I am a tree.

My roots penetrate deep into the Earth, I grow strong and I gain knowledge from the nature that surrounds me. I am calm, I am collected, and I am strong.

My body grows up, it is hardened on the outside to protect me. It branches off into my many limbs. I stand tall, swaying in the breeze.

Their idols are silver and gold, the work of men’s hands. —Psalm 115:4

Martin Lindstrom, an author and speaker, thinks that cellphones have become akin to a best friend for many owners. Lindstrom’s experiment using an MRI helped him discover why. When the subjects saw or heard their phone ringing, their brains fired off neurons in the area associated with feelings of love and compassion. Lindstrom said, “It was as if they were in the presence of a girlfriend, boyfriend, or family member.”

Many things vie for our affection and time and attention, and it seems we’re always needing to evaluate where we’re focusing our lives. Joshua told the people of Israel that they were to give their affection and worship to God alone (Josh. 24:14). This was significant in contrast to the idols worshiped by the nations around them. These idols were made of metal and were only the work of men’s hands (Ps. 115:4). They were totally powerless compared to the Lord. Therefore, God’s people were exhorted to find their security in Him and not in other gods (Judg. 10:13-16). Jesus reiterated this in His discussion of the commandments: “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind” (Matt. 22:37).

The Lord alone is our help and shield (Ps. 115:9). May we reserve our worship for Him. —Marvin Williams

For Further Thought
What do our actions in the last few months reveal
about our affections? Is there any indication that we
have placed someone or something above God?

God is most worthy of our affections.

I - Oración de los Hombres Homosexuales

—| Explora más del Templo |—

Señor Dionisos, amante del Sátiro Ampelos.

Señor Cernunnos, encarnación perfecta de la virilidad.

¡Los invocamos con amor devocional!

Estamos agradecidos por el regalo de nuestras vidas y por el don de ser homosexuales.

Cada uno de nosotros ha sido creado con dignidad y valor, según sus designios.

Estamos llamados a amarnos de una manera especial, con una fuerza única entre machos de verdad.

Creemos en la riqueza de poder disfrutar de diferentes maneras, ya sea por amor o lujuria.

Y sólo por eso, somos condenados. ¡Que su furor sin piedad caiga sobre los que nos quieren matar!

No permitan que nuestro silencio cómplice condene a muerte a muchos de los de nosotros.

Lloramos ante esta pérdida de vidas sin sentido, ¡Prométannos tomar venganza!

Sufrimos cuando los hombres gay son oprimidos, excluidos y avergonzados por personas religiosas que pasan por alto el llamamiento fundamental de la justicia humana.

Pero haremos nuestra propia justicia para que todas las personas puedan vivir con autenticidad e integridad.

Lucharemos para construir un mundo en el que todas las personas, sin importar sus diferencias, sean celebradas y amadas.

Celebramos la diversidad sexual como una bendición que nos enriquece a todos.

El amor nunca excluye. Todos somos dignos, porque nacimos Libres e Iguales.

Dennos la gracia de estar libres de culpa al disfrutar de nuestro amor sin límites.

Que sepamos disfrutar sin vergüenza cuando estamos dentro de un hombre, o cuando sentimos dentro de nosotros la gloria de los sátiros.

Que seamos honestos en nuestras aventuras, para construir mejores lazos entre los hombres.

¡Por sus sagrados y firmes falos! ¡Por amor a sus nombres!

A ti, Señor Eleuterio, gran libertador.

A ti, Dionisio Soter, nuestro único Salvador.

A ti, Macho Astado, Señor del Portal de la Vida.

A ti, Cernunnos Invencible, Señor de la Muerte.

¡Gloria sea en lo profundo del bosque!

suticsek:

This is the deep and sensuous desire and devotion that I hope burns eternal in your heart and burns with delicious heat just under your skin.

instructor144:

submissiveinclination:

memoryanddesire-stirring:

I’m no masochist. I’ve never been a pain slut. I cry when I stub my toe and go to great lengths to avoid anything with even the slightest possibility of pain. My take on paper cuts? A justifiable cause to avoid envelopes. Bang my head on a closet shelf? Cause for medical care and probably an MRI. Clover clamps? Should have been named nipple tourniquets from hell. I know how to take care of myself: avoid anything that hurts. I know I’m supposed to like it—how does one belong in a BDSM lifestyle without liking pain? I’ll admit I love being bound, immobile, and used. I even like floggings and spankings and the like…to a point. But pain? Real pain? It does nothing for me. I don’t become instantly aroused with labia clips and nipple clamps. Or do I? Is it possible to be sure? Because I know, when I attempt those things, I wince, I curse, everything in my brain tells me to avoid it;, but there’s something else that I don’t quite understand: I keep doing it—and at the end of the day, I find myself smiling about it. Glad that I was able to withstand it…for Him. For only Him. At the end of the day, when He debases me, I learn my value; when He humiliates me, I learn humility; when He inflicts pain, I learn my strength. I learn that I am strongest when I show Him my weakness…The more I endure for Him, the more I want to give. I give Him this, because He has earned my utmost trust and devotion. He shows me patience and kindness, the need for discipline and allowance, and when each is appropriate. He teaches me the necessity for all those things, for myself as much as for others. He is the only person strong enough to help me learn those lessons, to free me from those fears that keep me bound in my own head.

