Evolution and Survival of the Fittest

 by K. L. Avila

Author of Fugitives of 2012: We Are All Fugitives Now

Note: This is an opinion piece. The views and opinions of our guest authors are not necessarily the views and opinions of staff and owner of The Organic Prepper website.

Seven helps for surviving the mosh-pit of our mad, mad world

The dictionary describes evolution as a process of developing gradually a plan of unfolding as a means of changing or expanding an already existing situation. These words are not for the faint of heart, or for those looking for an easy read. This essay is meant for those that are mentally awake with eyes that are able to see through the smokescreen of the cultural revolution going on right before our eyes. If ever there was a time when you should be cautioned … “Believe nothing that you hear and only half of what you see …” – it is now.

“These are the times that try men’s souls.” Thomas Paine. As you read the following pages of helps and precautions, you must allow yourself the luxury of having an open mind if you are going to gain insight that should be of use to you in your own life.  You will need that not just for now but for the future as well. An open mind will be one of your evolving tools. I remember a few years ago when I was going through a rough patch involving family issues, I ‘worried’ to my dad that I was afraid I was going to hell. He looked at me with his piercing Irish blue eyes … “You’re already in hell. You just don’t know it.” He turned his back and walked away. Subject closed. No chance to ask for an explanation. I was shocked. What did he mean? What kind of prophecy was this! I didn’t dismiss the reality of his words, but I didn’t understand either. Now, years later, I do understand. And he was right. This life is often a mirror of whatever evil you can conjure up. So might it be. But evil it is. And – it is going to get worse. Just wait and see.

In the turbulence of this present time, it is very difficult to plan ahead for anything. Everything it seems is changing almost on a daily basis. This is called chaos. At the same time, the only way to survive chaos is to carefully examine the situation and take action based on what you know to be true. The following seven helps, if read carefully, will demonstrate how important each of these issues are and will become even more so in our changing world.

#1) Break out of your cage.

No matter who you are or what your situation is, make a decision right now to do whatever it takes to fight your way out of whatever cage you are presently in. Pretty much, without exception, every one of us has got something going on in our lives that is worrisome in some way. We are living with some kind of situation that has got us boxed in, not knowing which way to go. No matter what station you are at in life, no matter what political persuasion or religious standing, you are not safe for the future by letting ‘what is’ be ‘what is’. As everything is evolving, changing around you, you are going to be forced to evolve your way out of probably more than one situation, or you will perish in the process.

The future is changing and what looks like divine providence to  you right now can be a literal hell in a year. As you work your way out of the present mindset, determine to bring your loved ones with you. Give honest thought to the real you, and admit that you are, in the end, a lone soldier in the battle for your place under the sun and can literally do nothing on your own. That honest evaluation will lead you to the realization that there is a guiding principle, a leading spirit that has always been with you, standing by, ready to help. Here in the Western World, we call that guiding spirit … the Holy spirit of God. That spirit will guide you into  the truth that you need in order to survive now and into the future. Get past the idea that you don’t know about the god stuff. Accept the reality that every thing in your life is god stuff and the sooner you get serioius about it, the better.

Consider the fact that in recently two successful and highly regarded world figures came to the edge of their reality and jumped off. Kate Spade and Anthony Bordain. Both walking in wealth, fame, and the privilege of spending their days doing the things that delighted them … it was all not enough to sustain them in the deepest part of their innermost private soul darkened by the hungry voice of unfulfilled completion. Fulfilled completion comes from only one reality … a homecoming with the source of our human being. Yahweh.  Adonai. El Shadai. God. Titles that all refer to the same reality –  The Creator of the universe. C.S. Lewis wrote: “If we find ourselves with a desire that nothing in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that we were made for another world.”

You will never know what this truth of fulfilled completion means until you come to the place that you willingly and knowingly release your worldly, earthly will to this Spirit of God that resides in all of us. To those that argue the case, I say … The man or woman with the experience is never at the mercy of the man or woman with an argument. The man or woman with an argument is like a three-legged dog, limping along,  always struggling, always seeking to explain the situation, never finding rest.

This week we also received news that a world known political analyst that so many have come to love, trust and respect is dying with cancer and with only a few weeks to live. Dr. Charles Krauthammer. If ever a man had an excuse for self-pity and a desire to end it all, it might have been this man. Paralyzed from a swimming accident while in college which left him unable to walk and with only partial use of his arms,  he went on to complete his medical studies with his class. It was not long after that he decided to write and go into the field of politics, eventually finding a place where his persona and intellect could most successfully be used. Later, he wrote in his book entitled THINGS THAT MATTER … “Hope is good. False hope is bad.  Deliberately, for personal gain, raising false hope in the catastrophically afflicted is despicable.” He was referring to spinal cord injuries and the push for stem cell research. But his statement stands … Hope is good. False hope is bad.

