Danny's So-Called Life

A Time To Kill...

2009-06-06T09:47:00.000-07:00

Recently, a late-term abortion doctor in Kansas was killed inside his church by a fervent anti-abortionist who felt justified for his actions because he felt he was saving thousands of lives in the process, and because it was justice for the thousands who died before. The murder brought up an issue in my mind that I'd like to talk about, and that is...when is it okay to kill someone? And I'm not just talking about my constitutional right to kill, but a moral right.

There are some instances where killing someone is justified. For example, you'd better believe if someone came into my house with a gun, I have a right to kill him because I'm protecting my family and property. That is a constitutional right, but I think protecting yourself is a God-given right as well.

What about in war? God told Israel to go to war on numerous occasions; in fact, He even told them to wipe out whole civilizations because otherwise Israel would have problems with them in the future, problems with falling into idolatry and the like. I think protecting your country during a war is justified.

Things start to get tricky when you take it further. Was it murder when the American colonists fought against the British? Their rebellion was considered illegal, and Americans were seen as terrorists. Is it okay to kill for ideological reasons, if what you believe in is freedom from persecution, and free religious expression? What about killing for lower taxes? Were the early Americans justified in starting a rebellion and killing soldiers over taxes?

What about assassinating Hitler? If the Allies or traitors in the German government succeeded in killing him, would that have been justified? Would it be considered murder?

The man who killed the abortion doctor felt he was justified in taking up arms against another man because he was protecting innocent lives. Was he? Killing one doctor won't change anything. But what if all abortion doctors were killed, one by one? Would that stop abortion? Not totally. However, what doctor would want to continue in that line of work knowing he was next on the list. It probably would work. So again...is it justified?

I wrote this because I don't have an answer. I feel it is murder. But at the same time, when is enough, enough? When does the government cross the line and make it justified...not just justified but makes it our duty...to take up arms? Would Jesus take up arms? The only example we have is in the Bible, and He was a pacifist while on Earth. But that was His mission at the time. The Bible also says that when He returns He will destroy His enemies.

Maybe that's the key. It's not our job as Christians to take up arms and start a violent revolution. It's our job to act as Jesus did. Love our enemies. Pray for those who persecute us. And then when Jesus returns, He can go all Rambo on them.

The Church bungles another one...

2009-05-12T10:34:00.000-07:00

Take a look at the photos. I think most people who have paid attention to the news the last couple weeks know who she is. Carrie Prejean, Miss California, and apparently the new spokesperson for Christians. The controversy began when she answered a politically charged question during a beauty pageant, and answered it honestly. She was asked if she believed gay marriage should be legalized, she said no. She believes marriage is between a man and a woman. It is believed that this answer cost her the pageant, but at the same time catapulted her to the national news. Very few people knew who she was before the pageant, but now everyone has heard the story.

Now, I think she should be commended for speaking honestly, even though societal pressures surely tempted her to say the politically correct answer. And for that, I applaud her. But now, by no fault of her own, I wish she'd just go away. Why? Because the idiotic Christian community has latched on to her as some type of new spokesperson for the Christian faith. Because she has boldly stated she is a Christian, churches have had her come share her testimony, she was a guest announcer at the Dove Awards (to which she received a standing ovation before she could even speak) and has been on many Christian radio programs. And then, as could be expected, a picture came out where she was seen topless, hiding her breasts, and playfully looking back at the camera in a playful manner. We've all seen pictures that are much more revealing; in fact, every five minutes on TV we see worse. However, that doesn't excuse the fact that this is a professed Christian, who is boldly sharing her faith, and saying things like "I am a model. As a model we have to pose for lingerie or swimwear pictures. I am also a Christian." Okay, I don't dispute you're a Christian, Carrie. What I dispute is whether or not you are qualified to be a "model" of Christianity. Posing in lingerie does not exactly fit in with being modest, which is important for a Christian. Posing in pictures like that will NEVER lead to anyone wanting to know more about Jesus, (although there will probably be guys who say that they are interested in Jesus just to get that lingerie off of you, so be warned).

I don't blame Carrie through any of this. She's using this attention to become famous, but I don't doubt her sincerity when she says she's a Christian. But the Church community needs to stop putting her up on a pedestal, and quit using her as a tool to fight back against gay marriage. Because the gay community and the other non-believers are laughing at Christians right now, and our actions have solidified their belief that we are all fakes, all hypocrites, and all hate-mongers. They see a girl who professes her faith, and they know what Christianity is all about. They know that posing in lingerie and parading ones body for everyone to look at goes against the teachings of the Bible, and they aren't fooled. It's sad, but most non-believers know more about how a Christian should act then a Christian does.

The really sad thing is though, is if a picture comes out that really embarrasses Carrie, the Church as a whole will discard her and judge her and then claim that she was never a role model, when in reality, the Church used her, and made her a role model, not just for young girls, but for all of us. She's not a role model, she's a model. And she's a Christian. And someday, I hope she truly becomes a Christian role model. But until that day, the Church needs to support her, but not make her out to be the voice of the modern Christian.

Let's not blame the devil, let's blame God. (He's God, He can take it)

2009-05-06T14:18:00.001-07:00

All my life, in many of the churches I attended, (and I've been to many a church, let me tell you), I've heard it said countless times, "Man, the Devil is just attacking me!" or "The Devil keeps trying to tear apart my family!" or "Man, I must be doing something right because the Devil sure doesn't like me right now!" There are many variations of this, but basically, when something goes wrong it's gotta be the devil's fault, and when something goes right, it's gotta be God's doing.

I guess the reason people think this is because in Job the story goes that the devil afflicted Job with all kinds of nasty sores and killed off his family (except for his nagging wife, which is a form of torture...so I hear...I don't have one but I bet it's rough. Love you Heather!) And later in the Bible it says that the devil is "walking around like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour".

