Josh Plovanic's Writings and Thoughts

 (I wrote this in 2019) One of the ways I cope with life sometimes, when I feel like I have been treated unfairly, or feel as if the world has been quite vicious to me as well as people I know who have suffered immensely, is pray. What a shocker haha. But not just pray. I try to remember the few times I have felt the presence of something much more powerful than any human or force.  Those few times, quite a few actually, where I felt like I was feeling the presence of the Divine, something that I feel like I could never explain to people or expect them to understand or even believe. I have had experiences where I could have sworn I have seen angels which were almost like faint apparitions coming from an opening in the space surrounding them.  I saw only smiles and eyes, and the outlines of what looked like wings, transparent and so faint that if you werent looking at that precise spot you wouldnt see a thing. I have had dreams of temples, with columns like the parthenon. I have had sen

"They (geniuses) fall into the mire while looking at the stars" -Arthur Schopenhauer, referencing the tendency of the brilliant to fail to adapt to the more mundane and tedious aspects of life and whose brilliance is often crushed out of them by a relentless and brutal world. If there is one threat to power and oppression that is greater than any bomb, bullet, or weapon could ever be, it is creativity and intelligence.       Certain kinds of intelligence have always been a threat to power and established systems of authority, sometimes to such a degree that those systems dispatch or neutralize those "dangerous" people before they cause too many problems.        Some of the greatest atrocities ever committed have been committed on some of the most brilliant of people. Just imagine if Einstein was killed before relativity was developed as a theory, or if Plato was murdered in his youth. Unfortunately this has happened to some, and continues to happen. Genius is intimi

Some days I sit Rocking quietly back and forth Meditating on God's wonders Or drawing pictures with my thoughts Some days I walk aimlessly Back and forth Up the town and down the street Listening to music Or practicing an intense comedy routine There's days like today Where a peace of mind and a clearness of thinking Hits me like a brick And silences my anger And silences my failures And silences my hate It's a peace that stops me in my tracks And shuts down the noise And quiets the heart Peace feels good Boy does it feel good Far more than strife or hate Far more pleasant than fear or grief It is a rare thing, but every once in awhile I just feel calm Still, like a quiet pond on a windless day And thoughts of conflict And bitter memories And anger And rage Just utterly vacate me There is no fear No deep philosophy No politics Even my sins lose some of their sting And my broken heart is mended if but for a few hours These moments of peace Are beautiful when they happen All

"but whoever drinks of the water that I shall give him will never thirst. But the water that I shall give him will become in him a fountain of water springing up into everlasting life." John 4:14        When I read scriptures referring to eternal life in the bible, I am used to picturing an image of just standing around God's throne singing praises with the angels. Many people I know imagine being reunited with their family members and friends. Though there most likely is a lot of truth to these things, I relate to the concept of eternal life differently than I think most Christians do. Eternal life, for me, is exactly what it says it is. Eternal existence. A never-ceasing and infinite array of experiences and opportunities.  Limitless liberty. Unrestricted glory. Perfect Love. Eternal life isn't just about bliss or paradise or just standing in God's presence with loved ones and lost friends. That's part of it. For me, eternal life is about work, overcoming ch

The foundation is the weight-bearer. Any system or structure gets its primary support from its foundation. Any system or structure whose foundation gives way to the pressure or weight on it will collapse, whether it be a building or a sociopolitical hierarchy.     The foundation is the most important part of any system. If it is destabilized, then it is only a matter of time before the system collapses and breaks down. The most stable and durable physical system is a sphere, and it is the most naturally occuring physical system in the universe because of gravity. Stars are spheres. Planets are spheres. You can (possibly) arrange human social and political hierarchies in a spherical way.  The thing about spheres is that the most important part of them is never the surface.  The most important part of a sphere, like a planet or a star, is the center of it. The center of its gravitational pull on itself. That is the foundation of a sphere. It bears the weight and responsibility of the who

They glow the boldest of blues The deepest of reds The brightest of whites They shine high above the clouds Of the highest realm Billions of them Trillions of them Looking down on the capitol Of the Creator's infinite system They shine brightly Over the palace of the infinite God He rules over those stars And their worlds And their inhabitants He is Lord of all Those stars are the jewels of his eternal crown Of hope undying Of liberty unblemished Of glory undiluted Of truth undeluded Of might unfettered Those stars are His eyes Watching the thriving worlds And the dying ones Those stars are the spheres of truth And the beacons of hope In the endless creation

