This is the first in a series of poll questions on totally random topics. This poll is very unscientific, but I am interested in what you all have say
Here goes
List your ten favorite Christian (Non-Christmas) Hymns, and explain why they are your favorites
My Ten from first to tenth
1. Great is Thy Faithfulness
2. His Eye is on the Sparrow
3. It is Well With my Soul
4. Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing
5. Amazing Grace
6. Precious Lord, Take My Hand
7. There is a Fountain Filled With Blood
8. When I Survey the Wondrous Cross
9. Standing on the Promises
10. He Hideth my Soul
These are just a sampling of the hymns I love. I have many more
I love these songs because they preach the Gospel of Jesus Chriust in a way that words alone sometimes can't. During my freshman year I sang "Great is thy Faithfulness" at an open mic event. There are unsaved people who still remember that four years later, and all I did was sing. When we sing these old hymns from our hearts it does something for people. Take a look at the words of these songs, and think about why thay are still so powerful even today.
Friday, November 24, 2006
Monday, November 20, 2006
Thanksgiving break
Ah Home. Its good to be back. I've missed sharing a room with my little brothers who stay up half the night throwing socks at each other!
Honestly, It is nice to have a full week off from school. It is nice to have time to relax, work on my final draft of my Thesis, and prepare for my final exams. Its nice to spend quality time with my family. Although I see them every week, I miss just hanging out, which I don't get to do while I'm at school.
This being Thanksgiving, The 10 Thank-yous I don't give often enough
1 Jesus. Thank You for loving me. Thank You for all the ways You have blessed me. Thank You for blessing me with the wonderful family and friends that I have. Thank You for guiding my steps each and every day. Thank You for correcting me when I have needed correction. Thank You for being in control of my life. Thank You for being God.
2 Mom and Dad. Thanks for being examples of Christ for me and the others. Thanks for loving us enough to tell us no when we were wrong. Thanks for the hugs, and for the corrections, and most especially thanks for pointing us to Jesus when we were presented with problems. Thanks for praying for me. I have needed it
3 My Brothers and Sisters. Thanks for being part of the family. I love you all so much
4 My Best Friends. Thanks for everything. Thanks for listening, talking and praying- and thanks for the meals! :-) Thanks for being there to encourage to me to do what is right in every area of my life.
5 The Campus Crusaders at my School. You all have no idea how much of a blessing you all have been to me. I am really gonna miss you all next year
6 The Crusade Staff. Thanks for all that you do to spread the Gospel on our campus
7 The VOF Gospel Choir. Thanks for making this brother part of your family. It means a lot to me. Y'all better keeping singing after I leave
8 The leaders of the VOF. Thanks to the director for all the work that You have put in. Thanks for the hours of preparation and thanks for the prayers. To the head Musician. Thank You. God is gonna bless You for all that You do. Just Trust Him. To the Choir Mama. Thank you for all that time, energy and prayers for the choir. We love you. You are a blessing. To the Student Leaders. You all are amazing. The choir is blessed to have you all as its leaders .
9 Thanks my other friends- Jimmy Z especially for your kind words. I appreciate it
10 Thanks to my friends here. Thanks esp. to the Driver, who gives up his time to transports back and forth to Church every Sunday.
Honestly, It is nice to have a full week off from school. It is nice to have time to relax, work on my final draft of my Thesis, and prepare for my final exams. Its nice to spend quality time with my family. Although I see them every week, I miss just hanging out, which I don't get to do while I'm at school.
This being Thanksgiving, The 10 Thank-yous I don't give often enough
1 Jesus. Thank You for loving me. Thank You for all the ways You have blessed me. Thank You for blessing me with the wonderful family and friends that I have. Thank You for guiding my steps each and every day. Thank You for correcting me when I have needed correction. Thank You for being in control of my life. Thank You for being God.
2 Mom and Dad. Thanks for being examples of Christ for me and the others. Thanks for loving us enough to tell us no when we were wrong. Thanks for the hugs, and for the corrections, and most especially thanks for pointing us to Jesus when we were presented with problems. Thanks for praying for me. I have needed it
3 My Brothers and Sisters. Thanks for being part of the family. I love you all so much
4 My Best Friends. Thanks for everything. Thanks for listening, talking and praying- and thanks for the meals! :-) Thanks for being there to encourage to me to do what is right in every area of my life.
