I've grown up in church. I've heard the following passage of scripture countless times. But every once in a while the cobwebs and dust get shaken off the thought and it becomes shiny and new in my mind and heart all over again. Today has been one such day.
In Luke 23, we read of the crucifixion of Christ. There He was, the king and savior of the world, beaten, bloody and bruised beyond recognition, hanging on a rough wooden cross with a thief on either side of Him. One thief says "If you're the Messiah, save yourself, and save us while you're at it." It wasn't a genuine request for physical salvation; it was more mockery and disbelief.
In verse 40 we see the start of something amazing; something precious; something beautiful. The other thief tells the mocker "Shut up! You and I deserve to be up here because of the things we've done. We're guilty, but this man is innocent." He then looks at Jesus and says "Remember me when you come into your kingdom."
There are several implications in the words of the humble thief that paint a beautiful portrait of salvation as well as subtly imply the great truth that God looks on our hearts and not necessarily our words. The thief never directly said "I'm a sinner, and I ask you to forgive me. I believe that you're the son of God and that you will die and rise again." However, his heart found a way to express the model of salvation in an implying manner through his words.
When the thief told the mocker that Jesus was innocent but they were not, he was implying step one of salvation; admitting to being a sinner. When he looked at Jesus and said "Remember me when you come into your kingdom." he was saying two things. First, he was acknowledging that Jesus was truly the son of God. If he did not believe Jesus was who he said he was, why would he have asked Jesus to remember him. Second, he was asking for mercy and forgiveness. "Remember me when you come into your kingdom." He was saying "Please don't leave me out of heaven."
Here is a man hanging on a cross next to the savior of the world and openly demonstrating sorrow, remorse, and humility. Although he was receiving the punishment that justice demanded, Jesus brought to him the mercy that he couldn't earn and didn't deserve. I believe Jesus lost track of his own pain and suffering for just a moment, and with tears of compassion in His loving eyes He said "Today, this day, you will be with me in heaven."
Oh, my God! What grace! What mercy! Words cannot possibly convey the flood of emotion that bursts out when this beautiful painting of salvation becomes reality. We are all so completely undeserving of life everlasting, much less life in general. Yet when in our hearts we recognize how sinful we really are, acknowledge that Jesus, through His death, replaced justice with ultimate mercy, and ask Him to forgive us, he gives us healing, provision, and life everlasting.
There is no ceremony to perform. No holy writ to be recited. More than any physical action or verbal sounds, it's all in the heart. If you confess with your mouth and believe in your heart that Jesus is the son of God who died for your sins, that's it. Jesus has done the rest.
Oh, my God! What grace! What love! What mercy!
Tuesday, November 27, 2007
Monday, November 19, 2007
Study to show thyself approved...
Yesterday morning my dad preached a message at church about rightly dividing the word of God. He started out by quoting a few of the "easy amen" verses about God's word. "God is the same yesterday, today, and forever!" and the congregation replied "Amen!" "I believe the Bible says what it means and means what it says!" and the congregation shouted "Amen!" with clapping and hands in the air. Little did they know that they were about to be blasted with some awesome truth that they desperately needed to hear...and I needed them to hear.
If the Bible says what it means and means what it says then Jesus preached cannibalism and women are to keep silent in church. He then broke it down and gave three important keys to studying God's word. More specifically, three questions to ask when trying to understand scripture: why was it written, to whom was it written, and how does it apply to me?
As he preached, there was only a small corner of the church that was shouting "Amen!" with him. It was those of us who are thoroughly annoyed by the judgement coming from religious people who have not studied the scriptures they so quickly throw out to condemn. It was quite entertaining for me, although I know that's not exactly the best attitude to have.
He didn't dive into debunking the religious misunderstandings in Leviticus, which is probably wise since it would have turned a 45 minute message into a 7 day series. However, I sincerely hope that people will follow these three keys when studying God's word. More specifically, I'd really like it if they would follow these three keys when trying to tell other people that they are in sin.
On a different note, Saturday night Alex, my new friend Angel, and myself played worship, and it was surprisingly great. We didn't get to practice much, so I was worried that it was going to suck, but it was actually a lot of fun and I think it turned out pretty great. We had a whole lot of fun...Then Sunday after the morning service we stuck around and had worship practice, and that too went really well. We ironed out 3 songs, 2 of which were brand new, and I think they're going to be a lot of fun to play.
That's all. I know this blog isn't exactly like my typical religious or political rant, but I'm pleased to say that at this moment, I don't really have anything to rant about. So, until something else pisses me off...
Cheers and God Bless!
Hoss
If the Bible says what it means and means what it says then Jesus preached cannibalism and women are to keep silent in church. He then broke it down and gave three important keys to studying God's word. More specifically, three questions to ask when trying to understand scripture: why was it written, to whom was it written, and how does it apply to me?
As he preached, there was only a small corner of the church that was shouting "Amen!" with him. It was those of us who are thoroughly annoyed by the judgement coming from religious people who have not studied the scriptures they so quickly throw out to condemn. It was quite entertaining for me, although I know that's not exactly the best attitude to have.
He didn't dive into debunking the religious misunderstandings in Leviticus, which is probably wise since it would have turned a 45 minute message into a 7 day series. However, I sincerely hope that people will follow these three keys when studying God's word. More specifically, I'd really like it if they would follow these three keys when trying to tell other people that they are in sin.
On a different note, Saturday night Alex, my new friend Angel, and myself played worship, and it was surprisingly great. We didn't get to practice much, so I was worried that it was going to suck, but it was actually a lot of fun and I think it turned out pretty great. We had a whole lot of fun...Then Sunday after the morning service we stuck around and had worship practice, and that too went really well. We ironed out 3 songs, 2 of which were brand new, and I think they're going to be a lot of fun to play.
That's all. I know this blog isn't exactly like my typical religious or political rant, but I'm pleased to say that at this moment, I don't really have anything to rant about. So, until something else pisses me off...
Cheers and God Bless!
Hoss
Wednesday, November 14, 2007
Benitez Family Seeks Instant Access to High Society
Meridian police responded to a 911 call placed by a member of the Benitez family in the evening on May 13th. The father and separated-husband, Ricardo Benitez was in need of medical help and not in his right mind according to the family. Nevertheless, the police showed up and Ricardo had a bread knife. He lunged at the police officers, showing physical, deadly aggression. The police drew their weapons and three bullets ripped through the chest of Ricardo Benitez, killing him at the scene.
The family called the police because he was a danger to himself and others. He lunged at police officers with a potentially deadly weapon, and they shoot him. Now, the family has taken legal action and is filling a lawsuit against the City of Meridian, the Meridian police department, the former and president police chiefs and the State of Idaho. The lawsuit is in the amount of $5 million dollars.
When I heard this on the news last evening, I was completely furious. While I'm sure the family misses their husband and father, this is a shameless attempt to bleed the local and state governments so the family can drive a Cadillac or buy a new house in a $500,000+ subdivision.
