Author: greg@seek1st

Boker Tov!

Wow–10 days since I posted. Lame excuses include spending essentially 2 days in travel mode from Alaska to Chicago to Istanbul to Tel Aviv to Tiberias. Then, 2 more days traveling around the Galilee area, pretty much on the go from 5 am to about 9 pm, when I pass out. But, we’re having an awesome time.

Among other sites visited today, we spent some time at Ein Herod, otherwise known as “Gideon’s Spring”. Here, God whittled down Gideon’s army from 32,000 to 300, prior to leading them to attack the Midianites, whose camels outnumbered the sands of the seashore. The full story’s in Judges 7. It’s a pretty cool story with tons of application for all of us. Here’s a few nuances that really struck me today:

1) “Worry is meditating on the lies Satan is telling you.” Wish I could claim that one as my own, but my friend who shared it today got it from someone else. But there’s a lot of truth there.

2) God prepares each of us for a purpose, and even when the circumstances we face seem pre-disposed to cause us to fail, if we seek him and his purpose, we will prevail, as long as we’re obedient.

3) Even when we’re doing what God calls us to do, we can screw things up. God guarantees Gideon victory, and shows him a sign to confirm it. Then, Gideon tries to claim some of the glory by telling his men to shout “For the Lord and for Gideon” as they attack the Midianite camp. My first reaction is “REALLY??? God’s giving you a victory over a vastly superior force, with 300 of your own troops carrying trumpets and lamps, and YOU WANT CREDIT???” Then I look at my own life, and realize how much glory I’ve claimed, without even mentioning God.

Today, and with his help to tame my pride, EVERY day from here out, HE gets all the glory!

A post about nothing…

OK, it worked for Seinfeld for how many years? Can’t I get away with one?

Life’s been so busy this past week, that I can’t fit it all in. Had a great class Friday night and Saturday (Biblical Interpretation), but I’m behind on my homework.

Work is work: too busy, too much to do, not enough time to do it all, let alone do it well.

The building project I’m working on in my spare time is coming along, although on a schedule that only God knows, and He doesn’t show any signs of consulting with any of the rest of us for our plans…Should start pouring a foundation Monday. That’s great news, until you consider that the best time to pour a foundation in Alaska is, like, JUNE.

Leaving for vacation Thursday morning! Two weeks in Israel! No job distractions, just time to explore, learn, have fun, hang out with family and friends. Only stressful thing about it is I haven’t even begun to prepare!

I say all this not to snivel. OK, not just to snivel. I’m learning something in it all.

I’m learning about studying God’s Word, and mining truth out of a passage in the same way that some of the best teachers I’ve been privileged to learn from use. You know, those ones that open up the Scriptures, and show you a new depth or nuance to a passage you’ve read many times before. I’m not there yet, but I’m learning.

I’m learning that the work gets done. And the work that doesn’t get done, probably wasn’t that big of a deal.

Most importantly, I’m learning that taking time to do the important things in life pays off. And the important things are almost never about a job, a bank account, a project, or getting ahead.

Instead, it’s things like taking the time to talk to a man who I didn’t have time for, but in doing so, discovered that he’s learning to walk a new walk, late in his life, kinda like I’m doing in mine. Hopefully I was an encouragement to him–he was to me.

It’s taking the time to hang out with my son, who I don’t get to spend much time with anymore. Yeah, there’s a lot of joking around that looks a little harsh, but I also get to tell him how proud I am of him, and how he’s doing one heck of a job becoming a productive member of society.

It’s getting ready to spend two weeks with my daughter, showing her some amazing stuff, and anticipating her enthusiasm, and her infectious laugh when we get to walk down Ben Yehuda Street (she loves funny-sounding words, and you gotta admit, that one sounds funny!).

It’s pulling a late night study session with the love of my life, as we both scramble to get all our homework done, balance all the challenges of life, encourage each other, pray together, and prop each other up, when we’re too tired to go any farther.

Finally, it’s about knowing that in all things, God has a plan, and this season I’m in is part of that plan. It’s easy for me to think about it as “preparing for something”, but I can’t lose sight of the fact that it’s just as much about the journey, and how I walk it, as the next destination. Maybe more important.