When we exercise false hope, we know what we are doing. We know we are deceiving ourselves, that change is inevitable as needed. You may have to re-architecture your brain before you gain mental health from such an attitude. False hope is the failure for so many addictions that torment us as human beings.

Charles Krauthammer has already written his goodbye letter to the people he worked with on Fox News and thereby to the world. I feel certain he still would encourage all of us to embrace the following – the final words in  Things That Matter … “There are things to be done. Resist retreat as a matter of strategy and  principle. And provide the means to continue our dominate role in the world by keeping our economic house in order.” Surely, his secret to a life well lived must be as he stated a page earlier … “So, resistance to decline begins with moral self-confidence and will.”

Dr. Krauthammer can pass with a knowledge of a life well lived. And after a lifetime of pain and the determination to continue on no matter how great the sacrifice, he must surely have connected with the resource within himself  that will soon be announcing … “Welcome home, Charles. And well done, my faithful servant.”

We are all blessed by the example so beautifully and unselfishly passed before us. With the passing of the people just mentioned, what more stark reality can be shown to us that  in this present time we must embrace God our source within ourselves and begin the journey of enlightenment. Without that new affirmation, we will have no foundation on which to stand. Nothing will  have relevance; nothing will have meaning. We do that by getting in a quiet place to have a conversation with the invisible spirit of the living God that has traveled with each of us since the day we were born.

You may not have realized it. Now is the time. Realize and admit within  yourself that you have absolutely no power to change anything about yourself or achieve anything of value that can change  not only your life but the lives of your loved ones as well. The only power you have is that  which is granted to you by the spirit of God. Know that. Realize that. Speak to that power and ask for assistance. Ask for forgiveness for the sin shadow in your life. Be ready for change. Be ready to walk in newness of thought in word and in deed. You don’t have to find a minister or church to do this; God already knows you and is present to hear the primal cry of your deepest self … the cry for help and the admission that you are in need. You will not be turned away. Your life will begin to change in ways you cannot imagine. The ever present Holy Spirit in your life will guide you and show you all new things.

2. You must learn to think deep.

You must learn to think, not as in the past, but in a new way that will open the real world up to you in a way you have not experienced before. The danger is everywhere. You must begin to see with new eyes, and be willing to understand things you might have disagreed with before. It is a tragedy being played out in our present moment of fascination with tech toys that is veritably destroying our ability to communicate with one another and experience genuine emotion. These are dumbing down instruments designed to take the place of critical thought and individual determinism that can make a personal decision, arbitrary though it may be, and stand on it despite social bullying. This is especially disturbing with the young who have not had the time or training necessary to be able to distinguish the difference between  the shadow of pain and  reality.

The ‘grow-up’ in you as an adult must determine to put aside these modern distractions … television, video games, all the versions of cell phones and social media … and treat them as they should be treated in your overall calendar of daily life … as a tool for living and not as the reason for living. This must be taught especially to the young who are constructing their life venture right now and will find it very difficult to change in the future. These young people are going to find it very difficult to negotiate their way in the real world. The real world will make no room for their distractions and will not forgive their tardiness in coming to the table. You may be facing a future of supporting them for as long as you live if things do not change soon.

3. Begin The Conversation.

You must have a life changing conversation with the significant other in your life; your spouse, your lover … whoever it is that you are sharing  life with. A total evaluation of how things are at present must be entered  into: finances, children, jobs, personal commitment, dependent family members. Changes have to be made in all of these areas of your life. No one can change their circumstances for the better until all the stumbling blocks in  life has been examined and a path of action chosen. If the significant other in your life is not committed to working on the fundamental problems your situation is facing, you may have to walk away and manage things from a distance. That, of course, is the worst case scenario. Give everything you can to keep that from happening.

#4) Examine your finances.

Staying Sane in an Upside-down, Crazy World of financial problems.

Start working on the serious examination of your finances with the eyes of a Sherlock Holmes. Let no detail escape your attention. You must learn the difference between primal need and want. Your significant other must agree with you and determine to work on the ways and the means that you are going to have to go through to get out of debt so that you can manage the necessities of life for yourself and your family. It may mean filing for bankruptcy. It may mean finding a different job. It may mean taking on  a second  job until things get straightened out. This will take every ounce of commitment that you can dig up within yourself. Americans have become so accustomed to finding a way to get what they want no matter how unwise and foolish … in the beginning, it will probably stir up a lot of trouble between you and the members of your family. But without this commitment, nothing else that you do will much matter. As interest rates go up along with the higher cost of living, you can’t start too soon on this one.

