Color Blind

     I am wearing a blue shirt. If you say it is blue, you are right. Yet, if someone else says, "no, it's more like a light blue", then he would be right too. They disagree (in terms of hairsplitting), but they're both right. Both are accurate descriptions of my shirt. If a third fellow comes along (and I really do hope I never have this much discussion over the color of my garments) and claims that the first two are off and that the shirt is actually 'baby blue', well, he would be right too. (Just so we're clear, I am wearing a Pittsburgh Penguins shirt with the alternate 'baby blue' otherwise, I do not wear baby blue).

    Now, none of these are quite aligned with each other, but they're all right. No one would really argue one shade of blue over the other. Yet, if a fourth fellow came along and called it grey, that would be wrong. They would probably think the following things about him:

• He's probably not serious

• He probably never learned what colors are

• He might be color blind

• He might be stupid

• He probably doesn't hang around too many civil war reenactments

• He might not appreciate his shortcomings being illustrated in bullet format

    There will be a time when the 3 fellows attempt to explain blue to him. They will use examples and use different colors and ask different questions (assuming they're trying to determine his point of view). There will also be a time when they run out of ways of explaining blue. It's not a philosophical or logical debate, it just is the way it is.

   So, let's say he is serious, isn't stupid and has been to many civil war reenactments (and even has his own collection of hats and flattened pennies - you know the kind, you put a penny and a quarter into a machine, turn some wheels, get a flattened penny back and never see the quarter again - MAGIC!). Good for him.

But not good; because he is trying to say that blue is grey. How much effort do these men put into setting him right? Do they go mad trying to help a madman? Do they call him stupid and in need of education and risk his emotions sending him sulking away? Do they consider his 'feelings' and just "agree to disagree"? Do they try to determine if he is color blind or otherwise somehow never knew which colors were called what? Do they end the conversation there and move on? There are only so many ways to say something before getting to simply repeating the same thing over and over. Calling people stupid or ignorant (coincidentally, both ignorant and stupid people use the terms "stupid" and "ignorant" interchangeably) doesn't really turn people over to your side of the argument. And it is very easy to call someone as such without even using those specific words. The thing to remember is to "Speak the Truth in Love" and "Bear with one another's weaknesses".

Mark 4 : 9   "And he said, "Whoever has ears to hear had better listen!""

The Full Armor of God and the Phalanx

This latest posting is brought to you by King Leonidas. King Leonidas, leading 300 of Sparta's finest into battle with Xerxes and his minions so Greece may remain free . . . until it spends itself into eternal debt slavery. And so Gerald Butler can have a Bad-A$$ movie about it.

If you are unfamiliar with the movie “300”, you are unqualified to read this blog or be my friend. Go watch it now. Seriously. I mean it.

Watch the movie or I'll kick you down this conveniently-placed bottomless pit!

Now that you've seen it (and hopefully remembered to return here) let me use it as my analogy to my latest series of thoughts / rantings.

In Paul's letter to the Ephesians (Chapter 6 verses 10 – 18) Paul writes about wearing the “full armor of God”. He speaks of the Belt of Truth; the breastplate of righteousness; the readiness to be fitted onto your feet; the shield of faith; the helmet of salvation and, finally, the sword of the spirit.

In light of this; here are some thoughts that I have had recently:
The spiritual battle has been waging for a VERY long time. We have only now joined it. Some of us have been in the struggle our whole lives. Others have been “asleep” and have only recently joined in the cause and still others are still asleep; blindly coasting through their comfortably numb lifestyle.

For us (the ones that have always been awake and the recently awakened), we joined a battle that is in-progress. Should one wake up to a battle, there is always panic. Here is my fear: That far too many people wake up, see the onslaught and will only pick up the sword of the spirit and nothing else. For if one wakes up to a battle, would one take the time to strap on articles of clothing / armor? Or would one simply grab a weapon and fight? This is a mistake.

To take the analogy further: What we (as Christians) need are the Full Armor of God; The boot-camp for training in a safe and stable environment (loving home / family / Church - hopefully all three); and a proper phalanx. What is a phalanx? It is a military term for a formation of soldiers. Here is where watching 300 would help, but I will let King Leonidas explain it.

There are those Christians that try to go it alone. Except no man is an island unto himself and Jesus himself had the Disciples go two-by-two when they split up.

SPLITTER!!

I think the phalanx should be reviewed in that we need to stay in formation. Or in other words, we need to be on the same page with each other! If one of us falls, there is now a gap in our ranks. If one of us goes off course, we have a gap in our ranks. We need to keep aligned. We need to remember what was spoken in Paul's letter to the Romans (Chapters 14 and 15).