Stay tuned!!! I plan to be posting from Israel in a few days…

A Tea Party I Could Get Excited About

Kinda busy this week, getting ready for class this weekend, and all the homework that precedes class, but felt like if I’m really going to do this blog thing, I needed to get something new up, before the few followers I have drift away…

Not sure about the rest of the nation, but politics is certainly dominating the Alaska news scene. It certainly is confusing. The Republican nominee for Senate is blasting the Republican party for deficit spending; the Democratic nominee is buying Incredible Hulk ties (a la Ted Stevens), and our independent candidate is from a stalwart Republican family. Seems everybody except the incumbent is trying to make themselves over to be more conservative.

I’ve got more than a few acquaintances who are supportive of the Tea Party movement, and I understand their frustrations with the way things are. But I’m not certain that the Tea Party movement is the solution, mainly because I’ve yet to see the Tea Party offer any solutions!

Before you bombard me with responses (ok, 3 followers can’t really generate a carpet-bombing, but I can at least pretend), let me acknowledge that they are offering broad statements, but not detailed solutions. I’m sorry, but railing about cutting spending and cutting taxes, without citing which cuts, and how you’ll mitigate the impacts, isn’t offering solutions. In my humble opinion, it’s just pandering to the anger of the masses.

All this to say that I’m digging a recent op-ed piece by Thomas Friedman in the New York Times. Mr. Friedman likens the current “Tea Party” to a “tea kettle”, stating that all it’s really doing is letting off steam. Mr. Friedman states that the real Tea Party movement is yet to come:

Any Tea Party that says the simple answer is just shrinking government and slashing taxes might be able to tip the midterm elections in its direction. But it can’t tip America in the right direction. There is a Tea Party for that, but it’s still waiting for a leader.

I hope he’s right.

Bravo, Rick Joyner!

A few days ago, I used a quote from Rick Joyner’s website to point out a concern about people not seeking to understand what was going on before they responded to bad information.

I take this opportunity to give Mr. Joyner some appreciation for his latest newsletter. I don’t agree with everything he says every week, but he’s a respected friend of a man that I respect and honor, so I listen to what Mr. Joyner has to say. I don’t immediately and unthinkingly adopt what he says, but I consider it.

In the article linked above, Mr. Joyner writes about Christians’ mandate to be the light of the world and the salt of the earth (Matthew 5:13-14). He states:

To be the light that inspires the world and the salt that keeps if from falling into depravity is our calling. If the world is slipping into darkness, we must not condemn the world, but consider how our light has been dimmed. If the world is falling into deeper depravity, we need to determine how we, the salt, may have lost our savor so that we can no longer prevent this. Occupying until He comes infers not letting this happen. Therefore, the impetus for the meltdown of morality and growing corruption is on us to prevent, which we can only do by being who we are called to be as Christians. It is not the time to condemn the heathen for living in darkness—they cannot help this without us. It is time to judge ourselves, and resolve that we are here to help save them, not condemn them.

OUTSTANDING!!! Too many Christians in the West today are condemning their fellow man, thinking they’re “shining a light” on sin. In reality, they’re offending their fellow man, and showing an ugly, un-Christlike view of the Church to the world. Mr. Joyner has very eloquently challenged all of us to quit judging, and start loving!

A pastor friend recently cited statistics that most 18-29 year olds, when surveyed about Christians, first responded with “hates homosexuals”, followed by “judgemental”. WOW. Kinda the opposite of the Jesus I know. We, the body of Christ, need to get our act together. Our light’s going out, and our salt is tasting kinda sandy. In the process, we’re losing ground in a fallen world.

To my fellow Christians: If you’re going to judge, grab your Bible and a mirror. When the two images match, then you’re qualified to judge others. Until then, humble yourselves, and keep trying to get the mirror image to look like the Bible image.

To my non-Christian friends: We don’t deserve it, but would you consider giving us Christians another chance? I can only speak for me, but I’ve messed up more than I’ve gotten right in loving my neighbor. But God’s only had a few years to try to fix what I’ve worked real hard to corrupt for most of my life. He’s a miracle-working God, but I’m a pretty hard case, and I haven’t always gone along willingly. Would you please forgive us–we mean well.

Obama Administration declares Bible-believing Christians and Veterans “Terrorists”

PLEASE KEEP READING!!!

