you gotta be kiddin!

Saying "no" to Gambling in Illinois

2009-07-14T09:48:00.009-05:00

I am usually silent on this issue but with the Governor's newest budget proposals I feel that I have to speak out. The Chicago Tribune is reporting that the Governor is expanding the place of gambling and using it to balance the budget. Rather than cutting spending, which is what every responsible family and institution is doing these days, Illinois is going to expand spending on some things that should simply wait. Among them 5 million dollars to Northwestern University, a private institution!

So why shouldn't we gamble?

While no passage of scripture explicitly forbids gambling, we can with confidence claim that gambling is wrong. We needn't be squeamish about calling calling gambling wrong because we have the intent of God revealed to us in Scripture.
Rev. Hershael York writes "...With good reason, Christians are hesitant to label sins that the Bible doesn’t mention, yet we often have to distill principles from the Bible that we apply to contemporary situations. Pornography, computer hacking, or cheating on tests aren’t mentioned in the Bible either, yet believers who want to live like Jesus know intuitively and correctly that these behaviors run counter to the will of God. While biblical texts may not mention them explicitly, biblical principles speak to them directly."

So why is gambling wrong?

First Gambling predominantly affects the poor. Not that wealthy people don't gamble but that the industry is based upon taking peoples money in games of chance largely stacked against them. this disproportionally affects the poor who have much less of a margin for mistakes in handling their money. Gambling houses, poker machines are in it to win. They don't go broke because the odds are stacked in their favor. YOU are the only one that is gambling... they are not.

Secondly, the concept of gambling is contrary to the way God intended man's economy to function. The Scriptures are replete with references like (Genesis 1:28-30, Colosians 3.23, 1 Thessalonians 4.11,5.12-13, 2 Thessalonians 3.10) We are created to work, to labor, to invest ourselves. It is so woven into the NT that help and mercy were not shown to those poor who were able bodied but didn't work! When you paint my garage for money- it is a win-win situation. Services or goods for money. Gambling is based on a win lose situation. There are winners (they be few!) and losers (by the score!).

Further,gambling plays to the basest instincts of men and women. It is based upon the sin of covetousness (Ex 20.17). This greatly overlooked sin of the ten commandments is the heart of gambling.

Also,gambling ignores the biblical principle of stewardship. This principle teaches that we are to be held responsible for the way we spend our life, our energy, and our money.

Gambling is addictive behavior. Even if it is not for me and you there are others who are being enticed into gambling by the way it is marketed. We never hear of the thousands of people who have lost cars, homes, and reputations due to gambling. But we are regularly treated to the visual of a person receiving an oversize check- why is that? When we gamble we participate in the ruination of lives.

So now the new governor wants to increase the number of video poker machines by 45000. They will be in bars, truck stops and restaurants through out the state. Your kids will hear of all the winners and never see the cost of gambling. And our children will pay the price of this lifestyle of greed. They are being taught that there is an easy way that doesn't involve working, investing, etc. This is directly contrary to the scriptural admonitions to work hard and live productive and quiet lives. Too bad we can't teach the government to do what we all have to do... tighten our belts, spend less on frivolous things, and work hard to benefit the rest of society.

Until then Illinois will be full of losers and very few winners!

Recipe for Restoration

2009-07-09T23:19:00.001-05:00

To the Church in Ephesus

Rev 2.1“To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: ‘The words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand, who walks among the seven golden lampstands.

2“‘I know your works, your toil and your patient endurance, and how you cannot bear with those who are evil, but have tested those who call themselves apostles and are not, and found them to be false. 3I know you are enduring patiently and bearing up for my name’s sake, and you have not grown weary. 4But I have this against you, that you have abandoned the love you had at first. 5Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent, and do the works you did at first. If not, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place, unless you repent. 6Yet this you have: you hate the works of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate. 7He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To the one who conquers I will grant to eat of the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.’

The Ephesian church was on the verge of crisis. It had been faithful and patient; they had been diligent and hardworking. They were bearing up under the pressure of demonic attack and spiritual warfare as well as the worldly influences that were assaulting them. Often we find ourselves on the brink of crisis because of the stress of living in our day and age and standing faithful for Christ. Like the Ephesians, we need the recipe for restoration.

1. Remember (v5)- the lofty heights of the intimacy that you once expereinced with Christ. It wasn't a fluke- it was the result of a devoted heart chasing hard after God. Find your first love again... love the Lord with everything in you.

2. Repent- otherwise you will be commiting spiritual suicide. All disobedience and rebellion is spiritual suicide. The Lord never wants to remove the anointing (lampstand) from our lives... that is always the discipline of the Lord to save us from ourselves.

3. Return -to your first works. Do the things that you once did when your hearts were on fire. Reading the Word, Radical prayer times, faithful obedience, etc.

When we practice these things, we avoid the impending spiritual crisis' of burnout,frustrations, and bitternesses and find again the joy of living in the love and service of a God who madly loves us.

Being Nice

2009-07-04T15:44:00.002-05:00

Every year until now the family has gone on vacation. This year we rented a wonderful home on the beach in South Carolina (after visiting grandma for a day or so). The funny thing about vacations is that they often require a bunch of family members to be confined to small space, share meals for the week, and make decisions together. Here is my conclusion after being with the people that I love in cramped space for a week.

Close proximity demands being nice and being flexible.

It seems trite and perhaps, at first blush, a bit juvenile to say it. But being nice is important. Relationships are tough and hang on a thread many times- being nice is important to the survival of even the most tightly bonded relationships.

whether the relationships are family or working relationships there are demands placed upon the proximity. Though we are told to be nice since childhood we are loosing the art of being nice. Part of this is the disconnectedness of our generation. Electric media separates people. Our lack of being together places less demands on being nice. Politics, job relationships, family- etc they all show the lose of being nice. Below are some tips

1. Smile. Maybe just view everything positively.
2. Say hello. act friendly.
3. Ask people how they are doing. Ask some personal questions.
4. Be a good listener.
5. Be courteous.
6. Be positive.
7. Be humble.
8. Offer to help.
9.Be sincere.
10. Assume the best about others.

Remember the Golden Rule: Treat others the way you want to be treated. Even though some people may not be nice to you at first, they will the more they get to know you.

Practicing Happiness

2009-06-18T17:10:00.003-05:00

I am reading a book on the Lost Virtue of Happiness. So far the authors seem to indicate that we have looked outside of our spirituality to find happiness that is, of course, really pseudo-happiness. What struck me was their insistance that happiness must be practiced to be deeply felt.

