Okay, it really doesn't matter what your take on Obama is, this is just plain wrong.
I read with interest a blog from Brian McLaren - and then listened to a clip - about the latest Religious Right campaign against Obama. "Prayer for Obama. Psalm 109:8"
On the surface, it seems pretty good. That is, until you actually read the verse. And the verses following that one. Here is 109:8 if you don't happen to know it off the top of your head:
"May his days be few, may another take his place of leadership."
Well. okay. That seems pretty innocuous. That is, until you look at the context of the rest of the passage. Beginning with verse 9:
"May his children be fatherless and his wife a widow.
May his children be wandering beggars; may they be driven from their ruined homes.
May a creditor seize all he has; may strangers plunder the fruits of his labor.
May no one extend kindness to him or take pity on his fatherless children.
May his descendants be cut off, their names blotted out from the next generation.
May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the LORD; may the sin of his mother never be blotted out.
May their sins always remain before the LORD, that he may blot out their name from the earth."
This implies more than just wanting him out of office.
There is a danger in prooftexting the Bible for personal and/or political gain. This was a Scripture that was actually applied to the one who betrayed the Messiah. That carries a whole different level of implication when you apply it to the current administration, doesn't it?
I'm going out on a limb for a minute here... I don't think God likes it when we try to force His hand by twisting Scripture around. I don't think God approves when we misuse various passages against someone we just don't like. And I don't really think God likes this current "prayer" campaign. I'm pretty sure he doesn't find a whole lot of humor in something like this.
http://postchristianblog.com/ has a video clip talking about this if you want to hear more. Frankly, I'm appalled.
"Jesus called. He wants his religion back."
Friday, November 20, 2009
Thursday, August 20, 2009
What e'er thou art, act well thy part.
“Whate’er thou art, act well thy part.” – William Shakespeare.
Growing up I loved drama. I loved acting in school plays. My first role ever was a Red Skelton sketch when I was in third grade. I did plays and musicals all through my youth, eventually even adding set design and make-up to my skill set (I once made a 16 year old kid look like a pretty convincing Boris Karloff). I liked acting because I could choose who I wanted to be and how I played each role. Every character was a new insight into the human condition.
There were some roles that I was not suited for. Obviously I could never get away with playing “Miss Scarlett”. I never had a lead role. There were even some productions where I was just part of the crowd, with no lines. I had an opening fight scene once where my opponent accidentally forgot to pull his punch and broke my nose, but that’s for another article.
One time I was an understudy. I thought I could have done a better job than the other actor did. I talked it over with the director. He didn’t agree. He was convinced that the one he had chosen would do the best job. He encouraged me to study the part, but also to learn my role well. The final night of performance the actor I was understudying called in sick. My part was played by someone else and I took on the lead. I’d like to say that I was indeed better, but I can’t. I survived. I made it through, but it wasn’t near perfect.
Our Director has a good handle on our talents. God puts us in roles where he knows we can thrive, roles that fit our talents well. But we’re also expected to learn and prepare to occasionally cover other roles as well. Some of us are more versatile in the roles we can play; some of us find ourselves playing the same part over and over again. But what matters is not the role but the way we play it. What matters is whether we give our whole selves to the role. What matters is how we take direction.
We all have a part to play. Some of us are leaders, some of us are supporters. Some of us are in the background crowd. Some of us are stage hands. But we do what we do because we’re good at it. We’re talented. We’re gifted. All of us. And just because we’re not the lead doesn’t mean we don’t matter. Just because we’re always in the crowd doesn’t mean we don’t matter. It doesn’t mean we can just sit out. “The show must go on”. It’s not quite as good if any one of us is missing. “Whate’er thou art, act well thy part.”
Grace and peace.
Pastor Dave
Growing up I loved drama. I loved acting in school plays. My first role ever was a Red Skelton sketch when I was in third grade. I did plays and musicals all through my youth, eventually even adding set design and make-up to my skill set (I once made a 16 year old kid look like a pretty convincing Boris Karloff). I liked acting because I could choose who I wanted to be and how I played each role. Every character was a new insight into the human condition.
There were some roles that I was not suited for. Obviously I could never get away with playing “Miss Scarlett”. I never had a lead role. There were even some productions where I was just part of the crowd, with no lines. I had an opening fight scene once where my opponent accidentally forgot to pull his punch and broke my nose, but that’s for another article.
