An Emptiness Only the Holy Spirit Can Fill
by Orson BeanWhy do people do the things they do? Gary Larson could have gone on using his old Far Side cartoons to make calendars forever. People like me would have kept buying them. But this year, he apparently decided he had enough dough and pulled the plug. (God provided: I found an even better calendar: Cats That Look Like Hitler).
Why did Larson give up all that free money? Why did Madoff think he could get away with his Ponzi thing? What made Mickey Rourke become a wrestler? Strange are the ways of human behavior.
Why did I decide to write a book about becoming a Christian? Don’t I have enough trouble? Last year, I was guesting on a TV show, sitting on my canvas chair between takes, reading a C.S. Lewis book called MERE CHRISTIANITY. I can’t tell you how many people, cast and crew alike, came over to ask me about it. There seems to be a hunger out there, even in the vast, atheistic wasteland called Hollywood.
I believe there’s an emptiness in all of us that only the Holy Spirit can fill. Good sex does a pretty good job of plugging it up, but not for long. Cocaine and booze work for a while, too. Fame and money aren’t bad, either. That’s why so many people move to Hollywood. But when they’ve used up all these things, they’re still left with a hole in the middle of them that the Creator stuck there, knowing that eventually they’d feel the urge to fill it and do what they had to do to seek Him out.
I know this sounds a little nuts to a lot of people. But what doesn’t, when you stop to think about it? Science now pretty much accepts the idea of the Big Bang theory. At a certain point, fifteen billion years ago, an infinitesimal speck of something or other somehow came into being. It exploded and within a few seconds, everything needed to create the entire universe appeared, including time and space. Is that crazy or what? But science says it’s true.
Ten percent of the gross weight of every living thing on earth is ants. Ants! Don’t talk to me about crazy. It’s all crazy. Why do we fall in love? Why does love turn to hate? What’s the capital of North Dakota? These are unanswerable questions.
The reason I became a Christian is the same reason I became a conservative: I paid attention. I watched to see what worked. If a loving Creator designed the whole mishbooker, it all makes sense. If it happened by accident and coincidence (quadrillions of coincidences), it’s nuts. So, I felt the urge to write about it, to share the so-called Good News.
God is being siphoned out of the public arena. People don’t even say God bless you when you sneeze anymore. I want to be able to lay a Merry Christmas on someone without its feeling like a political statement.
I think God loves to hear little kids laugh at fart jokes. He didn’t just make sunsets and bluebirds, He made hot babes. And dirty old men like me. That’s the modest message I’ve set out to tell the world: you don’t have to be Ned Flanders to be a Christian.
Orson Bean’s new book, M@il For Mikey, is published by Barricade Books
Email this to a friend | Print |
Share on Facebook
| Tweet this
| 
Follow Us on Twitter
Subscribe via RSS
Tips & Feedback
100 Comments
I think the fourth paragraph sums it up wonderfully, we all can go through are lives forgetting Friday and Saturday nights and wake up feeling empty, we can buy the $50,000 cars, have the latest and greatest gadgets, and be unsatisfied. Eventually that hunger for something more hits us, and we find our path.
Geez, I love human beings. And the strangeness of life keeps me getting up in the morning to see what weirdness will befall me today.
But they’re not enough in themselves to fill that infinite void, so I need God.
Great piece!
By the way, the capital of North Dakota is Bismark. Sorry, couldn’t resist.
St. Augustine put it best: Thou hast formed us for Thyself, and our hearts are restless till they find rest in Thee.
“I think God loves to hear little kids laugh at fart jokes. He didn’t just make sunsets and bluebirds, He made hot babes. And dirty old men like me. That’s the modest message I’ve set out to tell the world: you don’t have to be Ned Flanders to be a Christian.”
