Honestly thinking (& rethinking) about God, the universe, and everything in between

Tag: Republican

The Pursuit of Trump: How Your Choice Could be a Faithless Act

Our “hero” surveyed the landscape.

The enemy had the upper hand. His own troops quaked with fear. Many had deserted their posts.

The consequences were dire. Our hero’s once great nation was at war, and they were losing ground. The people’s future depended on the very choices he alone made today. 

Should they lose this battle, his nation faced extinction by a Pagan enemy whose culture was bent on destroying his people’s very identity as a chosen nation of the one true God.

The time for waiting patiently had passed. Something needed to be done NOW!

What appeared on the outside to be a faithful act turned out ultimately to be…faithless.

Thus, with no other choice, Saul did the one thing he could do offer burnt offerings to God.

But what was meant as an attempt to gain God’s favor in the midst of desperation was soon met with the greatest of rebukes by Saul’s spiritual advisor.

“What have you done?!” exclaimed the prophet Samual. “You have done a foolish thing. You have not kept the command the LORD your God gave you!”

The consequences of King Saul’s one single choice on that one single day were quite severe his kingdom would not endure (1 Sam 13).

What appeared on the outside to be a faithful act of Saul turned out ultimately to be…faithless.

Before continuing, let me be upfront by saying I am no less guilty of committing faithless acts. Scientists estimate that the average human makes about 35,000 choices per day, and I am quite certain that a large percentage of my 35,000 choices are committed out of faithlessness rather than faithfulness.

I am also quite certain I have been faithless at times when entering the voting booth or throwing my weight behind a political opinion. What I may have thought in the past were acts of faith, upon further reflection, turned out actually to be faithless.

But how does one determine what is “faithful” and what is “faithless?”

The Bible is full of stories of humankind committing both faithful and faithless acts, along with the consequences that follow. An examination of all of these stories reveals the following themes that are repeated throughout: Continue reading

Sorry, Fellow White Conservative Males, I’ve Got to Separate Myself on This

First, to settle this up front. I still call myself conservative.

I’m still with you on the importance of personal responsibility and limited government.

I’m still with you in contending that free market capitalism offers the best opportunity for everyone.

I’m still with you in advocating for the life of the unborn and holding that traditional families are the building block of our society.

I’m still with you in endorsing the freedom to express one’s faith and in believing that scripture, like the constitution, should be interpreted according to the authors’ original intent.

But as I’ve watched your various responses to the recent events in Charlottesville…

…as I’ve observed many of you simultaneously try to distance yourselves from the racist alt-right while also minimalizing it by pointing fingers at the media and the counter-protesters and their “inaccurate” understanding of confederate symbolism and historical facts…

…as I’ve witnessed you defend a typically no-holds-barred, “un-presidential,” unconcerned-with-facts leader as he suddenly became more reserved, “presidential,” and concerned with facts “on both sides” with this particular group…

I have to be honest…

Sorry, fellow white conservative males, I’ve got to separate myself on this.

In fact, it is my conservative belief…

…that the intent of the constitution was to give the right to “Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness”

…that the intent of scripture was not only that you love God but also “love your neighbor as yourself”

…that absolutely demands it.

I know I may not be describing all of you in regards to your recent responses, but what I’m talking about is actually much bigger than just this one event.

I’ve observed it particularly over the last year and half.

I’ve observed it in your various responses to different events.

Perhaps it’s just gotten worse, or perhaps the problem’s been there all along and I’m just beginning now to wake up.

What I’m talking about is either your inability or absolute refusal to listen to and believe other people’s stories. Continue reading

A Trump Protester’s Insider Look Within the Evangelical Trump Supporting World

The Meeting

I wanted to throw up.

Here I was sitting in a room full of well-known evangelical leaders saying positive things about then- candidate Donald Trump, talking as if he was the best hope for all Americans.

Of course, none of them could publicly “endorse” him, but their exuberance for him was obvious.

How could they be so blinded? Did they not see what I could see? Did they not see Trump was contrary to everything they stood for…so contrary to Christ?

Many of them I highly respected. Many were mentors in the faith – ones who had taught me so much about hearing God.

How is it they were hearing something so radically different than me? Especially after I had clearly heard the complete opposite.

Some of them talked about the many private hours they had spent with Trump and how he really listened to them and was respectful. They talked about his love for ALL Americans.

What? You’re kidding me, right?

I wanted to stand up and shout, “You fools!!! Don’t you realize he’s manipulating you? As soon as he wins, you’re all gone. You’re just pawns!”

Of course, then they’d know my secret. Continue reading

Trump, Hiroshima, and the Casualties of Politics

On Aug 6, 1945, a U.S. B-29 plane, under the authorization of President Harry S. Truman, dropped an atomic bomb on the Japanese city of Hiroshima, followed by a second one, Aug 9, on the city of Nagasaki. This action was credited with causing the surrender of Japanese forces, effectively ending World War II.

Some estimates place the death toll from the bombings upwards of 100,000 people, mostly civilians (including children). Add in the number of injuries and the numbers rise to over 200,000 casualties.victim_of_hiroshima_atomic_bombing_3

Since then, the bombings have been the subject of great moral debate as to whether such an action was necessary and worth the cost in casualties. Proponents then and now have argued that it avoided a prolonged battle with an enemy committed to fighting “to the bitter end” – which, in turn, would have cost a projected “half a million American lives and many more that number in wounded” as well as an equal number or more of Japanese lives.

In his public address, President Truman stated, ““Having found the bomb we have used it. We have used it against those who attacked us without warning at Pearl Harbor, against those who have starved and beaten and executed American prisoners of war, against those who have abandoned all pretense of obeying international laws of warfare. We have used it in order to shorten the agony of war, in order to save the lives of thousands and thousands of young Americans.”

