Church Infighting

Jim and Dwight are mortal enemies. They are also strange allies. They at once hate each other and respect each other. They fight with each other, so much so that they sometimes miss the real enemy: Staples.

So goes the church. There is always some sort of fight within churches. "You use the wrong Bible" "You don't baptize with enough water" "You use grape juice instead of wine." We often fight with each other and forget our true purpose: To reach out to those who don't know God.

The conflicts between Jim and Dwight provide humorous moments that make me laugh hysterically...like this joke my old Baptist preacher once told from the pulpit on Sunday:
" A newly deceased group arrives at the Gates of Heaven. St. Peter takes them on a tour of heaven. They pass by a mansion with an old American Flag outside. St. Peter says "That's where George Washington lives." Then they pass by a huge mansion that looked like a hut. St. Peter says "That's where Mother Teresa lives." Then they get close to a huge compound. St. Peter stops the tour and says "Be VERY, VERY quiet. That's the Church of Christ and they think they're the only ones here."

Yeah, Yeah, I know horrible joke...and that's kinda my point. I gre up in a Baptist church and heard almost as much negative things abut the Church of Christ as I did about Satan. It's simply crazy to fight amongst ourselves, when Jesus gave us very clear instructions of what we should be doing.

So, whether you are Jim or Dwight...put aside your differences. The occasional stapler-in-the-jello is fine, but remember all those poor souls that want their paper from Staples instead of Dunder-Mifflin.

Church Business Meetings

They're a necessary evil....emphasis on the evil. Church business meetings are both great and horrible for so many different reasons. I remember how I dreaded these when I was younger. Our Church decided that the Youth Group should be involved in the Business Meeting....even though we all knew there was zero chance of our opinions counting for anything.

Church business meetings are amazing things. There are many issues to consider, and everyone goes home, prays about the issues that are going to come up at the business meeting. God gives them all His answer, and when it comes time to vote...guess what....God told everyone something different. OOPS!

There are four groups of people in the church business meeting:
1. The "We've always done it this way and that's the way we'll always do it" group
This is the group that's probably 55 or older and have been at the church at least 20 years.
They remember that time that they had the guest preacher and he tried to use one of those
NIV Bibles. It was so sacrilegious...there wasn't a single thou or thee to be found it that book.

2. The "We've got to get more progressive" group.
This is the group of the 35 and under who want to sing praise and worship songs that are
projected up on the screen. In some churches, these are also known as "The Dreamers"

3. The "Lemmings"
This is the group that has the same opinion as whichever group is the loudest. Not the group
that makes the best case for point, mind you...the group that is the loudest. Because for some
reason we associate "Loud" with "Right."

4. The "Conscientious Objectors"
This is the group that takes no position at all because the whole idea of having an opinion
offends their conscience. They see the whole idea of the business meeting as beneath them.

Between these 4 groups, the Vocal minority always wins. No matter how asinine their point, they will always be louder, and the lemmings will always follow their lead, which will more than likely make for a larger group than that of the progressive group.

And for some reason there's always a visitor on Business meeting night. And there's always a big argument to show them the best side of the church. I know that business meetings are necessary, but we've got to realize that there is a civilized, Christian manner with which to have them.

Anti-Abortion Protesters

Lots of people hate the movie Juno. I personally liked it, and found many parts to be redeeming. This clip I would count among those parts. Juno goes in for an abortion, and has second thoughts about it after realizing that her baby has fingernails. She realizes that it's a person and not just random tissue. And besides, if she went through with the abotion, the movie would end right there. Bye Bye Oscar nods.

Abortion is ugly, there's no way around it. I don't believe that abortion is the answer, so please don't misinterpret this post. No, the problem is with the Anti-Abortion protesters. Many of them (not all) stand outside Abortion Clinics and hold signs showing aborted children and shouting profanities at the people who walk in. What if we approached them the way Jesus would. What if we had compassion for them. I guarantee you that the vast majority of the women and girls who go into that clinic have not done so lightly. It's most assuredly the most difficult decision they've ever made. Many days of crying and feeling they have nowhere to turn and that to avoid being social outcasts, they will suffer in silence and go through with something they probably don't feel wholeheartedly about.

There lies where Christians can make a difference. We need to love these people. Instead of hurling insults, or carrying signs, we should meet them where they are. Start support groups for unwed mothers. Make education a priority. Let them know about the long waiting lists for adoptions. There are people who will want these children if they're given a chance. We should raise money for diapers and formula and child-care for girls who want to finish their education.

If these girls feel that having a child is not the end of their world, then we can reduce the number of abortions. WE HAVE THE RESOURCES TO DO IT. It's the same time and money spent on protesting and lobbying Washington. Waiting on the Supreme Court to overturn Roe V. Wade is pointless. Lots of time and energy are wasted when we could be out loving and helping these people. Barack Obama is Pro-Choice and John McCain is well..John McCain is something. Let's stop wasting time with politics. Let's Love people instead of bringing them down.

