Confessions of a Shiftless Mind

I am sure by now everyone has heard of her silly blaspheming over in Rome, in front of a mirror-cross. I ran across Pursuing Holiness, an interesting blog I plan to read more of, commenting on her escapades. It occurred to me as I gazed upon her silly act, that she might straighten up if for one minute she actually had to be suspended from a cross in the same manner Jesus was. Not standing on a platform, but with a spike through her heels. Not resting her wrists on a couple of pegs, but with nails through her wrists, holding her to a piece of wood.

Do I want to see her dead? No. I don’t wish death on anyone. I’d like her to sample the suffering Christ endured for her blaspheming, idolatrous soul. Just for a minute. I’d take her down afterwards, and get her on over to the luxury hospital of her choice to see her patched up again.

Hey - she’d get those stigmata she always wanted…

This is part 3 of a 3 part series on Birth Control. The first two parts here (Part 1) and here (Part 2). All comments are appreciated - I don’t pretend I have it all figured out, these are only my thoughts as of August 2006 and may be changed by this time next year, if I have misunderstood the Bible on this score.

The Stewardship Objection

The first thing I hear in response to this line of thinking is usually, “but God calls us to stewardship. We are told to be good stewards of our time, our resources, and our families.” This is all true. The logical leap meant from this is that kids cost money and kids cost time, and our time is better spent elsewhere. I find it interesting to compare this idea to tithing. Many people feel very strongly about tithing, and its priority. I agree with them when they talk about giving the first 10th of everything to God, not the last 10th. I say, “Amen” every time I hear about a person or a couple who are strapped for cash or lose a job but keep on tithing, and experience blessing as a result. So many people I have heard from have told me about how when they have kept 100% of their money, it seems to get used up and they are short, but when they only keep 90%, God seems to bless that and they always have enough. I don’t know if it is the mindset of the individual, getting away from the desire for more money by dedicating it to the Lord, or what, but money just seems to go farther.

I believe so too with kids. I mean, today we have the highest standard of living ever in the history of the planet. Yet, we are having the smallest families in the history of the planet. Most families have 2 or more cars, while even 20 years ago the average was 1. People eat processed everything, and all that processing you can be sure costs money. The fact is, money is no object to most people. Even those who are “just squeaking by” seem to have so much that nobody had a generation ago. I know families on welfare with XBoxes, eating take-out pizza every couple nights. Sometimes this issue is brought up in relation to going to school, and being able to focus on studies. Again I ask, what did they do before? Colleges had married dorms. Or you simply didn’t get married until you were done your schooling.

But let’s look past that for a minute. Say you are a couple on birth control. Say it fails. You are now pregnant. What are you going to do? Continue Reading »

As many of you are probably aware, I am a strong supporter of Voice of the Martyrs and their ministry to those around the world who are faced with daily opposition to following after Jesus. I strongly believe, even if you, the reader, are not a Christian, you can appreciate that it simply is wrong for any civilized nation to prevent their citizens from choosing the faith of their preference. I believe, and I think you do too, that even if the government officially allows such freedom, there is a secondary obligation, to the government to insure that no people group or religion encourages, abets, or carries out acts of violence or persecution on another group or individual. This is expressed very wordily. Here it is in a nutshell - governments should not only permit freedom of religion but they should also criminalize any act, by any citizen or group, of persecution.

Sadly, not all nations around the world are so enlightened. Heck, I could think of examples of exactly this kind of crime going on right under our noses here in Canada. However, the reality is right now there are a lot worse places to choose to follow Jesus in than Canada. Check out VoM regularly to keep abreast of the latest.

So, when the Persecution Blog proposed for us supporters to blog on a victim of persecution in the Bible, I was spurred to write. See, in case you haven’t looked into it in a while, Jesus said to His followers very clearly,

“Remember the words I spoke to you: ‘No servant is greater than his master.’ If they persecuted me, they will persecute you also. …They will treat you this way because of my name, for they do not know the One who sent me.” - John 15:20,21

We, as Christians, know what we are getting into. We know that people will hate us for following Jesus. It is easy to forget, here in North America, but across the ocean, people know what it is like to be hated for the sake of Jesus. And we have example after example of courageous men and women in the Bible who faced up to oppression for His glory. Here is one that I never forget. Continue Reading »

From Canoe.ca of all places:

Three knife-wielding assailants stabbed worshippers in simultaneous attacks during Friday Mass at three Coptic churches in the northern Mediterranean city of Alexandria, killing one person and wounding more than a dozen others, police officials said.

But hey, they are all about the love. If only they would all convert to Islam, then there would be peace, right?

Coptic Christians account for about 10 per cent of Egypt’s population of 72 million and generally live in harmony with the Muslim majority, though violence flares occasionally.

Carefully worded to make it seem that this is an intercene struggle, as opposed to the routine attacking of Muslims against the Copts. Which is what it is. I don’t see Muslim people fleeing Egypt as refugees, claiming persecution by Coptic Christians.

Voice of the Martyrs sent me an email this morning with some swag for me to buy, to support their cause. It is an admirable one, and one I believe strongly in: raising awareness of the price in pain, suffering and death that Christians still pay in many countries around the world, simply for living their faith in Jesus Christ.

However, honestly, I can’t bring myself to buy one. I am honestly embarrassed to think of in any way associating myself with believers who are so faithful they risk death and torture every day for the Gospel. I cannot compare myself with them. While I have railed against many laws and incidents in Canada in recent years as the beginnings of organized persecution of Christians here, we still enjoy such massive religious freedom here that it shames me to think of what troubles I complain of.

I rather just give them money. It seems more honest.

I have a lot of respect for National Geographic when they are talking about something that they actually know something about. However, there are cases when, for lack of a better expression, their ignorance of something results in talking out of their anus. (Hat Tip to Bound by Gravity)

With the Da Vinci Code hype reaching a crescendo, it was deemed the perfect time to them to highlight an “ancient text” that “refutes the Bible”. Sure the Code is just a story, but it is based in fact right?