Okay, so let's just take two verses in the Bible and make a whole doctrine out of it. Oh wait, that's already been done many, MANY times. Here's some of the problems with thinking that the devil is responsible for all your life's woes. First, the story of Job actually states that God brought Job up in the conversation to the devil and basically said, "Hey, here's my servant Job. He's great and holy and I love him!" So the devil says, "Well that's just because he's been handed everything and lives a cushy life. If you took it away from him, he'd curse you!" So God said, "Ok, let's see. Go ahead and take everything from him, and then we'll see." So really, it was God who made the decision to test Job, it was God who INSTIGATED Job's suffering. Now, don't get me wrong. If there really was a person named Job (which I think is highly unlikely given the style of writing in the book, it's so obviously a Jewish fable meant to instruct about God's nature, but I digress), then God knew what Job was going to do, whether or not he would crack under the pressure or stand tall. In the end, Job doubted God but never cursed Him, and God was able to show Himself in a powerful way and restore Job's joy.

My biggest problem with blaming the devil for everything, besides the theological fallacies, is that many people tend to blame the devil instead of themselves for some of the things in their lives. Sometimes, the bad things that happen to you are a result of their own bad choices. If you get lung cancer, maybe it's not the devil's fault, maybe it's the fact you've been smoking for 30 years. If you keep returning to the same old sins in your life, maybe it's because you refuse to remove those things in your life that cause you to return to those sins. Are you constantly sick, or is your family always getting sick? Maybe it's because you keep passing it around to each other, or maybe because you have the same genes in you, you're all susceptible to the same germs and diseases! People get sick; that's just life! Not the devil!

Now I do believe that things come into our lives as a test, but one thing the book of Job teaches is that God is the one that allows it. Even if the devil actually is doing something to you, it's GOD that gives him consent. By blaming the devil you're giving him much more credit than he deserves and much more power than he really has. Instead of blaming the devil, blame God! Not in an angry way, although I think God can take it, but blame Him in a respectful way by bowing before Him and acknowledging that everything happens for a reason, and nothing is beyond His control, and NOTHING comes into our lives that we cannot overcome. That's in the Bible, too.

And please, before you blame God or the devil, make sure it's not your own fault first. There's not much worse than blaming God for something you did to yourself.

The Death and Rebirth of Genesis: the 21st century Church's Opportunity to Get It Right

