Seeker of Peace...
I'm not sure how this is all going to turn out. I have a lot on my mind and it's all been jumbled the last couple of weeks. I feel as though my brain's been flooded with information and ideas and now it has a chance to dry out. Let's see what remains when the water has disappeared...
I would first like to say that I'm very happy with all of the prayer groups/bible study groups I'm in. There are so many cool things that are happening inside and outside of them. I'm conviced that this is truly from God and these groups need to grow and split off into other areas. I have a pretty clear vision of this and it makes me feel great!
Something else that's happened out of tragedy that I didn't realize until a good friend brought it to my attention is that it would seem that at the moment church's in our area have found something to briefly bridge the gap between them. This was one of our prayer items a few weeks ago in one of my prayer groups and it's good to see this starting. Now maybe "the church" can start to heal and forgive...
Onto a couple of other items that have been on my mind lately...
I'm someone who stays up-to-date with current events. It's the curiosity in me. I like to know what's going on around me. I read in the paper last week that there is a group out there who likes to protest military funerals of people who have died in service. They do this because America is soft on homosexuality. The reason I mention it now is because in the paper, the article said that this group had planned on coming to PA to protest the funerals of all the children who were killed in the Amish school. Thankfully, they decided not to come, not because it would have been down right disgusting and jackass of them, but because they decided to take up an offer to talk on a PA radio show instead. Oh, and the reason they were coming to PA to protest the funerals was because our governor is soft on homosexuality. See a trend? Oh, and this group that protests is a freakin' church!!! Bah!
Homosexuality is something that really irritates me. It's the last vice America has to contend with and it's going to be a knock down, drag out fight. In one corner you have the people who think everything everyone does is ok and that everyone needs to be accepting of everything everyone does all the time. In the other corner you have the people who have stones in their hands ready to throw at a moments notice because if you don't believe the way they do they have a right to throw stones at you. This is complete and utter bull feces. Logic, integrity, wisdom, love, compassion, and almost all the fruits of the spirit are totally missing. Now, I'll give you a little piece of the lump's take on all of this.
There is nothing anyone can tell me that will change my stance on homosexuality. It's wrong. The bible says it's wrong. Period. It's a sin. You shouldn't have sexual relations with the same sex. That means no marriage, no children, no adopting, no hanky panky with the same sex. What's so hard to understand? Now, this should all be clear to a Christian, but to a non-Christian I can see how this could all get confusing. Well, not really, but for the sake of my argument I'll say I can. You see, Christians also seem to forget that they are sinners too. Yep, that's right. There was only one person ever to live who was perfect, sinless. That was Jesus Christ. He is our Savior, the person we're supposed to follow, the person whom we're supposed to use as an example. He lived a life of loving the sinner and hating the sin, not the other way around. He was the only person who could've cast a stone at the woman in the middle of the crowd and he didn't. This is the example we who call ourselves Christians are supposed to follow. It's the same with homosexuals. America and the entire world is full of sin. It sucks. There is never going to be a place on earth where we will be completely away from sin. The way we handle it is what's going to have to change. I don't think you can call yourself a follower of Christ if you're a practicing homosexual, but you can't call yourself a follower of Christ if you're a pedophile or an alcohlic either. Or a gambler. See the pattern? It's not the sinner we're supposed to hate, it's the sin. Christians need to stop talking with their mouth and start talking with their character. Christians need to start worrying about the kind of example they're setting. It's time to take a stand.
We need really need to start looking at how we're affecting the world and stop worrying about what's happening in our own lives. We need to stop feeding our pride. I'm not going to get into how much pride is affecting our society in this posting. But I assure you, when you start looking at how deep pride has invaded your life or how you're feeding it you'll never look back. Living a life for Christ is about humility. This is where it all starts.
I would first like to say that I'm very happy with all of the prayer groups/bible study groups I'm in. There are so many cool things that are happening inside and outside of them. I'm conviced that this is truly from God and these groups need to grow and split off into other areas. I have a pretty clear vision of this and it makes me feel great!
Something else that's happened out of tragedy that I didn't realize until a good friend brought it to my attention is that it would seem that at the moment church's in our area have found something to briefly bridge the gap between them. This was one of our prayer items a few weeks ago in one of my prayer groups and it's good to see this starting. Now maybe "the church" can start to heal and forgive...
Onto a couple of other items that have been on my mind lately...
I'm someone who stays up-to-date with current events. It's the curiosity in me. I like to know what's going on around me. I read in the paper last week that there is a group out there who likes to protest military funerals of people who have died in service. They do this because America is soft on homosexuality. The reason I mention it now is because in the paper, the article said that this group had planned on coming to PA to protest the funerals of all the children who were killed in the Amish school. Thankfully, they decided not to come, not because it would have been down right disgusting and jackass of them, but because they decided to take up an offer to talk on a PA radio show instead. Oh, and the reason they were coming to PA to protest the funerals was because our governor is soft on homosexuality. See a trend? Oh, and this group that protests is a freakin' church!!! Bah!
Homosexuality is something that really irritates me. It's the last vice America has to contend with and it's going to be a knock down, drag out fight. In one corner you have the people who think everything everyone does is ok and that everyone needs to be accepting of everything everyone does all the time. In the other corner you have the people who have stones in their hands ready to throw at a moments notice because if you don't believe the way they do they have a right to throw stones at you. This is complete and utter bull feces. Logic, integrity, wisdom, love, compassion, and almost all the fruits of the spirit are totally missing. Now, I'll give you a little piece of the lump's take on all of this.
There is nothing anyone can tell me that will change my stance on homosexuality. It's wrong. The bible says it's wrong. Period. It's a sin. You shouldn't have sexual relations with the same sex. That means no marriage, no children, no adopting, no hanky panky with the same sex. What's so hard to understand? Now, this should all be clear to a Christian, but to a non-Christian I can see how this could all get confusing. Well, not really, but for the sake of my argument I'll say I can. You see, Christians also seem to forget that they are sinners too. Yep, that's right. There was only one person ever to live who was perfect, sinless. That was Jesus Christ. He is our Savior, the person we're supposed to follow, the person whom we're supposed to use as an example. He lived a life of loving the sinner and hating the sin, not the other way around. He was the only person who could've cast a stone at the woman in the middle of the crowd and he didn't. This is the example we who call ourselves Christians are supposed to follow. It's the same with homosexuals. America and the entire world is full of sin. It sucks. There is never going to be a place on earth where we will be completely away from sin. The way we handle it is what's going to have to change. I don't think you can call yourself a follower of Christ if you're a practicing homosexual, but you can't call yourself a follower of Christ if you're a pedophile or an alcohlic either. Or a gambler. See the pattern? It's not the sinner we're supposed to hate, it's the sin. Christians need to stop talking with their mouth and start talking with their character. Christians need to start worrying about the kind of example they're setting. It's time to take a stand.
We need really need to start looking at how we're affecting the world and stop worrying about what's happening in our own lives. We need to stop feeding our pride. I'm not going to get into how much pride is affecting our society in this posting. But I assure you, when you start looking at how deep pride has invaded your life or how you're feeding it you'll never look back. Living a life for Christ is about humility. This is where it all starts.