Thursday, September 13, 2012

Why I am a Political Conservative

Contrary to what you may believe, I was raised by staunch liberals.  My paternal grandparents, who had a huge influence on my life, were likewise liberals.  It wasn't until I was 25, and a friend asked me, "why are you a liberal?" that I realized I didn't know. So I did some research and looked at both the left and right for their beliefs and tenants and found that, lo and behold, I supported Conservative views.
I list them here in no particular order of importance except for number one!

1. The right to LIFE as promised by our constitution.  The inherent value of each human being's life, regardless of age.  Liberals have no regard for the unborn. I cannot tolerate this. It is murder to take the life of ANYONE, including the newly conceived (my only exception to this-see #9). The fact of the matter is that sex often results in conception, so to try and circumvent that fact and erase the consequences is not only heinous, but ridiculous.  If you jump in front of a car you will most likely be killed. If you have sex, you most likely will conceive a child. Get over it.  I will NEVER vote for a pro-choice candidate, ever.

2. The rights of non-human living things should never supersede the rights of human beings. Don't get me wrong, I totally believe we should be good stewards of the earth and of living things; way too little concern has been shown to preserving our environmental heritage, BUT we people are created in the image of God, and the rest of the natural world exists for our use and delight.  We don't, however, have the right to abuse and eradicate anything (except maybe horseflies).

3. Social programs for the most part do not work.  Don't give a man a fish, TEACH him how to fish. I believe in helping the truly needy, but this has gone WAY too far.   There are consequences to laziness and bodily abuse.  If you are on the street because you are a bum, you will suffer. Get a job. Not everyone on the street is mentally ill. The government is not your sugar daddy.   Thank you.

4.  Those who have initiative should not have to pay for those who don't.  The Robin Hood philosophy is crap.  Leveling the playing field is also crap.  Our Constitution guarantees us the right to "life, liberty and the PURSUIT of happiness."

5.  Families have the right to educate their own children as they see fit. They do not need the government to intervene.  It does not take a village to raise a child.  I hate that saying.

6. Americans need to be loyal to America and Americans, first and foremost.  Just as you should be more loyal to your family and household than the surrounding neighborhood.  This is our country, paid for by the blood of our people.  This isn't to say America's leadership hasn't made serious mistakes, but don't throw the baby out with the bathwater. If an American cannot be loyal to America, I really think he/she should move elsewhere :).

7. Our military must be strong to protect our country, as there are many haters in this world, those with absolutely no compunction against using terrorism against our country (remember 9/11?). Terrorists should be shot.

8. I do not totally agree with everything the Republican party stands for, but by jingo, it definitely comes far closer to my strongly held beliefs than does the Democratic party, hence that is how I always vote.  I don't think our country is ready for a third party, so I don't waste my vote on Independent or Libertarian candidates.

9. I believe in the death penalty. Charles Manson should have been executed LONG ago, and I'm glad Hitler is dead.  Some crimes are so heinous, the only answer for them is execution.  If they go to Hell, that is not my problem.

10.  Right and wrong does exist.  Morality isn't spongy.

11. Our country was founded on Christianity.  While everyone has the freedom to choose what to believe, Christianity should not be slammed by those in places of leadership, the media, or for entertainment.  Notice how other non-Judeo-Christian religions are protected by mainstream thinking...have you ever wondered why that is?  Try slamming Muslims or Hindus and see what sort of fall-out you get.

12. The Constitution should not be messed with, period. For example, I have the right to own and bear arms.  Thank God I live in Montana!

There are undoubtedly more reasons I'm a conservative, but that's all I can think of for now. [An interesting side note: 3.5 of my liberal parents' 4 children are conservatives :)]

For an awesome article, check out:
http://townhall.com/columnists/johnhawkins/2008/03/14/why_i_am_a_conservative




Thursday, September 6, 2012

An Eli Church

Zealot: One who shows fervor for a person, cause, or object; eager desire or endeavor; enthusiastic diligence; ardor.

I am a part-time Zealot.  I love the idea of being zealous, but I often slip into apathy.  Nevertheless, I am irritated by Christians who have no passion for God. What's the point of even being a Christian if it's just a transparent label?  Not only is apathy irritating, it leads to sin. As I stewed upon the word zeal today, I was reminded of the  passage in 1 Samuel 2, which contrasts Samuel's heart with that of the priest Eli and his sons:

Eli’s sons were wicked men; they had no regard for the Lord...This sin of the [sons] was very great in the Lord’s sight, for they were treating the Lord’s offering with contempt. But Samuel was ministering before the Lord...[he] grew up in the presence of the Lord. Now Eli, who was very old, heard about everything his sons were doing to all Israel and how they slept with the women who served at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. So he said to them, “Why do you do such things? I hear from all the people about these wicked deeds of yours. No, my sons; it is not a good report that I hear spreading among the Lord’s people. If a man sins against another man, Gode may mediate for him; but if a man sins against the Lord, who will intercede for him?” His sons, however, did not listen to their father’s rebuke, for it was the Lord’s will to put them to death. And the boy Samuel continued to grow in stature and in favor with the Lord and with men (verses 12; 17-18a; 21b-26) .