5 The Campus Crusaders at my School. You all have no idea how much of a blessing you all have been to me. I am really gonna miss you all next year
6 The Crusade Staff. Thanks for all that you do to spread the Gospel on our campus
7 The VOF Gospel Choir. Thanks for making this brother part of your family. It means a lot to me. Y'all better keeping singing after I leave
8 The leaders of the VOF. Thanks to the director for all the work that You have put in. Thanks for the hours of preparation and thanks for the prayers. To the head Musician. Thank You. God is gonna bless You for all that You do. Just Trust Him. To the Choir Mama. Thank you for all that time, energy and prayers for the choir. We love you. You are a blessing. To the Student Leaders. You all are amazing. The choir is blessed to have you all as its leaders .
9 Thanks my other friends- Jimmy Z especially for your kind words. I appreciate it
10 Thanks to my friends here. Thanks esp. to the Driver, who gives up his time to transports back and forth to Church every Sunday.
Thursday, November 16, 2006
Why we must support Israel
In my foreign policy class today we had a very interesting debate about whether or not the United States should support Israel. The debate was sparked by this article in Tuesday's New York Times. The article centers on Reverend John Hagee, The Senior Pastor at Cornerstone Church in San Antonio, Texas. In July, during the Israel- Hezbollah war, Hagee went to Washington with the Christians United for Israel demanding that united States support the Jewish nation
I was one of two people in the class that vocally advocated the continuing support of the United States for Israel no matter what. The professor and most of the class said that we should support Israel but that we should act in our best interests which may mean going against Israel in certain instances. They also said that it is frightening and dangerous if our support for Israel is based on religious reasons.
I disagree.
Here are five reasons we must support Israel
1. Genesis 12:1-3 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. This is a promise about Abraham's seed Isaac and the nation of Isreal
2 Psalm 122:6-7Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee. Peace be within thy walls, and prosperity within thy palaces. We are to pray for the peace of Jerusalem, which cannot happen when the terrorists are attacking the Jewish people everyday
3 Israel's significance in Biblical prophecy
4 Our relationship to the Jews as Christians as outlined in Romans 9-11
5 On a secular note, we must support Israel because they are the only true democracy in the whole region of the Middle East and North Africa.
There are more reasons why we must support Israel, but it would take forever to do... The 5 reasons listed are the best rationale that I have on this issue
I was one of two people in the class that vocally advocated the continuing support of the United States for Israel no matter what. The professor and most of the class said that we should support Israel but that we should act in our best interests which may mean going against Israel in certain instances. They also said that it is frightening and dangerous if our support for Israel is based on religious reasons.
I disagree.
Here are five reasons we must support Israel
1. Genesis 12:1-3 Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee: And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing: And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed. This is a promise about Abraham's seed Isaac and the nation of Isreal
2 Psalm 122:6-7Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee. Peace be within thy walls, and prosperity within thy palaces. We are to pray for the peace of Jerusalem, which cannot happen when the terrorists are attacking the Jewish people everyday
3 Israel's significance in Biblical prophecy
4 Our relationship to the Jews as Christians as outlined in Romans 9-11
5 On a secular note, we must support Israel because they are the only true democracy in the whole region of the Middle East and North Africa.
There are more reasons why we must support Israel, but it would take forever to do... The 5 reasons listed are the best rationale that I have on this issue
Monday, November 13, 2006
NIV vs KJV
When it comes to Bible translations, the vast majority of Evangelical Christians use basically two versions- The King James Version, also known as the Authorized Version, and the New International Version. There are others also widely used, (the English Standard, the Revised Standard, the Amplified, The New American Standard, etc), but the two standards are the KJV and the NIV. I prefer the KJV over the NIV for several reasons.
First the NIV is a weaker version theologically. What do I mean? Let us examine the texts and I will explain.
We begin with one of my favorite verse in the New Testament, Romans 8:1
KJV:
"There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit."
NIV:
"Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus."
What's the difference? "who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." Why is this significant? Because if we are in Christ Jesus, (i.e. are saved), but we are not walking after the Spirit then we should absolutely feel a healthy amount of conviction while we are serving our enemy the flesh. The NIV relegates the second half of verse one to a footnote, saying that the provision that we must walk after the Spirit is somehow unimportant. If we are walking (living) in the Spirit then there is no condemnation. If we are walking in our flesh then there should be a certain amount of condemnation.