2009-04-13T13:14:00.000-07:00

A few centuries ago, men sailed away from ports in Portugal and France and looked to the west in awe; many didn't know what lay beyond the western horizon. Was there something there? Did the world just end a few miles away? The earth was flat, like a table, and this view dominated science until explorers proved the belief wrong by sailing to new worlds and even sailing around the world. The Church also held this view, and basically forbade anyone to believe otherwise, or they were labeled a heretic. Apparently, the Bible taught that the Earth was flat, too. Suddenly, the Church was forced to change its views, and they grudgingly accepted that the Earth was indeed round. However, they had been wrong, not the Bible. The Bible does not say the Earth is flat.
The Church was later presented with another earth-shattering proposition: that the sun was the center of the solar system, not the Earth. Up to this point, the Earth was the center of the entire universe, in the mind of "Christians". The Church rejected this idea, and since they controlled the government, even imprisoned the astronomer who suggested this, burning his materials and trying to erase this idea from the face of the earth. But the truth is the truth, and will always come out, and today it's common knowledge that the sun is the center of the solar system, and the Earth, while special and rare, is just another planet that circles the sun. The Church was wrong once again, and lost a ton of credibility by being so dogmatic about the issue.
Since that time, a new issue has risen, dating back over 100 years, a scientific theory that seems to contradict the Bible, yet has an overwhelming amount of evidence in its favor. This theory is, of course, evolution. When the theory was first made popular by Darwin, the Church's immediate reaction was condemnation. The Earth can only be 10,000 years old, at the most, right? The world was created in 6 literal days, while God rested on the 7th...right? Evolution! Hogwash! Dinosaurs! Science Fiction!
Then, dinosaur bones were found. Then, a new way of dating old artifacts, carbon dating, was discovered and suddenly, the Earth seemed to be way more than 10,000 years old. It was more like millions, or billions, of years old.
But, the Church rejected this theory, and even today, a Christian who finds this theory acceptable is labeled a heretic, destined for hell with the devil and his other followers. I was once on this side of the issue, where you accepted the story of a literal 7 days, and if you didn't then you were spitting in the face of the Bible.
But then some things made me think...some things about the Genesis story just don't make sense. And then, while getting my Masters in Religion, while studying the book of Genesis, I came to realize that the Biblical story of Creation is just that...a story. And while there is a lot of Truth to be gathered from the story, I don't believe it can possibly be a retelling of actual events. And here's why...
First, God rested on the 7th day. Really? God rested? God is not a man, that he gets tired. Or is this just a reference to Him ceasing His work? Possibly, but why then God tell mankind later to observe the 7th day as a Sabbath to rest, just as He did? Okay, this isn't the strongest argument, but it's the first step.
Second, in the story of creation, it was understood by the Jewish people of that day, (who by the way were the intended recipients of this story, not the 21st century Church) that this was a story of RE-creation. God formed the Earth, organizing it from it's chaotic state. If it was in a chaotic state, then it was already here! So, I began to see that Genesis 1:1 is a statement of truth, that God created everything, then verse two begins the story of our beginning, where God stepped into His creation and began to reform our world into a habitable place, probably somewhere around 10,000 years ago or so. What was the world like before this? Well, most scientists believe that the last ice age ended around that time, or perhaps the earth was still devastated from a large asteroid impact. Only God knows. So then, the story of Genesis is a story of how God took something from Chaos and turned it into the beautiful world we live in now...but the 7 day story is not about the initial creation.
Third, God gave this story to a group of people, the ancient Israelites, who had absolutely no knowledge of science. What they did understand was the belief systems of the people around them, and most of them believed that a god named El defeated the Chaos god who had come from the depths of the water and made the world as they knew it. Sound familiar? My belief is that God gave Israel a story that they would understand, knowing that they were not privy to the scientific knowledge that we have today, while at the same time imparting Truth to them by telling them that it was Yahweh, the God of their fathers, who was responsible for the Earth's existence, not some other false god. If God was writing Genesis today, it would probably be different, because we understand more about science.
Now, the last reason that I'm going to talk about, is the clincher for me. So far, no one has ever explained to me how I can possibly be wrong. The other morning I walked outside on my way to work, and looked up in the sky and saw quite a few stars. Now, as someone who took an astronomy class in college, I have a basic understanding of what stars are...and how far away they are. I also know that when I see a star, they are millions of light years away. What does that mean? If a star is a million light years away, then it takes a million years for the light from that star to reach Earth. Meaning, when I look at a star that is a million light years away, I'm seeing the light that traveled for a million years. That star may not even exist anymore, but because it takes so long for its light to reach me, I'm able to see it. Now, there are infinite amounts of stars in the universe. Some are relatively close, just over 4 light years away. Most are so far away that we'll probably never see them. But if you go outside on a clear night, you can see thousands of stars. And most of them are millions of light years away. So, the fact that we see them means the universe must be millions upon millions of years old, probably billions. So why then does the Church refuse to accept that the Earth could also be millions of years old?
There are two reasons I can think of. First, Christians can't understand why God, who is all-powerful, would take millions of years to create the world when He could just do it with the snap of His fingers. And that is the first mistake Christians make, trying to make God think like us. Do you really think God is bound by time, something He created? Do you really think God created the world and then imprisoned Himself in it? Of course not! A million years go by and it's like the blink of an eye to Him. Is it really so hard to believe that God can guide the evolutionary process, and that this guiding can still be called "creation"? When we create artwork, do we snap our fingers and make it appear on the canvas? No, we plan it out, work on it for days or weeks, slowly creating something that starts off chaotic and ends up beautiful. We've got to stop making God think like us. If He wanted to take a billion years to create the world, that's His prerogative. He probably enjoyed that time, and again, it's not a long time for Him, since He's not bound by time anyway.
The other thing that Christians argue is that the Bible says that Death came into the world when sin entered the world, which happened with Adam. On the surface this seems like a great argument. If the world had been here for millions of years, then death had been around for quite a while. Plants died, bugs died, whole species were born and then died off. If the story of Adam, whether he's a real person or not, occurred about 10,000 years ago, then Death came into the world long before sin did. However, what is the Death that the Bible is talking about? Physical death, or spiritual death? I believe that God breathed a soul into man when it was time for our story to begin. At that time, man became a self-aware creature, and was given the unique opportunity to live forever because of God's promise to bring us into his Presence after this life. Wait a minute, doesn't that mean that Adam had to die then anyway, before he could go to Heaven? Or was Adam going to get older, and then just go straight to Heaven like Enoch and Elijah? I don't think so. I think Death has always been a part of life, and that it was not something to be feared while we were in right standing with God. It was only when sin came into the world that Death became a curse. Because it was SPIRITUAL death that came upon Adam and the rest of mankind. Now, instead of the promise of Heaven, man had an eternal death to look forward to. This would then satisfy the argument. Spiritual death is what is being referred to. Death, the end of the cycle of life, has always been part of God's plan, but spiritual death is what He wanted to save us from. It is, after all, the reason He died on the cross...to save us from our spiritual death and to assure us of a future with Him for eternity.
I think it's time the Church began to accept the inevitable. Evolution is true. But even evolution has an order to it. God designed this world to evolve from chaos into something so beautiful. It fits with who God is; God is always taking things that are broken and without order and turning them into things of beauty. I think it's time the Church stopped labeling people like myself "heretics" for recognizing the obvious. If the Church would embrace evolution as God's design, how many people would find it much easier to believe? I'm not sure of the number; however, I know that the Church would immediately gain back some of its relevance and credibility.

Hello?

2009-04-07T12:23:00.000-07:00

Anyone still read this? If so, comment, so I'll know you do, so I'll know whether or not to keep doing this.