That quote is so true. God gave me eyes, God also gave us Marilyn Monroe, Ann Margaret, Sophia Loren, Jill St. John, Claudia Cardinale…and I can go on (What passes for “post-modern” sexy has nothing on those WOMEN.” I think God enjoys a good earthy joke as well as irony. Also, He doesn’t want robots–He wants us to approach Him with questions and even a bit of doubt. Some use Jesus’s words that all should come to Him as a child to mean to come to Him unquestioningly, but those of us who have been around children know that they are full of questions: Where are we? How does this work? What are you doing? and the big question ALL little children ask: Why? Why? WHY? I think God wants us to do that–that’s why He gave us brains, the capacity for reason–and also the capacity for skepticism–so that when we do decide to embrace Him, we will do it in a spirit of aware faith, not blind obedience.
I think God loves to hear little kids laugh at fart jokes.
Upon utter peril, men will still laugh at farts.
Thank you for standing up for God in the midst of such a difficult environment as Hollywood.
Bravo for you Orson! Acknowledging our dependence upon our Creator, through His Son Jesus, and by the power of His Holy Spirit, is indeed asking for ridicule, to be dismissed from the public debate of ANYTHING, and will invite the wrath of pop culture. Be sure to always give thanks to Him for so great a gift as faith in Him (Ephesians 2:8,9). Lord Bless!
Also, isn’t it funny to read Ecclessiastes and see what we thought was unique to our pre-believing lives was actually outlined for us in His Word? What a great sense of humor our Lord has!
[...] at Big Hollywood, Orson Bean summons the Holy Spirit, and at Stop the ACLU Roger’s dark night of the soul. Posted by Dan Collins @ 8:01 am | [...]
Thanks for another great article, Mr. Bean. My husband and I just recently got our fourteen year old daughter hooked on The Twilight Zone and when she got home from school yesterday she began watching the episode the DVR was holding for her.
And whose jolly face was looking back at us as we watched? None other than yours, as J.W. Bevis, a young man with a zest for life and a penchant for zither music. It seems you had inherited a guardian angel, to whom you taught a lesson or two about what’s important in life, just like you’re doing for us now. I’m glad Mr. Hempstead curbed to your wisdom in the end and it appears he may have continued following you through to today.
Thanks for sharing your joy and your faith. It’s amazing how it resonates, and I, for one, am truly grateful for it.
What a great article. Very poignant and best of all made me laugh out loud. According to the Chinese, a good meal will make you burb and a good joke will make you fart. No admission to anything on my part by the way!
I love your breakdown of how the material things are never the answer to sustained fulfillment. I’m a cradle Catholic who had a good decade in my 20’s of a commitment to secular living. I’ve never been as bored in my life as during those “fun” years. As a wife and mother of three I love the faith I turned away from as a young woman now more than ever. God loves us enough to let us come or go. For some they see faith as slavery of the mind. For me, I’ve never been freer.
I also find it interesting that in a debate between an atheist and person who believes in God, only the believer in God can be proven right. If the atheist is right he’ll never know and neither will the believer. Red flag or what?
“But when they’ve used up all these things, they’re still left with a hole in the middle of them that the Creator stuck there, knowing that eventually they’d feel the urge to fill it and do what they had to do to seek Him out.”
Well put, sir. Describes me perfectly. He is always there – waiting to draw us near to Him. Took me 47 years, but I got there. It’s important for people to understand that much of a Christian’s life is about love, not about hate, judgement or a political agenda. I’m glad you brought it up here and I’m glad you discussed the Holy Spirit.
http://dogoncrack.wordpress.com/2008/11/24/the-godless-delusion/
This is just one more reason I’ve bookmarked Big Hollywood. Thank you for your witness, Mr. Bean. I’ve made a similar journey, coming from a life of fatuous emptiness into an awareness of who made us and why.
Mr. Bean, this is one of the best things I’ve heard coming from Hollywood in 50 years (and I’m not even that old!). God specifically created us to be drawn to Him and to seek Him. We have confused that with trying to satisfy our flesh through sex, drugs, money, power, and none of it is a adequate substitute for God’s love for us.
