At the risk of being labeled…

I am more than a little hesitant to even write this post, but it is something that has bothered me for sometime now.  I know some people will miss the point of what I am trying to express and find a suitable label to bestow upon me.  Regardless, here it goes…..

My church has had several men who have served in Iraq over the past few years, probably not unlike your church.  A couple of Sundays ago one of these men returned home and was welcomed back by the congregation with patriotic pageantry and honor.  Before I go on, let me state that what I am about to say is not meant to be derogatory towards anyone.  This man felt it was his duty to serve is country and he bravely did so.  But I had to wonder how would we welcome those men who over the years have chosen not to serve their country based on their religious beliefs?  Would we welcome these men with the same amount of pomp and circumstance? 

We all operate by a set values that we each hold true.  One man feels a duty to serve his country by taking up arms,  while the other feels a duty to serve his God by laying down his sword.  Remember the incident in the Garden of Gethsemane when one of Jesus’ followers drew his sword to defend Christ Himself?  Christ said not by the sword.  Now I know that this was to fulfill prophesy, but if not for Christ then for whom?   I truly believe we are at the beginning of a revolution, one that will bring substance to that dangerous phrase thy will on earth as it is in heaven.  It won’t be a revolution led by Obama or McCain or their generals, but rather by the followers of Christ living out their lives in His dust.  Following Him so close that their actions will be noticed by the entire world.

Wondering outloud, RT

Is it just me?

As I walked down the school hallway and heard Bruce Springsteen’s Born in the USA playing on the morning announcements as an intro to the pledge, I wondered if the irony was lost on everyone but me.  The demographics of this district’s website report that there are over 40 different languages spoken in the homes of its students.  This would imply that not all of the students were “born in the USA”.  The district’s ethnicity summary reports that Hispanic is the largest and fastest growing “minority”.  It goes on to report that all “minorities” combined equal 49% of its student population.  Now what message are we sending to these students and others?  Many were not born in the USA, yet we expect that they stand and show respect for the flag during the pledge?  This, after pointing out the difference between us and them through the words of Bruce’s anthem…  I don’t get it.

Now don’t get me wrong, people who know me wouldn’t exactly call me touchy-feely, but I do think we need to realize the impact of our uttered words.  Those words can be in written, spoken, or song form.  We need to be a lot less egocentric and a little more altruistic in our thoughts, words, and actions.  Wait a minute, that is beginning to sound like a Jewish rabbi I have read about.  And you know what happened when people started following Him.

Enough said, RT out.

America, here’s your sign!

This past Sunday I was greeted by this proclamation as I pulled into the church parking lot: America, Bless God!  Was this the work of a dyslexic church worker, an electrical glich or was it an act of divine genius?

I prefer to believe the later.  America, and by America I mean the USA, has long volleyed the call of God bless America in song and war cries.  But I often wonder are we deserving of that blessing?  What are we doing as a nation for God to want to bestow His blessing on us?  When I think of Christ words in the Beatitudes, the answer is not much.

I believe that as a nation and as a people if we truly want God’s blessings we have some dramatic changes to make.  We know what we need to do, the question is are we willing?

As always, RT

Dan Newberry is messing with my Saturday evening…

Okay, I apologize in advance, but here I go again…

There I was sitting on the couch quietly enjoying a Saturday night at home watching college football with my lovely wife and then there it was;  a political ad for Dan Newberry running for state senate saying how he will improve education by implementing “higher standards for schools, and higher goals and expectations for education.”  Give me a break…..

When was the last time Mr. Newberry or any other state senator was even in a school, let alone a classroom.  Do they not realize that Oklahoma already has some of the highest criteria and testing standards for teachers.  I don’t know about your state, but in Oklahoma the state senate has been writing educational mandates and forgetting to fund them.  What qualifies these state senators to do this.  Do they have Bachelors, Masters, or Doctorates degrees in education?  I don’t think so. 

I have said it before and I will say it again now; I believe all US and state senators need to spend time in public schools substituting for at least a continuous week and be held accountable for the student’s mastery of the curriculum which they have taught.  Then maybe they would have a small glimpse of and slight insight into the real problem with education: the brokeness of our society and the plight of the American family coupled with the loss of the “culture of school.”  This would allow them to make education related decisions based on real time data and not their own past experiences.

Dan, I hope to see you and other law makers in the hallways and classrooms of my school soon.