Right now, Americans are more than one trillion dollars in credit card debt.  Americans are more than one trillion dollars in auto loan debt. Americans are 1.5 trillion in student loan debt. How long can this nation survive living under this kind of personal debt load? How can families live daily, weekly, monthly getting up and going to bed with this kind of worry? Ask any social scientist … they will tell you that continued stress leads to family disruption and  domestic violence which ultimately will lead to violent, radical politics.  Why? Because while this is going on, our federal government is facing the music after spending beyond its means in order to bail out all those folks now who cannot afford basics like food and rent and medical care. We are facing, as individuals and as a nation, a mountain of troublesome money troubles that are rotting away, polluting our lives in every way possible. Eventually welfare, food, housing and health benefits will have to be cut back or denied. This will make life that much more difficult for the average citizen that has come to depend on such, and that will drive people to seek radical solutions which leads to radical politics. What more needs to be said.

#5) Consider The Health of Yourself and Your Family.

Do everything you can to understand what it takes to be in good health and get your family to cooperate with the rules of maintaining a healthy lifestyle. Healthcare in this country is going to be the biggest liability the nation faces due to the faulty lifestyles, drugs, and junk food that so many are consuming. Do everything that you can to get your family to eat more home cooked food and less stuff that gets popped into the microwave or brought home from the local fast food drive through.

Since good health starts with healthy eating, start by reading some books on nutrition and how you become that which you eat. Teach the children that if they want to look good, feel good, and have energy for the things they want to do, they must eat the right kinds of food and  learn about portion control. It is more than apparent that today’s American youth are ill- advised and lack the ability or knowledge to check what they put into their mouth. Obesity and the results  of obesity is an epidemic among the young. The tragedy is, that once a child develops a hunger and thirst for junk food, drinks, and snacks – it is almost impossible to change their addiction. The excessive and health destroying weight will be with them for years … perhaps for their entire lives with all the attendant illnesses that show up as a result, diabetes being up front even in the young.  You are the only one that can control this situation for yourself and your family. The world out there doesn’t care … as long as you can and are willing to pay, the market will supply you and your family with all the health breaking food, beverages and snacks that you can consume.

#6) Take a real interest in the politics that run our lives.

Listen to commentators that tell the truth. Read books that explain the situation in our nation’s cultural and political life. You cannot let others carry all the weight. You and your family must become informed so that you can take part in discussing and voting for the changes that are happening so rapidly in our country right now. Our fundamental liberties that we have taken for granted all these years now stand in peril. We must be an informed people.

You can get a lot of information by listening to talk radio … Glen Beck, Rush Limbaugh, Sean Hannity to name a few. Bot Radio Network has 24 four hour a day coverage of spiritual guidance and opportunities for call in help for every need. Their website lists all their affiliates and ministries. There are many other websites that post daily news:   One News Now, Praeger U, The American Conservative, and Christian Post.  There are many, many more. None of us has any excuse for not knowing what is happening in our community and country.

#7) Teach the children.

Life is so busy, so hectic you may know little of what your children are being taught in public school right now. You need to take a serious interest in finding out what they are learning. Their future and yours depends on it. The social engineering going on in public school would most likely shock you. Do you agree with all the sexual orientation discussions that your children are exposed to? You need to have your own beliefs in order so that you can direct their attitudes and belief systems in a healthy and God=fearing way.  Again, their future depends on it. They depend on you for teaching them and guiding them in a positive, life-enhancing belief system that will work for them long after they are no longer under your influence. If you do not work on this now, they will not be able to conduct their lives in a safe and meaningful way when it is time for them to get out into the world. You will regret more than you can imagine the outcome if your children are left to develop a life philosophy based on what they are learning in today’s public school system.

Our culture is devolving in such a way that the young are going to have no inner strength to rely on when the stumbling blocks of social chaos and disappointment come their way. They will pass through their formative years with a one-eyed personality that will leave their better selves ‘unborn’, unable to be part of a living, breathing spirit that will be needed to keep this country from destroying all our cherished traditions: marriage, family, culture, faith. As Jordan Peterson, a clinical psychologist puts it … “We mess with these established traditions at our peril.” 

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If you have found this essay a prod to dig deeper into the dangers of our American life and time and what we need to do about it, you will want to read The Fugitives of 2012: We Are All Fugitives Now. Fugitives is available in paperback and e-book. Watch for the website Avila Books.com  …  coming soon.