Birthday Reflections

As I celebrate my 33rd birthday today, I find myself looking back in awe of all of the opportunities and experiences God has given to me.  I am amazed that this little kid from Pennsboro, WV would get to see and do so much! 

I have now lived in 5 different states and travelled to many more.  I have seen the great cities of New York and London, and the natural wonders of the Grand Canyon and the arches and deserts of Utah. I have seen the monuments of Washington, D.C. and the battlefields of Gettysburg and Antietam.  I have jumped out of an airplane and snorkeled in the ocean.  I have swam with dolphins and  ridden on a camel.  I have hiked in  both the Rocky and Appalachain Mountains and walked on the beaches of the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans.  I have seen the last standing Wonder of the World, the Great Pyramids of Egypt and sailed down the Nile River.  I have had opportunities to serve halfway around the world in Indonesia with ESL and five minutes from my front door with Habitat for Humanity.

I have experienced the deepest heartaches and the most exhilerating joys.  I have gone on a 7 day silent retreat and a 40 day fast, and celebrated with throngs in a stadium and feasted on the finest steak dinners.  I have mourned the loss of all four of my grandparents and an uncle, and celebrated the birth of two nephews and a niece.  I have lied awake in the longest lonely hours of the night, and watched my beautiful bride walk down the aisle to me. I now get to spend the rest of my life with the most beautiful, amazing woman in the world who is my very best friend.  Many great friends have passed through my life and thankfully some remain and will always share this journey with me. 

I have tried and failed at both surfing and dancing.  I have gone to school for financial planning and massage therapy but am not currently practicing either.  I have seen Lifehouse in concert 5 times.  I still have my Saturn.  I have been able to make a lot of people laugh, and hopefully made very few cry.  My family has always been there for me, and I love them very much.  I also love my new in-laws and look forward to getting to know them more.  My life is ridiculously blessed. I hope I have been able to share that blessing with others.

I will close with words oddly coming from Billy Corgan of the Smashing Pumpkins.  "All credit belongs to God, who thought this whole thing up."

The Poor You Will Always Have With You

I always feel frustrated when this verse gets abused as a condescension towards work to alleviate poverty and suffering. The point, I think, is mainly in the words that come next, "But you will not always have Me." Jesus' argument was not to say to stop working to alleviate poverty but to recognize the unique circumstances of what was happening at that moment.

Along with my new church's current sermon series which often deals with such matters, I have been binging this year on reading books calling Christians to wake up from the stupor of our culture and become aware of our call to serve those in desperate need. So far this has included "Rich Christians in an Age of Hunger", "Charity in Truth" and "Radical". Pope Benedict's work has been my favorite, but all have something valuable to share. I would also recommend some of my past reads including "The End of Poverty" and "Living High and Letting Die" which are secular reads from an economist and a philosopher, respectively.

I am finding several challenges in attempting to live out the calling these authors inspire me to do. One of these is that if I am not careful, I can drive myself crazy with guilt. As David Platt, the author of Radical points out, nearly everything we purchase as Americans is relatively speaking a luxury when considered on a global scale. For instance, I could have eaten much more simply yesterday (and presumably shared the savings with those in need), but instead for the luxury of convenience I ate out for both lunch and dinner, all the while knowing the problems of hunger that largely come from our horribly discriminating global distribution network of food. Is what I ate wrong?

Another hazard is that being passionate about this kind of thing can lead a person to become very judgmental of others. Displays of overt luxury from others start to become odious and one can easily begin to assume that these individuals are greedy and selfish when that might not be the case at all. Jesus' stern rebuke to Peter comes to mind here; "What is that to you? You must follow me."

Perhaps the biggest struggle is knowing at what point "balance" becomes "lukewarm." Material possessions are not inherently evil and we are free to enjoy them as we give thanks to God for them. But they also should also not become cumbersome obstacles towards sharing generously and loving others. Where that line is for each person and in each circumstance is ultimately between them and God, as we seek to obey the Word and be led by the Spirit. Father, help me to choose wisely and lovingly.

Please Reduce My Benefits and Raise My Taxes

No, seriously. I am sick and tired of Americans who loudly complain about how big the federal government's budget deficit is and will be, and yet when pressed about which programs they want to be cut, they don't want to cut any of them. Further, when asked if they would accept a tax increase to reduce the deficit, they again say no. Guess what? It doesn't work that way.