Likening life to a golf swing they insist that the bad habits must be worked out by practicing the correct swing. Likewise, they would insist, that life must be lived out by practicing the good until the bad is a distant memory. Deep spiritual change they say is a result of living out the spiritual disciplines. One of those is happiness. By "acting happy and confident" ( my terms not theirs) ones attitude changes. By changing ones attitude the deep abiding change of character becomes lasting.

There are so many people in this world (and the church too) that are miserable. They are not content with contentment but need to have something to complain about at all times. They are cynical and harsh; judgmental and brutish; they are brooding and bitter; and they cannot be happy for those who are expereincing joy nor can they experience sorrow with others who sorrow. Since this is a command of Christ- I wonder if it wouldn't be important for us all to just simply practice being happy.

Here is my list of things that one might do to practice happiness.
1. Smile Stand in the mirror and smile. Notice how much more pleasant you look. Determine that you will smile at many people today. Note their reaction. Smiling at strangers often disarms them!
2. Choose the Positive i am not saying that you should ignore evil or dysfunction but don't live in the shadow of the negative faith crushing news media outlets! Even if the world is coming apart at the seams, you are probably doing pretty well. After all you ahve a computer on which to read this blog!
3. Sing Preferably not the blues. (smile) Praise God for things in your life that you know are working good,
4. Remember God is working on your behalf. Rom 8.28 And we know that £God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to His purpose

What things do you do to practice happiness? Do you feel that "faking happiness" is phony or practical?

Family Tradition

2009-06-07T21:34:00.006-05:00

The family tradition- at least for the men in my family has been to take a spring trip to the wilderness in Canada. We go to a Provincial park in Ontario called Quetico. No motors are allowed. We paddle canoes, sometimes as far as 50 or 60 miles, to move through out the wilderness. it is pristine, unblemished, we drink the water from the lakes and eat what we catch. It isn't exactly living off the land but it is close. We have seen moose and bear come to make a visit in our camp ground, eagles and much wild life. I think that there are a couple reasons that I like the trip is that it is a wonderful bonding trip with my boys. We learn the ways of the earth, act silly, tell stories, and drink hot black coffee around a fire until we can't stay up any longer. It is hard work, but in a way that I don't normally do. Carrying the canoes across arduous passages and boulder strewn creviced is a workout!
But the fresh fried Walleye filets every night are worth the effort.

My boys seem to like it. I think they will be bringing me when I cannot do it on my own. As a tradition it is excellent. We usually read books aloud, discuss the scriptures, or wonder aloud about our dreams and futures.

The moon and stars oversee the evenings, the eagles soar over us by day. The campfire and the camp cooking warms the soul. The friendships and the love last forever.

Losing out with God

2009-05-28T14:01:00.002-05:00

2 Peter 2.19- 22 NASB 19They promise them freedom, but they themselves are slaves£ of corruption. For whatever overcomes a person, to that he is enslaved. 20For if, after they have escaped the defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, they are again entangled in them and overcome, the last state has become worse for them than the first. 21For it would have been better for them never to have known the way of righteousness than after knowing it to turn back from the holy commandment delivered to them. 22What the true proverb says has happened to them: “The dog returns to its own vomit, and the sow, after washing herself, returns to wallow in the mire.”

Every so often I get this question, "Can a person who has had a genuine relationship with Jesus lose his salvation?"

The answer to this question is much more simple than the centuries of church bickering would lead one to conclude. In the passage above we see three truths that show us that every believer is in danger of falling from grace (Gal 5.4) if he or she doesn't take seriously the relationship with Christ that they committed to in their salvation prayer. Peter is writing to false teachers who (v20) escaped the "defilements of the world through the knowledge of our Savior". Clearly this indicates that these men had salvation experience because one cannot know Christ without salvation. These men became "entangled again and overcome" v(20). this shows that momentary sins do not cancel out our salvation- when we become entangled there is always hope of deliverance from such sin... as long as we are not overcome by that sin. Falling back into a sinful act grieves the Holy Spirit (Eph 4.30) but it doesn't cause us to lose salvation- The only way one can be saved is to trust in the work of Jesus on the cross for salvation, and as long as we continue to strive toward the mark (Phil 3.14), watch our life and doctrine closely (1 Tim 4.16), press on to live in holiness under the Lordship of Jesus (Heb 12.14)and trust in his work rather than our own for full deliverance we remain in Him. Certainly there can be no meaning to Christ's warning to his disciples to "remain in Him" (John 15.6)if there is no possibility of being fruitless branches gathered up and "cast into the fire to be burned". So while we are to strive for a sinless life, momentary failures do not discount us for salvation.

The second thing we see in the verse is that because they had been "overcome" by their sin again- they were worse off in the end than in the beginning. now if they were condemned to Hell as sinners in the beginning- what possible way could they be worse if they still had salvation? Obviously - they couldn't be worse off... unless they had lost out with God. Now they stand doubly condemned- where once they sinned in ignorance (Rom 2. 7-8), now they are sinning boldly in defiance of God's provision of Christ (Heb 10.26)and their condemnation is all that can await them.

The third and final point I see in this passage is that losing out with God is a disgusting act- like a dog returning to his vomit. Having three dogs I can say that this is a disgusting act that makes no sense. That which we have once rejected as no good for us, shouldn't be embraced as our own without the accompanying reaction of disgust. And when a person's faith is shipwrecked (2 Tim 2.15-17)it is a pitiful thing in the eyes of the Lord. His will for our lives is to be fruitful and to live out the abundance of his riches and grace in this life.

Angels and Demons

2009-05-26T17:09:00.003-05:00

If your hoping I am about to review the recent film- sorry to disappoint. I am, however, willing to offer a review of what the enemy of our souls is up to. And you won't need a producation company to follow me around with a camera.

Lying Liars LieThe enemy of our soul and his demonic spirits are working against your life right now by speaking lies. They are lying about you to you. They are lying about God to you. They are lying to you about what others are saying. And they are lying about the things God has asked you to do.

Looking to LootThe enemy is also seeking whom he may destroy and devour. He is not content to tempt you (silly Christian!) He wants to completely derail you from the things that God has assigned for you to do. Pacing outside the doors to your heart he looks for every opportunity.

Losing LoserThe enemy is a loser. I mean this in the most accurate scriptural fashion. If you are listening to his lies then you are a loser too. The Word tells us that he is spinning in some of the final swirls before the "final flush" into captivity (for 1000 years). Surely he knows it because he, as you and I, can sense that his time is short.

