Thanksgiving is one of my favorite holidays, and not just because of the food. I find myself all too often being critical of the things and people around me. It's faaaaar too easy to complain, and to lose sight of all the many things I have to be thankful for. Especially in as great a country as I live in, where my every need is met, and I have enough leftover to pursue things I want. So here is a list of things I am thankful for:
~I am thankful for my beautiful wife, and for how splendidly our wedding went.
~I am thankful for an absolutely amazing family I get to be a part of.
~I am thankful for the many good friends I've been able to make, even despite years of moving around.
~I am thankful for a president who believes in helping others less fortunate than himself.
~I am thankful for a country where I even have the freedom to vote.
~I am thankful for my jobs that allow me to work with amazing people (and make some $$$)
~I am thankful for a university I can attend that allows me to be educated and develop my faith.
And there are so many other things, to. Too many to list. But that's the point, I guess. When you really think about all the wonderful things in life that you have, it really helps shape your perspective on things.
Friday, November 23, 2012
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
Obligatory Election Post (or, "A vote for Romney is a vote for god*" {*eventually, in altenrate universe})
Ok, to start things off, I voted for Romney. I will explain/qualify that statement, but I do want to just go ahead and get that on the table.
Now, regardless of whether or not he wins the election, Mitt Romney deserves a standing ovation. I mean, the guy has accomplished a feat that theologians and church historians will be talking about for decades.
Mitt Romney has caused a more dramatic shift in church policy in one political campaign than "progressive" Christianity has changed in decades of slow and arduous work. If you really think about it, it's monumental what he has caused. It's astronomically mind blowing!
For years, the church in America, or at least the protestant church, has voted Republican. And they hem and haw about it not being political, it's just a matter of faith. "We vote for the Christian candidate because we share the same faith system." they say. Or when both candidates claim to be Christians, they'll say things like "well Mr. X might claim to be a Christian, but Mr. Y really acts more like one." And almost unilaterally, when asked if they would ever vote for an atheist, they would quickly answer no.
Mitt Romney has shattered this.
Think about it. He has the conservative Christian vote wrapped up pretty tight. It's almost laughable when you really think about this.
Christians, who believe one God created the entire universe, and that he sent His Son to die so that the sins of mankind might be redeemed, voted for a Mormon. They voted for a man who believes that God was really just a good guy in some alternate universe, who because he was so good, was given his own universe to be god of. Mitt Romney, as a Mormon, believes that, when he dies, he will be a god, who will father an entire race of people with his spirit-wives, and the spirit babies will be given fleshly bodies to live in.
And Christians voted for him. This is what makes me sad.
The American church needs a physician. No, not a physician, THE Physician. This election, we have fallen into the pitfall of letting our politics trump our faith. We looked at Romney and said, "well, he hates the right people and he opposes the right things, so forget the fact that he believes God is really just a good person, and that he himself will be the god of his own universe someday, I'll vote for him."
These were our options:
1. A man who believes that the one Sovereign God of the universe, whose Son died for all of our sins. He believes that this God would want the poor should be fed, the sick cared for, and that the quality of life should be better for those grasping at the bottom rung of our society.
2. A man who believes that, when he dies, he'll be granted godship of his own universe, in which he will have all the spirit-sex he could ever want, and so that he can father his own race of people to rule over as their god. He believes that the poor are poor mostly because of their own fault, and that the wealthy shouldn't have to contribute more to a system that helps people who have nothing. If people can't afford their hospital services, well that's their own fault for working as menial laborers, isn't it?
Which of those sounds more Christian to you?
"But Nathan, what about abortion and gay-rights?!"
Bingo!
To the American Christian, those are THE ONLY TWO ISSUES that matter this election. All of the others are moderately important, but gay-rights and abortion are the only two that matter when selecting whom to vote for. Forget ALL of the theology tied up in the disparity between Mormonism and Christianity, the only things we need to worry about come election season are making sure gays can't get married, and making sure women can't get abortions.
Now again, I voted for Romney; but here's why:
1. His moral compass seems more aligned with mine. He believes, as do I, that unborn children are human, and that they have as much right to live as anyone else in this country does. Abortions shouldn't be given out because a child is inconvenient. He believes that homosexuality is wrong, and that while we can't do anything about the sin itself, we can refuse to promote it as being normal.
2. Our country has a very sickly economy right now, and the Obama administration has done little to nothing to fix it. More of the same will only cripple us further. While Romney's economic ideas and associations may not be the best ever, they certainly seem more productive than Obama's policies have proven to be.
Notice how I didn't say anything about him being "the Christian choice". I get very sad to hear people say things like "I don't understand how a Christian could vote for..." or "Well it's obvious that good Christians vote for...". It's truly sad. When you boil things down, Obama is more Christian than Romney. Obama believes in a world where all people have the opportunity to live a fulfilled life. In his mind, there shouldn't be any poor people, because those who have been blessed with more turn around and share that blessing with those who lack. Obama believes in a world where people receive hospital treatment because their human beings, not because they have enough cash to make it worthwhile.
Now, I do believe he went about trying to achieve that dream in the totally wrong way. I don't believe that the goal of social equality can exist without the right to have a fair chance of being born. You have to start there and then work on the other things. But I digress.
