Category Archives: Life

Conservative Christianity

07 Monday Mar 2016

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I’ve been thinking about conservative Christianity lately.  I’ve been thinking that I don’t find it in the Bible so I wonder why it is such a big deal with politics and those professing to align with the “Christian-right” or “right wing evangelicals”.

Jesus was radical but not political.  That was much of the confusion of his day, that he was here to do business at the local/national level when he was here to do business at the spiritual/supernatural level.

He was off being tempted by Satan.

He was healing and forgiving people.

He was telling people who wanted to follow him to GIVE ALL they had.

It just seems a bit strange to me that a political movement today that evokes self-responsibility and “good stewardship” is aligned with Jesus who told stories about the Prodigal Son (forgive without limits), the Rich Young Ruler (give and give some more), the Lost Sheep (the one who needs the most help is important), the story of the workers (the guy who showed up last got paid the same amount as the guy who had been there all day).

In Acts 2 we find the church coming together daily and selling all their possessions and giving to everyone as they had need.  That doesn’t sound anything like the Republican Party’s evangelical platform to me.  It doesn’t sound like socialism either.  It sounds like a group of people who were compelled to act individually because of Christ’s love, mercy and grace.  They didn’t wait on the government to act on their behalf and they didn’t tell those who were in need to get a job…they just helped.  Again, we see a theme of Christ-followers giving and giving generously.

I can’t align politics, Christianity and conservatism.  At the same time I don’t align with the liberal politicians either.  While I don’t think they should take my money and force giving, I also don’t think politicians need to legislate Christian teaching.  Take Roe v. Wade.  You see, I’m naive enough to believe that if the church really loved on single women who were pregnant, we would see abortions go down.  If we saw the church start adopting these babies and loving on them I believe we would see abortions go down.  I guess I see love as the way to combat abortion instead of the Supreme Court.  The people who do this now are people who are compelled to act because of who Jesus is, not who has political power.

We could also talk about the poor and immigrants.  I have had the conversation already with others and there are many different views.  I always leave it with them as “what do you think Jesus would have to say about immigrants if you were having the conversation with him?”

I can’t align Christ-likeness and this thing called conservative Christianity in political circles.  I’ve tried but as I really study Jesus I cannot imagine him giving a hoot about our political scene and I’m even further from seeing him line up with Ted Cruz or anyone else using the banner of Christ for a political office.

Call me crazy.  Call me soft.  Call me whatever…just please do not call me a conservative Christian.

Grace and peace.

Old Adages

29 Monday Feb 2016

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I’ve often heard (and probably guilty of saying) “they got what they deserved” when something bad happens to someone not well liked or looked down upon.  Whatever bad thing happened to them…well, they deserved it.

I wonder if people ever say that about me.

I wonder if people say it about the United States.

I watch Donald and Ted and Marco digress into name calling while our country suffers and can’t help but wonder if we aren’t getting what we deserve.  When shows like “The Real Housewives of Wherever” and a slew of other trashy, conflict-driven offerings continue to collect viewers is it any wonder we get the Theater of the Absurd from the people running to be the “leader” of our country?

I wish we had great debates about the needs of this country.  Instead Donald calls Ted and Marco names and they fire right back…because too many people enjoy it.  We wonder why we battle over #BlackLivesMatter and #CopsLivesMatter.  We wonder why there are so many people living on the streets and so many others living in poverty who need health care.  We wonder why there are so many problems with our country and then we see so many encouraging the junk we see on TV from people who want to “make America great again.”  Really?

Sadly, it seems love and concern for our fellow man is quickly evaporating while I want a nicer car, bigger house and more of everything grows.

In a conversation about political correctness yesterday, one wise gentleman made the comment that our failure to know each other, to enter into meaningful relationships with people we don’t know or don’t agree with is the cause for political correctness and spending time with each other is what will eliminate it.

We have a country that is deeply divided in so many area and this is what we get for folks who want to be President.  We may just be getting what we deserve.

Grace and peace.

What I Learned Soaking Up Politics

16 Tuesday Feb 2016

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Several years ago I was a politics fanatic.  I knew all the players the state and national level and got to spend time eating with and talking to some of them.  At one point, I even looked at a political run that was (fortunately) preempted by a friend who decided to run for the spot.

Here’s some things I learned:

Most of the people in politics care.  Most of them do, both Democrat and Republican.  Talking to them one-on-one, you gain an appreciation for what motivated them to start off in politics.