Saved

When you think of something as “saved”, what do you think of? On a computer, documents and programs are saved to the computer. They are stored in files. When someone saves the files, they are saving them TO a specific file or folder. No one thinks of saving something FROM the trash. The same works for food (unless you're on an airplane and have slept through the food distribution. In that case, the stewardess may or may not attempt to throw away your food as though it were trash). This is how being “saved” should be thought of in the spiritual sense. We shouldn't think of being saved means to avoid going to Hell. It should be thought of as being able to spend eternity with the Lord who created the heavens and the earth. How many people go to Church because they are afraid of Hell? How many actions and activities do people partake in because they are afraid of punishment? Do you get  car  i nsurance so as to avoid getting ticketed for not having insurance? Or do you get car insurance to pay for damages in the event of a crash? This isn't meant to be accusatory, but I have to wonder about people. The joy that would come with being with the Father is all I need to hear. I need not be afraid of what would come. For I have confessed with my mouth that Jesus is Lord. I am not doing this for “fire insurance” or any sort of “feel-good” sensation that many people seek out. Some Churches have that “cheer-leader” look and feel to them. That's not to say they have gone against Jesus; more along the lines of losing some of the “meat” of the Gospel. We are told on many occasions by Jesus (and later Paul) that there will be troubles. There will be difficulties. That we may be persecuted, ridiculed and arrested for preaching the word. We shouldn't fear preaching the Truth if we believe we are saved. Now, when I say that I believe what I believe not through wanting the aforementioned “fire insurance", I mean to say that I truly believe and attempt to convert that belief into action. I do not sit through services, soak up what is preached, then go home to feel good and forget. I implement what I learn into my life. I bring up parts of the Gospel in everyday conversations. I take what I learn to shape how I make decisions throughout the day and week. Sometimes when I find something in the Bible that challenges what I have already established as a habit, I take to changing that habit. Other times, when said habit is a little bit more entrenched, I take to prayer and fasting to do what I believe God is asking of me. Admittedly, sometimes this is harder than other times. Taking this a step further; I would combine the two greatest commandments that Jesus gave us and the Great Commission to spread the Word. That is to say, I believe I am to spread the Word, to be all things to all people (easier said than done), and to speak the Truth in Love. This is what it means to be Saved. What do you think? Do you agree, disagree? Thoughts, questions, concerns? Objections?

CTRL-Z

CTRL-Z is awesome. It lets you undo (most) mistakes you could type into a text-field. This is (in general) something that most people enjoy because it gives them the security of knowing that certain mistakes can be undone and forgotten about. However, the same cannot be said of real life. In real life, very little can be undone. Even so, it can seem like it can be undone if forgiven - and that's what Jesus does. He forgives the mistakes we have made; to the point where the sin is treated as though it has been made undone.

What is done in real life can't be undone; hurtful things can't be taken back very easily. This should be enough to give us pause before doing/saying anything we may end up regretting. However, we should also remain confident in our lives, lest we do nothing out of fear. This is fear of failure. We should remember that Christ forgives our sins. We should be able to move forward and continue to preach the Good News of Christ.

Then again, maybe people could be more confident in their actions if others were more forgiving (yes I include myself in this for I am guilty as well).

This wasn't really in reference to anything, but just that people really shouldn't let their faults and failures get in the way of spreading the Gospel of Christ.

Amen.

Stand Firm

Since, it's been a while since I've written a blog post, I think I'll start with something that is both on my heart and something I have seen in the news.

^{But lets start with a verse from Paul's letter to the Ephesians:}

"10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in his mighty power. ¹¹ Put on the full armor of God, so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. ¹² For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. ¹³ Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. ¹⁴ Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, ¹⁵ and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. ¹⁶In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷ Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

¹⁸ And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people."

- Ephesians 6:10-18

Here, we are encouraged to be strong and to stand firm, but stand firm against what? The Devil? That's all well and good, but lets take a look at what that can mean.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2094100/Severed-pigs-head-dumped-doorstep-crime-fighting-Italian-priest-condemned-Mafia.html?ito=feeds-newsxml

In this news story (you did read it, right? No? Ok I'll wait) we have a priest preach against the mafia. What does the mafia do? What they always do, they start by killing an animal and leaving all or part of it's corpse at your doorstep.

Sort of like what a cat does, only without being cute and fury about it . . .

Now, this isn't some random dude saying "whoa, killing is wrong dude!". This is a man of the cloth preaching the Word of God. The mafia should know that things like "Thou Shalt not steal" and "thou shalt not commit murder" might just be somewhat opposite of the mafia's business model. Now, the Priest could easily choose the comfortable and safe route about switching his sermons to more feathery subjects and not ones that cut to the heart of what's wrong with society. However, since he is here and called to preach the Word of the Lord, that option isn't open to him. He isn't here to please mere man. And neither should we.

Of course, most of us aren't in this situation. We face such things as misspeaking, or being made fun of as "prude's" or even speaking to people who will disagree and/or ignore us (the horror!). No, seriously, what do we (especially myself) have to fear? Would we be stoned? Flogged? Tarred and Feathered?

No. Yet, some of us feel the need to avoid confrontation that may arise as opposed to speaking the Truth of Christ. Maybe that's a lot of people, perhaps you too, but I know this is something I deal with and I refuse to believe that I am the only shy/introverted/socially awkward Christian out there.