This headline, or others like it, has screamed at me several times from my inbox, as concerned Christian friends have attempted to “get the word out” about the coming persecution.

A recent article from Evangelical Christian writer Rick Joyner on his webpage states:

“Consider this: In the infamous memo put out by the Department of Homeland Security about potential terrorist threats in America, it named Christians who believe the end-time prophecies in the Bible and veterans, but did not name Islamic extremists. Think about how skewed that is. When was the last time a Christian flew an airplane into a building or was a suicide bomber? Over the last half century virtually every major terrorist attack in the world came from one group, Islamic jihadists, and yet that group is not even named as a potential threat by our DHS.” Prepared for the Times, Part 28, MorningStar Ministries

These statements concerned me, so I sought out the memo to see what it actually said. I’m concerned that Mr. Joyner, along with others who have forwarded emails citing this memo as a threat to Christians, did not read the memo. If they did, then I’m more concerned that they’re either:

a) Thoroughly misunderstanding what Christians stand for, or

b) So intent on finding fault with our administration that they are deliberately twisting the words so as to be offended by something that’s not inherent in the meaning.

The document in question is an intelligence threat assessment. It’s title indicates its subject matter (Right Wing Extremism). It does not state that Islamic jihadists are NOT a threat; they are just not within the scope of the document.

The references to veterans revolve around their potential recruitment by right wing extremist organizations. It does NOT state that veterans are likely to become right wing extremists, or that veterans themselves were potential terrorist threats, just that extremist organizations were targeting veterans for recruitment.

I’m even more taken aback by the comments about “it nam[ing] Christians who believe the end-time prophecies in the Bible…” as potential terrorist threats. I was eager to see what our government had to say that identified Bible-believing Christians (like me) as terrorist threats!

The only section of the document that mentions “Christian” or “end times” is the last paragraph on page 4, quoted in part here:

“Antigovernment conspiracy theories and ‘end times’ prophecies could motivate extremist individuals and groups to stockpile food, ammunition, and weapons. These teachings also have been linked with the radicalization of domestic extremist individuals and groups in the past, such as violent Christian Identity organizations and extremist members of the militia movement.”

Given that “end times prophecies” abound, and exist beyond the Bible, I decided to look into the “Christian Identity organizations” they referenced. Another quick Google search brought me to several websites about Christian Identity, and several other Christian Identity organizational websites. A brief review of these sites led me to several conclusions:

1) These organizations are NOT Christian

2) Their understanding of the “end times” is a grotesque bastardization of the Bible to justify their hatred of Jews and other non-white races

3) In at least one instance I found, they are very overtly targeting US veterans through deception and pandering to potential disillusionment in our returning veterans.

4) These guys are dangerous wackos that I want our government to keep an eye on!!!

Nowhere else in the government document does it address Bible-believing Christians. So I implore my fellow citizens of this great nation, at all points on the political spectrum, to take the time to do their homework before they respond to politically-charged sound bites.

“Seek first to understand…”

I’m baaack…

OK, so this attempt at starting a civil discourse took a 12 month sabbatical…

I’m going to try again. I just read through the old posts, and it’s interesting that although the events that I commented on are a distant memory, not much has changed in our world.

Part of my motivation is to see if I can initiate and support a civil discourse around the upcoming elections. I’ve got opinions and biases. I admit it. And I’m hoping that I can sway the opinions of others through the use of effective dialog. I care about our country, and am concerned where we’re headed. I’m not going to stake my position out today, but I’d like to open the door for discussion. Feel free to comment here, or on my Facebook page, but let’s keep the discourse civil, informed, and respectful.

More on Lying…

Let’s look at a few definitions:
to speak falsely or utter untruth knowingly, as with intent to deceive. lie. (n.d.). Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1). Retrieved September 10, 2009, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/lie

an intentional violation of the truth. Easton’s 1897 Bible Dictionary. Retrieved September 10, 2009, from Dictionary.com website: http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/lie

There are many others, of course, but the prevailing definition in most dictionaries I looked into had a common theme in them: INTENTIONALITY

This means that our good friend, the honorable Congressman Wilson from South Carolina is accusing the President of the United States of knowingly and intentionally telling a false statement to the people of the US and the assembled Congress with the deliberate intent to deceive! If the Congressman is correct and has evidence to corroborate his accusation, this is an impeachable offense!

