Archive for the 'Christian' Category

God Can Forgive Those Who Vote for Obama or McCain

Published
by
Michael
on November 3, 2008
in Christian, Opinion and Seventh-day Adventist
. 0 Comments

One of the frustrations with this year’s presidential race is the selection of candidates. No matter whom a person votes for, the outcome is bound to be futile or worse. The leading candidates hold to immoral values, and the other candidates stand little to no chance of being elected.

It’s certainly been a rocky election season. Emotions have been running high. Rumors, broad smear attacks, finely crafted speeches, and a media circus have created quite a show.

Who should win and who should lose? According to Eric Gorski of the Associated Press, “the loser in this election is religion.” The one point that seems to be a constant source of put-down, and never esteem, between candidates is their religious views.

As a Christian,  a Seventh-day Adventist, a person of faith—how should I vote? Should I vote for the economy? To end the war? To prevent socialism? To stop gay marriage? To prevent civil war?

A thoughtful article by Candice Watters of Boundless, “What Matters Most in the Ballot Box,” makes a case for being a single-issue voter. And what is the single issue? Not any of the things the media has been frenzied about lately. It’s the decades-old platform position on abortion.

Quoting Tony Woodlief:

Those other issues certainly affect a country’s safety, prosperity, and greatness. But I’ve come to believe that a nation that tolerates destruction of innocents deserves neither safety nor prosperity nor greatness. We’ve descended into barbarism, and it poisons how we treat the elderly, the incapacitated, even ourselves. We shouldn’t be surprised, having made life a utilitarian calculation, that more and more humans become inconvenient.

When you think about it, it makes sense. If someone does not have the moral intelligence and courage to stand up for a single obvious moral principle which can be agreed upon by almost anyone who believes in objective morality, how can that person be trusted on any other moral issue?

Here is an interesting chart from Doug of Vision Forum:

I don’t know anything about Chuck Baldwin, and this is not an endorsement of him. But it should be obvious to most of my fellow Adventist Christians that neither Obama nor McCain are champions of virtue.

Every Christian has an obligation to use their influence on the side of righteousness. If you take the pragmatic position of the lesser of two evils, what will you say to God when He asks whom you voted for? “But, God, he wasn’t as much a child of the devil as the other guy….” What will you tell your children and grandchildren? “Well, yes, mommy voted for someone who supported abortion….”

Of course, at this stage, it seems highly unlikely, to the point of impossible, that any other candidate would win. But that is the result of a larger war we have already lost, or hardly even fought. To cap one failure with a vote of confidence in a man who opposes the sanctity of human life is a monument to depravity.

Life is mysterious and sacred. It is the manifestation of God Himself, the source of all life. —Ellen White, The Faith I Live By, 167

Our laws sustain an evil which is sapping their very foundations. Many deplore the wrongs which they know exist, but consider themselves free from all responsibility in the matter. This cannot be. Every individual exerts an influence in society. In our favored land, every voter has some voice in determining what laws shall control the nation. Should not that influence and that vote be cast on the side of temperance and virtue? —Ellen White, Gospel Workers, 387

Politicians cannot be expected to be theologians, and neither can we hold them to see eye to eye with us on every fine point of moral principle. (We can hardly see eye to eye with one another!) But when a man ignores a moral value that is as plain as the sun in the clear sky, it should be obvious to you and to me that he cannot have our vote.

Many people will vote wrong tomorrow. Even many of those who lose will probably vote wrong. Please don’t be one of them. God can forgive you for playing party to sin, but the damage can never be fully undone.

Simple Ways to Shine

Published
by
Michael
on October 24, 2008
in Christian
. 0 Comments

Witnessing does not have to be complicated. Below are some simple ways to let your light shine in your community and anywhere you may go. As you read these, perhaps you will be inspired with some ideas of your own. Be creative. Feel welcome to add any ideas of your own to the comments for this post.

A kind, courteous Christian is the most powerful argument that can be produced in favor of Christianity. —Ellen White, Gospel Workers, page 122.

If we would humble ourselves before God, and be kind and courteous and tenderhearted and pitiful, there would be one hundred conversions to the truth where now there is only one. —Ellen White, Testimonies for the Church, Volume 9, page 189.

Around town

  • At the supermarket checkout line, let someone go ahead of you — especially if it is a frazzled-looking mother with a bunch of crying kids, or someone who looks like he or she is about to miss an appointment.
  • Offer to help your neighbor with a chore or simple task. You do not have to renovate someone’s house. Just helping carry out the trash or mowing the lawn is a good start.
  • Offer to baby-sit.
  • If you own a car, offer to run an errand (take kids to a school event, pick up an item at the store, and so on).
  • Donate items to a used clothing store. Make sure the clothes you donate are clean and tasteful.
  • If you can accommodate guests, open up your home temporarily to a person or small family who has lost a home to fire, flood, or other disaster. Or offer storage space where they can keep their remaining possessions until a better place is found.
  • Help a neighbor child with homework.
  • Visit or call someone who is lonely or not feeling well.
  • Donate nonperishable food items to a local food bank. Ask what goods are most needed.
  • Offer to help with a Vacation Bible School or a children’s division at church.
  • If you have a green thumb, consider joining Plant a Row for the Hungry or a similar project in your area.
  • Join or start a singing band, and visit nursing homes, a children’s hospital, or shut-ins in your area.
  • Bake a loaf of bread and deliver it — either at home or at work.
  • Do laundry or other chores for someone who is sick.
  • Offer to give someone rides to the hospital when needed.
  • Visit a local prison.
  • When you go on vacation, send your neighbors a postcard — let them know you’re thinking of them. (You need to get to know them first.)
  • Be the “welcome wagon” for newcomers in your neighborhood.
  • Invite someone new to join you on a family outing.
  • Compliment people on their yard, home, etc.
  • Attend important events in the lives of your friends and neighbors: weddings, recitals, graduations, etc.
  • Invite someone to a meal at your home who hasn’t been there before.
  • Maintain your own home and yard so as to create the right “atmosphere.”