I think it would be worth a tax increase to reduce or eliminate the budget deficit, and improve areas like infrastructure, education and energy independence. Ideally, this would come in the form of eliminating deductions and exemptions and lowering overall rates to move towards a simpler, flatter system while still increasing total tax revenues. Also, unlike 60% of Americans, I do not want the government to cut the less than 1% of the budget that goes to foreign aid. I would actually like to increase it to 1%. If you think you have it bad in this economy, try being among the billions of people who survive on less than $2 a day.

I would also like my social security age to be raised. Look, no one in my generation thinks Social Security is going to be around when we retire anyway, so go ahead and cut it so the numbers improve. Life expectancy has gone up since Social Security was created so the age in which benefits are received should also go up. If everyone on the right who claims to be against "big government" and for "individual responsibility" backs it up by supporting this, it can pass. No one is saying you can't still retire at a younger age, just that the government is not going to help you do it. Fair enough.

Joe Biden: Why I Could Never Make It The Other Side of the Aisle

I wish I could stop being surprised by the inane things this guy says. Very immature for a supposed elder statesman of a party. Delaware is just ripe with political gaffe machines.

Even in a generally positive article about the Tea Party

. . . the Economist had this to say, "Few tea-party candidates are as hapless as the overexposed Christine O’Donnell, the former campaigner against masturbation and present ignoramus whose selection as the Republican candidate in Delaware will probably cost the party a precious extra seat in the Senate."

Why All The Fuss?

Christine O'Donnell, the surprise Tea Party-backed Senate candidate in Delaware, threatened to sue a local radio station if it did not turn over a videotape of an interview it conducted with her.

O'Donnell's campaign later apologized to the station for the threat, WDEL reports.

O'Donnell appeared on WDEL's "The Rick Jensen Show" Tuesday, during which she fielded several questions from listeners and the host. Upon the conclusion of the interview, an O'Donnell aide demanded video of the interview be turned over to the campaign and destroyed because such videotaping had not been previously approved.

It was then, according to WDEL, that O'Donnell herself threatened to sue the station if it did not comply with the request. WDEL also says it later fielded a phone call from O'Donnell campaign manager Matt Moran, who threatened to "crush" the station with a lawsuit if it did not agree to turn over the tape.

WDEL's attorney was soon involved and told the campaign there was nothing illegal about videotaping the interview for later use on the station's website and added that such action is protected by the First Amendment.

Upon further investigation, WDEL says O'Donnell's attorney called the station to apologize for the uproar and threat of litigation.

I am looking forward to Tuesday.

The Gift That Keeps Giving to Democrats?

I wonder if Dr. Madonna has done research to support his theory or if it's just intuition.

And what's up with the typos in the story?

More Lies From the Moralist

Yet another "False" or "Mostly False" statement from Christine O'Donnel according to the News Journal.

Yeah, It's Kind of Like That

CNN: News for people with short attention spans

I may have commented on this in the past, but it struck me again today. Why do I bother reading articles on CNN? They posted an article today on an Iranian naval destroyer that totals only 134 words yet has "Story Highlights" with three bullet points on the left. Why? In case you can't make it through the whole article in less than two minutes?

$866 billion

I noticed an article this morning on CNN that Americans reduced their revolving credit for a record 11 straight months. This time it was at a clip of 8.5 billion. Not bad. At that rate, we'll zip through the $866 billion we've built up in a mere 8.5 years. Of course, we owe another $1.59 trillion in non-revolving debt, but at least this is a good baby step.

Will the trend continue once the economy improves or will people get sucked back in to the credit card debt treadmill?

Thought for the Day

. . . conjectures as to why God does what He does are probably of no more value than my dog's ideas of what I am up to when I sit and read. But though we can only guess the reasons, we can at least observe the consistency of His ways. - C.S. Lewis, Reflections on the Psalms

Dig It

Well. This is going to take awhile.

Making progress.

Behold, one lone, brave Saturn emerges from the grasping clutch of ice and snow.