We continue with Romans 12:1
KJV:
1I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
NIV:
1Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God-this is your spiritual act of worship.
The difference?
"this is your spiritual act of worship", vs "which is your reasonable service". "Spiritual act of worship" places the act of presenting your self a living sacrifice to God outside of your daily life. The implication I get from that Scripture in the NIV is that one can only present themselves to God when they are feeling super spiritual. "Reasonable service " takes offering ourselves To God as a living sacrifice out of the ethereal and places it into the daily walk of faith that we are called to.
The most important difference between the NIV and the KJV occurs in 1 John 5:7
In the KJV, verses 7-8 state: For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. 8 And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.
In the NIV, The verses say: 7 For there are three that testify: 8 the Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement.
The difference? In the NIV there is ZERO mention of one of the fundamental doctrines of the Christian faith- that of the Trinity. This the only place in the Scriptures that ascribes deity and equality to all three parts of the Godhead at the same time, and the NIV removes it from the verse and places it in a footnote. The footnote states: "1 John 5:8 Late manuscripts of the Vulgate testify in heaven: the Father, the Word and the Holy Spirit, and these three are one. 8 And there are three that testify on earth: the (not found in any Greek manuscript before the sixteenth century)"
My question to the translators of the NIV is why was this added in to the Scriptures so late if it is a fundamental doctrine of the Christian Faith for 16 centuries? I mean wouldn't someone have placed that reference to the Trinity in much earlier?
The last Scriptural Beef I have with the NIV is found in the book of Romans, Chapter 6
In the KJV, Verses 1-2 read
1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?
2 God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?
The NIV reads as follows
What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2 By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?
The difference? "God Forbid" vs "By no means!" Question- which sounds stronger to you. God, (the Almighty, The King of Kings and Lord of Lords) forbid, or by no means? God forbid sounds a lot stronger to me because God does indeed actually forbid those who claim Christ to stay in known sin.
I prefer the KJV over the NIV not only for those reasons, but also because of the language itself. The King James Bible has some of the most beautiful wording in the English Language. The Wording of the KJV is simple, but it also beautiful. There is a reason that the King James Version has been around for 400 years- it has stood the test of time.
These are some of the reasons that I prefer the King James Version over the New International Version.
First the NIV is a weaker version theologically. What do I mean? Let us examine the texts and I will explain.
We begin with one of my favorite verse in the New Testament, Romans 8:1
KJV:
"There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit."
NIV:
"Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus."
What's the difference? "who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit." Why is this significant? Because if we are in Christ Jesus, (i.e. are saved), but we are not walking after the Spirit then we should absolutely feel a healthy amount of conviction while we are serving our enemy the flesh. The NIV relegates the second half of verse one to a footnote, saying that the provision that we must walk after the Spirit is somehow unimportant. If we are walking (living) in the Spirit then there is no condemnation. If we are walking in our flesh then there should be a certain amount of condemnation.
We continue with Romans 12:1
KJV:
1I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
NIV:
1Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God-this is your spiritual act of worship.
The difference?
"this is your spiritual act of worship", vs "which is your reasonable service". "Spiritual act of worship" places the act of presenting your self a living sacrifice to God outside of your daily life. The implication I get from that Scripture in the NIV is that one can only present themselves to God when they are feeling super spiritual. "Reasonable service " takes offering ourselves To God as a living sacrifice out of the ethereal and places it into the daily walk of faith that we are called to.
The most important difference between the NIV and the KJV occurs in 1 John 5:7
In the KJV, verses 7-8 state: For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word, and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one. 8 And there are three that bear witness in earth, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one.
In the NIV, The verses say: 7 For there are three that testify: 8 the Spirit, the water and the blood; and the three are in agreement.
The difference? In the NIV there is ZERO mention of one of the fundamental doctrines of the Christian faith- that of the Trinity. This the only place in the Scriptures that ascribes deity and equality to all three parts of the Godhead at the same time, and the NIV removes it from the verse and places it in a footnote. The footnote states: "1 John 5:8 Late manuscripts of the Vulgate testify in heaven: the Father, the Word and the Holy Spirit, and these three are one. 8 And there are three that testify on earth: the (not found in any Greek manuscript before the sixteenth century)"
My question to the translators of the NIV is why was this added in to the Scriptures so late if it is a fundamental doctrine of the Christian Faith for 16 centuries? I mean wouldn't someone have placed that reference to the Trinity in much earlier?