In this country, and as a Christian, you should vote because of the issues that are most important to you. End of story. If there's one thing I have learned at Cedarville, it's that their are godly Christians who believe in a plethora of different interpretations of thousands of mini-issues in theology. Some believe alcohol consumption is ok, and some don't. Does that make them not Christians? No! So while we can discuss the different scriptural evidences for sanctity of life versus free-will (or any other of a vast number of issues), it needs to be done from the perspective of trying to find truth within Scripture.
The church is ALWAYS corrupted by politics, and I am afraid that this election year, that line was blurred dangerously too often.
Now, regardless of whether or not he wins the election, Mitt Romney deserves a standing ovation. I mean, the guy has accomplished a feat that theologians and church historians will be talking about for decades.
Mitt Romney has caused a more dramatic shift in church policy in one political campaign than "progressive" Christianity has changed in decades of slow and arduous work. If you really think about it, it's monumental what he has caused. It's astronomically mind blowing!
For years, the church in America, or at least the protestant church, has voted Republican. And they hem and haw about it not being political, it's just a matter of faith. "We vote for the Christian candidate because we share the same faith system." they say. Or when both candidates claim to be Christians, they'll say things like "well Mr. X might claim to be a Christian, but Mr. Y really acts more like one." And almost unilaterally, when asked if they would ever vote for an atheist, they would quickly answer no.
Mitt Romney has shattered this.
Think about it. He has the conservative Christian vote wrapped up pretty tight. It's almost laughable when you really think about this.
Christians, who believe one God created the entire universe, and that he sent His Son to die so that the sins of mankind might be redeemed, voted for a Mormon. They voted for a man who believes that God was really just a good guy in some alternate universe, who because he was so good, was given his own universe to be god of. Mitt Romney, as a Mormon, believes that, when he dies, he will be a god, who will father an entire race of people with his spirit-wives, and the spirit babies will be given fleshly bodies to live in.
And Christians voted for him. This is what makes me sad.
The American church needs a physician. No, not a physician, THE Physician. This election, we have fallen into the pitfall of letting our politics trump our faith. We looked at Romney and said, "well, he hates the right people and he opposes the right things, so forget the fact that he believes God is really just a good person, and that he himself will be the god of his own universe someday, I'll vote for him."
These were our options:
1. A man who believes that the one Sovereign God of the universe, whose Son died for all of our sins. He believes that this God would want the poor should be fed, the sick cared for, and that the quality of life should be better for those grasping at the bottom rung of our society.
2. A man who believes that, when he dies, he'll be granted godship of his own universe, in which he will have all the spirit-sex he could ever want, and so that he can father his own race of people to rule over as their god. He believes that the poor are poor mostly because of their own fault, and that the wealthy shouldn't have to contribute more to a system that helps people who have nothing. If people can't afford their hospital services, well that's their own fault for working as menial laborers, isn't it?
Which of those sounds more Christian to you?
"But Nathan, what about abortion and gay-rights?!"
Bingo!
To the American Christian, those are THE ONLY TWO ISSUES that matter this election. All of the others are moderately important, but gay-rights and abortion are the only two that matter when selecting whom to vote for. Forget ALL of the theology tied up in the disparity between Mormonism and Christianity, the only things we need to worry about come election season are making sure gays can't get married, and making sure women can't get abortions.
Now again, I voted for Romney; but here's why:
1. His moral compass seems more aligned with mine. He believes, as do I, that unborn children are human, and that they have as much right to live as anyone else in this country does. Abortions shouldn't be given out because a child is inconvenient. He believes that homosexuality is wrong, and that while we can't do anything about the sin itself, we can refuse to promote it as being normal.
2. Our country has a very sickly economy right now, and the Obama administration has done little to nothing to fix it. More of the same will only cripple us further. While Romney's economic ideas and associations may not be the best ever, they certainly seem more productive than Obama's policies have proven to be.
Notice how I didn't say anything about him being "the Christian choice". I get very sad to hear people say things like "I don't understand how a Christian could vote for..." or "Well it's obvious that good Christians vote for...". It's truly sad. When you boil things down, Obama is more Christian than Romney. Obama believes in a world where all people have the opportunity to live a fulfilled life. In his mind, there shouldn't be any poor people, because those who have been blessed with more turn around and share that blessing with those who lack. Obama believes in a world where people receive hospital treatment because their human beings, not because they have enough cash to make it worthwhile.
Now, I do believe he went about trying to achieve that dream in the totally wrong way. I don't believe that the goal of social equality can exist without the right to have a fair chance of being born. You have to start there and then work on the other things. But I digress.
In this country, and as a Christian, you should vote because of the issues that are most important to you. End of story. If there's one thing I have learned at Cedarville, it's that their are godly Christians who believe in a plethora of different interpretations of thousands of mini-issues in theology. Some believe alcohol consumption is ok, and some don't. Does that make them not Christians? No! So while we can discuss the different scriptural evidences for sanctity of life versus free-will (or any other of a vast number of issues), it needs to be done from the perspective of trying to find truth within Scripture.
The church is ALWAYS corrupted by politics, and I am afraid that this election year, that line was blurred dangerously too often.
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