Getting a handle on this thing called life

Have you ever been in a car that was out of control and you were the driver? That's a tough position to be in.

Now imagine that car was an aircraft carrier on wheels, going about 100 MPH. That's what trying to control an out of control life is like. But what options do we have when trying to gain control? Try to do it ourselves? Yeah, that's how you got in the mess in the first place. Ask someone else. That only works partially, because they can tell you how they got control of their life, but that doesn't necessarily apply to your life.

The only way I know of that is foolproof in gaining control is... spending time with the Creator. God says that the fruits of the Spirit are, among other things, self-control. Self-control, mind you.

If I could ask of any of you who read my blog to do one thing, it would be to pray that I would tap into the lifesource of the Universe, and cultivate the fruits which I and my family most need. Pray that we will make a determined effort to move closer to Him, so that we may bear the good fruit he wants us to.


Lord,
I need you, not to fix everything, but to fix me. Help me to seek you every day. Help me to cultivate the good fruits, and pare away the bad. Help me grow closer to you, to fill in where I am deficient. Be my God, and help me to love you more.

In Christ's Name,
Amen

Lean on me

Who would have thought that making a change in your life would be so hard? That the rewards aren't always immediately evident, and that discomfort could result from said changes, and that the "good things" would not be immediately apparent?

Ok, you know I'm being facetious. But no wonder most people don't want to change anything. Change is difficult. It's chaotic. It throws a wrench into all one's plans. But I'm fortunate in this life. God has granted me a partner to lean on, in the words of the classic song.

Of course, we ultimately lean on Christ, our Brother and Friend. But I cannot count the times I would have fallen to pieces were it not for my beautiful wife. Regardless of what she's going through, if I'm beginning to fall apart, she has a mysterious and wonderful way of helping me hold together. She is an ultimate blessing.

Lord
Thank you for the wife that you have given me. Thank you for her strength when mine falters. Thank you for her compassionship, and her love. I could not endure this life without her.

In Christ's Name,
Amen

Another lapse

I am so bad at this whole blogging thing right now. I have so much else on my mind that I forget to put anything here. Such is life.

I'll get to making more regular posts....eventually.

Anyway, the family and I have had a good past few days. I've spent alot of time with the kids. I'm trying to enjoy my family, instead of seeing them as an interference, which, when I get selfish, I do. (Sorry family. God's working on me in this.)

I don't feel that way conciously, obviously. And I don't say it to my family. But when I get snippy, I feel it afterward, and I'm so sorry.


Lord
Help me to see what I have as a gift, and not a hinderance. Help me to enjoy every good thing you have given me. May I always feel your blessings in all that happens.

In Your Son's Name,
Amen

Inspiration through tears

Honey, I love you for how God teaches me through you.

Who am I, thinking that I have anything to offer God? How egotistical for me to say, "God, use me." Me, who has been as as inconsistent as the rain, faithful to Him as rain is to the desert, trusting as a lone wolf. I have nothing to offer Him. No talents. Nothing special. Only me.

What does a man need to change? He needs to see that he is really nothing in himself. He needs to realize that, in the words of Socrates, that "true knowledge lies in knowing that you know nothing." He needs to cry out to God, saying, "I am yours, do what you will with me!" He must understand that God never uses the stength of a man to do His will, but his weakness. God never relys on the foolishness of man, but His own wisdom through our ignorance. God used Moses, who, by all accounts stuttered, to lead the Israelites out of Egypt. He used Peter, (who I really identify with) who always talked big, but seldom followed through. (I'll never deny you, Lord! Hey, Peter, is that the rooster crowing for the third time?) He used Paul, who was ugly (so would you after being stoned many times) and such an "exciting" speaker that someone fell asleep while he was preaching, and fell out of a window!

The great men of the Bible? They weren't great because of themselves. They were normal, pathetic men, made great by God.

That's what I want to be. I want to be God's tool, poorly crafted but used in the skillful and masterful hands of God to bring about His will. I am Yours, God. Here am I.

God,
I am Yours to do with as You will.
Make me.
Mold me.
Hold me in the fire of Your love until You see Your reflection in me.
Cast out all impurities.
I have nothing to offer, but myself.

In Christ's Name,
Amen

Still true, 25 years later

This is one of the first clippings I found in my dad's folio. It went back to the old debate back before the Brady Gun Bill was law.

Brady gun bill wouldn't have stopped John Hinckley

James Brady is misleading when he claims that a handgun waiting period would have stopped John Hinckley Jr. from shooting him and Ronald Reagan in 1981 (commentary, April 5). Had Hinckley not bought the handgun he used, he could have used one of several he already owned, or purchased it on the black marked.

Anyone who will break a law against murder is not going to be deterred by another law saying he can't legally own a gun. (Just for the record, such a law wouldn't have stopped Stockton schoolyard killer Patrick Purdy either -- he passed a background check and a 15-day waiting period in California.)

