfies you in ways nothing else ever could.

The Bible and The Quran speak only about our internal qualities. Whenever sexuality is mentioned, it's not talking about our physical world, it's talking about our inner qualities.

Sexuality in The Bible

Here's a verse from The Bible, "Do not have sexual relations with a man as one does with a woman; that is detestable." (Leviticus 18:22, NIV) 

This verse is often quoted with reference to homosexuality, but remember The Bible doesn't speak about our physical world, it speaks only about our internal qualities.

This verse is layered in meaning and it's talking about the altruistic qualities of bestowing to bestow and receiving to bestow.

Having sexual relations with a man is using the male vessels of bestowing to bestow.
Having sexual relations with a woman is using the female vessels of receiving to bestow.

First, it's saying that the internal actions required to be in the state of bestowing to bestow are different from the internal actions required to be in the state of receiving to bestow.

Second, it's saying that remaining in the state of bestowing to bestow is detestable, because this state is considered childhood and we should grow to the state of receiving to bestow, adulthood.

Genesis 18 tells the story of Lot, Sodom and Gomorrah, how people lusted after men instead of women. As a result they were destroyed.

The men are the forces of bestowing to bestow and the women are the forces of receiving to bestow. The desire wants to stay in childhood (lusting after male vessels) and not grow to adulthood (using female vessels). In the end, the state of childhood is destroyed and the state of adulthood is allowed to flourish.

The Bible tells the story of the development of our internal qualities as they change from childhood to adulthood. The Bible wants us be adults and have a closer relationship with God and not remain as children.

Sexuality in The Quran

The story of Lot also appears in The Quran (for example in Quran 7:80-81) and shows how people lusted after men instead of women. As a result they were destroyed.

The men are the forces of bestowing to bestow and the women are the forces of receiving to bestow. The desire wants to stay in childhood (lusting after male vessels) and not grow to adulthood (using female vessels). In the end, the state of childhood is destroyed and the state of adulthood is allowed to flourish.

The Quran tells the story of the development of our internal qualities as they change from childhood to adulthood. The Quran wants us to be adults and have a closer relationship with God and not remain as children.

SUMMARY
 
We have seen how our internal qualities are connected to our physical world, we have seen how gender is a relative thing, we have understood the meaning of sexuality and we have seen the true meaning of gender and sexuality in The Bible and The Quran.

May The One True God, The Infinite God, The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob bring us out of the quality of selfishness into the quality of love of others. May He bring us to Godliness, to love, to Him and to spiritual pleasure and fulfillment.

God is with us and to Him we shall all return.

Copyright © 2013, Carter Kagume. All Rights Reserved.