I must confess that I gave in to my flesh during the trial and after the verdict for Casey Anthony for the murder of her daughter. I forgot about the mercy God has shown to me and I engaged in comments that do not reflect Christ, or the Christian walk I want to represent.
Someone recently stated that my opinion on Casey's guilt or innocence isn't important, and he was right. I do not know all the facts; I wasn't there! However, God was, and He will have the opportunity to face the person responsible for the death of a sweet, precious, innocent 2-year-old child. And woe be to that person; Jesus warned us about harming the innocent children, and I believe there are special circumstances waiting for those who do so. But, it is not my place to judge anyone, even if I knew for certain their guilt. Christ removed all my guilt and gave me a clean slate to start again, so how can I, then, stand in judgment of others? Should I not portray the same mercy and grace to them that was shown to me?
Besides, as Christ pointed out, I'm human and I have a plank in my eye, so how can I attempt to remove the speck from someone else's? I can't see their face, much less the speck in their eye due to the board that is clouding/blocking my sight. Whether Casey murdered her daughter, whether Casey's father covered up an accidental death, or even if he knew of a murder and covered that up, I do not have the standing to pass judgment. All I can do (and it is what I am supposed to do from the very start) is pray for Casey, her parents and everyone involved. And pray that God will bring the person responsible for the death of Caylee to justice.
One way or the other, whomever that person is, they will have to stand before God and answer for what they've done. If they don't have Christ in their heart, I pity them for they will spend eternity in hell. But, no matter, they will not escape answering for what they've done. In my flesh I want them to face justice on this planet, as well as the next, but that's not Christ-like. To be like Him, I am to want them to find peace, grace, mercy, love and forgiveness. And if I expect to be forgiven for my sins, I have to forgive them for this.
I pray we can all come to the understanding that these media frenzy cases don't give us all the facts or truth, but recognize that God knows all truth, nothing escapes His attention, and we will place all of these things in His capable hands. He will handle it all, while we simply love our brothers and sisters (all mankind) and help each and every one of them to find peace, love, mercy and grace.
Saturday, July 9, 2011
Thursday, July 7, 2011
How Can The Church Be Wrong, So Often?
I recently heard a man talking about how he couldn't believe anything coming out of the pulpit of a church because the "church" has been wrong so many times throughout history. My initial reaction was to challenge his statement, but I was checked on that because the church has, in fact, come down on the wrong side of many issues. Let's take a stroll through our recent and not-so recent history.
Most recently, the church was wrong when it taught, and actively worked, against inter-racial marriage. As recent as the 1960's & 1970's, it was taught from the majority of pulpits in this country, and the world, that marriage between blacks and whites was against Biblical teaching. Note they didn't teach, at that time, that marriage between whites/blacks and Hispanics or Asians or Middle-Easterners was wrong, though at different points in history all of those marriages were also condemned using Biblical principles. In 1966 there were 17 states with laws that prevented whites from marrying someone of another race, though the strictest enforcement was white-black marriages. In fact, it was only by a Supreme Court ruling that the last Anti-Miscegenation law was removed from the books, in the state of Virginia. Many preachers taught from the Word of God that marriage between whites and blacks were forbidden; even today, there are some who refuse to perform such unions, though they seem to have no problem presiding over the marriages of whites and Hispanics or whites and Asians.
Where did this teaching come from? In the Old Testament, God forbade the Israelites from marrying other races, but He was speaking more in terms of their religious beliefs and customs, not the color of their skin when He gave this command. Why? Because He knew if the descendants of Abraham married those who were living in the land of Canaan, they would wind up falling into idolatry and worshiping false gods because of the beliefs and customs of the natives of that land.
Another example of where the "church" got it wrong was The Crusades. I know, I know: the Crusades happened centuries ago, but the problem is we are still following the same philosophies and ideas which led to them in the first place. The Crusades were carried out by Christians who were determined to convert Muslims; if the Muslims wouldn't convert, they were slaughtered. Sound familiar? It's the exact behaviors and mantra that we, today, ascribe to Muslims and we wonder where they got the idea!
