PADS

Do you know someone, a friend, a spouse maybe, who seems to always push your buttons?  Someone who just keeps poking at your emotions, gets under your skin, someone who annoys the haberdash out you?  Do you know a person like this who does this continuously but always does it in a manner that always seems, accidental.  They make it appear they have no earthly idea they are driving you mad.  They act as though all is normal, the world is just as it should be.  They have no idea why we have dropped to the floor in the fetal position and are trying to scratch our eyes out with our elbows.  There must be something wrong with US because THEY have done nothing.  Do you know this person, or maybe several of these people.  Maybe you are this person ?

Well, if you relate to the above paragraph, I have good news for you.

The A.M.A has finally, FINALLY, issued a statement, a diagnosis, a definition of what the rest of us already knew.  That is correct, the American Medical Association is now on our side!! Not only have they legitimized our plight, they even have suggested a treatment that if used as prescribed can almost entirely mitigate the effects of this newly named and labeled condition.

Ladies and Gentlemen, the A.M.A has discovered and named, Passive Aggressive Disorder Syndrome  !!!  PADS for short. 

That is correct folks. Many of us have been afflicted by PADS.  The woeful pain, the frustration, the twitching inflicted on us now has a name, and the name is music to my ears.  PADS is real.  PADS is a crisis.  PADS treatment will be covered by Obamacare!!

Do people with PADS make you flail uncontrollably  in frustration ?

Do people with PADS make you sit in the floor with your hands wrapped around your legs and your face in your knees while you rock back and forth self consoling and repeat " Kmart 410 Oak street.... yeah.......  6 minutes til Whapner....... yeah...  "?

Do people with PADS make you sing "I'm a little tea pot " in the shower just to drown out their seeming normalcy?

Do people with PADS make you want to Gangnam Style in a grass skirt and coconut bra while on top of the Golden Gate Bridge?  ( okay, maybe that one is just me )

Well people, friends, commrades...... The solution has been found at long last.  A medically approved device is being made available to all sufferers of PADS.

The trick is this.  As we all know, the person who is afflicted with PADS has no idea that WE are the people who suffer from PADS.  So, in their infinite wisdom, prescriptions will be made available to all of us who suffer from this dreaded affliction to help assist in the curing of our friends and loved ones.

Step one:  Ask your friend/spouse/relative to go to the doctor and seek help dealing with their infirmity.

Step two : If your friend/spouse/relative actually goes to the doctor to discuss their problem, then it is obvious that YOU are the problem and they do not have PADS, because if they did have PADS they would not have actually gone.

Step three :  If your friend/spouse/relative says, sure honey/buddy/friend thanks for your concern, and then never seems to remember to make that appointment then blames you for their inability to complete this simple task...... then you have a PADS afflicted confirmation......

Step four :  Now that you have a PADS afflicted confirmation you can phone your doctor and tell them that your friend/spouse/relative is PADS afflicted and you are a PADS sufferer.  The doctor will call you in  a prescription and you can run directly to the pharmacy and retrieve your medically approved device.

Step five : Keep your medically approved device with you at all times and administer as necessary every time your friend/spouse/relative causes you suffering.

The theory is that if the people with PADS are made accutely aware of the level of suffering they inflict on the rest of us, they will slowly begin to recognize that their behavior is the cause of all the worlds issues.  Once they become aware of their PADS they can then, and only then, be able to try and control their PADS on their own.  Studies have shown that repeated/frequent use of medically approved device has cut down on the frequency of PADS outbreaks almost immediatly.  Over time, PADS can be controlled.  PADS may never go away entirely, but as we all know, even one less PADS outbreak a day is a great relief and significant improvement in the overall quality of life for us poop schleps suffering in silence from PADS.

Please please suffer in silence no more.  Reach out and do something for yourself and for others.  Obamacare will cover the cost, so you have no excuses.  Call your doctor today !!

Direction for use:

Your pharmacist will hand you one of these.  This is a sharp stick made from a pharmaceutical grade ultra dense bio-plastic. 

Whenever you feel the onset of those all to familiar symptoms that occur when you are in the presents of PADS you simply take the sharp stick out of its sterile container and jab the pointed end into a convenient fleshy spot on the person afflicted with PADS.  The reaction will be immediate and lasting.  The cure will be temporary, but effective.  After first initial application, keep sharp stick handy as more applications are likely to be necessary.  Over time, the frequency should decrease.

