My dear readers,
Today's writing is in red to symbolize all of the blood shed by courageous men and women in defense of the freedoms we hold so very dear. On Saturday, my partner and I went to a National Cemetery near us and helped to place flags on all of the graves. It was such a moving experience. To read all of the names of the soldiers buried there; honor their spouses and sometimes their children. At one point, I was simply overcome with emotion. I took off my ballcap, placed it gently across my heart in salute, and wept through a prayer of thankfulness for each of their sacrifice. You see, I know in my heart of hearts that I enjoy the life I do today because of those brave men and women.
And yet, I am deeply troubled by our presence in Iraq. Our president has created a civil war where thousands are dead, tens of thousands maimed or injured, and nobody is safe to walk the streets even during daylight. Although I honor our men and women in uniform for their selfless service, I cannot help but hurt for those families who are now dealing with the dead and horribly maimed. All of this is because of an egotistical president who is unwilling to take responsibility for the mess he's made.
On this Memorial Day, say thank you to those in uniform and offer your sincere appreciation for their sacrifices. And while you're at it, thank their families who kept the home fires burning. Believe me, they made great sacrifices, as well. And if you know a gay or lesbian soldier who is hiding in the closet and yet still carrying the torch of freedom, let them know what brave soldiers they are.
Without the selflessness, courage, bravery, and intestinal fortitude of these wonderful men and women, I would not be able to fly the flag of freedom today.
God bless America. God bless all of the governments on the Earth. And continue to pray for peace everywhere.
CLG-B
Monday, May 30, 2005
Saturday, May 14, 2005
The Lost Sheep
My dear readers,
Thank you for kind words and insightful comments on previous posts. I do read and take to heart every one of them, praying that I will grow in wisdom and knowledge through your experiences in the Lord.
Let's consider our responsibility to others. In Luke 15, Jesus was speaking in parables, as was his custom. The least among the community came to listen to Jesus. (I personally believe it was because he gave them hope. )The religious leaders were appalled that Jesus would associate with those of such low socio-economic status. These were considered the dregs of society: unkempt, unlearned, and straying away from what the religious leaders required. They wanted more than the Law. They wanted a relationship!
Within our churches we have so many who are marginalized and who hurt deeply. They may not have the best clothing or hygiene. They may not follow the same rules. Yet they are starving for love and compassion, in deep emotional pain. They sit in the back of our churches completely ignored by the minsters and congregation, no one reaching out to touch them where they are. Of that, we should be convicted! We can never know what's in a person's heart! Let me tell you of a recent event that made this very real to me.
As many know, my precious partner returned after a 15 month tour of duty in Iraq. She has suffered greatly with post-traumatic stress disorder. Several months ago she asked to speak with the pastor of the church we were attending. Now, you must understand that this church falls under the category of extreme fundamentalism. They are subscribers to the religion of prosperity and deliverance. According to their theology, if you have difficulties in your life then you are in sin, basically, and must have a demon or something similar which requires deliverance...their style. And there are so many churches out there who follow that theology. In my opinon, in light of the teaching and life of Jesus, it is very condemning and lacking in love and compassion. After that conversation, the pastor pushed her aside. It was devastating to my partner. For months she kept the hurt of that deployment inside because of the negative and hurtful reaction of that pastor.*
While attending a special event at another church, she had the opportunity to speak to the minister who will be, in a short few months, installed as the leader of their entire denomination. Although this woman is busy and very important, she took the time to care for my partner and reach out to her. I cannot begin to tell you how much healing was done in such a short time.
All of this made me think of the parable of the lost sheep. Jesus said, "Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep but loses one of them? Then he will leave the other ninety-nine sheep in the open field and go out and look for the lost sheep until it finds it. And when he finds it, he happily puts it on his shoulders and goes home."
We think this is a parable for the lost; those who don't know Jesus. Think about it in a different way. He was tending the sheep; those who know his voice. These were his sheep. If one who knows him slips away, it is our obligation as ministers of the gospel to gently retrieve that sheep, put that one on our shoulders and carry them back to the sheepfold. The word for sheep used here means to go forward or advance. As his sheep, we should be moving forward or advancing...maturing in our faith walk. That leads to even bigger implications. We are to encourage one another in our faith walk. Also notice that the shepherd carried the sheep home. He didn't leave it to chance, but took the weary and confused sheep in his arms and gave the sheep comfort on the journey.
In the way that this minister took my partner's hands in hers and cared for her, so should we care for one another. It's an easy, fleshly thing to look down on another, condemning them and castigating them for their weakness or pain. It is the Christ-like thing to open our hearts and our spirits to care for one so hurt and soul-damaged. God bless this woman for offering the healing hand of God to my precious partner.
May we all learn a lesson in this. It is imperative and incumbent upon us to go forward and care for the sheep of our sheepfold. Jesus taught us that we are our brother's keeper. If we heap condemnation on each other, we will be nothing more than a fold of wounded, unuseful sheep. Let's put our weapons of words, thoughts and deeds down and open our hearts, minds and spirits to each other, helping each other mature in our faith walk.
May God touch your hearth with this message as He's touched mine. May you be richly blessed and know the love and compassion to which we are called.
CLG-B
* For more infomation on spiritual abuse (using the bible or spiritual principles to chastise another person), please visit http://truluck.com . This site is owned by Dr. Rembert Truluck, a very learned man and scholar of the bible as a weapon against another. You will find it quite enlightening!
Thank you for kind words and insightful comments on previous posts. I do read and take to heart every one of them, praying that I will grow in wisdom and knowledge through your experiences in the Lord.