The church leaders of the day used Scripture to not only justify, but to motivate and spur believers to pursue non-Christians and murder them if they refused to convert. And it wasn't just during the Crusades and against Muslims. The Inca, Aztecs and many other South American nations were completely annihilated because of their refusal to convert to Christianity. That was also coupled with the church's desire to amass all the gold they believed to be held by those nations. The Inquisitions were also examples of misusing Scripture to justify the rampant slaughter of people who did not believe the way the 'church' thought they should.
For centuries slavery was justified by quoting scripture. The churches of the Southern United States resisted abolition using the Bible to support their view that it was not only acceptable, but expected, for man to "own" human beings as property. How anyone can preach the freedom Christ gives while supporting the notion of owning another human being and still be able to sleep at night is completely beyond my ability to comprehend.
During the U.S. Civil Rights movement in the 1960's, many churches used the Bible to persuade their congregants that "separate but equal" was acceptable and sanctioned by God. Today, we find that position to not only be untenable, but also ludicrous and deceived. We, rightfully, declare that those who used scripture to support, defend and justify all of these issues were deceived, misinformed, uneducated or just plain violating the Word of God. Each and every time the Bible is misused in this way, the world is filled with tears and the streets often run red.
I have a simple solution for determining if the teaching of a preacher, church, denomination is authentically based on scripture and the Will of God: does it promote love, inclusion in God's kingdom, offer peace, rest, comfort, increase, fellowship? If it promotes anything that is contrary to those things, it's not Biblical. If it incites exclusion, pain, loss, it's not Biblical, it's not of God and it's definitely not God's will.
We need to bring love back to the church.
Most recently, the church was wrong when it taught, and actively worked, against inter-racial marriage. As recent as the 1960's & 1970's, it was taught from the majority of pulpits in this country, and the world, that marriage between blacks and whites was against Biblical teaching. Note they didn't teach, at that time, that marriage between whites/blacks and Hispanics or Asians or Middle-Easterners was wrong, though at different points in history all of those marriages were also condemned using Biblical principles. In 1966 there were 17 states with laws that prevented whites from marrying someone of another race, though the strictest enforcement was white-black marriages. In fact, it was only by a Supreme Court ruling that the last Anti-Miscegenation law was removed from the books, in the state of Virginia. Many preachers taught from the Word of God that marriage between whites and blacks were forbidden; even today, there are some who refuse to perform such unions, though they seem to have no problem presiding over the marriages of whites and Hispanics or whites and Asians.
Where did this teaching come from? In the Old Testament, God forbade the Israelites from marrying other races, but He was speaking more in terms of their religious beliefs and customs, not the color of their skin when He gave this command. Why? Because He knew if the descendants of Abraham married those who were living in the land of Canaan, they would wind up falling into idolatry and worshiping false gods because of the beliefs and customs of the natives of that land.
Another example of where the "church" got it wrong was The Crusades. I know, I know: the Crusades happened centuries ago, but the problem is we are still following the same philosophies and ideas which led to them in the first place. The Crusades were carried out by Christians who were determined to convert Muslims; if the Muslims wouldn't convert, they were slaughtered. Sound familiar? It's the exact behaviors and mantra that we, today, ascribe to Muslims and we wonder where they got the idea!
The church leaders of the day used Scripture to not only justify, but to motivate and spur believers to pursue non-Christians and murder them if they refused to convert. And it wasn't just during the Crusades and against Muslims. The Inca, Aztecs and many other South American nations were completely annihilated because of their refusal to convert to Christianity. That was also coupled with the church's desire to amass all the gold they believed to be held by those nations. The Inquisitions were also examples of misusing Scripture to justify the rampant slaughter of people who did not believe the way the 'church' thought they should.
For centuries slavery was justified by quoting scripture. The churches of the Southern United States resisted abolition using the Bible to support their view that it was not only acceptable, but expected, for man to "own" human beings as property. How anyone can preach the freedom Christ gives while supporting the notion of owning another human being and still be able to sleep at night is completely beyond my ability to comprehend.
During the U.S. Civil Rights movement in the 1960's, many churches used the Bible to persuade their congregants that "separate but equal" was acceptable and sanctioned by God. Today, we find that position to not only be untenable, but also ludicrous and deceived. We, rightfully, declare that those who used scripture to support, defend and justify all of these issues were deceived, misinformed, uneducated or just plain violating the Word of God. Each and every time the Bible is misused in this way, the world is filled with tears and the streets often run red.
