It was late 2006 when our daughter Rachael and her husband Robbie set out on a journey that will ultimately lead them from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina to China. The trip originally was supposed to take about fifteen months. The journey I refer to is actually the adoption process for thier daughter and my grandaughter, Emma. Now, three years later, we are still waiting and it looks like it could be as much as two more years before their journey is complete.
That is a very long pregnancy. Yes, I said pregnancy because that is very much what it feels like. Rachael is carrying our grandaughter in her heart just as surely as other mothers carry their babies in their womb. It wasn't supposed to take this long. Emma should have been with us long before now.
This is not a situation unique to our family only. The adoption process for China has slowed to a crawl for every agency and waiting family in the China program. The reasons, some understandable and some not, really don't matter. All we can do is wait.
Since politics does play a role in it, perhaps President Obama could help. If only he was as committed to adoption as he is to abortion. On the 36th Anniversay of Roe v. Wade he said "we are reminded that this decision not only protects women's health and reproductive freedom, but stands for a broader principle; that government should not intrude on our most private family matters". What about forcing people to take out health insurance or pay a stiff fine. Isn't that an intrusion in private family matters?
Abortion is wrong and unnecessary on several levels, one of the most obvious being that there are families who would love to open their hearts and homes to these inconvenient children. Childless couples who are in a constant state of grief over the child they've never had would give anything and everything to have and love these unwanted babies.
Freedom Mr. President? What about freedom for the pre-born. Please look deep into your soul and realize they need protecting most of all. Intrusion Mr. President? Isn't being literally torn from the sanctuary of your mothers womb the untimate intrusion!
Who will defend the world's unwanted and defenseless children (born and pre-born). Who will help and support the thousands of families and childless couples who would gladly give a loving home to every one of them.
November is National Adoption Awarness Month. Contact the President, your Senator and House Member. Find out what they are doing in this effort and ask them to do more!
Thursday, November 05, 2009
Wednesday, November 04, 2009
Animals in Heaven?
A member of our family passed away on Tuesday afternoon, November 3rd. Winnie came to live with us about thirteen years ago when she was little more than a kitten. It was supposed to be a temporary arrangement. Just until our daughter could find an apartment that allowed pets. But she and my wife quickly bonded and Judy refused to give her up.
Next to me, she was my wife's best friend. Well, that is probably wishful thinking on my part. The truth is I was most likely number two and I think Winnie knew it.
She was just as much a part of our family as any human member. I know that is hard for some people to understand unless you are empty nesters like my wife and I. Winnie helped fill the void left when all the kids moved out of the house and two states away. She joined our family before the grandchildren were born and they have never been in our house without Winnie there.
It is amazing how you can get so attached to an animal.....or is it really. After all, they give you countless hours of companionship, unconditional love and absolute loyalty and all they ask in return is water in their bowl, a little food in their pan and an occasional well placed scratch behind the ear.
We buried Winnie in the back yard, under the steps leading up to the tree house, where the Little Girls have spent so much time playing. She had a good time out there earlier on that last day of her life, swatting at butterflies and chasing a young curious squirrel until she was exhausted. I think she would be pleased.
Children often ask if there will be animals in heaven, especially dogs and cats. I don't know, but I can't imagine it any other way.
Next to me, she was my wife's best friend. Well, that is probably wishful thinking on my part. The truth is I was most likely number two and I think Winnie knew it.
She was just as much a part of our family as any human member. I know that is hard for some people to understand unless you are empty nesters like my wife and I. Winnie helped fill the void left when all the kids moved out of the house and two states away. She joined our family before the grandchildren were born and they have never been in our house without Winnie there.
It is amazing how you can get so attached to an animal.....or is it really. After all, they give you countless hours of companionship, unconditional love and absolute loyalty and all they ask in return is water in their bowl, a little food in their pan and an occasional well placed scratch behind the ear.
We buried Winnie in the back yard, under the steps leading up to the tree house, where the Little Girls have spent so much time playing. She had a good time out there earlier on that last day of her life, swatting at butterflies and chasing a young curious squirrel until she was exhausted. I think she would be pleased.
Children often ask if there will be animals in heaven, especially dogs and cats. I don't know, but I can't imagine it any other way.
Tuesday, September 22, 2009
SBC and GCR - The Road Is Paved
With the retirement announcement of Dr. Morris Chapman, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Southern Baptist Executive Committee, the door is open and the road is paved for a hand picked successor to lead the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) in a radically new direction. One of the first things to look for is a change in the way Cooperative Programs gifts are counted. The current method has been a sore spot for several years among many SBC mega churches and their pastors.
