Drink The Kool Aide...

I have had many distractions in my life lately and have not felt like blogging, but I have to leave a short note on recent events in our nation's capital. It seems that more than ever, fact has been replaced with often repeated talking points which contain no facts at all. Liberals, whether it's global warming, health care, or the economy, will throw out phrases and accompany those phrases with this line, "it is an indisputable fact". They will say that or something that means the same thing and then roll out the next talking point which is in fact not factual at all. And these talking points are disputed by many. When you hear that phrase, "it's an indisputable fact", which is the attempt at cutting off all debate, I want you to hear this instead. What they are saying to you is, "drink the Kool Aide, it's good for you". "Trust us, we would never steer you wrong." Well, I for one have never been a political Kool Aide drinker and am not at this point.

The left simply wants to silence opposition and rid us of that pesky first amendment. This country was founded upon a person's right to speak out and share their opinion. These facts they espouse are hardly indisputable. In the case of global warming the facts show a cooling trend since 1998. You won't hear that fact from Al Gore. The facts show that the polar ice caps are exactly the same as they were in 1979 and the polar bear population has quadrupled since 1979. These are facts and come from non-partisan groups who don't care about the outcome of the debate.

This week they are passing a health care bill that they say is to lower the cost of health care, insure every American and lower the cost of health insurance premiums. They tell us it's an indisputable fact that the health care system in the United States is broken while 80% of Americans are happy with their health care. Personally, they are trying to fix the wrong part of the system, but I digress. The CBO, a non-partisan group in Washington which helps congress know the true value of it's legislation says that the legislation put forward by the House and the Senate would in fact raise the cost of health care, it will raise the cost of all health care premiums, it will raise taxes on every American, it will cut Medicare by some 500 billion dollars and will not even cover half of the currently uncovered Americans.

"Drink the Kool Aide", they say. "Trust us", they say. Well I, for one, will not trust them, nor will I drink the Kool Aide they are offering. Why in the world are we about to raise costs in this terrible economy? How does it help anyone to raise everyone's taxes and to demand that a person pay a fine if they choose not to have health insurance. When did America become a place where we no longer have freedom to choose the paths our lives will take? When will congress step in and call it criminal that we don't buy something else they deem necessary for us to pay for in our private lives? Where in the constitution is it stated that the congress has the power to do any of this?

Because of so called "global warming", they are trying to pass a bill which will bring gas prices to $4 per gallon and electric bills will double, triple or maybe even quadruple in price. How will this be helpful to our economy? It will not. We will see a depression on par or much worse than the one we had last century. Why are they doing these things? Well, of course it's to, "help the less fortunate and the save the planet". Is it really? That's what the Kool Aide drinkers say, but what does logic say? At best the legislation to save the planet will not even begin to fight the "greenhouse gasses" that we people manufacture if we eliminated all industry and cars. So, why are we doing it? The health care bill which will cost us more and raise all of our taxes will not cover every American and yet it will cost all of us a great amount of money and it will create a new brand of criminal.

I don't know why they are doing it. I have some ideas as to why, the names Cloward and Piven come to mind, but I have no certainty about it. I don't know why, but I will not sit silently by and say nothing when I see a terrible sword coming. Don't drink the Kool Aide. These bills will kill this nation. I blogged last year before the last election that this would be the path our nation would take if these people were allowed to take power. No one would listen then. No one is listening now. No, everyone thinks, "well, I'm doing fine right now, none of this will affect me. Obama said he is going to make my life better. He said he wouldn't raise my taxes. He said he is going to fix all of that mess George Bush caused." My answer? Wake up and look at what is coming. Google the Cloward and Piven strategy. Look up the cap and trade bill. Look up what the CBO says about the health care bills. Look at our national debt. And to set the record straight, I was not happy with what Bush went along with in the last two years of his Presidency, but anyone who understands the constitution knows the President does not control the economy. Never has. The House of Representatives controls the economy and the the current folks were in power the last two years of the Bush administration and brought the economy to it's knees. They are now taking us down a road to complete economic Armageddon.

Don't drink the Kool Aide. Let your voice be heard. Let your congressman and senator know that their job is on the line with these latest bills. They work for us. Let them know they are about to be fired.

Until later (if there is a later, as they are trying to take away our right to blog too),

Don

Revolution

I thought with the political climate being what it is and people attempting to "fundamentally change" the United States, these lyrics might have some significance to this generation even though it's from my generation.

Revolution by Lennon and McCartney

You say you want a revolution
Well you know
We all want to change the world
You tell me that it's evolution
Well you know
We all want to change the world
But when you talk about destruction
Don't you know you can count me out

Don't you know it's gonna be alright
Alright, alright

You say you got a real solution
Well you know
We'd all love to see the plan
You ask me for a contribution
Well you know
We're all doing what we can
But if you want money for people with minds that hate
All I can tell you is brother you have to wait

Don't you know it's gonna be alright
Alright, alright, al...

You say you'll change the constitution
Well you know
We all want to change your head
You tell me it's the institution
Well you know
You better free your mind instead
But if you go carrying pictures of Chairman Mao
You ain't going to make it with anyone anyhow

Don't you know know it's gonna be alright
Alright, alright

Alright, alright
Alright, alright
Alright, alright
Alright, alright

Never Forget 9/11

Today is the anniversary of the day we all said we would never forget. We all remember where we were when those planes slammed into the twin towers, but to some, the newness has worn off and life has become business as usual. We have captured or killed all who are responsible for the attacks with the exception of one. But have we forgotten that we have not yet caught Osama Bin Laden? We have not completely shut down Al Quaida, but many say that we have no business going after Bin Laden where they believe he is hiding in Pakistan. I say, let's not rest until the world can rest from terrorism.

We were attacked. Many, many brave men and women gave their lives that day to try to rescue their fellow New Yorkers trapped in the burning twin towers. We remember those brave fire fighters and policemen and other first responders who gave their lives on that day. Equally, we remember those brave soldiers who have laid down their lives in the war on terror wherever it may have taken them. The Bible says, “greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friend”. These have all displayed what Jesus defines as the greatest love that there is and I, for one, will not forget them.

Many want to simply slide back into the slumber that this sleeping giant of a nation was in prior to those planes slamming into those buildings and killing our fellow Americans. Many would like to simply stick their head in the sand and pretend that terrorists will simply go away if we talk nicely to them. Many come up with rhetoric sounding like the defense of this nation has somehow made us less safe than we were on 9-11-2001, but my friends many have laid down their lives to insure our safety and I, for one, will not belittle their sacrifice by saying that it counted for nothing.

Let me just say that everyone who has worked to insure that the US does not have another attack here on our soil is a hero, from the soldier who fights for us overseas in Iraq, Afghanistan and several other fronts in the world; to the FBI and CIA agent intercepting chatter of plans to unleash another attack here and foiled that plot; to the Homeland security people and the airport screeners and the local and state police to the National Guard and the Coast Guard, I say thank you and we will not forget your sacrifices to keep all of us safe. And while I’m at it (though I’m quite sure he won’t see this note), thank you President George W. Bush and your administration for doing what was right and not necessarily what was popular to keep our nation safe even though many don’t appreciate your efforts. History will record that we had the right man in the White House for just this occasion. Thank you former President Bush.

Many, for political reasons, would like us to move the events of 911 into the back of our minds and lull the sleeping giant back to sleep. I will not EVER forget that day and how it changed this nation forever. We said we would never forget and that we would never give up, we would not falter and we would not fail. Let’s honor the memory of everyone who has touched our lives in the war on terror. Today, if you see a policeman, fireman, soldier or public official, walk right up to them and shake their hand, buy their lunch, thank them or whatever you can do, but remember that we live in safety today because they lay down their lives EVERY DAY for us.