None of them are as bad or as good as people say.  I remember when Jimmy Carter was running for office and hearing a man say, “I’ll move to Mexico if he’s elected.”  Well, he’s still living in Texas and the world didn’t implode.  It’s the same with Bill and George and Barak and Hillary and Donald and Ted.  They are all swayed by big money.  They all forget the one-on-one conversations when the campaign is over.  They all do what the votes tell them to do.  None of them go in as statesman but politicians.

Democrats can spend money and don’t let a budget stop them.  Well, a bunch of Democrats do anyway.  When I lived in Fort Worth I met Charlie Geren, a Democrat representing that area.  He was a good guy and I thought had a pretty good fiscal policy.  I’d vote for him again.

Republicans spend too much time fretting over money.  This world has problems and this country has a s$#tload of money to help with those problems.  It should be the church doling it out but too many churches can barely make it as it is with people giving so little.  It’s a little bizarre when the Democrats look more Christian than the evangelical right.

Whoever wins won’t have a big impact on my life.  The super rich find lots of loopholes to avoid paying taxes.  The middle class will pay what they have to pay and just try to keep the kids in college and the house together.  The rest are too poor to do much about anything and keep getting poorer.  With a recent unemployment spell and 4 kids in college I don’t have any money so they can’t take much more from me.

All of them scare me!  There’s not a person in the race I would vote for right off the bat.  Bernie may be a little crazy.  I think Hillary is a bad person and has done some very bad things.  Trump is an egotistical lunatic.  I wouldn’t trust Ted Cruz as far as I could throw him.  He’s as big a whiner as Donald and I get the feeling he would sell his soul for the vote.  Rubio, Kasich and Carson all have me wondering but they still scare me.  I appreciate Kasich’s aim to run a clean campaign but he doesn’t say enough at times.  Carson is too quiet.  Rubio, well, he’s on the edge of brawling and I wonder what power will do to him.

It’s a crazy world out there and no one in politics to be in politics is going to change it.  One day a change will come.  One day.

Grace and peace.

In A Land of Freedom

08 Friday Jan 2016

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America, land of the free, home of the brave.

Unless you own guns.  Or want to assert Christian values in who you hire, rent property to or speak out publicly in many places.

Our President went on TV last night to explain how his new gun related ruling would make us safer.  He’s trying to put a band-aid on a festering wound.  He isn’t treating the problem, just the symptom.

I can agree that background checks are a good thing, I just don’t think many criminals visit Cabela’s to get their guns.  Maybe a pawn shop but more likely on the streets.  I doubt anyone dealing guns or dope or prostitutes spend a lot of time on government websites.

The problem with a lunatic who walks into a school, theater, hospital or church and starts shooting people isn’t the gun.  No, it is the crazed thinking that started the episode.  Until we make it OK to treat mental health instead of making it a stigma, the real problem will continue to fester.  We can put band-aids on it all we want but all those band-aids just start to put burdens on law abiding citizens at some point.

Mr. President, I want you to do everything in your power to keep us safe.  I would simply prefer you do it by addressing the real problem, not the political one.

Grace and peace.

Another Day Older

30 Wednesday Dec 2015

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Another day older.  Another year gone.  Another Christmas past us.  Lots of things happened in the past year, good things and bad things.

It seems so often when I have looked back I have settled on seeing the things that didn’t happen or the things that happened that set me back or mistakes I had made.  I wanted to blog more in 2015.  I wanted to launch a new web site focused on leadership.  I wanted to teach more about conflict resolution.  Shoot, I wanted to become a millionaire/billionaire and do great, charitable things with the money.  I wanted to exercise better and lose weight.  I wanted to make changes that didn’t get changed.  It’s easy to see all of that for so many people…I guess.

Fortunately there is the other side of the coin.  There are all those things I still want to accomplish in 2016, my new year to improve and still, there are some wonderful things that have happened this past year.  First and foremost, I got to spend a year with a woman I love and who adds so much richness and happiness to my life.  She helps me experience joy unlike anything I’ve known most of my life.  I got to travel with her.  Atlanta (don’t eat the tuna salad in Atlanta), Baltimore, San Francisco, Denver and Durango and other places.  I got a job that has my creative juices flowing (creative for someone with an accounting degree, anyway) and I look forward to coming to work every day.  I’ve got friends that I stay in contact with that remind me I have purpose.  I have continued to dream dreams.  Dreams of writing.  Dreams of doing things that will give me a sense of accomplishment.  Dreams of building a better family.  Dreams of experiencing more joy.  Dreams of being the man God wants me to be.