Shame on the family. Shame on the snaky lawyer representing these greedy leeches. People need to take some friggin' responsibility for their actions and quit blaming everything on everyone else. If you pee into the wind, you're going to get wet. If you pull a weapon on a cop, there's a good chance you're going to get shot. It's not rocket science and there really aren't any exceptions to the rule. Police have a hard enough time dealing with situations just like this without having to worry that if they pull the trigger to preserve their own lives or the lives of their colleagues that they could end up losing their jobs, costing the city or state millions, or ending up in jail themselves. If the local, state, and federal governments don't stand behind the actions of their officers, that's exactly what will happen. They will simply stop doing their jobs because no one has their backs; they will not protect us because no one will protect them from the fallout.
If you pull a weapon on a cop, you're going to get shot. If you're walking along through the forest and a bear attacks you, you shoot the bear. But what the Benitez family is doing in this case is saying "You shouldn't have shot that bear. He didn't know what he was doing. It's not his fault that he attacked you, even though we thought he was scary enough that we needed to call you."
What would've happened if the police hadn't used their weapons and this psycho killed one of them? Where would the outrage be then? And better yet, how would the Idaho un-Statesman spin the story to make the police department out to be the bad guy? Would the government give the dead cop's family $5 million in damages? Fat chance.
If it were up to me, the friggin' Benitez family wouldn't see one red cent. And further, I'd see to it that the family and the lawyer paid for every cost in fighting this stupid, greedy lawsuit. While I'm at it, why not through the friggin' liberal Idaho Statesman in there too. I'm assuming left-wing spin writing pays pretty well, so let them shoulder some of the load.
Or better yet, make the family, the lawyer and the Statesman pay every one of the police officers for psychological damages from having to use deadly force. You can be sure that the communist ACLU would make a trip to the great state of Idaho to see to it that that one got spun into some sort of racial issue or something.
Cheers, God bless, and thanks for reading my rant!
The family called the police because he was a danger to himself and others. He lunged at police officers with a potentially deadly weapon, and they shoot him. Now, the family has taken legal action and is filling a lawsuit against the City of Meridian, the Meridian police department, the former and president police chiefs and the State of Idaho. The lawsuit is in the amount of $5 million dollars.
When I heard this on the news last evening, I was completely furious. While I'm sure the family misses their husband and father, this is a shameless attempt to bleed the local and state governments so the family can drive a Cadillac or buy a new house in a $500,000+ subdivision.
Shame on the family. Shame on the snaky lawyer representing these greedy leeches. People need to take some friggin' responsibility for their actions and quit blaming everything on everyone else. If you pee into the wind, you're going to get wet. If you pull a weapon on a cop, there's a good chance you're going to get shot. It's not rocket science and there really aren't any exceptions to the rule. Police have a hard enough time dealing with situations just like this without having to worry that if they pull the trigger to preserve their own lives or the lives of their colleagues that they could end up losing their jobs, costing the city or state millions, or ending up in jail themselves. If the local, state, and federal governments don't stand behind the actions of their officers, that's exactly what will happen. They will simply stop doing their jobs because no one has their backs; they will not protect us because no one will protect them from the fallout.
If you pull a weapon on a cop, you're going to get shot. If you're walking along through the forest and a bear attacks you, you shoot the bear. But what the Benitez family is doing in this case is saying "You shouldn't have shot that bear. He didn't know what he was doing. It's not his fault that he attacked you, even though we thought he was scary enough that we needed to call you."
What would've happened if the police hadn't used their weapons and this psycho killed one of them? Where would the outrage be then? And better yet, how would the Idaho un-Statesman spin the story to make the police department out to be the bad guy? Would the government give the dead cop's family $5 million in damages? Fat chance.
If it were up to me, the friggin' Benitez family wouldn't see one red cent. And further, I'd see to it that the family and the lawyer paid for every cost in fighting this stupid, greedy lawsuit. While I'm at it, why not through the friggin' liberal Idaho Statesman in there too. I'm assuming left-wing spin writing pays pretty well, so let them shoulder some of the load.
Or better yet, make the family, the lawyer and the Statesman pay every one of the police officers for psychological damages from having to use deadly force. You can be sure that the communist ACLU would make a trip to the great state of Idaho to see to it that that one got spun into some sort of racial issue or something.
Cheers, God bless, and thanks for reading my rant!
Tuesday, November 13, 2007
An interesting look into Christians and swearing...
I have found myself a bit grumpy these last few days, and I couldn't for the life of me figure out why. I had a good weekend, I've got a full yet fulfilling week ahead of me, both in and out of work, and yet I just couldn't seem to shake this gray feeling; this sort of tired blase` that I just couldn't get rid of, much to my wife's chagrin.
Well, today I figured it out. I don't know if it makes any sense at all, but I took a break from working on loans and started studying a scripture topic. The more wrapped up in this wonderfully written article about Christians and cursing (or cussing or swearing, however you prefer to say it) the happier I become and the more the gray blase` lifted off of me. So, I decided I was grumpy because I was not working on what I should have been working on at the moment. And with that, I would now like to share with you what I've found.
I read through this article about Christians and cussing; more specifically, good and bad reasons to refrain from using vulgar language and times when it is a sin and other times when it's not a sin, but rather just rude. The author actually likened swearing to cutting loose a big, loud, obnoxious fart in that it isn't necessarily a sin, but frowned upon in most social situations.
I'm not sure that I'm 100% convinced that swearing is not a sin. I have to do some further research into what the Bible means when it speaks of idle words and swearing. But the author definitely had a few very good points of interest that I'd like to highlight before I send you on your merry way to read the article for yourself.
The first and most inspiring thing the author said was regarding legalism. He defined it better and more eloquently than I have ever heard anyone do before. He said "My beef with legalism is its rigid and blind insistence on following a code for the sake of following a code, ignoring any other aspect of thinking and reasoning on the subject...daring anyone to challenge...it." Pure poetry. I couldn't in a million years think of a better definition. And because legalism, hypocrisy, pharisaicalism and willful ignorance of believers are the things that fire me up the most and are the things I've decided to battle against in ministry, I think this gentleman's definition is going to be an awesome tool in my toolbox.
Along with that, my whole life I've heard about "a standard." "You represent our church and you need to hold a standard." "Our youth are different from other churches because they have a standard." My reply to that for the longest time has been "Well, then what's the standard?" But in reading the author's definition of legalism I quoted above, I found that "standard" is simply a positive-spin word for "legalism." When people are saying "You represent the church and you need to hold a standard." what they are really saying is "You represent the church and you need to look, talk, think, act, and worship like I do because that's the way it's always been and any other way is wrong." If that isn't legalism, I don't know what is.
Another excellent point, and one that I often forget about, is taking God's name in vain. There are many ways to do that and it doesn't just mean god@mmit. Personally, I believe that by claiming to be a Christian and living any way that would reflect opposite of that is taking God's name in vain. The word "vain" in this instance means without power or authority, and when you claim to be child of God and live like God does not have authority in your life, you are taking his name in vain.