Act now.

Help stamp out the rampant suffering of PADS.

( some side effects may include, bleeding, sleeplessness, nausea, fits of rage, moodiness use only as prescribed.  Not for use outside the United State.  )

an exercise in skit writting...

"In 1865 Englishman William Chatterton Dix wrote The Manger Throne, three verses of which became What Child Is This? In the era while Dix was writing hymns and raising a family, Christmas was not the celebration it is today. Neither was it a season where many openly celebrated the birth of Christ. Conservative Christian churches forbade gift-giving, decorating, or even acknowledging the day. These Puritan groups feared that if set aside as a special day, Christmas would become a day of pagan rituals more than a very serious time of worship. In this context, it was unusual for Dix to feel moved to write about Christ's birth, since many hymn writers of the period ignored Christmas altogether." When we look at how Christmas is celebrated today, perhaps the Puritans had a point. At the age of twenty-nine, William Dix was struck with a sudden and near fatal illness and was confined to bed rest for the next several months and he slipped into a deep depression. During this time, he wrote many hymns, including What Child is This which was later set to the traditional tune of Greensleeves.
Lets go through the words to his song, little by little, and see if we can experience some of what he might have been thinking about, praying about, and pondering on.

ME: Hey ( voice 1) have you ever read the words to What Child is This, that old Christmas Carol?

V1: Duh, yes I know the words, and its actually a hymn..

ME : oh, well ExCuuuse me.  Okay , smartypants , how does it start ?

V1 : What child is this who laid to rest
         On Mary's lap is sleeping.
ME : What child indeed, maybe its just me
V1 : It's just you........
ME : Maybe its just me, but I wonder when the Angel of the Lord spoke to Mary, exactly how much did he tell her, could she have been told the whole story, beginning to end?
V1 : According to what is recorded in the gospel of Luke, probably not.  I suppose it is possible she was told more than is recorded, but not likely the whole story.  She would likely have known some of the story anyway, being Jewish and all.
Me : Picture  in your mind ....
V1 : no
Me : Seriously, think about that for a second.  Holding your newborn child on your lap and thinking about their future, as most parents would do.  Now, imagine that the Angel of the Lord has told you that this is God's child.

V1: no pressure......

Me: can you imagine holding that responsibility in your arms?  Can you imagine pondering that future?

V1: This much I would assume, with whatever knowledge the Angel imparted, God must have sent a full dose of strength and peace to go alone with it.

Me : agreed, what is the next part of the song?

V1: Whom angels greet with anthems sweet
        While shepherds watch are keeping.

        This, this is Christ the King
         Whom shepherds guard and angels sing.

Me: I wonder if this family felt like they were all alone.  I mean, this could be a bit of a burden don't ya think?

V1: Alone ?? No way.  That is what this verse is all about.  Jesus was never alone.  Even at this early day, not only was his earthly mother taking care of his physical needs, the angels were singing sweet whispers to his spirit to comfort him, his heavenly Father was watching over him and sending both angels and shepherds, his heavenly and earthly servants, to watch over him.

Me :  Right, I see that now, the shepherds came because they knew the King had arrived, Christ had come, and had come as a child.

V1:  Now the next part, I don't get really.  It says:
        Haste , haste to bring him laud
        The babe, the son of Mary.

Me:  Oh, that's easy.  Laud means praise.  So what they are really saying is, Hurry up shepherds !!  Hurry up, you don't want to be late in bringing  praises to your redeemer, your rescuer, your saviour.  You don't want to be late to praise God's son, the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, the Lion of Judah has come as an innocent lamb to save you.... hurry shepherds, hurry everyone, Christ the King has come, don't miss your chance !!

V1:  Okay, that makes sense. 

Me : alright, this is kinda fun... what's next.

V1: Why lies he in such mean estate
        Where ox and ass are feeding?

Me:  Now that's a fine question.  Why would God send his son to such a humble and poor existence?  Why an infant at all, let alone start off life in a barn with his crib being a food trough.  I doesn't get much more meager and humble a starting point than this.  Why send him as a child at all ?

V1 : Well, as for the child part, what other choice is there really ?

Me :  Well, God man Adam didn't he. Obviously He could have made a full grown man at the start.  He could have sent Jesus as a full grown King with a huge palace, ready to take on the powers of darkness, with a bunch of..........  ( interruption )

V1 : but that would not have been the point.  The other thing is the humbleness of the starting point.  To fulfill the scripture He had to come as an innocent child, he didn't come to conquer, he came to serve and to save by serving.