Is he leading the effort to file for impeachment of the President? I kinda doubt it. But why not? He felt so emphatically just a few nights ago that he was apparently convinced the accusation could not wait for a more suitable forum–so he had to blurt it out right then and there!

I’m sorry folks, but President Obama isn’t deliberately telling you or I anything he knows is false, any more than President Bush deliberately deceived us when he said there was irrefutable evidence of WMD development in Iraq prior to the invasion. Put down the conspiracy novels.

I’m not saying that either is 100% accurate in their respective statements. What I’m saying is that each believed what they said to be true, and said it with the best of intentions.

Leveling the charge of “lying” attributes a very evil intent to deceive–and to accuse any man of that level of evil requires a high level of certainty. When the allegation is aimed at one of authority, whose execution of deliberate deception on a national scale would be an affront against our people, our nation, the world, and our God (who both men profess to serve)–that is an accusation of such vile intent, that we are calling the person’s very character into serious doubt…do these accusers really mean what they’re saying? Do they realize what they’re saying?

If we, the American public, have managed to elect, consecutively, two men of such evil character that they would deliberately mislead the American public…we have bigger problems than health care.

In this day of instant communication, we all need to practice the skill of thinking before we speak.

Personally, the behavior we, the people have exhibited during the recent debate on reforming health care provision in the US, indicates that we have a bigger problem than poor health care provision. We, the electorate and the elected, have some serious character issues.

"You lie???"

WHAT? When did it become socially acceptable for grown men to throw around schoolyard insults and accusations? Never mind that this is a sitting member of Congress yelling out during a speech BY THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES!

Outside of pool halls and taverns, when did it become ok for any grownup to speak to another like that?

We have totally lost the art of critical thinking and intellectual debate. At one point in the not-so-distant past, if (and that’s a big “if”) the Congressman were aware of deliberate telling of falsehoods by the President, he would have challenged the falsehoods with coolly-worded facts embedded in well-turned phrases that would have inarguably exposed the falsehoods while maintaining the Congressman’s dignity.

I don’t see much evidence in our public discourse of reason, logic, respect for our fellow man (let alone his opinion), or an interest in preserving and even promoting the greater good.

For the love of all things sacred, how did a grown man who can’t even seem to control childish outbursts get elected to such a high office? Who cares if he’s factually correct, he has lost all credibility and authority. I’m sure the talking heads will love him.

Technology 3, Greg 0

But it’s 4th and goal, I’ve got the ball on Technology’s 2 yard line, and there’s 17 seconds left in the 4th quarter. 2 tight-end set, and I’m going for 6, baby!

I’ve been fighting with the desktop at home for months now, then Wednesday my really cool Windows Mobile Phone (HTC Tilt, none of that feel-good iPhone junk–a real power-user’s phone!) had a hardware failure.

But, at 1:32 am Saturday morning, I’ve got my hard drive reformatted, with all my new software up and running (including my Zune software, so I can listen to podcasts again–and it WORKS!!!). Partitioned the hard drive so next time the OS goes south, I don’t have to remember where all the data is squirreled away (got all the really important stuff, but I lost my “favorites”).

And, I got a new phone–HTC Fuze. Tilt on STEROIDS!!! All the cool UI of the iPhone, plus real functionality, not just toys (but I can get toys too).

So, life’s good! What did we ever do before technology made our lives so much easier? We definitely got more sleep. I’m off to bed. Gotta get up in about 5 hours.

Sorry for the long delays with no posts. But, I’m baaacckkk!

Anybody else restless?

Unsettled? Feel like you’re doing a lot, but not doing what you need to be doing? Not sure what you should be doing, but pretty sure what you spend most of your time on isn’t it?

I thought at first it was just me, but in watching friends, co-workers, spouse, etc, it seems like we’re all busy, productive, and totally restless and unsettled with where we are.

I’m tired. I want to be purposefully busy, but not frazzled from an extended adrenaline rush that is my normal workday.

What about the rest of the world? Am I normal? Abnormal? Anybody figured out how to redirect this?

Part of the reason it’s been 5 days since my last post is that I can’t slow down long enough to think deep thoughts. I’d like to change that too.