In addition, many supporters have argued that the brute force of the bomb served as a demonstration to the Soviet Union, consequently keeping them in check for years to comes and saving potentially millions more lives.

Today, a different kind of war is taking place on actual U.S. soil – what has often been called the “culture wars.” Now, while I do not pretend that what is going on here even compares to the tragic loss of lives in physical war, it must be admitted there are still costs.

For politics, like war, is dirty…and people get hurt.

Consequently, amidst all the politicking arose another great moral debate.Faced with the prospects of either selecting a vitriolic person of questionable character to lead the country or continuing to battle against a political enemy whom they saw as destructive to our future, conservatives and many independents were forced to make a difficult choice.trump-vs-clinton

In the end, the majority decided the former was worth the cost.

Thus, on November 8, 2016 a bomb was dropped on half our population…

…a bomb known as President-elect Trump. Continue reading

Why This Christian Won’t Be Plugging His Nose and Voting for Trump or Clinton

Photo courtesy of DonkeyHotey

Image courtesy of DonkeyHotey

The nomad and his wife made their journey toward a dangerous foreign land.  Behind them a severe famine threatened to overtake them. Before them resided a people with a deadly reputation.

The man had heard stories before of their barbaric acts; he knew that if they found out this beautiful woman with him was his wife they would likely kill him in order to take her as their own.

To stay behind meant certain death by starvation for both. To move forward and tell the truth would seal his fate by sword.

Fearful of the consequences, Abram and his wife Sarai determined one small act of deception might serve to spare their lives.

What other choice did they have? It was the practical thing to do.

After all, these were desperate times.

And desperate times often call for desperate measures….and a little bit of compromise, right?

One of the things I’ve come to learn as a Christian is that many moral decisions are not always as clear cut as I would hope or as straightforward as the church would often have you believe.

The current political season is no exception in terms of complexity.

As the selection of final candidates winds down to two individuals whose rhetoric, behaviors and values often seem to contradict the message of Christ, many of my fellow Christians are asking what to do. Continue reading

The Barabbas Choice: 5 Practical Reasons for Voting for the Lesser of 2 Evils & Why They Won’t Work

GiveUsBarabbas

 

This article has been revised and updated here.

The nomad and his wife made their journey toward a dangerous foreign land.  Behind them a severe famine threatened to overtake them. Before them resided a people with a deadly reputation. The man had heard stories before of their barbaric acts; he knew that if they found out that this beautiful woman with him was his wife they would likely kill him in order to take her as their own.

To stay behind meant certain death by starvation for both of them. To move forward and tell the truth would seal his fate by sword or some other horrific means. Thus, one small act of deception might serve to spare his life. What other choice did Abram and his wife Sarai have? It was the practical thing to do. After all, these were desperate times.

And desperate times often call for desperate measures….and a little bit of compromise, right? Continue reading

Must Our President Be Christian? What Even Evangelicals Get Wrong About Separation of Church and State

Bible and flag

“Separation of church and state.”  Few phrases have caused such division and controversy.  From the famous Scopes Monkey Trial to battles over the Ten Commandments on public display to stories of high school coaches praying with their teams, there is no shortage of opinions.

Recently, the phrase has even become part of the dialogue in Republican presidential primaries.  After, I questioned the faith claims and behaviors of one of the leading candidates, several objectors decried, “What about separation of church and state?”

Surprisingly, evangelical Christian supporters of the candidate – ones who in the past have traditionally defended this is a “Christian nation” – have begun using a slight variation on the phrase when they proclaim that we are electing “a commander-in-chief, not a pastor-in-chief.”

But all of this is symptomatic that even evangelicals have become victims of a great misunderstanding about God. Continue reading

If You Are a Trump Supporter These Are The 9 Things I Assume About You

AUTHOR’S UPDATE: Please note that the following article was written prior to the actual GOP primaries because I was concerned about people supporting Donald Trump as the Republican candidate.  Since then the definition of “Trump Supporter” has obviously expanded to include a larger segment of the population, including people who readily agreed with my article. Thus my assumptions obviously do not apply to all “Trump Supporters.”

For my most recent thoughts on the election and support for President Trump, please see my latest article: A Trump Protester’s Insider Look Within the Evangelical Trump Supporting World.

Dear Trump Supporter,

Let me start by saying that I get it.  I get the frustration. 

I, too, am tired of all the PC language that has dominated our culture.  I’m tired of having to be careful about everything (and I mean EVERYTHING) I say for fear of accidentally offending someone and dealing with hyped up repercussions.

I, too, am sickened with politics as usual – with a stagnant, do-nothing government.  I’m tired of unmet promises and of wimpy politicians who won’t stand up for what is right and what needs to be done.

I, too, am concerned about our nation’s security, knowing there are people out there who absolutely hate us and will stop at nothing to destroy us – even to the point of trying to disguise themselves amongst us if they can.

I, too, worry about our world’s economy, with other countries engaging in unfair trade practices.  I’m worried about our own nation’s economy, and I’m worried about my next paycheck.

I, too, am frustrated by an ever expanding federal government, continually imposing its rules upon us, forcing us to buy a product we may not want, and telling us what we are allowed to believe…or else.

I, too, am concerned about where our country is headed.  I want to see our nation great again.

So I get it.

I get the allure of a charismatic person who speaks his mind, who appears above the fray, and seems to epitomize success.

Why wouldn’t we want an accomplished businessman to run the “business” of the states?  Why wouldn’t we want a person who could not care less what people think to break through the barriers of our hypersensitive speech.  Why wouldn’t we root for someone radically different than what we’ve seen before in Washington, who promises to get stuff done, while at the same time makes us laugh?

But this is not about Donald Trump.  No, this is about you. Continue reading

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