Clearly stating that God knew each and every one of us.  Simply implying an unborn child is alive.  This is not the point of my post, just clearing that up, dear readers.  We aren’t discussing abortion rights here on my blog. =)

I just want to implore my Christian readers to understand something that you seem to be missing.  Atheists and agnostics have no fear or respect for a scripture telling them they are wrong.  Someone who doesn’t hold your beliefs quite frankly will not care if you tattoo to them to your body and jump off a bridge.  Telling them that abortion is wrong based on Scripture is pointless and futile because they don’t hold the same laws or beliefs you do.  Imagine them telling you that God doesn’t exist based on a mathematical formula.  You play by different rules and ignore everyone elses.  The same thing they do to you.

The same rule holds true for any spiritual vs scientific discussion.  Science will hold their set of rules up and spirtual people will hold up their own.  Each group believes their answers irrefutable based on what they find IN their respective books.

Only through a common language can you convince your opponents of right or wrongness.  To not do so is insanity.  You may as well study for a math test by boning up on history.

Jason

It was a good ride and I covered 10 miles round trip on the Big Papio Trail, one of the main recreational bike paths through Omaha. There were plenty of people out enjoying the good weather and we traded many smiles and waves as we passed each other.

I checked the bike out before the ride since it was in the garage all winter. Everything was in great condition, good tire pressure, brakes responsive, etc.

I will admit that I hate taking my bike on the streets here. The path started about half a mile from my apartment and part of that I had to cover on the street. I don’t like to dodge cars for my life and not all of the way had sidewalk to use. As you can see I survived!

The weather tomorrow is supposed to be great but I don’t know if I’ll have enough time before my dance lesson at 6:45. If I’m lucky I’ll be able to squeeze a ride or two in during the week! My gym is about a mile and a half away so I may just bike to it as well. I can’t wait for the next ride!

Jason

Jason

Google for sex and you get 406,000,000 hits. That’s only from pages that Google has indexed so I’m sure there’s a wee bit of variance. Live.com reports approximately 701,000,000 search results. That’s 2.3 sex-related websites per person living in the United States or 10.7 sites per Iranian.

From a religious standpoint, lust is probably the most easily identifiable sin that we commit. Sex is so pervasive in the culture that it’s easy to minimize our sinful nature and accept the status quo. Young people are taught to abstain, to stay celibate, to protect themselves meanwhile our culture drives them into a hormonal frenzy devoid of morals and “high on self.” By putting the worship of the body over the worship of God we idolize the cravings of our body.

The Iranian Parliament has taken the rather drastic step of curtailing pornography in the region by instituting the death penalty for pornography-related offenses. Drastic is the word I use because I don’t see the punishment fitting the crime, but that’s just my opinion. I agree that the prolific nature of pornography and sexual impurity can easily corrupt anyone, including those who are feel they are pious and righteous. It doesn’t surprise me that we fall pray to this sin, like any other. As the writer C.S. Lewis noted:

We are half hearted creatures, fooling around with drink and sex and ambition, when infinite joy is offered us, like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea, we are far too easily pleased.

Iranian law will consider pornography “corrupting of the world,” an extreme charge in the Koran. I agree that it definitely does have a tendency to corrupt and destroy people, families and relationships. I don’t necessarily agree that killing someone for distributing porn is the answer. I don’t have any idea what the right answer is. In my mind, raising children with strong morals (in my case Christian morals) and standards may help. The best change is pro-active change. Hanging someone is definitely a reactive change with the GOAL of deterring others from committing the same crime.

Jason

Contend, O Lord, with those who contend with me;
fight against those who fight against me.
Take up shield and buckler,
arise and come to my aid.
Brandish spear and javelin
against those who pursue me.
Say to my soul,
“I am your salvation.”(NIV translation)

What this means to me is that prayers to God for help, support and aid are answered for those who truly believe that Jesus is salvation. In the end, God will always stand with us, above us, next to us, as a weapon to those who stand against us. Nothing is too great or too small for God to come to our assistance if we truly believe in Him.

Jason

Jason

Little did the Jews and Romans know that Jesus would be resurrected to live on the third day after his crucifixion. That’s the good news!