I have a simple solution for determining if the teaching of a preacher, church, denomination is authentically based on scripture and the Will of God: does it promote love, inclusion in God's kingdom, offer peace, rest, comfort, increase, fellowship? If it promotes anything that is contrary to those things, it's not Biblical. If it incites exclusion, pain, loss, it's not Biblical, it's not of God and it's definitely not God's will.
We need to bring love back to the church.
Sunday, July 3, 2011
Why Is Nashville Overlooked So Often?
Music City USA! Home of Country, Gospel & Bluegrass! Capitol of the State of Tennessee! Health Care Capitol of the United States. Buckle of the Bible Belt! More churches per capita than any other city in America! Home to more denominational headquarters than any other city! The center for the publishing, banking and transportation industries. Home to a large number of colleges and universities, including 2 Ivy League schools. Home of the Tennessee Titans NFL team! All of these ways of describing Nashville and yet Nashville is overlooked in so many ways and so often, it is beyond belief. The use of exclamation marks after each of the descriptors is not overkill: I chose to use them to make the point that we have so many claims to fame.
I read a news item this morning about these websites that offer maps showing criminal activities in neighborhoods and one new service was highly recommended as being the most accurate and detailed, so I decided to check out the Inglewood Village section of Nashville, which is where I live. In the state of Tennessee, Memphis was the only city that was available. Really? The state capitol wasn't available? One of the 3 main entertainment capitols in this country wasn't available?
In May 2010 Nashville suffered what has been called a 500-year flood, yet the national news media barely reported on the devastation that was being endured by so many people in this great metropolis. Nashville is a metropolitan government encompassing the entire Davidson County. We have a total land area comparable to Los Angeles (526 sq miles vs 498 sq miles, giving Nashville a 28 sq mile advantage over L.A.). The population of the Metro area is 1,670,891, making it the 4th largest city in the Southeastern U.S. And yet it is consistently overlooked. Why is that?
Many of the residents of Memphis cry foul when Nashvillians complain about these things; they accuse us of whining and being overly sensitive. We're not overly sensitive, we're incensed! Nashville is the capitol of the state and has more claims to fame than most any other city in the world, yet we are still almost invisible when it comes to recognition and reporting anything on a national level. I know many will think I'm being silly or crying over spilled milk, but it's dismaying to me, and most Nashvillians, when we're overlooked so often. Almost 1¾ million people call this area home, including some of the wealthiest entertainers in the country, whether they're country, gospel, rock, rap or hip-hop, television or film stars. Williamson County, directly to the south of Nashville is one of, if not the wealthiest county in the country.
There are too many reasons Nashville should be included in such things as the Neighborhood Crime Statistics Mapping services and not enough for Metro to be excluded. I'm ready for us to get the recognition we're due, finally!
I read a news item this morning about these websites that offer maps showing criminal activities in neighborhoods and one new service was highly recommended as being the most accurate and detailed, so I decided to check out the Inglewood Village section of Nashville, which is where I live. In the state of Tennessee, Memphis was the only city that was available. Really? The state capitol wasn't available? One of the 3 main entertainment capitols in this country wasn't available?
In May 2010 Nashville suffered what has been called a 500-year flood, yet the national news media barely reported on the devastation that was being endured by so many people in this great metropolis. Nashville is a metropolitan government encompassing the entire Davidson County. We have a total land area comparable to Los Angeles (526 sq miles vs 498 sq miles, giving Nashville a 28 sq mile advantage over L.A.). The population of the Metro area is 1,670,891, making it the 4th largest city in the Southeastern U.S. And yet it is consistently overlooked. Why is that?
Many of the residents of Memphis cry foul when Nashvillians complain about these things; they accuse us of whining and being overly sensitive. We're not overly sensitive, we're incensed! Nashville is the capitol of the state and has more claims to fame than most any other city in the world, yet we are still almost invisible when it comes to recognition and reporting anything on a national level. I know many will think I'm being silly or crying over spilled milk, but it's dismaying to me, and most Nashvillians, when we're overlooked so often. Almost 1¾ million people call this area home, including some of the wealthiest entertainers in the country, whether they're country, gospel, rock, rap or hip-hop, television or film stars. Williamson County, directly to the south of Nashville is one of, if not the wealthiest county in the country.