If you are not aware of his efforts you may fall prey...so pray. And the God of peace will soon crush Satan underneath your feet Rom 16.19

Fruitful

2009-05-26T16:37:00.003-05:00

I am surprised as I sit and meditate on my reading from 3 days ago. I find myself turning to the 15th chapter of John and chastise my self for ignoring the reading plan that I had devised for myself. yesterday , I felt that the Lord was telling me that this chapter is important for me right now. Today I reread the chapter again and again. "What is here, Lord?" I queried Him as I read the words on page. Like a teenager looking for car keys I scoured the pages and then I came upon it. It had been there all along... verse 5.

I guess I had been frustrated at the slow pace of ministry growth and having some questions about my own worth. "Am I washed up?... Am I supposed to feel this frustration?...etc?" i was looking for some great paradigmatic shift; some new secret formula; some hidden trick to ministering in Jesus' Name (centuries old and forgotten by the masses); but what I got was verse 5.

And verse 5 set me free. "If a man remains in me and I in him, he will bear much fruit."

Jesus has set the stage there for freedom and fruit. I need only to live in such a manner that I do not grieve his Holy Spirit so that He remains in me, and draw close and remain (abide, live) in Him (Jesus). And there will be fruit. Guaranteed

it is as simple as loving the Savior with all your heart mind and strength. I don't know how fruit happens- only that it does. I eat apples and never wonder why they hang out on the boughs of the tree so beautifully. Nope. Don't care why- God does it. He just makes sure that the tree that is tapped into the supply bears fruit.

Is it just me? Or does that set you free too?

National Day of Prayerlessness

2009-05-08T10:36:00.003-05:00

2 Chronicles 7:14 (NIV): "If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land."

Yesterday, we passed through the National Day of Prayer. Or, perhaps this year, it should be called the "National Day of Prayerlessness". It is fitting that the people of God call out to their creator and sustainer, even more so to do it in concert with one another on a selected day. National prayer goes back to 1775 when the Contintental Congress designated a time of prayer for the birthing of this "new nation". Abraham Lincoln called for a resolution to pray as a nation in 1863. Congress passed a law giving the President the right to select a national day of prayer under Truman.

And yet, these days it seems that there are fewer people praying. Even the people of God have lost their understanding of prayer. We have mastered the art of asking God for things and lost the art of surrendering ourselves in prayer! So perhaps it is fitting that President Obama failed to send even representation to any of the National Day of Prayer observances yesterday. In a nation that doesn't pray- it might be seen as a dangerous throwback to the archaic notion that our nation needs the help of God in the economic Tsunami that we are desperately trying to survive. (After all, we can print more money... right???!)

Those of us common folk see things a bit differently. Reports are that many are coming back to church, because of their difficulties and stresses. Perhaps there is a hue and cry in the hearts of the broken and beatdown that the Washington DC elite have insulated themselves from (are any of them facing forclosure???). Many people are starting to turn back to God- in spite of his bad press these last few years. But there probably won't be much in the way of relief from the economic hard times for a little while. The nation that ignores God so famously cannot turn to him once a year and expect blessing. The demand of God is to follow him with all our hearts.

And that is why the scripture says, "Blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord". So the Question needs to be asked...If a nation's God is money, power, and political influence... what is its reward?

Same Sex Marriage Considerations

2009-04-29T12:41:00.002-05:00

This article is thoughtful and not hateful while considering the volatile subject of SSM.Thought it was worth posting.

Marriage is of such importance that it is uniquely protected in the law and culture. It predates the law and the Constitution, and is an anthropological and sociological reality, not primarily a legal one. No civilization can survive without it, and those societies that allowed it to become irrelevant have faded into history.

The Meaning of Marriage

Marriage is the union of the two sexes, not just the union of two people. It is the union of two families, and the foundation for establishing kinship patterns and family names, passing on property and providing the optimal environment for raising children.

The term "marriage" refers specifically to the joining of two people of the opposite sex. When that is lost, "marriage" becomes meaningless. You can no more leave an entire sex out of marriage and call it "marriage" than you can leave chocolate out of a "chocolate brownie" recipe. It becomes something else.

Giving non-marital relationships the same status as marriage does not expand the definition of marriage; it destroys it. For example, if you declare that, because it has similar properties, wine should be labeled identically to grape juice, you have destroyed the definitions of both "wine" and "grape juice." The consumer would not know what he is getting.

Marriage, the Natural Family, and the Best Interests of Children

Marriage is the union of the only type of couple capable of natural reproduction of the human race-a man and a woman. Children need both mothers and fathers, and marriage is society's way of obtaining them.

But even childless marriages are a social anchor for children, who observe adults as role models. Besides, childless couples can be "surprised" by an unexpected pregnancy, and they can adopt, giving a child a mother-and-father-based family. Single parents can eventually marry. And marriage is a stabilizing force for all. Even when a couple is past the age of reproduction, the marital commitment usually keeps an older man from fathering a child with a younger woman outside wedlock.

Children learn crucial things about family life by observing our crucial relationships up close: interactions between men and women, husbands and wives, mothers and fathers, and parents to children of the same and opposite sexes. Human experience and a vast body of social science research show that children do best in married, mother-father households. It is wrong to create fatherless or motherless families by design. The effort is being driven by the desires of adults, not the needs of children.

The drive for homosexual "marriage" leads to destruction of the gold standard for custody and adoption. The question should be: "What is in the best interests of the child?" The answer is: "Place children, whenever possible, in a married, mom-and-dad household." As homosexual relationships gain status, marriage loses its place as the preferential adoption-family option.

Defining Marriage Is Not "Discrimination"

Marriage laws are not discriminatory. Marriage is open to all adults, subject to age and blood relation limitations. As with any acquired status, the applicant must meet minimal requirements, which in terms of marriage, means finding an opposite-sex spouse. Same-sex partners do not qualify. To put it another way, clerks will not issue dog licenses to cats, and it is not out of "bigotry" toward cats.

Comparing current laws limiting marriage to a man and a woman with the laws in some states that once limited inter-racial marriage is irrelevant and misleading. The very soul of marriage-the joining of the two sexes-was never at issue when the Supreme Court struck down laws against inter-racial marriage.

Requiring citizens to sanction or subsidize homosexual relationships violates the freedom of conscience of millions of Christians, Jews, Muslims and other people who believe marriage is the union of the two sexes. Civil marriage is a public act. Homosexuals are free to have a "union" ceremony with each other privately, but they are not free to demand that such a relationship be solemnized and subsidized under the law.

Homosexual activists say they need legal status so they can visit their partners in hospitals, etc. But hospitals leave visitation up to the patient except in very rare instances. This "issue" is a smokescreen to cover the fact that, using legal instruments such as power of attorney, drafting a will, etc., homosexuals can share property, designate heirs, dictate hospital visitors and give authority for medical decisions. What they should not obtain is identical recognition and support for a relationship that is not equally essential to society's survival.