A Good Story

2009-02-08T08:48:00.000-08:00

I love a good story. The more intricate and delicately woven, the better. I especially love stories that have a "good vs. evil" theme, or the ones that take a group of ordinary people and place them in a situation where they learn there is something greater than them at work in their lives. Lost is my favorite TV show, probably my all-time favorite. There are two views of what's happening on the show, Jack Shephard's and John Locke's. One is a man of science, the other a man of faith. I imagine when it's all done, what they will all learn is that there is a mixture of both. But no matter what happens on the show, the writers have done a great job of bringing a mix of romance, drama, suspense, science fiction and philosophy and mixing them all together into a great epic story.
I'm not the only one who loves this show. Millions upon millions of viewers around the world flock to ABC on Wednesday nights to see what happens next, and if they're like me, they watch it again on their DVR to see if they missed anything, whether obvious or subtle. Some even go to the Lost Theories websites to see if other people have figured out what's going on. The point is, millions of people are captivated by a story. And the story is fiction. It never happened, and never will.
There is a story that contains all of these things, the romance, drama, suspense, philosophy, and even some science (non)fiction. It's a pretty good story, too, probably even better than Lost. And the funny thing is, we've all heard it before, so much that we know the stories by heart. Tell me if this sounds familiar:
A man and woman find themselves in a garden all by themselves, except for the magnificent Creator who placed them there. Every day he comes to visit and commune with them. Life is great; they don't know any pain and don't want for anything. But there is danger lurking nearby. The Creator warns them not to eat from a specific tree in the garden; if they do, they will surely die. Soon we find that the Creator has an Enemy, in the form a snake. We will find in later "episodes" that this Enemy is actually a fallen angel, once the most beautiful creature in all of heaven. The Snake convinces Eve to eat the fruit, and in turn she convinces Adam that if they eat it, they will be like the Creator. And then, their beautiful world comes crashing down around them.
Yes, we've all heard it before. At first it seems the Creator abandoned them, tossing them out into an unforgiving world, but later we see that not only is the Creator still the "good guy", He actually is fighting to redeem them, to bring them back to the type of life they once had. The rest of the story is filled with tragedy, romance and betrayal. Along the way, we learn more about the Creator, and we all gasped in shock when the Creator became the Created, living among us and finally offering Himself up as a sacrifice in our place, so that we don't have to pay the penalty of death that was given to us back in the first "episode". We think maybe the story ends there, until the Creator comes back to life and returns to heaven with a promise that we will one day be with Him. But it doesn't end there. Just like any good story, there's much more to come. After the Creator returns to heaven, the real war begins: the war over souls. The Creator wants to bring as many people to heaven as he can, while the Snake fights to send as many to eternal torment as possible. And now there are two sides: the believers and the "others", the non-believers. If this were a TV show, we'd be in about Season 5, with only one more season remaining. Season 6 is coming soon, but we pretty much know what's going to happen. It will be filled with great tragedy and heartbreak as many people are killed during the great battle over souls. But there is a Hollywood ending to this story...the script was already written a long time ago. Even while many people are lost forever, the Creator defeats the Snake once and for all, and the Creator makes all things new, and mankind lives as Adam and Eve once did oh so long ago in the Garden.
You know, we live in an age where people want to be told a good story. TV shows like Lost are popular because they engage people, and they captivate their audiences. How many people today have never heard the story of the Bible presented as a story? Oh sure, they hear preachers talk about sin, and about Heaven and Hell, and about tithing. But research shows today that even church people don't know much about the Bible, let alone those who never walk through the doors. My point of this whole post is that we need to change the way the Bible is presented. We are in the 21st century now and our generation has no clue why they should be "saved". They are a generation that understands story-telling from watching TV or reading novels. They are a generation that would understand the Bible, and their need for a Savior, if it were presented to them as a story, where they can relate to it on a personal level, instead of being "preached at". The greatest reason churches are failing today is the way the gospel is presented. Many churches are stuck in the past and refuse to change their "way of worship" because of either tradition or dogmatic stupidity. My pastor said something great today, to the effect of: "Worship how you want to at home, or in the car, or wherever: come to church to serve." Everyone has their preference on how church should be run, from the music style down to the color of the carpet. But it's just that: preference. Is your church bringing in loads of teenagers or young couples because you have a rocking band, but you can't stand it? Suck it up, listen to the hymns at home, and realize church isn't about you, it's about saving as many people from hell as possible, at any cost, using any method short of sin.
And please, once there are people in the seats...TELL A GOOD STORY! Isn't that what the Bible is? A book of stories? God knew what He was doing when He presented Himself to us in a collection of stories. Why aren't we turning around and presenting God in the same manner?

2008 In Review

2008-12-31T11:19:00.000-08:00

What can I say about 2008? Frankly, it sucked. And I don't just mean a little. This has been one of the most stressful years ever. In short, the financial crisis that hit the rest of the world trickled down to our family. We decided to move from our house to an apartment to make life a lot cheaper, but only after I fought the idea for 7 months.

Another thing that added to bad year was when Heather was hired by a company in May. She was given a start date, signed all her tax forms and new hire paperwork, and put in her 2 week notice at her current job. A few days before she was to start, she called to find out about the arrangements for her first day and they told her she no longer had the job because the person who quit was no longer quitting. They didn't bother to tell her this earlier, and so she didn't have that job, and also didn't have her current job any longer because she'd already quit and they'd hired someone else. Within a few weeks she was working part time there again, and a month later she had her full time job back, but that month of no work hurt us. More than anything, we didn't understand why that happened, why God would let Heather get a job that she'd been wanting for so long only to snatch it away. To make things worse, the lady called Heather a few weeks ago, right before Christmas, and offered her a job again. Heather called her back but never reached her and the lady has never called again. It's like there's some big cosmic prank being played or something.

To top it off, the Giants stunk again, the Warriors won a bunch of games, more than the year before, but didn't make the playoffs, and the Broncos blew a huge lead in their division and finished 2008 in shame while missing the playoffs. Yeah, this year stunk.

The only good things that happened were Chloe had a good birthday, me Chloe and Rachel had a good trip to California, I moved to day shift and Rachel had a good birthday trip to the Zoo Well, one other thing: I did finish my book that I'd been working on forever. I'm still waiting on it to be published.

So I'm counting on 2009 being a much better year. It kinda has to be; it doesn't get much worse than 2008.

Happy Anniversary Heather!

2008-12-21T14:08:00.000-08:00

Happy B'Day Rachel

2008-12-17T10:31:00.000-08:00

Rachel's 4th birthday was Sunday, and the day before we went to the Birmingham Zoo. We didn't know what to expect because it was somewhat cold, and we thought the animals may be inactive. To our surprise, the zookeepers have given the animals their "presents" that morning, large wrapped boxes full of their favorite treats. Most were pretty active, but our favorite was the white tiger and the orange tiger. The white tiger came up to the window we were watching him from and seemed to play with us. He's the largest tiger I've ever seen, twice the size of the other tiger there. But he licked the window, followed us around, stared at us from just inches away! It was awesome! The orange tiger had two presents up in a tree and his lazy butt wouldn't jump up there to get them. He just kept circling the tree and stretching himself up, but would never "go for it". We got some good pictures though and Rachel had a blast, as did the rest of us.

Stuff

2008-12-01T16:24:00.000-08:00

After 3 1/2 years of working nights, I'm finally going back to days starting Dec. 10. I'll miss the people from night shift, but I won't miss having to stay up every night. Or sleeping most of my first off day away. I'm pretty sure this is permanent, but crazy things happen up there all the time, so I'll keep my fingers crossed.

