Me, and You, and My Medication

This song is by Boys Like Girls. I think it’s a very real song. Obviously they aren’t a Christian band, but I feel like it’s pretty self-aware.  They are missing the answer, but the problem (void) is clear.

Found my way to the highway, I don’t wanna tell you the state I’m in
I’ve had too much to smoke, too much to drink, where have I been?
I feel like the stars are getting closer and the sky is closing in
And I don’t know where to begin

We’re all looking for something, to take away the pain

Me, and you, and my medication
(Making the best of it)
Love is just a chemical creation
(Will it be permanent?)
Synthetic sensation
Me, you, and my medication

The way back to the right track, maybe you can help me find the door
Is it too much to ask, too much too fast, too much to ignore?
It feels like your body’s getting closer but you seem so far away
Medicine make it ok

We’re all looking for someone, to take away the pain

Me, and you, and my medication
(Making the best of it)
Love is just a chemical creation
(Will it be permanent?)
Synthetic sensation
Me, you, and my medication

So can you feel it?
Do you feel it coming down?
You gotta get up
Can you get up off the ground?
Can you hear it?
Can you hear me screaming?
So can you feel it?
Do you feel it coming down?
You gotta get up
Can you get up off the ground?
I wanna hear it
Wanna hear you breathing

We’re all addicted to something, that takes away the pain

So, reflection time. What are you addicted to? Do you think you do a good job of being addicted to the Word/God in times like this? I think I can easily be addicted to socializing and also to getting wrapped up in shallow self improvement (like dropping $400 at the mall, dyeing my hair, reading Glamour, Cosmo, In Style, getting pedicures, and buying dozens of needless products at Target).  All that to say when I notice myself getting overly wrapped up in those 2 things, I know it’s a symptom of something more.

Worm Study May Offer Insight Into Male, Female Attraction

Yes, it’s a real news story

I find it bewildering that the guy who actually studies the worms knew enough about male/female attraction to draw any of these conclusions.

The Sin That So Easily Entangles

This is what sin is like: by Don Everts

Snake River Correctional Facility
Released.
After 26 years of unconscious living in a
cement square of shame and rape and boredom:
a haircut, a used suit, a lead on a small job.
(And the world in front of him.)
Released.
Released,
He lingers outside the cold fence with its sharp razor wire.
He gazes in at his old cement square of shame and rape and boredom.
Released. (And the world in front of him.)
But he comes back on weekends.
The guards shrug and slowly shake their heads.

I will lift up mine eyes unto the Hills

When sick of life and all the World-
How sick of all desire but Thee!-
I lift mine eyes up to the hills,
Eyes of my heart that see,
I see beyond all death and ills
Refreshing green for heart and eyes,
The golden streets and gateways pearled,
The trees of Paradise.

“There is a time for all things,” saith
The Word of Truth, Thyself the Word;
And many things Thou reasonest of:
A time of hope deferred,
But time is now for grief and fears;
A time for life, but now is death;
Oh, when shall be the time of love
When Thou shalt wipe our tears?

Then the new Heavens and Earth shall be
Where righteousness shall dwell indeed;
There shall be no more blight, nor need,
Nor barrier of the sea;
No sun and moon alternating,
For God shall be the Light thereof;
No sorrow more, no death, no sting,
For God Who reigns is Love.
-Christina Rossetti, c.1849

Would you rather 1.) Dance in the Rain? 2.) Ride on the Train? or 3.) Feel no Pain?

This is the question Mike just asked in his blog. I was thinking that probably everybody thinks I’m nuts for my answer. I personally can’t fathom having any other answer, if I’m really honest with myself. Feel no pain? Yes, please.

Burn Me at the Stake, I’m a Sinner Too

So, here’s the thing. I think homosexuality is a sin, and so is divorce, and I think they are similar types of sins. An argument I hear pretty often, for say, not letting homosexuals be bible study leaders at church, is that even though we all sin, a homosexual’s sin is habitual. They are unrepentant and not trying to stop the sin from occurring. Their sin in a chosen lifestyle. It’s not a one time thing, like taking the Lord’s name in vain or thinking a hateful thought.

 But isn’t divorce habitual? Isn’t divorce a lifestyle? Sure, maybe the action is only taken once, but it’s lived out as a lifestyle. Or, at least, re-marrying after divorce would be considered a ‘lifestyle sin’ in the same context as homosexuality. Now, I’m sorry (kind of). I’m sure I’m stepping on a lot of toes here. Here’s my reference in case anyone wonders.

Matthew 19:9 “I tell you that anyone who divorces his wife, except for marital unfaithfulness, and marries another woman commits adultery.” This is Jesus speaking, by the way.

 All I’m saying is, if homosexuality is so much worse because it’s a sexual sin against our own body, then so is divorce and remarrying. If homosexuality is so much worse because it’s a lifestyle, well, so is divorce and remarrying. But for some reason, our modern church thinks homosexuality is SOOOO bad and divorce/remarriage is okay. Maybe this is just because as a society, we’ve gotten used to divorce. Maybe in 200 years the modern church won’t have a problem with homosexuality either.

 Please realize, I’m not advocating or justifying either. I just think we’re being hypocritical. 

Thoughts?

 Also, please feel free to consider what might happen if a homosexual couple in Massachusetts gets a divorce. Or were they never really married?

“The words I find impossible to mention, are written on a star”

 Here’s something I’ve been working on memorizing that I thought I’d share with everyone. (By everyone, I think I mean three people.)