The Legal and Social Fallout

If same-sex relationships acquire marital-type status in the law, several things will occur:

Businesses that decline to recognize non-marital relationships will increasingly be punished through loss of contracts and even legal action. This is already occurring in San Francisco and in Canada.

Other groups, such as bisexuals and polygamists, will demand the right to redefine marriage to suit their own proclivities. Once the standard of one-man, one-woman marriage is broken, there is no logical stopping point.

As society rewards homosexual behavior, more young people will be encouraged to experiment and more will be discouraged from overcoming homosexual desires.

Popular understanding of what marriage is and what it requires will undergo change. Homosexual relationships, which usually lack both permanence and fidelity, are unlikely to change to fit the traditional model of lifelong, faithful marriage. Instead, society's expectations of marriage will change in response to the homosexual model, thus leading to a further weakening of the institution of marriage. Some homosexual activists have acknowledged that they intend to use marriage mainly as a way to radically shift society's entire conception of sexual morality. (See appendix.)

Recent Polls

Americans are reassessing their stance toward homosexuality and homosexual activism. Major polls show a reversal of "acceptance" of homosexuality and homosexual so-called "marriage" and "civil unions."

A USA Today/CNN poll1 by Gallup in July showed a huge drop in support for homosexual acts between consenting adults. In May, 60% supported legal homosexual acts, with 35% opposed. By July, support had dropped to 48%, with opposition rising to 46%. Among African-Americans, support for legal homosexuality dropped from 58% in May to 36% in July. Among people who attend church almost every week, support dropped from 61% to 49%. Concurrently, 57% of all Americans opposed homosexual "civil unions," with only 40% supporting them.

An Associated Press poll2 in August revealed that support for civil unions had remained steady over the past three years at 41%, but that opposition to civil unions had risen from 46% to 53%. "Close to half of those surveyed said they would be less likely to support a presidential candidate who backs civil unions (44 %) or gay marriage (49%), while only around 10% said they would be more likely."

A Washington Post poll3 in August revealed that "a strong majority of the public disapproves of the Episcopal Church's decision to recognize the blessing of same-sex unions. … So broad and deep is this opposition that nearly half of all Americans who regularly attend worship services say they would leave their current church if their minister blessed gay couples-even if their denomination officially approved those ceremonies, the survey found."

Other findings: "Three out of four frequent churchgoers opposed the Episcopal convention's decision. … But even among those who acknowledged that they rarely or never attended church, nearly six in 10 objected to blessing same-sex couples." The poll also found support among Americans for civil unions falling to 37%.

Conclusion

"Marriage" for same-sex couples (or the counterfeit equivalent under pseudonyms such as "civil unions" or "domestic partnerships") is being promoted as an extension of tolerance, equality and civil rights. But all these devices are really wedges designed to overturn traditional sexual morality and to win official affirmation, celebration, subsidization and solemnization of behavior that is harmful to the people who engage in it and to society, and that is still viewed as morally wrong by a majority of the American public.

For the well-being of children and of society, we must not allow the creation of government-imposed counterfeit "marriage" by any name. Marriage is civilization's primary institution, and we tamper with it at our own peril.

-- Robert H. Knight is director of the Culture & Family Institute, an affiliate of Concerned Women for America. Mr. Knight was a draftsman of the federal Defense of Marriage Act, the current law that defines marriage as the union of one man and one woman for all federal purposes and allows states to resist demands to recognize counterfeit "marriage" licenses. Some references were drawn from "Questions and Answers: What's Wrong With Letting Same-Sex Couples 'Marry?'" by Peter Sprigg, Family Research Council, InFocus, Number 256, August 14, 2003.

Whose got time?

2009-04-23T09:33:00.003-05:00

I was perusing a pile of memorabilia, gifts given, cards written, notes of expression, and handwritten poems. "My God," I prayed aloud, " whose got time to do this anymore?" Right then it struck me... all these time saving devices... don't. they don't save time... they might help you double dip, answer email while at a ball game or multi task during a boring meeting. But save time... nah.

The time invested in a handwritten note is so precious. Somebody had to turn off the playoffs or American Idol and give themselves to writing to just you. A phone call is nice but it is over with a click- a handwritten note lasts forever. But , you say, whose got time to do that? Who can just take 10 minutes out to write a letter complete with scratch outs and underlined words for emphasis? Who can make that kind of time?

What if you began to hand write one letter or note every day? Wouldn't that be meaningful? You could write to your unborn grandchildren; or your sons and daughters; or your family who are far removed? You could skip all that tripe about the weather and jump right in to the meat- your feelings. About your missing them or how much you are looking forward to visiting with them on the holiday. You could talk about lessons that you have learned... the hard way. You could testify to the goodness of God and encourage others to seek Him.

Your gift of writing would develop - encouraging, exhorting, and strengthening those around you. You might be known for your prose and wittiness rather than your grilled cheese sandwiches... And people would learn to savor those thoughts shared that must have taken so long to write.

But whose got time...

Lies on Torture

2009-04-21T21:22:00.003-05:00

I have a bone to pick with Pres Obama. He has released carefully cleansed and politically charge memos (revealing only half of the story) to create a diversion from his ineffective and ill designed bail-out plan. He has completely botched his first hundred days and has proved to be a friend of nearly every foriegn thug and despot. But he has failed to be a friend to americans (unborn, born, and yet to be born!) His red herring is to throw out the controversial topic of torture to divert attention from his inept administrative blunders and foriegn lack of policy.

So let's talk about torture. Some high sounding folks will make sweeping statements and judgments about torture. So you will hear some say that torture doesn't work. That simply isn't true. I can find out anything about you given enough time and the impliments of "persuasion". Why, I bet if I waterboarded Timothy Geithner, I could find out if he paid his taxes on April 15th! And if you can't get a person to tell you what he knows then you don't know how to do it! Come on people use your heads... you would sing like a canary if you were being tortured. Admit it. We all would.

It turns out that certain horrible plans were revealed during these "water boarding" events that may have saved many American lives- even here in the US. Do I feel badly that my country used strong and aggressive means to extract that information and save those lives? No. Does this mean I am saying that torture is okay? I guess I can say that I am convinced that sometimes aggressive questioning is called for. Remember that there are doctors overseeing these techniques, and professionals whose job it is to get accurate information from these detainees. These aren't bad teenagers with a neighbors cat! So where does harsh interrogation leave off and torture begin???