Brady then goes on to claim that his namesake legislation, known as the Brady bill, is endorsed by every major law enforcement group in America and by rank and file law enforcement officers as well. In truth, only the political leaders of some of these groups support him. The rank and file don't support more gun legislation.

He also knows better than to say that "concealed" handguns, especially assault pistols ...are increasingly the weapons of choice for crack peddlers and drug addicts." What he doesn't say is that drug dealers are more likely to kill with a baseball bat or a more conventional (and probably stolen) handgun like a Colt, a Ruger or a Smith and Wesson. Use of legally acquired "assault weapons" by drug criminals is and always has been a minor fraction of weapons used. Brady also doesn't say that many responsible gun owners own and use those listed "assault pistols" for legitimate target shooting and self-defense. Such would be my weapon of choice, if I could afford one, for protecting myself and my family.

Worst of all, Brady implies that the bill would stop criminals who, by their actions, and by the very definition of the word "criminal," wouldn't obey or be affected by such a law. At least five out of every six guns used in crimes are not legally acquired anyway. Usually they are stolen.

The Brady bill could, however, be used to create lists of legitimate gun owners, lists which have historically been preludes to confiscation of those guns. Recent events in Lithuania demonstrate the legitimacy of this concern. The Soviet authorities knew who had any capability to resist military repression with force.

In the United States, the Bill of Rights was designed as an insurance policy against government tyranny, foreign and domestic. Because gun owners are a key part of this insurance policy, they have every right to object to a waiting period or background check, and should do so.

Gun control has a long and black history of political repression and tyranny abroad. Promoted as a tool of crime fighting, gun control has been a spectacular failure. James Brady is using disinformation and misguided emotions to argue his case, because the facts don't give him the results he wants.


Joon Stignani, Lindstrom, Minn. Civil servant for the city of St. Paul.

-Taken from a Minneapolis Star-Tribune editorial, ca. 1990


I don't know about you, but I don't remember a single statistic purported recently that would back the claims that the Brady bill, or any "gun control" law has ever stopped violent crime, or even violent crime involving a gun of any sort. As my dad always said, "Criminals don't obey the law anyway." So here, over 15 years since the editorial, and 25 years since the actual shooting, and where are we? We are living in a country where it's more dangerous to live in the Nation's Capitol than it is to serve in the Armed Forces in Baghdad, Iraq, a city that is supposedly decimating our troops. We live in a country where the criminals are still getting guns, illegally, where law-abiding citizens have great difficulty buying them to protect themselves from said criminals.

It didn't make sense then. It doesn't make sense now. It will never make sense. Laws only work with those who choose to obey them. For the law-breakers and criminals, they can only add to a sentence if they are caught.

Bottom line, get rid of these stupid laws. The states with some of the loosest gun control laws (Texas and Florida) have some of the lowest violent crime rates in the nation. Go figure.

Agree with me or not, the facts are there. Find them for yourself. I did.

Tidbits of wisdom from a great man

My mom was going through things at her house, cleaning up and stuff. She found an old photo album that my dad had filled with newspaper clippings, editorials mostly, that he read over the years. I thought I'd take my next few posts, post a few of those clippings, and post my own comments on what was said.

I do this as a tribute to my father. You see, he passed away 4 years ago on March 2nd, due to Ideopathic Pulmonary Fibrosis (IPF). IPF is a rare, but fatal disease, of which there is no cure. It effects the lungs by slowly filling them up with fibrous material, depriving the victim of oxygen. It's a horrible disease. Not one a son likes to watch his father go through. More recently, it's become more known, with the likes of Rev. Bill Bright and Jerry Lewis both having the disease, but still, nothing can be done for the people with the disease, and most die within 5 years of diagnosis.

Needless to say, I really miss my dad. So, in the coming days...


Here's to you, Dad.

Looks like a fish. Moves like a fish. Steers like a cow.

That is a quote from The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by the late Douglas Adams. He uses the phrase to describe a particularly nice looking spaceship docked at the Restaurant at the End of the Universe. But it is also an apt description of a "planned out" life. It looks like everything will go smoothly, until you have to make a sudden change, and then it's nearly impossible to turn.

Fortunately, I have a couple of secret weapons for this. A good, loving family, and a God who knows the path better than I do. All I can really do is what I can, and leave the rest to God. I must be faithful and just accept that I can only do what I can.


God,
You are the Author and Perfecter of our faith. That's what it says in Your Word. I pray that you would write my faith stronger, and more consistent. Help me to have faith to know that even though I don't know what's going to happen, You do. Help me to make the sensible choices, and leave what I cannot change to you. You are a God of miracles, and I long to see one, now.

In Christ's Name,
Amen

In Loving Memory

It was a sad day today as our beloved pet, Mr. Whiskers, passed away. He was our first family pet, and lived to the ripe old age of 3 and a half years. He passed away in his sleep and will be fondly remembered.

He is survived by our "girls", Violet and Cookie, who have also given us much joy in their time with us.