Me:  where does scripture say anything about that ?

V1 :  In Matthew is says Whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant.And whoever wants to be first must be your slave.  It also points out that.....  Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many, as well as..... so the last will be first and the first will be last.  When you look at all that..... humble is the only way to go...

Me : point taken. 

V1 :  Good Christian fear , for sinners here
          The silent word is pleading
           Nails, spear shall pierce him through
           The cross be borne for me, for you.

Me :  Now, my turn to quote scripture to you.  The silent word is pleading, I imagine Jesus must have been just a little frustrated with being a baby and not able to speak yet.  He is full of all that God stuff but can't say a word.  He knows he has come with a purpose, to serve, to save, to ransom, to rescue, to redeem. He knows what lies ahead of him. He knows all this becaue in John 1:1 it says, " in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God , and the Word was God.  He was with God in the beginning.  And since we know Jesus is the Word being talked about.........

V1:  Well, that's cool and all, but I don't know if being silent is just because of being a baby or not.  I think it has to do with Isaiah (53:7)  " He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth: He was led like a lamb to the slaughter, and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth"  He could have called down fire from heaven or a league of angels to come to his rescue, but yet he remained silent, he bore the cross for us, for me, for you.

Me : Bearing the cross for me....... that's painful to even consider.

V1 : for me as well.

Me: Hey, I know the next line, I just said it a minute ago.
        Hail, hail the Word made flesh
        The babe , the son of Mary

V1 :  He is God's word, both God and man.

Me : He is worthy of our praise, even though we are certainly not worthy of him.

V1 : He serves us too, yet we are not worthy of being served.

Me : He saves us,  yet we are not worthy of being saved.

V1 : He is God's son and thus God, yet he is Mary's son as well, so he is human too.
        Then bring him incense, gold and myrrh
         Come peasant, king to own him
         The King of kings salvation brings
         Let loving hearts enthrone him


Me:  So, we should bring him gifts.  Now that Jesus is at the right hand of the Father, I doubt gold is of much use to Him.  So, what kind of gifts should we give him now.

V1:  ourselves of course.

Me : that's right, I remember, its in Romans 12 I think.  :  " Therefore, I urge you, brothers, in view of God's mercy, to offer your bodies as living sacrifices, holy and pleasing to God--this is your spiritual act of worship."

V1: Yup, that's it.

Me: so, it doesn't matter if you are a peasant, a pauper, a blue collar worker, a ceo, a King, a homeless person, a farmer, or a sports figure, Jesus has come for each of us and desires each of us to give ourselves up to him who has given everything to save us.  The throne that we can provide for our King is a place firmly in our heart.

V1: So, let us invite him in to take a seat on this throne.  ( long pause................ )

Me :  Raise , raise the song on high
          The virgin sings her lullaby
          Joy , joy for Christ is born
          The babe , the son of Mary

V1 : All I can think of when I read these last few lines in Mary singing to her son.  Singing with joy, singing with love, singing with praise, singing with tears, singing with strength, singing in weakness, singing with hope.

Me :  All I can think of is what must have it been like to hold someone so small, knowing he was so big. Coddling something so frail, knowing he was so incredibly strong.  Caring for someone so much, yet know he would care for her more.  Loving someone so deeply and yet he really did and would prove he loved her even more.  That he loved us, and loves us more than we can even understand.  What must have it been like ?

V1 :  What child is this ?

Me :  What child indeed !!


1. What Child is this who, laid to rest
On Mary's lap is sleeping?
Whom Angels greet with anthems sweet,
While shepherds watch are keeping?

This, this is Christ the King,
Whom shepherds guard and Angels sing;
Haste, haste, to bring Him laud,
The Babe, the Son of Mary.

2. Why lies He in such mean estate,
Where ox and ass are feeding?
Good Christians, fear, for sinners here
The silent Word is pleading.

Nails, spear shall pierce Him through,
The cross be borne for me, for you.
Hail, hail the Word made flesh,
The Babe, the Son of Mary.

3. So bring Him incense, gold and myrrh,
Come peasant, king to own Him;
The King of kings salvation brings,
Let loving hearts enthrone Him.
Raise, raise a song on high,
The virgin sings her lullaby.
Joy, joy for Christ is born,
The Babe, the Son of Mary

      

What child is this........

