When You’re Dark and Divisive…

See, there's this thing called biology...

First of all to understand the humor in this post, you’re going to need to know I am generally pretty cheerful, perky even. I can drive my hubby nuts in the morning because I wake up ready to be out trilling with the forest creatures.  Then I realize there’s going to be coffee involved and I can hardly contain my excitement.

So you see, I am literally all about selling joy, often in the form of biscuits and gravy. How in the world did I ever become the dark and divisive one??

Second, I am totally community oriented, as in let’s all just be happy and get along. Let’s just avoid every single controversial subject and put family, relationship, and connection first.  I don’t care if you have a bone through your nose and a Bernie Sanders likeness painted across your car. It’s all good! Let’s just enjoy our time…

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Christian Culpability in the Recent Riots

In His Image

Editors Note: Jeremy Sanders rejoins us to explain why Christians are partially to blame for the recent riots and the acceptance of social justice.

The Pastor of my church recently started a series exploring various Psalms, starting with Psalm 1. Some of the points he discussed are extremely applicable to the issues facing our country today. Given recent experiences I have had, as well as observing various “Christian” responses to the culture, it made me realize just how applicable Psalm 1 is to today’s issues.

Psalm 1 also demonstrates that while the blame for the recent riots rests on the rioters, as well as a government that is failing to preserve the peace, there are others who must also share responsibility. Christians, the family, the church all share culpability for our current issues.  If Christians had stayed strong, clung to God’s Word, and trained their kids to follow righteousness, we…

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“Science” is Not “Truth!”

See, there's this thing called biology...

So…..we are going to need to put this man on my giant catapult and just fling him off my field, fling him right out of my kingdom. He has seriously annoyed me. Begone, little man, begone.

Anthony Fauci recently blamed the country’s ineffective pandemic response on an American “anti-science bias.” He called this bias “inconceivable,” because “science is truth.”-link here

The silly article then proceeds to try to make the case that humans are hardwired to dismiss coronavirus facts that don’t align with our worldview. What an astounding accusation. Au contraire! They have it exactly backwards. I am actually struggling (and failing rather miserably) to incorporate this worldview into my understanding of science.

So, science is not “truth.” It wasn’t truth when science suggested sailors would fall off the edge of the Earth. It wasn’t “truth” when it laughed at people who dared to suggest there might be a…

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– Following Christ Will Be Worth It All –

His Eternal Word

Romans 5:8, “God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us”

John 14:3, “I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also”
__________

My brethren, regardless of whether you’re new in the faith or a longtime veteran, you’re most likely experiencing struggles, challenges and heartaches, not to mention strong opposition from satan, and fierce hatred from a world that opposes Christ and His precious Word. However, if the journey seems too much to bear, remember that Christ gave us the example, game plan, and final destination for those of us who follow after Him in obedience. He experienced the ultimate test of hardship by going through the crucifixion experience, but, through great endurance, He persevered and was ultimately raised to new life, achieving the beautiful result of salvation for those who believe…

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Addiction Killed Them All

See, there's this thing called biology...

A bunch of people are unhappy with my post, “Do you know what really killed George Floyd?”  Spoiler alert here, but addiction killed him. 

So I’m just going to double down and say it again, addiction killed him. It isn’t about fault, blame, and the worth of a life, of course his life had great value and it mattered. But addiction comes only to steal, kill, and destroy. Addiction doesn’t “care” if your life matters.

I know this because people whose lives mattered to me have been killed because of their addiction.

Some people through absolutely no fault of their own were robbed, murdered and set on fire. They weren’t even addicts, but you know what? Addiction still killed them.

Friend of mine was murdered by her husband. You know what really killed her? His addiction.

A local kid was killed by the cops in Seattle. You know what got…

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The center of the universe

For thousands of years everyone regarded the earth as the center of creation and believed that the sun, moon, and stars revolved around it.  Early in the 16th century Nicolaus Copernicus proved that this belief was wrong and that the earth revolved around the sun.

The Bible tells us that this earth will someday be destroyed by fire and replaced by a new one.

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away, and the sea was no more.(Revelation 21:1)

This new earth will become God’s dwelling place.

And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying, “Behold, the dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God.  (Revelation 21:3)

We know that the world we live in now is not the center of the universe but I think it is possible that the new earth might be.  After all it will be God’s dwelling place.  Perhaps the erroneous belief that many held in the past will become the truth.

Ectopic pregnancies

Here is something I read on Facebook.