That’s what I really want for 2016…to be the man God wants me to be.  I realize that is a dangerous statement because my vision of that could be very different from His.  I always see myself on the mountain top and He may see me in the valley.  Heaven knows I’ve spent some time there already.  Regardless, in the end, I have learned the greatest peace I know is when I let go of my desires and seek His.  Doing that little thing…that is harder than expected…has brought great things to my life, my state of mind, my peace and my joy.

If someone else happens to read this, I hope 2016 will be your best year yet.  I encourage you to seek God, seek His will and live in His peace.

Grace and peace.

#PrayforParis

17 Tuesday Nov 2015

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I’m at a crossroads.  My heart of faith tells me I need to be open to all people regardless of their religion, culture or where they come from.  My heart as an American, husband and father tells me to protect those I love, to seal borders and to carry a gun.  Wow!  Talk about some inner turmoil in my head…you may not want to be me right now.

I know this.  No one I know or have heard speak/tweet/sing has all the answers.  I have immense trust in God and believes He works in all situations for the good of those who love Him.  I have also learned He takes His time in revealing His ways.

While I wrestle with what to think about the Syrians and ISIS, I also wrestle with something a little less glamorized currently in our media, homes and churches.  While we pray for those in Paris and commit to stand in solidarity with them, why don’t we also hashtag #prayforSyria, #prayforTerrorists, #prayforMuslims, #prayforTheHomeless, #prayforTheUnemployed, #prayforSinners, #prayforPutin, #prayforObama/Clinton/Sanders/Trump/Carson/Rubio/Bush/et.al.

My point is this.  There are a number of things we need to address in this world of ours and in this country.  There are so many people who are hurting emotionally, physically, mentally and spiritually that are overlooked daily while we rally around heartache and heartbreak in Paris, France.  I would take nothing away from the outpouring of compassion we have given the people affected by the senseless tragedy, only hope we become more aware of the senseless tragedies around us daily that need our prayers, our support, our finances and our hearts.

I’ll add one more hashtag I’m very affected by…#prayformetoo.

Grace and peace.

@huffinesdodge, Where Did The Service Go?

17 Saturday Oct 2015

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My stepson recently had something go wrong with his car.  He took it to Huffines Dodge in Lewisville near where he works.  They checked it out and said it was a fuel pump and would cost about $870.  It turns out the fuel pump had been replaced at a shop in our hometown and was still under warranty.  It’s not a hard choice to pick the inconvenience of an hour drive back to the shop that fixed it first and could replace it for free over $870, right?  So what does Huffines do for the convenience of telling my stepson what was wrong?  Just a charge of $120!

I nearly lost my #$%^&*$ mind!  A $120 “diagnostic fee” to tell us what the problem is.  Of course, they are kind enough to waive that fee if you spend your money with them but the fact the part is under warranty costs $120.

Here’s my “courtesy fee” for Huffines telling my stepson what is wrong.  Please, whatever you do, avoid Huffines Dodge for any service until they understand what service means.  I’m suggesting you don’t go to their shop, body repair or buy a car from them.

If I can convince just one person to avoid a shop that charges exorbitant rates to tell a college kid what is wrong with his car then I will feel vindicated in the rip-off I had to pay for.  Just one person not shopping at Huffines Dodge in Lewisville and I will feel better.

Tell me you are charging me $40 to pay the mechanic to look at it and I can understand even though I think some services are free to build goodwill.  I’ve been in retail for 20+ years so I have a grasp of how to build lifetime value with customers.  It’s not that I didn’t want Huffines Dodge to do the work, it’s just that the part is under warranty and I would be a tad daft to pay for it when it’s a free replacement.

Yes, I’m a little hot under the collar.  No, I probably wouldn’t write this post in a week or so.  Yes, I think it’s pathetic to charge that much.  The service guy, while not the one choosing how much to charge, said “the Ford house charges $130.”  Did  your mama ever ask if you if everyone else jumped off the bridge would you do it too?  C’mon man!  I don’t care what the other people who are abusing good service are doing.  Stand up.  Do the right thing.

Oh yeah…the brakes I was going to let you fix.  FORGET IT!

@huffinesdodge

I’m Frustrated Too…Obama, Guns and Following Christ

02 Friday Oct 2015

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This Oregon event has me frustrated.  I am frustrated enough that I can’t work right now and, instead, feel compelled to get some things out of my head and “on paper” so I can move on.

