The absurdity of moral relativism applied to policy is reaching new highs:
http://www.c-fam.org/publications/id.1200/pub_detail.asp
Apparently, those who are against torture should also be pro-abortion, in order to save lives!
Huh?
I don't even know where to begin with this, other than to laugh. Once you have reached the point where dialogue of this type seems logical, then I don't think you and I can have a rational conversation. But Nicaragua is being criticized by the UN Convention Against Torture committee for its strong, pro-life stance. You read that right, or maybe you read that wrong? Because this is very, very wrong.
But how different is our country? Abortion here is legal, and I daresay encouraged around the nation. And yet we decry waterboarding as inhumane torture, and we are doing that to terrorists. If I don't laugh , I'll cry. Waterboarding lasts for seconds, with no permanent damage to anyone; abortion is permanent in its effects, death for one party and a lifetime of regret for another.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
3 Simple Rules - for Camp, for Life
Living the Christian life is difficult, but it doesn't have to be complex. Jesus had an amazing ability to break down difficult truths into simple stories, to make them understandable by anyone. In Matthew 22:35-40 Jesus breaks down the entirety of Old Testament law into 2 simple rules. And to close the final loophole, he gave us the parable of the Good Samaritan in Luke 10 (to clearly define who your neighbor is, and what being a neighbor looks like).
At camp, I enforce discipline - and somewhere, Jerry Roussard and Jim Solomon are laughing at me, I know. I believe discipline is easier to maintain when the rules are simple, clear and consistently applied. And so I break it down to 3 simple rules, 2 from Jesus and one from me, Mr. Baldon:
1. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength.
2. Love your neighbor as yourself.
3. Give me your best in everything, all the time.
The application of these 3 into a life will result in all the other commandments being followed, as all the others just expand on these basic concepts. For the third rule, my own, I believe the entire Bible speaks to the concept of doing your best multiple times. We are created by God for a purpose, and to fulfill that purpose by definition we must give our best. We are to do all things as if we were doing them for God, because we are representing him in all that we do (3:17). As I discussed in a previous post, the lukewarm will be spit out of God's mouth (Revelation 3:15-16), so we'd better do our very best for as long as we are able.Anyway, I again ask for your prayers while we are at camp. These young people are our Christian leaders of tomorrow, and we have so little time to prepare them. Pray for us, that we would use our time wisely.
At camp, I enforce discipline - and somewhere, Jerry Roussard and Jim Solomon are laughing at me, I know. I believe discipline is easier to maintain when the rules are simple, clear and consistently applied. And so I break it down to 3 simple rules, 2 from Jesus and one from me, Mr. Baldon:
1. Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, mind and strength.
2. Love your neighbor as yourself.
3. Give me your best in everything, all the time.
The application of these 3 into a life will result in all the other commandments being followed, as all the others just expand on these basic concepts. For the third rule, my own, I believe the entire Bible speaks to the concept of doing your best multiple times. We are created by God for a purpose, and to fulfill that purpose by definition we must give our best. We are to do all things as if we were doing them for God, because we are representing him in all that we do (3:17). As I discussed in a previous post, the lukewarm will be spit out of God's mouth (Revelation 3:15-16), so we'd better do our very best for as long as we are able.Anyway, I again ask for your prayers while we are at camp. These young people are our Christian leaders of tomorrow, and we have so little time to prepare them. Pray for us, that we would use our time wisely.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Getting Ready for Camp...
Please pray for us, as Golden West Camp 2009 is from June 7th - June 12th. I help run the camp, so the last couple weeks beforehand is always an adventure. I will probably not be posting much between now and June 15th, but I encourage you to keep praying for our country, and also that God would do His will in the lives of these kids at camp.
Check out the links to the left to see the camp website and find out what it's about.
Check out the links to the left to see the camp website and find out what it's about.
Thursday, May 21, 2009
The End of an Age
The Change has begun to happen so fast, it's hard for a part-time blogger to keep up with. Everyday brings news of changes, and not just superficial changes in policy. These are deep-rooted changes in governing philosophy, designed with permanence in mind. Huge spending bills, government take over of banks, financial institution compensation restrictions, increased worldwide funding for abortion through the UN, embryonic stem cell research, the world tour of apologies by our President, staggering fiscal debts, government and union take over of car makers, cap and trade energy policy, universal health care, tougher fuel economy standards, expanding homosexual marriage, rampant illegal immigration, cracking down on CIA's "illegal" treatment of captured terrorists... forgive me if I have missed something.
It has been 120 days of this Presidency.
1340 days remain in President Obama's first term.
We have 610 days until a more conservative Congress - potentially - could be seated, if the people so choose.