Ectopic pregnancies

by Emily Thomes

“When I tell people that there is no medical reason for an abortion, people often bring up the issue of ectopic pregnancies. Even well meaning, concerned pro-life people bring this up. They don’t know how to answer it and for this reason may say they are “pro life with exceptions”. This is the loophole pro aborts need to push abortion on demand, without restrictions, and without apology. If we are to abolish the evil of abortion, we would do a service to ourselves to better understand what is (and is not) an ectopic and how it relates to abortion.

Lordship and obedience

Here is something I read on Facebook.

Lordship and obedience

by Emily Thomes

“”Why do you call me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do what I tell you? Everyone who comes to me and hears my words and does them, I will show you what he is like: he is like a man building a house, who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock. And when a flood arose, the stream broke against that house and could not shake it, because it had been well built. But the one who hears and does not do them is like a man who built a house on the ground without a foundation. When the stream broke against it, immediately it fell, and the ruin of that house was great.””
‭‭- Luke‬ ‭6:46-49‬

Do animals go to Heaven when they die?

When a human dies his death does not mean that he ceases to exist.  The physical body dies but the immaterial part will exist forever, either in Heaven or in Hell.  But what happens when an animal dies?  Is that the end of its existence or does some part of it live on?

The most common belief is that humans continue to exist after death because they have souls and animals don’t.  There are two things wrong with this belief.

True conversion

Here is something I read on Facebook.

True conversion

by Blaine Michael Seman

Twenty years ago today, at 1:47am Ingrid grabbed my hand and said “This is what we prayed for.” (She always prayed that we would die together). What neither Ingrid nor I knew is that we were not going to die and go to heaven as we believed but would have gone to a hypocrite’s hell. What a double shock that would have been. No words.

An easy guide to understanding math

Math can be hard, but understanding the following rules will make you an expert:

1. Ratio of an igloo’s circumference to its diameter = Eskimo Pi

2. 2000 pounds of Chinese soup = Won ton

3. 1 millionth of a mouthwash = 1 microscope

4. Time between slipping on a peel and smacking the pavement = 1
bananosecond

5. Weight an evangelist carries with God = 1 billigram

What if?

Have you ever looked back at some decision you made and wondered what would have happened if you had decided differently?  During the summer of 1957, when I was sixteen years old, I made the most important decision of my life.  I put my faith in Jesus Christ so that my sins could be forgiven.  Sometimes I wonder what my life would have been like if I had not done that.

The Celestial Railroad

In 1678 John Bunyan published Pilgrim’s Progress.  It describes the journey of a  man named Christian from the City of Destruction to the Celestial City and was intended as an allegory of the Christian life.  In 1684 he published part two, which tells how Christian’s wife, Christiana, made the same trip with her children.  The second part ends with these words:

Shall it be my lot to go that way again, I may give those that desire it an account of what I here am silent about.  Meanwhile I bid my reader Adieu.

Bunyan seems to be saying that he intends to write a sequel to the book.  If this is true he never did so because he died four years later.  But in 1843 Nathaniel Hawthorne wrote a short story called “The Celestial Railroad” which was a sequel to Bunyan’s work.  It tells of a railroad that was constructed between the City of Destruction and the Celestial City so people could travel the route more easily and avoid the difficulties that Christian and his wife encountered.  You can read the story here:

The Celestial Railroad

Lexophiles

Lexophile describes those that have a love for words, such as “you can tune a piano, but you can’t tuna fish,” or “To write with a broken pencil is pointless” An annual competition is held by the New York Times to see who can create the best original lexophile.

This year’s winning submission is posted at the very end.

Interpreting the Bible

Here is some good advice from a Facebook friend, Joshua Agan, on how to interpret the Bible.

***

When people hear me say, “Take the Scriptures literally,” they are quick to say, “So you believe that Jesus is a wooden door, AND he is actual bread?!”

Don’t be stupid.

Scripture contains poetry, prose, parables and prophesies. You must take these literary types in their given sense.

But that leads to a very important conclusion. When Scripture gives us a literary device, accept it in its basic form as given. So when Scripture gives us truths that are not in some literary device, but rather given as plain fact—do we accept it as given, or do we allegorize it anyway?

Some people are comfortable reading that God created in six days, and accepting six days. But then those same people read other truths given, and suddenly try to add deeper meaning to it than what Scripture provides.

I challenge you to approach the Scriptures differently tomorrow.

Accept the text as if it was given to you as a plain statement of Truth from a Father to His child. Well, because it is.