One time I was an understudy. I thought I could have done a better job than the other actor did. I talked it over with the director. He didn’t agree. He was convinced that the one he had chosen would do the best job. He encouraged me to study the part, but also to learn my role well. The final night of performance the actor I was understudying called in sick. My part was played by someone else and I took on the lead. I’d like to say that I was indeed better, but I can’t. I survived. I made it through, but it wasn’t near perfect.
Our Director has a good handle on our talents. God puts us in roles where he knows we can thrive, roles that fit our talents well. But we’re also expected to learn and prepare to occasionally cover other roles as well. Some of us are more versatile in the roles we can play; some of us find ourselves playing the same part over and over again. But what matters is not the role but the way we play it. What matters is whether we give our whole selves to the role. What matters is how we take direction.
We all have a part to play. Some of us are leaders, some of us are supporters. Some of us are in the background crowd. Some of us are stage hands. But we do what we do because we’re good at it. We’re talented. We’re gifted. All of us. And just because we’re not the lead doesn’t mean we don’t matter. Just because we’re always in the crowd doesn’t mean we don’t matter. It doesn’t mean we can just sit out. “The show must go on”. It’s not quite as good if any one of us is missing. “Whate’er thou art, act well thy part.”
Grace and peace.
Pastor Dave
Saturday, July 18, 2009
"Bad Boy Baby Names".
*sigh* The culture of victimhood.
Although I don't actually watch the TODAY show, a news story on MSN.com talked about one of the segments of yesterday's show. One of the interviews was a Shippensburg University professor named David Kalist. His claim: giving newborn males "oddball, girly, or strange" firstnames has a direct corrolation to whether or not they wind up in jail.
This is one of the reasons that I don't watch the TODAY show.
Kalist had chosen 10 names not to call your son if you want him to be a law-abiding citizen. Thus we can assume that the vast majority of future crimes will be committed by people named (in alphabetical order): Alec, Ernest, Garland, Ivan, Kareem, Luke, Malcolm, Preston, Tyrell, and Walter.
Hmmm... in one of the early "Wallace and Gromit" episodes (claymation) the canine villain was named "Preston". Maybe he's got a point.
There's an old Calvin and Hobbs cartoon that I have had hanging on my file cabinet for probably fifteen years. Calvin says to Hobbs: "Nothing I do is my fault. My family is dysfunctional and my parents won't empower me. Consequently, I'm not self-actualized. My behavior is addictive functioning in a disease process of toxic codependency. I need holistic healing and wellness before I'll accept any responsibility for my actions! I love the culture of victimhood." To which Hobbs sagely responds: "One of us needs to stick his head in a bucket of ice water."
Add to that that they gave him the wrong damn name. Calvin is certainly not mainstream. How'd Walter make the list over Calvin?
Those of us (notice that I say "us") that have had less-than-ideal upbringings do have our work cut out for us. But we can't use that to excuse bad behavior! If Garland and John commit a crime together, does one of them get more leniency? Instead of finding all the ways that everyone around us is to blame for our negativity, can we begin to accept the blame for our own selves?
Maybe I'm being nitpicky, I don't know. If I am... it's David Kalist's fault.
Although I don't actually watch the TODAY show, a news story on MSN.com talked about one of the segments of yesterday's show. One of the interviews was a Shippensburg University professor named David Kalist. His claim: giving newborn males "oddball, girly, or strange" firstnames has a direct corrolation to whether or not they wind up in jail.
This is one of the reasons that I don't watch the TODAY show.
Kalist had chosen 10 names not to call your son if you want him to be a law-abiding citizen. Thus we can assume that the vast majority of future crimes will be committed by people named (in alphabetical order): Alec, Ernest, Garland, Ivan, Kareem, Luke, Malcolm, Preston, Tyrell, and Walter.
Hmmm... in one of the early "Wallace and Gromit" episodes (claymation) the canine villain was named "Preston". Maybe he's got a point.
There's an old Calvin and Hobbs cartoon that I have had hanging on my file cabinet for probably fifteen years. Calvin says to Hobbs: "Nothing I do is my fault. My family is dysfunctional and my parents won't empower me. Consequently, I'm not self-actualized. My behavior is addictive functioning in a disease process of toxic codependency. I need holistic healing and wellness before I'll accept any responsibility for my actions! I love the culture of victimhood." To which Hobbs sagely responds: "One of us needs to stick his head in a bucket of ice water."