Thank you for being bold and being honest. I wish more people in Hollywood were like you. God bless you and Merry Christmas.
Nice! Love it! The love of a plain old Dog, bad breath, shedding and all. Will fill you more than any Mercedes.
Bingo, Mr. Bean. After years of trying to run away from the teachings I had recieved as a child- deeming them fit only for “children and old ladies”, I reached the end of the run only to find no carrot on the end of the stick. When I turned around to retrace my steps back, I found my Lord Jesus standing beside me !! He had apparently ran thru all the muck with me, waiting for the time that He would scoop me up and out of it. What I received- paid in full by His shed blood- was pure, no-strings-attached forgiveness, acceptance and a miles-deep, unexplainable peace that I wouldn’t trade for anything. This amazing life cannot be bought for any amount of money. Thank you, Lord Jesus for never giving up on me.
Great post. I believe that everyone has something like a God shaped hole inside of them that only God can fill and satisfy. Praise God!
It’s so heartening seeing this coming from this new site, from Hollywood no less. Please write more about your conversion in future pieces. But you’re really nailed it. BTW, if you care to read works of what I consider the modern day C.S. Lewis pick up Tim Keller’s (of Redeemer Presbyterian in NYC) new book, Prodigal God. Wonderful reading. He also has many great sermons. Best wishes.
MERE CHRISTIANITY
Good Post……
Matt Helm:
It’s true that God created beautiful men and women but He also instructs us to turn from lust. It is important to realize the diligent work of satan in forming creatures like Marilyn Monroe and his desire to use figures (pun intended) like this to morally bankrupt our culture. Just because her beauty/charm is an anachronism compared to today’s pervasive and sexually saturated images we should not let our guard down.
Look here for an interesting background on Marilyn Monroes’ relationship to satanism: http://www.goodfight.org/a_v_monroe_marilyn.html
Forgive me for repeating myself, but I just love this site. Thanks Orson for a great post, and thanks Breit for making it happen.
Hey! Who ate my post?! What I was beginning to say was that MERE CHRISTIANITY is a book I require my sons to read before they leave home for college. Great article, great site!
Bismark!! Or is it Rapid City…..Fargo?
Ever notice how the saddest, most dreary people you know are agnostic or atheists? Ever notice how the ones who never seem at least content are the ones who worship and elevate man to god status instead of yearning for God? Its funny but the people who drive the divine from their lives have these huge empty holes that never get repaired. They look at those of us who give our troubles to God as immature and childlike. Whats childlike about accepting there are things we can’t fix by ourselves, accepting that we are bags of bones, blood and tissue with the only thing seperating us from the dog at our feet is the size of our brains? There is nothing wrong in accepting our humanity for what it is. This allows us to truely experience who and what we are. God made us to enjoy so much, and so much of it is simple and tangible. The people who want to be Super Men, gods on earth are the most empty, uhhappy emotionally draining people on the planet. These are the people one should shrink away from. I can’t deal with non believers, their false arrogance is like fingernails on a blackboard. I can’t deal with people who think more of themselves than what they are. To me Jesus Christ gave us the liscense to be who we are to the fullest. Its the greatest gift we could have. These others merely abuse themselves and then they wonder why they really have nothing.
Dear Orson, I hope you’re right about a resurgence of Christian revival. It sure doesn’t seem that way to me, when I look at the numbers of CHRISTIANS who actually voted for Obama! How can you be a real Christian, and vote for a PRO gay (perversion), PRO murder (abortion), ANTI-God (”Rev” Wright who blasphemes FROM THE PULPIT!) candidate who actually recited the muslim “evening prayer” to a New York Times editor, IN ARABIC?
I’ve seen a lot of fast talking in my time, and I wasn’t impressed by our president-elect when he wasn’t hard-wired to a teleprompter.
He’s not even a good talker, and he STILL got 30%+ of the “Christian” vote. But thanks for trying to cheer us up!