But lets take a look at another example:

http://www.catholicvote.org/discuss/index.php?p=25927

That's right; the Komen foundation pulled the grant that it was offering up to planned parenthood. Why? Well, probably because they weren't offering the type life-saving breast-cancer screening exams that the Komen foundation would like to be available to women. The screenings are still available, it's just that planned parenthood is no longer the "middle-man" in the process. As a result? Every liberal reacted as though the only way that women can get breast-cancer screening was by way of referral from one of the biggest abortion advocates on the face of the planet. Women can still get the screenings, the only real problem is that planned parenthood lost a revenue of income. That's all. Shortly after, many liberal donors contributed almost $1 Million in combined donations (which would make you wonder why they would need Government grants with so many rich liberals around).

Should The Komen foundation go back to giving money to the pro-death organization? Certainly not! They are free to give money to whom they choose anyway. When things like this happen, we cannot afford to simply cower just because someone else may happen to be offended that we would have principles and stick with them. It is not surprising that the Komen Foundation is being attacked like it is. It is quite plain now that they have two options: Stand firm or cave in. Lets pray they stand firm and that we can get this baby-killing dragon that is planned parenthood defeated.

³⁷ Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. ³⁸ Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.”

Matthew 9:37-38

We need not speak of the Lord 24/7 (not that there's anything wrong with that), but there shouldn't be apprehension about speaking about the Lord or the Bible, regardless of the location or the people with whom you're speaking. For there are indeed countless opportunities to serve and to witness.

A Series of Rants: Plastic/Cosmetic Surgery

During work, there is a radio the boss-man has on so we can listen to some tunes whilst working away. Every once-in-a-while, a certain commercial comes one for some local doctor that performs plastic surgery. This propaganda includes something about making the outer beauty match the inner beauty or some such nonsense.

Herein lies my rage (not merely the 'upset' kind of rage, but rage closer to the "I am Joe's raging bile duct" type rage). Who, in their right mind, thinks physically altering their appearance will make them more attractive? Sure, certain types are more attractive than others, but that doesn't mean everyone should be made to look the same. Why do people actively agree to let botox and other silicon-based poisons (and they are poisons - straight from the bowls of satan) into their bodies? The notion that people need to surgically alter themselves in order to attract someone with whom they can partner with is utterly absurd and needs to be put to a stop.

Now for the other side. It's understood that women think they need to change themselves to appear more attractive. It's also understood they do so because bad men encourage it and good men apparently don't speak up against it often enough. So, to those of you who are like me (a somewhat good guy who is sick of the lies) speak up. The greatest ally evil has is a good person who remains silent. To those of you who think that operation is the only way to get a guy, forget about it, you don't need it (and those guys who do tell you that you don't need surgery aren't just saying so, they really mean it).

Here's an interesting news article I happened to find:

It's now suspected that implants may not even be safe! Can we be done with it already?

And finally, to those of you who either actively encourage your girlfriends to get "bigger" or don't speak up should she talk about wanting it. Punch yourselves in the face. Seriously. Right now. Do it.

Adventures in Beer Tasting: A Review

Recently, I had the pleasure of tasting six "new" beers. New in the sense that I had previously never had any of them. Now, this review comes a bit "after the fact", but I will strive to be both coherent and edifying.

The six are as follows:

1: Great Divide Brewing Co's Hades: This is a Belgian-Style Ale that I found consistent with other Belgian-Styles. I believe I mostly liked it due to the fact that I happen to like Belgian-Styles, but it was good and I would have it again if I had the chance. On the bottle was a food pairing suggestion of; fresh mussels, crusty bread and artisan cheese - which sounded pretty good, if I had any available.

2: Tommyknocker Brewery's Maple Brown Nut Ale: This Ale had the flavor of maple syrup and made me miss fall a bit. I would drink it again if given the chance and my own suggested food pairings would be pancakes, nuff said.

3: Brewery Ommegang's Hennepin: It, too, is a Belgian-Style and while given a choice between this and the former, I might prefer the Hades (Never thought I would prefer "Hades" between two options). However, this Belgian also had a good taste to it (and I would think the best pairing option would be to drink this with an attractive Belgian ;)

4: Buffalo Bill's Brewery's Blueberry Oatmeal Stout: I like blueberries. I like Stouts. This was the perfect combination of both. Food Paring: Blueberry Pancakes (Yes, I like pancakes :)

5: Left Hand Brewing Co's 400 Pound Monkey: An English-Style IPA. Although I'm not a fan of IPA's, I did find this one to be rather tasty.

6: Indigo Imp Brewery's Gate Keeper: This Porter (that I happen to be drinking as I began this writing :) has a robust taste to it with hints of caramel. I would consider it again should I have the chance.

So there it is, a bit amateur-ish I'll admit, but I'm one of those oddballs that only started drinking at 21. Therefore my repertoire isn't as knowledgeable as some others.