God bless you and God bless America!!!

Until later,

Don

Our Ordeal...

I’m writing this blog to clear up some confusion and let you in on the ordeal over the past 6 days concerning my brother. Many have received conflicting reports with no explanation from me as to what is happening. I was frantically searching for my brother and trying to save his life, so had no time for details. I first want to thank everyone for your prayers. They have not been in vain and I received much strength from your kind words and prayers.

Now to the events of the past 6 days:

On Thursday, Sept 3, I received an email with two attached documents from my brother. The email said that, by the time I received it, he would be dead. The 28 page attached letter detailed his reasons and method of killing himself and as you would expect, I began frantically to try to reach him. His phone was disconnected and he did not reply to any of my emails. He stated that he was going out of state to kill himself and that I need not try to find him. He also gave detailed instructions as to what to do with all of his possessions which he had placed in storage which I was to sell and split the profits with my mother after paying my mother back some money he owes her. He also attached his last will and testament. A couple of days later I would receive in the mail, hard copies of these documents as well as keys to the storage units.

Now, my brother has not always been the most truthful person in the world, so I thought it was possible that he actually stayed at home to do this and lied so we would not stop him. About a decade ago, we prevented a suicide attempt by sending the police to his home, so I thought there was a chance to find him in San Antonio, so after calling the San Antonio police department, I jumped in the car to drive down to try to find my brother or at least his body. I was so distraught I have never wept like that in my life. It was quite a horrible day. When the police arrived at the house they found no one. I kept emailing my brother hoping that he had not done the deed yet, but received no reply. I feared that he was lying dead in his home. Friends in the neighborhood where he lived said they had not seen him in two weeks.

I arrived in San Antonio and drove to my brother’s home. I found it dark and no movement there. I emailed him several times from my phone in case he was still alive at home and just making it look like no one was home. I did not want to go in at night as it looked like no one was there and I wanted police with me when I went in. I have a key. So I went to the hotel and did not sleep most of the night texting friends and talking to others and praying and getting others to pray (slept maybe 2 hours). I got up and checked out and drove to my brother’s house to finally go in and see what I would find. When I arrived (I was going to call the police once I was there) I found the door wide open and a man there, cleaning and repairing the place. It was completely empty as my brother stated in his suicide letter that it would be. The man said my brother had not been there in two weeks. So I headed home distraught and at a loss.

While driving home, I received an email from my brother on my Blackberry. He was obviously not dead as he had stated, but he said that he had left on the evening that I arrived in San Antonio. It had taken him longer to get his affairs in order so that he could leave. He stated he was driving somewhere out of state so we could not find him. He also stated that he was going to meet some “clients” before taking his life and that he had placed an ad for these “clients” on the internet. He also sent this same email to my sister and the line about the ad jumped out at us. It was like when you read the Bible and the Holy Spirit causes one particular verse to jump out at you that He wants you to deal with, so I pondered that and did a Google search, but found nothing. All I knew was my brother was alive and I had to find him and prevent his death. My sister and I spoke on the phone and the Lord led her and her husband to Craig’s List, so they did a search and actually found him in Las Vegas, NV. What a miracle! Out of every city in every state, God led us right to him in Las Vegas of all places.

I arrived home on Friday night exhausted and emotionally spent. I knew my brother was alive, but for how long? When I woke up Saturday morning, the Lord spoke to my heart and said, “You were willing to drive to San Antonio where your brother is not, but are you not willing to go to Las Vegas where you now know he is?” I called my sister and asked her to create a fake email address and pose as one of his “clients” and set up a meeting with him on Sunday night or Monday (trying to keep him alive until we could arrive). He took the bait and set up a meeting at the MGM Grand at 6 pm on Sunday. The plan was to meet him there and talk to him. In praying about it and thinking it through, we realized that talking to him would likely end up in him walking off and we would lose him. So we contacted the Las Vegas police department and formulated a plan with them and the security people at the MGM. We jumped on a plane and got there just in time to point security and the police to him as he walked up to the Starbucks in the MGM. We were in the security office and pointed him out on a monitor. They took him into custody which was the most awful thing in my life to see. The officer said, “Congratulations, you’ve done a great thing”. My sister and I both very shook up said, “it doesn’t feel like it right now”. It was the most awful thing to have to watch them handcuff my brother and take him off. I was shaking and my sister was crying.

The mistake I made was not seeing him right then and there. The officer had told us that we could speak with him at the hospital and we elected to do that with the thought that we would speak with him in a calmer atmosphere. Well, when we got to the hospital, he refused to see us. My good friend, Jim Gilbert who is a minister as well had flown in after a meeting in Detroit instead of flying home, to be with me and help us through this and to try to speak to my brother as an impartial observer. My brother would not speak to any of us which made us quite sad. I was, however, able to pass along a note to my brother that my mother had written to him expressing her love for him and asking him to reconsider. He did know that we were all there and hopefully knows that we could not just sit and let him end his life.

Anyway, we kept passing along requests for prayer to everyone we could think of knowing that it would be a miracle if he did not snow the doctors into letting him go. He is quite good at deception. I had given the authorities all of the written documents he sent to me and my mother plus his last will and testament he sent. They in turn passed it all on to the doctors at the hospital. My sister and I expressed to all of them very forcefully that he needs help. We received word today that they are holding him past the 3 day mandatory holding time which means the doctors have determined that he truly does need help.

I hope this clears up any confusion caused by my earlier texts and posts stating that my brother is dead. Obviously, he is not and hopefully by the grace of God he will not be dead for a long time to come.

Thank you all so much for your prayers and support. Please keep praying. It’s not over, but things are beginning to look up.

Until later,

Don

The Evils Of Social Networking

Lately, I have been made aware of a couple of people espousing the “evils of social networking”. I have been silent on the subject until today trying to make sure I didn’t hurt anyone’s feelings. While everyone has a right to their opinion and nothing is for everyone, I’d like to simply share the positives and the great possibilities that have opened up for me by using various social networks.

Let me begin by saying that I really had no use for social networks to begin with. I only got on one because I wanted to keep track of what my daughter was involved in. However, I started noticing that there were great advantages to networking with people online. I started connecting with people in the church and it was incredible. I’d see someone’s name pop up and it would remind me to pray for them and I would drop them a note to let them know I was thinking about them. It also gave me the opportunity to immediately remind people of church events as they came up. This is a great tool as we often forget things we want to do. I know I do. As a pastor, I have realized that prior to electronic media, besides being at a church service itself, I would connect with maybe 6 or 7 people during a week besides the ones working directly on church business. That was a good week. Now, I can connect in one way or another with hundreds of people in a week. It’s possible to let the love of God be known to a few hundred people at a time. It’s possible to encourage hundreds of people at a time, or take time to encourage that one that needs an extra boost. I’ve had a few conversations with people online lately that I could not have possibly had any other way and those conversations (according to those with whom I was conversing) changed the lives of those individuals. I can’t take the credit. It was the Holy Spirit ministering, but He would not have had the opportunity to use me in that way had it not been for my involvement in a social network. I find it very encouraging that I put a prayer request down on my status on various networks and instantly have many people praying for my friends and folks in the church and friends of friends.

The Bible says:

Matt 28:19-20
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age. NIV

The word for nations literally means people groups. The Bible says to go to where all the various people groups are and make disciples. Now, is the internet and social networks the only place where you find people? No, but it IS where most of the people are. I truly believe that a believer needs to go to where the people are and we are to let our lights shine for the Kingdom of God. So I go on the various social networks and I do all the things I did before too, such as emails and personal interaction.