Anywhere

  • There are many ways to witness on the Internet. Try some active methods (such as participating in chats, e-mail discussions, and so on), rather than settling for more passive methods (such as posting thoughts on your own website, which may be very seldom visited).
  • Smile at strangers — using discretion, of course.
  • When traveling by bus, train, or airplane, try to steer conversations with seat-mates in a spiritual direction. You do not have to give a Bible study; avoid preaching. Share how God has led in your life and which approaches to problems have worked for you.
  • Write an encouraging note to someone. The person could be a friend or relative who is going through a difficult time. It could be a Christian whose ministry you appreciate.
  • Leave magazines and tracts in conspicuous locations. Consider using a highlighter or pen to mark a few key passages (as if marking for yourself).
  • Pray for people silently. Pray with people as the Holy Spirit leads.
  • Remember friends and loved ones on their special days (birthdays, anniversaries, holidays). Don’t assume people’s needs are being met at these times; sometimes these special days are the most lonely. (Have you had that experience where no one remembers your special day?)
  • Offer to pay a bill or a debt for someone who can’t. (You don’t want to initiate a pattern; just something to say you care.)
  • Pick up the phone and call.
  • Visit non-Christian relatives more often.
  • Practice good manners. People seldom say “Sir” or “Ma’am” anymore, but some people — especially seniors — appreciate it. Show proper respect to officers and dignitaries.
  • Give up your seat to someone who needs it more than you. Always show preference to elderly or handicapped persons.

Behemoth.com

Published
by
Michael
on October 21, 2008
in Christian
. 1 Comment

The fine folks over at Vision Forum have launched an interesting website: Behemoth.com. I’m kind of a fan of Vision Forum because they have such cool stuff and high Christian values.

Behemoth.com, which opened earlier this month, is a place to buy conservative Christian media in digital format. Their movie and music sections look really good. And every day they have free items available for download as well.

The kind of topics you’ll find here include:

  • Church history
  • Creationism
  • Church standards
  • Government
  • Parenting
  • Courtship and dating
  • Classic children’s books that promote a Christian worldview

Some of their children’s products are fiction, and a bit on the trivial side. But there are lots of gems in there as well. It’s worth checking out.

Ornamental Weather Vanes

Published
by
Michael
on October 17, 2008
in Christian
. 0 Comments

When I was in college I liked to go for early morning walks. One day I was walking by some sheet-metal buildings on campus, when I happened to look up and notice an ornament at the apex of each roof. The construction company—Morton—had installed a weather vane, embellished with their company name, on each of their buildings. However, when I compared the three weather vanes on three nearby buildings that breezy winter morning, I noticed that they were each pointing in a different direction.

Evidently Morton needed to invest more in research and development. The weather vanes that they apparently took such pride in, didn’t work. Worse, because their ornaments looked like functional weather vanes, they conveyed false information. North, south, east, west—the turn of the arrow—it was all bogus.

This reminds me of what sometimes happens in our churches, ministries, schools, and institutions (not to mention secular entities). We may look to these organizations to learn which way the winds of the world are blowing, but what we see and hear may not reflect any reality. The beat of the pulse, the blips on the radar, the charts on the wall may be just artificial constructions not connected to any real data. A dollop of hearsay, a spritz of intuition, a few sprinkles of conventional wisdom, and we’re served up news. Like those weather vanes, their message may be right once in a while, as chance often is. But really they’re just pointing out their own agenda, and insisting on it no matter what.

So what’s to be done? In our own organizations we need accountability. We need more questions like, “Yes, that sounds lovely—but show me the facts.” And for other organizations that we look to or trust, we need to take a fresh look from time to time and do some critical thinking. We can caution, “It sounds plausible. But let’s do a little homework and see if this stands up to scrutiny.” (Reading rumor sites is not homework.)

Our business is truth, and that’s a tall order. It doesn’t take much non-truth to turn truth into rubbish. Now we see through a glass darkly. We live in a world flooded with pseudo-information—generalizations, deceit, quackery, complexities and jargon that lead to misunderstanding. And that means we need extra precaution to keep our message on track.

Hard Times Hit Amazing Facts

Published
by
Michael
on October 16, 2008
in Christian
. 0 Comments

Earlier this afternoon we received word that Amazing Facts had to cut their employees by about one-third. I haven’t had a chance to talk to anyone there directly yet, so I won’t add any rumors to the news. I’m sure they’d appreciate your support, encouragement, and prayers.