I don't think I posted it on here, but we moved from our house to an apartment. Kind of a downgrade in some ways, but really in some ways it's an upgrade. The only real downside is no backyard. The apartment isn't much smaller and our bedroom is twice the size of the one at the house, and we have a walk-in closet here. And it's $200 a month cheaper plus cheaper utilities. That helps.

Because of the move, Chloe changed schools. I'm pretty sure she upgraded at the new school, and today was her first day. She cried when Heather dropped her off, because she missed her old friends, even though she already knew like 6 people in the new school from day care. After school, she said she had a good day, so I'm sure she'll adjust just fine.

Thanksgiving was rough this year; Chloe woke up after midnight vomiting and felt bad all day. I didn't go anywhere; Heather just went and got some to-go plates from her grandmother's house, but it wasn't the same. On the other hand, I did devour an entire pumpkin pie, so the day wasn't a total loss.

Christmas shopping is just about done. It never ceases to amaze me how fast time goes by the older you get. Please don't tell me that's a light I see at the end of this tunnel! But you know what I mean, the days, weeks and months turn into a blur and next thing you know it's the new year again.

Now, before Christmas, we get to celebrate Rachel's 4th birthday. We are hoping to get to the Birmingham Zoo, which is what she picked out. Hopefully, it won't be too cold or we'll have to come up with something else.

It "snowed" today, by which I mean some snowflakes fell to the ground and then melted immediately. Mostly, it was just very cold. Even though it's the 1st of December, it's a little early this year. Usually it's January or February before we see snow showers. I love it, though. I wish it would snow buckets and stay cold for 6 months. Anything above 70 is too warm for me.

Well, I think that's enough updating for now. Go Broncos!

Congrats to Tim Lincecum! Go Giants!

2008-11-12T16:25:00.001-08:00

He looks 12, but he's the Cy Young Award winner for best pitcher in the National League! Go Giants!

All the Christians in the house, take a deep breath...and exhale...and repeat

2008-11-06T18:45:00.000-08:00

Thank God the election is over. It really was like sitting through a bad movie where you already knew the ending. The only good thing about it was the speech Obama gave. I think that speech was classy, eloquent, and spoke to every American. And then a bunch of Christians who were pissed that their candidate didn't win decided to spoil the moment and turn it into some end-time fulfillment of prophecy. Apparently, the Antichrist has ascended his throne. The Beast reigns! Any day now, Russia will attack Israel, the rapture will take place, the Mark of the Beast (Obama) will be placed on every man, a treaty will be made with Israel and later broken, and Obama will be assassinated, and then resurrected, then he'll make war against all things holy until his armies converge on Armageddon and Christ returns, with all of us riding white horses and Jesus kicks his butt and then reigns for a thousand years....whew that was a long sentence.

Now, having said all that, it's time for a little confession. From time to time I entertain the thought that perhaps, just maybe, Obama really is the Antichrist. Although I believe that prophecy was fulfilled partially in Antiochus Ephiphanes (he did everything Daniel said he would do down to the last detail, before Jesus walked the earth), I also believe in a future fulfillment. There will be a man who sets himself up to be God and who will have power for a time over most of the earth. (That's another thing, most people think the Antichrist gains control over the entire earth, but if you read Revelation you see that he makes war against other countries...obviously not everyone likes or agrees with handing power over to him). Anyway, my point is, I have wondered if perhaps this could be it. And for all I know, he really is the Antichrist. I can see how it could all play out. But just because it's possible DOESN'T MEAN HE IS!

Christians seem to forget that world leaders have risen and fallen throughout the last century and many of them were suspected of being the Beast. I remember being in a small Christian school in the early '90s and talking about how Gorbachav's weird birthmark on his head may be the mark of the beast! Or how by using Jewish numerology it was determined that the Prince of Wales fulfilled that role. I think if you tried hard enough you could probably show proof that Mickey Mouse is the Antichrist, Donald Duck is the False Prophet, and Goofy would fit in there somewhere...the UNHOLY TRINITY!

Look, I don't know whether Obama is the Antichrist or not. I personally don't see how an American president could ever fill that role. He just doesn't have enough power; he's held in check by all of Congress and the Supreme Court...and he has to answer to the people as well. He just doesn't have dictatorial powers. But who knows, maybe he's so persuasive that he will "persuade" Congress to let him have absolute power, just like Senator Palpatine in Star Wars. (Yes, everything comes back to Star Wars) But until we are asked to accept some mark, or see his fatal head wound as he walks around having come back from the dead, let us remember that Bible prophecy is very difficult to understand at times, and we may be so far off that God is shaking His head in disgust at us right now. Either way, we need to remember that the Bible wasn't given to us so we could spend all our time trying to figure out some obscure prophecy...it was given to us so we could apply it to our lives, and go out and preach the gospel. Whether Obama is the Antichrist or not doesn't change our mission.

And I'll bet 100 years from now, some other politician will rise to power and everyone will gasp, point and finger their rosaries and the world will have forgotten all about Obama.

Or, a year from now I'll be headed over to the Bankhead National Forest to hide out from the Obama Terminators whose mission it is to kill all Christians and others who are considered intolerant. Who knows?

Fall in the South

2008-11-05T18:50:00.000-08:00

Rachel's Halloween Dance Class

2008-10-30T18:16:00.000-07:00

Update on book

2008-10-26T21:12:00.000-07:00

For the few of you who read this, you may remember a few months ago I was in the process of sending out query letters (actually emails) to different literary agents to try and find one who would represent me. I didn't have any luck, and I've gotten lazy on it recently. I still have about 15-20 to mail out but honestly my mind has been preoccupied with other things lately. I still am leaning towards self-publishing in the spring and then going from there. The book is done, although I'm always thinking of ways to make it better. And my mind is constantly going over new ideas...if only I had all the time in the world. Two of the ideas keep coming back, so I'm inclined to believe I need to focus on them. One is kind of "out there", but in a good way. The other idea I have is a full length novel based on the book of Daniel. I actually see this as more of a screenplay in the same mold as "The Passion of the Christ". I want to start with the huge orgiastic feast that Belshazzar throws where the Hand of God writes on the wall, and then the king summons Daniel, thus introducing the character. Then I want to go back in time and show Daniel while he still lived in Israel, right before the Babylonian enslavery, and then follow the story all the way through the rest of his life and ending with the fulfillment of his prophecies concerning Alexander the Great and the subsequent divided Greek kingdom. I think it would be much better as a movie; the visual aspect could be really stunning (seeing the Hanging Gardens of Babylon would be worth the price of making the movie, let alone seeing God's hand write on the wall and then there's always the story of the lion's den and Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego). The book of Daniel is amazing in many ways; the stories and his prophecies. I hope someday I can do it justice in a novel.