Saturday, our church fellowship had a baptism out at Lake Lavon. It was a glorious day with 37 of our congregation being baptized. By the time I returned home, literally hundreds of pictures of the event were already on Facebook. How cool to go online today and relive the wonderful time we all had celebrating with our church family. As someone said, “it was like being there all over again”.

I’ve heard some say, “well, shouldn’t you have real conversations with people and not cyber relationships with people?” Of course you should have real relationships with people and hopefully using a social network properly will help you foster and deepen the relationships you have as well as helping to build new ones. Now, If the only relationships you have are cyber ones, you need to make the call on that, but my friends, the internet is where the people are. I believe the Bible would compel us to go to where the people we relate to are and make disciples. Go to where the people are and share the love of God. Go to where the people are and let the lonely know that someone cares. Go to where the people are and let the people who think no one notices them that someone notices and cares. Go to where the people are and let your friends from yesteryear know that you remember them and what a difference they made in your life.

Case in point: I have a friend who I would see once or twice per year. We knew we had a lot in common when we would see one another, but he worked and lived way on the other side of town, so we simply looked forward to getting together once or twice per year. Either I found him on Facebook or he found me, I don’t recall. Now we speak to each other via Facebook many times per week and often many times per day. Plus it led to us having lunch and eventually I found my friend sitting in the congregation at church. Amazing!!! All because we connected on Facebook. There are many other positive things that have taken place with this friend, but suffice to say, I now know him better now because of Facebook and I thank God for it.

People who disparage social networking act as if somehow because you are communicating on Facebook, Twitter or some other network, you aren’t having “real” relationships with people. I find the contrary to be true. Lately, because of Facebook and Twitter, I’ve made lunch appointments with 4 different friends that I most likely would not have had if we had not connected last week on Facebook, plus 2 different people in the past two weeks reached out to me to get together personally because they needed counsel. We got together, one in my office and one for dinner. Where was the initial contact? Facebook. Social networking should be an enhancement to live interaction not a detriment. I’ve literally counseled with many, many people via Facebook, Twitter, Yahoo Messenger, AIM and even the evil MySpace. Yes, let’s use every means necessary to enhance the lives of those we know.

As many of you, I have found many, many friends from my past (Jr High, High School, College, various churches I’ve been on staff with, people from when I travelled on the road and, yes, my current congregation) on Facebook and they have encouraged me and I have encouraged them. Recently, my friend and mentor from college, Jeff, was ill. I was able to converse with him while he lay in his hospital bed in Virginia due to Facebook and Twitter and I was able to encourage hundreds of people to pray for him as he was ill. Before social networks were around, I only wondered how he was doing. Now, I can speak with him and check up on things he is doing and vice versa via Facebook and Twitter simply because we can. I have hundreds of stories like that which enrich my life and ministry and enrich the lives and ministry of others.

Almost every minister I know is on Facebook and Twitter. Why? Because it’s where the people are and we can encourage our friends and congregants much better than at any time in history. Now, don’t think that I’m ignorant of the fact that people can abuse such networks. I know that. That is why there is the ability to block certain people and I’ve had to do that from time to time.

On balance however, I thank God for the social networking tools we have at our disposal today. A couple of weeks ago, I found out via Twitter that my friend Alex was in the hospital. I was able to immediately get many people involved praying for her. I was also able to go visit her in the hospital because I KNEW she was IN the hospital. You know, I find it’s difficult to visit someone in the hospital when I have no clue that they are there. ;-) Funny how things work that way.

Now, I’m not slamming anyone who chooses not to be on a social network or someone who believes they are evil. But just do me the courtesy of not slamming me or thinking ill of me either. To the one who believes “cyber relationships” are bad, you must then throw away your cell phone and disconnect your email because texts and email are no different than a social network. They are literally a larger social network than Facebook, Twitter or MySpace and the others. If social networks are evil, do away with them all and simply see people in person. Don’t write them a letter either for that was the original social network… :-/ Sorry, just couldn’t help but point that out. Truly, I think we should all do what fits us. However, I want to go where the people are. Social networks have increased my ability to share the love of God with others. They have also increased my ability to simply be a good friend. I have to say, I have a bad memory and Facebook reminds me when your birthdays are. I appreciate that because I used to forget everyone’s birthday. :-(

Lastly, I will say, Social networks probably are a bad thing for the self centered. As a Christian, scripture encourages me to be others centered and not self centered. If you are doing anything in life to simply see what’s in it for you, then maybe social networking is not for you.

The Bible says:

Phil 2:3-4
3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. 4 Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others. NIV

I truly believe that we should be on whatever social network we are on for the sole reason of making other’s lives better. We should log on thinking, “how can I encourage all of my friends today? How can I pray for my friends today? Is there something I can post that will cause them to feel better about themselves or help them understand a current social phenomenon better? Is there something in common that I have with some of my friends that I can talk about to encourage fellowship? Can I recommend a good place to eat or a fun thing to do because maybe others are looking for places like that as well and it will enrich their lives as it has mine? Can I warn my friends about something bad that I heard on the news so they don’t get hurt or caught up into something bad?” Nothing in this life should really be solely about me. It should be about making this world a better place for everyone else we know. That’s what social networking is for me.

The point of this blog was not to argue with anyone about the pros and cons of electronic media, but to share how it has enriched my life. Thank you to everyone who through one social networking site or another has enriched my life. Thanks for allowing me into your lives. It is a great honor. You are special and I hope that we can encourage each other all the more in the months and years to come. God bless you all…

Until later,

Don

Why?

I’m sitting here today amazed at some liberal thought. I don’t say all liberal thought but I believe only the most extreme in the liberal world. This is what I’m amazed about. Some liberals, a lot of liberals, truly believe that conservatives are not capable of researching issues and coming up with our own opinions independent of ANY conservative media interference. I’ve been accused of coming up with all of my political thoughts because of things I’ve heard on Fox News. Now, while I enjoy many of the shows on Fox News, forming my opinion??? I think not.

Believe it or not, Fox News was not even around when I helped the college Republicans with the Reagan campaign. I listened to the issues at hand and realized that conservative values seemed to line up with everything else that I believe. I am a major student of history and, in looking at history, I have formed many of my conservative values and many of my warnings in my blogs come not from any modern media, but from my studies of US and World history. We study history (much of it has been rewritten in recent days) so that we can see the mistakes of the past and those things which our predecessors did correctly. Hopefully we learn this in order to repeat the later and avoid the former. The warnings I have posted in this blog come from a decent knowledge of the Constitution and our political history and a good knowledge of world history and societies being led astray in the past by tyrants and very well dressed, well spoken leaders who use similar tactics and motivations as many of the tactics and motivations being used by those on the left today.

Why do those extremists on the left think it impossible for a free thinker to come up with conservative values. Well, that answer is a simple one. They don’t believe their followers can come up with liberal values unless worked up, bussed in and manipulated with all of the scare tactics they blame upon the right. Oh, they can burn the American flag, hang a conservative President in effigy and proclaim that they love a good ole American protest. They can threaten the safety of others at poling places and bus people in to disrupt and even assault conservatives who are there selling American flags and they proclaim that the conservatives are an angry mob and un-American, but the violent members of the bussed in SEIU members are simply good ole American protesters. The left give out their talking points and their followers parrot their dictates no matter what logical disconnect may be present.