I’m frustrated the first thing our President does after something like this is call for gun control when it is painfully obvious people control is the needed action.

I’m frustrated that professing Christians call for more guns in the hands of people with licenses to carry them as if that is the way of Christ.  Seems like there was in issue with Peter and a sword and Jesus’ rebuke.

I’m frustrated at seeing a man walk the streets of the city I live in, obviously dealing with mental issues and appearing very angry and no one with the capacity to act doing anything about it.  I know people who have talked to this man and he needs serious, professional help.  He certainly doesn’t need to be walking our streets waiting for an incident that sets off something bad.  Or fatal.

I’m frustrated that Christ called for more love and society often calls for more war.  yes, I understand wanting to protect family and OUR way of life.  Interesting, though, that Christ called us to HIS way of life.

As a side note, one more proof this is not a Christian nation is to see all the people acting on “their civil liberties” when Christ-followers are called to deny self, give up their possessions (whether tangible or intangible-the things that come between me and Christ) and do things the way Jesus did them.

I’m frustrated because I want to be a Christ-follower but I want to do it my way.  I want what’s MINE.  I want to protect MY stuff.  I want what I deserve (forgetting what I deserve if I am committed to following Christ and then living for me).

I’m frustrated too, Mr. President.  Mental illness frustrates me.  Hatred frustrates me.  The lack of desire to fix the root of the problem frustrates me.  You, Mr. President, and your rhetoric frustrate me.  The desire of those who want to fix violence with violence frustrate me.  Most of all, I am frustrated by my own contradictions in thought and in practice.

I have plenty of questions and not so many answers.  Some of the answers, especially as they pertain to me and my actions, I try to avoid.  I am frustrated but I am also full of hope.  I believe Christ died for me and rose again so I can have salvation in eternity.  Christ chooses to love me through my failings and fallings.  Surely the desire of my heart and the tiny steps I try to make each day to look more like Christ and less like me please Him.

I am thankful in spite of my frustration.  I have hope in spite of my frustration.  I know there is something better for me even when I am frustrated.  Today is a bright day because of the future I have even though today also has some darkness and questions.  I am promised a reward, not an easy life.

I rest in the promise, in the hope, in salvation, in eternity with my Creator and Savior.

Grace and peace.

Monday

27 Monday Jul 2015

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Living thankfully causes Monday to be a great day…full of anticipation, full of opportunity, full of new experiences and new growth.  Living thankfully transforms my vision.  Living thankfully gives me hope and peace.

I used to join with others in acknowledging the Monday blahs until life knocked me down so many times it was hard to get up with my old way of thinking.  I reached the point where getting back up was just a reflex because the alternative was a little too tough to deal with at the time.  Then, I started changing my thinking strategy.  I made the effort to be thankful in all circumstances and it has changed my outlook.

So I never get down or frustrated anymore?  No.  Of course not.  Life can be too challenging to always stay up, always positive, always thankful.  I take some potshots now and then that lead me back to my old ways.  I am not perfect.  I am not fixed.  I am still the broken, beaten guy I have always been only I choose, I said I CHOOSE, to make the effort to be thankful.  For some people it is more natural.  For me, it is a choice and one that I have found to be exceptionally rewarding.

This morning, my VSW said she hoped to see how God used her today.  I told her he just did…he used her to remind me to be thankful and be looking for how I would be used today.  What a blessing that woman is in my life.  A gift.  He used her early and I know he will use her again today, over and over.  I do hope she sees it all.

In the meantime, I will take a day and a situation that could overwhelm me and choose to be thankful for so much that I do have.  I will look for opportunity.  I will look for the door to open.  I will hope for what is to come and for what might me in the next moment.

Grace and peace.

A Simpler Way

15 Wednesday Jul 2015

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I’m sharing a blog today from some people who write about happiness.  One of their posts is about living simpler.  As I realize how connected I am to my phone and computer I realize I want to live simpler.  As I realize how connected I am to my TV I realize I want to live simpler.  As I realize how often I want to go do something or go somewhere that will eat up my time I realize I want to live simpler.  Simple is poverty, it isn’t minimalist, it isn’t cutting.  It is choice.  It is the idea of doing what maximizes my time and my joy.  I don’t agree with everything they say but it sure got me to thinking about how to take more control of my happiness and my joy.

Living Simpler

Grace and peace.