There are too many reasons Nashville should be included in such things as the Neighborhood Crime Statistics Mapping services and not enough for Metro to be excluded. I'm ready for us to get the recognition we're due, finally!
Sunday, June 26, 2011
Marriage & The Word of God
Okay, there's lots being said in the past few days regarding marriage due to the passage of a law in the state of New York. Many Christians and several Christian leaders are speaking out and condemning the law, the men and women who passed the law and the people who support the law. I want to take a few minutes and speak about the topic of marriage, the Bible and the church today.
Many of those who are shouting the loudest about the laws of the land are married to their second or third spouses, while their previous spouses are still living. How is this possible? It's possible because they've divorced their first and/or second spouse and remarried. Yet Jesus, Himself, told us that we are not allowed to remarry after divorce, and we're only allowed to divorce if our spouse has committed adultery. Note, we cannot commit adultery, ourselves, then ask for a divorce from our spouse.
In fact, it's written in scripture that if we divorce a spouse due to adultery, we are to remain single until our former spouse passes away or we are guilty of adultery and the person we marry becomes guilty of adultery, thereby placing the responsibility for their committing sin on our souls, and Christ told us that if we are responsible for someone else committing sin, it would be better for a millstone to be tied around our neck and we be cast into the sea.
So, how is it that divorce and remarriage has become so accepted in the church? I remember as recently as the 1970's a joke that stated it was better to murder your spouse than to divorce them because it was easier for the church to forgive murder than divorce. Yet, beginning in the 80's, divorce has become rampant, and accepted, in the church. And, along with it, remarriage is accepted, with the caveat that God doesn't recognize our marriages before we were saved. Hogwash! Paul addressed that situation, clearly, when he stated that if we're unequally yoked (married to a non-believer) we are to remain married to them if they are agreeable, because we have no way of knowing if our continued marriage to them will lead them to Christ. But, he also stated that if they were not agreeable to remaining married to us, we are to grant them a divorce, but we are to remain single, only allowed to remarry our former spouse.
I find it more unbelievable that so many of our pastors, teachers, evangelists and other leaders are on their second, third, fourth marriage. What happened to following Biblical teaching? The text of scripture states that in order to be a leader, the leader must be "the husband of one wife" (or conversely, the wife of one husband). There is no excuse listed in scripture for a shepherd to be divorced and remarried, much less multiple times divorced and remarried. Yet, if you look at those who are screaming the loudest about these laws, you'll likely find they've been married multiple times, and their former spouses are still living.
Now, I recently posted a blog in which I spoke about the speck and the plank. How much more appropriate can that statement from Jesus be to a conversation than it is to this one? I'm not condemning anyone who has divorced and remarried while their former spouse is still living. It's not my place to judge a single soul on this planet. However, I find it a wee bit hypocritical of us, as the church, to be carrying on about what the world is doing while we, ourselves, are committing sin; acting out in direct opposition to the teachings of Christ on the very subject that we are shouting the loudest about.
Maybe that's the key to why we're screaming so loudly. We tend to scream the loudest, and hate the most, those things we see in others which we dislike the most in ourselves. Unless and until we get our own acts cleaned up in regards to marriage IN the church, we have no right to condemn or complain about what those in the world are doing in regard to marriage.
Many of those who are shouting the loudest about the laws of the land are married to their second or third spouses, while their previous spouses are still living. How is this possible? It's possible because they've divorced their first and/or second spouse and remarried. Yet Jesus, Himself, told us that we are not allowed to remarry after divorce, and we're only allowed to divorce if our spouse has committed adultery. Note, we cannot commit adultery, ourselves, then ask for a divorce from our spouse.
In fact, it's written in scripture that if we divorce a spouse due to adultery, we are to remain single until our former spouse passes away or we are guilty of adultery and the person we marry becomes guilty of adultery, thereby placing the responsibility for their committing sin on our souls, and Christ told us that if we are responsible for someone else committing sin, it would be better for a millstone to be tied around our neck and we be cast into the sea.