Is there excess in these practices, sure! But if you could save thousands of Americans lives by extracting information and you refused to do so, could you call that moral? I couldn't.

Prayer for Spring by Robert Frost

2009-04-17T15:21:00.002-05:00

Oh, give us pleasure in the flowers to-day;
And give us not to think so far away
As the uncertain harvest; keep us here
All simply in the springing of the year.

Oh, give us pleasure in the orchard white,
Like nothing else by day, like ghosts by night;
And make us happy in the happy bees,
The swarm dilating round the perfect trees.

And make us happy in the darting bird
That suddenly above the bees is heard,
The meteor that thrusts in with needle bill,
And off a blossom in mid air stands still.

For this is love and nothing else is love,
The which it is reserved for God above
To sanctify to what far ends He will,
But which it only needs that we fulfil.

The Wonderful Cross- Part Three

2009-04-08T13:33:00.002-05:00

Jesus was abandoned by all. He knew it was coming, he prophesied it to his disciples but the pain of the separation was great. When I was young, maybe 3 or 4 we had a store in our neighborhood called Topps. It was like a Walmart- a huge discount store. I remember playing hide and seek in the clothing racks. One time I hid pretty good inside a circular dress rack. And when I jumped out, my mom was gone. Vanished. There is a feeling in the pit of your stomach that happens when fear quickly grips you. It is often overwhelming and quickly brought me to tears. So here I am this toddler crying in the store and wandering around looking for my mom (who was surely looking for me!) I felt as if my childish game of hiding had lead me to be abandoned.

Jesus wasn't hiding. He lived his life before God and man circumspectly. yet , there on the cross, he experienced the abandonment of all his friends, his followers, his family, and even his God. Why did he experience this? So that you and I would not feel the pain of eternal rejection and abandonment. Like that stupid little toddler, our games have gotten us lost, and we are in danger of abandonment. But he knows us; and his love for us is so overwhelming that he is willing to send his Son to taste abandonment for us. What a wonderful cross!

The Wonderful Cross- Part Two

2009-04-03T10:38:00.004-05:00

One of the great pains of the cross is the shame associated with it. Often we think of Christ as he is depicted in artists or drama's or even in films like the Passion of the Christ. In all modern depictions there has been a cleansing of the drama what has lessened the shame that Christ felt on that Cross.

Christ felt shame for a number of reasons, not the least of which was the fact that he was naked. No loin clothe, no modesty rag, naked. Biblical Scholar Morna Hooker writes " Crucifixion was a barbaric mode of execution. Widely practised in the ancient world, it was adopted by the Romans for slaves and for the worst kind of criminal; they also came to employ it in delaint with rebels against the Roman role. Since the victime was stripeed naked and fixed immobile to suffer the torments of pain, thirst, insects and aunts, sometimes for days , it was particularly humiliating, as well as a prolonged and agonizing form of death." For a Jew to be subjected to the public indecency of public nudity was in itself a humiliation.

Christ was further shamed because of the companions crucified on either side of him- each one a thief. They were a vivid reminder to Christ (as was the excruciating pain) that the world rejected him as a liar, criminal, and blasphemer! This shame in itself was compounded by the fact that Jesus viewed his life as a ransom (Mk 10:45) and his teaching as truth from God. The holy man is rejected as unholy; the teacher as a liar; the sinless one as a criminal. In effect he was rejected, and marked out as cursed by God. To be hung on a tree was, as Paul recognized in Galatians, a rejection and an acknowledgment of not just mankinds rejection but of God's rejection of Christ.

Now we know that the shame that Christ bore was the shame for our sins since he had none of his own. His humiliation was for our exaltation. And his bearing of sin was for our forgivness. What a wonderful savior

The Wonderful Cross- Part One

2009-04-03T10:24:00.003-05:00

Jesus had been arrested, illegally charged in an unlawful meeting of the Sanhedrin, spit upon and beaten when he was brought to Pilate to be crucified. Crucifixion usually began with a scourging or flogging of the victim’s back. The Romans used a whip called a flagrum, which consisted of small pieces of bone, pottery, and metal attached to a number of leather strands. The number of blows given to Jesus is not recorded; however, it was limited in the Old Testament law to 40. During the scourging, the skin was ripped from the back (often to the bone), exposing a bloody mass of tissue and bone. Extreme blood loss occurred, often causing death, or at least unconsciousness. In addition to the flogging, Jesus faced severe beating and torment by the Roman soldiers, including the plucking of His beard and the piercing of His scalp down to the skull with a crown of thorns (Judean thorns are 3 inches in length).

After the flogging, the victim was often forced to carry his own crossbar, or patibulum, to the execution site. The patibulum could easily weigh 100 pounds. In the case of Jesus, the record shows that He may have carried His patibulum the distance of over two football fields up hill and through the rough streets of Jerusalem. In a weak and tormented state, it’s no wonder the record establishes that Jesus needed help. Once the victim arrived at the execution site, the patibulum was put on the ground and the victim was forced to lie upon it. Spikes about 7 inches long and 3/8 of an inch in diameter were driven into the wrists. The spikes would hit the area of the median nerve, causing shocks of pain up the arms to the shoulders and neck. The Patibulum would then be turned over and the spike tips bent to prevent working loose. Already standing at the crucifixion site would be the 9-foot-tall post, called a stipes. The patibulum was then lifted on to the stipes, and the feet were crossed and nailed to the stipes. At this point, there was tremendous strain put on the wrists, arms and shoulders, resulting in a dislocation of the shoulder and elbow joints. The position of the nailed body held the victim’s rib cage in a fixed position, which made it extremely difficult to exhale, and impossible to take a full breath. Having suffered from the scourging, the beatings and the walk with the patibulum, Jesus was described as extremely weak and dehydrated. He was probably losing significant amounts of blood. As time passed, the loss of blood and lack of oxygen would cause severe cramps, spasmodic contractions and probably unconsciousness.

Ultimately, the mechanism of death in crucifixion was suffocation. To breathe, the victim was forced to push up on his feet to allow for inflation of the lungs. As the body weakened and pain in the feet and legs became unbearable, the victim was forced to trade breathing for pain and exhaustion. Eventually, the victim would succumb in this way, becoming utterly exhausted or lapsing into unconsciousness so that he could no longer lift his body off the stipes and inflate his lungs. Due to the shallow breathing, the victim’s lungs would begin to collapse in areas, probably causing hypoxia. Due to the loss of blood from the scourging, the victim probably formed a respiratory acidosis, resulting in an increased strain on the heart, which beats faster to compensate. Fluid would also build up in the lungs. Under the stress of hypoxia and acidosis, the heart would eventually fail. There are several different theories on the actual cause of death for Jesus. One theory is that there was a filling of the pericardium with fluid, which put a fatal strain on the ability of His heart to pump blood. Another theory states that Jesus died of cardiac rupture- a literal broken heart. Regardless of the actual medical cause of final death, the historical record is very clear -- Jesus suffered numerous hours of horrible and sustained torture on the cross of Calvary for me and you.