A child does not accept a plain statement and try to allegorize and theorize on the deeper meanings of the linguistic anomalies. A child receives what he is given.

Lean not on your own understanding, friend. Ask the Spirit of Truth to lead you. Follow as a child, wherever the Spirit leads. That requires humility, by the way. It offends our intellect.

“What if this plain statement were the plain truth? What else would God need to say differently in order to get you to accept the plain statement as it is given?”

This question will turn many a tradition on its heels. Ask the Spirit to help us. Mean it. Then listen.

You won’t be disappointed.

Who do you write like?

Have you ever wondered what famous author your writing is most like?  If so you can find out here:

iwl.me

Write something or copy and paste something you have already written on the internet and ask the program to analyze it.  It will tell you what well known author you most resemble.

Apparently my writing style is a cross between Anne Rice’s and Arthur Clarke’s.  I submitted five posts from this blog.  Three resembled  the writing of Anne Rice and two that of Arthur Clarke.  Obviously having the same style as an author doesn’t mean you have the same talent.  If it did I could have been a professional author all of my life rather than having to do manual work and I would probably be famous today.

Treating mental illness

While Jesus was on earth he encountered a lot of people who were demon possessed.  In every case he commanded the demon to leave the person and it obeyed.  Today many people don’t believe in the existence of demons and claim that those “demon possessed” people were actually mentally ill.  If they are right, then the Bible reveals a new method for treating mental illness.

Then they sailed to the country of the Gerasenes, which is opposite Galilee. When Jesus had stepped out on land, there met him a man from the city who had demons. For a long time he had worn no clothes, and he had not lived in a house but among the tombs.

When he saw Jesus, he cried out and fell down before him and said with a loud voice, “What have you to do with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you, do not torment me.” For he had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. (For many a time it had seized him. He was kept under guard and bound with chains and shackles, but he would break the bonds and be driven by the demon into the desert.)

Jesus then asked him, “What is your name?” And he said, “Legion,” for many demons had entered him. And they begged him not to command them to depart into the abyss.

Now a large herd of pigs was feeding there on the hillside, and they begged him to let them enter these. So he gave them permission.Then the demons came out of the man and entered the pigs, and the herd rushed down the steep bank into the lake and drowned.  (Luke 8:26-33)

Transgender – the other side of the story, part 2

Recently I published a post called Transgender – the other side of the story  in which I listed some sites of organizations that opposed society’s support of people who wish to change their genders.  Since then I have learned about another such site.  It is called help4families.org.

Help4Families acknowledges that the struggles gender-confused people endure are more than psychosomatic; they are real and they need to be addressed seriously, with godly compassion. But God’s compassion cannot—must not—be divorced from His perfection and His sovereign, righteous rule. Just as Jesus concurrently displayed God’s compassion and righteousness (John 8:2-11), so must His followers (Galatians 6:1-2; Ephesians 4:15; Jude 1:22–23).

Transgender – the other side of the story

There is a lot of news about transgender people in the media today.  Most of the stories support the belief that some people are really of the opposite gender of the bodies they are born in and we need to support their decision to live as their “real” gender.  Among other things this means they should be allowed to use the restrooms and dressing rooms of their choice and not be be limited to using the ones assigned to their physical gender.  Anyone who objects is condemned as being transphobic.

Although we live in a culture which believes we should affirm transgenders by allowing them to live as they choose there are still some who disagree with this.  Here are some sites that reject the popular views.

Gay Pride Month

I have learned that June is Gay Pride Month.  I am sure that those responsible for this designation care about gay people and want to help them, but I wonder if they know what the Bible says about pride.

God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded. Be wretched and mourn and weep. Let your laughter be turned to mourning and your joy to gloom.Humble yourselves before the Lord, and he will exalt you.  (James 4:6-10)

They are actually advocating that gays adopt a course of action that will lead to their being opposed by God.  If they do this, nothing they try to do will be successful.  On the other hand God will show his grace to them if they are humble.

The rest of this passage describes how a person practices humility.  A humble person submits to God and draws near to him.  He cleanses his life of all sin, both in action and in thought.  He mourns the sinfulness of his past life.  Anyone who does these things will receive God’s grace and be exalted by him.

If you care about gays it would be better to promote the adoption of a Gay Humility Month, when gays are encouraged to do those things which will enable them to receive God’s blessings.  And it wouldn’t hurt to have a Straight Humilty Month too.  Straight people are just as guilty of pride as gay people are.