Mormons, Gay Marriage and the Law

23 Friday Oct 2015

Posted by in Christian Living, Faith

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, ,

A New York Times article on today (10/23/15) by Jack Healy reports on the Mormons take on gay marriage and the law.  Dallin Oaks, described as a high-ranking apostle in the church, said, “Office holders remain free to draw upon their personal beliefs and motivations and advocate their positions in the public square.  But when acting as public officials, they are not free to apply personal convictions, religious or other, in place of the defined responsibilities of their public offices.”

The article is written regarding Kim Davis, the county clerk in Kentucky who has refused to provide marriage licenses for same-sex couples.  The article goes on to quote Jonathon Rauch with the Brookings Institute as saying it’s a pretty big deal the Mormons have embraced compromise over conflict.

Here’s my point.  The Mormons DID NOT compromise.  They followed what the Bible teaches, that we render unto the government what belongs to the government and that we live out our life of faith.  Jesus never called us to fight against government.  That is exactly what the Jews were wanting in a Messiah and Jesus wasn’t that guy.  He told us to love and care for the poor, the hurting, the ones thrown away by society, widows and orphans, the sick.  Never did he tell us to condone sin or make religion a political soapbox but to love and to care for those who need love and caring.

The Mormons are not compromising on same-sex marriage.  They still oppose it and call it sin.  Neither are they compromising on what an elected official of the government should do when required to follow the law.  Sure, fight against the law.  Certainly, speak out against anything that is not of God’s design.  But, when you lose, follow the law.

Kim Davis did what she did from personal conviction and I have no beef with that.  I don’t agree with her decision but it was/is HER decision.  I do not agree with all of Mormon teaching either.  However, I agree with them here;  same-sex marriage is wrong in the eyes of God and should be wrong in the law of the land.  It isn’t so we have to live with it but that doesn’t mean we cannot continue to stand firm and speak our convictions, vote our beliefs and trust God to take care of the outcomes.

Grace and peace.

@huffinesdodge, Where Did The Service Go?

17 Saturday Oct 2015

Posted by in Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, ,

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

Posted by in Faith, Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

,

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.

In The Middle

31 Friday Jul 2015

Posted by in Christian Living

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

,

We are called to worship.  We are called to a time and place where the saints gather and worship the Lord.

We are called to rest.  We are called to a sabbath time where the saints rest and worship the Lord.

In between are the days where we are called to be the church, to minister, to love, to teach, to help.

I am not trying to be too literal in the day of worship, day of rest and days of ministry. In our world they all seem to blur together.

My point is this.  Christ’s “church” is called to do a lot more than go to a church service or take a day off to rest but it seems that is often overshadowed by the need to be “at church”.

I remember when I started to love to be at the worship service.  It was when I started missing it for baseball games my son was playing on Sunday mornings.  It was when my life got hard and I had people minister to me at those baseball games unlike anything I had experienced in a worship service.  It was when I was able to reach out and touch some other people at those games and feel God working through me.  It was in those times and times of personal turmoil that I wanted to be with some brothers and sisters who loved me and to share worship with them.  It was after I came to know Jesus personally because of some people who were working in my life when I was hurting and raw that I came to love gathering to worship.  It was during that time I learned that worship isn’t a command so much as a gift.

We are called to be Christ to others more than we are called to worship.  Living Christ-like will drive the desire and passion to worship Christ.

Grace and peace.

Church Pews and Excuses

29 Wednesday Jul 2015

Posted by in Christian Living

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, ,

I recently saw a sign at a local congregation that read, “If excuses came to church the pews would be full.”  Funny sign.

I pass by this building several times a week and read their sign.  I believe they are good people with the intention of doing good things.  I notice their sign is often about people needing to come to “the church” and attending services.  It got me thinking about all the times Jesus called his followers to be at services.

Jesus called us TO BE THE CHURCH, not come to church.  We have abused the word “church” so much that we have forgotten it is a group of people, not a building.  He said to GO, he showed us how to walk among the lost, to eat with them and join them in their homes.  He taught us to love and to give.

Now, the sign is right in one sense because I have been one to use excuses why I can’t be the church.  I’m not good enough.  I don’t know enough.  I don’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings.  I’m not a good people person.  Yada, yada, yada.  I have used excuses to not be the church.  If excuses could be the church, maybe the hungry would be less hungry, the naked would be less naked and the hurting would be a little less hurt.

I look forward to the day there is much less focus on the pews and much more focus on being active as the church.  If our hearts are in the right place and our minds and bodies are doing the right thing, the pews will take care of themselves.

Go, be the church today.

Grace and peace.

Monday

27 Monday Jul 2015

Posted by in Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, ,

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

Posted by in Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, ,

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.

That is Offensive To Me

10 Friday Jul 2015

Posted by in Life

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, , , ,

As I sit here watching the South Carolina Highway Patrol Honor Guard remove the Confederate flag from the State Capitol, as I hear several in the background saying “Thank You God!” and shouting “USA, USA, USA” I have a sense of pride in the people doing the right thing.  As I watch one of the members of the Honor Guard, a black man, take the flag and present it to the Curator of the museum, I can only imagine his feelings.  As someone who has hung a Confederate flag in my bedroom as a child, I am proud of the people who made this decision and the reverence of which it was handled.