Buyers Remorse

2009-03-30T23:24:00.003-05:00

I have to admit that as I am watching the news tonight and seeing the debacle of the American people and their newly chosen President I am wondering if there is "buyers remorse" from some of the evangelical christians who voted for him?

The thing that gets me is that he is determined to increase the spending of federal money on abortion when the economy is obviously in sewer? That tax payer (you and I) funding of abortions has gone from $0 to 500 million dollars overnight. And this to the most rabid activists of abortion as population control.

I just wonder...

Seven Deadly Sins of my Mouth

2009-03-25T12:09:00.002-05:00

Most of my problems involve my mouth. I am contemplating the sins of my own mouth- trust me there are more than I'd care to admit. Here is a list of Biblical sins that come out of the pie whole!

Lying and Deceit- Some people think everyone does it and so it is okay. Really? Jesus didn't see the need to inflate the truth, make himself more spiritual than he is, or flat out lie about something. To the extent that I practice deception I am not like Jesus!

Gossip and Slander- this is speaking about others when it is not my business. Whether it is true or not, if it is not your business, then you shouldn't speak of anothers business to another. You are always free to confront another believer about godless behavior (though we seldom do!)

Boasting- This is of course motivated by our pride... need I say more?

Profanity, swearing, cursing- though they are different from each other they pretty much take all that is holy and drag it through the mud. Profanity makes common the holy; swearing is an effort to insure the truthfulness of your words by calling on holy things, and cursing is calling upon a holy god to "damn" things.

Complaining- yeah we don't "do everything without complaining and murmurring" do we?
Ouch!

Contentious words- you know looking for a fight or a controversy. Causing discension or confusion in other believers minds, maybe even causing division amongst brothers.

Destructive words- speaking things that don't build up, edify and make strong.

Eph 4.29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of yoru mouths... and do not grieve the Holy Spirit!

What is Giving?

2009-03-24T22:53:00.002-05:00

Luke 21.1And He looked up and saw the rich putting their gifts into the treasury. 2And He saw a poor widow putting in two small copper coins. 3And He said, “Truly I say to you, this poor widow put in more than all of them; 4for they all out of their surplus put into the offering; but she out of her poverty put in all that she had to live on.”

Seems from the passage above that Jesus respects the kind of giving that is sacrificial and springs from a deep trust inspite of circumstances. The Widow put in more than all of the them because she gave out of her need rather than surplus. The irony is that most of us look at what we have and adjust our giving accordingly. The example that Jesus draws attnetion to is one of a giving out of devotion. How can we really evaluate our giving? Can we determine in our hearts to give to the Lord what is his (Lev 27) and live out of the rest? That is both sacrifical and exemplary.

And evidently, the kind of giving that impresses the Lord.

Deception at Core of Obama Plans

2009-03-24T22:39:00.005-05:00

This article is worth a read - even if you don't buy the lies of the current administration. By the way, as I am writing this the President has just confirmed his desire to cancel write offs of charitable contributions and mortgage interest!

By Charles Krauthammer

WASHINGTON -- Forget the pork. Forget the waste. Forget the 8,570 earmarks in a bill supported by a president who poses as the scourge of earmarks. Forget the "$2 trillion dollars in savings" that "we have already identified," $1.6 trillion of which President Obama's budget director later admits is the "savings" of not continuing the surge in Iraq until 2019 -- 11 years after George Bush ended it, and eight years after even Bush would have had us out of Iraq completely.

Forget all of this. This is run-of-the-mill budget trickery. True, Obama's tricks come festooned with strings of zeros tacked onto the end. But that's a matter of scale, not principle.

All presidents do that. But few undertake the kind of brazen deception at the heart of Obama's radically transformative economic plan, a rhetorical sleight of hand so smoothly offered that few noticed.

The logic of Obama's address to Congress went like this:

"Our economy did not fall into decline overnight," he averred. Indeed, it all began before the housing crisis. What did we do wrong? We are paying for past sins in three principal areas: energy, health care, and education -- importing too much oil and not finding new sources of energy (as in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge and the Outer Continental Shelf?), not reforming health care, and tolerating too many bad schools.

The "day of reckoning" has now arrived. And because "it is only by understanding how we arrived at this moment that we'll be able to lift ourselves out of this predicament," Obama has come to redeem us with his far-seeing program of universal, heavily nationalized health care; a cap-and-trade tax on energy; and a major federalization of education with universal access to college as the goal.

Amazing. As an explanation of our current economic difficulties, this is total fantasy. As a cure for rapidly growing joblessness, a massive destruction of wealth, a deepening worldwide recession, this is perhaps the greatest non sequitur ever foisted upon the American people.

At the very center of our economic near-depression is a credit bubble, a housing collapse and a systemic failure of the entire banking system. One can come up with a host of causes: Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac pushed by Washington (and greed) into improvident loans, corrupted bond-ratings agencies, insufficient regulation of new and exotic debt instruments, the easy money policy of Alan Greenspan's Fed, irresponsible bankers pushing (and then unloading in packaged loan instruments) highly dubious mortgages, greedy house-flippers, deceitful homebuyers.

The list is long. But the list of causes of the collapse of the financial system does not include the absence of universal health care, let alone of computerized medical records. Nor the absence of an industry-killing cap-and-trade carbon levy. Nor the lack of college graduates. Indeed, one could perversely make the case that, if anything, the proliferation of overeducated, Gucci-wearing, smart-a** MBAs inventing ever more sophisticated and opaque mathematical models and debt instruments helped get us into this credit catastrophe in the first place.

And yet with our financial house on fire, Obama makes clear both in his speech and his budget that the essence of his presidency will be the transformation of health care, education and energy. Four months after winning the election, six weeks after his swearing in, Obama has yet to unveil a plan to deal with the banking crisis.

What's going on? "You never want a serious crisis to go to waste," said Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel. "This crisis provides the opportunity for us to do things that you could not do before."

Things. Now we know what they are. The markets' recent precipitous decline is a reaction not just to the absence of any plausible bank rescue plan, but also to the suspicion that Obama sees the continuing financial crisis as usefully creating the psychological conditions -- the sense of crisis bordering on fear-itself panic -- for enacting his "Big Bang" agenda to federalize and/or socialize health care, education and energy, the commanding heights of post-industrial society.

