Prop 8 and the People

We, the people of California, voted to approve Prop 8, defining marriage as one man, one woman. We did this a few years ago, but the Supreme Court overturned the will of the people, saying it was unconstitutional.

Now, we have amended our constitution, and the same group is challenging it. Their argument is that this is not an amendment, but a fundamental change. If this is the case, then our legislature needs to approve it.

So, in two separate votes the people of California have spoken. And, it doesn't appear to matter what we desire. Our choices go through the same small group of people to evaluate and approve.

Its like we are children, and they are parents, teachers, or mentors. We don't know whats best for us. They do. We can state our desires, but they will chose whether we can have them or not.

Legalize gay marriage, abortion, and marijuana. But you can't stand up and state that there are Absolutes. Moral truths.

I thought that we lived in a country governed "by the people, for the people." Not from where I stand. My voice has been silenced. I am governed, but I have no say in it, because I am not a judge in San Francisco.

If you are not liberal in your outlooks, you are silenced and ignored.

IDOP

International Day of Prayer for the Persecuted Church.

We have so much to be thankful for, yet we take most of it for granted. Christians around the world are persecuted horribly for their faith. The fighting in Sudan, north vs south, is also Arab Muslim vs African Christians. The Christians now have oil, and the Muslims want it.

In India, in the last 60 days, 60 Christians have died, 18,000 injured, 4,500 homes and churches burned, and 50,000 homeless.

In China, all churches must register. Once registered, the government tells you what to preach, who your pastor will be, etc. Of course, Christians don't get promotions, or good jobs, or any kind of assistance. Children under 18 are not allowed to go to church, receive any sort of religious education, or read a bible.

In some 'Christian' nations, the predominate church, whether it be Orthodox or Catholic, pressures the local government to restrict the activities of evangelical churches. No in-home bible studies. No public revival meetings. Things like that are used to keep their hold on the people.

Whether it be atheist, Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, or other Christians, this is all persecution. We need to remember our brothers and sister in chains.

Another Test

I just added another gadget to my igoogle page, that allows me to post to my blogs from right here.

This is a test to see if it works.

First Day of Prayer for Barack

I was going to call it " First Day of Prayer for Obama" but I detest that name.  "Barack" means "blessings" and I can live with that.

I signed up for the 77 Days of Prayer, which is for the 77 days between the election and the inauguration.  This first day focuses on God's sovereignty.  This is something I needed to hear.

We put our trust in You to use the President-Elect—and every person
chosen yesterday—to serve Your great and high purposes for our nation.

I trust in God, and so I will trust him with this election.  I have to believe that this is the man God wants elected, or else I believe that 51% of the American voters thwarted the will of God.

Which do you believe?  Romans 8 says that God uses everything for the good of those who love him.  This is something to be grateful for:  I believe that Barack will be a blessing for the world in God's hands.

I'm human, and I don't see how on earth this is possible.  But what is impossible on earth is possible in heaven.

Deep Magic: Memories and Dreams

"Parting is such sweet sorrow." Romeo and Juliet. Lovers, their love condemned by their families., doomed to separation. A union never to be realized.

Most of us know this line, and the sentiment behind behind. Though we part today, we know that we shall be reunited. Tomorrow, Next week. Next year.

But what about those who pass beyond those limits where reunion is a feasible possibility. Military families relocated to distant bases. High school and college graduation drawing pals, teams, and sweet hearts apart. College and careers luring children out of the nest with promises of freedom, flight to worlds unknown, there to build their own nests.

There is a line in an audio presentation of the life of Dietrich Boenhoffer: "It is only space that separates us." Today, space is a fragile barrier. Cell phones. Email. MySpace. These all give us a chance to reconnect with old friends and family, albeit in a distant manner. No touching, holding hands, hugging, going out to eat or to the movies together. No new memories made together, just a sharing of unshared memories made in different places.

Death, however, is a much stronger barrier, one that cannot be crossed by telephones or email. Once separated by death, only by death can we be reunited.