No, I have consistently throughout my 50 year existence on this planet followed conservative values. I used to proudly proclaim myself a Republican and am currently rethinking that as it seems the Republican Party is abandoning true conservative principles. It seems today I am a man without a party. I am a conservative. I have independently looked over what is at stake, remembering where we have come from and not sticking my head in the sand. This nation is moving in the same direction that some pretty devastating revolutions have taken other nations in the past. I believe the country may be starting to wake up. I hope it’s quick enough. Don’t let anyone tell you what to believe. Look it up for yourself. We live in an age where finding information is easier than ever. Find the truth about who is telling you the information you are getting. Find the values that you live by and follow that. If it leads you to a liberal mindset, then follow. If you look at what each side stands for and find that you value conservative values, follow that. If something else, follow that. The Bible says, “You will know the truth and the truth will set you free". Please search for the truth until you find it. This country is truly being led around by emotional hype. Those who seek the truth will find it. Those finding the truth are letting the truth be known. You do the same and I will too.

Until later,

Don

We need a President, not an emperor...

Well it seems these days that we have a White House that dismisses free speech that does not agree with them. The President would rather refer to protesters as "angry mobs" and, because we are conservative, dismiss all that we have to say. I am one of the people President Obama thinks he's "helping" with his health care bill. I am one who is in debt due to medical bills (diabetes, high blood pressure, heart attack, stroke etc, etc, etc...). But I do not want a federal government run health care system. I do not want the federal government in control of 1/7 of our national economy and I do not think the constitution gives the fed the right to tell states what they will and will not do with health insurance. There has always been a thing called states' rights which these radicals in Washington seem to forget about. Every state has an insurance commissioner who negotiates with the various insurance companies and that commission sets that particular state's guidelines for all insurance. Now the federal government is going to march in under Obama care and dictate how that commissioner will do his or her job. I don't see that power in the constitution. Are we simply going to let this man come in and tear up the document which governs our land simply because he has a Messiah complex? I don't think so. My wife came here from Canada. She is now a US citizen (was never here illegally which seems to be a novelty in this nation now). She knows first hand the horrors of government run health care. Are we ready to wait in line to see if the federal government deems our lives valuable enough to save in an emergency. This President who deems all dissent as evil, might not deem the life of a decenter as valuable at all. The czars this man has in place already are quite scary in and of themselves. These Czars come from an ideology which moves from believing in abortion to advocating euthanasia. They do not value every human life in the least. Are we going to take the chance that they will find that our lives are the exception? Do we trust Obama and his cronies to find that we deserve life? I'm not trusting him with that. It's like we've traded in the presidency for the old style Roman emperor. We stand before the great and mighty Obama and wait for a thumbs up or thumbs down when it comes to our health and our very life itself. I'm angry and no one is paying me to be. I wish they were. I could use it to pay some medical bills... :-)

It is really time that we let our voices be heard and not simply dismissed. We cannot have our nation ripped out of our hands at the whim of a few radicals in the White House and in congress who got into office simply because people were angry with President Bush. I warned you of what would happen if these radicals were to take office and exactly what I warned you about is occurring today. They are changing the very nature of our federal government to look like old Soviet style socialism. Do we really want to be brought back to the stone ages with the Cap & Trade bill that will make our utility bills sky rocket and gas prices so high we can't use our automobiles. Obama is recorded admitting that the point of this legislation is to get Americans to stay home. How is that good for industry? People are losing their jobs left and right and the government is proposing legislation that will shut down more industry in the USA??? How can we sit silently by and allow our president to behave like the Emperor of Washington? The health care bill will put our lives in the hands of mad men. Our federal deficit is already so high that even our children's children will not be able to pay it down and they simply want to add more to it???? Unbelievable. Cash for clunkers seemed on it's face to be a decent idea, except where is that money coming from? Why are we destroying the cars being turned in? What will the used car industry do for product if all of the used cars are being destroyed? Don't those people need jobs? Where are the people who cannot afford a new car loan going to find a vehicle to drive? Don't they matter? Oh yeah, Emperor Obama wants us all to stay home... I forgot... silly me... But what about the used car parts for the folks who depend on those to repair their automobiles? If all of the cars are being destroyed, where will affordable used parts come from and what will happen to those who deal in used parts. I know the federal government already owns a substantial part of the automobile industry, but can we see now what happens when the fed socializes a large part of the free market to "help" people? Socialism ALWAYS hurts more people in the long run than it ever helps.

Our nation is being stolen right out from under us unless we let our voices be heard. Obama says that the anger over his policies is simply "manufactured anger" paid for by the GOP. Well, I for one am angry. It's not manufactured and it's not paid for by the GOP. The Emperor of Washington needs to be brought back down to earth. We need a President. A President actually listens to the people. The constitution demands that he do so. "We the people" will not let this stand. We will not sit silently by while another communist revolution happens right here in the United States of America. Our nation is being stolen from us piece by piece and it's time for us to stand up and do something about it to let our voices be heard. We don't want an Emperor. We don't want to be a nation of Czars. "We the people" want our nation back!!! Let your voice be heard. Write your congressman, senators and even the Emperor himself and let them hear the voice of the people once again.

Until later,

Don

Stuck in the Past?

I read a blog yesterday from someone who used to attend our fellowship. The blog made me sad. It saddens me too because I have heard and read many conversations which were eerily similar to what this man blogged. The blog I read was all about how someone had wronged this person several years ago and the person who wrote the blog still refuses to forgive. They are stuck in the past (2 years or more in the past) because they (not the person whom they think wronged them) refuse to move on from that position and simply forgive and get on with life. In fact, the reason they left our fellowship was that I tried to get him to forgive his brother in the Lord when the incident occurred.

When we focus so much attention on things which have hurt us in the past, we show two things. One, we show that we have not forgiven the wrongs done to us. This is a problem for any believer on a couple of levels. One, God requires us to forgive, if we are to receive forgiveness ourselves. I know this doesn’t fit nice and neatly into our little theological boxes but it IS what Jesus said never the less.

Matthew 6:15
15 But if you do not forgive men their sins, your Father will not forgive your sins.
NIV

This is a hard statement by Jesus, but He means what He said. If I am to receive forgiveness from God, I must forgive. When I constantly (and I used to do this) bring up hurts from my past and react to them as if they are alive today, I tell on myself that I have not forgiven. This was, unhappily at the time, brought to my attention by my mother in the early 90s. She noticed that I was still talking about the things someone had done to me years earlier and she said, “I believe you have and unforgiveness issue here”. Of course, I blew it off and said, “no I don’t.” However, the fact of the matter was that I did have an unforgiveness issue and I was not going to have peace in this matter, until I let the offender off the hook and realized that they owed me nothing. You see, the only thing that hanging on to bitterness over a past offense does is destroy our ability to find peace in this life. Jesus came to bring us peace. He has freely forgiven us, so why would I hold any offense against my brother?

This brings me to the second problem for a believer holding on to unforgiveness. That problem is that we have been forgiven freely and we should freely forgive. Why? Because a person was not designed by God to hold on to unforgiveness. Holding on to hurts and resentments from the past only serve to allow that person to hurt us on a daily basis. If I am unforgiving, the only person hurting over that is me. I’m not hurting the one I’m not forgiving. They are likely, completely unaware that I’m even still angry. I truly believe that much of the emotional turmoil I see in America everyday is caused by an epidemic of unforgiveness. People are taught that they have a right to be angry and have to express that anger. People who believe that are doomed to very sad unpeaceful lives for the rest of their lives. Jesus came to take the sin of the world, including the sins of the one who wronged us. God forgave me of all sorts of wrongs in my life by His grace. He required nothing of me but to receive His grace and mercy, so why should I require anything of those who wrong me?