Clever politics, but intellectually dishonest to the core. Health, education and energy -- worthy and weighty as they may be -- are not the cause of our financial collapse. And they are not the cure. The fraudulent claim that they are both cause and cure is the rhetorical device by which an ambitious president intends to enact the most radical agenda of social transformation seen in our lifetime.

letters@charleskrauthammer.com

The Vision of the Dolls

2009-03-16T15:55:00.000-05:00

I was praying the today and in my time of prayer the Lord showed me a group of plastic dolls. One by one the heads of those dolls kept popping off and fell to the floor. They rolled away, or at least some did, some stayed at the feet of those mannequin-like dolls in the vision. I watched in horror as the heads fell to the ground. Then the Lord showed me that these were leaders in ministries. One after another falling and leaving a headless mannequin behind. My heart was so concerned for the headless bodies, anxious and trembling. When I questioned the Lord he told me that they were not real bodies but fake.
The time of Christian leaders falling is, apparently, not over. Many are about to fall and this will cause a great time of anxiety and shaking in the church. Some leaders will remain around and others will fade away into lives of sin but I didn’t see any rising back to leadership. The gatherings of people around those leaders were plastic and false. They were not in reality the true Body of the Lord but false representations of the genuine body of the Lord. They were without transparency and without earnest prayer; they were without accountability and without a genuine human touch; they smacked of corporate and marketed productions rather than spirit moved fellowships. They were stiff and rigid and could not bend or truly accomplish what God had intended.

The call is to the church to stop reimagining itself but rather re-identify itself with the Savior. The shaking that is coming, the meltdown that is coming should provoke the church toward the ideal of godliness and truth- toward the Lord’s pure body. We must repent of the byproducts of our loosely held faith and embrace with all our hearts the will of the Lord. We should not be shaken as the Lord continues his cleansing work in the body of Christ.

God forgive us for lifeless gatherings; forgive us for shallow commitment to your ways, and forgive our willful determination to do things our ways. Restore the spirit of prayer in the church- take away the violent spirit that is assailing the church- undermining the witness of your saints. Restore a love for the world and replace the love of self that has so consumed the church. Forgive our sin, Restore our hearts, Regather your church around your Word. In Jesus name. Amen.

Federally funded Stem Cell Research

2009-03-09T21:52:00.002-05:00

President Obama said that he didn't want to hold science hostage to ideology. The problem with this is that it smacks of political payback (ie., ideological decision making!). I am sure that the President has read a great deal on this topic. I am sure that he studied and will do as well in guiding our use of embryos as has has our economy (scary). In reality it seems irresponsible to offer to pay for this research that is obviously so expensive that private sector corporations have not considered it an economic pay off. Doesn't it seem that the Obama administration is inventing ways to spend money that no one has? Would the US be better served if we waited to spend these non existent funds?

In all the hoopla about the decision. It is easy to hear distortions about stem cell research. They have been around for a while now. I have included an article written in September 2004 to inform you about the Bush decision and the specifics of the scientific hopes for the research. Certainly there is room for reasonable persons to disagree on the policy regarding the stem cell research. But there is no room for debate, as far as I am concerned, that President Obama's economic policy is bankrupting the nation.

When I am trying to survive crisis, I tighten my belt and spend money on the "have-to's" and not the "want-to's". That is what a person does in a slow economy. Clearly, this kind of politically calculated decision is the kind the President was trying to condemn. In doing so, he condemns himself.

The truth about stem cell research
By Mary L. Davenport, M.D.
Scientists know that claims of imminent cures of disease using embryonic stem cells are junk science, whereas progress in adult stem cell research has been nothing short of spectacular. It is unfortunate that the mainstream media have exaggerated the prospects for embryonic stem cell research while ignoring the real results achieved with adult stem cells.

Ron Reagan presented a pathetic spectacle at the Democratic convention when he imagined a scenario in the next decade in which a doctor could 'take a few skin cells from your arm,' place the nucleus in a donor egg, zap it with electrical stimulation, culture the cells, and presto 'you're cured.' . But no reputable researcher believes that embryonic stem cells show any promise in the near future of being clinically useful in humans, and success with animals has been minimal. In fact, recent discoveries that some adult stem cells can be turned into any cell type in the body may make discussion of embryonic stem cell therapies moot.

The fact that adult stem cells have already produced remarkable cures, whereas embryonic stem cells have failed in this regard, should not come as a great surprise to anyone with a background in high school biology. When an embryo is created by the union of the sperm and egg, the cells begin to divide, creating embryonic stem cells from which all future tissues and organs are derived. Within days, the embryonic cells differentiate into three cell layers — ectoderm, mesoderm and endoderm. Cells in these layers continue to differentiate into tissues and organs. As the embryo matures into a fetus, child, and adult, some undifferentiated cells of the three types remain in various tissues such as bone marrow, fat, skin and olfactory tissue.

These adult stem cells are multipotent: they have the ability to turn into a variety of types of tissues. Successful stem cell therapies cause the DNA in the adult stem cells to further differentiate into more specific types of cells. There is no point in getting the adult stem cell to turn into a less differentiated type of cell, or using the more primitive embryonic stem cells. This would be going backward, in the opposite direction of providing a clinically useful therapy.

Difficulties abound with proposed embryonic stem cell therapies. The growth of the more primitive embryonic stem cells is more difficult to control and leads to tumor formation. Additionally, the use of embryonic tissue foreign to the patient can potentially lead to problems with immune rejection of tissue, a problem not encountered in using a patient's own adult stem cells. And as Ron Reagan stated, embryonic stem cell therapy is dependent on cloning a 'donor egg,' which is actually a fertilized egg, or early embryo. There would be tremendous logistical difficulty in securing sufficient 'donor eggs' to create useful embryonic stem cell therapies for all the proposed recipients. Most embryos in fertility clinics are slated for use in fertility therapies, and only a tiny percentage are donated for research. In contrast, new sources of adult stem cells are continuously being discovered.

Despite the widespread impression created by some politicians and pundits, the controversial decision by President Bush in August, 2001 did not ban embryonic stem cell research. It merely limited government funding in the US to the 72 embryonic stem cell lines already in existence. Embryos can be destroyed in the process of extracting stem cells. The limitation was put on government sponsoring of research that involved further destruction of embryos. Unregulated embryonic stem cell research continues outside the US, and inside the US with private funding.

