What is the Value?

Donna and I are asking "What is the value?" more often.
Everyone is concentrating a little harder these days to be sure we get the most value for each of the fewer dollars in our keeping. We also ask "What is the value of my work? Will it pay the bills?"
The inspiring vision which once motivated a person's life mission has the tendency to fade in the urgency of paying some bill. It's not that the vision and mission isn't still valid, but we just have to postpone it, to put it off until there is time, or until "we can afford it."
In "good times" it is easier to affirm the value of beauty, generosity, art, spirituality, faith. However, it is when things get tight that we must affirm the value of those intangibles. In hard times we need the inspiration of art, poetry, beauty and spiritual direction to carry on in faith that God will make a way where there is no way.
If ever there is a time to help sustain the "intangible" ministry of Horizon Gate, it is now when so many need the courage, hope and faith promoted by our art and films. Just the act of giving a little to these ministries is an act in defiance of the slave masters which would steal your vision away.
We pray that our faithfulness to the heavenly vision will inspire courage in your soul to hold on to your mission in life.

Love,

Mark and Donna Turner
August, 2010

Minds Dwell On These Things

We are reviving our disciplines of creating productive “mental environments” (attitudes). This consists of disciplining our minds to celebrate all the good that we have had and are experiencing, to remind ourselves of all the good God has done through all of history and our lives. We acknowledge all our wonderful accomplishments and gain confidence that we can do even more. Reaffirming the good liberates our thinking so we are able to create with God solutions to many problems.

Surrounding us is a world which insists on being what it calls “realistic” . What the systems of this world and those loyal to them mean by “realistic” is to keep your mind on your job, pay your bills, keep the money flowing to the creditors. They emphasize the bad things happening around the world and keep the majority of humanity focused on difficulties, mistakes and problems. Remembering the good, looking for the redemptive, and just being happy to have hope is all considered self-deluding and pitiful. Not hip.

Horizon Gate is about counteracting the forces that enslave people's minds like that. Our vision is to make beauty and show it in such a way that opens eyes and breaks bondage. We are not about just helping people get comfortable in their prison cells. Because of our perspective we find opposition and unbelief. We encounter hardships because of devoting our time and energies to this unconventional mission and some people feel sorry for us.

But, we call you to a higher vision. Rather than just feeling sorry for the troubles, please, by praying for the good to happen and being a participant in the solutions, help us keep looking up and being faithful to the heavenly vision.