All that being said, speaking the name of "God" or "Jesus" in a way that renders those names meaningless is wrong. And sadly, it is something that is overlooked by many Christians, including myself. "Oh my God!" is a frequent expression of surprise, shock, or disgust in my vocabulary. I've heard very righteous, holy people say "Jesus" in much the same manner, and although they are still righteous and holy (in my opinion and as much as any sinner saved by grace can be) they are still in the wrong when they take God's name in vain.
It can be argued however that "God" is not taking God's name in vain. After all, what is God's name? I'm a man, and people often say to me "Hey, man!" but "man" is not my name. So, there's definitely some further studying that needs to be done on my part before I reach an absolute conclusion, but the principle remains the same regarding not taking God's name in vain; without power or authority.
In another article (which led me to the article I've mentioned above) I read about Evangelical speaker Tony Campolo who starts his speeches off by saying "I have three things I'd like to say today. First, while you were sleeping last night, 30,000 kids died of starvation or diseases related to malnutrition. Second, most of you don't give a sh*t. What's worse is that you're more upset with the fact that I said sh*t than the fact that 30,000 kids died last night." Good point, huh? We Christians, in our legalistic minds, so often have a tendency to focus on the minor issues with an ant-in-the-magnifying-glass intensity, yet we overlook the whole reason we are here. We get so wrapped up in our "No drinking, no gambling, no swearing, no tattoos!" that we neglect the biggest commandment in the Bible, to love God and to love your neighbor as yourself.
While swearing isn't always a sin, it's definitely not always a good thing either. All things are permissible (except where expressly prohibited by God's word) but not everything is beneficial. A time when cussing is definitely a sin (in my opinion) are when it offends someone else or it turns someone else off to Christianity. On a sidenote to that, you cannot live your life according to someone else's convictions. That's a hard lesson I had to learn. Yes, Paul said that if eating meat offered to idol gods was a stumblingblock to his brother, or that it would offend his brother, he would refrain. But I've found in my own life that there are "professional offendees;" people who are offended over every little thing that they don't agree with. There is a very fine yet very real line between not offending your brother and you being a slave to what other people think. If you allow it, there are people out there who will subject you to their personal standards and convictions, and while those standards and convictions may work for them, they are not necessarily yours or mine. Seek out your own soul's salvation with reverence to God.
The article actually ends with the idea of living to your own personal convictions which come from God. Even though the scripture isn't necessarily cut and dry regarding cussing, alcohol, tattoos, or many other things, it needs to be remembered that whatever is not of faith is sin. That simply means that if you can't do it with a clear conscience, you are sinning. Now why you don't have a clear conscience about the matter needs to be sorted out before you can truly decide what is of faith and what is sin, because if you can't have the liberty to do something because of someone else's legalism, the matter might necessarily be a sin, but the fact that you are living in bondage under someone else might be.
Ah, the fine lines we must walk. The Bible says to be wise as a serpent and harmless as a dove. Sometimes I think it would be easier to not question the status quo and just blindly follow what I've always been taught. Ignorance is bliss, but curiosity and truth-seeking can bring true liberty.
You can read the articles I based much of this blog about at:
http://www.internetmonk.com/articles/C/cuss1.html
http://www.internetmonk.com/articles/C/cuss2.html
Cheers, and God bless!
Hoss
Well, today I figured it out. I don't know if it makes any sense at all, but I took a break from working on loans and started studying a scripture topic. The more wrapped up in this wonderfully written article about Christians and cursing (or cussing or swearing, however you prefer to say it) the happier I become and the more the gray blase` lifted off of me. So, I decided I was grumpy because I was not working on what I should have been working on at the moment. And with that, I would now like to share with you what I've found.
I read through this article about Christians and cussing; more specifically, good and bad reasons to refrain from using vulgar language and times when it is a sin and other times when it's not a sin, but rather just rude. The author actually likened swearing to cutting loose a big, loud, obnoxious fart in that it isn't necessarily a sin, but frowned upon in most social situations.
I'm not sure that I'm 100% convinced that swearing is not a sin. I have to do some further research into what the Bible means when it speaks of idle words and swearing. But the author definitely had a few very good points of interest that I'd like to highlight before I send you on your merry way to read the article for yourself.
The first and most inspiring thing the author said was regarding legalism. He defined it better and more eloquently than I have ever heard anyone do before. He said "My beef with legalism is its rigid and blind insistence on following a code for the sake of following a code, ignoring any other aspect of thinking and reasoning on the subject...daring anyone to challenge...it." Pure poetry. I couldn't in a million years think of a better definition. And because legalism, hypocrisy, pharisaicalism and willful ignorance of believers are the things that fire me up the most and are the things I've decided to battle against in ministry, I think this gentleman's definition is going to be an awesome tool in my toolbox.
Along with that, my whole life I've heard about "a standard." "You represent our church and you need to hold a standard." "Our youth are different from other churches because they have a standard." My reply to that for the longest time has been "Well, then what's the standard?" But in reading the author's definition of legalism I quoted above, I found that "standard" is simply a positive-spin word for "legalism." When people are saying "You represent the church and you need to hold a standard." what they are really saying is "You represent the church and you need to look, talk, think, act, and worship like I do because that's the way it's always been and any other way is wrong." If that isn't legalism, I don't know what is.
Another excellent point, and one that I often forget about, is taking God's name in vain. There are many ways to do that and it doesn't just mean god@mmit. Personally, I believe that by claiming to be a Christian and living any way that would reflect opposite of that is taking God's name in vain. The word "vain" in this instance means without power or authority, and when you claim to be child of God and live like God does not have authority in your life, you are taking his name in vain.
All that being said, speaking the name of "God" or "Jesus" in a way that renders those names meaningless is wrong. And sadly, it is something that is overlooked by many Christians, including myself. "Oh my God!" is a frequent expression of surprise, shock, or disgust in my vocabulary. I've heard very righteous, holy people say "Jesus" in much the same manner, and although they are still righteous and holy (in my opinion and as much as any sinner saved by grace can be) they are still in the wrong when they take God's name in vain.
It can be argued however that "God" is not taking God's name in vain. After all, what is God's name? I'm a man, and people often say to me "Hey, man!" but "man" is not my name. So, there's definitely some further studying that needs to be done on my part before I reach an absolute conclusion, but the principle remains the same regarding not taking God's name in vain; without power or authority.
In another article (which led me to the article I've mentioned above) I read about Evangelical speaker Tony Campolo who starts his speeches off by saying "I have three things I'd like to say today. First, while you were sleeping last night, 30,000 kids died of starvation or diseases related to malnutrition. Second, most of you don't give a sh*t. What's worse is that you're more upset with the fact that I said sh*t than the fact that 30,000 kids died last night." Good point, huh? We Christians, in our legalistic minds, so often have a tendency to focus on the minor issues with an ant-in-the-magnifying-glass intensity, yet we overlook the whole reason we are here. We get so wrapped up in our "No drinking, no gambling, no swearing, no tattoos!" that we neglect the biggest commandment in the Bible, to love God and to love your neighbor as yourself.