I recently finished re-reading a series on the Fall of Troy, and it led to some reflection on my part. The sack of that city was first described in The Iliad, which has been long debated as being fact or fiction. Either way, we have many other examples of the end of great civilizations in the short history of man upon the Earth. Many a city or state has fallen quickly to the sword through war; but for many of the greatest civilizations, a slow decline marks the end of their culture's Golden Age. Eventually some outside force comes along, and a slight nudge is all that is needed to break the gilded shell of a once-great nation. The shell cracks and the core, being rotten, collapses into dust. The sack of Troy ended the Age of Heroes, and a new age began, for better or for worse.
America has stood for some 233 years as of this writing. Historically, this is a short period of time. But the last 60 years have seen more changes than in the 1000 years before, so given context America has stood through several Ages of this world. We emerged 64 years ago, from the last, terrible World War, as indisputably the most powerful nation on Earth.
But what is the nature of our Power? From what, or where, does it come? Strength of arms? Courage of conviction? A sense of moral superiority? Great wealth? Years of peace and prosperity? Almighty God? Some mix of these factors? These are the questions I devoutly wish every American would seriously consider. Just what is America?
To say "We are America! We have always been great, and we always will be!" is sadly lacking. At some point just 233 years ago, there was no America. It is the height of foolishness to think that we will always be because we are, and yet this is how we now live as a nation. And at some point amidst all this Change, we will no longer be what we once were. What then is our legacy to our children?
The glory of America was once this: that no man is limited by who his father was. The hope we offered the world was a chance to succeed, that hard work could lead to a better life. A better life was never guaranteed, and many died without seeing it, but they died working so that their children could have the chance. And their children saw that same calling as their own, and worked hard themselves.
But we have forgotten our fathers. Freed from the limitations of our family name, we have tragically forgotten our history altogether. Our memories are conveniently limited, for we often remember our rights and often forget our responsibilities. As Americans, we are not free to redefine our country in each new generation, and it is that very fact that grants us liberty. We must remember who we were called to be. Citizens by birth, we must become Americans by choice, and remember what that means. In the issues I mentioned at the beginning of this post, the common thread is the expansion of government into every aspect of life: to nurture us, to educate us, to clothe us, to keep us healthy, to keep us safe.
Is government in America now no more than a surrogate parent, to coddle us in every aspect of our lives?
Perhaps the dream has ended. Perhaps our Age also has scattered in the morning mist, like so many before it. But I am not giving up.
We must teach our children what our nation should be. If you home school, that makes it easier, as you have control over the lessons. In the government (public) schools, the 'education' your child is receiving probably does not conform to your values, if you are reading this. It's an uphill battle there but not impossible. Christian schools can go either way, but even then we cannot allow this responsibility to fall to another. We have to teach our children. We have to teach our friends. We have to ask our families, our communities, the tough questions. We have to talk until our voices are gone, and then speak even louder. It will not be comfortable or convenient. It will not be fun, and at times it will require more than we believe we have in us. But if our legacy to our children is to be more than debt and greed, if we would see this Age continue, if we would see America be the nation God called it to be - it must be done.
It has been 120 days of this Presidency.
1340 days remain in President Obama's first term.
We have 610 days until a more conservative Congress - potentially - could be seated, if the people so choose.
I recently finished re-reading a series on the Fall of Troy, and it led to some reflection on my part. The sack of that city was first described in The Iliad, which has been long debated as being fact or fiction. Either way, we have many other examples of the end of great civilizations in the short history of man upon the Earth. Many a city or state has fallen quickly to the sword through war; but for many of the greatest civilizations, a slow decline marks the end of their culture's Golden Age. Eventually some outside force comes along, and a slight nudge is all that is needed to break the gilded shell of a once-great nation. The shell cracks and the core, being rotten, collapses into dust. The sack of Troy ended the Age of Heroes, and a new age began, for better or for worse.
America has stood for some 233 years as of this writing. Historically, this is a short period of time. But the last 60 years have seen more changes than in the 1000 years before, so given context America has stood through several Ages of this world. We emerged 64 years ago, from the last, terrible World War, as indisputably the most powerful nation on Earth.
But what is the nature of our Power? From what, or where, does it come? Strength of arms? Courage of conviction? A sense of moral superiority? Great wealth? Years of peace and prosperity? Almighty God? Some mix of these factors? These are the questions I devoutly wish every American would seriously consider. Just what is America?
To say "We are America! We have always been great, and we always will be!" is sadly lacking. At some point just 233 years ago, there was no America. It is the height of foolishness to think that we will always be because we are, and yet this is how we now live as a nation. And at some point amidst all this Change, we will no longer be what we once were. What then is our legacy to our children?