"In 1865 Englishman William Chatterton Dix wrote The Manger Throne, three verses of which became What Child Is This? In the era while Dix was writing hymns and raising a family, Christmas was not the celebration it is today. Neither was it a season where many openly celebrated the birth of Christ. Conservative Christian churches forbade gift-giving, decorating, or even acknowledging the day. These Puritan groups feared that if set aside as a special day, Christmas would become a day of pagan rituals more than a very serious time of worship. In this context, it was unusual for Dix to feel moved to write about Christ's birth, since many hymn writers of the period ignored Christmas altogether." When we look at how Christmas is celebrated today, perhaps the Puritans had a point.  At the age of twenty-nine, William Dix was struck with a sudden and near fatal illness and was confined to bed rest for the next several months and he slipped into a deep depression.  During this time, he wrote many hymns, including What Child is This which was later set to the traditional tune of Greensleeves.
Lets go through the words to his song, little by little, and see if we can experience some of what he might have been thinking about, praying about, and pondering on.

What child is this who laid to rest
On Mary's lap is sleeping?

What child indeed.  Maybe it's just me, but I have often wondered when the Angel of the Lord spoke to Mary, exactly how much did he tell her, could she have been told more than what is recorded in Luke's gospel account, could she have known the whole story from beginning to end? Probably not, but I bet she knew enough.  Picture in your mind, holding your newborn child on your lap and thinking about their future as many a parent has done.  Now, imagine that the Angel of the Lord has told you that this is God's child........ no pressure.......  Can you imagine holding that responsibility in your arms ??  Can you imagine pondering that future.  This much I assume, with whatever knowledge the Angel imparted, God must have sent a full dose of strength and peace to go along with it.


Whom angels greet with anthems sweet
While shepherds watch are keeping.
This, this is Christ the King
Whom shepherds guard and angels sing

It is easy for us to look at this families situation and wonder if , at least for a moment, if they didn't feel like they were all along. This verse reminds us, however, that the baby Jesus was never alone. Even at this early day, not only did he have his earthly mother taking care of his physical needs, the angels were singing sweet whispers to his spirit to comfort him and others were coming to help watch over and protect him.  They were coming because they knew the King had arrived.  Christ had come, he had come as a child. 


Haste, haste to bring him laud
The babe, the son of Mary

Hurry up shepherds !!  Hurry up, you don't want to be late in bringing praises to your redeemer, your rescuer, your saviour, you don't want to be late to praise God's son, the King of Kings, the Lord of Lords, the Lion of Judah has come as an innocent lamb to save you.... hurry shepherds, hurry everyone.  Christ the King has come.


Why lies he in such mean estate
Where ox and ass are feeding?

Why indeed !!  Why would God send his son to such a humble and poor existence?  Why would he send Jesus, not only as an infant, but have him start off life in a barn, with his crib being a food trough for animals?  It doesn't get much more meager and humble a starting point than this.  Why send him as a child at all?  God could have sent a full grown man, he had made a man before after all, certainly He could have done it again.  Why not send the King of Kings to earth as a powerful and mighty King, all grown up and ready to wage war on darkness?  I think the answer is in the scripture when Jesus said, whoever wants to become great among you must be your servant, ²⁷ and whoever wants to be first must be your slave— ²⁸ just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” ¹⁶ “So the last will be first, and the first will be last.” (Matthew 20)


Good Christian fear, for sinners here
The silent word is pleading
Nails, spear shall pierce him through
The cross be borne for me, for you

These chilling words for tell the life and ministry of Jesus. Jesus has come and while he is yet still silent he is yearning to speak his Fathers words.  He knows he has come with a purpose, to serve, to save, to ransom, to rescue, to redeem.  He knows what lies ahead of him. He knows because John 1:1 tells us ,"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. ² He was with God in the beginning. and Isaiah (53:7)"He was oppressed and afflicted,    yet he did not open his mouth;he was led like a lamb to the slaughter,   and as a sheep before its shearers is silent, so he did not open his mouth."  He could have called down fire from heaven or a league of angels to come to his rescue, but yet, he remained silent, he bore the cross for us, for me, for you.