Let's consider our responsibility to others. In Luke 15, Jesus was speaking in parables, as was his custom. The least among the community came to listen to Jesus. (I personally believe it was because he gave them hope. )The religious leaders were appalled that Jesus would associate with those of such low socio-economic status. These were considered the dregs of society: unkempt, unlearned, and straying away from what the religious leaders required. They wanted more than the Law. They wanted a relationship!
Within our churches we have so many who are marginalized and who hurt deeply. They may not have the best clothing or hygiene. They may not follow the same rules. Yet they are starving for love and compassion, in deep emotional pain. They sit in the back of our churches completely ignored by the minsters and congregation, no one reaching out to touch them where they are. Of that, we should be convicted! We can never know what's in a person's heart! Let me tell you of a recent event that made this very real to me.
As many know, my precious partner returned after a 15 month tour of duty in Iraq. She has suffered greatly with post-traumatic stress disorder. Several months ago she asked to speak with the pastor of the church we were attending. Now, you must understand that this church falls under the category of extreme fundamentalism. They are subscribers to the religion of prosperity and deliverance. According to their theology, if you have difficulties in your life then you are in sin, basically, and must have a demon or something similar which requires deliverance...their style. And there are so many churches out there who follow that theology. In my opinon, in light of the teaching and life of Jesus, it is very condemning and lacking in love and compassion. After that conversation, the pastor pushed her aside. It was devastating to my partner. For months she kept the hurt of that deployment inside because of the negative and hurtful reaction of that pastor.*
While attending a special event at another church, she had the opportunity to speak to the minister who will be, in a short few months, installed as the leader of their entire denomination. Although this woman is busy and very important, she took the time to care for my partner and reach out to her. I cannot begin to tell you how much healing was done in such a short time.
All of this made me think of the parable of the lost sheep. Jesus said, "Suppose one of you has a hundred sheep but loses one of them? Then he will leave the other ninety-nine sheep in the open field and go out and look for the lost sheep until it finds it. And when he finds it, he happily puts it on his shoulders and goes home."
We think this is a parable for the lost; those who don't know Jesus. Think about it in a different way. He was tending the sheep; those who know his voice. These were his sheep. If one who knows him slips away, it is our obligation as ministers of the gospel to gently retrieve that sheep, put that one on our shoulders and carry them back to the sheepfold. The word for sheep used here means to go forward or advance. As his sheep, we should be moving forward or advancing...maturing in our faith walk. That leads to even bigger implications. We are to encourage one another in our faith walk. Also notice that the shepherd carried the sheep home. He didn't leave it to chance, but took the weary and confused sheep in his arms and gave the sheep comfort on the journey.
In the way that this minister took my partner's hands in hers and cared for her, so should we care for one another. It's an easy, fleshly thing to look down on another, condemning them and castigating them for their weakness or pain. It is the Christ-like thing to open our hearts and our spirits to care for one so hurt and soul-damaged. God bless this woman for offering the healing hand of God to my precious partner.
May we all learn a lesson in this. It is imperative and incumbent upon us to go forward and care for the sheep of our sheepfold. Jesus taught us that we are our brother's keeper. If we heap condemnation on each other, we will be nothing more than a fold of wounded, unuseful sheep. Let's put our weapons of words, thoughts and deeds down and open our hearts, minds and spirits to each other, helping each other mature in our faith walk.
May God touch your hearth with this message as He's touched mine. May you be richly blessed and know the love and compassion to which we are called.
CLG-B
* For more infomation on spiritual abuse (using the bible or spiritual principles to chastise another person), please visit http://truluck.com . This site is owned by Dr. Rembert Truluck, a very learned man and scholar of the bible as a weapon against another. You will find it quite enlightening!
Thursday, May 12, 2005
Food for Thought
Hi again...
Just a few things to chew on...
http://americablog.blogspot.com/2005/05/theocrats-in-military-your-tax-dollars.html
http://www.optruth.org/main.cfm?actionId=globalShowStaticContent&screenKey=hearHome&lnav=1
http://www.angelfire.com/sk3/spkhntrca/Casey.html
http://www.occupationwatch.org/analysis/archives/2005/05/why_us_troops_w.html
http://www.workingforchange.com/article.cfm?itemid=19022
God help us. We are now a country who is in incredible, mind-numbing debt. We are now the least respected, most war-mongering nation in the world. And we have an idiot for a (p)resident. That's what happens when you let hate-filled, isolationist bigots run the country. It's time for those who still have brains to rise up against this administration and demand that they, including Bush, Rumsfeld, and Cheney, be forced to accept responsibility for their actions and their lies. Why are our elected senators and representatives afraid to impeach these morons? I hope 2008 elections speak loud and clear of our disdain for these hypocrites.
CLG-B
Just a few things to chew on...
http://americablog.blogspot.com/2005/05/theocrats-in-military-your-tax-dollars.html
http://www.optruth.org/main.cfm?actionId=globalShowStaticContent&screenKey=hearHome&lnav=1
http://www.angelfire.com/sk3/spkhntrca/Casey.html
http://www.occupationwatch.org/analysis/archives/2005/05/why_us_troops_w.html
http://www.workingforchange.com/article.cfm?itemid=19022
God help us. We are now a country who is in incredible, mind-numbing debt. We are now the least respected, most war-mongering nation in the world. And we have an idiot for a (p)resident. That's what happens when you let hate-filled, isolationist bigots run the country. It's time for those who still have brains to rise up against this administration and demand that they, including Bush, Rumsfeld, and Cheney, be forced to accept responsibility for their actions and their lies. Why are our elected senators and representatives afraid to impeach these morons? I hope 2008 elections speak loud and clear of our disdain for these hypocrites.
CLG-B
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