Now I started this out by saying that, when we focus on hurts from the past, we show two things. One was our unforgiveness. The second is our unwillingness to move forward in life. We doom ourselves to be stuck every single day in the past. I don’t know about you, but I truly believe that God made each and every one of us to make a mark on this world for His Kingdom. How in the world am I going to do that if I live my life dredging up horrible things from my past all the time? Oh, don’t get me wrong. There are times when it is useful to share things, even bad things, from our past with a concerned friend. I’ve been catching up with many of my old friends on Facebook and Twitter and when someone asks about what the years have brought me through I share the good and the bad and they do too. It’s good to know some of the things we have walked through in life because truly those things have made us who we are today and God’s hand has brought us through all of it. But, what I’m talking about is that person who continually focuses on what has been evil in their lives. I’ve got too much to do to get caught up in that. I want to learn the lessons from mine and other’s past mistakes and move on by forgiving them and then looking for what God has for me today. Paul says it this way:

Philippians 3:13-14
13 Brothers, I do not consider myself yet to have taken hold of it. But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, 14 I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus. NIV

Forgetting what is behind!!! Yes, I can’t get in the race with all that baggage. I need to forget what is behind. It’s in the past. There is nothing I can do about it now with the exception of learning from past mistakes not to do it again. But I need to be pressing on. I need to focus my life on what God has for me today and tomorrow and every tomorrow after that until I win the prize. Focusing on all the wrongs done to us not only hurts us and blocks our own forgiveness, it sits me in the bleachers of life instead of out running the race where I belong. Listen, I’ve been there. I’ve done it. I’ve been paralyzed by bitterness and there is absolutely no peace in it. That’s not where God wants us to be. Jesus, the Prince of Peace, came to bring us peace. When we choose not to forgive, we refuse God’s peace. I, for one, choose to move on. I want to let go of the past and press on for what God has for me today. Someone said to me a couple of days ago, “I don’t think Don Carr is finished yet”. And to that, I say a whole hearted Amen!!! I will not be finished until I see Him face to face and hear those words, “well done good and faithful servant” and until that time I intend to run the race to win.

Hebrews 12:1-3
1 Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us. 2 Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. NIV

Let’s throw off everything that hinders. Let’s forgive. Let’s forget what is behind and look for all of the wonderful things God, in His mercy and love, has for us today. That’s what I’m going to do.

Until later,

Don

Using new toys

I have been ill this week and spent a lot of time in bed. Now, I am not one who can stay in bed without going stir crazy a bit, but evey time I tried to get up and do stuff, I got worse and back to bed I went. So...

The next best thing I suppose to being up and around was to get around on the computer. I think I bugged a lot of people simply because they were online on Facebook or Twitter. Sorry if you were one that I bugged. ;-)

So, instead of bugging people I started checking out new things online. I found two really useful tools although one is a bit overwhelming.

The first was recommended by my friend Beth Dorn. She uses an online tool called Digsby. Digsby is useful in that you can monitor all of your networking activity (ie myspace, facebook, twitter, AIM, etc) from one site and even chat with folks on all the different online networking sites all at once. Pretty cool huh? It is. But as I said, it can be a bit overwhelming as I have a lot of friends so stuff was jut popping up right and left. Useful tool however. You may want to check it out.

I also had a tool recommended to me by my friend Kurt. It's called ping.fm. What it does is pretty cool as well and I find it quite useful too. It allows you to use one site to update posts to all of your networking sites at one time. I'm actually using it right now and it is updating my blog at blogger, yahoo 360 and my notes on Facebook all at the same time, that is, if it works. I'm blogging and checking it out at the same time. The other thing very useful about it is that I have several different pages on Facebook and so forth and you can set up groups in ping.fm, so you can update some things without necessarily updating everything. It took me a while to figure out how that worked. :-) The other very cool thing about it is you can post anything to any of your sites using your text messages from your phone or your email. It's really simple once you learn a couple of codes.

Well I'm still learning a lot about both of these networking tools, but thought I would pass it along to you. Thanks for your time. God bless you and I hope I see you in church.

Until later,

Don

All The Fuss About Michael

Today the world watched as Michael Jackson was laid to rest. I'm a musician and a pastor and have had occasion to preside over many such events (obviously not a production like that, but a funeral just the same). I’m not in the least surprised at the enormity of the event nor at the world-wide pouring out of affection that has been seen. As a pastor, presiding over many funerals, I watch as many, who while the deceased was alive may have shown little affection, pour out great love and great agony as they lay to rest a friend or loved one. On days like today, we remember the good that a person has done. We put our differences aside and say good-bye. These days, there is almost moment by moment contact with those whom we admire in the entertainment industry and people feel as if they are part of their family or friends.

I know that some whom I admire will not like some of what I’m about to say, but that’s OK. I’ll say it anyway… I have been a fan of Michael Jackson since I was 10 years old. Michael Jackson is only a couple of months older than me. I’m a musician and a performer and admired his talent greatly. I’m sad that Michael has moved on into eternity and it broke my heart as his family, especially his 11 year old daughter, Paris, cried for her “daddy”. I’m not, as I’ve read some put it today, a worshipper of Michael Jackson, but I am proud to be a fan of his for almost 40 years and I watched most of the funeral as did many of you.

In saying that, it does not mean that I necessarily understood everything Michael Jackson did. But, you see, I don’t have to. I enjoyed his talent and I appreciated the way he would go out of his way to help the less fortunate. Some, even on the day of his funeral, are calling him names and making fun of him. We live in a country where our laws presume that a person is innocent until proven guilty. Michael Jackson, as far as I am concerned and as far as the law of this land is concerned is innocent of all charges brought against him. I am not willing to participate in turning this country into a land where a man is guilty simply because he has been accused. Neither am I willing to be part of a church who thinks it’s their job to point out the faults of everyone but themselves.

Michael Jackson made choices in his personal life which I would never make in a million years, but you know what? I maybe have made choices in my life that others would not have made in a million years. As a musician, I know what it’s like to have long hair, a beard and earrings and walk into a church and have people judge me for what I look like. I’ve had many a pastor preach to me, looking straight at me throughout the entire service and altar call just “singing that chorus one more time” waiting for me to come up and get saved, only to have me walk up after the service and introduce myself as the evangelist and singer that his youth pastor had brought in for the evening service. I know what it’s like to be pulled over by the highway patrol in east Texas and have my vehicle searched for drugs because of what I looked like when I was on my way to a pastor’s conference in Florida. (they didn’t find any by the way) I know what things can look like to someone looking for faults.

I’ve been sending a lot of scripture over Twitter and Facebook today. I’d like to share some of them with you and leave the commentary to you:

Matthew 7:1-4
1"Do not judge, or you too will be judged. 2 For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you. 3 "Why do you look at the speck of sawdust in your brother's eye and pay no attention to the plank in your own eye? 4 How can you say to your brother, 'Let me take the speck out of your eye,' when all the time there is a plank in your own eye? NIV

Romans 14:13
13 Therefore let us stop passing judgment on one another. Instead, make up your mind not to put any stumbling block or obstacle in your brother's way. NIV

1 Corinthians 11:31
31 But if we judged ourselves, we would not come under judgment. NIV

Here is one I didn’t send out today on Twitter or Facebook and I will comment on this one…

John 8:3-11
3 The teachers of the law and the Pharisees brought in a woman caught in adultery. They made her stand before the group 4 and said to Jesus, "Teacher, this woman was caught in the act of adultery. 5 In the Law Moses commanded us to stone such women. Now what do you say?" 6 They were using this question as a trap, in order to have a basis for accusing him.
But Jesus bent down and started to write on the ground with his finger. 7 When they kept on questioning him, he straightened up and said to them, "If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone at her." 8 Again he stooped down and wrote on the ground.
9 At this, those who heard began to go away one at a time, the older ones first, until only Jesus was left, with the woman still standing there. 10 Jesus straightened up and asked her, "Woman, where are they? Has no one condemned you?"
11 "No one, sir," she said.
"Then neither do I condemn you," Jesus declared. "Go now and leave your life of sin." NIV