While swearing isn't always a sin, it's definitely not always a good thing either. All things are permissible (except where expressly prohibited by God's word) but not everything is beneficial. A time when cussing is definitely a sin (in my opinion) are when it offends someone else or it turns someone else off to Christianity. On a sidenote to that, you cannot live your life according to someone else's convictions. That's a hard lesson I had to learn. Yes, Paul said that if eating meat offered to idol gods was a stumblingblock to his brother, or that it would offend his brother, he would refrain. But I've found in my own life that there are "professional offendees;" people who are offended over every little thing that they don't agree with. There is a very fine yet very real line between not offending your brother and you being a slave to what other people think. If you allow it, there are people out there who will subject you to their personal standards and convictions, and while those standards and convictions may work for them, they are not necessarily yours or mine. Seek out your own soul's salvation with reverence to God.
The article actually ends with the idea of living to your own personal convictions which come from God. Even though the scripture isn't necessarily cut and dry regarding cussing, alcohol, tattoos, or many other things, it needs to be remembered that whatever is not of faith is sin. That simply means that if you can't do it with a clear conscience, you are sinning. Now why you don't have a clear conscience about the matter needs to be sorted out before you can truly decide what is of faith and what is sin, because if you can't have the liberty to do something because of someone else's legalism, the matter might necessarily be a sin, but the fact that you are living in bondage under someone else might be.
Ah, the fine lines we must walk. The Bible says to be wise as a serpent and harmless as a dove. Sometimes I think it would be easier to not question the status quo and just blindly follow what I've always been taught. Ignorance is bliss, but curiosity and truth-seeking can bring true liberty.
You can read the articles I based much of this blog about at:
http://www.internetmonk.com/articles/C/cuss1.html
http://www.internetmonk.com/articles/C/cuss2.html
Cheers, and God bless!
Hoss
Tuesday, October 30, 2007
"I Will Provide"
It's a little after 11PM on October 30th, 2007. My wife and I had a doctors appointment this morning. My wife is 29 weeks and 5 days along as of today, and the baby can come any time after 36 weeks and be healthy. So, in the spirit of all things baby brought on by the doctors appointment this morning, my wife was reading one of her many baby books. She read to me the list of stuff to put in the suitcase to take to the hospital. As we talked about what to bring to the hospital with us the conversation drifted to what life will be like when the baby gets here, what we're hoping we get at the baby shower, and what things we're going to need.
I never really thought about it before, but holy crap, there's a lot of stuff! Changing tables, dressers, car seat bases, binkies, bonkies, blankies, diapies, poopies, peepees, blah blah blah blah. (Dr. Suess anyone?) In a word; overwhelming. In two words; completely overwhelming. With the wife going to be staying at home and not working and me making only commissions plus the thought of possibly having to buy a buttload of baby stuff, the thoughts can easily steamroll right over me. I know I shouldn't be overwhelmed because I know God will provide for us, but it's scary nonetheless.
Well, this is how awesome God is. He is truly a loving, comforting Father. As my wife got out of bed to go pee (again...oh the joys of pregnancy) I was running through all the stuff we'll need and wondering how I will be able to take care of everything God said to me 3 simple words. "I will provide." Oh, how comforting to know that I'm not alone in this. It's just so awesome to know that even though my current reality is enough to scare even the bravest soul God will provide. I don't have to worry about anything. All I have to do is my best and God will take care of the rest.
I never really thought about it before, but holy crap, there's a lot of stuff! Changing tables, dressers, car seat bases, binkies, bonkies, blankies, diapies, poopies, peepees, blah blah blah blah. (Dr. Suess anyone?) In a word; overwhelming. In two words; completely overwhelming. With the wife going to be staying at home and not working and me making only commissions plus the thought of possibly having to buy a buttload of baby stuff, the thoughts can easily steamroll right over me. I know I shouldn't be overwhelmed because I know God will provide for us, but it's scary nonetheless.
Well, this is how awesome God is. He is truly a loving, comforting Father. As my wife got out of bed to go pee (again...oh the joys of pregnancy) I was running through all the stuff we'll need and wondering how I will be able to take care of everything God said to me 3 simple words. "I will provide." Oh, how comforting to know that I'm not alone in this. It's just so awesome to know that even though my current reality is enough to scare even the bravest soul God will provide. I don't have to worry about anything. All I have to do is my best and God will take care of the rest.
Thursday, October 25, 2007
Interesting News Day
I heard several news stories and pieces throughout today that have provoked a wee bit of thought.
PC ADVISORY>>>>> THIS BLOG WILL PROBABLY NOT BE POLITICALLY CORRECT <<<<
First of all, how about these fires in California. It turns out...arson. Someone, or rather several someones intentionally started several of the major blazes in southern California that have left several people dead and have racked up damages to the tune of about $1 billion.
My question; is this considered terrorism? Flicking a cigarette out a window and burning down a forest is an accident. A stupid accident in which Smokey the Bear should cut off your private parts and use them for fertilizer to plan new trees, but an accident nonetheless. But intentionally setting fires to wreak havoc? In my opinion, that's terrorism. On one hand, you hate to call it that because it really doesn't even come close to comparing to the tragedy that was 9/11. Terrorism is defined as using violence against people or property to make a point, either spiritual, political, or idealogical. So, were these fires set off for some spiritual, political, or idealogical reason? Perhaps. But what if they weren't. What in the world do we call it when some sick piece-of-crap excuse for a human simply wants to destroy and in the process, either intentionally or unintentionally, costs people $1 billion and worse yet, kills multiple people?
Either way, the human side of me wants to see them brought to justice. I'm a bit of a fan of the old ways. "Kill someone and we'll kill you back." is how I believe comedian Ron White put it. I think there's a fine line between justice and revenge. A quick, painless death 6 months after your last shot at an appeal is denied is justice. Tying some murderous, sick-o pervert freak to a tree and lighting him on fire is revenge. The majority of me wants to see justice. The small minority of me that needs God's help every day wants to see these arsonists' skin melt off their bones.
One of these days I'll get around to writing a more in-depth, Biblical piece on capital punishment. But for now, on to the Houston, Texas school bond issue.
PC ADVISORY>>>>> THIS BLOG WILL PROBABLY NOT BE POLITICALLY CORRECT <<<<
I was watching Glenn Beck this evening on the CNN Headline News channel and he told of a beautiful 2 year old girl who was hit and killed by a drunk driver. The police caught and arrested the guy, only because he hit two other parked cars while trying to speed away from the lifeless corpse of the girl he just hit with his car. This all occured in a Texas town near the Mexican border, and you know what? Yup...that's right. Frickin' illegal immigrant. Now this subject has been spun by news, screamed about by protesters, talked to death by talk radio and blogged like crazy, but so far that's pretty much been it; a bunch of friggin' talk. Glenn said it correctly when he said that hundreds of drunk-driving related deaths occur each year in this nation. However, this one could have been prevented IF WE'D GET SERIOUS ABOUT PROTECTING OUR BORDERS!!!
