I just woke up this morning feeling like writing about this....

Scientology is a tribute to man's sense that he is incomplete, that he needs expanding to reach into another dimension. Our sense of incompleteness prods us to search for a way to find completeness. Scientology is man's effort to solve a need by trying to jump, to reach, to attain to some extraordinary level or height. A logical place to start such a journey would be to heighten our senses, to make us feel more aware and in possession of an expanded knowledge, something others don't have.
This is where the cash outlay comes in. Once that moolah has left the pocket, it's seen as an investment in bettering oneself and getting closer to one's goal. Could there be a more logical place to start than by advancing oneself to a greater awareness?

Well Christianity stands in contrast. Still, man starts his journey with an incompleteness, in need of another dimension. We all have this felt need that spurs us on. But the Christian journey is top down, Christ coming to us and bringing our needed change to us via the Holy Spirit. We get heightened senses but by surrendering, not striving, not building something ourselves but by allowing the Divine to create in us a transformation that goes right to our root problem, sin/selfishness.

So a new heart and new powers, guide us as we begin as new creatures in and with the Holy Spirit. This all comes to us for the low, low price of zero dollars! Imagine just surrendering and it's free! a courtesy influx of the Holy Spirit from God via our Lord Jesus Christ. No second floor assortment of man made contraptions or any hefty withdrawal from your bank accounts.

Amazing the contrasts but it's not surprising that the wealthy would seek to parlay their achievements into some advantage. Remember Naaman? the guy who visited Elisha because he had leprosy? Perhaps we'd fall into the same mistake if we were both wealthy and powerful. Instinctively we're always looking for something "WE" can do to fix things.

But our instincts here are misguided. The problem is beyond our ability to do something for ourselves. The self-help formula dooms our efforts to earthly accomplishments. Our souls, however, created by God, yearn for the heavenly fix. That's infinitely more than what we can do for ourselves and it's free! sort of :D