 

Hail, hail the Word made flesh
The babe, the son of Mary

As he grows and begins his ministry, we are reminded, he is God's word, he is both God and man.  He is worthy of our praise even though we are not worthy of him.  He serves us, yet we are not worthy of being served.  He saves us, yet we are not worthy of being saved.  This line tells us this, he is God's son,  and thus God, yet he is the son of Mary, so he is man  as well.



Then bring him incense, gold and myrrh
Come peasant, king to own him
The King of kings salvation brings
Let loving hearts enthrone him

Here we are reminded to bring him gifts and incense, gold and myrrh are listed.  We also have been told in scripture that the gift that is truly desired is the gift of ourselves, our whole self, ourselves as a living sacrifice to him that has redeemed us.  It doesn't matter if you are a peasant, a pauper, a blue collar worker, a ceo, a King, a homeless person, a farmer, or a sports figure, Jesus has come for each of us and desires each of us to give ourselves up to him who has given everything to save us.  The throne that we can provide for our King is place firmly in our heart..... let us invite him in to take a seat on this throne.

Raise, raise the song on high
The virgin sings her lullaby
Joy, joy, for Christ is born
The babe, the son of Mary

All I can think of when I read these last few lines is Mary singing to her son.  Singing with joy, singing with praise, singing with tears, singing with strength, singing in weakness, singing in hope.  All I can think of is what must have it been like to hold something so small knowing he was so big, coddling something so frail knowing he was so incredibly strong.  Caring for something so much yet know he would care for her more.  Loving someone so deeply and yet he really did and would prove he loved her even more.  That he loved us, and loves us more that we can even understand.  What must have it been like


....... what child is this, what child indeed !!

Lets sing the song together now..........

What child is this who laid to rest
On Mary's lap is sleeping?
Whom angels greet with anthems sweet
While shepherds watch are keeping.
This, this is Christ the King
Whom shepherds guard and angels sing
Haste, haste to bring him laud
The babe, the son of Mary

Why lies he in such mean estate
Where ox and ass are feeding?
Good Christian fear, for sinners here
The silent word is pleading
Nails, spear shall pierce him through
The cross be borne for me, for you
Hail, hail the Word made flesh
The babe, the son of Mary

Then bring him incense, gold and myrrh
Come peasant, king to own him
The King of kings salvation brings
Let loving hearts enthrone him
Raise, raise the song on high
The virgin sings her lullaby
Joy, joy, for Christ is born
The babe, the son of Mary

ever listen to the words??

There are some songs that we just sing because we know the words.  But there comes a time when we have been singing them for so long, we know what word comes next but we really stopped listening to the words we are singing.  We sing from habit instead of appreciation of the words themselves and their meaning.  The message has been lost over time, if we ever got a message from the song in the first place.  One such song is Joy to the World........  have you ever thought about the meaning of the words?? 

JOY !!! 

Lets just look at the first two lines. 

Joy to the World , the Lord is come!

Let earth receive her King;


What does this say to you?  What if we translate it out of sing songy verse and into a mode similar to what we would use if we were speaking.  If we did that, it might look like this.

Hey, today is a great, awesome, happy, rockin day.  It's the absolute best day ever because the one we have been waiting for , waiting for for like ever, has come today, the guy who makes it all better, solves all the problems and leads us to eternal happiness, the king of forever and everything  was born today. The world received a way out, a way up, he was born today!!

Next line

Let every heart prepare Him room,

What does this say to you?

This is more of an instruction the way I hear it.  Here the song is telling us to get on the wagon, have some faith, make room for some big time grace, open your heart and let Jesus in, open your heart and let Jesus lead, open your heart and give the man...... THE man all the room he needs.

And Heaven and nature sing,

And Heaven and nature sing,

And Heaven, and Heaven, and nature sing.

Moving on......

Heaven and nature sing......  Heaven would be who exactly, and who is nature that it would sing ??  Well, what I hear the author saying here is that this day is SO glorious that the Angels in heaven are happy enough to sing out and nature, why nature is the all the things on earth that God made, the clouds, the rivers, the trees, the stones, everything of the earth feels that a big thing, a huge thing, a glorious joyous marvelous thing is happening today.


moving a little further along.....

Joy to the World, the Savior reigns!

Let men their songs employ;

Again, JOY......  the world should be happy, all the people, all the creations, everything in the world should be mad with joy because the promise has begun to be fulfilled.  The Savior has come, he has arrived, Jesus is in the house !!  Let all mankind sing out and relish the coming of enough grace to get them into God's very presents. 

moving a bit further along......