The last Scriptural Beef I have with the NIV is found in the book of Romans, Chapter 6
In the KJV, Verses 1-2 read
1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin, that grace may abound?
2 God forbid. How shall we, that are dead to sin, live any longer therein?
The NIV reads as follows
What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase? 2 By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?
The difference? "God Forbid" vs "By no means!" Question- which sounds stronger to you. God, (the Almighty, The King of Kings and Lord of Lords) forbid, or by no means? God forbid sounds a lot stronger to me because God does indeed actually forbid those who claim Christ to stay in known sin.
I prefer the KJV over the NIV not only for those reasons, but also because of the language itself. The King James Bible has some of the most beautiful wording in the English Language. The Wording of the KJV is simple, but it also beautiful. There is a reason that the King James Version has been around for 400 years- it has stood the test of time.
These are some of the reasons that I prefer the King James Version over the New International Version.
Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Election Day
Lieberman has defeated Lamont!!!!!!! With 72% districts in, Lieberman is up 50 to 39%, with Schlesinger, the Republican sacrificial elephant, at 10%. This means that had Schlesinger not been in the race, Lieberman would be winning 60-40, which is a HUGE margin in politics
Lamont officialy conceded around 10:15. This is the one race that I was concerned about. Lieberman is a good man, and I'm happy that the voters in CT had enough sense to send him back to Washington.
In other CT races, Governor Rell just pulverized DeStafano. I voted for Joseph Zdonczyk from Concerned Citizens.
Simons-Courtney too close to call. Simons up by 2000 votes or so with 87% districts in. Update: Courtney now ahead by less than a thousand with 94% of districts reporting. Second Update-11-08-2006 11:28 AM With all districts reporting, Courtney has a 170 vote lead. There will probably be a recount of some kind here in the second Congressional District
Nancy Johnson lost to Chris Murphy, not all that big a surprise as she was holding a recently redisctricted area. In 04 Johnson beat out fellow incumbent Jim Maloney when their districts were combined, so this was not all that surprising in a certain sense. Besides, Johnson is more along the lines of Lincoln Chaffee as a Republican, so I'm not that sorry to see her go.
Larson and DeLauro win easily, Shays ahead but not by much, about 7,000 votes with 64% districts in. Update 11-08-2006 11:31 AM With 93% of districts reporting Shays's lead is 4,465 votes. WTNH and WFSB, two TV stations here, as well as the Courant, the major newspaper, have declared Shays the winner
More Later!
Lamont officialy conceded around 10:15. This is the one race that I was concerned about. Lieberman is a good man, and I'm happy that the voters in CT had enough sense to send him back to Washington.
In other CT races, Governor Rell just pulverized DeStafano. I voted for Joseph Zdonczyk from Concerned Citizens.
Simons-Courtney too close to call. Simons up by 2000 votes or so with 87% districts in. Update: Courtney now ahead by less than a thousand with 94% of districts reporting. Second Update-11-08-2006 11:28 AM With all districts reporting, Courtney has a 170 vote lead. There will probably be a recount of some kind here in the second Congressional District
Nancy Johnson lost to Chris Murphy, not all that big a surprise as she was holding a recently redisctricted area. In 04 Johnson beat out fellow incumbent Jim Maloney when their districts were combined, so this was not all that surprising in a certain sense. Besides, Johnson is more along the lines of Lincoln Chaffee as a Republican, so I'm not that sorry to see her go.
Larson and DeLauro win easily, Shays ahead but not by much, about 7,000 votes with 64% districts in. Update 11-08-2006 11:31 AM With 93% of districts reporting Shays's lead is 4,465 votes. WTNH and WFSB, two TV stations here, as well as the Courant, the major newspaper, have declared Shays the winner
More Later!
Monday, November 06, 2006
More on Conservaitve Racism
I was reminded of something I wrote last year for my old blog on this issue, and I figured I wolud share it again
There is a sin problem in Evangelical Christianity that very few people want to deal with. (Warning: I am going to offend some people with what God wants me to say, but please just listen and take it to heart). The sin problem is racism, specifically white prejudice against our brothers and sisters in the black churches. The sin of racism is one that many people do not want to deal with, but it something that we as white Christians need to repent for.
