h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Thank you so much for coming to my rescue in Mustardland.

Hi there I hope you don't mind my somewhat oblique way of doing it.





I'm staying up for a while yet tonight. There's a few episodes of Love Soup I want to watch but I also want to listen to some music.

Are you in the UK? Of pensionable age? Isn't it a bit late to be up or are you a night owl?

Yes, I'm in the UK. Yes, I'm of pensionable age. Yes, I oughta be in bed.

Yes, I don't mind a bit the way you did it; it was good, actually, because he may not know the history ... and he may not come looking for it (although if he does it's easy to find because it's on the list of your postings). In the circumstances I think it is better to be oblique. You did well!



You constantly teach me new things! That's good, too.

Well I hope my saying this doesn't mean I'm about to be tested on it for only the second time since lunchtime but I think someone said "a Christian doesn't take personally things which affect them personally".

That sounds like a sweeping generalisation. Some do, some don't! Some walk in the flesh, some walk in the Spirit!

Oh, to walk in the Spirit all the time! But which of us does?

The amazing thing about being taught by God is that the things he teaches are so brilliant and shine so brightly that they become obscure through their very plainness - once it's pointed out to you that the sky is blue, there's little point in pointing to the sky and saying "Look! The sky is blue!" unless you enjoy that sort of thing. So I find that the teaching of God, the actual revelation, is only the culmination of what He has already led you into through, and you only get a glimpse before the next majestic mystery begins. I couldn't tell you what I learned last night or even this afternoon, and I hope that's because it has already been done and dusted and yet there's always more to come. Interesting, like you get the menu after you've finished the meal, and you pay in advance for what you've already eaten. Interesting. In the course of the last week or so I've had occasion once or twice to think of the Hebrew verb system. I haven't a clue what it's about but I'd like to remember one or two ideas I might have had and see if there's anything to them.

I think to walk in the Spirit is mainly to do people the courtesy of believing that everyone else is walking in the Spirit as well. Remember Shimei was cursing David and David said Leave him alone, God might have told him to do it.

I need you to teach me more about that. I find Hebrew verbs very complex, and have never really got to grips with them.

You are right, though, that I should not be up at this hour, so I will go to bed now. Can hardly keep my eyes open!

Lots of s
and perhaps you'd like some too, to keep you company while you watch your DVDs.

More s, and see you tomorrow, God willing.

<>

We posted at the same time last night, I think, and I missed this one. It's good.

I've now been accused of all sorts of things in the Bull, even being a wum and being somebody else, as far as I can see. I think a wum is somebody who happens to hold a non-PC view, or to disagree with whoever the name-caller is, isn't it? Some of them are right old bullies, aren't they? I'm surprised anybody stays around. Clearly Leaping Badger thinks no small beer of himself! His reaction to being called hoi polloi was very amusing!

Fanjan is one of the people I defended when they were bullying her. I don't know what has happened to her, because I forget the name of the thread so I haven't checked her postings lately. They try to stop us defending each other, it seems to me - but it's important that we go on doing it, imo, and show them that 'greater is He that is in us than he that is in the world.' Even if they don't agree.

Why are you so tired? Is it the drugs, or is it the move, or is it something else - or don't you know?

I have had a tremendously interesting time in Aberdeen. I came here because I still thought, at the time, that I was expected to shine academically and that's what God required of me. I had done all the preparatory thinking for what would have been, I was told, an interesting thesis on the theology of mental health. However as I continued to think, pray and meditate on the materials I had prepared, I began to experience God's Spirit illuminating my vision and showing me --- well, many things, really, but the salient one was that it was in fact not God's plan for me to wear myself out at university. That was someone else's plan for my life, you see.

Anyway I have been resting and will continue to rest in Stirling.

You didn't believe me when I said we needed our enemies more than they need us. Everyone stands in the place God has given them to stand at any particular time. So don't accuse Leapers of stuff like that. You know don't you the rule of Romans 2:1? Wherever we accuse someone of some sin, it is a sign that we ourselves are sub- or unconsciously exhibiting our own guilt where that particular sin is concerned.

I don't know about you but in my experience it's an absolutely infallible rule.

Iron sharpens iron, the Bible says, We all have iron in our souls, we aren't all just diamond and titanium and gold, there is iron there too, which God wants to shape into useful but also beautiful forms in his service. The best ironsmiths are not necessarily to be found in church, but in the ironsmithy, if you see what I mean.

I wrote you a long reply just now, and the wretched machine ate it!

You are absolutely right in all you say. I didn’t mean to accuse Leapers at all, but the whole gang of them, and Leapers chose to take it personally which I found entertaining. Perhaps I shouldn’t have done, but you are right about Rom. 2:1. It is foundational, like honouring our parents, or reaping what we sow (only more so).

It’s not that I didn’t believe you about needing our enemies more than they need us, but that it was so obviously true that I didn’t register its prophetic import or immediate relevance. That’s the trouble with truisms! You were clearly right there, too.

Not sure about non-believers being more iron than Christians. It seems to me that a lot of Christians can be self-appointed Roman soldiers, if I can put it that way.

We are all sinners, so we all hurt people from time to time. We don’t mean to, necessarily, but it happens.

This isn’t quite what I said before, but I forget what that was. Am v. tired at the moment. So glad you are finding being confined to barracks restful. I wasn’t sure if it might feel claustrophobic for you.

Must go and start cooking now. Hope you have a lovely weekend, my friend, and that the move goes well.

Hello polyjo! You're earlier than usual today; I had come to see your visits as nocturnal events!

Confined to barracks - I like that expression! The only slight downer was that I was supposed to see the shrink today and I couldn't go. I did phone his secretary and told her so he would have known I wasn't able to come.

Winding down. In Stirling I intend to start thinking about writing in a more structured way.

Oh, so sorry, my friend; did I unnerve you? I was too tired to start anything new, and besides, it’s poets day. (Push Off Early; Tomorrow’s Saturday.)

Anyway, here is my nocturnal adventure! I should be in bed, but just wanted to make sure all was well your end.

I do hope all is well between you and Shrink. It would be awful if anything were to go wrong between you.

When you start writing in a more structured way, as you promise, will you post the fruits of your labours online, or will you simply email them to me? That would be great! (Either way; cela m’est egal.)

Tell you what. I'm planning to post things up in PDF and Word doc formats on my webspace, but only when they are completely finished. I'm the world's worst perfectionist when it comes to things I'm actually saying are "my work" so it may take a while for things to start appearing. Or they may flow! It can take either a week or an hour to produce the same piece of work. It's all up to the Lord and His Spirit.

So here's my suggestion. You email me (my email can be found at

http://www.rjhillier.net

Please excuse the photo, I shall replace it with something more suitable when I find it)

and I will send you my work in progress for you to comment on.