Best joke ever. Punchline by Orson.
I should have more children just to feed that goo-goo.
Could have been on Paar.
So true. Food, spending and prozac doesn’t do it. Would you now tell the remaining Americans who abuse these things?
An atheist conjured up a case just in time for the upcoming Easter/Passover holy days. He hired a lawyer to bring a discrimination case against Christians, Jews and their observance of their holy days. He argued that it is unfair that atheists have no such recognized holy days.
A judge heard the case of the passionate lawyer, then firmly banged his gavel, declaring, “CASE DISMISSED!”
The lawyer shot up, objecting, saying, “Your honor, how can you possibly dismiss this case!? The Christians,” he said, “have Christmas, Easter and others, and the Jews have Passover, Yom Kippur and Hanukkah. Yet, my client and other atheists have no such holidays.”
The judge leaned forward, saying, “But your client, counsel, is woefully ignorant.”
“Your honor,” the lawyer said, “we are unaware” — ignorant — “of any special observance, or holiday, for atheists.”
The judge said, “Well, Psalm 14:1 says, ‘The fool says in his heart, ‘there is no God.” Thus, it is the opinion of this court that, if your client says, ‘There is no God,’ then he is a fool. So, April First is his day. Court adjourned.”
Mr Bean – after you finish Mere Christianity, I’d also suggest The Great Divorce, The Screwtape Letters (of course), and the underrated, excellent Till We Have Faces. Lewis was much more than kids’ books. (PS to all conservative Hollywood folks: Till We Have Faces would make a very good movie, so snatch those rights if nobody else has – and especially before Clooney or Keanu.)
This is so good to hear. It will benefit the US to hear and see and feel more encouragement for Christianity–and I’m not even a Christian because I don’t believe Jesus Christ was our savior. Faith carries obligations with it. We need to be encouraged to take up obligations to treat one another well. Simply not judging people is a dead-end path. Showing this obligation could be a part of some fertile ground for moviemakers. It would help this country to feel better, and rightly so.
It’s true that God created beautiful men and women but He also instructs us to turn from lust.
That’s the rationale behind Muslims hiding their women in burlap bags and beating them when they shuck them off–rejection of God’s gifts of beauty. It’s a sad, sorry way to live.
I love the way you write. I am going to get your book. You make mel;augh and think!
Orson Bean,
You are very cool. I love your writing and look forward to each new article you create here @ Big Hollywood. Thanks.
Continued success and good health.
Jimmy
Actually it’s Bismarck with a “c”.
Thank you for sharing your perspective with grace and humor. I hope your testimony will impact others around you in unexpected and powerful ways. It is heartening to see someone of faith in the culture of Hollywood. I look forward to reading your book and following your further adventures as a Christian in the entertainment industry.
What an encouraging article! Thanks for posting it. Interesting how you said there was such a hunger, even in Hollywood. God can reach out to the lost in many ways, and I admire you for being a witness, even if it just by reading a book by C.S. Lewis around your co-workers.
[...] An Emptiness Only the Holy Spirit Can Fill [...]
What I loved most about ‘Mail For Mikey’ is the way Orson talks about God. He looks at the everyday world and finds no other explanation for the miracles all around us — from the size of the universe to the ants he discusses in this piece.
The book articulates a strong case for why atheists are required to take a bigger leap of faith than believers. And the book is hilarious.
Without God, anything goes … Let’s roll.
This is the most refreshing, awesome thing I have read in a LONG time. Thank you for putting into words, what I have been unable to convey, so eloquently.
I am a Jesus Freak & proud of it!
Which concept takes more faith: A loving Creator or ….”At a certain point, fifteen billion years ago, an infinitesimal speck of something or other somehow came into being. It exploded and within a few seconds, everything needed to create the entire universe appeared, including time and space.”