Jesus had every right to condemn this woman. She was caught in her sin. The criteria He gave was, “If any one of you is without sin, let him be the first to throw a stone…” and it was a criteria that He and He alone met. At the end, He said, “neither do I condemn you, go now and leave your life of sin”. He didn’t say that what she had done was OK, but He said he was not going to condemn her. He forgave her just like He has forgiven me and just like he has forgiven you. So often Christians wrongly believe that to not be condemning is somehow condoning sin. It’s not!!! Jesus did not condone this woman’s lifestyle and His kindness, as Paul tells us in the book of Romans, led her to repentance. Has anyone out there actually repented because some judgmental, mean “Chistian” (I put it in quotations on purpose, you do the math) has berated them into the Kingdom? No. Of course not. Neither will anyone else and that’s why it’s not my job to be the Holy Spirit. To those who call themselves believers out there today, but are behaving like Pharisees, haters, (as my friend Dan says they’ve had a glass of Hateraide) I say, let the one who is without sin be the first to cast a stone.

My understanding is that Michael Jackson may have surrendered to Jesus Christ before dying. If that is true then he has heard those words we all long to hear, “well done good and faithful servant…” If that makes you mad, then go join all the other “elder brothers” in this world looking down on their prodigal brothers. As for me, I choose to rejoice that another son has come home. Andrae’ and Sandra Crouch were not ashamed to call Michael Jackson their friend and to appear on stage at his funeral. I’ll not be ashamed to stand with them on this. You see people find fault with “Christians” and rightfully so when we constantly forget that the only reason we are saved is that we are forgiven by His grace and it is NOT our job to judge another man’s servant. Even when we get the log out of our own eye, we aren’t to judge. We are to love. We are to help. The only reason I stand forgiven is that I surrendered to Jesus Christ. Let’s be like Jesus was to the woman caught in adultery. He did not condemn her. All have sinned… Jesus said that the world would know we are His disciples by our love for one another. I wonder what the world sees today in so many of us?

I’m not going to come to any judgment on Michael Jackson today or any other day because the only judgment that matters is God’s judgment. He knows all and sees all and I don’t. Today is a day to remember the good things that Michael did in life. He inspired people, myself included when I was young. He helped the less fortunate. By all accounts, he was a very caring person and as testified to by his 11 year old daughter Paris, much to the disdain of many, “A GOOD FATHER”. So, Michael, on this day, not that you need one more, I salute you for all the joy you brought to so many; for the legacy you leave in your musical profession; for all the many less fortunate than you that you helped; for the son, brother, father and friend that you were to so many. May you rest in peace and as your brother so rightfully said today, “may they finally leave you alone”.

Until later,

Don

Independence Day 2009

Today, July 4, 2009, we celebrate US independence and the birth of our nation. I say, "God bless America". Our independence was won against those who would tax us without our consent and impose great burdens upon the citizens without regard for the welfare of the people. The declaration says, "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. That to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed. That whenever any form of government becomes destructive to these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their safety and happiness."

We are independent and free from the rule of Great Britain, but have new tyrants raised their ugly heads along with new tyrannies? Do we have government leaders who ignore the will of the people and impose financial burdens upon the people of the US without the consent of the people? Has anyone, even the House members who voted for it, read the cap and trade bill? Did anyone actually read everything in the "stimulus bills" and bail out "government take-over" legislation? These bills alone will make it impossible for most individuals to do simple things like heat or cool their homes or to heat their water or drive their automobiles. These bills alone will cause most small businesses to go out of business because of new taxes. Wasn't our declaration of independence from government tyranny a declaration that government should stay out of the people's business unless absolutely necessary? What in the world is the federal government doing taking over US banks and corporations? Wasn't that type of government behavior exactly what caused our founding fathers to write our declaration of independence? We declared ourselves free from totalitarianism and declared that government derives all powers from the consent of the governed.

Are there truly new tyrants on the horizon that we will need to stand against as our founding fathers stood against King George? There may well be. This Independence day, let's let our voices be heard. Don't let the greatest nation on earth fall to power hungry tyrants who do not have the best interest of the governed in mind. Let your voice be heard before you no longer have the right to speak.

Let's say with President Abraham Lincoln, "that this nation, under God, shall have a new birth of freedom -- and that government of the people, by the people, for the people, shall not perish from the earth."

God bless America again,

Don

Life Is Short

Yesterday, with the sudden passing of Larry Dalton, I am reminded that life is short and we are not guaranteed tomorrow. I remember when Larry and the original Living Sound bunch pulled into Tampa, Bayshore United Methodist Church, as if it were yesterday. I was a young teenager just barely 13 years old. I was mezmerized by the musicianship and overwhelmed by the power of God's Spirit which was evident in every note and in the powerful message that Terry Law brought that day. We would have many more occasions to welcome various forms of Living Sound to Tampa and I was there, sitting in the front row taking in everything. A few years later, I remember going forward and praying with David Smith after one of the concerts. Oh, I was saved, but David gave me a word from the Lord which proved to be my life path and what I am doing to this day. I want to say to all of you Living Sound folks, from a later alumni myself, thank you for serving the Lord. I am part of the fruit of your labor. Larry was not only an astounding musician, but a tremendous person. He stayed in our home the first couple of trips and one trip Bruce Winegar stayed with us as well. He left not just a musical impression, but he left an unmistakeable impression of the heart of God on this young man.

Larry and I were supposed to have lunch together in Dallas the next time that he was to be in town. I won't get to have that lunch with him. I won't have the opportunity to say, "thank you", in person to Larry for all that he meant to me as a youth and as a young man. I thought I had plenty of time. I know that he knows now and I look forward to the day when we can share lunch in person again.

However, Larry was seemingly in good health when he went to be with the Lord and we never know when our appointment will be. After all, each of us have an appointment with God and we will not be early, nor will we be late. So, I would like to take a moment to say thank you to several people who touched my life in a very profound way as I grew up:

To Jim Copeland (who is not on Facebook) I want to say thank you for taking a teenager who had lost his dad a few years earlier and being that father figure to me. You were always a great role model for me as a man, as a Christian and as a musician. Thank you.

To Barry Perez, thank you for all the times you shared with me and poured Jesus into me when I was a young lad. I enjoyed watching you grow in the Lord as you poured His love into me. Thanks for the godly example you have always been to me.

To Lex Rivers my childhood best friend. Thanks for helping me to remember that it's OK to laugh. We had so much fun together in Jr High and on through college. I don't think I could have done so well had it not been for your encouragement. Thanks bro.

To Bob Petty, thanks for being the best musical partner a guy could ever have and for always being there through high school to make me realize that I should not lay down my dreams, I should go for it and never say never.

To Leo and Carolyn Gillman, thanks for taking a chance on a 14 year old kid and taking me all over the southeast with you singing for the Lord. You and Mark and Greg were always the example of a godly family and I thank you for letting me be a part of that for 4 years. The Revelation years left a mark that is visibly part of who I am today. Carolyn, you are the one who encouraged me to let the soul out in my singing and I have ever since. Thank you.

To Jeff Ling and Myles Monroe and Michael Flowers, thank you for all that you meant to me at Oral Roberts University. You men helped walk with me in a profound way. You busted my chops when necessary and you loved me in spite of my failures. You encouraged me in the giftings that God has placed in my life and pushed me to use my talents to serve the Lord.

