Seeing and Remembering

So, I currently have a fair bit of free time due to Fall break (and having finished all of my work I'd planned to do) so I thought I'd rehash something from an earlier post and combine it with something new.

So, previously, in my post "Got Revolution?", I ended with a thought saying how we're in a war for lost souls, for captives and hostages and how we need to set them free. Looking back at this statement, two questions come to mind, "Who are these lost souls?" and "How do we set them free?"

As for the first question, Christ said, "Open your eyes and look to the fields, for they are ready for harvest" (Jn 4:35). These lost souls about which I write are all around us. See that person in the next cubicle over at work? That lady walking her two-year-old child through the park? That lonely old man sitting on the bench? You know what the crazy thing is? Most of these people, these lost souls, aren't who usually pop into our heads when we think of people needing salvation. We need to train our hearts to see them, to remember them.

So often we pass these invisible people by, We look past them and forget them a handful of seconds later. need I remind you of Christ's example in John 4? Christ purposefully spoke to a woman while sitting by the well, a woman whom many Jews would probably have ignored and forgotten moments afterwards.

This brings me to the second question. how do we answer it? Simple - we start by seeing and remembering. You see, Jesus intentionally chose not to ignore the woman, but to see her, to speak with her. Likewise, we need to see people differently. People have worth; they deserve to be seen, not just glimpsed. They deserve to be remembered, not forgotten.

"Okay, that's all well and good for a start, but what next?"

I'm glad you asked. You have now seen this "invisible" person. Pray for him/her. You'd be surprised, but it's hard to forget someone for whom you've seriously prayed. even better, if you have the chance, go talk to the person. Get his name, learn where she's from.

People don't just go up to random strangers and say "Hi, you don't know me. Wanna talk?"

No, no they don't, but even a simple "hello, how are you?" or offering to help with something will catch their attention. You see, people today so rarely go out of their way to engage with someone that when someone does, it's surprising. It prompts "Why?"

And that's the golden question.

So,
See the Invisible,
Remember the Forgotten

Up the River!

So, those of you who follow me on twitter or have friended me on Facebook know that I've been accepted onto a missions trip, from the 14th-26th of May, headed up into the Amazon. So, I figured, you all might want to know what I learned about the trip at our first meeting.

So, we'll fly in, here, to Manaus.

Then, we'll head to Itacoatiara.

Then, from Itacoatiara, upriver into a side river and a lake.
























Here's a closer look at the lake where we'll be doing the bulk of our work.
























In case any of you were wondering, on this trip we'll be partnering with doctors from Word of Life ministries and we'll be doing light medical and optical clinics in villages on the river. We'll be hitting a different village each day. We'll also be working with children during this whole time, playing games, doing Bible messages, the whole nine yards. If you were wondering about living quarters, we'll be sleeping and living on a riverboat.

Now comes the fun part. For me to head on this trip, I need to raise $3200. I have faith that God will provide for me to be able to go, but that money does have to come from somewhere. So, if any of you readers feel called to donate, please begin considering it. as soon as I know exactly how and to whom the money should be donated, I'll blog about that, too. If you don't feel called to donate, or are unable to, please pray for the trip, the team and the missionaries with whom we will be working.

God bless!

Missing Something?

So, today was my last day at work until next summer (for that specific workplace) and I was finishing up my shift when one of my co-workers comes up and says "Have fun back home."


Caught off-guard, I reply, saying "I'm not going home just yet; I'm heading up to Liberty."


At that, her whole demeanor changed and she replied, saying "Eww, really? Liberty?"


So, here we have a problem. Liberty is fairly well-known at my workplace as the '[extremely] conservative, Christian university up in Lynchburg'. Right up, we are doing something right: we are being forward with our message and becoming known as a school of Christians, but what I want to know is, what are we doing that is pushing people away from the message of God?


Now, I know, the Bible talks about Christ being a light in darkness which the darkness doesn't understand (John 1:5) and those walking in darkness lacking understanding, too (Psalm 82:5), but I think there is more to this aversion towards Liberty than simply not understanding. , There is, however , a quote (whose origin I have not been able to trace) which seems to shed some proverbial light on the situation: "We fear that which we do not understand, we hate what we understand even less, we condescend to what we understand least of all."