Add to that that they gave him the wrong damn name. Calvin is certainly not mainstream. How'd Walter make the list over Calvin?
Those of us (notice that I say "us") that have had less-than-ideal upbringings do have our work cut out for us. But we can't use that to excuse bad behavior! If Garland and John commit a crime together, does one of them get more leniency? Instead of finding all the ways that everyone around us is to blame for our negativity, can we begin to accept the blame for our own selves?
Maybe I'm being nitpicky, I don't know. If I am... it's David Kalist's fault.
Thursday, July 16, 2009
Uneasy Forgiveness
(This is actually a few weeks old. It was submitted mid-June for the church newsletter.)
(My computer has been successfully repaired... with minimal cost.)
On the Monday after Annual Conference I opened my email to discover that a reminder had been sent out. This reminder was for the latest edition of the Steeple. It said that we only had a couple of days to submit items. I sat down to write my thoughts for “Pastor Dave’s Notes”. I had my email and Facebook open along with the document I was writing. I was about halfway through when suddenly a note popped up from my AntiVirus program. It told me that some serious security risk had just been blocked. I then lost control of my mouse and my desktop. I immediately shut down. When I went to turn my computer back on, there was nothing. I had been hacked!
My initial reaction was to be extremely angry. I tried in vain several times under various settings to restart my computer, all to no avail. I remember thinking that there must be an especially hot place in Sheol for those who hack computers. Each time I tried to restart and failed I grew more and more irritated. I was at a loss as to what to do. So I did the only thing that I could think of. I went and had a tickle fight with my kids. As I write this, my laptop still is not working. I’m borrowing the church’s. And this bears no resemblance to what I had been writing before I was hacked. But the incident seemed to be a good lead-in to some thoughts on forgiveness.
When Jesus died, he died for computer hackers. I know… hard to believe, huh? But he did.
I heard an interesting definition for forgiveness at Annual Conference. “Forgiveness: giving up all hope for a better past”. My being angry isn’t going to make my laptop work. But my anger will likely help me miss out on other possible solutions. When I forgive the hackers (!) it doesn’t change what they did. But it allows me to find something that I can take away from it. Like this note. It works that way for God as well. God has already forgiven us – it’s called Grace. If God were to have remained angry about all the things we did, he might have missed out on the solution. (Nah, probably not, but you know what I mean). You know the one, the crucifixion. Followed by the other one, the resurrection. God granted us forgiveness – grace – well before you or I had done anything. Long before I was hacked, “Christ died for us while we were still sinners.”
God has already forgiven the people who hacked me. He forgave them almost two thousand years ago. Just like he forgave us almost two thousand years ago. Sin is sin; it’s not measured by degree. With all the nasty stuff I have done and still do, God’s forgiveness and grace is the same yesterday, today, and forever. It’s something that we need to learn to accept, to live in to. And if I can be forgiven, then anyone can be forgiven. If God can forgive me, I need to forgive too.
But is it really that easy? Which is more difficult; forgiving or staying angry? I’m not sure I have the energy or the time to be irked at someone I don’t know. Yeah, forgiveness can be tougher with someone we do know, but it is even more important that we do it then. I have no relationship with the folks who trashed my computer (I hope), so there’s nothing to lose. It’s the ones we who are closest to that we do have something to lose. It calls us to ask what is really important.
It is my sincere hope that my computer can be fixed easily and with minimal cost to me. It is my sincere hope that nothing like this ever happens again. It is my sincere hope that the hackers come to know Jesus. And I truly think I have forgiven them. What they did was wrong. What they did was “evil”. What they did should never have happened. Forgiveness isn’t forgetting or sweeping something under the rug. Forgiveness simply means not hanging onto something that God wants to deal with. Forgiveness is letting it be handled God’s way.
(My computer has been successfully repaired... with minimal cost.)
On the Monday after Annual Conference I opened my email to discover that a reminder had been sent out. This reminder was for the latest edition of the Steeple. It said that we only had a couple of days to submit items. I sat down to write my thoughts for “Pastor Dave’s Notes”. I had my email and Facebook open along with the document I was writing. I was about halfway through when suddenly a note popped up from my AntiVirus program. It told me that some serious security risk had just been blocked. I then lost control of my mouse and my desktop. I immediately shut down. When I went to turn my computer back on, there was nothing. I had been hacked!