The glory of America was once this: that no man is limited by who his father was. The hope we offered the world was a chance to succeed, that hard work could lead to a better life. A better life was never guaranteed, and many died without seeing it, but they died working so that their children could have the chance. And their children saw that same calling as their own, and worked hard themselves.
But we have forgotten our fathers. Freed from the limitations of our family name, we have tragically forgotten our history altogether. Our memories are conveniently limited, for we often remember our rights and often forget our responsibilities. As Americans, we are not free to redefine our country in each new generation, and it is that very fact that grants us liberty. We must remember who we were called to be. Citizens by birth, we must become Americans by choice, and remember what that means. In the issues I mentioned at the beginning of this post, the common thread is the expansion of government into every aspect of life: to nurture us, to educate us, to clothe us, to keep us healthy, to keep us safe.
Is government in America now no more than a surrogate parent, to coddle us in every aspect of our lives?
Perhaps the dream has ended. Perhaps our Age also has scattered in the morning mist, like so many before it. But I am not giving up.
We must teach our children what our nation should be. If you home school, that makes it easier, as you have control over the lessons. In the government (public) schools, the 'education' your child is receiving probably does not conform to your values, if you are reading this. It's an uphill battle there but not impossible. Christian schools can go either way, but even then we cannot allow this responsibility to fall to another. We have to teach our children. We have to teach our friends. We have to ask our families, our communities, the tough questions. We have to talk until our voices are gone, and then speak even louder. It will not be comfortable or convenient. It will not be fun, and at times it will require more than we believe we have in us. But if our legacy to our children is to be more than debt and greed, if we would see this Age continue, if we would see America be the nation God called it to be - it must be done.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Why Nancy Pelosi Should Step Down (by Newt Gingrich)
The case against Nancy Pelosi remaining Speaker of the House is as simple as it is devastating: The person who is No. 2 in line to be commander in chief can’t have contempt for the men and women who protect our nation.
America can’t afford it. To test how much damage Speaker Pelosi has done to the defense of our nation, ask yourself this: If you were a young man or woman just starting out today, would you put on a uniform or become an intelligence officer to defend America, knowing that tomorrow a politician like Nancy Pelosi could decide you were a criminal? Would you?
This Isn’t About Politics.
It’s About National Security.
The controversy swirling around Speaker Pelosi isn’t political -- she may think it is, other liberal Democrats may think it is, and the media may want it to appear that way.But this isn’t about politics. It’s about national security. At issue is whether Speaker Pelosi was informed, at a briefing by intelligence officers on September 4, 2002 when she was the ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, that the CIA had used and was using enhanced interrogation techniques -- specifically waterboarding -- on captured al Qaeda terrorists.
From a Question of Memory to a Question of Criminality
Prior to her now infamous press conference last week, Speaker Pelosi insisted that the CIA had not told her in 2002 that waterboarding and other enhanced techniques were being used. At last week’s press conference she went beyond this position to assert that “the only mention of waterboarding at [the September 2002] briefing was that it was not being employed.”In contrast, Leon Panetta, the current CIA director, wrote a memo last Friday to CIA employees in which he stated that “our contemporaneous records from September 2002 indicate that CIA officers briefed truthfully on the interrogation of [Al Qaeda terrorist] Abu Zubaydah, describing ‘the enhanced techniques that had been employed.’”And so the question, prior to her rambling press conference, was one of memory: Did Speaker Pelosi remember correctly the briefing she received in 2002? If she had confined the controversy to her memory versus the CIA’s, Speaker Pelosi may have saved herself. She would be guilty of irresponsibility and incompetence perhaps, but that would basically be it. Not good, but not disqualifying.
Pelosi on the CIA: “They Mislead Us All The Time”
But Speaker Pelosi did not confine the question to the reliability of memory. Instead, she made the allegation last week that the CIA intentionally misled her -- misled Congress -- and not just once, but routinely. “They mislead us all the time,” she said.She charged that the CIA, deliberately and as a matter of policy, violated the law by lying to Congress.And with that allegation, Speaker Pelosi disqualified herself from the office she holds. Why Did Pelosi Escalate the Controversy into a Full Scale War With the CIA?And the question that remains is why? Why would Speaker Pelosi escalate the small skirmish she found herself in over the 2002 briefing into a full-scale war with the CIA?Perhaps it’s because if America knew that Speaker Pelosi consented, fully informed and without complaint, to waterboarding back in 2002, it would reveal the current liberal bloodlust over interrogations for what it is: The Left’s attempt to hunt down and purge its political opponents.Remember what America was like in September, 2002, less than a year after 9/11.America was terrified. As I said on ABC Radio last week, our entire defense, intelligence and justice establishment expected that there would be additional al Qaeda attacks, we just didn’t know where and we didn’t know when.