To Jim Gilbert, Don Moen, Gordon Calmeyer, Terry Law, Steve Merkel, Greg Chapman and Joel Vessanen thank you so much for the training in life and in music and in godliness that I received from you as you came to my town and as most of you put up with me later in Living Sound. You men left an indellible mark on my life and I can never repay you for all that you poured into me.

To Kent Nottingham and Bob Grenier, you two helped to pick up a broken man and put me back together after one of the roughest periods of my life. You helped guide me when I was on the road with Don Carr and Sold Out and I will forever be grateful for the grace of God that still flows through both of you today.

To Dary Grumbein words can't even say what all we have walked through together. Thanks for being you and thanks Fran for putting up with us. :-)

Obviously to Evelyn, Whitney, Mom and Kathie, thank you so much for your constant love and encouragement. You have all lifted me up when I was down and pushed me to keep following the Lord even when I thought I could not. I love you.

Oh, don't get me wrong... This is not a good bye note as I plan to be around for a long time to come, but I want to make sure that each of you knows just how profound an effect you had and have on my life. I planned to tell Larry Dalton what an effect he had on my life. I thought I had much more time to do that, but it turns out that his appointment was earlier than we thought. So to all of you and probably many more that I have left out, thank you. You are the reasons I am who I am today.Thank you.

Life is indeed short. Let's make the most of it and not leave anything undone.

Until Later,

Don

The Power of the Resurrection

Today we celebrate the resurrection of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Often we speak of the cross and the power of forgiveness that Jesus died to purchase for us. In the cross is our debt paid in full. We have been adopted into the family of God and will eternally walk in the presence of our Lord.

In the resurrection, we find the power of God. Our risen Lord has come into our lives and empowered us to build His Kingdom; to change our own lives; to change the world for His Glory. So often we ask the question, “how can I make a difference in this world?” We won’t make a difference by simply living for our own pleasures and walking this life in our own strength. No. Today is a day to remember our Lord stepped into the lives of His downcast disciples and transformed them from trembling men into the Apostles that went forward from that upper room and changed the world. It was walking in the power of His resurrection and in the power of His Spirit that transformed these men and thus transformed the world. More importantly, because of this marvelous transformation of life, we have found salvation and power through their message of His love.

Let’s be determined this day to never walk this life in our own strength again. Let us truly surrender to the unending power of His resurrection. For in the resurrection of Jesus is the key to a transformed life and a transformed world, one life at a time. It’s time we stand up for His glory in the power of the resurrection and live, not a mundane life, but an outstanding life for Him.

Until later,

Don

No "Do-Overs"

For some odd reason, this has been a very reflective week for me. I have found myself thinking about choices I have made in my life. In Galatians 6 Paul reminds us that we reap what we sow. All throughout scripture God compels us to choose wisely. I just taught on “Choices and Consequences” on Wednesday night, March 25. You can listen to the teaching at http://www.gracefellowship.net/, but the point of this blog is that I look back on some decisions I made in my past and some of those decisions make me sad. Sometimes I wish we could go back in time, as people do in many science fiction programs, and fix the bad decisions I have made. Alas, there are no “do-overs” in life. Yes, we receive forgiveness and we often get second chances, but we have lost forever that moment in time.

Now that I am older and realize that I will not live forever. I realize, maybe too late, that every moment we live is precious and there have been way too many times in my past that I have been flippant about my decisions. I know this probably makes no sense to anyone today but me. I have been catching up with many friends from the past lately, which has been great, and I have a tendency to think of how much time I missed with good friends because I was so caught up with what I was doing in the moment and didn’t keep in touch with people I care about over the years. I’m remembering decisions I made which may have hurt other people and yet I cruised along in life oblivious to how it may have affected someone else and I’m sad that I did that. I’ve made other decisions that were good as well. Sometimes, I wish I could do it all over again and fix the problems but keep the good decisions. You know, this is exactly why the Lord compels us in scripture to make right decisions and He offers us His help. In younger days, I often blew off this help and only now do I realize some of the consequences.

Is there a light at the end of this blog? Well, of course there is…

I heard the wise philosopher, Gomer Pyle, say on many occasions, “Fool me once; shame on you. Fool me twice; shame on me.” :-) I believe that the lesson we can learn is that we don’t have forever and our decisions in this life do matter, even small ones. Let’s choose to live our lives more carefully than we did in years past and let’s live the rest of our lives to make sure that we have no regrets. Sound simple? Not necessarily, however, we do walk with one who knows the future that we will live. Scripture tells us that the God that I serve “knows the end from the beginning”. He told us in the book of James that if we lack wisdom, we can ask God and He will give it to us generously and without finding fault with us. Let’s do that. Let’s walk with God. He does know what our future holds and He knows what consequence each decision will bring. Let’s walk with Him and as my friend Bob Coy once said, “let’s finish well”. There are many in the Bible who start out well, but don’t finish well. Let us be the ones who may not have made all the best decisions in the past, but let’s choose this day to finish well and finally hear those words, “Well done good and faithful servant”.

Until Later,

Don

What is Really Important?

I just returned from a funeral for the father of one of the members of my congregation and my friend. Every time I am part of a funeral or go to one, the same thought hits me. "Am I living my life in such a way as to not have regrets when I step into eternity?" The Bible says that it is appointed unto every man once to die... Every one of us has an appointment with God. We will all step into eternity and, when that happens, will we look back on our lives and be proud or happy with what we see? Or will there be regrets?

So many of us call ourselves Christians, but do our lives reflect what we believe? Now, I know my friend's dad is in heaven and he lived a long and productive life, but I'm talking about how we live our lives now. Do we value what we should value or do we spend all of our time on things which will not even matter in the end.

I have had the privilege of sitting with many a believer shortly before they have gone to be with the Lord. None of them ever complained that they didn't get enough time at the office. None ever wished that they spent more time working on political change. None of them worried that they never got that new car, or that bigger house, or that new computer, or guitar, or whatever. No, but many of them wished, and I mean deep down cried out wishing, that they had just a little more time to spend with the ones they loved. Some spoke that they wished they had spent more time building the Kingdom of God. Many wished that they had walked with God for more years of their lives.

When faced with eternity, temporary things just seem meaningless. Why are those things so important to us now? When all is said and done, what will our lives amount to? Will we look back and see that we have poured all that we could into our family with our love and our attention and our time? Will we look back and see that we spent our time building the Kingdom of God by sharing His love with our friends and family and neighbors? Have we been consistently a part of a church fellowship where we have encouraged others in their faith and helped to grow a strong body of Christ and grow in the Lord ourselves? Have we helped those who were in need and thus, as Jesus said, given to Him through "the least of these"?

What does my life amount to? If we look and see that we will regret the way we are living now when it comes our turn to step out of these bodies and into our eternal ones, why don't we do something about it now? Jesus said that in order for a man to save his life, he must lose it for Christ's sake. Is there something that we might need to change in order that we not have regrets at the end? If so, let's no wait until later, when it's too late. Let's do it right now. Let's talk to our Lord right now and make the changes so that, along with Paul, at the end of our time on this planet we can say:

2 Tim 4:7-8
7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. 8 Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day-- and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing. (NIV)

Until later,

Don

In Times Like These, What Do We Do?

The stock market is crashing. The housing market has had the bottom fall out. Unemployment is on the rise. What is the government doing? They are printing Monopoly money and taking over banks and corporations. Which party has the answer? Who do we follow? What do we do?