My initial reaction was to be extremely angry. I tried in vain several times under various settings to restart my computer, all to no avail. I remember thinking that there must be an especially hot place in Sheol for those who hack computers. Each time I tried to restart and failed I grew more and more irritated. I was at a loss as to what to do. So I did the only thing that I could think of. I went and had a tickle fight with my kids. As I write this, my laptop still is not working. I’m borrowing the church’s. And this bears no resemblance to what I had been writing before I was hacked. But the incident seemed to be a good lead-in to some thoughts on forgiveness.
When Jesus died, he died for computer hackers. I know… hard to believe, huh? But he did.
I heard an interesting definition for forgiveness at Annual Conference. “Forgiveness: giving up all hope for a better past”. My being angry isn’t going to make my laptop work. But my anger will likely help me miss out on other possible solutions. When I forgive the hackers (!) it doesn’t change what they did. But it allows me to find something that I can take away from it. Like this note. It works that way for God as well. God has already forgiven us – it’s called Grace. If God were to have remained angry about all the things we did, he might have missed out on the solution. (Nah, probably not, but you know what I mean). You know the one, the crucifixion. Followed by the other one, the resurrection. God granted us forgiveness – grace – well before you or I had done anything. Long before I was hacked, “Christ died for us while we were still sinners.”
God has already forgiven the people who hacked me. He forgave them almost two thousand years ago. Just like he forgave us almost two thousand years ago. Sin is sin; it’s not measured by degree. With all the nasty stuff I have done and still do, God’s forgiveness and grace is the same yesterday, today, and forever. It’s something that we need to learn to accept, to live in to. And if I can be forgiven, then anyone can be forgiven. If God can forgive me, I need to forgive too.
But is it really that easy? Which is more difficult; forgiving or staying angry? I’m not sure I have the energy or the time to be irked at someone I don’t know. Yeah, forgiveness can be tougher with someone we do know, but it is even more important that we do it then. I have no relationship with the folks who trashed my computer (I hope), so there’s nothing to lose. It’s the ones we who are closest to that we do have something to lose. It calls us to ask what is really important.
It is my sincere hope that my computer can be fixed easily and with minimal cost to me. It is my sincere hope that nothing like this ever happens again. It is my sincere hope that the hackers come to know Jesus. And I truly think I have forgiven them. What they did was wrong. What they did was “evil”. What they did should never have happened. Forgiveness isn’t forgetting or sweeping something under the rug. Forgiveness simply means not hanging onto something that God wants to deal with. Forgiveness is letting it be handled God’s way.
Wednesday, July 15, 2009
Never give up.
Martin Luther said once: "If I knew the world was going to end tomorrow, I'd go out and plant a tree." I think a lot of people have given up hope for the future. Part of it has come from the Christian community that is convinced that Jesus will be back some time next week. Part of it comes from those who figure he's never coming back at all because he wasn't really here in the first place. We lack hope because we don't feel like we should have hope. We also lose sight of the promise in Romans 13, that obnoxious passage that assures us that God has put our leaders in place for a reason (even Obama, even Bush) (*heavy sigh*).
I once heard that a patriot is one who supports the government enough to point out its shortcomings. The same can be said for the church as well. There was disagreement throughout the New Testament church, and still... look what we have become. We're most of us a bunch of schmucks, but still God is growing his church. None of us have it right, but all of us reflect a part of God. That's the hope. The journey.
We'll always have our factions and our differences of opinion. That's not a bad thing. It becomes bad when we can't sit at the table with those who have a different opinion. A wise friend wrote: "I don't hold the truth. You don't hold the truth. But maybe together, we'll get a little closer." God doesn't help those who help themselves but he does expect a little effort on our part. Part of what God expects is that we never give up.
I once heard that a patriot is one who supports the government enough to point out its shortcomings. The same can be said for the church as well. There was disagreement throughout the New Testament church, and still... look what we have become. We're most of us a bunch of schmucks, but still God is growing his church. None of us have it right, but all of us reflect a part of God. That's the hope. The journey.
We'll always have our factions and our differences of opinion. That's not a bad thing. It becomes bad when we can't sit at the table with those who have a different opinion. A wise friend wrote: "I don't hold the truth. You don't hold the truth. But maybe together, we'll get a little closer." God doesn't help those who help themselves but he does expect a little effort on our part. Part of what God expects is that we never give up.
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