If Pelosi Consented to Waterboarding in 2002, the Bush Policy Is Vindicated
If Nancy Pelosi believed that waterboarding was justified in 2002 -- just like Porter Goss, President Bush, Vice President Cheney and CIA Director Tenet -- then a policy of selectively using enhanced interrogation techniques in carefully circumscribed ways in order to prevent future attacks -- in other words, the Bush Administration policy -- is vindicated. But rather than admit that President Bush, when faced with an array of difficult choices, made the hard choice that kept the nation safe, Nancy Pelosi has instead retreated into the cheap sanctity of ignorance. She didn’t know, so she claims. That’s why she didn’t do anything about it.But President Bush did know. It was his job to know, and he made the tough choices needed to save American lives.It was Nancy Pelosi’s job to know too. But to avoid culpability for the choices she supported, she’s now telling us she didn’t know. And she’s calling the intelligence officials who say otherwise liars and criminals. Shame on her.
Speaker Pelosi Has Made America Less Safe
Speaker Pelosi has damaged America’s safety. She’s made America less secure by sending a signal to the men and women defending our country that they can’t count on their leaders to defend them. And every day they spend worrying about being politically persecuted is a day we are made more vulnerable to a nuclear attack on one of our cities, a biological attack on one of our subways, or a bomb going off in one of our malls.America is losing ground because of Nancy Pelosi’s contempt for those who defend her. Democrats owe it to their country and our national security to replace Nancy Pelosi as Speaker of the House.
Your friend,
Newt Gingrinch
(from the HumanEvents.com Newsletter, received via email)
America can’t afford it. To test how much damage Speaker Pelosi has done to the defense of our nation, ask yourself this: If you were a young man or woman just starting out today, would you put on a uniform or become an intelligence officer to defend America, knowing that tomorrow a politician like Nancy Pelosi could decide you were a criminal? Would you?
This Isn’t About Politics.
It’s About National Security.
The controversy swirling around Speaker Pelosi isn’t political -- she may think it is, other liberal Democrats may think it is, and the media may want it to appear that way.But this isn’t about politics. It’s about national security. At issue is whether Speaker Pelosi was informed, at a briefing by intelligence officers on September 4, 2002 when she was the ranking Democrat on the House Intelligence Committee, that the CIA had used and was using enhanced interrogation techniques -- specifically waterboarding -- on captured al Qaeda terrorists.
From a Question of Memory to a Question of Criminality
Prior to her now infamous press conference last week, Speaker Pelosi insisted that the CIA had not told her in 2002 that waterboarding and other enhanced techniques were being used. At last week’s press conference she went beyond this position to assert that “the only mention of waterboarding at [the September 2002] briefing was that it was not being employed.”In contrast, Leon Panetta, the current CIA director, wrote a memo last Friday to CIA employees in which he stated that “our contemporaneous records from September 2002 indicate that CIA officers briefed truthfully on the interrogation of [Al Qaeda terrorist] Abu Zubaydah, describing ‘the enhanced techniques that had been employed.’”And so the question, prior to her rambling press conference, was one of memory: Did Speaker Pelosi remember correctly the briefing she received in 2002? If she had confined the controversy to her memory versus the CIA’s, Speaker Pelosi may have saved herself. She would be guilty of irresponsibility and incompetence perhaps, but that would basically be it. Not good, but not disqualifying.
Pelosi on the CIA: “They Mislead Us All The Time”
But Speaker Pelosi did not confine the question to the reliability of memory. Instead, she made the allegation last week that the CIA intentionally misled her -- misled Congress -- and not just once, but routinely. “They mislead us all the time,” she said.She charged that the CIA, deliberately and as a matter of policy, violated the law by lying to Congress.And with that allegation, Speaker Pelosi disqualified herself from the office she holds. Why Did Pelosi Escalate the Controversy into a Full Scale War With the CIA?And the question that remains is why? Why would Speaker Pelosi escalate the small skirmish she found herself in over the 2002 briefing into a full-scale war with the CIA?Perhaps it’s because if America knew that Speaker Pelosi consented, fully informed and without complaint, to waterboarding back in 2002, it would reveal the current liberal bloodlust over interrogations for what it is: The Left’s attempt to hunt down and purge its political opponents.Remember what America was like in September, 2002, less than a year after 9/11.America was terrified. As I said on ABC Radio last week, our entire defense, intelligence and justice establishment expected that there would be additional al Qaeda attacks, we just didn’t know where and we didn’t know when.