With that story, Glenn led into an interview with Texas senator Dan Patrick. They talked a bit about the illegal immigration problem, but then Senator Patrick told a very interesting little bit of information. It seems that much of the black community, including a bunch of black Baptist ministers, the NAACP, state legislators and others, are actively opposed to a Houston Independent School District bond in the amount of $800 million to build twenty-something new schools and renovate 130-something others. Do you know why? It's because 75% of the money is going to Hispanics.
Now how it all works, I'm not exactly sure. But after doing some research, here's what it sounds like to me. One not-so-minority group with a serious entitlement complex is pissed off because another minority group is taking their biscuits and gravy and making choriso instead. Do I think it's right that Hispanics are getting 75% of the funding? No way. But that's a problem that's going to exist until we SHUT DOWN THE BORDERS!!! But the attitude of entitlement makes me so furious... This is America. Just because your ancestors were mistreated does not mean that I owe you something. Just because you're black doesn't mean you deserve something from "the man." That attitude was plastered all over the news during Hurricane Katrina, and it's so sadly evident in this nation.
The United Negro College Fund. My father-in-law and I were talking one day and he said "You know? When I'm a millionaire, I think I'm going to start the "United Average White Guy College Fund." Brilliant in my opinion. Not because I think average white guys deserve anything more than anyone else, but because I'd love to see the hate mail and lawsuits come pouring in from the NAACP...plus I've always wanted to ask "The Reverend" Jessie Jackson what he uses in his hair to make it so...detestable. Birds could live in there.
I know not all black people are like this. I have some family on my wife's side that are amazing, wonderful, awesome people and they don't tout this anti-American attitude of entitlement. So please don't think that I'm generalizing. But the problem comes down to the squeaky wheel gettting the grease. It's always the people who are nothing than white-hating bigots that call reverse-racism equality. Affirmative Action and all that crap.
If everyone would just live by "the Golden Rule." Treat EVERYONE the way that you'd want to be treated. Treat EVERYONE with fairness and justice. Stop looking at skin color. So many minorities use their skin color and this idea of racism as an excuse and a crutch for why they're poor. Regardless of my skin color or religion, I make my own decisions. I choose to either be successful or to be a failure.
On a completely different note I heard a VERY interesting quote from George Washington. "Government is like fire; a dangerous servant and a fearful master." We need government, but in limited quantities in my opinion. I may not quote it verbatim, but another of our founding fathers said that those who give up their rights in the name of freedom are neither right nor free. Something to think about...
Cheers and God bless!
PC ADVISORY>>>>> THIS BLOG WILL PROBABLY NOT BE POLITICALLY CORRECT <<<<
First of all, how about these fires in California. It turns out...arson. Someone, or rather several someones intentionally started several of the major blazes in southern California that have left several people dead and have racked up damages to the tune of about $1 billion.
My question; is this considered terrorism? Flicking a cigarette out a window and burning down a forest is an accident. A stupid accident in which Smokey the Bear should cut off your private parts and use them for fertilizer to plan new trees, but an accident nonetheless. But intentionally setting fires to wreak havoc? In my opinion, that's terrorism. On one hand, you hate to call it that because it really doesn't even come close to comparing to the tragedy that was 9/11. Terrorism is defined as using violence against people or property to make a point, either spiritual, political, or idealogical. So, were these fires set off for some spiritual, political, or idealogical reason? Perhaps. But what if they weren't. What in the world do we call it when some sick piece-of-crap excuse for a human simply wants to destroy and in the process, either intentionally or unintentionally, costs people $1 billion and worse yet, kills multiple people?
Either way, the human side of me wants to see them brought to justice. I'm a bit of a fan of the old ways. "Kill someone and we'll kill you back." is how I believe comedian Ron White put it. I think there's a fine line between justice and revenge. A quick, painless death 6 months after your last shot at an appeal is denied is justice. Tying some murderous, sick-o pervert freak to a tree and lighting him on fire is revenge. The majority of me wants to see justice. The small minority of me that needs God's help every day wants to see these arsonists' skin melt off their bones.
One of these days I'll get around to writing a more in-depth, Biblical piece on capital punishment. But for now, on to the Houston, Texas school bond issue.
PC ADVISORY>>>>> THIS BLOG WILL PROBABLY NOT BE POLITICALLY CORRECT <<<<
I was watching Glenn Beck this evening on the CNN Headline News channel and he told of a beautiful 2 year old girl who was hit and killed by a drunk driver. The police caught and arrested the guy, only because he hit two other parked cars while trying to speed away from the lifeless corpse of the girl he just hit with his car. This all occured in a Texas town near the Mexican border, and you know what? Yup...that's right. Frickin' illegal immigrant. Now this subject has been spun by news, screamed about by protesters, talked to death by talk radio and blogged like crazy, but so far that's pretty much been it; a bunch of friggin' talk. Glenn said it correctly when he said that hundreds of drunk-driving related deaths occur each year in this nation. However, this one could have been prevented IF WE'D GET SERIOUS ABOUT PROTECTING OUR BORDERS!!!
With that story, Glenn led into an interview with Texas senator Dan Patrick. They talked a bit about the illegal immigration problem, but then Senator Patrick told a very interesting little bit of information. It seems that much of the black community, including a bunch of black Baptist ministers, the NAACP, state legislators and others, are actively opposed to a Houston Independent School District bond in the amount of $800 million to build twenty-something new schools and renovate 130-something others. Do you know why? It's because 75% of the money is going to Hispanics.
Now how it all works, I'm not exactly sure. But after doing some research, here's what it sounds like to me. One not-so-minority group with a serious entitlement complex is pissed off because another minority group is taking their biscuits and gravy and making choriso instead. Do I think it's right that Hispanics are getting 75% of the funding? No way. But that's a problem that's going to exist until we SHUT DOWN THE BORDERS!!! But the attitude of entitlement makes me so furious... This is America. Just because your ancestors were mistreated does not mean that I owe you something. Just because you're black doesn't mean you deserve something from "the man." That attitude was plastered all over the news during Hurricane Katrina, and it's so sadly evident in this nation.
The United Negro College Fund. My father-in-law and I were talking one day and he said "You know? When I'm a millionaire, I think I'm going to start the "United Average White Guy College Fund." Brilliant in my opinion. Not because I think average white guys deserve anything more than anyone else, but because I'd love to see the hate mail and lawsuits come pouring in from the NAACP...plus I've always wanted to ask "The Reverend" Jessie Jackson what he uses in his hair to make it so...detestable. Birds could live in there.
I know not all black people are like this. I have some family on my wife's side that are amazing, wonderful, awesome people and they don't tout this anti-American attitude of entitlement. So please don't think that I'm generalizing. But the problem comes down to the squeaky wheel gettting the grease. It's always the people who are nothing than white-hating bigots that call reverse-racism equality. Affirmative Action and all that crap.