However, they still live in our memories, and we can remember the good times, and the bad times, if we so choose. Sometimes, they invade our dreams, creating impossible situations. A land dead grandparent going to Disney Land with my children. Applauding at my wife's graduation. Sitting and visiting in my home, oohing and aahing over my fishpond.

Distant friends are welcome into my dreams, too. In this way, I am able to make new memories with them. Memories and dreams reunite us, through various types of separation, in a magical way, bridging the gaps created by space, and even death.

Lust and Desire

This is another writing exercise from the book "Writing the Natural Way."

Lust is an absence of knowledge of our desires. What is it I want? I want this bauble. That toy. Another woman. More money. A better job. But there is no fulfillment in attaining these empty goals. They do not meet the basic criteria our hearts truly desire.

We struggle and strive to climb the ladder, to reach the heavens, only to find the clouds we reached are full of empty calories, and do not fill our bellies. We scratch and bite and claw, and slowly bleed to death from self inflicted wounds.

My heart's desire is to be right. T know that what I am attempting, attaining, accomplishing, is the right thing for me to be doing. And when was the last time I felt that way? "Go. Do this. Eat your veggies. Make your bed. Do your homework. Clean your room." In a word, happiness is found in a relationship.

To be happy, I need to make that other person happy. To make them happy, all I have to do is obey. "If it pleases you to please God, then you can do as you please." He is the source of all Life, the substance from which Reality springs, the fount of all Wisdom. If anyone knows his own mind, and what it takes to make himself happy, it is God. He alone, then, is qualified to take me in hand, and guide my life, in such a way, as to bring the desires of our hearts to fruition.

Life is good. God is good. His essence pervades our life like the scent of roses. Everywhere I turn His fulfilled promises stand out like roses in full bloom. He has given us each other. We have grown closer, intertwining, our lives becoming entangled, inseparably one.



Now, we have children, the fruit of our love for one another. Even in this desert we live in, God has blessed us. For the first time, we own our own home. We prayed for a fenced-in back yard, and a tree house for Ryan. The landscaping in the front yard is almost finished. Marigolds and roses, tulips and jasmine. Climbing, creeping, growing. Annuals, perennials, bushes, trees. Sweet scents flow into our home with every breeze.

The future looks good, too. Ryan's soccer skills are improving, as are his confidence and interpersonal skills. Hope is reading better, and her spelling is improving. Faith has decided to stay in town to get her RN degree. It will take longer, but she'll be able to spend more time with Hope and Ryan. We fully expect the future to blossom as beautifully as the present.

And after Faith's graduation on May 16th? I'd like to see her get her LVN and take a job at the hospital. Then, go on for her RN. She can get her Bachelor's online. Maybe go for her Master's, too? By this time, the kids will be close to graduating from high school. Or, maybe in college? After they're old enough, independent, Faith wants to become a traveler. Maine. Texas. Oregon. North Carolina. Places we've dreamed of visiting. Then, overseas with Nurses Without Borders. South America. Africa. The Far East.

Of course, these are dreams of a distant future. Like the smallest buds on a rose bush, we don't know what the future holds. But, we can close our eyes, and the scent of roses will surround us, whispering to us of God's promises.

Crystal Cove Pictures

This is a poem to my wife, Faith

This is a poem to my wife, Faith.

You are everything I am not,

everything I can never be.

Mother, Daughter, Wife,

My lover.

There are times I don't love myself,

and I don't see how anyone could.

Yet, you do,

and you convince me that I am lovable.

You complete me.

You make me who I am,

You drive me to be more than I am.

We all need someone like you:

a goad, a thorn, a rose,

a sweet perfume that clings to me

and tells me that I am beautiful.

You are my wife,

and I am ... yours.

Doh

Well, the poem that I just posted, which probably appears below this one, is screwed up.

The words are there, and the line breaks, but the spacing is ALL wrong. If I ever figure out how to fix it, I'll repost it.

I'll probably post some of my other writing exercises here, too.