Now, I have to say, I'm a consevative and a Christian. I'm a card carrying (literally) Republican who has served the Republican party since Ronald Reagan ran for his first term as one of the greatest Presidents this nation has ever had. I have friends pointing out that the Republicans have abandoned Reaganesque policies. Bush in his last two years governed like a liberal not a conservative. Many are telling me, "turn to the libertarian party". Many look to the inexperience of Obama as the answer to all of our problems simply because he espouses hope and "yes we can", but in actuality has no plan at all and the hope he has is simply, "I hope I don't screw it up worse than it already is."

No my friends, conservative that I am, no politcal party; no politician; no form of government will get us out of the impending disaster that appears to be coming. No, the answer my friends is for God's people to repent of their complacency and humble themselves and seek God for His mercy. Look at the history of the children of Israel. When their leaders abandoned God and godly principles, their nation suffered great calamity. What was the solution? Good political policies? Good charismatic leaders? No. It was the repentence of God's people and the turning of a nation towards God's face.

2 Chronicles 7:13-1413 "When I shut up the heavens so that there is no rain, or command locusts to devour the land or send a plague among my people, 14 if my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their land. NIV

It is the same today. Our nation is falling apart. The treasury is printing Monopoly money. We are mortgaged up to the hilt and things don't look better, they just continue to look worse and worse. Our leaders don't seem to know what they are doing. They are supporting ungodly, immoral solutions to many problems in our nation. They paint godliness as bigotry and hatred. They support wrong and resist what is right. What do we do? Yes, we can get involved in the political process, but more importantly, we, God's people need to humble ourselves and pray, seek His face and turn from our own wicked ways. Then He will hear from heaven, forgive our sins (the sins of those called by His name) and heal our land.

Friends, the church of Jesus Christ has failed this nation by going along with all of the ungodliness that overwhelms this society. We have abandoned the love, grace and compassion of God and have lost our good testimony in the world around us. We have blended in so much that you cannot tell the difference between a believer and a non-believer. We need to hit our knees in repentance and call upon our God to forgive our sins and heal our land. And then we need to put feet to our repentance. Maybe He will have compassion upon us no matter which political party is in charge. Politics does not matter at this point. What matters is God's people humbling ourselves and praying much as Daniel did at the end of the captivity. He prayed, "WE have sinned and not followed your laws" when Daniel was one who had not abandoned his God, but he counted himself with his nation.

We God's people must humble ourselve and pray and seek His face and turn from our own wicked ways. We must do it and do it now.

Until Later,

Don

What's Love Got To Do With It?

I just returned home from our church's annual Valentines Couples Banquet. We do it every year lately and it's always a great time and I get up and share a little bit about love and I did this year as usual, but this year something hit me that I've been thinking of ever since I got home. What's love got to do with it? I know, you think I was listening to Tina Turner on the way home, but I wasn't. I was driving my daughter's car and the CD in the CD player, believe me, was anything but Tina Turner, but her song and the question it raises suddenly made sense to me. I've actually made sarcastic remarks about the song ever since it's release. For those who don't remember the lyrics, they say, "What's love got to do, got to do with it? What's love, but a second hand emotion?" And I've always tongue in cheek asked that question of my congregation when talking about love, but tonight I understand why she asks the question, besides the fact of the terrible behavior of Ike Turner, but that's another topic for another time...

The question can especially be asked of this narcissistic society, "what's love got to do with it?" when we look at what is being pawned off as love, no one has any idea what love is and when it falls apart; when that second hand emotion gives way to reality what are we left with?

Don, some may be thinking, what in the world are you babbling about? Exactly this. We have heard songs since we were kids promising some fairy tale love, some all powerful emotion that is going to overwhelm us and take over every fiber of our being and cause us to ride off into the sunset with our princess or prince and live happily ever after because we have this wonderful emotion called love!!! John and Paul even wrote a song espousing that All You Need Is Love and we can change the world and people bought it.

The problem is, what they were offering was a cheap substitute for love. Hear me out. In the day of the new morality (which was simply old immorality that everyone decided to accept as OK) sex became some sort of recreational pass time and love, well love... love? Love went the way of the new morality. Sex as a recreational sport, cheapened the marriage bed and no one even knows why we actually were given the gift of making love by God. Yes, God invented sex, not for sport, but as part of real love between one man and one woman who had decided to spend their lives together for the rest of their lives; for better, for worse, for richer, for poorer, in sickness and in health... as long as we both shall live.

What the world offers us today is selfish; it's me first; it's taking and not giving and it's anything but love, so I ask again, what's love got to do with it?

Jesus said this in the Bible:
John 15:12-13
12 My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you. 13 Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. NIV

Hmmm... greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. Wow! How can a person do that? That sounds like an old archaic thought that just gets a person walked on...

No, actually that's love. There is another place in the Bible where the apostle Paul is addressing the church in Ephesis and he is about to address relationships with husbands and wives, children and parents and even bosses and employees and he says this:

Eph 5:21
Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. NIV

What? Submit to one another? That must be a misprint right? No, in actuality he's saying Christian, in every relationship you have consider the other person and what they need first and THAT my friend is love. You see, we were not designed to be self-centered, selfish, greedy people. We were designed by our Creator to be giving people. Think for a minute and you will find this to be true, at least I find it to be astoundingly true in my life. I am most unhappy and most dissatisfied with life when I am being selfish and greedy. When I'm being me first, nothing is ever good enough and no one can ever give enough to me to make me happy. Why? Because I was designed by God to think of others first and to do my best to make someone else happy.

If husbands and wives would truly think of the interest of their spouse first and do everything in their power to help their spouse be the best person they could possibly be; if each spouse would put the needs of the other first, we would have real love. You see emotions wear off and fade away. I know it's not as gushy and romantic, but love is a decision. I decided 26 1/2 years ago that I would love Evelyn Solovij for the rest of my life. What? You decided? Yes, I decided and for some reason she decided that she would also love me for the rest of her life and so, it has worked out well for 26 1/2 years and I suspect it will work out as long as we both shall live.

Have we had goose bumps for all those years? Have we been overwhelmed with gushy feelings for all those years. I have to say, off and on we have, but, if depending upon emotions were going to get us through our promise we made to each other at an altar in Tampa, FL in 1982, we would have been divorced years ago. You see our commitment was deeper than our emotions. We decided to give up our lives for one another and we decided that for better or worse; for richer, for poorer; in sickness and in health we choose to live with and live for one another as long as we both shall live. We choose to make each other's lives better for as long as we both shall live. We choose to be on each other's side as long as we both shall live. It's something more solid than an emotion. It's a decision. A decision to be committed to the well-being of another for the rest of our lives and it's the best decision I ever made besides surrendering my life to Jesus Christ.

So, I ask you again, what's love got to do with what the world is offering up today? Nothing and it's why most relationships end after just a few years. You know, when I was growing up, if someone said, "I've been married almost 27 years" no one would think anything of it. It was expected. Today, I tell people that I've been married to the same woman for almost 27 years and I can't imagine life without her, people act shocked like we had set some sort of world record. No, it's just that people have forgotten what love is. They think it's a second hand emotion. No. It's a decision that takes moral character and one that takes much selflessness. Sadly, these are two qualities lost on today's narcissistic world. The "me first" generation may never know real love and it's sad. It's sad because we all have the desire for it, but we are being steered in the complete wrong direction. We are being taught me first and do to others before they do it to you. Jesus says submit to one another and do to others as you would have them do to you.

What's love got to do with it? Nothing.

Greater love has no man than this, that he lay down his life for his friend. Greater satisfaction in life has no man than the one who lives out these words of Jesus. Let's not settle for the counterfeit. Let's not have anything less than real love. It's what we were designed by our Creator for.

Until Later,

Don