Contrary to what anti-religious bigots might say, true Christianity is not a fascist religion. True Christianity teaches tolerance, humility, charity, compassion and above all, LOVE. These are the qualities which gives one true joy in life and, if faithfully adhered to, true peace. A true Christian hates no one but rather loves even those which they despise. It is this attitude which makes us the happy people we are. It is this approach to life that allows us the power to make the world a better place. Conventional wisdom states that John 3:16 is the most important verse in the Bible. I disagree. I believe that the most important verse in the Bible is Matthew 3:15 in which Jesus says “Suffer it to be so now for thus it becometh us to fulfill all righteousness”. This was a response to John the Baptist’s question as to why Jesus would come to him to be Baptized but there is a deeper meaning here. As benevolent people, we must do whatever work is necessary and make whatever sacrifices we must in order to create a better future for ourselves and our children. This is the philosophy that made the United States of America the greatest nation the world has ever known. God bless us, everyone.
Mr. Bean wrote: “There seems to be a hunger out there, even in the vast, atheistic wasteland called Hollywood.”
It’s wonderful that Mr. Bean has a very deep faith that provides him much comfort and and fulfillment. But he does a disservice to all the people of faith – including but not limited to his version of Christianity – who live in Hollywood and work in the entertainment industry.
I always loved Orson Bean. I watched him on game shows throughout the 70s (esp Tattle Tales) and his wit and intelligence came through even though I just wanted to be entertained. God Bless you, Orson.
If anyone were to make an honest and objective list of the most evil men in modern history, almost all of them would be atheists.
The remaining few would be mostly Muslims.
All I can say is…Amen brother! Very well said.
What a wonderful article. I will definately get your book. If only more and more people looked to God to define their lives, there would be alot less sufering in the world. And as for God creating beutiful women. He created my wonderfully beutiful wife, she blows em all away.
Great post. I recommend Mere Christianity to anyone who wants a better understanding of their faith. I have been a Christian my entire life and never really understood it.
Lewis’ explanations of the Trinity, the difference between “begotten” and “made”, and God’s prception of time compared to ours, are mind-blowing.
Another great thing abou the book is that Lewis was a fomrer atheist.
Excellent confirmation that theology must be practical. This story is the 2009 summary of the Book of Ecclesiastes, namely, given the frustrations of life under the sun, one’s best pursuit is to eat, drink, and be merry, while fearing God and keeping His commandments.
Amen brother!
Ahh…smell that? It’s fresh air wafting through the ether from what is otherwise the rotting stench of most of Hollywood. Thanks to Bean.
Welcome to the flock, Mr. Bean! I, too, loved Mere Christianity.
I’ll be buying your book.
Perhaps you are already aware of this, but wolves are among the sheep. Find a good church to attend, it will probably be a small one because as you will find out, many Christians will only listen to what is soft on the ears.
I highly recommend that all Christians read Wayne Grudem’s, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine.
What TV show were you guesting on ?
Can try to find it in a rerun & have something to watch TV for.
I heard it explained something like this once: Our lives are like a puzzle. When we get confused it’s because we can’t see the whole picture since it comes at us one odd piece at a time. And like most puzzles, there is a piece missing. And although we might try to fill that spot with a thousand other things, there is only one that will fit in the spot and make us whole and complete, and that ‘peace’ is God.
“nightfly – January 15th, 2009 at 8:34 am
Mr Bean – after you finish Mere Christianity, I’d also suggest The Great Divorce, The Screwtape Letters (of course), and the underrated, excellent Till We Have Faces. Lewis was much more than kids’ books. (PS to all conservative Hollywood folks: Till We Have Faces would make a very good movie, so snatch those rights if nobody else has – and especially before Clooney or Keanu.)
”
Also CS Lewis’s “The Problem With Pain” and his sci-fi trilogy “Out of the Silent Planet”, “Perelandra” and “That Hideous Strength”. “The Problem With Pain” really struck a cord with me. Till We Have Faces will be next on the read list.
Whatever gets you through the night.
As a skeptic, I don’t need God – I simply embrace the mystery, embrace the fact that it’s all “coincidences and accidents.”