The kind of racism that I am talking about is not overt. This kind of racism is not obvious. What I am talking about are little things. I am going to give examples of what I mean through what I and a few of my black brothers and sisters have experienced. When I joined the Gospel choir at my university, my brothers and sisters in the choir accepted me right away- and they really showed me a lot of love. Our Choir has sung at churches all over Connecticut this year- New Haven, Bridgeport, Hartford, and East Hartford, Bloomfield. We’ve also sung at churches in Jersey City, New Jersey, as well as in Augusta and Savannah, Georgia, Boston Massachusetts, and Raleigh North Carolina. All of the churches we have sung at are predominately black congregations, and I have soloed at several of these places. When the services are over many of the churches have food prepared for the choir and the congregation, and every time people from the congregation have come up to me after the service and have told me how glad they were that I had come and how much they were blessed by my singing. I’ve also been to a few funerals for the parents of some of my black friends, and every time I’ve walked in, the people have made me feel welcome. I’m going to repeat that statement- EVERY TIME I have attended a service at a predominately black church, the people there have gone out of their way to make me feel welcome.
I’m going to contrast my experiences as a white person with that of two black friends of mine from the Gospel Choir. Both of them at different times went to the weekly meeting of one of the White Evangelical Christian organizations on campus, and both told me and others the same thing- they were not made to feel welcome. One of them is a dear brother who I know loves Jesus- and he can get along with anybody, and if he didn’t feel welcome, I know that something is seriously wrong. The other is a sister in Christ, who told me that she felt that she wasn’t welcome at all. (Update: That has since changed on my campus-God has done a lot in the past two years to break down the wall of predjudice in the Christian Community between white students and black students. While we are far from perfect, God is doing an amazing work here- All glory to His Name!) If this is happening in the White Evangelical Christian organizations, I guarantee it’s also happening in the White Evangelical Churches. There is a reason why some of my black sisters have told me that they think all White Evangelical Conservative Christians are racists. We as white folks need to repent for the prejudice that so many of us have towards our brother and sisters in the black community. I believe it was Dr Martin Luther King who said that 11 am on Sunday morning is the most segregated hour in American life. He spoke those words 40 years ago, yet it is still so true today. When God sends true revival to this nation, He is going to destroy the prejudice that has been hindering His people
Pray with me right now
Father God, We come before You this day, and we repent. We repent of our pride, our racism, our prejudice. We repent for the lack of love that we have shown our brothers and sisters in the black community. We humbly ask that You would forgive and that You would wash all our sins away by the precious blood that Your Son, Jesus Christ shed on the cross. Take our pride, and replace it with humility. Take our racist attitudes and our prejudice and replace them with Your Love. We need Your mercy to flow down from Your throne this day. Send Your revival to this nation, because we need it so much. Help the young men to men of God, and the young women to be women of excellence, and help us all to serve You more every day,
We Pray all in the mighty matchless name of Jesus Christ, out Lord and Savior
Amen
There is a sin problem in Evangelical Christianity that very few people want to deal with. (Warning: I am going to offend some people with what God wants me to say, but please just listen and take it to heart). The sin problem is racism, specifically white prejudice against our brothers and sisters in the black churches. The sin of racism is one that many people do not want to deal with, but it something that we as white Christians need to repent for.
The kind of racism that I am talking about is not overt. This kind of racism is not obvious. What I am talking about are little things. I am going to give examples of what I mean through what I and a few of my black brothers and sisters have experienced. When I joined the Gospel choir at my university, my brothers and sisters in the choir accepted me right away- and they really showed me a lot of love. Our Choir has sung at churches all over Connecticut this year- New Haven, Bridgeport, Hartford, and East Hartford, Bloomfield. We’ve also sung at churches in Jersey City, New Jersey, as well as in Augusta and Savannah, Georgia, Boston Massachusetts, and Raleigh North Carolina. All of the churches we have sung at are predominately black congregations, and I have soloed at several of these places. When the services are over many of the churches have food prepared for the choir and the congregation, and every time people from the congregation have come up to me after the service and have told me how glad they were that I had come and how much they were blessed by my singing. I’ve also been to a few funerals for the parents of some of my black friends, and every time I’ve walked in, the people have made me feel welcome. I’m going to repeat that statement- EVERY TIME I have attended a service at a predominately black church, the people there have gone out of their way to make me feel welcome.