"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." John 1:1       In the Gospel of John, Jesus is described as "the word." The physical, human manifestation of God's word. Of God Himself. The greek word "logos" is used in this gospel. Logos, in the philosophical sense, is the agent of creation and what gives creation meaning and how humans reason and process existence and God in our minds.     Logos is simply translated as "word," but the concept has so much more depth and substance than that simple translation gives it credit for. Obviously, Jesus has so much more depth and substance than just the word "word."        For me, all of existence is encoded into existence by a language, both the physical and the abstract. All things are encoded and given their weight, value, and purpose through a language. A language of pure, raw meaning.      To me, every system, every part of every system, every property

It's not fun being sick. It's not fun being injured, either. I can't think of anyone who actually enjoys being in these positions. I sure don't.     Going to the doctor isn't always the most pleasant experience. It can feel invasive, restrictive, and sometimes even oppressive to have a sickness, injury, or a label that restricts movement and opportunity. I've had an aversion to the medical profession since I was a boy.       I will never be a doctor, but I know that they are needed dearly in the world. Doctors are an essential component of human society. As they say; "health is the first of all liberties."     When it comes to treating sickness or illness, there is no perfect method for any. But there was a perfect doctor. His name was Jesus.  He healed a broad range of afflictions, ranging from sicknesses of the body to sicknesses of the mind. Even death wasn't uncurable for Him.  He was a master at His craft. The perfect doctor. I think one of th

He is sovereign over my friends ....and my enemies  He has authority and control over every fiber of them, down to the molecules, atoms, particles, every neuron, every blood cell, every hope, dream, and intention, He has control over all of it He can do whatever He wants with them The Infinite God is sovereign over my community and its members and partakers   He has total presence in it, and total control over it The infinite God is sovereign over nations.  Like Isaiah said a few millennia ago; "Nations, to Him are as nothing." He has sovereignty over every soldier, every politician, every city, every building, every tank, every aircraft, every ship, every weapon, every doctor, every lawyer, every drug, every victim, every offender, every good person, and every bad one in every nation, He has absolute authority and dominance down to the atomic and subatomic level.  He can do whatever He wants with them.  A nation is a zero point to an infinite God. It occupies an insignifican

  These are by far my favorite concepts to think about and talk about. They are probably my favorite things God created out of all the things I can think of.        Since I believe the mind of God is infinite and so is His creation, I believe that there are an infinite amount of abstract concepts and ideas He created within His mind. An infinite amount of unique, individual concepts, as well as an infinite amount of different forms of each concept. There are also an infinite amount of ways of combining them with other concepts. Liberty, love, and glory are amongst the countless ideas of God. To me, infinite liberty would be the limitlessness of choice and opportunity within an infinite system. If existence is infinite and eternal, then liberty would be an absolute and unfettered, with no serious inhibition or oppression within the system, and within an eternal timeframe the ability to experience all that God and His creation have to offer would be a guarantee over time. You can truly b

Of course He is. That's the whole point. I've heard a lot of people from more secular circles talk about how only weak and frightened people turn to religion or come to Jesus. My response to this is simply "so what?"  That's what Jesus is for. Giving strength and hope to the weak and meek, and giving courage to the frightened. Jesus was smart enough to know that, like sin, weakness wasn't an inherent trait of someone's very being. It could be corrected and strengthened, and it didn't have to be a lifelong, condemnable circumstance.  And like sin, Jesus in all His infinite potency is in the best position to correct weakness of the mind and spirit as easily as He forgives sins and mistakes. You look at the gospels, and you see Jesus healing hopeless, seemingly permanent afflictions like blindness, leprocy, demonic possession(mental illness), lameness, etc.  Even something as permanent as death with the raising of Lazarus (or with Jesus' ressurection

You're almost home, bud. In not too short of time You're gonna be free Truly free Free with me, my dearest friend My precious guy Soon, you will never have to deal With the lies and poisons Of the world you are in Soon, my love You are going to be in my palace And fear will be dead You'll never be subject  To such a blind people Ever again You'll never taste oppression again Or hatred Or sickness In Heaven, with me, no one will question  Your sanity Or your intentions After what this place did to you I'm going to give you your wildest dreams Your biggest hopes Your most wondrous imaginings I will ensure That you will never feel rejected again That you will never be poisoned again That you will never be broken again You'll see your friends again You will know nothing but love Glory And Liberty For all eternity My warrior My fighter You can have whatever you want And you will have all you need In absolute, infinite abundance You want to explore existence? I will g