Anyway, that's where I am right now. Hopefully, in a few months you'll be seeing that my book is being published, whether by me or someone else. Either way, it will be out. So stay tuned...

Christian Terror Tactics

2008-10-17T00:12:00.000-07:00

Look, I'm a Christian. I'm not ashamed of it, and I will never shy away from it. However, lately, I'm a little ashamed of the label "Christian", because the world's view of a Christian has become so distorted and so misunderstood that it no longer resembles what true Christianity is all about. Unfortunately, the current political season has made things worse, and more than ever I'm beginning to see how people with political motivations are using Christianity, and thus Christians, to promote their own agenda.

Somehow in the last few years, I've subscribed to email from the American Family Association, a "Christian" group that is heavily involved in politics. Many of the things they stand for I actually agree with, but after receiving their latest email, I can no longer stomach their garbage. I'm going to copy and paste their email here. Please read it, and you'll see what I'm talking about.

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Please vote! Our children's future depends on it!

October 15, 2008

Dear Daniel,

In my 70 years, I have never seen an election where coverage was so one-sided and biased or where censorship by the liberal media was so widely practiced and where media coverage was so slanted as I have seen in this election process. Their plan is working. The only chance conservatives have is to make sure they care enough to vote.

If the liberals win the upcoming election, America as we have known it will no longer exist. This country that we love, founded on Judeo-Christian values, will cease to exist and will be replaced by a secular state hostile to Christianity. This “city set on a hill” which our forefathers founded, will go dark. The damage will be deep and long lasting. It cannot be turned around in the next election, or the one after that, or by any election in the future. The damage will be permanent. That is why it is so important for you to vote and to encourage friends and family to vote. This is one election where your vote really counts.

Sincerely,

Donald E. Wildmon,
Founder and Chairman
American Family Association

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Okay, so basically if you're a Christian you must vote for McCain because he's been chosen by God as our next moral leader, and Obama is the devil, or the Antichrist, and if Obama wins then the heavens will open and God's holy wrath will be poured out on America. This is outright religious terrorism! Scaring people who are gullible enough into thinking that somehow by voting Obama into the White House it will trigger the Four Horsemen of the Apocolypse!

Look, I'm not an Obama fan; in fact I'm still leaning towards McCain, but admittedly I'm undecided still. But let me ask the Christians out there one question...how, by voting Obama into the White House, will that decrease the amount of Christians in this country? I mean, according to this email, one liberal president somehow negates the millions of Americans who call themselves Christians and ushers in a dark period of history where God is forgotten and Christians are discarded. I'm sorry, but one man, even the President, has no control over the future of the Christian Church. The Church has control over whether or not our "city on a hill" goes "dark", not a liberal President. The Church is responsible for being the City On A Hill, not the United States of America. Our country is not, and has NEVER been, the shining "city on a hill" that Jesus called for. The Church, i.e. Christians, are that City, and whether we are in America or China or Saudi Arabia, we will continue to shine, despite whoever is elected as the American President.

Politics and Christianity

2008-10-15T11:54:00.000-07:00

Maybe you've seen the video going around where a pastor of a large church is praying. In his prayer he says that all of the "other" people are praying that Obama wins the election. He says that "the Hindus and Muslims" are praying to their god for an Obama victory, and then he says (and this is what gets me more than anything), he says "and if he wins they will laugh and say their god won and You will be seen as weak."

I mentioned in a previous post that I was raised thinking that if you were a Christian you pretty much voted Republican and you prayed for the "Christians" who voted Democrat, because they were misguided or backslidden. Really, this is what I remember. So now that I've gotten out of that line of thought, it really, sincerely IRKS me to see this video of a pastor pretty much declaring that John McCain has been chosen by God to lead this country, and now there's some sort of Elijah test going on where we get to see whose God is bigger. Which God has the power to put their person in office? What if Obama wins? Does that mean Christians didn't pray hard enough or does it mean that the "Hindus and Muslims" as he puts it prayed harder.

You know, if this pastor really thought about it, he would realize that many of Obama's supporters are agnostics and atheists as well and therefore wouldn't be praying to anyone, so does that mean that God is dead or doesn't exist if Obama wins?

All of this is idiocy, perpetuated by the ignorant, hate-filled "Christian" church that confuses America with Israel. America is not a theocracy (neither is Israel anymore) and God doesn't choose the leader of this country, WE DO! Somehow, the Church has this idea that America is the new Israel and all of the promises God made Israel apply somehow to the good ol' USA. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but God never mentioned the U.S. in the Bible, and there are no divine promises made to our country.

I do believe God blesses nations and causes nations to fall, based on His divine plan. I do believe if a nation is just and treats its people fairly and has a people that follow after God, that He will bless them. And I believe a nation that oppresses its people or keeps them from worshiping freely will ultimately fail. But that makes us no different than Germany or Spain or China or any other nation.

Our election is 3 weeks away, and it appears Obama is going to win; if the polls are any indication then he has enough electoral votes to win easily. And I know that Christians all over the country are going to groan and say the devil got his way, maybe Christians didn't pray hard enough, or some crap like that. As if God is only as strong as our prayers.