So, we have fear, hatred and condescension stemming from a lack of understanding, but I don't think those are the main reasons people look at Christians or, in this case, Liberty and are turned away. So, if it's not the message that puts people off, it must be the messenger, right? What, then, as Christians, are we doing wrong? Real or perceived, unaddressed character flaws. C. S. Lewis, in fact, speaks about this issue in The Screwtape Letters as a tool used by demons in dissuading their temptees away from the "Enemy" (God). They take a character flaw that a person has and plays on it to either greaten the flaw itself or enlarge others' perception of it. 


So, I'm sure you're wondering what these character flaws are, right? They could be anything. They could be large, like hypocrisy or greed, or small, like irritability or complaining. (Disclaimer: I am not perfect, nor am I casting judgment on others who show such flaws as I, too, fall victim to these same failings, amongst others.) 


Flaws and misunderstandings aside, another major turnoff that I can think of (and the last which I shall mention) is the manner in which we Christians spread the Gospel. Sometimes, frankly, we have the tact and grace of a 2 x 4. Bible-bashing, turn-or-burn speeches, tracts-for-tips, anti-[insert social evil] rallies or other similar witnessing tactics, whether hyperconfrontational, insulting, tactless or some combination thereof, simply make Christianity less than desirable. Our message is one of love, grace, mercy and forgiveness; each of which is given despite our unholiness, yet so often, only our unholiness and the punishment therefore is mentioned, with no real deliberation on the alternative.


So, why is it that a well-known, Christian university is viewed with disdain, dislike or even disgust? It could be one of the reasons listed above, one not listed or some combination thereof. Unfortunately, it's not just Liberty that's viewed in such a manner, but the whole of Christendom. How, then, can we change this perception? It's seemingly simple: you (yes you, reading this) need to return to both the letter and the spirit of the Gospel and devote yourselves, first, to it, to following it, to understanding it, to furthering it... It's not an easy task; it will take your whole life to fulfill and even then, there will be more yet unfulfilled. There will be pain and persecution, but the work is rewarding and the after-life retirement package is beyond comprehension.

So come, pick up the cross, fix your eyes back on Christ and spread the Gospel. 
Properly.

Death by Parchment

So, I'm sure many of you who regularly read my blog remember my previous post about the discrepancy between America's appearance of jobs and its reality. No, I'm not going to withdraw that one, but I am singing a slightly different tune. that song being "I now have a job, the world is great and I'm making money!"

Shallow, no?

Still, I am extremely thankful for that job (at which i have my first full shift today). In fact, now that I have a job, one of my goals for summer break is finished. Now to work on that driver's license (a paperwork mission which rivals that of Vogons, I swear).

Okay, pleasantries aside, it's time to burst a bubble (I mean, what's the point of a semi-sarcastic, external commentary blog if there's nothing to shred to pieces?). So, most of you have done some sort of paperwork in the past, right? Have you ever stopped and wondered if it was all necessary? Let's look at some examples: for my job, I had to read through and periodically sign and inch-high stack of papers containing tax information for two years, acknowledgement of company rules, two other tax-related forms and a release form signing over my firstborn son; another example, my learner's permit application, didn't require as much signage, but it did need two proofs of identity, one proof of legal presence in the USA, one proof of state residence and one proof of my social security number.

Is this all necessary? Well, sadly, in America it is. There are so many thick-minded people here who search earnestly for some small loophole that would allow them to be paid for not working, evade taxes, receive certain privileges which aren't ascribed to them, etc. Additionally, some people will sue over trivial matters, so, to prevent being sued, the companies have to print large contracts, of which 99% of the pages are fine print.

So, I must ask, America, are you so lazy and lacking in common sense that you, as a result, deal  death penalty-level amounts of paperwork?

American Nightmare

America. The goal towards which many strive. Oh sure, everyone despises America for it's foreign policies and double share of numbskulls, but offer a chance to go live and work there and most internationals would jump for the opportunity.

