Where Have I Been?

Why have I not written in a while? It is partially due to enjoying my job. I work for a great company, in a fun industry and truly enjoy the fantastic leadership around me that inspire and challenge me. I am usually swamped throughout the week and exhausted in a good way by the time I get home. This is the most fun at work I have had in my life.

But that is not what this story is about. There are reasons for why I have written so little over the last 1.5 years. Even the marriage posts were things I had written 2 and 10 years before and just modified. The real reason is that I am frustrated. I am disappointed in the USA attitude in general and the church in particular.

The USA is extremely myopic, narcissistic and spoiled in a pool of entitlement, affluence and provision. There are 23 countries in North America and 12 in South America. But people in the USA refer to themselves as "Americans." I guess we own and rule both continents and the entire world too, for that matter.

I dislike selfishness. I cannot stand spoiled behavior like most players in the NBA [N-titled Brat Ass.] as they mope around complaining, pouting and whining because a foul call didn't go their way. They should watch NHL games before theirs so they can toughen up and show a little sportsmanship and class. This bad attitude is the same for 'celebrities' and most famous people. Most reality shows just teach people how to behave awfully. Many young entertainers turn into adult wackos: Lindsay Lohan, Justin Bieber, Britney Spears and many others, some of whom have died in their drug induced search for meaning and happiness. Some have graduated from being adorable kids to wanna-be porn stars. They desire to be trashy. They don't know how to be healthy and whole. How can they be role models? Who in Hollywood is an example of moral excellence? What celebrity, singer, athlete is? How many politicians are? It is just like pre-school where those with ideals and values are bullied and mocked. Classy people like Tim Tebow are treated with disdain.

I am disappointed by parents not disciplining since the 1960's [hyperbole about permissive parenting] so that we have a nation of self-focused individuals expecting everything to be handed to them and to never be disciplined or judged for their poor behavior, lack of work ethic, lack of ethics and morals. I hate that politicians and marketers cater to these groups for votes and money. Instead of training in virtue or teaching right from wrong, we call the bad behavior a disease and medicate. Boys are not taught healthy uses of their energy and masculinity so they grow up to be out of control due to lack of guidance from a respectable father. The boy issue may be a future blog.

Capitalism is not the problem. Full-grown toddlers are. The terrible-2's until you die is not a healthy way to live. And it is terrible for society. This nation is unhealthy physically, morally, financially and spiritually.

The church, which is supposed to be The Kingdom of God on earth, has given in to the above. Perhaps a lot of it is due to the screaming, vilifying, name calling, judgmental intolerance, moral phobic, miso-theistic [God hating] attitudes spewed forth from media, celebs and politicians catering to a degraded nation wrongly thinking they are progressive or enlightened. The progress of perversion and sexuality without boundaries has created a forest fire of lasciviousness. What God created to be a wonderful gift within the narrow confines of a monogamous marriage between one man and one woman is now considered archaic and simplistic. People don't know what marriage was made for, don't get or stay married and now want every variety legalized because everyone should be allowed to do anything they want with their body. As if that would satisfy the deep longing in their soul. It won't. What marriage is for will be my next blog.

Jesus is largely hated in the USA. When we were at our worst Jesus Christ died for us [Romans 5]. God entered into our world as a human to show us a better way and to rescue us from our wrong desires which war with values, goodness, kindness, justice, purity, compassion, love, etc; basically, against God and all His characteristics. People apart from a redeemed relationship with Jesus are in utter darkness.

Case in point: What are we doing when we convict a doctor of murder for killing babies born after botched abortions but people celebrate killing the unborn moments before? How does it suddenly become unacceptable outside the womb? What are we doing when the nation celebrates a filibuster of yelling to oppose a midterm abortion restriction? Why do women promote and celebrate baby butchering as a right to a woman's body? What else could the baby be? A frog? A cookie? A plant? Product of conception and fetal matter both equate to a baby--a child in the womb. It is and can only be a human. When we kill our unborn in the name of convenience, we spit in Jesus' face. We fail to recognize the destruction of a human, the physical trauma done to a woman which often later leads to cervical cancer and the fact that most women will at some point suffer a form of PTSD when they mature enough to realize that it really was a baby and not some other 'thing.' It is not a healthy, loving or moral pro-choice. Yet, it is shoved on young females as good so that planned unparenthood can rob them financially and damage them physically and emotionally. It is eugenics. The abortion rates among Latinos, African-Americans and the urban poor is shocking. This is not a loving choice.

Similarly, it is not loving to give an alcoholic booze. It is not loving to give a drug addict syringes. It is not loving to give the lazy money or food stamps. It is not loving to give teens condoms and say "go for it because we're all just needing to explore and discover." It is not loving to give anyone everything they want. It is not loving to rationalize, normalize or explain away immorality to appease an angry mob.

I can see the crown of thorns smashed into Jesus' scalp, the bone and metal-chip infested leather straps pealing away his skin and the hammer stroke of the nails being pounded into his flesh as he is mocked and his church is attacked. Jesus came to rescue dead people who were captive to their sin. That is what the USA is. This is the zombie apocalypse. Only, he is not killing the zombies for attacking him or killing his followers, which happens all over earth regularly by those who hate Jesus. Jesus pours out love like he did his blood to transform the spiritually and morally dead into his own children whom he loves and values. In his stubborn grace he allows us all to make millions of mistakes wounding others while he gently prods his followers to die to sin, selfishness, greed, arrogance, pride, sexual wildness, etc. Erwin McManus is right, "We are all just hypocrites in transition." But, are we transitioning or stagnant and enjoying it?

I am frustrated that there is so little faith in Jesus here in the USA. It looks like the progress of perversion is winning. It looks like God is not transforming his church into loving, righteous, cleansed, forgiven, just people. It appears that most people in the USA are running from God. I am sad when Christians say it is OK for them to divorce because marriage is too much work and their happiness is more important than honoring their covenant commitment. I am sad when Christians are at peace with their blatant disobedience of Scripture and justify it. It hurts when the church looks and acts just like the culture. We are supposed to be grateful and holy [set apart from sin--rebellion against God]. I am sad when followers of Jesus participate in loving pleasure rather loving than God. It is tragic when we participate in lust, abortion, sex-trafficking, slavery, injustice, greed, avarice, malice, lewdness, abuse, violence, addiction to pills or drink, rebellion against parents and leaders... [2 Timothy 3]. The list seems endless and can be added to. I am sad that Christ followers don't use much of His money to bring about real liberty and justice, transforming the world from a place of spiritual darkness into a planet of relational joy with God.

I am unhappy that God has put in me the ability to see the wickedness of the world like Jeremiah knowing that most of the world does not care. I weep for the people calling evil good and calling good evil. I am frustrated that what is wrong with the world is you and me and that we do so little about it. I am sad that many times I feel hopeless to the point of giving up and giving in so that I act just like the angry mob. I am struggling. I am tired. I feel broken. That is where I have been and am.