God doesn't rely on our approval of a certain candidate. Besides, God doesn't "choose" our leaders like he did with the kings of Israel. God doesn't vote in the election, and I really don't think that praying that a certain candidate wins is going to do anything, because WE are the ones who vote, not God. Perhaps this comes down to the idea of "choice" vs "predestination". And I believe that even though God has known for a billion eons who was going to win this election, and even though everything in this world is under his control and watchful eye, I believe that he gives mankind freedom to make its own choices. In fact, I would think by looking around this screwed-up world, that would be obvious. We make our choices, screw up our own lives, and vote for our own leaders, and God lets us do it because that's part of being human. So please, quit acting like God somehow loses if Obama wins. Besides, it's not like McCain is some godly leader who's going to come in and "turn the country back to God." He's a politician who is using the religious vote to try and get elected. And it appears it's not working.

Entitlement: My Rights as an American

2008-09-22T10:50:00.000-07:00

Watching the political season unfold, nothing much seems to have changed from the last election. Both candidates have stooped to smear campaigns and even outright lies. Both are trying to find the "hot" topic and capitalize on it. Needless to say, the politicians have not changed since I can remember. The people have changed, however, and unfortunately, I feel our society has sunk to a new low.

In a previous post, I talked about our welfare state and how the family unit needed to be fixed and the community needed to encourage the changes and quit relying on government handouts to solve everything. Now, in a related topic, I want to comment on the out-of-control problem we have in this country: a feeling of entitlement.

When asked what issues people are most concerned with right now, most polls show that the economy is leading the list, along with health care and education, with Iraq falling further down the list. The economy is obviously a serious issue, with people struggling to pay for gas and food. Believe me, I know how much gas costs and it hurts every time I fill up. However, the price of gas is not the government's concern, and shouldn't be. It's a matter for the market to decide. Yet I hear people say that the government should put caps on the price of gas, or tax the oil companies more. Now, large insurance and mortgage companies are collapsing and the government is bailing them out, afraid of what might happen if they truly fail. And people say, "well good, that's what the government is there for". And I say, "NO!" The government is not there to bail companies out because they made bad business decisions or because the CEOs were greedy. That means I have to pay for the bailout in my taxes, and it's not my fault that the companies failed.

I could go on and on about the role government plays in a democratic and capitalistic society, but the bottom line is that the government is supposed to be there to protect the people against foreign invaders, threats at home, etc...they are not there to ensure your pockets are lined and your gas tank is full and your mortgage is paid. People feel like the government owes them something just because they are Americans. The government owes them free health care, or maybe it owes them money when they can't pay their mortgage, or maybe it should pay for their college since education should be a right...right???

Wrong. Unless we're in a socialist society, health care is not a given. If you don't have insurance, then you better have the money to pay for your doctor or hospital visit. Now I'm not totally naive; I know health care should be better here, and everyone has the right to go to the hospital and receive care. But you don't deserve FREE care at the expense of everyone else. And mortgage bailouts? Believe me, I'm tempted to embrace this idea, because I'm about to lose my house because I can't afford it any longer and no one will refinance my mortgage because I'm maxed out on my credit, even though my payment will be drastically less than it is now. Does the government owe me? Am I entitled to a bailout because all of a sudden I can't make my payments? No. I knew what I was signing when I got a Adjustable Rate Mortgage. I knew the payments would go up a lot after 3 years. I thought surely I'd be able to refinance. I mean, I'm making more money than 3 years ago, my credit is pretty good now, so why wouldn't I be able to? Well, I maxed out credit cards, had to buy a car, and I have student loans, and so now I'm stuck. But I know it's MY fault, NOT the government's. And what about education? Am I entitled to a college education just because it's necessary to get a really high paying job? Absolutely not. Anybody can go to college, I don't care where you're from or even how bad your grades were in high school. Anyone can go to community college. Anyone can get student loans if they really want to go. And what ever happened to working hard in high school and trying to get a scholarship for academics or music or sports??

The only thing we are entitled to as Americans is what is in the Constitution. We are entitled to Life, Liberty, and the Pursuit of Happiness. That last phrase, originally phrased "the pursuit of property", is only guaranteeing your right to pursue your happiness; it does not promise or entitle you to happiness. "Happiness" is never truly achieved by handouts. "Happiness" is achieved by working hard for what you get, it is in the journey to get there that we are truly satisfied, not in taking what the government gives you. Believe me, just like God, what the government gives, it can take away. Unlike God, however, the government does not care about you or your happiness; it only cares about things continuing to run smoothly.

Americans need to reassess their values, and reevaluate the growing sense of entitlement that permeates our society. Quit blaming the government for all of your financial problems, quit blaming the government for the price of commodities, and start handling your money better, work for everything you get, and please...PLEASE...quit whining! Americans have forgotten what the "American Dream" is all about, and have turned our society into a bunch of spoiled brats who, just like a spoiled little kid who demands a cookie from his mom because he feels ENTITLED to it, we are demanding handouts and rebates and a fixed economy, instead of starting in our own lives and fixing it from the ground up.

The Big Bang Experiment and the God Particle

2008-09-08T13:03:00.000-07:00

http://www.independent.co.uk/news/science/the-large-hadron-collider-end-of-the-world-or-gods-own-particle-921540.html

Read the links. I'm interested in finding out what they observe, if they don't destroy the earth in their experiment, that is.

Political season

2008-09-05T11:26:00.000-07:00

The last couple weeks I've been captivated by the world of politics. It started with Barack Obama's rock star appearance at the DNC. He is a great speaker and seems like a real nice guy, and he may genuinely believe in the things he speaks about. On the other side, I wasn't very excited about John McCain, even though I'm a lifelong Republican. My parents seem to equate being a Republican with being a Christian, and since I was raised in a very strict home, I've had trouble breaking away from that thinking. My best friends are Democrats, and Heather's whole family votes Democrat (although that's just because they've always voted Democrat and why change?)