If everyone would just live by "the Golden Rule." Treat EVERYONE the way that you'd want to be treated. Treat EVERYONE with fairness and justice. Stop looking at skin color. So many minorities use their skin color and this idea of racism as an excuse and a crutch for why they're poor. Regardless of my skin color or religion, I make my own decisions. I choose to either be successful or to be a failure.
On a completely different note I heard a VERY interesting quote from George Washington. "Government is like fire; a dangerous servant and a fearful master." We need government, but in limited quantities in my opinion. I may not quote it verbatim, but another of our founding fathers said that those who give up their rights in the name of freedom are neither right nor free. Something to think about...
Cheers and God bless!
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
Tattoo Blog Stirs Debate
So, when I opened my Myspace account yesterday morning I saw that I had a new comment on my blog about Christians and tattoos. This comment was the first one that was not a compliment or "Amen!" The opening line spoke of "open rebuke being better than secret love." I knew it was only a matter of time before one of these types of comments came up, and it actually took a little longer than I expected. But I digress.
In an effort to make certain I didn't fly off the handle and jump to conclusions and start attacking back, I wrote the comment author and asked for a bit of an explanation for what was written. I didn't receive that email until today.
When I checked my Myspace this morning I had another negative comment regarding my tattoos. I was told that I disappointed this individual, that I was a bad example to the youth at church, and in a roundabout way, I was accused of twisting scripture to ease a guilty heart.
It was kind of difficult to keep my tongue from lashing out and striking at these people. Part of me really wanted to, but another part of me, a bigger, deeper part of me wants to be cautious in what I say and how I say it so that I can effectively wage a revolution and not shoot myself in the foot by acting childish.
It's a bit of a tightrope. On one hand, I don't want to be confrontational. On the other hand, a big part of me wants to be confrontational so that I might have an opportunity to address the closed-mindedness that I've dealt with for so long. I feel I have a right and a responsibility to defend myself when my character is attacked, yet I have to carefully draw a line between personal attack and expression of opinion. As much as it sounds like a big headache, I think it's kind of where I love to be. I love being challenged and I love causing others to think and question the status quo and discover their beliefs for themselves. Which brings me to another point.
I'm amazed sometimes (although I know I shouldn't be) at some people's willingness to just accept without question what's handed to them. When something comes up that challenges them to think for themselves, they either back up completely without an answer, or they start attacking. I would like to think that I'm not that different from everyone else. Maybe I am, but I just don't think so. As I was growing up I accepted what I was taught without questions. What my elders taught me was absolutely right and there was no need to question it. But as I got older, I started to see that maybe what I'd been taught all my life wasn't necessarily correct. So I studied. I wanted to find out for myself what God's word really had to say about things. I certainly don't know everything but I'm confident in saying that much of what I know and believe I've discovered on my own. Most of it lines right up with what I've always been taught. Some of it does not. And what blows my mind is that people would not only not think for themselves, but that they would attack anyone that does.
And sadly, this is the great truth of religion; more often than not, people choose not to think for themselves. It's so much easier to be spoon-fed truth than to seek and find it for yourself. I was actually told by one of the individuals that they always have and always will swim upstream, insinuating that I was "going with the flow." But it's easy to "swim upstream" if everyone around you is swimming the same direction. It's a whole lot more difficult when you don't fit in with the world OR the church. It's much more difficult when you refuse to fit in with the ungodly and you're mildly outcasted by your brothers and sisters because you think for yourself.
And another thing... I opened up my own can of worms by posting pictures of my tattoo and a blog explaining it. But had I not told anyone and kept it a secret, then I would have been "hiding my guilt" and "be sure your sins will find you out" and all that garbage if and when anyone did see it or find out about it. There's literally no way to win other than to do exactly what they want you to do and live up to their standard, which brings me to my final point.
I believe I've said it nearly a million times before, and I feel the need to say it again. Seek out your own soul's salvation with fear and trembling. That means study and research and figure things out for yourself with caution and reverence. That is precisely what I did. It is impossible to please everyone. That's a losing game and only losers play it. I'm sad to admit that I've tried, and it cannot be done. Sooner or later, you're going to do or say something that doesn't fit their standard of what a Christian should be. I cannot, and hereby refuse to live to anyone else's standards any longer. I must live up to the standard that God has set out for me. When it all comes down, your standard isn't going to be what gets me into heaven. As long as I'm living and walking according to God's word, and I feel no condemnation in my heart, then it doesn't matter who agrees or disagrees with me. It's God's opinion that matters to me, and whether or not I live up to your ideas of what a Christian looks like or smells like, sounds like, listens too, etc., does not matter. That's not what is going to allow God to say "Well done thou good and faithful servant..."
In an effort to make certain I didn't fly off the handle and jump to conclusions and start attacking back, I wrote the comment author and asked for a bit of an explanation for what was written. I didn't receive that email until today.
When I checked my Myspace this morning I had another negative comment regarding my tattoos. I was told that I disappointed this individual, that I was a bad example to the youth at church, and in a roundabout way, I was accused of twisting scripture to ease a guilty heart.
It was kind of difficult to keep my tongue from lashing out and striking at these people. Part of me really wanted to, but another part of me, a bigger, deeper part of me wants to be cautious in what I say and how I say it so that I can effectively wage a revolution and not shoot myself in the foot by acting childish.
It's a bit of a tightrope. On one hand, I don't want to be confrontational. On the other hand, a big part of me wants to be confrontational so that I might have an opportunity to address the closed-mindedness that I've dealt with for so long. I feel I have a right and a responsibility to defend myself when my character is attacked, yet I have to carefully draw a line between personal attack and expression of opinion. As much as it sounds like a big headache, I think it's kind of where I love to be. I love being challenged and I love causing others to think and question the status quo and discover their beliefs for themselves. Which brings me to another point.
I'm amazed sometimes (although I know I shouldn't be) at some people's willingness to just accept without question what's handed to them. When something comes up that challenges them to think for themselves, they either back up completely without an answer, or they start attacking. I would like to think that I'm not that different from everyone else. Maybe I am, but I just don't think so. As I was growing up I accepted what I was taught without questions. What my elders taught me was absolutely right and there was no need to question it. But as I got older, I started to see that maybe what I'd been taught all my life wasn't necessarily correct. So I studied. I wanted to find out for myself what God's word really had to say about things. I certainly don't know everything but I'm confident in saying that much of what I know and believe I've discovered on my own. Most of it lines right up with what I've always been taught. Some of it does not. And what blows my mind is that people would not only not think for themselves, but that they would attack anyone that does.
And sadly, this is the great truth of religion; more often than not, people choose not to think for themselves. It's so much easier to be spoon-fed truth than to seek and find it for yourself. I was actually told by one of the individuals that they always have and always will swim upstream, insinuating that I was "going with the flow." But it's easy to "swim upstream" if everyone around you is swimming the same direction. It's a whole lot more difficult when you don't fit in with the world OR the church. It's much more difficult when you refuse to fit in with the ungodly and you're mildly outcasted by your brothers and sisters because you think for yourself.