Big and beautiful coincidences and accidents that we must must appreciate, for our lives will come to an end, and preserve, for others are coming after us.
And my soul feels divinely content now, having just typed that.
Osweet you have so much to learn. A rebel. A rebel in the way Lewis once was. I used to be like you but you know LIFE throws a curve ball and all of that arrogance you display so well here just sort of goes away. You realize you aren’t all that. You know what? You aren’t.
My guess is that Mr. Bean is more Deist than Christian. I’m an agnostic Deist and I’m not aware of any hole in my middle. I actually feel quite a sense of fulfillment subscribing to the only sensible god perspective.
Sometimes we don’t notice the signs that God puts all around us to remind us He is there. Things like butterflies, sunsets, shooting stars, adolescents telling fart jokes, roses, Brigitte Bardot and Angelina Jolie. Sometimes we need something more personal and concrete – like cancer. Since I was diagnosed in August 2007, God and I have had a lot of conversations. I’m glad He has been there for me. I’m likewise glad that I can now hear from you, Mr Bean.
**QUOTE** Kit – January 15th, 2009 at 5:38 am
…By the way, the capital of North Dakota is Bismark. Sorry, couldn’t resist.**END QUOTE**
How do you know? Have you seen it?
…you don’t have to be Ned Flanders to be a Christian.
Thank You.
Beautiful column. God Bless you, Bean.
Great stuff Mr. Bean. I am heading over to Amazon to check out your book. I came across this site that is very interesting. http://www.jesushelpwanted.com
God Bless
Hey, LOLA – why the smug response to OSWEET? You don’t have a corner on the truth, just like he doesn’t. You can believe what you choose to believe, but how can you possibly claim to know what hardships OSWEET has endured in his/her life? Just because hard times led you to believe in god doens’t mean that’s the correct response for everyone. It works for you, so congratulations. But it doesn’t make it true, and it doesn’t make it right for anyone else but you.
I think you could have just left off the last paragraph. God is not crude and Christians shouldn’t be either. Let’s not pull God down to our level, but rise to His. Remember God meets you where you are, but loves you enough not to let you stay there.
As a kid, I had a huge crush on OB the game show contestant back in the 60s-70s. He’s even hotter now, in a Sean Connery kind of way. I also like his politics and am glad he’s very thoughtfully and deliberately become a Christian.
Orson, So sorry to see you losing your ability of clear piquant vision in
your dotage. It’s ok, part of the aging process I guess. Anyways I wish you
many more years with us. A longtime fan.
Brother Orson, Your article was excellent and welcome to the foe.Life becomes so much easier when we give in to Our Father in Heaven. I am very proud of you. Nothing like the dew from the heavens annoiting. Thank you so much for coming out. That is what is lackin. Courage. May the Lord continue to bless you and make it easier for you to pay-it-forward.Gob bless
You said, “If a loving Creator designed the whole mishbooker, it all makes sense. If it happened by accident and coincidence (quadrillions of coincidences), it’s nuts.”
I don’t understand how believing that someone (i.e., a loving Creator) designed this whole mishbooker makes the universe make any more sense.
What’s the difference, logically, between the universe inexplicably exploding into existence through a “big bang” and the universe being created by some sentient being who inexplicably has the powere to create an entire universe?
In either case, we have no idea what happened before, or what caused this creator/big bang. In either case, we’re simply drawing an arbitrary line and saying “Here’s the beginning. Before this point, I have no idea how, why, or who was in charge, and I accept that.”
If there is a god, where did he come from? Who created him? What plan is he part of? How does a “loving creator” who inexplicably appeared out of nowhere, answer any more questions than a “random universe” that inexplicably appeared out of nowhere?
In other words, isn’t the existance of “god” just as much an inexplicable product of random chance as the “big bang”?