I'm currently reading a book about writing, and its filled with exercises.  This is the result of one of them.

                                         March 20


Images of the sky
                                         reflected in melting icicles
        (unseen by unseeing eyes)
moving by rote
                     rocking a newborn boy

Black hat
                Black veil
                                Black dress
     twisting in a frigid wind

A sea of mourning
    seated on blue cushions
One blue suit amidst the black
                                          (a young man openly weeping)

Silent tears tracing silent paths
               cascading down a numb face
                           pale blue eyes focused on a memory of

Nurses running
                screaming "Code Blue"
                                                                Blue lips, cyanotic
Fixed, unseeing eyes, staring at the ceiling

Looking down,
                seeing Grandpa's eyes
                                 watching from a newborn's face.




Let me know what you think of it.  If you have questions about it, the symbolism, the scenery, let me know.

Afraid

I picked up a book about writing. This is the product of an exercise from the first chapter. Write about the word "Afraid."

As people, we fear many things. We fear pain and loss. But, we only fear for those things we care about. We fear for our lives. We fear the loss of our loved ones and our prized possessions. We fear failure.

We only fear for those things we care for. But, if we care for nothing, then we will have no fear. Our God commands us with these words though: Fear Not. He also commands us to love. Deeply and passionately. What we love, we should fear to lose.

How, then, can we love and still have no fear? "He is no fool who gives up what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose." What can we lose? Everything. What is eternal? God.

If you live your life with God, you have nothing to fear. If you live without God, you live in perpetual fear.

‘Mystery worshipper’ scheme could go nationwide

Well now, all I can say is "Its about time."

At first I was offended at the idea of a "mystery worshiper." Of course, I assumed it was some humanist/atheist/government group sending in the "mystery worshiper" in order to discredit that church, or the Church, as a whole.

Instead, it was a church organization who wanted to check on its friendliness and accessibility to the unchurched. They hired an unchurched person and sent them in to grade the church. They looked at warmth of welcome, length of sermon and style of music, among other aspects of the church service. They also looked at eye-contact and help with directions.

I was in a leadership training conference, and the speaker said, as a pastor, he hired local business men to come to his church and evaluate it, as a business man. $20 bought him professional advice. They mentioned things like light bulbs not matching, tears in the carpet which could be a tripping hazard, and bathroom cleanliness. When people go shopping, they have certain expectations. When people come to church, their expectations are often higher, since the Church represents God, and business are only looking out for themselves.

Just thinking about my church raises several questions in my mind. In my particular Sunday School class, their is a box of 'junk' sitting on a dresser in the corner. The dresser is used for storage, and the box of 'junk' is just ... a box of junk, as far as I can tell. As the Sunday School director, I need to look at all the rooms and see what we have, and what they need. The teachers can't be relied on in this area. Not because they are incompetent, but because they are inured to what is around them. I often don't see the mess at home because I'm used to it being there. The teachers, and everyone else in every church around the country, doesn't see what isn't there, because we're used to working around what we don't have.

Hopefully this "mystery worshiper" concept will catch on and we'll be able to improve our churches.

By the way, the churches had an average rating of 85%, with five scoring a perfect 100%. We're doing something right.‘Mystery worshipper’ scheme could go nationwide

To Vote or not To Vote? (What ridiculous choices we face)

Honestly, I haven't really looked at the candidates yet. Why bother? Its either in the hands of God, or the media. I trust one, but not the other.

There are roughly 300 million people in America. I'm not sure how many can vote, or how many will. Lets say .... one in ten? I'm probably over-estimating. That's 30 million voters.

Unfortunately, the way I understand things, I'm not voting for the president. I'm voting for someone who may or may not vote for the president: an electoral candidate. So, in California, lets say 100 people vote. (I know it will be more, but the math is easier this way.) 51 vote for a flaming liberal, and 49 vote for a conservative. The liberal wins, so the electoral candidate casts his vote for the liberal. What just happened to my vote? It became void. Useless. Of no account.