I still tend to lean toward the Republicans, mainly for their moral beliefs against killing unborn babies, against gay marriage, but also because I agree that too many people depend upon the government for handouts. Now, people may say, "who are you to judge all of those poor people?" Well, I was one of them. I grew up in a homeless shelter, wore donated clothes and donated foot. I was not homeless myself, but my parents worked there, and we lived there as part of the job. They didn't make much money in their ministry, so we had to accept hand-me-downs. In my 13 years of growing up around homeless people, or just people down on their luck and in need of a little help, I learned that there are people who really need help, and there are those who just want a handout and never plan on doing anything for themselves. Unfortunately, I think the latter group makes up the majority. And I also think it's because we as a nation perpetuate this mindset. We reward laziness and irresponsible sexual activity with welfare and food stamps, and people have learned that the more babies they have, the more money they get. And the guys understand this; they can have as much unprotected sex as they want with whoever because they'll never have to pay a dime for their child since the government will.

I don't think it's the government's responsibility to pay for all these people. Sure, there are a lot who truly need help. I myself went on WIC both times my wife had a baby, because Heather wasn't working when Chloe was born and had just lost her job when Rachel was born, so it really helped us out. But I think the government needs to set time limits as to how long someone can collect welfare, and at the very least offer job placement programs for single mothers. But I think the only real way for our welfare state to end is for the community to take care of their own problems. The core problem is the family unit. The welfare problem keeps getting passed down from generation to generation, and a sense of entitlement has dominated the thinking. My point is, NO ONE is "entitled" to anything from the government just because they're poor. If you are poor, DO SOMETHING ABOUT IT! Don't give up and drop out of school and have a baby and guarantee yourself a life of living in the projects and living on food stamps and government checks. When it comes to sex, SAY NO! Stay in school, get good grades, go to college and then start a family. But the only way this formula becomes the norm in poor areas is if the community pushes this idea. Unfortunately, the community continues to accept the status quo and even embrace it, since it's so easy to get government money. If the community starts teaching their kids to have self-respect, teaches their men to respect women and to stick around if they do get a girl pregnant, to work hard for a living instead of sitting around complaining about rich people not caring for them, then maybe we could end our welfare state, and quit wasting billions of dollars on people who will never contribute to society in any way other than taking checks from the government.

"Here's your sign!"

2008-08-30T10:56:00.000-07:00

An elderly woman had an unexpected layover while attempting to check in at Sweden’s main airport Tuesday. The 78-year-old woman misunderstood instructions and fell down a baggage chute after placing herself, rather than her bags, on the belt, AFP reported.

The woman, who was not named, was preparing to depart from Stockholm’s Arlanda Airport for Germany, when she lay down on the baggage belt thinking she was following the check-in instructions.

Staff members helped her catch her flight after she was swept off to the baggage handling center.

Are you ready for some you-know-what?

2008-08-29T13:11:00.000-07:00

I'm a little early, it's not until a week from Monday, but......GO BRONCOS!!!!!

Republicans in trouble

2008-08-28T14:20:00.000-07:00

John McCain has a tough choice to make in the next few days, and I'm not talking about his VP pick. One of the things that caused Bush to lose his support among Americans was the way his administration handled Hurricane Katrina. They seemed unorganized, incompetent, and at the worse, apathetic. Now I don't think GW didn't care about the people, but his ADMINISTRATION seemed uncaring, and the buck stops with him. Now, the Republican National Convention is being held next week, at the same time that another Hurricane is barreling down on New Orleans, with ANOTHER storm brewing in the Caribbean. The choice he has to make is whether or not to continue with the GOP convention or postpone it. If they continue, and Hurricane Gustav is a monster, once again the Republicans seem uncaring and aloof. If they don't have the convention, they won't get the press time and the publicity they want.

So, here's what I would do if I were John McCain. I would cancel the convention and get my butt down to New Orleans right now and start helping with the pre-storm preparations (boarding up windows, helping evacuate families, etc...) and then ride out the storm in a shelter with all of the other people who couldn't leave. What better way to show America he will be a caring individual than to ACTUALLY CARE!

Seriously, this isn't funny, so why am I laughing?

2008-08-27T13:57:00.000-07:00

First, let me say that there is nothing funny about suicide. It's horrible. However, I read a news story that actually made me and my sick sense of humor laugh. Somewhere in England, (I forget where), there's a cliff overlooking the sea that is called Suicide Cliff, because they get an average of 20 suicides a year there. Apparently, people jump off a lot and die in the churning sea below. Well, some kids were playing and found a body floating in the water and called the British version of 911. Rescuers showed up and a large operation began, trying to get to the person in the water, hoping he was alive. As they got in the water and attempted to rescue the person, a car flew off the cliff and landed just feet from the rescuers...you guessed it, ANOTHER SUICIDE VICTIM! Imagine the rescuers surprise as they are trying to recover one person, a whole stinking car comes flying at them!! Apparently, the car almost hit them, which would have killed everyone. Luckily, only the two people who wanted to kill themselves actually died. I'm thinking maybe they should restrict access to this spot...just a thought.

And in bovine suicide news...a cattle herder woke up one morning last year and discovered all 25 of his cows had been killed during the night, all of them piled up in about the same spot. Horrified by the sight, the cattle herder noticed a power line was down and was still live. Investigators believe a storm came through, knocking down the power line. They believe the first cow became curious of the dancing and sparking line and walked over to it, and became the first victim. Seeing their fellow bovine lying prone and smelling like burnt steak, another cow walked over to investigate and was electrocuted. Apparently, this happened 23 more times, each cow coming over to see what was going on and becoming another victim. A horrible tragedy indeed and one more reason to suspect that cows are about the dumbest animals alive.

Is it not politically correct to be PATRIOTIC???

2008-08-21T20:54:00.001-07:00

The Olympics have me feeling Red, White, and Blue...