And finally, why does the fact that “God” thought that the universe was such a great idea make you more comfortable in the universe? Does this “God” really have a very good track record at coming up with good ideas? How do we know he hasn’t created thousands of universes before ours, and then scrapped them when they turned out wrong?
Thank you so much Mr. Bean for an inspired and rock-solid post.
And to Mr. Breitbart for creating a website about Hollywood/politics open
to posting it.
BRAVO!
Years ago my older brother set out to disprove the Bible. Spent six years on it. Then, one day an amazing thing happened. He, like C.S. Lewis before him, convicted himself. In a split-second epiphany, arrogance and proud self-righteousness drained from his heart…and he was ’surprised by joy’. Devout believer ever since, filled with joy and good works. I would recommend to the ardent atheist — write a book debunking Christianity. Better yet… Build a butterfly.
I always cringe when someone tells me “don’t question God” – invariably they take that to an extreme and assume that the directive is to be a literal command. And yet He made this VAST universe and gave us brains to explore it. The best refutation of ‘dont question’ came in Margaret Sayer’s book “The Mind of God” – God is a CREATOR – THE Creator – and as an Artist, is VASTLY disappointed when His Work is ignored. Dangit, He put a LOT of work into this – - will no one appreciate it? And I always imagine that when someone gets nosy and starts asking questions: “what is this? Why did you make that? What does it do? Why that particular shape? Where did you get the idea for that?” He is eager to show us. Its what I have always imagined the real purpose of science to be: simply getting to know the mind of God (in fact this is how science really began in the little monasteries that dotted Europe)…and is why it REALLY upsets me that there is now this (supposed) divide between creationists and scientists. I strongly suspect THAT is a media creation to keep real intelligence from collaborating and gaining freedom. Do artists/actors love attention? Of course they do! Its a God-given impulse! Because God wants us to pay attention to Him! To me its more sacreligious and defiant of God to NOT ask Him questions. Mr. Bean, you are so right: we learn so much about and from Him by having just a little doubt and curiosity.
I always cringe when someone tells me “don’t question God” – invariably they take that to an extreme and assume that the directive is to be a literal command. And yet He made this VAST universe and gave us brains to explore it. The best refutation of ‘dont question’ came in Margaret Sayer’s book “The Mind of God” – God is a CREATOR – THE Creator – and as an Artist, is VASTLY disappointed when His Work is ignored. Dangit, He put a LOT of work into this – - will no one appreciate it? And I always imagine that when someone gets nosy and starts asking questions: “what is this? Why did you make that? What does it do? Why that particular shape? Where did you get the idea for that?” He is eager to show us. Its what I have always imagined the real purpose of science to be: simply getting to know the mind of God (in fact this is how science really began in the little monasteries that dotted Europe)…and is why it REALLY upsets me that there is now this (supposed) divide between creationists and scientists. I strongly suspect THAT is a media creation to keep real intelligence from collaborating and gaining freedom. Do artists/actors love attention? Of course they do! Its a God-given impulse! Because God wants us to pay attention to Him! To me its more sacreligious and defiant of God to NOT ask Him questions. Mr. Bean, you are so right: we learn so much about and from Him by having just a little doubt and curiosity.
sorry about the double post!!
[...] coast. And I’ve got to tell you, it is a very welcome addition to the Right blogosphere. Here is a quick excerpt from today’s lineup… Last year, I was guesting on a TV show, sitting on my canvas chair between takes, reading a [...]
Bismarck is my home and I have no plans to leave!
Thanks Mr. Bean for a great article~the next book I read will be yours, then Mere Christianity.
Dear Orson,
I’ve appreciated you for many years for your work. Now I appreciate you even more. Welcome to the family.
Orson, keep up the good work. It was said in the 40 & 50s that Virginia Mayo was proof that God existed.
God deal with us as if we are children, which we are. The entire universe, his word, the Bible is all understood by 5 year olds. For some reason as we become people we grow dumber and then we give ourselves all these degrees. Christ has said we have to come to him as the children do. When you begin to see creation as a child it all makes sense and all the pieces fit. I could go on and on but the spam eats my long post.