I’m going to contrast my experiences as a white person with that of two black friends of mine from the Gospel Choir. Both of them at different times went to the weekly meeting of one of the White Evangelical Christian organizations on campus, and both told me and others the same thing- they were not made to feel welcome. One of them is a dear brother who I know loves Jesus- and he can get along with anybody, and if he didn’t feel welcome, I know that something is seriously wrong. The other is a sister in Christ, who told me that she felt that she wasn’t welcome at all. (Update: That has since changed on my campus-God has done a lot in the past two years to break down the wall of predjudice in the Christian Community between white students and black students. While we are far from perfect, God is doing an amazing work here- All glory to His Name!) If this is happening in the White Evangelical Christian organizations, I guarantee it’s also happening in the White Evangelical Churches. There is a reason why some of my black sisters have told me that they think all White Evangelical Conservative Christians are racists. We as white folks need to repent for the prejudice that so many of us have towards our brother and sisters in the black community. I believe it was Dr Martin Luther King who said that 11 am on Sunday morning is the most segregated hour in American life. He spoke those words 40 years ago, yet it is still so true today. When God sends true revival to this nation, He is going to destroy the prejudice that has been hindering His people
Pray with me right now
Father God, We come before You this day, and we repent. We repent of our pride, our racism, our prejudice. We repent for the lack of love that we have shown our brothers and sisters in the black community. We humbly ask that You would forgive and that You would wash all our sins away by the precious blood that Your Son, Jesus Christ shed on the cross. Take our pride, and replace it with humility. Take our racist attitudes and our prejudice and replace them with Your Love. We need Your mercy to flow down from Your throne this day. Send Your revival to this nation, because we need it so much. Help the young men to men of God, and the young women to be women of excellence, and help us all to serve You more every day,
We Pray all in the mighty matchless name of Jesus Christ, out Lord and Savior
Amen
Elections, Haggard, and My weekend
Hey everybody!
As you know Election Day is tommorow. Dont forget to vote!
I'm voting Lieberman and Simmons, no idea for Governor. I dont like Rell, and I dont know enough about DeSteffano...
Now onto the Ted Haggard situation. I was asked by a friend who is not an Evangelical Christian what I thought last Friday. I said at the time that Mr. Haggard has to be guilty of something, because no one resigns that quickly if they are innocent. As it turns out, Mr Haggard himself admitted to being guilty of some of what he has been accused of. This whole tragic incident should cause us as Christians to do several things. First and most importantly, we must pray- for Mr Haggard and for His family, for the National Association of Evangelicals, for Mr Haggard's Church. Secondly we need to pray for other high profile ministers because Satan loves nothing more than destroying those who preach the Gospel Of Jesus Christ. Third we must pray for ourselves and the other believers around us that we live above reproach, and that God's enemies have no reason to revile Him because of our actions.
More on the reactions of other ministers to the Haggard scandal here
My weekednd was good. I travelled down South to sing with the Gospel Choir at My University at a convention for African American Cultural Centers.
The keynote speaker on Saturday evening was a man from Columbia University. He spoke for about 45 mins -75 mins on the issues of affirmative action and minority disenfranchisement. He also spoke on what he sees as an attempt to disenfranchise minority voters in this country with the criminal justice system.. As he put it, 45% of the people in jail today are African American, Hispanic or Native American. If you are convicted of a felony in this country, you are often denied the right to vote while you are in prison, and once you get out of prison. With a disproportionate amount of minorites in the prison system, the minorities are being slowly disenfranchised.
On Affirmative Action, he said that it is a good thing and that the Conservatives are taking it away from minorities.
I understand where the speaker was coming from. This is a man whose ancestors were exslaves. He himself has been through the Civil Rights movement and he has experienced racism first hand. However. I did have some problems with what he said. When he spoke on affirmative action, I got the impression that he believes that all white conservatives are racists. He spoke of white liberals as "our friends" and although he never said it, the implication I got was that all white conservatives are racists. It is possible that I misjudged him, because I am certainly not perfect. However, I do want to say that I am in fact white and am in fact a conservative. If you asked anyone who knows me, they will all say that I am not, nor ever have been a racist. I undersatnd that there are racist conservatives, but there are also white liberal racists, and there are racists in the black community as well because human nature is human nature, and hatred exists in every culture group.