So, how is it that divorce and remarriage has become so accepted in the church? I remember as recently as the 1970's a joke that stated it was better to murder your spouse than to divorce them because it was easier for the church to forgive murder than divorce. Yet, beginning in the 80's, divorce has become rampant, and accepted, in the church. And, along with it, remarriage is accepted, with the caveat that God doesn't recognize our marriages before we were saved. Hogwash! Paul addressed that situation, clearly, when he stated that if we're unequally yoked (married to a non-believer) we are to remain married to them if they are agreeable, because we have no way of knowing if our continued marriage to them will lead them to Christ. But, he also stated that if they were not agreeable to remaining married to us, we are to grant them a divorce, but we are to remain single, only allowed to remarry our former spouse.
I find it more unbelievable that so many of our pastors, teachers, evangelists and other leaders are on their second, third, fourth marriage. What happened to following Biblical teaching? The text of scripture states that in order to be a leader, the leader must be "the husband of one wife" (or conversely, the wife of one husband). There is no excuse listed in scripture for a shepherd to be divorced and remarried, much less multiple times divorced and remarried. Yet, if you look at those who are screaming the loudest about these laws, you'll likely find they've been married multiple times, and their former spouses are still living.
Now, I recently posted a blog in which I spoke about the speck and the plank. How much more appropriate can that statement from Jesus be to a conversation than it is to this one? I'm not condemning anyone who has divorced and remarried while their former spouse is still living. It's not my place to judge a single soul on this planet. However, I find it a wee bit hypocritical of us, as the church, to be carrying on about what the world is doing while we, ourselves, are committing sin; acting out in direct opposition to the teachings of Christ on the very subject that we are shouting the loudest about.
Maybe that's the key to why we're screaming so loudly. We tend to scream the loudest, and hate the most, those things we see in others which we dislike the most in ourselves. Unless and until we get our own acts cleaned up in regards to marriage IN the church, we have no right to condemn or complain about what those in the world are doing in regard to marriage.
Thursday, June 23, 2011
If They Don't Recognize It As Love, It Isn't Love
For many years I have lived under the guideline that if someone doesn't recognize my actions as being borne of love, then it isn't love. Someone actually told me once that he wasn't responsible if people didn't recognize that he was acting out of love. I was shocked that a Christian, and one who preaches the Word of God, would make such a statement. There is no way to mistake when something is done out of love or done without love.
The Bible, in 1Corinthians 13, teaches us that love is kind, patient, forbearing, forgiving, believes and hopes and endures many hurts; it does not envy, boast, behave rudely, seek its own, think evil, rejoice in iniquity and is not provoked. Love does not fail!
Paul stated that even bestowing all our goods to feed the poor and even give our bodies to be burned to save someone, if we do not have love, we have nothing.
When we love someone, we want to see them happy, we want to make them happy; we want to see them prosper and have only good things in their lives. We do not want to see them hurting in any way; we don't steal from them, we don't lie to them, we don't talk badly about them, we don't inhibit them attaining good things, we make certain they have food, water, clothing, shelter. We try to give them anything and everything we can possibly can, above and beyond their needs. We want them to have abundance. Just as God, in His love for us, wants to give us all the blessings of Heaven; He wants us to have more than we could ever dream or imagine: life, possessions to ease our lives, prosperity to make our lives better and to help others.
In this present age, love has waxed cold -- not only among the world, but among Christians. We say we love everyone, but our actions prove otherwise, and then we try to justify it by calling it "tough love". I have yet to find the concept of "tough love" in the Word of God. We claim to love the sinner, but we work so hard to take away from them their right to choose the way they live their lives. We complain so mightily about our government taking away our rights as Christians when the truth of the matter is, our government has not restricted our right to practice our faith; yes, they may have limited some areas where we can practice our faith, and we should, rightly, work to restore those available places, but we turn right around and try to force everyone to believe the way we believe and live according to our standard of Christianity.
I've heard several people who were not Christians state that they had no interest in becoming a Christian because they couldn't tell the difference between a Christian and an atheist when it came to the behavior of the two: atheists want to prevent Christians from saying God's name, from praying in public, etc. But, Christians want to take away the rights of non-believers, just as passionately. We want to "legislate morality".
We sincerely need to examine our hearts and repent for our sin of trying to force others to believe the way we believe. And it is a sin to do that. Christ never forced anyone to behave in the manner He taught His disciples to live. He never once advocated changing the laws of the land to reflect His teachings. He never once advocated changing the rule of the kingdom of Israel to mirror His teachings. Personally, I do vote for men and women who are Christian, but I don't do so so they will go to Washington or the state capitol and enact legislation that will force those who are not Christians to live according to Biblical teaching. Forcing people to behave according to Biblical teaching is not going to lead those people to Christ; the opposite is true: by forcing people to live according to our understanding of the Bible will drive them further away.