Their displeasure is because designated funds are not counted as Cooperative Program funds and many of these large churches give most of their financial support as designated. Only their undesignated giving is recorded as Cooperative Program giving which is an extremely small percentage of their annual income. This has been cause for a great deal of criticism and embarrassment for these high profile churches and their celebrity pastors. Many of the churches represented on the Great Commission Resurgence (GCR)Task Force recently appointed by Southern Baptist Convention President, Dr. Johnny Hunt, fall into this category. Hunt is pastor of the super mega First Baptist Church of Woodstock, Georgia. FBC Woodstock now gives somewhere in the area of 3% of its undesignated receipts to the CP. Prior to his election as SBC President, Hunt's church gave only about half that amount. Far below the long standing tradition of 10% which all churches were challenged to give and which was expected from churches who had members and pastors in positions of SBC leadership.
Chapman has been the recipient of much resentment and opposition for opposing any change in the current and long standing method of counting Cooperative Program funds. His outspoken position on the matter is credited, by many, as the reason Pastor Ronny Floyd, of First Baptist Church Springdale, Arkansas was defeated in his bid for the SBC Presidency. Some have never forgiven him for that and the obvious (at least to many folks) feud that began as a result has now come to a boiling point. It is interesting to note that Ronny Floyd is the Chairman of the Great Commission Resurgence Task Force. VERY INTERESTING.
Chapman is 68 years old and his retirement date isn't until September 2010 however, some are likely to interpret Chapman's retirement as surrendering under the assault from so many super influential mega church pastors. Some of those pastors will no doubt see it the same way and feel empowered by their victory. Many ordinary people, like myself, just feel bewildered and deeply concerned about the future of the denomination we love. For us the Great Commission is a passion, not a slogan. It is a calling, not an excuse.
I really believe the Southern Baptist Convention as I have known it all my life will never be the same. It is clear to me that we are headed in a new and different direction. The door is open and the road is paved and I don't believe anything can stop it. Maybe that is a good thing. Maybe it is time for a radical change. Maybe not. I hope and pray that in this zealous effort toward what we are told is to be a resurgence we don't, as the old saying goes, throw the baby out with the bath water.
In Chapman's retirement announcement he wrote, "I believe deeply that if the Cooperative Program is ever tossed aside to be replaced by a strong promotion of societal giving (designated funds) or if both undesignated and designated funds from our churches are counted as Cooperative Program gifts, we will have abandoned the greatest vehicle for supporting missions and theological education in the history of Christendom".
I hope Chapman's warning and prediction is wrong. Because the wheels are already in motion to accomplish the very thing he warns us of. The door is open and the road is paved.
Their displeasure is because designated funds are not counted as Cooperative Program funds and many of these large churches give most of their financial support as designated. Only their undesignated giving is recorded as Cooperative Program giving which is an extremely small percentage of their annual income. This has been cause for a great deal of criticism and embarrassment for these high profile churches and their celebrity pastors. Many of the churches represented on the Great Commission Resurgence (GCR)Task Force recently appointed by Southern Baptist Convention President, Dr. Johnny Hunt, fall into this category. Hunt is pastor of the super mega First Baptist Church of Woodstock, Georgia. FBC Woodstock now gives somewhere in the area of 3% of its undesignated receipts to the CP. Prior to his election as SBC President, Hunt's church gave only about half that amount. Far below the long standing tradition of 10% which all churches were challenged to give and which was expected from churches who had members and pastors in positions of SBC leadership.
Chapman has been the recipient of much resentment and opposition for opposing any change in the current and long standing method of counting Cooperative Program funds. His outspoken position on the matter is credited, by many, as the reason Pastor Ronny Floyd, of First Baptist Church Springdale, Arkansas was defeated in his bid for the SBC Presidency. Some have never forgiven him for that and the obvious (at least to many folks) feud that began as a result has now come to a boiling point. It is interesting to note that Ronny Floyd is the Chairman of the Great Commission Resurgence Task Force. VERY INTERESTING.
Chapman is 68 years old and his retirement date isn't until September 2010 however, some are likely to interpret Chapman's retirement as surrendering under the assault from so many super influential mega church pastors. Some of those pastors will no doubt see it the same way and feel empowered by their victory. Many ordinary people, like myself, just feel bewildered and deeply concerned about the future of the denomination we love. For us the Great Commission is a passion, not a slogan. It is a calling, not an excuse.