Significant scientific problems with embryonic cell research have become more apparent in the past three years, and no useful therapies in humans have emerged. An experiment showed that the use of embryonic cells in mice with Parkinson's led to brain tumors in 20% of the subjects. In another experiment in diabetic mice, embryonic stem cells were successfully converted to insulin—producing cells in the pancreas, but all the subjects died. This contrasts with the full cure of diabetes in mice using transplanted adult stem cells.

Advances in adult stem cell research since Bush's 2001 decision have been nothing short of awesome. At a recent Senate hearing on cutting—edge adult stem cell research, two young women, victims of horrific automobile accidents causing spinal cord paralysis, actually walked into the hearing room. They described their dramatic improvement after spinal cord paralysis. They were treated in Portugal by transplantation of their own stem cells, taken from olfactory tissue that has the ability to form new nerve cells.

In Germany, a cancer victim whose jaw had been removed re—grew bone tissue utilizing adult stem—cells from his own bone marrow, and was able to eat a bratwurst sandwich for the first time in nine years. Patients with Parkinson's disease have reported significant improvement, some even regaining their sense of taste and smell, with injections of GDNF, an adult stem cell related therapy. A recent PBS special recounted other significant human cures with adult stem cells, and a Texas surgeon liposuctioned himself to promote excess fat as a viable source of adult stem cells. Do No Harm, the web site of a coalition of American scientists for ethical research, is replete with dozens more successful examples of cures from adult stem cell research.

Senator Jon Corzine has donated $100,000 to help pass Proposition 71 in California, which would force Californians to borrow $3 billion over 10 years to help biotech companies to conduct mass experiments on embryonic stem cells. This dwarfs the few million dollars that the infamous New Jersey Governor James McGreevy prodded its legislature to throw to biotech companies for embryonic stem cell research and cloning .

However, the private sector has refused to invest in this type of research because it is unlikely to provide useful products any time soon. Jim Kelly, a Colorado stem—cell activist who is a paraplegic, agrees with private venture capitalists and says, 'We have to use our limited resources efficiently. Money spent on embryonic stem cell research and human cloning is money that cannot be spent on (investigating) adult stem cells.'

In addition to practical arguments against embryonic stem cell research, there are serious moral and ethical arguments. The destruction of embryos in research is the destruction of human life, a line that should never be crossed by researchers. A recent poll has shown that Americans strongly prefer funding research that does not destroy human embryos.

Yet another reason has emerged why there is incessant pressure for embryonic stem cell research, despite mounting evidence of its inferiority to adult stem cell research, in testimony before a Senate Committee on July 14, 2004. After discussing the cases of the two paralyzed young women who were now walking after adult stem cell treatment in Portugal, Dr.Jean Peduzzi—Nelson pointed out that an embryonic stem cell product could become patentable and potentially yield enormous profits. But an adult stem cell therapy, in which the patient's own cells were used, could not produce a patentable procedure or product according to current laws.

It would be tragic if political considerations and greed diverted funding away from fruitful lines of research utilizing adult stem cells, which show promise in producing the cures sought by so many desperate patients.

Ask the Pastor- Jehovah's Witnesses

2009-03-06T10:04:00.003-06:00

The question came in asking "Do you lose your salvation if you go from Reborn Christian to J. Witness?"

The answer is YES. JW's are a cult because they deny the deity of Christ. Since it is necessary for Jesus to become fully human in order to become an effective sinless intercessor for those who put their faith in his death as a sufficient payment for sin, for one to embrace that error on the fundamental truth of Christianity then there is no salvation (Heb 6.4-6; 10.26) there.

JW's are in error in their view of the trinity. They have falsely prophesied 5 or 6 times the end of the world. They misuse scripture And practice cult like control over their adherents. Their view of salvation is one of works.

Why We Don't Celebrate Lent

2009-02-25T11:31:00.003-06:00

Someone asked me today about lenten celebrations and Ash Wednesay.

We certainly see the benefit of fasting whether that be meat of Fridays or total fasts as efforts to draw close to Jesus. Often when people set apart certain days and seasons as “special or holy”- other days are profaned. For instance, yesterday was Fat Tuesday- the last day of Mardi Gras. The reason for the extreme partying and over indulging and debauchery is because Ash Wednesday begins Lent. The idea that is promoted is Lent is holy but we can sin with impunity on the other days. That of course is unbiblical, there are no days that it is 'okay to sin'. So we see little benefit in setting apart the 40 days before the crucifixion as special as a church. I do, however, spend time drawing close to the Lord with prayer and fasting during these days preceeding good Friday as an individual. And I think there is benefit in thinking on the cross all year round.

Certainly there is nothing wrong with a pepper and egg sandwich on Fridays (smile!). But the decision should be individual's. As the calendar moves toward Good Friday it is good to speak with your children about the last week of Jesus’ life. I think that the Roman Catholic Church devised the tradition of giving up something for Lent as a way of identifying with the sufferings of Christ. While at first blush that sounds noble, the scriptural understanding of identifying with Christ has more to do with living a life of righteousness than giving up Bubble Gum, or ice Cream. For instance, Paul writes in Philippians 3.10 "I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead." Clearly, Paul's concern is not dietary in that he emphasizes our becomeing totally submissive to God the father (the way Jesus was at the cross). That kind of spiritual growth is year round and not limited to lent.

Dietary surrenders and the like can lead to a dangerous pseudo-spirituality (see Col 2.20-3.11)We might even think that we have "done something good" when in reality we have found a 'religious' way around being obedient to God and becoming more like Jesus. (Eph 5.1-2)

So we don’t have a special service for Ash Wednesday.

Daley's Failed Gun Policy

2009-02-24T08:36:00.007-06:00

Only a ideological moron like Chicago's Mayor Daley would fail to recognize the abject failure of his gun policy. It has been illegal to have any kind of gun in Chicago for an awfully long time. Those of us without ideological blinders on can't help but notice the gun violence in our streets everyday. The Mayor, protected by his contingent of armed security, can stand before microphones and spout his rhetorical objections against the idea of guns on the streets of the city. Unfortunately, illegal guns fill the streets. The only ones without protection in our homes are the law abiding citizens who are left to defend themselves with kitchen knives when the gang bangers and thieves come to call on us.

Perhaps it is time for Americans to arm themselves if they feel it necesary and let the criminals guess whether they will take a .40 caliber round in their chest for breaking into this home or not. But as late as yesterday Daley continued his insanity of desiring to clamp down on the gun laws (could they be any stricter?- you can't even have a bb gun shipped to a Chicago address!). Blaming America's "love affair with guns"- he was unable to see that, as the violence continues, his policy of blaming the gun rather than the shooter has back fired on the people of Chicago.

So maybe the City of Chicago will wise up and dump this guy for a new mayor who will go after the real problem... criminals.