I don’t believe in atheist, it is illogical to be an atheist. God in his genius gives up free will and dominion of this planet. This makes him an observer not a controller. The fact that atheist don’t believe in God, is the fact that God exist. One will waste time believing in something that isn’t real. None of us don’t believe in pink elephants, we know that these two things exist, but we are all sure in our hearts that pink elephants don’t exist, so why waste any time discussing it. This is the same thing with atheist. If God exist, then they are in denial. They can say anything they want, that is free will, given to them by the God that doesn’t exist. If there wasn’t a GOD and he didn’t exist, there would be no atheist in the world. Since God exist and he makes himself known to us at conception. The rest is free will and we can live and do as we place on this side of heaven. Once we cross over then the rules change and so does the facts.
There are two many things in the world to prove that God is alive and he loves each and everyone of us. God gave us this wonderful, fascinating, fragile life and world we live in. He wants us to thank him and love him, The top three commandments are dealing with Him.
I will have to read your book Mr. Bean. Thanks for your post they are always enjoyable.
Mr. Bean, thank you for this piece and for all your work. I can well remember seeing you, in snowy black&white, on game show panels and thinking that you the definition of “wit”.
Obviously, as a fellow Far-Side-calendar aficionado, I was right.
==I actually feel quite a sense of fulfillment subscribing to the only sensible god perspective.==
So, it’s all about YOU, huh.
OMGosh! ROFLMAO! Just made my day in so many ways! Thanks!
HeatherRadish wrote: That’s the rationale behind Muslims hiding their women in burlap bags and beating them when they shuck them off–rejection of God’s gifts of beauty. It’s a sad, sorry way to live.
No, Heather, the difference is that the Christian man acknowledges the lust in himself, and is called to self control. In the example you cite, the men blame their lustful feelings on the woman, and justify their acts (dress codes, beatings, rape, and worse) accordingly.
[...] funny …If I Wrote For The Huffington Post – Give Geese A Chance – ::: rolleyes ::: grin :::An Emptiness Only the Holy Spirit Can Fill – … well, this isn’t a kind of testimony you hear every day. Love the sentence, [...]
==Heather, the difference is that the Christian man acknowledges the lust in himself, and is called to self control.==
Allow me to be so bold as to correct that just a little bit.
We have no “self-control.” We can’t control ourselves, and, when faced, by ourselves, in our unrighteous selves, with the choice of God, or self-pleasure, we will choose self-pleasure. That’s on accounta the sin nature in us.
However — thank you Jesus!– we have God to thank for sending His Son to defeat the works of the sin nature!
Thank you Mr. Bean, for sharing your thoughts and your faith with us. I, too, am a fan of yours and will also buy your book. Jesus Christ changed my life and my way of thinking, also. I love Big Hollywood. God Bless
==People don’t even say God bless you when you sneeze anymore.==
That shouldn’t stop YOU.
== I want to be able to lay a Merry Christmas on someone without its feeling like a political statement.==
Then say it as though it as though you mean it for what it is. I say it, and I don’t care what anybody thinks about my saying it, either, and I’ve been known to express that sentiment after saying it, too, cuz I want it to be out there cuz it SHOULD be out there and I’m gonna see to it it stays out there. So, there.
It's very cool that everyone seems to appreciate your comments. I hope they all understand the apolitacal goodness of you.
Are you happy with what you have ?.
Do you only want a little truth concerning God ? What kind of love is it when one has a little or no interest at all in finding out about the character of their partner ? One just doesn’t care who they are ! It is in issues as this that we can have a measure to test the extent of our love for God. Is He any interest to You. Enough to open a book and learn. You must learn the immortal truth of life.
GO AND LEARN YOU OWE IT TO YOUR SOUL AND EVERONE ELSE
http://godssecret.wordpress.com/2008/12/17/are-yo...
You must be logged in to post a comment.