And remember....all babies want to get borned.

Sunday Christians

I used to have this girl I worked with at a clothing store named "Amber" (Names have been changed to protect the not-so-innocent). She was recommended for the job by another lady I worked with because they went to church together. She knew her from their times together on Sunday and assumed she was a great girl and wanted to help her out.

From all accounts, Amber was a great girl on Sundays. It was all the time in between that was a problem. Here is a list of things that Amber graced us with during her "time between Sundays"
1. She grabbed a male co-worker's sensitive areas and threatened to rip them off
2. She re-stocked her closet with a generous five-finger discount.
3. She said her grandmother died to get out of coming to work....twice....much to the surprise of both living grandmothers.
4. She called in to work and said she had been in a really bad car accident. Turns out the "accident" was another girl who had beaten Amber up.
5. She threatened to "cut" several people...fortunately none of whom worked with her.
6. She had several pictures on her phone of naked men whom she had been with and proudly showed other people.
7. She proudly talked of church on Sunday and "what Pastor said."

It's that last part that really gets me. Why say one thing and then live another so blatantly. Sure, all people sin, even Christians. But it's the drive to at least attempt to be like Christ that sets a Christian apart. When there's no attempt to be Christ-Like, why even bother?

The kicker is that one day Amber got into a heated debate with "Jane," who worked with us about the very existence of God. Jane is a Wiccan. Amber ended the converation by telling Jane she was going straight to Hell where she would burn forever. This made Jane laugh almost hysterically. Even though she wasn't a Christian, she knew enough to decipher that Amber professed Christ, she was not even close to living the life she should be. It was a whole pot/kettle thing and Amber had not convinced Jane to do anything about her choice to follow Christ.

That's the thing we all need to remember Monday-Saturday. We are a representative of Christ, and we should act like it.

Westboro Baptist Church

You've probably heard of this church, and it's Pastor, Fred Phelps. They've been at it longer than I've been alive. Actually, they've been at it longer than my parents have been alive. If you haven't heard of them, allow me to introduce you.

Westboro is probably best known as the God Hates Fags church. They picket at soldiers' funerals, VFW posts, other churches, and just about anything else that makes absolutely no sense. Why do they do it? Well...didn't you read? God Hates Fags. If you visit their website, you will see that God apparently hates lots of things, like Mexico, Ireland, America, Sweden, and Canada. I was unaware of all the hatred that God had, but apparently it's hidden in Leviticus and 2nd Chronicles.

First let me be the first to say that I hate the F-word. What can be accomplished by hating people or telling them that God hates them? Are they trying to gain converts here? Let me see if this works... "John, I hear that you like people with the *ahem* same equipment. That means you are damned to hell for all eternity and no one likes you. But if you want to start liking people with *ahem* different equipment, well, then God will love you for all eternity and will give you extra rooms in your super-fly pad in Heaven."

What John probably hears is "I hate you John, I despise you with every fiber of my being. I am sickened by the fact that I have to talk to you on a daily basis. But if you would just change your ways, well, then you could be a great big Horse's rear end like me."

That's probably not very attractive to John. And it wasn't the way Jesus carried out His life, either. Fred Phelps should be ashamed of himself, but I'm sure he's quite proud. Jesus went to the people He came to save. He met them where they were. He didn't stand across the Sea of Galilee and shout Obscenities at them. He loved them. Jesus, God-in-the-flesh, loved the sinners. That's how we should act as well.

In the first place, we're not supposed to be pointing out the specks in others' eyes until we pull the planks from our own. But we shuld never approach anyone with hate, only love.

Remind me of that if you ever see me out with my "God Hates Fred Phelps" sign.

Kanye West (OK, OK, not JUST him)

I long ago left my "I love Rap" phase and couldn't tell you much about it. My wife, however listens to some, and I get exposed to it more than I would like. For example, I can't get "Apple Bottom jeans and the boots with the fur..." out of my head. I know too many uses for the word "shawty." Through my reluctant exposure to Rap music, I hear things from time to time that have to do with what Barack Obama or John McCain would call "Hip-Hop" Culture. For instance, when the MTV Video Music Awards, Grammys, or any other awards show comes on, The first thing the Artist does is climb up to that podium, and say "I just have to give thanks to God." And at that moment, the Heavens open up, a dove comes down and lands on their shoulders and a voice rings out, "This is my playa and I ain't ashamed of his game." OK...maybe that doesn't happen, but isn't it the hope that it will that drives these people?

Why do they do it? The albums are laced with promiscuity, degredation of women, language that would make pirates blush, and a token song about God. Kanye had "Jesus Walks" and then subsequently talked about his Porn Addiction in Rolling Stone. It's good that he realizes he has an addiction...but the point is not to give into it, but to try and overcome it. Relying on God to help you through it is the only way to get through it, but we can't just give 50, 75, or 90% of our lives over to God. It's gotta be the whole thing, or it doesn't even matter.

After such a great post, I just want to say that I've got to give all the credit to the Man Upstairs.