If Pelosi Consented to Waterboarding in 2002, the Bush Policy Is Vindicated
If Nancy Pelosi believed that waterboarding was justified in 2002 -- just like Porter Goss, President Bush, Vice President Cheney and CIA Director Tenet -- then a policy of selectively using enhanced interrogation techniques in carefully circumscribed ways in order to prevent future attacks -- in other words, the Bush Administration policy -- is vindicated. But rather than admit that President Bush, when faced with an array of difficult choices, made the hard choice that kept the nation safe, Nancy Pelosi has instead retreated into the cheap sanctity of ignorance. She didn’t know, so she claims. That’s why she didn’t do anything about it.But President Bush did know. It was his job to know, and he made the tough choices needed to save American lives.It was Nancy Pelosi’s job to know too. But to avoid culpability for the choices she supported, she’s now telling us she didn’t know. And she’s calling the intelligence officials who say otherwise liars and criminals. Shame on her.
Speaker Pelosi Has Made America Less Safe
Speaker Pelosi has damaged America’s safety. She’s made America less secure by sending a signal to the men and women defending our country that they can’t count on their leaders to defend them. And every day they spend worrying about being politically persecuted is a day we are made more vulnerable to a nuclear attack on one of our cities, a biological attack on one of our subways, or a bomb going off in one of our malls.America is losing ground because of Nancy Pelosi’s contempt for those who defend her. Democrats owe it to their country and our national security to replace Nancy Pelosi as Speaker of the House.
Your friend,
Newt Gingrinch
(from the HumanEvents.com Newsletter, received via email)
Monday, May 11, 2009
Lukewarm... when Mediocre is Good Enough
When I was younger, I never fully understood why God had such a problem with being lukewarm. Surely being at least a nominal Christian is better than someone who doesn't follow God at all? The image in Revelation 3 of God spitting us out of His mouth for being half-hearted always struck me as being rather harsh. As always, though, the problem was my imperfect understanding, not with what God said; and while my understanding will never be perfect, I can share with you my thoughts on being that most dangerous of all spiritual states: lukewarm.
Rev 3:15-21
15 I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot.
16 So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth.
17 Because you say, "I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing," and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked,
18 I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see.
19 Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous and repent.
20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.
21 He who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. (NASU)
This is the terrible reality of the American Church in this 21st Century... we are lukewarm. Far from reflecting Christ's love to a broken world that desperately needs it, we reflect the brokenness of the culture itself. We are endlessly divided; you can take any mainline denomination, and follow it's 'family tree' down to smaller and smaller subgroups, and at some point the issues that divide us are microscopic. The problem is that our ability to take offense at a brother in Christ is so hyper-developed that these minor issues become great schisms among us. But the cold, hard truth that we have to return to, should we read the Bible, is that we are all one Church. Jesus didn't lay the foundation for multiple bodies of Christ, but just one, of which every believer is a part. Some of us will be quite surprised at who we meet in heaven, I think... and who we don't.
Individually, we have replaced our calling to service with a desire to be entertained. In our society at large, this has translated as the shift in focus from our responsibilities to our rights. Instead of first asking "what must I do?" we ask "what's in it for me?" Speaking broadly, Christians approach the Bible in one of two basic ways:
1) We read the Scriptures to seek the Lord's highest and best calling for our lives. We read the Bible to learn the nature of God, and how best we can serve Him here on His earth in the time He gives us. Our question is "What can I do for God?" and the focus is on Him.
2) We read the Scriptures to fulfill our own desires, looking for the minimum we can do and still consider ourselves Christians. We read the Bible to learn how serving God can best also serve our interests. Our question then is "What can God do for me?" and the focus is on us.
I have to ask myself every day which path I am going to take. And the great paradox of Christianity, something impossible with men but possible with God, is this:
The less I focus on myself and the more I focus on Him, the more fulfilled I am. This is truly the foolishness of God shaming our human wisdom. But we can see the truth in our daily lives, if we are honest about it: when we focus on ourselves, the pleasure is fleeting. The vacation ends and we dread going back to the daily grind. The movie is over and we have to walk out of the theatre and face real life again. The money we make, no matter how much, is never enough. We might not have experienced this for ourselves (I always thought more money would be the nicer problem to have :)), but it holds true. Look at the wealthy who throw it away pursuing happiness. Hollywood, sports stars, the stories are there to read. Vacations, movies and money aren't bad in and of themselves. The question should be asked, though: where is our focus?