I really believe the Southern Baptist Convention as I have known it all my life will never be the same. It is clear to me that we are headed in a new and different direction. The door is open and the road is paved and I don't believe anything can stop it. Maybe that is a good thing. Maybe it is time for a radical change. Maybe not. I hope and pray that in this zealous effort toward what we are told is to be a resurgence we don't, as the old saying goes, throw the baby out with the bath water.
In Chapman's retirement announcement he wrote, "I believe deeply that if the Cooperative Program is ever tossed aside to be replaced by a strong promotion of societal giving (designated funds) or if both undesignated and designated funds from our churches are counted as Cooperative Program gifts, we will have abandoned the greatest vehicle for supporting missions and theological education in the history of Christendom".
I hope Chapman's warning and prediction is wrong. Because the wheels are already in motion to accomplish the very thing he warns us of. The door is open and the road is paved.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Mark Driscoll and the SBC
Foul mouthed, shock-jock Pastor Mark Driscoll has launched a new leadership school for pastors. The Resurgence Training Center will train pastors for the 100 new campuses planned for Driscoll's Mars Hill Church in Seattle, Washington and 1,000 churches which Driscoll plans to start through his Acts 29 Network. Three of the eight faculty members are Southern Baptist Convention employees. Ed Stetzer is director of LifeWay Research, a partnership of LifeWay Christian Resources, the North American Mission Board and the International Mission Board. Bruce Ware and Gregg Allison are both professors at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.
The controversial Driscoll has come under fire for his frequent use of profanity, explicit sexual content and questionable biblical interpretation in his sermons. Especially questionable and controversial is his vulgar interpretation of the Song of Solomon. He has been banned from any future programming by Dick Bott of Bott Network, one of Almerica's largest Christian radio networks with over 40 million listeners. The well known and highly respected author and pastor of Grace Community Church in California, John MacArthur published a scathing four-part critique entitled "The Rape of Solomon's Song" criticizing Driscoll's mishandling of Song of Solomon. In 2008, the Missouri Baptist Convention Executive Board voted overwhelming to no longer use convention missions dollars to fund any church plant affiliated with Acts 29.
While others seem to be backing off and rejecting Driscoll, many leading Southern Baptists are embracing him. Roger Moran, of the Missouri Baptist Layman's Association, a critic of Driscoll, says, "Mark Driscoll is an icon among many young SBC want-to-be pastors and church planters. Moreover, Driscoll and his fellow Acts 29 church planters are portrayed as the elite 'special forces' of American Christianity." He has been featured at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and is praised and defended by LifeWay's Ed Stetzer. Stetzer, a former Acts 29 board member, calls Driscoll one the country's most influential pastors. His podcasts are downloaded more than one million times each year. Others, especially his Calvinist cohorts, while not as entusiastic are complementary of his church planting efforts.
I can't help but wonder if it is just a coincidence that the word resurgence is used in the name of Driscoll's new leadership school and also in the new task force recently appointed by Southern Baptist Convention President Johnny Hunt. Hunt has charged the task force to evaluate and critique every SBC entity and institution, at the national, state and local association level to make sure none are bloated or over bureaucratic and to bring recommendations to address any that don't come up to their standard. The task force is called the Great Commision Resurgence Task Force. Very interesting!
The controversial Driscoll has come under fire for his frequent use of profanity, explicit sexual content and questionable biblical interpretation in his sermons. Especially questionable and controversial is his vulgar interpretation of the Song of Solomon. He has been banned from any future programming by Dick Bott of Bott Network, one of Almerica's largest Christian radio networks with over 40 million listeners. The well known and highly respected author and pastor of Grace Community Church in California, John MacArthur published a scathing four-part critique entitled "The Rape of Solomon's Song" criticizing Driscoll's mishandling of Song of Solomon. In 2008, the Missouri Baptist Convention Executive Board voted overwhelming to no longer use convention missions dollars to fund any church plant affiliated with Acts 29.
While others seem to be backing off and rejecting Driscoll, many leading Southern Baptists are embracing him. Roger Moran, of the Missouri Baptist Layman's Association, a critic of Driscoll, says, "Mark Driscoll is an icon among many young SBC want-to-be pastors and church planters. Moreover, Driscoll and his fellow Acts 29 church planters are portrayed as the elite 'special forces' of American Christianity." He has been featured at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary and is praised and defended by LifeWay's Ed Stetzer. Stetzer, a former Acts 29 board member, calls Driscoll one the country's most influential pastors. His podcasts are downloaded more than one million times each year. Others, especially his Calvinist cohorts, while not as entusiastic are complementary of his church planting efforts.