That said, to me the Confederate flag is a symbol of the south and a period of history.  It is a symbol of my high school mascot at one time.  It is not about racism for me though I understand it is for others.  That said, a Dodge Challenger named the General Lee with a Confederate flag painted on it’s roof is most certainly related to a show about Southerners, their moonshining and their family.  To have that show removed from TV is offensive to me because it is censorship…plain and simple.

I believe marriage is between a man and a woman.  To see a bakery owner penalized because they stayed true to their beliefs is offensive to me.  The home of the brave and land of the FREE?  Really?  It doesn’t seem like the people owning the bakery are free to exercise their beliefs.

To have the government take the money I’ve earned and spend it on things I disagree with is offensive to me.

There are plenty of things I can be offended by.  The way the South Carolina government handled the flag issue, with lots of conversation, with people free to express their opinions and feelings and to make a decision after all that discussion and all those feelings are taken into account is a small glimpse of how to handle disagreements and to take what is offensive to some to a point of either compromise or collaboration.  When people of color listen to those who support the flag as a symbol of heritage our world is better.  When people who see the heritage can also see the pain our world is better.

When things are taken away, when people are punished simply because of someone’s opinion, we are all the lesser for it.

I’m offended by lots of things in this country.  It doesn’t mean I’m right and it doesn’t mean I should always get my way.  Taking our offenses to the table of peace and trying to come up with better solutions is when offense ends and peace begins to take over.

Grace and peace.

Skattershooting – the Confederate Flag and more…

23 Tuesday Jun 2015

Posted by in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

It’s bizarre to watch a newscast that reports the Charleston shootings and Tom Brady’s appeal in the same 10 minute segment.

I’m from the south.  I’m from a place and time where the confederate flag represented high school spirit for a team that had blacks and whites playing together.  We, as kids, were naive to what the flag meant to a host of other people in town.  When the school changed the mascot (Rebels) and removed the flag, it started something in our town that became more contentious than school spirit.  Thirty years later, I can see the racism I was naive to as a teenager but also see healing.

I’m not a presidential candidate but if I was I would encourage South Carolina to remove the confederate flag from public places other than a museum.  It is a part of our history and it has a broader meaning than race but it still causes pain for people and we need to be sensitive to that.  We need to love people, not a symbol of history.

I don’t understand white supremasists groups.  They espouse God and hatred.  It doesn’t take much to realize that is just ridiculous.  I grew up playing basketball with black guys.  I drove them home from practice almost daily.  My mom made cookies for all of us on game days.  We joked together.  We sweated together.  We grew up together.  We had physical differences but we weren’t all that different on the inside.

I don’t know that the pain of slavery or racism will ever go away.  Sadly, because we live in a broken world, there will always be things that try to divide us.  There will always be things that succeed at dividing us.  I hope while we battle those conflicts we learn to love better, to empathize better and to grow closer to each other.

Our world needs more peace.  More empathy.  More love for the hurting, the poor, those challenged with mental disorders, those challenged with the battles for the heart in a broken world.

I am not always right and you are not always wrong.  You are not always right and I am not always wrong.  Let us talk.  Let us listen.  Let us look to the future for what we want the world to be for our children and grandchildren.  Let us look more like Christ and less like ourselves.

Grace and peace.

I Was (Emotionally) Bleeding to Death

14 Thursday May 2015

Posted by in Uncategorized

≈ Leave a comment

Tags

, ,

My wounds, whether real or imagined, are plentiful and run deep.  I am a sensitive man.  It’s just that simple.  I am sensitive and I am very cognizant of my wounds.  I feel them and the pain from them are easily felt.  Fortunately, I have the ability to keep going through the pain but it does not mean the wounds are not there.

I have felt at times that I was bleeding to death.  Wound after wound.  Wound upon wound.  Emotionally, I have felt I was bleeding to death, accepted it and have been ready for the consequences.  I have not taken care of my health the way I should.  I have not taken care of my thoughts the way I should.  I have not looked forward to the future the way I should.

Then, along comes this woman.  I had seen her around.  I had looked into her eyes and knew there was something special about her but I was not in a position to find out why.  I knew she was different.  I knew she was special.

Now I know she is special.  She is now my wife and I continually see new things in her that remind me how special she is in so many ways.  One of the things that makes her special is that she is tending to and healing my wounds.  Where I once thought I might bleed to death, she is touching and healing.  Last night I had a bad night.  Lots of things went wrong and one of them brought up and opened some old wounds.  As I told my VSW (very special woman/very special wife) what was happening, all she wanted to do was take the trouble away from me.  Where once I was emotionally beaten I was now being emotionally cared for and cared about.  Just as quickly as the wound opened, she was there to take care of it, to apply comfort and to close the wound.  Then, she went beyond closing it and treated it so that it would start to heal and one day soon, only be a scar at most.

Wounds hurt.  They are not pretty and they can be dangerous.  This woman, through her heart and words, is healing my wounds.  Scars may remain and that is OK with me because scars are memories that can help me.  The important thing is that I once thought I might bleed to death and now I think I might be healed.  Where I had once given up caring about things I should care about, I now care again because she is here she loves me enough to help heal the wounds.

I am married to a gift from God.  I am married to a special woman with a special heart.  I am stronger today than I was yesterday and much stronger today than I was 2 years ago.  I am stronger and I see a brighter future ahead because of my gift.  I know joy now.  I know hope now.  I know the goodness of God now.

Grace and peace.