We must honor our commitment: to claim the title of 'Christian' means something. To claim Christianity and then live as the world dictates is hypocrisy of the worst sort, as God makes clear in His Word quoted above. The world, while sinful, is honest in its sin: they don't know any better, so how can better be expected of them? But you and I, those would claim to be Christians - our calling is higher. The expectations on us are greater, and well they should be. We know the Truth and we claim it has set us free. We must not make the Truth of God a lie in our daily lives. We need to approach the Bible humbly, seeking God's highest and best calling on our lives, and then defend the Truth boldly.
The surest cure for being lukewarm is to live each day deliberately for Him.
Rev 3:15-21
15 I know your deeds, that you are neither cold nor hot; I wish that you were cold or hot.
16 So because you are lukewarm, and neither hot nor cold, I will spit you out of My mouth.
17 Because you say, "I am rich, and have become wealthy, and have need of nothing," and you do not know that you are wretched and miserable and poor and blind and naked,
18 I advise you to buy from Me gold refined by fire so that you may become rich, and white garments so that you may clothe yourself, and that the shame of your nakedness will not be revealed; and eye salve to anoint your eyes so that you may see.
19 Those whom I love, I reprove and discipline; therefore be zealous and repent.
20 Behold, I stand at the door and knock; if anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and will dine with him, and he with Me.
21 He who overcomes, I will grant to him to sit down with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. (NASU)
This is the terrible reality of the American Church in this 21st Century... we are lukewarm. Far from reflecting Christ's love to a broken world that desperately needs it, we reflect the brokenness of the culture itself. We are endlessly divided; you can take any mainline denomination, and follow it's 'family tree' down to smaller and smaller subgroups, and at some point the issues that divide us are microscopic. The problem is that our ability to take offense at a brother in Christ is so hyper-developed that these minor issues become great schisms among us. But the cold, hard truth that we have to return to, should we read the Bible, is that we are all one Church. Jesus didn't lay the foundation for multiple bodies of Christ, but just one, of which every believer is a part. Some of us will be quite surprised at who we meet in heaven, I think... and who we don't.
Individually, we have replaced our calling to service with a desire to be entertained. In our society at large, this has translated as the shift in focus from our responsibilities to our rights. Instead of first asking "what must I do?" we ask "what's in it for me?" Speaking broadly, Christians approach the Bible in one of two basic ways:
1) We read the Scriptures to seek the Lord's highest and best calling for our lives. We read the Bible to learn the nature of God, and how best we can serve Him here on His earth in the time He gives us. Our question is "What can I do for God?" and the focus is on Him.
2) We read the Scriptures to fulfill our own desires, looking for the minimum we can do and still consider ourselves Christians. We read the Bible to learn how serving God can best also serve our interests. Our question then is "What can God do for me?" and the focus is on us.
I have to ask myself every day which path I am going to take. And the great paradox of Christianity, something impossible with men but possible with God, is this:
The less I focus on myself and the more I focus on Him, the more fulfilled I am. This is truly the foolishness of God shaming our human wisdom. But we can see the truth in our daily lives, if we are honest about it: when we focus on ourselves, the pleasure is fleeting. The vacation ends and we dread going back to the daily grind. The movie is over and we have to walk out of the theatre and face real life again. The money we make, no matter how much, is never enough. We might not have experienced this for ourselves (I always thought more money would be the nicer problem to have :)), but it holds true. Look at the wealthy who throw it away pursuing happiness. Hollywood, sports stars, the stories are there to read. Vacations, movies and money aren't bad in and of themselves. The question should be asked, though: where is our focus?
We must honor our commitment: to claim the title of 'Christian' means something. To claim Christianity and then live as the world dictates is hypocrisy of the worst sort, as God makes clear in His Word quoted above. The world, while sinful, is honest in its sin: they don't know any better, so how can better be expected of them? But you and I, those would claim to be Christians - our calling is higher. The expectations on us are greater, and well they should be. We know the Truth and we claim it has set us free. We must not make the Truth of God a lie in our daily lives. We need to approach the Bible humbly, seeking God's highest and best calling on our lives, and then defend the Truth boldly.
The surest cure for being lukewarm is to live each day deliberately for Him.
Thursday, May 7, 2009
Happy Islam Day! er...
Wow! Just... wow. Islam Day, brought to you by the Hawaii State Senate, and less than 2 weeks after 9-11 each year. Governor Lingle, this would be an excellent time to break out that veto.
Read the AP story here: http://www.onenewsnow.com/Politics/Default.aspx?id=520304
/sigh
Read the AP story here: http://www.onenewsnow.com/Politics/Default.aspx?id=520304
/sigh
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
Health Care Reform... as God Intended?