My Soul, there is a country
Afar beyond the stars,
Where stands a winged Sentry
All skillful in the wars.
There, above noise and danger,
Sweet peace sits, crown’d with smiles,
And One born in a manger
Commands the beauteous files.
He is your gracious friend
And (O my Soul awake!)
Did in pure love descend,
To die here for your sake.
If you can get but thither,
There grows a flower of peace,
The rose that cannot wither,
Your fortress, and your ease.
Leave then your foolish ranges;
For none you can secure,
But One, who never changes,
Your God, your Life, your Cure.”
- Henry Vaughan, Sacred Poems, 1650

There is something about this poem that makes me feel so at peace.  I think sometimes our faith sounds (to me) too good to be true.  And yet this can’t even come close to the truth. One of my favorite things to find whether in a song, a book, a poem, or even in conversation with someone is a person who has the ability to speak about Christ in such a way that makes me dream. I love the fact that it’s a mystery and so far beyond my comprehension. I do love theology and trying to understand different things about the Bible, but I hope I never get so caught up in at all to think that I have a real grasp on the majesty of my Lord or the true depth of the story I find myself in.

A Defense of Women’s Inconstancy

This is from my man John Donne (1572-1631). Raised Roman Catholic, converted to Anglicanism, ordained in 1615 and was dean of St.Paul’s Cathedral in London.

“That Women are Inconstant, I with any man confess, but that Inconstancy is a bad quality, I against any man will maintain: For everything as it is one better than another, so it is fuller of change; the Heavens themselves continually turn, the Stars move, the Moon changes; Fire whirls, Air flies, Water ebbs and flows, the face of the Earth alters her looks, Time stays not; the Color that is most light will take most dyes: so in Men, they that have the most reason are the most alterable in their designs, and the darkest or most ignorant, do most seldom change; therefore Women changing more than Men, have also more Reason. They cannot be immutable like stocks, like stones, like the Earth’s dull Center; Gold that lies still, rusts; Water corrupts; Air that moves not, poisons; then why should that which is the perfection of other things be imputed to Women as the greatest imperfection?”

Be With Me All Day Long

There is a command in the bible that, like many, has always eluded me. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 “Pray continually”. A friend mentioned that when she reads this, she sometimes feels as if it means that her prayers won’t be answered unless she is constantly praying over whatever it is she needs. And just how does one “pray continually”? Do you have a stopwatch on your wrist that buzzes every 5 minutes or so to yet again remind you to bow your head, close your eyes, and present your requests to God? If so, I’m in trouble because I really enjoy going to the movies and I don’t often interrupt the latest ‘Pirates’ flick to pray. It’s tempting to ask ourselves about prayer in general and the real need for it, especially when a true understanding of God indicates that he already knows our needs better than we do. Now, I know that most of us can read this verse and interpret “pray continually” to mean something broader, like “remain in a prayerful state.” I admit, this is easier for me, but I still can’t say I’m always in one.

I just read this excerpt from George MacDonald on prayer and it helped me find a new perspective on this verse.

“‘But if God is so good as you represent Him, and if He knows all that we need, and far better than we do ourselves, why should it be necessary to ask him for anything?’

I answer, What if He knows prayer to be the thing we need first and most? What if the main object in God’s idea of prayer be the supplying of our great, our endless need- the need of Himself? What if the good of all our smaller and lower needs lies in this, that they help to drive us to God?

Hunger may drive the runaway child home, and he may or may not be fed at once, but he needs his mother more than his dinner. Communion with God is the one need of the soul beyond all other need; prayer is the beginning of that communion, and some need is the motive of that prayer. Our wants are for the sake of our coming into communion with God, our eternal need.”

For me, this all comes down to one very beautiful thing: If the real reason God would have me to pray is because He knows how great my need is for him, then the command “pray continually” doesn’t sound like much of a chore anymore. The tone just changed from a boss at work telling me to always be doing some tedious task to something more akin to what a lover might say, whispering “be with me all day long.” I find it rather flattering.

Hello, Goodbye

Well, I’ve entered the blogosphere. This is actually the first blog that I’ve started, so I have high hopes of it being awesome and something that I enjoy writing (and that you enjoy reading). But it probably won’t be interesting and this could be my final post. That was a little Puddleglum for all of you who know what that means.

BUT I actually do have a story to share. Today I was run over by a man in a wheelchair. Okay, not really. But pretty close. I was standing in line at the grocery store after work, swiping my debit card, when BAM! Out of nowhere I am completely blind-sided by a 45-ish year old man in a motorized shopping cart. I went flying, and it actually did hurt the entire left side of my body, but somehow I didn’t hit the floor. Everyone was staring and it was kind of a noticeable incident. The crazy part was that I spun to my left to see exactly who had just plowed into me- and with what- and I see this guy sitting there, glaring at me. He doesn’t say a word, and puts the case of beer he’s buying up on the counter. The manager came over and asked if I was okay, and so did the cashier and a few other people, and of course I assured them all that I was fine. And the whole time this guy keeps glaring at me silently, showing no remorse whatsoever, and I began wondering if perhaps he was wishing that he had hit me a little harder, so that maybe my legs were torn off and I wouldn’t be able to walk, either. I got my receipt and bags, flashed him a smile, and went out to my car. And now the story gets crazier. As I’m taking my cart back up to the curb from the parking lot- I see him come outside and a car pull up for him. A guy gets out and hands him crutches and- miraculously- he stands up and puts his bags in the trunk and hobbles into the passenger seat. Once I knew that he COULD walk, I thought about running over and knocking him down. Or at least stealing his crutches and throwing them on the other side of the parking lot and daring him to ‘catch me if you can!’ But I didn’t.

Anyway, funny story right?

Well, thanks for reading my little post. I’m not one of those people that will write once a month or so. I’m either in for the long haul, or not at all. So, like I said earlier, we’ll see what happens. I make no promises! Thanks for reading my first, and maybe last, post.