Now the best way to combat the impression that all white conservatives are racists is to Love people. Those of us who do fit that category of white conservatives need to go out and show Christ's love to our brothers and sisters in the African American community. They need to know that we love them and that we care about them because that is what Christ taught us to do. The devil has lied to our black brothers and sisters saying that we are racists and bigots. Well, we are not what the devil has said about us, and we need to combat the lie by showing love to our brothers and sisters in the African American community
As you know Election Day is tommorow. Dont forget to vote!
I'm voting Lieberman and Simmons, no idea for Governor. I dont like Rell, and I dont know enough about DeSteffano...
Now onto the Ted Haggard situation. I was asked by a friend who is not an Evangelical Christian what I thought last Friday. I said at the time that Mr. Haggard has to be guilty of something, because no one resigns that quickly if they are innocent. As it turns out, Mr Haggard himself admitted to being guilty of some of what he has been accused of. This whole tragic incident should cause us as Christians to do several things. First and most importantly, we must pray- for Mr Haggard and for His family, for the National Association of Evangelicals, for Mr Haggard's Church. Secondly we need to pray for other high profile ministers because Satan loves nothing more than destroying those who preach the Gospel Of Jesus Christ. Third we must pray for ourselves and the other believers around us that we live above reproach, and that God's enemies have no reason to revile Him because of our actions.
More on the reactions of other ministers to the Haggard scandal here
My weekednd was good. I travelled down South to sing with the Gospel Choir at My University at a convention for African American Cultural Centers.
The keynote speaker on Saturday evening was a man from Columbia University. He spoke for about 45 mins -75 mins on the issues of affirmative action and minority disenfranchisement. He also spoke on what he sees as an attempt to disenfranchise minority voters in this country with the criminal justice system.. As he put it, 45% of the people in jail today are African American, Hispanic or Native American. If you are convicted of a felony in this country, you are often denied the right to vote while you are in prison, and once you get out of prison. With a disproportionate amount of minorites in the prison system, the minorities are being slowly disenfranchised.
On Affirmative Action, he said that it is a good thing and that the Conservatives are taking it away from minorities.
I understand where the speaker was coming from. This is a man whose ancestors were exslaves. He himself has been through the Civil Rights movement and he has experienced racism first hand. However. I did have some problems with what he said. When he spoke on affirmative action, I got the impression that he believes that all white conservatives are racists. He spoke of white liberals as "our friends" and although he never said it, the implication I got was that all white conservatives are racists. It is possible that I misjudged him, because I am certainly not perfect. However, I do want to say that I am in fact white and am in fact a conservative. If you asked anyone who knows me, they will all say that I am not, nor ever have been a racist. I undersatnd that there are racist conservatives, but there are also white liberal racists, and there are racists in the black community as well because human nature is human nature, and hatred exists in every culture group.
Now the best way to combat the impression that all white conservatives are racists is to Love people. Those of us who do fit that category of white conservatives need to go out and show Christ's love to our brothers and sisters in the African American community. They need to know that we love them and that we care about them because that is what Christ taught us to do. The devil has lied to our black brothers and sisters saying that we are racists and bigots. Well, we are not what the devil has said about us, and we need to combat the lie by showing love to our brothers and sisters in the African American community
Wednesday, November 01, 2006
Random stuff
I have completed my Senior Thesis!
Praise the LORD!!!!!!
Day 13 of the zero junk food plan... it gets a little easier every day.
For those of you who have not voted yet, make sure that you vote next tuesday!
John Kerry is not a bright man...If he was making a joke about our President, it really wasnt funny
Watch Bill O'Reilly on Letterman's show. this is classic TV.
Peace and Love!
Praise the LORD!!!!!!
Day 13 of the zero junk food plan... it gets a little easier every day.
For those of you who have not voted yet, make sure that you vote next tuesday!
John Kerry is not a bright man...If he was making a joke about our President, it really wasnt funny
Watch Bill O'Reilly on Letterman's show. this is classic TV.
Peace and Love!
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