While fields and floods, rocks, hills and plains

Repeat the sounding joy,

Repeat the sounding joy,

Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy

Even the fields and floods, even the rocks know Jesus was born today......  Joy has come, it has come to be with us , wretched tho we are, Joy has come, Grace has come, the promise is here with us today...... 

No more let sins and sorrows grow,

Nor thorns infest the ground;

He comes to make His blessings flow

Far as the curse is found,

Far as the curse is found,
Far as, far as, the curse is found.

Why has he come ?  Why are we supposed to be so happy ?  That is what this stanza tells us about.  He came to destroy the power of sin, sin can no longer enslave us as we have been given the power of His grace thru faith.  We could never save ourselves, the law made that all too clear, but now grace has come to save us and we have been brought freedom, freedom brings us joy !! The thorns have been struck down, the curse has been removed, he comes to make his blessings flow, all his blessings.

He rules the world with truth and grace,

He has come to rule over us with truth and grace, he has come to free us from the plague, the immutable stain of our sin is what he and only he can lift away.........

And makes the nations prove
we prove it by our faith first and in his grace we prove it by following him, by loving him, and by living in his will thru his enabling grace


The glories of His righteousness,

the glories are proved out by our salvation, his gift , his grace, unearned, undeserved, but heaped on us non the less...... why oh why will he bless us so........ you need only read , or sing, a little farther now......


And wonders of His love,

And wonders of His love,

And wonders, wonders, of His love.


His LOVE..... his love defies understanding...... it defines who he is...... God is love........  he loves us....  he loved us before we were even created, and he loved us while we were yet sinners... a love that we cannot even begin to grasp........  a love that brought us grace....... grace is a concept we cannot fully wrap our heads around ...... 


now......... now we can think about the words, the message in the song...... we can sing it anew from our hearts... let us sing now......



Joy to the World , the Lord is come!


Let earth receive her King;

Let every heart prepare Him room,

And Heaven and nature sing,

And Heaven and nature sing,

And Heaven, and Heaven, and nature sing.



Joy to the World, the Savior reigns!

Let men their songs employ;

While fields and floods, rocks, hills and plains

Repeat the sounding joy,

Repeat the sounding joy,

Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy.



No more let sins and sorrows grow,

Nor thorns infest the ground;

He comes to make His blessings flow

Far as the curse is found,

Far as the curse is found,

Far as, far as, the curse is found.



He rules the world with truth and grace,

And makes the nations prove

The glories of His righteousness,

And wonders of His love,

And wonders of His love,

And wonders, wonders, of His love.

First is last

I am broken

I am perfect

I am perfect in my brokenness

As I lay in a hospital and suffer I am healed , I recover

As I lay and die I am comforted by a hope in my future because I am going home

I have conflict , turmoil , frustrations and faults

I struggle, I triumph , I improve , I decrease

As I decrease in me, I increase in being useful

I fail , I repent , I succeed

As I walk away, I get closer

the weaker I am , the stronger I am

I have a purpose,  a reason , a mission , a goal , none of which I choose , all of which are good

I am filthy and I am spotlessly unblemished

I fall but never find the ground

I gain everything when I give everything

what I am given I don't deserve and don't earn

what I give away has a cost but what I am given is priceless

I learn

I love

I live

I die

I live

I am

I am because He is

I am because He did

I am because there is a reason for me

I can because He can

He did because I couldn't

I must because He did

I can because He did

I am here

He is

I am loved

He is

I am necessary

He is

I am someone

He is

I am something

He is everything

What I can not

He already did

When I do not

He already did

I am because He is " I am "

What do you stand for ??

This was the status update on a friends wall.  "I'm not nearly as interested in what you are against as I am by what you are for."  Hmmm, that got me thinking ( I know , right !! )  What do I stand for ??  At first glance I thought that question was way too easy, but the more effort I put into the answer the more difficult it became.  Should this be just a political answer ?? At this time when political ads ( ugh ) are bombarding our existence, that is a quick and easy assumption.  What if I look deeper, maybe a theological list would make a good answer.  Even though the question was posed by a pastoral type person, I don't think that is the sum total of what my friend is looking for.  What if I just give a whimsical, yet truthful , response ?  No, that wears too thin too fast.  Man does not live by marshmallow fluff alone ( although ?? well, never mind )  So, my proposed answer will address all three in no particular order.  Politics, Theology and just enough of the whimsy that is life  to keep it flowing and not boring.