The Problem with Palin

An AP article on Sarah Palin's convention speech to the Tea Party noted that her message was "was short on ideas but big on enthusiasm." Doesn't that describe Palin as a whole? In the 3 years she's been in the public spotlight, I have yet to hear her offer any concrete proposals on anything. "Lower taxes"? Seriously? We're running trillion dollar deficits with no end in sight and you want to lower taxes? I seem to recall that the government was running surpluses and paying down the national debt before Bush's tax cuts. How's that Laffer curve working out? Yes, I know, the big issue is spending, but as Obama's freeze on discretionary spending outside defense, Social Security and Medicare showed, there's only so much that can be accomplished with spending cuts if these larger entitlement programs are not specifically addressed and no politician including Palin currently has the machismo to actually do so.

A friend and fellow blogger offered that Palin should be considered for the head of the RNC rather than running for office again. I would rather her be the head of the Tea Party and be out of the ranks and mention of my party altogether.

Sensationalist Meteorolgy

So apparently we're in for yet another winter weekend snowstorm. I flipped over to accuweather, and the map of the US has this area highlighted as "Paralyzing." Really? Paralyzing? The areas around the center are merely "Disruptive." I think an accumulation amount would have been more helpful and informative. When did we start showing dopplar radar with descriptors like paralyzing and disruptive? If it's 70 and sunny, is it "Charming", "Winsome" or "Relaxing"?

The sad thing is that it's still better than the Weather Channel's website where half the page is taken up by advertisements for assorted medications.

Obama Bashing

I am so tired of all the Obama bashing. It's strangely reminiscent of all the Bush bashing that I also grew tired of. Last night I heard someone comment that "all we'll have left is a few sets of clothes" by the time Obama leaves office. Really? I'm as frustrated as everyone else about the horrible budget deficits that we are running, but to add a little perspective, By tenure, the largest increases in gross debt relative to GDP, to date, occurred under George H.W. Bush (+11.2%), George W. Bush (+11.9%), and Ronald Reagan (+18.5%).

Reflections

I just picked Reflections on the Psalms by C.S. Lewis off the shelf. I am not the biggest fan of the Psalms so I was reticent to delve into it, but I am finding Lewis to once again be a very helpful guide. I was struck this morning by his insights. Regarding "The Cursings", Lewis pens,

It seems that there is a general rule in the moral universe which may be formulated "The higher, the more in danger . . . It is great men, potential saints, not little men, who become merciless fanatics. Those who are readiest to die for a cause may easily become those who are readiest to kill for it . .. The higher the stakes, the greater the temptation to lose your temper over the game.

If I am never tempted, and cannot imagine myself being tempted, to gamble, that does not mean that I am better than those who are. The timidity and pessimism which exempt me from that temptation themselves tempt me to draw back from those risks and adventures which every man ought to take.

For the Supernatural, entering a human soul, opens to it new possibilities both of good and evil. From that point the road branches: one way to sanctity, love, humility and the other to spiritual pride, self-righteousness, persecuting zeal. And no way back to the humdrum virtues and vices of the unawakened soul. If the Divine call does not make us better, it will make us very much worse. Of all bad men religious bad men are the worst. Of all created beings the wickedest is one who originally stood in the immediate presence of God. There seems no way out of this. It gives a new application to Our Lord's words about "counting the cost."

Partisan Radio

The other night I was driving home from class and flipped through stations on AM radio. For a few minutes I listened to a conservative show (I think it was Shawn Hannity), and later I listened to a liberal show. It was really quite comical. Both sides were fully convinced that their opponents were equal parts ignorant and evil. At one point a more sensible and moderate caller got on and said something along the lines of , "I don't think [insert party name here] took this position just because they are evil and hate America. They probably have a reason for their position." At which point the commentator started backpedaling and claiming nonpartisanship.

Here are a few points: First, don't get all of your news from just once source, whether it be Fox News, NPR, CNN or the Wall Street Journal. Second, understand that partisan radio shows are not news. They are entertainment and/or propaganda machines. Third, try to allow room for the idea that your political opponents are not evil incarnate who hate everyone and everything while you and your political affiliates are God's gift to the world and will set everything right. Fourth, read the Economist to get an idea of what depth of research and commentary actually looks like from a news source.

Thank you and God bless America.

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