And, of course, we have a really huge problem when we do try to force Biblical standards on the masses: which denominations teachings of the Bible shall we enforce? If we, as Christians, cannot even agree on the teachings as a group (we have more denominations teaching more ways to live Bible teachings than most men can conceive), how then are we going to require the lost to live according to Bible teachings?
We need to get back to loving one another, loving those who are not saved and stop trying to force anyone to live according to our beliefs. As Jesus pointed out: how can we remove the speck from our brother's eye when we have a plank in our own?
The Bible, in 1Corinthians 13, teaches us that love is kind, patient, forbearing, forgiving, believes and hopes and endures many hurts; it does not envy, boast, behave rudely, seek its own, think evil, rejoice in iniquity and is not provoked. Love does not fail!
Paul stated that even bestowing all our goods to feed the poor and even give our bodies to be burned to save someone, if we do not have love, we have nothing.
When we love someone, we want to see them happy, we want to make them happy; we want to see them prosper and have only good things in their lives. We do not want to see them hurting in any way; we don't steal from them, we don't lie to them, we don't talk badly about them, we don't inhibit them attaining good things, we make certain they have food, water, clothing, shelter. We try to give them anything and everything we can possibly can, above and beyond their needs. We want them to have abundance. Just as God, in His love for us, wants to give us all the blessings of Heaven; He wants us to have more than we could ever dream or imagine: life, possessions to ease our lives, prosperity to make our lives better and to help others.
In this present age, love has waxed cold -- not only among the world, but among Christians. We say we love everyone, but our actions prove otherwise, and then we try to justify it by calling it "tough love". I have yet to find the concept of "tough love" in the Word of God. We claim to love the sinner, but we work so hard to take away from them their right to choose the way they live their lives. We complain so mightily about our government taking away our rights as Christians when the truth of the matter is, our government has not restricted our right to practice our faith; yes, they may have limited some areas where we can practice our faith, and we should, rightly, work to restore those available places, but we turn right around and try to force everyone to believe the way we believe and live according to our standard of Christianity.
I've heard several people who were not Christians state that they had no interest in becoming a Christian because they couldn't tell the difference between a Christian and an atheist when it came to the behavior of the two: atheists want to prevent Christians from saying God's name, from praying in public, etc. But, Christians want to take away the rights of non-believers, just as passionately. We want to "legislate morality".
We sincerely need to examine our hearts and repent for our sin of trying to force others to believe the way we believe. And it is a sin to do that. Christ never forced anyone to behave in the manner He taught His disciples to live. He never once advocated changing the laws of the land to reflect His teachings. He never once advocated changing the rule of the kingdom of Israel to mirror His teachings. Personally, I do vote for men and women who are Christian, but I don't do so so they will go to Washington or the state capitol and enact legislation that will force those who are not Christians to live according to Biblical teaching. Forcing people to behave according to Biblical teaching is not going to lead those people to Christ; the opposite is true: by forcing people to live according to our understanding of the Bible will drive them further away.
And, of course, we have a really huge problem when we do try to force Biblical standards on the masses: which denominations teachings of the Bible shall we enforce? If we, as Christians, cannot even agree on the teachings as a group (we have more denominations teaching more ways to live Bible teachings than most men can conceive), how then are we going to require the lost to live according to Bible teachings?
We need to get back to loving one another, loving those who are not saved and stop trying to force anyone to live according to our beliefs. As Jesus pointed out: how can we remove the speck from our brother's eye when we have a plank in our own?
Saturday, June 18, 2011
My Position on Politics
I'm a man of strong opinions. I wouldn't necessarily call myself "opinionated" in the sense of it being a bad thing, but I do have my opinions, which are deeply held and due to my diligence in seeking information, I believe I can change my opinions, when needed. I am also a man of strong convictions, insofar as I am unwilling to compromise my beliefs or opinions based upon the beliefs and opinions of others, solely to "fit in", as it were.