I don’t want to hurt, to feel pain, to throb for hours on end waiting for relief, but I do. It isn’t the pain. Rather, it is because knowing that I withstand it for Him makes me proud, makes me feel stronger for having surrendered to it. Because making Him happy gives me a joy I’ve never felt before that goes far beyond any sexual pleasure. Because serving Him makes me better at…well…just being me. It grounds me and gives me focus. It reminds me who I am. Because hearing that He enjoys any task I’ve done solely for His pleasure gives me purpose.

It is not as simple as someone telling me to do something and doing it. It is sublimely different. It is giving in its purest form. It’s wanting to give over everything that I am to the Man who has earned it, whose will I long to follow, the Man for whom I am willing to face my deepest fears and accept intense moments of pain despite my own voices telling me to hide. Because that is the way to break down the barriers I’ve spent a lifetime building—to give Him that opening, that exposure, a blossoming of sorts, that no one has ever seen, that no one else has ever drawn from me. Only Him. Only He shows me who I need to be for myself. And in doing so, I feel safe. I feel protected. I feel loved.

I want Him to have it all: my fear, my tears, my anger, my passion…even my pain, and all my pleasure. I want Him to feel every thought, every need, every sense I have, because they belong to Him. To give Him all this, all that I am, all that I hope to be, I am willing to surrender to the fear, to the things I’ve avoided, to a will bigger than my own. I surrender to Him knowing that for all His savagery, there is tenderness. For all I endure, all the devotion I offer Him in my suffering, I receive His admiration and care back tenfold. I surrender because in everything I do, I am His: His servant, His slave, His lover, His ward. And He is my Dominant, my Master, my beloved Sir.

So, no, I’m no masochist. I’m something far better: I am His.

This is so beautiful written @memoryanddesire-stirring. Beautiful and true. Every single word. ~smile~

A beautifully written bit of devotional writing.

Devotional Training: In Writing.

herleadingman:

memoryanddesire-stirring:

I’m no masochist. I’ve never been a pain slut. I cry when I stub my toe and go to great lengths to avoid anything with even the slightest possibility of pain. My take on paper cuts? A justifiable cause to avoid envelopes. Bang my head on a closet shelf? Cause for medical care and probably an MRI. Clover clamps? Should have been named nipple tourniquets from hell. I know how to take care of myself: avoid anything that hurts. I know I’m supposed to like it—how does one belong in a BDSM lifestyle without liking pain? I’ll admit I love being bound, immobile, and used. I even like floggings and spankings and the like…to a point. But pain? Real pain? It does nothing for me. I don’t become instantly aroused with labia clips and nipple clamps. Or do I? Is it possible to be sure? Because I know, when I attempt those things, I wince, I curse, everything in my brain tells me to avoid it;, but there’s something else that I don’t quite understand: I keep doing it—and at the end of the day, I find myself smiling about it. Glad that I was able to withstand it…for Him. For only Him. At the end of the day, when He debases me, I learn my value; when He humiliates me, I learn humility; when He inflicts pain, I learn my strength. I learn that I am strongest when I show Him my weakness…The more I endure for Him, the more I want to give. I give Him this, because He has earned my utmost trust and devotion. He has shown me patience and kindness, the need for discipline and allowance, and when each is appropriate. He teaches me the necessity for all those things, for myself as much as for others. He is the only person strong enough to help me learn those lessons, to free me from those fears that keep me bound in my own head.

I don’t want to hurt, to feel pain, to throb for hours on end waiting for relief, but I do. It isn’t the pain. Rather, it is because knowing that I withstand it for Him makes me proud, makes me feel stronger for having surrendered to it. Because making Him happy gives me a joy I’ve never felt before that goes far beyond any sexual pleasure. Because serving Him makes me better at…well…just being me. It grounds me and gives me focus. It reminds me who I am. Because hearing that He enjoys any task I’ve done solely for His pleasure gives me purpose.

It is not as simple as someone telling me to do something and doing it. It is sublimely different. It is giving in its purest form. It’s wanting to give over everything that I am to the Man who has earned it, whose will I long to follow, the Man for whom I am willing to face my deepest fears and accept intense moments of pain despite my own voices telling me to hide. Because that is the way to break down the barriers I’ve spent a lifetime building—to give Him that opening, that exposure, a blossoming of sorts, that no one has ever seen, that no one else has ever drawn from me. Only Him. Only He shows me who I need to be for myself. And in doing so, I feel safe. I feel protected. I feel loved.

I want Him to have it all: my fear, my tears, my anger, my passion…even my pain, and all my pleasure. I want Him to feel every thought, every need, every sense I have, because they belong to Him. To give Him all this, all that I am, all that I hope to be, I am willing to surrender to the fear, to the things I’ve avoided, to a will bigger than my own. I surrender to Him knowing that for all His savagery, there is tenderness. For all I endure, all the devotion I offer Him in my suffering, I receive His admiration and care back tenfold. I surrender because in everything I do, I am His: His servant, His slave, His lover, His ward. And He is my Dominant, my Master, my beloved Sir.

So, no, I’m no masochist. I’m something far better: I am His.

“I keep doing it—and at the end of the day, I find myself smiling about it. Glad that I was able to withstand it…for Him. For only Him.”

Words that move.

Devotional Training: For Him.