And another thing... I opened up my own can of worms by posting pictures of my tattoo and a blog explaining it. But had I not told anyone and kept it a secret, then I would have been "hiding my guilt" and "be sure your sins will find you out" and all that garbage if and when anyone did see it or find out about it. There's literally no way to win other than to do exactly what they want you to do and live up to their standard, which brings me to my final point.
I believe I've said it nearly a million times before, and I feel the need to say it again. Seek out your own soul's salvation with fear and trembling. That means study and research and figure things out for yourself with caution and reverence. That is precisely what I did. It is impossible to please everyone. That's a losing game and only losers play it. I'm sad to admit that I've tried, and it cannot be done. Sooner or later, you're going to do or say something that doesn't fit their standard of what a Christian should be. I cannot, and hereby refuse to live to anyone else's standards any longer. I must live up to the standard that God has set out for me. When it all comes down, your standard isn't going to be what gets me into heaven. As long as I'm living and walking according to God's word, and I feel no condemnation in my heart, then it doesn't matter who agrees or disagrees with me. It's God's opinion that matters to me, and whether or not I live up to your ideas of what a Christian looks like or smells like, sounds like, listens too, etc., does not matter. That's not what is going to allow God to say "Well done thou good and faithful servant..."
Saturday, October 20, 2007
Spent the day wheeling...
It has been raining the last couple of days, so my brother called me and wanted to go wheeling today and play in some mud puddles. We had a pretty great time. Unfortunately, there wasn't a lot of mud holes, but we certainly made the most of the ones we could find. We explored some pretty cool trails in the foothills between the old Emmett Road (from South Slope to Middleton) and Highway 16. I didn't realize just how much land there was between there.
God was definitely with me today. As I was driving to the trails, I was listening to the stereo...Switchfoot's "Awakening" came on. I don't think that the song is necessarily a super-spiritual one, but I was enjoying it and just started worshipping. It's amazing how our words can fall so short of what we're really trying to say. I was praying "God, give me worship." Grammatically speaking, those words sound like I'm asking God to worship me. But that was the only way that I could think to get the emotion behind the words to come out. I don't want God to worship me, I want to worship Him. I was asking him for the opportunity to worship him in song the way that I feel.
More often than not, I don't get to do that at church. I've discovered that I have a heart to lead worship, to facilitate a connection between God and his people where we can get all of our crap and garbage out of the way and allow God to get through to our hearts. But when we sing worship at church, it's the same old-same old, G-C-D chord, Southern-Gospel stuff that we've been singing literally all my life. Be it wrong or right, I can't help but feel annoyed by it and annoyed by the people who plug their ears at the new songs but sing and smile for the same old stuff.
Someone once told me that one of the places anger comes from is disappointment. And he was absolutely correct. I get angry about church because I'm disappointed in people. I'm disappointed that I'm obligated to play the songs they like, but if I'm ever given the opportunity to play worship that I can worship to, it annoys them. It seems so selfish and petty, but it's something that I'm so passionate about and I just don't have any place. It's like a kid with $5 in his pocket and absolutely no place to spend it. He's forced to just be content with knowing he's got $5. But the money does him or anyone else any good because he's got no place to use it. That's how I feel.
So this morning I prayed "God, give me worship." God, give me someplace to operate...someplace to put to good use the passion and desire that you've given me. Give me people with like minds and hearts to worship with.
I also prayed for God to purify me. Nobody's perfect and we all need God's cleansing. I've got things in my life that I want to do and accomplish, both for myself and in ministry for God, and with all my crap in the way, I won't get there. I just want God to shatter me, pick out all the bad, melt me down, skim off the leftover crap, and make me into something beautiful. I'm called to so much more than what I'm living; called to so much more than what I'm currently doing. I'm called to so much more than playing 2nd chair guitar to music I can hardly stand for people who abhor change. I'm called to worship, to lead worship, and to be a distribution hub for the spiritual and monetary blessings of God for other people. And until God works out all the crap in me, I won't get there. And until I let God work it out, it won't get worked out.
On a completely different note (but within the same chord) God is so awesome. We stopped along the trail today on the top of a hill. I jumped out of my Xterra and looked all around me. 360 degrees of beauty. The clouds seemed like I could almost touch them. To the east and west the hills just kept rolling on with the occasional fenceline or sagebrush, to the north was the Butte, shadowed by large rain clouds. To the south was the entire Treasure Valley behind what seemed to be an eternity of more beautiful rolling hills. As the sun shined down on me and I took in the view all around me, I just marveled at how awesome our God is. He creates so much beauty. Everything he creates is good. He is so worthy of all the best in me, yet so undeserving of all my garbage. It's weird, but seeing beauty like that makes me want to be a better person, a better son.
God was definitely with me today. As I was driving to the trails, I was listening to the stereo...Switchfoot's "Awakening" came on. I don't think that the song is necessarily a super-spiritual one, but I was enjoying it and just started worshipping. It's amazing how our words can fall so short of what we're really trying to say. I was praying "God, give me worship." Grammatically speaking, those words sound like I'm asking God to worship me. But that was the only way that I could think to get the emotion behind the words to come out. I don't want God to worship me, I want to worship Him. I was asking him for the opportunity to worship him in song the way that I feel.
More often than not, I don't get to do that at church. I've discovered that I have a heart to lead worship, to facilitate a connection between God and his people where we can get all of our crap and garbage out of the way and allow God to get through to our hearts. But when we sing worship at church, it's the same old-same old, G-C-D chord, Southern-Gospel stuff that we've been singing literally all my life. Be it wrong or right, I can't help but feel annoyed by it and annoyed by the people who plug their ears at the new songs but sing and smile for the same old stuff.
Someone once told me that one of the places anger comes from is disappointment. And he was absolutely correct. I get angry about church because I'm disappointed in people. I'm disappointed that I'm obligated to play the songs they like, but if I'm ever given the opportunity to play worship that I can worship to, it annoys them. It seems so selfish and petty, but it's something that I'm so passionate about and I just don't have any place. It's like a kid with $5 in his pocket and absolutely no place to spend it. He's forced to just be content with knowing he's got $5. But the money does him or anyone else any good because he's got no place to use it. That's how I feel.
So this morning I prayed "God, give me worship." God, give me someplace to operate...someplace to put to good use the passion and desire that you've given me. Give me people with like minds and hearts to worship with.
I also prayed for God to purify me. Nobody's perfect and we all need God's cleansing. I've got things in my life that I want to do and accomplish, both for myself and in ministry for God, and with all my crap in the way, I won't get there. I just want God to shatter me, pick out all the bad, melt me down, skim off the leftover crap, and make me into something beautiful. I'm called to so much more than what I'm living; called to so much more than what I'm currently doing. I'm called to so much more than playing 2nd chair guitar to music I can hardly stand for people who abhor change. I'm called to worship, to lead worship, and to be a distribution hub for the spiritual and monetary blessings of God for other people. And until God works out all the crap in me, I won't get there. And until I let God work it out, it won't get worked out.