I dislike receiving political eMails from my friends, and absolutely loathe receiving them from special interest groups. I am capable of, and frequently exercise that capability, finding out the information I need to know about a candidate or an issue. Some of my friends have described me as fiscally conservative and socially moderate. Others consider me extremely conservative or extremely liberal. I do have a few opinions and beliefs that are what most people call liberal, in as much as they have to find a label to put on me.
I do not suffer those who allow the talking heads to shape their opinions or stands on the issues or candidates lightly. I believe far too many good men and women died to ensure the right of every individual in this great Republic of ours to enjoy the freedoms, privileges and responsibilities that come along with citizenship in The United States of America. I firmly believe each and every man and woman in this nation who is 18 years or older has the obligation to be politically active by researching the issues and candidates and fulfilling the responsibility to vote.
What I find most loathsome, however, is the way the political parties throw mud at the other party and the politicians in the other party. I find it abhorrent that the Republican party claims itself as the party of the Christian, yet they spew hatred, arrogance and poison on the people of this nation and spout lies regarding the members of the Democratic party. Yes, I do find the same actions on the parts of the Democrats to be vile, but the Democrats do not proclaim themselves to be the "Christian Party"! There are always things to dislike when it comes to the positions of politicians. That does not excuse, however, the bending of the truth of someone's affiliations, beliefs or political views, much less the outright lies that they tell about one another.
The worst part of it is, that we, as Christians, not only overlook these things, we support and even perpetuate them. I find that situation to be almost intolerable. We are to be the light of Christ unto the world yet we are using the tactics of the enemy while convincing ourselves that this is somehow "okay" with God. I'm afraid for many Christians when they stand before Christ on judgment day and have to face up to this standard they've borne.
I pray for the leaders of this nation, daily. The ones I agree with and most especially for the ones I disagree with. I pray for God's hand to guide them to the right decisions for this nation and His mercy upon them when they perform contrary to His will. And I pray for those who allow themselves to be led like lambs to the slaughter based solely upon political party membership. We are called to be separated from this world, for this world is not our home. We are, however, called to be responsible and good stewards of what we have been given in this life, and that includes those of us who were fortunate and blessed enough to be born as citizens of this great nation. But, we are not to become bogged down in the strife that is the political spectrum of this country. We are commanded by God to pray for, and to obey, our elected leaders, for they are in their offices by the grace and appointment of God; even the ones we disagree with. After all, how would we know the good ones without having the bad ones to compare them to?
I dislike receiving political eMails from my friends, and absolutely loathe receiving them from special interest groups. I am capable of, and frequently exercise that capability, finding out the information I need to know about a candidate or an issue. Some of my friends have described me as fiscally conservative and socially moderate. Others consider me extremely conservative or extremely liberal. I do have a few opinions and beliefs that are what most people call liberal, in as much as they have to find a label to put on me.
I do not suffer those who allow the talking heads to shape their opinions or stands on the issues or candidates lightly. I believe far too many good men and women died to ensure the right of every individual in this great Republic of ours to enjoy the freedoms, privileges and responsibilities that come along with citizenship in The United States of America. I firmly believe each and every man and woman in this nation who is 18 years or older has the obligation to be politically active by researching the issues and candidates and fulfilling the responsibility to vote.
What I find most loathsome, however, is the way the political parties throw mud at the other party and the politicians in the other party. I find it abhorrent that the Republican party claims itself as the party of the Christian, yet they spew hatred, arrogance and poison on the people of this nation and spout lies regarding the members of the Democratic party. Yes, I do find the same actions on the parts of the Democrats to be vile, but the Democrats do not proclaim themselves to be the "Christian Party"! There are always things to dislike when it comes to the positions of politicians. That does not excuse, however, the bending of the truth of someone's affiliations, beliefs or political views, much less the outright lies that they tell about one another.
The worst part of it is, that we, as Christians, not only overlook these things, we support and even perpetuate them. I find that situation to be almost intolerable. We are to be the light of Christ unto the world yet we are using the tactics of the enemy while convincing ourselves that this is somehow "okay" with God. I'm afraid for many Christians when they stand before Christ on judgment day and have to face up to this standard they've borne.