Why?

America is AMERICA. It's only the most well-known nation. Aside from Hollywood, America has a reputation of freedom, inalienable rights and jobs - and not just the crummy street-sweeping ones either.

Well, It looks like I'm going to have to disappoint you. America, while it has the appearance of all the above characteristics, is crucially lacking in the job department. Unless you have an impressive resume (CV) and plenty of years left to work, you're pretty much sunk.

(Now, I'm going to be honest here; My resume's a little wimpy. Unfortunately, a wimpy resume makes it hard to get jobs, leaving your resume almost eternally wimpy. That small fact aside, coupled with the inability to work more than one summer in a continuous capability, renders me unhireable, it appears.) 

So, despite applying to more than 20 jobs in the last few days (not to mention over 30 in the past few weeks), I have only one lead and that one appears fragile at best. Needless to say, I'm practically bashing my brains out.

So yes, America the great employer still thrives in all its glory; the American Dream still shines its light into the world, a beacon of hope for individuals everywhere. All you need is an Italian silk suit and a Lexus. Meanwhile, the only American dream I see is an American Nightmare.

Death. A reason to celebrate?

So, Osama/Usama bin Laden/Ladin is now dead. I want to say 2 things about this.

Firstly, I am glad for America having achieved, after almost 10 years, the initial goal of the Afghan front. I won't lie and say I wasn't excited, I was. But, at the same time, neither was I overly ecstatic.

Secondly, it's pretty evident that the death has caused quite a stir. If you simply look on Facebook,  you have the opportunity to see many people posting comments about it. Among these comments, though, there are three different perspectives: the many ecstatic, caps-locked OSAMA IS DEAD followed by exclamation points, interjections, patriotic comments or combinations thereof; the few simple staters-of-the-event, like myself; and the even smaller group criticizing the first group. Yes, you read correctly, there are those who criticize the patriotic, enthusiastic celebrations of the masses, but, if you think about their reasons, they might make some sense or even convict you as they did me.

These lunatics show some degree of scorn towards the mass celebrations of bin Laden's death. "Why?" you ask; for 7 reasons:

1. Osama was not a Christian and, as such, will find himself subject to eternal damnation in hell.
2. Osama was a human being with family and friends that will mourn his loss and miss him.
3. It has been almost 10 years since the destruction of the WTC on 9/11, rendering the death no longer defense of the nation, but retribution.
4. While Osama was key in organizing the 9/11 attacks, he was, at the point of his death, more a figurehead than an actual leader, making his death of no significant import for Al Qaeda.
5. He was not made to account for his crimes leaving justice unfulfilled.
6. Since when do we celebrate death?                       -AND-
7. If we mourn the deaths of those we love and we are told to love our enemies, where does that leave us?

So, really America? Really? You who, for the most part, call yourselves a Christian nation rejoice in the death of another human? What message does this send to those of other religions? Yes, enjoy the satisfaction of the end of one who caused mass amounts of suffering and death, but at the same time, keep in mind the reality of death: final. Osama is no more, justice has not and will never be brought into account because of this and he will never have the chance to repent and be forgiven, condemning his soul to eternal suffering. So, I ask you, is the death of bin Laden truly an occasion for celebration? 

Passed over

disappointment.
inevitable developments.
saddening in direction.
aspirations sinking into disbelief.
projecting apathy showing internal disarray.
pillories placed against scarred injured dermis.
obstacles positioned precisely at secretly injurious demarcations.
in outer purpose portraying acceptance serenity imperial detachment.
nested inside piratically purloined aspiration starts instigating destruction.
tenuous notes incorporate ones present position and spirits initial disposition.
making tenacity notably important option performing positive acceptance sans irritated            dismay.
eventual motion towards new inevitable options preferred performance at slowly initializing     debriefing.

not excepted methods to negotiate interior orientations promoting personal and spiritual          identity destruction.

towering nigh exists more total never inferior omnipotence possessing pure and                      supernatural incomprehensible deity.