I have been thinking about the crucifixion and how it may have felt. To hang from a cross, nails driven through his wrists and feet. (Modern archaeologists actually believe the nail would have been driven through the top of the foot through the heel.) Bleeding from wounds to the head, the salt from the sweat burning through his scalp. Sweat running down his back, mingling with his blood and causing intense fiery pain. His shoulders stretched apart, unable to support his weight and slowly slipping until they would dislocate.

And for hours, God is silent to Jesus. For these hours the angels must have been circling around Christ, unable to help him, crying and weeping. Other angels yelling and baring their swords, unable to go to the Son of God and free him. God had unleashed his wrath on mankind through His Son and turned from Him. Totally abandoned, truly alone, and tormented by people who had welcomed him to Jerusalem only days before. He watched as the soldiers around him “cast lots” (gambled) for his clothing. He was alone, beaten, bloodied and humiliated.

Most of us, myself included, would have been angry and found it easy to hate. Instead, Jesus said:

“Father, forgive them, for they do not know what they are doing.”(Luke 23:34)

Jason

Things I’m pondering:

• How can I apply this to my life?
• How can I share this with other people?
• In what ways do YOU (the reading public) apply Christ’s sacrifice?

Romans 8:31(ESV) What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us?

If God is for us, who can be against us…  I am trying to apply this to myself and I’m generally successful, I hope.  When I think of all of the stressors in life, I focus on being content and having faith that God and Christ will provide for me and that even though I may not know it, God works things for good, for me.  That’s a definite reason to love a personal God!

Jason

Jason

Now coming from a military home, as well as a Christian home, I tried to look at this editorial letter as open-minded as possible. There are several ways to look at the letter, and reading between the lines there are many interpretations or areas of focus, at least in my mind.

First off, let me say, this message is really off-base and I wonder how many Americans feel this way. Are there a lot of people who believe the First Amendment of the US Constitution (The Bill Of Rights) says that if you don’t follow a religion you should be kicked out?

Nay, I say. The purpose of the First Amendment is to ensure that the government does not impose religion, nor give it preference. Nor does it state “Christianity” and only “religion,” which includes Islam, Judaism, Hinduism, Wiccan, etc. Personally I’m looking through a Christian non-denominational and Gospel-Centered lens. Just as the Constitution was written to ensure that religion was not forced, nor endorsed by the government, it was also written to ensure that other rights were not disparaged nor removed, as stated by the Tenth Amendment. The intent is to protect the rights of those who don’t want religion as well as preserve the rights of those who do.

Now, numerous examples persist of where the influence of religion has been removed and that has had an impact on crime and punishment, politics, socio-economical alliances, business dealings, parent and child relationships, and almost every other aspect of the human existence. If we all think about how crimes are punished, how victims are exploited or how children are abused, we can see that the teachings and examples that Christ gave us have been removed from society.

As far as this letter is concerned, I’m afraid that the writer truly misses the point. Atheists exist and will always exist in America or in other countries. While trying to show a strong conviction, the writer conveyed only a sense of misplaced anger. Though I understand her perspective, it’s muddled and hard to follow other than frustration and resentment. When dealing with an atheist, “If some unbeliever invites you to a meal and you want to go, eat whatever is put before you without raising questions of conscience.” (1 Cor 10:27).

Truly, the greatest commandment is “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” Even if that other person is an atheist they, as one of God’s children, deserve our prayers and respect. Loving your enemy is a very difficult proposition, even for people stronger in the Lord than I am. Even those who may seem deserving of scorn really deserve our pity. In the end, everyone becomes a believer, even if they do not have salvation.

There’s a movement in America, and the world, called The Brights Movement. Masquerading as “naturalists” they are truly atheists at heart who do not believe in the supernatural. They have closed their hearts to God, and have become His enemies. An atheist believes in no power of then his or her self. The Brights feel the same way, except they believe that they are principled. The question I have is: Can the blind lead the blind?  As Christians we should pray for those who are without Him and ask Him to open their hearts and minds.

What, truly then, is the fear of being “created” by God in lieu of an evolutionary hiccup or mistake?

Jason