Do all the electoral candidates of a state vote as a block, for the candidate with the most votes in that state? (I think so in most cases.) So, the WHOLE state, in effect, votes for one candidate.

I live in California, a real big liberal state. My children will be taught about health, but not morals. Homosexuality, but not abstinence. Evolution, but not ethics. As a state, we will probably vote Democrat.

I honestly believe my vote will have absolutely no effect on the outcome of this election at all.

So, what can I do?

What do I do?

I play a game online. I go to work. I play around on Myspace, and a little bit on Facebook. I blog and I write. Oh, and I read. I attend church with my family.

Is my life making a difference?

I was reading the M88 blog on Myspace, and they were talking about the new Knight Rider movie on NBC. (I used to love that show.) Michael Knight's tag-line was something about one man making a difference. M88 was asking, in today's world, can one man make a difference?

Jesus' did. His life has changed mine, as well as those of my family, and many of my friends. I suppose my vote my not (probably won't) change things one way or the other. But my life, lived daily in front of friends and family, will affect those around me.

I've been re-reading a set of books I really enjoy, "The Chronicles of Amber" by Roger Zelazny. Book Five is called The Hand of Oberon. In this set of books, there is a black highway leading from the Courts of Chaos straight to the Amber. (If this doesn't make sense, don't worry.)

The current king is making plans with his family and friends on how to defeat the hordes that are marching up the road. "Why don't we take the war to them. We've got an army that can stomp them flat." Thats a paraphrase, by the way. Eric doesn't think so. Yes, he's got the armies. But, he realizes theres another problem.

The enemy of the moment is not as important as our own inner weakness. If this is not mended we are already defeated, though no foreign conqueror stands within our walls.

Yes, this is true. It is not the outward threats that are the greatest, but the inner ones. On a national level, we are threatened by terrorism. Yet, the greatest defeat we suffered was at the hands of people we allowed into our country. Now, we are much more vigilant. We argue and bicker amongst ourselves on many levels: national politics, local eminent domain, families, and ourselves. Whose the best leader? Republicans? Democrats? Does the city have the right to seize private property for public interest? Who does the dishes and picks up the kids?

What do I do know? Should I be doing this? Another book I read was part of the Enemy Mine set, by Barry Longyear. One of the races he created was small and weak. They're path to self-defense lay in misdirecting enemies towards each other, and away from them. 'Ensure that the stronger enemies wear themselves out fighting each other, and leave us alone' type philosophy. But, what if you only had one enemy? How do you deal with him? You divide him against himself. "You want to cross this line. If you do, I'll break every bone in your body. Now you don't want to cross that line. And yet, you still do." The lone enemy was then divided against himself.

We have many enemies in life. Yet, as was stated above, we must deal with our own inner weakness before the outer enemy can be dealt with. In the case of Amber, it was the road that needed to be dealt with. So we destroy this particular army, yet leave the Black Road. The enemies from the Courts of Chaos just raise another one, and another one, and another one. We will wear ourselves out fighting the same battles over and over and over.

What we need to do is remove the Black Road from our lives. For each of us, it is probably something different. But, we need to do more than remove something. That only creates a vacuum. And a vacuum must be filled with something. I, for one, prefer to chose what fills that vacuum than to let random chance, or worse yet, my enemy, decide what goes there.

Many people quit smoking, only to gain weight. You have to fill that vacuum somehow. Jesus said that if a demon is cast out, it goes and looks around, then comes back to check out its original host. If that host is still empty, it returns with seven more worse than itself. That host needs to fill that place with the Holy Spirit.

Here's another analogy: Ever have someone tell you NOT to think about chocolate cake? Do you know how to succeed in this? Think about something else. Reading. Work. Writing. Blogging. Play a game. Play with you children. Trying to NOT do something is hard. Try to do SOMETHING in its stead.

Most of us have a BlackRoad that the enemy uses to assault us. We need to deal with that road to keep the enemy at bay.