I can't help but wonder if it is just a coincidence that the word resurgence is used in the name of Driscoll's new leadership school and also in the new task force recently appointed by Southern Baptist Convention President Johnny Hunt. Hunt has charged the task force to evaluate and critique every SBC entity and institution, at the national, state and local association level to make sure none are bloated or over bureaucratic and to bring recommendations to address any that don't come up to their standard. The task force is called the Great Commision Resurgence Task Force. Very interesting!
Wednesday, March 04, 2009
Big Bosses, Big Lies and a Bill of Goods
Alabama gambling boss Milton McGregor and Alabama Education Association boss Paul Hubbert are once again attempting to sell the people of Alabama a "Big Lie"and a "Bill of Goods" under the pretense of increasing revenue for educatioin. Along with the gambling crowd and other powerful special interest groups, they are pushing legislation (House Bill 363 and Senate Bill 135) that would legalize slot machines and expand gambling across the state. Other expected legislation will include a Constitutional Amendment to legalize slot machines. An amendment would likely bring in less than one percent of the money we spend on education. In fact, SB135 and HB363 exempts some gambling operations from any taxes. If you really think gambling will help education, just look at Mississippi. Enough said!
This bill is disguised as a so-called "local bill" to authorize "bingo". In reality, the bill would unravel the current state laws that control gambling and allow slots machines and other forms of gambling to flood the entire state and Boss McGregor and Boss Hubbert know it! This is not about "local authority" or "education". It is about more crime, corruption, and misery in our state and our local communities. The "bosses" and their crowd will get rich while the rest of us suffer the consequence and pay the price for the increase in law enforcement and welfare programs to those who have everything they own devoured by the "Gambling Monster".
Don't sit back and allow the "Bosses" to tighten the strangle-hold they already have on state government in Alabama. Contact your Senator and House Member today
NOTE: Governor Riley and Senator Erwin are leading the fight against gambling in our state. Encourage your Senator and House Member to do the same.
This bill is disguised as a so-called "local bill" to authorize "bingo". In reality, the bill would unravel the current state laws that control gambling and allow slots machines and other forms of gambling to flood the entire state and Boss McGregor and Boss Hubbert know it! This is not about "local authority" or "education". It is about more crime, corruption, and misery in our state and our local communities. The "bosses" and their crowd will get rich while the rest of us suffer the consequence and pay the price for the increase in law enforcement and welfare programs to those who have everything they own devoured by the "Gambling Monster".
Don't sit back and allow the "Bosses" to tighten the strangle-hold they already have on state government in Alabama. Contact your Senator and House Member today
NOTE: Governor Riley and Senator Erwin are leading the fight against gambling in our state. Encourage your Senator and House Member to do the same.
Tuesday, January 06, 2009
Bizarre Times
The Southern Baptist Convention has set aside January 18, 2009 as Sanctity of Human Life Sunday. Southern Baptist churches across the nation will recognize this day in a variety of ways. However, simply setting aside one day a year is not nearly enough. We should use every peaceful means possible to stop this most horrible act of violence against the most innocent and helpless among us. If not, then we (and that includes all Christians) have blood on our hands as surely as those who work in and support the abortion industry. The most powerful weapon we have in the fight for life is our vote. Yet most professing Christians vote their wallet rather than biblical principles. Our 401K is more important to us than the life of these defenseless children.
Minority groups in our nation want more legal rights. The unborn want only one right. Gay couples want the right to same sex marriage. The unborn only want the right to live!
These are bizarre times when those who march in the parade to save the whale are also saying kill the baby. Nazi Germany's mass murder of 6,000,000 Jews under Hitler pales in comparison to the more than 45 million babies aborted since 1973 in the United States. Truly, we have lost a generation through mass murder, infanticide or more correctly, convenience killing of the unborn.
How can we answer the call on our nation to fight terrorism if we ignore the greatest act of terrorism in all of history, 3,846 abortions daily. The most dangerous place in America is in the womb. And the Church knows it!
Minority groups in our nation want more legal rights. The unborn want only one right. Gay couples want the right to same sex marriage. The unborn only want the right to live!
These are bizarre times when those who march in the parade to save the whale are also saying kill the baby. Nazi Germany's mass murder of 6,000,000 Jews under Hitler pales in comparison to the more than 45 million babies aborted since 1973 in the United States. Truly, we have lost a generation through mass murder, infanticide or more correctly, convenience killing of the unborn.
How can we answer the call on our nation to fight terrorism if we ignore the greatest act of terrorism in all of history, 3,846 abortions daily. The most dangerous place in America is in the womb. And the Church knows it!
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Elections
"Elections belong to the people. It is their decision. If they decide to turn their backs on the fire and burn their behinds, then they will just have to sit on their blisters".
Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln
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