What I stand for :

• Bacon - I stand for bacon, bacon is good, bacon is righteous, bacon is necessary, bacon is. 
• Free Speech -  I believe any jerk should be able to state his/her opinion when asked, and even if the rest of us don't like it, that's okay.  We don't have to hate the guy, attack the guy, or try to ruin or influence the guy thru force.  It's an opinion, not an action.  it's a belief, not a policy.  It's the way one person sees a subject. We are entitled to a different opinion, but that is all we are entitled to.  Tossing in a little scripture here, he/she is our neighbor and we are called to love them, that is all.  The two things that pop to mind here are the ongoing Chick-Fil-A debacle and that Bill Maher guy.  Opposite ends of the spectrum in every way, but regardless , my Christian brothers and sisters, we are entitled to our opinion but we are not entitled to our judgement or hate.
• Freedom of religion -  While I wish and pray that everyone accepts the truth, comes to Christ and then begins a life long journey towards a sanctified life in discipleship, I know that is not the way the world was designed.  I do not believe it is right to force, coerce , or kill others because they do not see things the same way as *we* do.  Speaking as a Christian, with my own understanding, we are to lead by being a light, an example, by being different than the world. 
• Community -  I am for community.  We need each other, and we should need each other.  We should be able to influence each other and work together for common goals. 
• Life -  (What ?)  I am for life.  Every person should have one.  Too many people these days exist, but do not live.  That is a shame.  In order to have a life, you must have feelings, you must enjoy, you must regret etc etc.
• Sanctity of human life -  (oh, bet you thought this was where I was going last time huh )  Yes, I believe all human life should have value.  That means I am not for the death penalty, I am not for abortion. I will even take it one step further, I am not for the movie industry or the video game industry either.  Now, before you slam down you fist in forget point number 1, no I am not being a hypocrite here.  I have enjoyed many a movie filled with senseless violence,and I have killed a million or more aliens  and asteroids and caterpillars ( showing my age here ) but I think the overabundance of death and destruction in video format has become sensory overload for the developing mind.  I am not suggesting a ban on video games or movies ( although I am suggesting a ban on the death penalty and abortions ). 
• Parenting -  yes, I am for parenting.  I think it would be awesome if more people who have 'produced' kids would actually raise them.  Raising them means being involved in their lives, leading them by example, spending time mentoring them, telling them NO once in a while, telling them YES when you don't want to once in a while.  Dare I say, raise them up in the way they should go and they will not part from it ?? 
• Regulations -  (gasp )  yes, a liberal viewpoint from conservative me.  We need to regulate the following , desperately, the banking industry, the financial sector (ie wallstreet ) the insurance industry and the medical industry. 
• Free market - ( but didn't you just say !! )  yes, we need regulations, but we also need the market to move about freely, reign in the EPA and OSHA etc, they wield too much power.
• Meaningful Campaign reform -  you should not have to raise a billion dollars to run for county commissioner.  This system is just buying votes and buying policy at this stage.
• Puppies - I mean, com'on who isn't for puppies.
• Marriage- ( that bwess-ed arrangement )  Yep, had to go here, a marriage is a God blessed institution and should be between a man and a women.  Now, having said that, I also have no issue with same sex couples making a permanent commitment to each other and then receiving the same benefits and punishments via the tax code and other entities.  You could call it a same sex civil union, or call it whatever you want.  The state that honors the arrangement can even call it marriage if they so choose, I am just saying this.  There is a difference between a biblical marriage and a secular marriage.  Both arrangements should be treated the same from a legal , political , standpoint, but from a religious standpoint, they do differ.  ( glad I don't own a fast food restaurant )  I will again remind you of a previous statement, they are our neighbors, we are called to love them and that is all we are called to do.
• Tax code revision -  chuck the whole thing and start over !! 
• Adoption - personal beef here.... our domestic system stinks !!  Reform the system and provide more national guidelines.  It is not uncommon for adoptive parents to adopt a child from a different state, however, adopting from a different country is more efficient due to rules changes from state to state.  The child is supposed to be the priority here..... often said, but the actions do not follow the statement.
• Meatballs - a nearly perfect food.  I am for meatballs.  If you wrap a meatball in bacon, then you may have just built a golden calf !

Thanks for the question Adam !!  Got me motivated to blog again .....