On a completely different note (but within the same chord) God is so awesome. We stopped along the trail today on the top of a hill. I jumped out of my Xterra and looked all around me. 360 degrees of beauty. The clouds seemed like I could almost touch them. To the east and west the hills just kept rolling on with the occasional fenceline or sagebrush, to the north was the Butte, shadowed by large rain clouds. To the south was the entire Treasure Valley behind what seemed to be an eternity of more beautiful rolling hills. As the sun shined down on me and I took in the view all around me, I just marveled at how awesome our God is. He creates so much beauty. Everything he creates is good. He is so worthy of all the best in me, yet so undeserving of all my garbage. It's weird, but seeing beauty like that makes me want to be a better person, a better son.
Friday, October 19, 2007
A letter to Representative Pete Stark
As I'm sure you've heard, Representative Pete Stark shot his big fat mouth off and completely insulted President Bush and more importantly, our troops. You can read his comments elsewhere on the ol' interweb if you have not heard what he said.
Thankfully, I am not one of his constituents. But I am an American. And as such, I thought his outrageous words warranted a response from me. I have no idea if he will read the email I sent him or not because I am not one of his constituents, but I certainly hope he does. Below is the email that I sent to Representative Pete Stark. He is truly the personification of human feces.
"Dear Representative Stark,
While I am thankful NOT to be one of your constituents, I felt that your comments were heinous enough to warrant an email from me. I don't know if you'll get or read this email, but I'm sending it anyways.
The things you spoke about our President and our troops were not only disrespectful but also, in my opinion, un-American. You, Sir, are just one of the many reasons that this country is falling apart. Your lack of respect and flippant comments about the troops that are risking and sacrificing their lives for freedom, both ours and others, is absolutely detestable. I'm so thankful that you do not represent me or my state, and I just wanted you to know that I feel you are a disgrace to your office and this country. It saddens me to know that people actually voted for you and it saddens me even more to know that you are allowed to say such horrible things "on their behalf."
I do not agree with everything our President has done. I do believe completely that Saddam-controlled Iraq was a threat to the world and this country. I also believe that as a country so blessed by God, it is our moral duty and obligation to protect and defend weaker individuals around the world. I believe that is exactly what the President believes as well.
Just because you are spineless and detestable does not mean that the rest of this nation is. Instead of tearing down our troops or our President you should be using your office to support both, even if that means that in the interest of your constituents you try and get the troops home. But bomb-throwing is just childish, and quite frankly, if I would have heard you say those things in a restaurant, on a street-corner, or in a bar, there's a very good chance that I would have punched you right in the mouth, and I'm confident to say that I'm not the only American who feels so outraged by your comments.
You, Sir, are a disgrace.
Sincerely,
Houston D White
Proud American"
Thankfully, I am not one of his constituents. But I am an American. And as such, I thought his outrageous words warranted a response from me. I have no idea if he will read the email I sent him or not because I am not one of his constituents, but I certainly hope he does. Below is the email that I sent to Representative Pete Stark. He is truly the personification of human feces.
"Dear Representative Stark,
While I am thankful NOT to be one of your constituents, I felt that your comments were heinous enough to warrant an email from me. I don't know if you'll get or read this email, but I'm sending it anyways.
The things you spoke about our President and our troops were not only disrespectful but also, in my opinion, un-American. You, Sir, are just one of the many reasons that this country is falling apart. Your lack of respect and flippant comments about the troops that are risking and sacrificing their lives for freedom, both ours and others, is absolutely detestable. I'm so thankful that you do not represent me or my state, and I just wanted you to know that I feel you are a disgrace to your office and this country. It saddens me to know that people actually voted for you and it saddens me even more to know that you are allowed to say such horrible things "on their behalf."
I do not agree with everything our President has done. I do believe completely that Saddam-controlled Iraq was a threat to the world and this country. I also believe that as a country so blessed by God, it is our moral duty and obligation to protect and defend weaker individuals around the world. I believe that is exactly what the President believes as well.
Just because you are spineless and detestable does not mean that the rest of this nation is. Instead of tearing down our troops or our President you should be using your office to support both, even if that means that in the interest of your constituents you try and get the troops home. But bomb-throwing is just childish, and quite frankly, if I would have heard you say those things in a restaurant, on a street-corner, or in a bar, there's a very good chance that I would have punched you right in the mouth, and I'm confident to say that I'm not the only American who feels so outraged by your comments.
You, Sir, are a disgrace.
Sincerely,
Houston D White
Proud American"
First Blog
Well, I decided today to jump into the blogging craze. Today has been quite an interesting day in politics, and it has me quite fired up. So, in an effort to stop driving my wife crazy with all my political ranting, I'm putting my thoughts here.
I would like to consider myself an average guy. I'm a devout Christian who is sick to death of the politics of religion. I'm a proud American who is fed up with partisan politics and namely, the extreme left. I'm a loving husband and father-to-be that would like to punch in the mouth the people that are destroying the family values that our country was founded upon. And lastly, I am a compassionate human being that cannot stand to sit silently by and watch injustice after injustice take place here and abroad.
Thank God for the freedom of speech. I say that because there is a very good chance that I'll eventually say something that will tick someone off. I like to think of myself as someone who calls them as I see them; a strike is a strike, which is fine by most people unless they believe wholeheartedly that it was not a strike. And unfortunately, there are those who don't believe strikes of any sort to be politically correct.
If you read enough of my blogs, you'll discover that I'm far from politically correct. I've been taught that what is popular is not always right and what is right is not always popular. I've also been raised to stand up for what I believe. So it is in that spirit that I post this blog, my next blog, and God only knows how many more after that. Hopefully, someone will read this and agree. But more importantly, it is my goal that someone will read this and think for themselves and not think what the liberal, left-slanted media would have them to think.
I would like to consider myself an average guy. I'm a devout Christian who is sick to death of the politics of religion. I'm a proud American who is fed up with partisan politics and namely, the extreme left. I'm a loving husband and father-to-be that would like to punch in the mouth the people that are destroying the family values that our country was founded upon. And lastly, I am a compassionate human being that cannot stand to sit silently by and watch injustice after injustice take place here and abroad.
Thank God for the freedom of speech. I say that because there is a very good chance that I'll eventually say something that will tick someone off. I like to think of myself as someone who calls them as I see them; a strike is a strike, which is fine by most people unless they believe wholeheartedly that it was not a strike. And unfortunately, there are those who don't believe strikes of any sort to be politically correct.
If you read enough of my blogs, you'll discover that I'm far from politically correct. I've been taught that what is popular is not always right and what is right is not always popular. I've also been raised to stand up for what I believe. So it is in that spirit that I post this blog, my next blog, and God only knows how many more after that. Hopefully, someone will read this and agree. But more importantly, it is my goal that someone will read this and think for themselves and not think what the liberal, left-slanted media would have them to think.
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