Just the way I see it, RT

Dallas going pink…

The Dallas, Texas public school district is reportedly issuing “pink slips” to nearly 1,100 employees this week due to an $84 million shortfall.  Approximately 550 of those will be classroom teachers.  The students in the classrooms of those 550 teachers will have to be absorbed into other already crowded classrooms.  Now that’s an academically sound move…..      

If we can afford $700 $750 billion to bailout the crooks on Wall Street and the bankers who let their greed run amuck, surely we can afford another $84 million to bailout a school district as large as the one in Dallas.  Who knows, maybe the district could even implement an ethics curriculum and avoid another mess like we are in now.

Seeing pinkish red, RT

A tad bit more on Flag Waving

It is ironic to me that we are often fickle about our soap boxes.  One such soap box issue that has been burning long before Roe vs. Wade and will continue to cause sparks to fly is abortion.

Some pro-lifers are adamant about their anti-abortion stance based on their biblical view that all life is sacred; waving the Christian flag. If life begins at conception for them, does it end at birth?  Are they willing to take in and/or pay to take care of those “orphaned” by unwanted pregnancies carried to term?  What is it the bible says about widows and orphans?  “Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being polluted by the world.” James 1:27  If we are going to claim the high ground, we need to be willing to put our hearts, time and money where our beliefs are.

Another bit of irony is that if all life is sacred, how do we justify war?  Yet some of the same folks waving the Christian flag when it comes to abortion are waving the US flag when it comes to supporting wars in which untold numbers of innocent lives on both sides of the conflict are lost.  Who was it who said that they will beat their swords into plowshares?  Oh yea, Micah 4:3;  “He will judge between many peoples and will settle disputes for strong nations far and wide.  They will beat their swords into plowshares and their spears into pruning hooks.  Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train for war anymore.”   Now, I know that is OT, but if you have been praying that dangerous NT prayer “Thy will be done on earth as it is in Heaven”; look out.

My point, if indeed I have one, is that I am just wondering what would our world look like if we truly lived out our Christian faith by actually following the blood-stained words of Christ?

Just wondering, RT

Cancer Zero/ God Won

This is a little out of the normal for me, but I need to share this victory with you.  I will keep it brief….

In June I was diagnosed with prostate cancer, not much of a 50th birthday present.  We prayed and claimed victory, but still fear and doubt were my constant companions.  Oh me, of little faith.  I went through a little, no a lot of self-pity, then I got mad, and then took a Doris Day attitude; Que Sera, Sera. 

On September 3rd, I had a radical laparoscopic prostatectomy.  The surgery was a success and after four weeks of R and R, I returned to work.  The good news came in the form of a call from the surgeons assistance.  A one month post-op PSA came back at 0.02.  The surgeon had said he would consider 0.1 a success.  Praise God and the healers He has provided us!

Thanks for listening, RT.

A Balancing Act

As of late I am struggling with the meaning of a simple two word phrase I read; “excessively confident”.  They were used in reference to the human capacity to do unspeakable acts of violence to other human beings.  When a person or a group of people become so confident that their beliefs are those of their God/god, that even genocide becomes a viable act.  The two word phrase was used to refer to Hitler as excessively confident of his world view and that lead to his quest for power and the extinction of an entire race.  That the Hutu and Tutsis were each excessively confident that their respective tribes’ point of view and that confidence lead to the atrocities in Rwanda .

I can see this, but then I consider the words of Martin Luther;  ”Faith is a living, daring confidence in God’s grace, so sure and certain that a man could stake his life on it a thousand times.”   I don’t know about you, but to stake my life on a belief a thousand times, I would need to be excessively confident of or in the belief.  So what is to keep my excessive confidence in Christ from becoming too excessive?  Remember the Crusades?  I am sure that they were very confident in their faith.

For me the balance is the “red letters” of my bible; the words of Christ.  He was supremely confident, as He should be as God in human form, yet He also humbled Himself when He took that human form.  It is quite a balancing act to be excessively confident in Christ and yet humble about those beliefs.  I struggle every day with that balance; some days needing to be more confident in my faith and other days needing to be more humble in my faith.  But my guess is that I am not alone.  And that is somewhat comforting……

Searching for balance, RT.

The empire’s bailout and you…A short survey.

Just wondering what you think of our government’s reccent bailout plan?  If you have the time and desire, take this short open-ended survey: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=GDS2uxAP2v7ZmFifeAEnQQ_3d_3d

Thank you for your opinion and time, RT

Flag waving!

As we wind up or down for the final push for control of the White House, which flag will you be waving?  

What does each flag represent to you?

Which flag represents your beliefs? 

Just wonderng aloud, RT