One of the next items on President Obama's agenda is health care reform. And looking at the insurance system in America, it is hard to argue that the system may well be broken and in need of repair.
But should the government be doing the fixing? What if common citizens, acting in their own best interests, could also serve the needs of the country and help with this mess? Should a Christian, in good conscience, be part of a health care system that uses his/her premiums for abortions, for surgeries and procedures to 'change genders' and the like? Let me propose to you an alternative to the current system.
First of all, some fundamental points of my argument. We, as American citizens, do not have a right to health care. We do not deserve medical treatment. If we have it, or can get it, that is wonderful; but medical care is not a basic human right. That kind of entitlement thinking is exactly what has caused our current economic mess. America is the land of opportunity, not the land of guaranteed favorable results. One of the problems with the HMO/PPO system currently in place is that the cost is rarely counted by the consumer or the doctor. "Is this test necessary?" becomes "The insurance pays for it, so order it up." The underlying principle here is that spending money is always easier when it's someone else's money. Yes, you are paying monthly premiums to the insurance company, but you are not paying directly for the services. Most people have no idea what some procedures cost, since the price is never disclosed.
Case in point: my son broke his elbow. He ended up at the hospital, where they put him under to set the broken bone. They did not do surgery, but they manipulated the bone back into place. He was in the hospital for less than 5 hours, pre-op to discharge. Total cost, between doctors, hospital and anaesthetic: over $25,000. Before the hospital, we were in urgent care (who took several x-rays which were charged separately, and gave us a $20 cast) for about 3 hours. Total cost there: $1200.
We negotiated the bills through the hospital, down to a total of about $7000. Then we paid cash, because other Christians around the country sent us checks ($200-$300 at a time) to cover the expense. My son also received cards and notes indicating people all over the country were praying for his recovery. No insurance bureaucracy, just a negotiation on my part and the bills were paid by other Christians who were also praying for us. Sound good to you? Read on.
Is there a "catch?" To an extent, yes. I would encourage you to research your options for yourself. Under programs like what I described above, normal "maintenance" care is not covered (although once you enter the world of paying cash, things are not as expensive as you might think). But here are 2 great programs you should look into, and then make a prayerful decision about using:
Medi-share (http://medi-share.org/) or
Samaritan Ministries (http://www.samaritanministries.org/) - this is one we use.
One of the traps we fall into in our thinking is that the way things are is the way they have always been, or that they are supposed to be. Health care in America is very broken. But is government the answer? Or could you join fellow believers in prayer and financial support of each other, while paying cash which reduces the need for layer upon layer of paperwork and management (which in turn, reduces costs)? Just a thought.
But should the government be doing the fixing? What if common citizens, acting in their own best interests, could also serve the needs of the country and help with this mess? Should a Christian, in good conscience, be part of a health care system that uses his/her premiums for abortions, for surgeries and procedures to 'change genders' and the like? Let me propose to you an alternative to the current system.
First of all, some fundamental points of my argument. We, as American citizens, do not have a right to health care. We do not deserve medical treatment. If we have it, or can get it, that is wonderful; but medical care is not a basic human right. That kind of entitlement thinking is exactly what has caused our current economic mess. America is the land of opportunity, not the land of guaranteed favorable results. One of the problems with the HMO/PPO system currently in place is that the cost is rarely counted by the consumer or the doctor. "Is this test necessary?" becomes "The insurance pays for it, so order it up." The underlying principle here is that spending money is always easier when it's someone else's money. Yes, you are paying monthly premiums to the insurance company, but you are not paying directly for the services. Most people have no idea what some procedures cost, since the price is never disclosed.
Case in point: my son broke his elbow. He ended up at the hospital, where they put him under to set the broken bone. They did not do surgery, but they manipulated the bone back into place. He was in the hospital for less than 5 hours, pre-op to discharge. Total cost, between doctors, hospital and anaesthetic: over $25,000. Before the hospital, we were in urgent care (who took several x-rays which were charged separately, and gave us a $20 cast) for about 3 hours. Total cost there: $1200.
We negotiated the bills through the hospital, down to a total of about $7000. Then we paid cash, because other Christians around the country sent us checks ($200-$300 at a time) to cover the expense. My son also received cards and notes indicating people all over the country were praying for his recovery. No insurance bureaucracy, just a negotiation on my part and the bills were paid by other Christians who were also praying for us. Sound good to you? Read on.
Is there a "catch?" To an extent, yes. I would encourage you to research your options for yourself. Under programs like what I described above, normal "maintenance" care is not covered (although once you enter the world of paying cash, things are not as expensive as you might think). But here are 2 great programs you should look into, and then make a prayerful decision about using:
Medi-share (http://medi-share.org/) or
Samaritan Ministries (http://www.samaritanministries.org/) - this is one we use.