I fear my generation, the baby boomer Christians, are an Eli church. We tolerate amazing amounts of sin in our lives and in the lives of our children.  We passively preach a good message, but our lives don't reflect it. We are materialistic and consumed with career and recreation.

For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also. (Matthew 6:21)

We give lip service to our beliefs, but our lives don't reflect the transforming power of Jesus.

Much like Eli, we don't stop the defiling of the church.  We let the world erode the hard message of truth.

Enter through the narrow gate. For wide is the gate and broad is the road that leads to destruction, and many enter through it. (Matthew 7:13)

Like Eli, we are often passive and self-indulgent.

Now let's see what happens to Eli and his sons:

Now a man of God came to Eli and said to him, “This is what the Lord says:.. ‘Why do you scorn my sacrifice and offering that I prescribed for my dwelling? Why do you honor your sons more than me by fattening yourselves on the choice parts of every offering made by my people Israel?’ “Therefore the Lord, the God of Israel, declares: ‘ Those who honor me I will honor, but those who despise me will be disdained. The time is coming when I will cut short your strength and the strength of your priestly house, so that no one in it will reach old age, and you will see distress in my dwelling. Although good will be done to Israel, no one in your family line will ever reach old age. Every one of you that I do not cut off from serving at my altar I will spare only to destroy your sight and sap your strength, and all your descendants will die in the prime of life.  “‘And what happens to your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, will be a sign to you—they will both die on the same day. I will raise up for myself a faithful priest, who will do according to what is in my heart and mind. I will firmly establish his priestly house, and they will minister before my anointed one always." (1 Sam. 2:27a; 29; 30b-35)

The Lord took out weak Eli and his corrupt sons:

 The man who brought the news replied, “Israel fled before the Philistines, and the army has suffered heavy losses. Also your two sons, Hophni and Phinehas, are dead, and the ark of God has been captured.” When he mentioned the ark of God, Eli fell backward off his chair by the side of the gate. His neck was broken and he died, for he was an old man, and he was heavy. (1 Sam. 4:17-18)

And replaced him with faithful and passionate Samuel:

 The Lord was with Samuel as he grew up, and he let none of Samuel’s words fall to the ground. (1 Sam. 3:19)

 Then all the people of Israel turned back to the Lord. So Samuel said to all the Israelites, “If you are returning to the Lord with all your hearts, then rid yourselves of the foreign gods and the Ashtoreths and commit yourselves to the Lord and serve him only, and he will deliver you out of the hand of the Philistines.” So the Israelites put away their Baals and Ashtoreths, and served the Lord only. (1 Sam. 7:2b-4)

Lest we shrug off this lesson as old Testament, we have Jesus' example when he cleared the temple: 

When it was almost time for the Jewish Passover, Jesus went up to Jerusalem. In the temple courts he found men selling cattle, sheep and doves, and others sitting at tables exchanging money. So he made a whip out of cords, and drove all from the temple area, both sheep and cattle; he scattered the coins of the money changers and overturned their tables. To those who sold doves he said, “Get these out of here! How dare you turn my Father’s house into a market!” His disciples remembered that it is written: “Zeal for your house will consume me.” (John 2:13-17)

The disciples were full of passion and gave their lives for Christ. One of my favorite examples of biblical passion is Stephen, a second generation disciple:

...the Twelve gathered all the disciples together and said, “It would not be right for us to neglect the ministry of the word of God in order to wait on tables. Brothers and sisters, choose seven men from among you who are known to be full of the Spirit and wisdom. We will turn this responsibility over to them and will give our attention to prayer and the ministry of the word.” This proposal pleased the whole group. They chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Spirit...Now Stephen, a man full of God’s grace and power, performed great wonders and signs among the people. they could not stand up against the wisdom the Spirit gave him as he spoke.  Then they secretly persuaded some men to say, “We have heard Stephen speak blasphemous words against Moses and against God.” So they stirred up the people and the elders and the teachers of the law. They seized Stephen and brought him before the Sanhedrin. They produced false witnesses, who testified, “This fellow never stops speaking against this holy place and against the law. For we have heard him say that this Jesus of Nazareth will destroy this place and change the customs Moses handed down to us.” All who were sitting in the Sanhedrin looked intently at Stephen, and they saw that his face was like the face of an angel. (Acts 6:2-5; 8; 10-15)

Zeal. Get some.