I pray for the leaders of this nation, daily. The ones I agree with and most especially for the ones I disagree with. I pray for God's hand to guide them to the right decisions for this nation and His mercy upon them when they perform contrary to His will. And I pray for those who allow themselves to be led like lambs to the slaughter based solely upon political party membership. We are called to be separated from this world, for this world is not our home. We are, however, called to be responsible and good stewards of what we have been given in this life, and that includes those of us who were fortunate and blessed enough to be born as citizens of this great nation. But, we are not to become bogged down in the strife that is the political spectrum of this country. We are commanded by God to pray for, and to obey, our elected leaders, for they are in their offices by the grace and appointment of God; even the ones we disagree with. After all, how would we know the good ones without having the bad ones to compare them to?
Tuesday, June 14, 2011
Embarking on God's Call
I've suffered horrendous, debilitating, intractable, insipid pain for the past 23½ years. God did deliver me from the pain for several months, earlier this year but it returned after they removed the hardware from my lumbar spine back in April during emergency surgery due to infection. Last week's appointment with the surgeon revealed the broken L4 vertebrae has begun slipping, which is causing even more pain. For many years I allowed myself to be deceived into thinking that I deserved this pain, and the complications that come with it. Thanks to my friend, Becky Fender, I came to realize that it was not deserved nor is it God's will for me to live in chronic, persistent pain from the base of my skull to my toes and all parts in between.
Over the years I've had good-intentioned Christians tell me that I just don't have enough faith, or there's some sin in my life I haven't repented for that causes this pain and the lack of healing. The truth is, I have lots of faith for a divine touch and miraculous healing. I've experienced miraculous healings in other areas of my body and life; as for the unrepentant sin, I can only laugh when someone says something like that.
Due to my inability to work, I spend most waking hours either on the computer or watching TV. This year has been especially egregious when it comes to not being able to do anything. Without the hardware to support the lumbar spine, pressure increases on the nerves, 2 of which have a condition called Arachnoiditis. That's where the chronic pain comes from. Also have 2 instances of the condition in the cervical spine (neck).
Now, having said all that, I do believe that God works ALL things for good for those of us who love Him! I don't know how He will make this into good, but His will and plan for me only includes good. Over the past few years I've been able to help others who are just beginning the long road that is chronic, insipid pain. One was a little old lady in her twilight years who had developed chronic pain and was considering having a pain pump implanted. My doctors asked me if I would consider speaking with her because she was terribly frightened. I do think I helped her, and I pray she's finding some relief from her pain.
The one thing I know for sure about this pain is that it's intent is to keep me from doing what God has called me to: music. Music for His glory, for exhorting my fellow Christians and even to teach through song. Despite basically being confined from doing anything, I can still write, and I have. I've written some amazing lyrics over the past few months, and I know beyond any doubt that those words came directly from the Throne: I was merely the vessel God used to bring them into creation.
So, I ask for your prayers for healing, for anointing, for doors opening. I know God can, and will, make a way!
Over the years I've had good-intentioned Christians tell me that I just don't have enough faith, or there's some sin in my life I haven't repented for that causes this pain and the lack of healing. The truth is, I have lots of faith for a divine touch and miraculous healing. I've experienced miraculous healings in other areas of my body and life; as for the unrepentant sin, I can only laugh when someone says something like that.
Due to my inability to work, I spend most waking hours either on the computer or watching TV. This year has been especially egregious when it comes to not being able to do anything. Without the hardware to support the lumbar spine, pressure increases on the nerves, 2 of which have a condition called Arachnoiditis. That's where the chronic pain comes from. Also have 2 instances of the condition in the cervical spine (neck).
Now, having said all that, I do believe that God works ALL things for good for those of us who love Him! I don't know how He will make this into good, but His will and plan for me only includes good. Over the past few years I've been able to help others who are just beginning the long road that is chronic, insipid pain. One was a little old lady in her twilight years who had developed chronic pain and was considering having a pain pump implanted. My doctors asked me if I would consider speaking with her because she was terribly frightened. I do think I helped her, and I pray she's finding some relief from her pain.
The one thing I know for sure about this pain is that it's intent is to keep me from doing what God has called me to: music. Music for His glory, for exhorting my fellow Christians and even to teach through song. Despite basically being confined from doing anything, I can still write, and I have. I've written some amazing lyrics over the past few months, and I know beyond any doubt that those words came directly from the Throne: I was merely the vessel God used to bring them into creation.
So, I ask for your prayers for healing, for anointing, for doors opening. I know God can, and will, make a way!
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