One of the traps we fall into in our thinking is that the way things are is the way they have always been, or that they are supposed to be. Health care in America is very broken. But is government the answer? Or could you join fellow believers in prayer and financial support of each other, while paying cash which reduces the need for layer upon layer of paperwork and management (which in turn, reduces costs)? Just a thought.
Friday, May 1, 2009
Fear
I have taken a few days off from posting to reflect; I think too often bloggers are quick with the first thing that comes to mind, but that is very rarely the wisest thing to say.
I have been reflecting on fear, the nature of fear and how it can be used to manipulate. Consider just a couple quick examples of what I'm talking about:
Remember how the economy was going to collapse and the end was near if we didn't pass the Stimulus Bill right now? Words like 'dire problems,' 'catastrophe,' and 'worst ever' were being tossed around in every speech, urging us to act now before it was too late. This enormous bill was passed so quickly that those voting for or against it did not even have time to read it. And so far, only about 10% of the money has even been spent. No one is sure exactly on what (similar to the TARP money, of which billions is missing, yes, missing), but the economy hasn't stopped bleeding. I am sure that when it does that the Stimulus Bill will be announced as a success.
Two words: swine flu. For a couple weeks, we were all going to die, thousands of cases, hundreds of deaths, don't travel anywhere, wear a mask, avoid the sick lest you perish. Close the schools, cancel vacations, lock your doors... oh, wait, it's no worse that the regular flu. Per the WHO as of today, 26 people have died, the number of confirmed infected is just starting to approach 1000 in 20 countries, total. While I am not taking these deaths lightly, words like epidemic and pandemic have been flying from the media as fast as they could spit them out. Can we take precautions against illness? Absolutely. Do we need to panic? I hardly think so.
As Christians, we recognize that fear is of the flesh, and we have been called to live by the Spirit. I John 4:17-19 instructs us as to how to conquer fear: love. God's perfect love casts out fear. Frankly, I am saddened for those who insist on struggling through this life without Christ - there is so much to be terrified of. If you live under the belief that this life is the most important thing you'll ever have, you will never risk it for anything. Instead, all ideas and philosophies become equal. Nothing is worth dying for, and so nothing is worth living for... and you worry immensely about everything being fair. One of the greatest gifts God has given us is His perspective while on this earth. We can know what is important; we can know what our purpose is, and that this world is not our end - it's not even our home.
We must live our lives in His love, and with His perspective; the fear then dissipates, and we can sort the truth from the lies absent the manipulation.
I have been reflecting on fear, the nature of fear and how it can be used to manipulate. Consider just a couple quick examples of what I'm talking about:
Remember how the economy was going to collapse and the end was near if we didn't pass the Stimulus Bill right now? Words like 'dire problems,' 'catastrophe,' and 'worst ever' were being tossed around in every speech, urging us to act now before it was too late. This enormous bill was passed so quickly that those voting for or against it did not even have time to read it. And so far, only about 10% of the money has even been spent. No one is sure exactly on what (similar to the TARP money, of which billions is missing, yes, missing), but the economy hasn't stopped bleeding. I am sure that when it does that the Stimulus Bill will be announced as a success.
Two words: swine flu. For a couple weeks, we were all going to die, thousands of cases, hundreds of deaths, don't travel anywhere, wear a mask, avoid the sick lest you perish. Close the schools, cancel vacations, lock your doors... oh, wait, it's no worse that the regular flu. Per the WHO as of today, 26 people have died, the number of confirmed infected is just starting to approach 1000 in 20 countries, total. While I am not taking these deaths lightly, words like epidemic and pandemic have been flying from the media as fast as they could spit them out. Can we take precautions against illness? Absolutely. Do we need to panic? I hardly think so.
As Christians, we recognize that fear is of the flesh, and we have been called to live by the Spirit. I John 4:17-19 instructs us as to how to conquer fear: love. God's perfect love casts out fear. Frankly, I am saddened for those who insist on struggling through this life without Christ - there is so much to be terrified of. If you live under the belief that this life is the most important thing you'll ever have, you will never risk it for anything. Instead, all ideas and philosophies become equal. Nothing is worth dying for, and so nothing is worth living for... and you worry immensely about everything being fair. One of the greatest gifts God has given us is His perspective while on this earth. We can know what is important; we can know what our purpose is, and that this world is not our end - it's not even our home.
We must live our lives in His love, and with His perspective; the fear then dissipates, and we can sort the truth from the lies absent the manipulation.
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