Hippie New Year!

Let's shine some light and spice things up a bit in 2024. Have a Hippie New Year!

Peace, Love and Light!

Kevin (Cloud)

You Say You Want A Revolution

 If you desire to experience a true "Jesus Revolution" then go back to following Jesus.

Read Jesus' Sermon on the Mount in Matthew chapters 5 through 7. Then read it again and again and again. You will find all that you need to know about being a true follower of Jesus in those three chapters. That is where us Jesus Freaks started, there in the simple truth of Jesus' words. No fancy theology, no complicated rituals, no conforming to what the establishment church wanted us to be. 

We wanted something more genuine than religion. We wanted something more fulfilling than empty rituals. We wanted something based on love rather than rules. That is what is contained in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus' instructions on how to follow him.

Here is my condensed version of the Sermon on the Mount written as The Hippie Christian Manifesto:

The Hippie Christian Manifesto

Peace, Love and Light!

Kevin (Cloud)

The Jesus Revolution, Time Magazine June 21, 1971 - Cover art by STAN ZAGORSKI

 Fair Use Notice

Be Ye Doers of The Word

“Everyone then who hears these words of mine and does them will be like a wise man who built his house on the rock. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat on that house, but it did not fall, because it had been founded on the rock.

 And everyone who hears these words of mine and does not do them will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and beat against that house, and it fell, and great was the fall of it.” ~Jesus (Matthew 7:24-27)

 

But be ye doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving your own selves. 

~St. James the Apostle (James 1:22)

 

Check out the complete manifesto here: The Hippie Christian Manifesto

 

Peace, Love and Light!

Kevin (Cloud)

 

Actions Speak Louder Than Words

“You have also heard that people were told in the past, ‘Do not break your promise, but do what you have vowed to the Lord to do.’ But now I tell you: do not use any vow when you make a promise. Do not swear by heaven, for it is God's throne; nor by earth, for it is the resting place for his feet; nor by Jerusalem, for it is the city of the great King. Do not even swear by your head, because you cannot make a single hair white or black. Just say ‘Yes’ or ‘No’—anything else you say comes from the Evil One.” ~Jesus (Matthew 5:33-37)

Peace, Love and Light!

Kevin (Cloud)

Check out the complete manifesto here: The Hippie Christian Manifesto

Religious Hypocrites

 

“Be careful not to practice your righteousness in front of others to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven." ~Jesus (Matthew 6:1)

Check out the complete manifesto here: The Hippie Christian Manifesto

Peace, Love and Light!

Kevin (Cloud)

Love Fulfills The Law

"Therefore if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar, and go your way. First be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift." ~Jesus (Matthew 5:23-24)

Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. (Romans 13:10)

Check out the complete manifesto here: The Hippie Christian Manifesto

Peace, Love and Light!
Kevin (Cloud)

Golden Rule

"Reciprocity happens. Therefore, if we want to be treated fairly we first must be fair to others." This maxim from the Hippie Christian Manifesto is a distilled version of The Golden Rule. The Golden Rule is actually far more than reciprocity and most definitely it is not anything close to quid pro quo.

The Golden Rule is a call to a higher level of being in relationship with others. It calls us to treat others better than we get treated, no matter how we get treated. It is a call to put love into action, to act in loving ways without any expectation of being loved.

If we treat others better then hopefully we will create a better world. A world with less hate, greed and selfishness - a world with more love!

 Check out the complete manifesto here: The Hippie Christian Manifesto

Peace, Love and Light!

Kevin (Cloud)

We're To Be Loving, Forgiving and Generous

"We are sons and daughters of our Father in Heaven. Therefore, we are to be loving, forgiving, and generous." ~The Hippie Christian Manifesto

This one tiny gem from The Hippie Christian Manifesto sums up nicely Jesus' Sermon on the Mount.

This is a picture I took a couple years back of some California Coastal Redwoods up in the Santa Cruz Mountains with the color tweeked a little. 

You can read the rest of The Hippie Christian Manifesto here.

Peace, Love & Light!
Kevin (Cloud)

Love Your Enemies

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be children of your Father in heaven. He causes his sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. If you love those who love you, what reward will you get? Are not even the tax collectors doing that? And if you greet only your own people, what are you doing more than others? Do not even pagans do that? Be perfect, therefore, as your heavenly Father is perfect." ~Jesus (Matthew 5:43-48)

The Hippie Christian Manifesto

Peace, Love and Light!
Kevin (Cloud)

On Becoming a Peacemaker

If you have been following my blog you most likely have noticed a recurring theme, Peace! One of my favorite verses in the Bible comes from The Sermon on the Mount where Jesus proclaims “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God”. I am contemplating what it means to be a peacemaker and how to personally live a life of peacemaking. Primarily, I have seen this as someone who promotes world peace, advocating the end of war. This limited understanding of peacemaking is easy to live out, but what I am seeking is a lifestyle of peacefulness which is a little more complicated than simply protesting war. Being a peacemaker involves the messiness of day to day relationships.

I am finding that remaining calm while in the midst of conflict is no easy task. I do not like it when my personal peace is quickly eroding and self-control gives way to feelings of anger. I am seeking tools to disengage and take a step back from the edge. Breathe, I tell myself to breathe deep breath after deep breath until I feel my peace return. I'll take a walk, breathing in the calm and breathing out the toxic. When my mind clears and my ability to think in terms of solutions returns I am able to fulfill the role of peacemaker.

My dear brothers and sisters, take note of this: Everyone should be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to become angry, because human anger does not produce the righteousness that God desires. (James 1:19-20)

“Be angry, and do not sin”: do not let the sun go down on your wrath (Ephesians 4:26)

Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice. And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you. (Ephesians 4:31-32)

Peace, Love and Light!

Kevin (Cloud)