Red-blooded men!

The other day I was quietly sifting through a jumble of emails that have been calling out my name to be read for many weeks now. It seems that ever since the Presidential election I have been unwilling to read much that comes my way through such means. Either that or my love affair with Facebook has taken me from my first (and much simpler) love of email. That aside, I am not here to talk about relationships. I'm here to talk about the night I realized that I was a man.

The previous sentence, without any context, may seem rather risque. Thus, allow me to elaborate upon the circumstance in which I found myself. You see, I had the window in the computer room open so that I could experience the benefits of fresh air while I tried to wade through the stifling number of unread emails. The result of this was that I was able to hear any number of night time sounds that wafted into my ear canals. Imagine my reaction when I heard frantic squabbling coming from the chicken coop my landlady keeps on her property.

Being a responsible man and realizing that the chickens had not been locked up for the night, I figured that the source of their squabbling must have been either a raccoon or possum. I ran out of the house as quickly as my feet could take me and called upon Josh, the son of my friend and landlady, to come out with me as fast as possible with a flashlight.

The chickens were splayed around their cage and outside of their coop in various stages of shock and fright. My favorite, whom I call "Crazy Eyes McCluck" because of her crazy eyes and strange cluck, was almost comatose as her legs were locked in the upright position and her breast and head were sagging to the ground. Her wings were drooping to the ground and she was shaking slightly. She was a pitiful sight to say the least.

My manly instinct to protect chicks kicked in at that moment and with the help of Josh we managed to herd the ladies back into their coop and lock them up. Pushing them into their coop almost felt like the game "Whack a Mole" with them trying to leave as quickly as you herded them in. Now, chicken herding is fun and should become a national sport much as sheep herding is in the British Isles (see YouTube video) but I was half-naked without a shirt when the neighboring dog sent up a sharp growl at an avocado tree that grows inside of the cage.



A lonely leaf fell to the ground as I slowly looked up to the sound of soft rustling. I had figured that whatever creature had attacked the girls was long gone. I couldn't have been more wrong... I whispered to Josh for his flashlight and investigated the tree in my vulnerable and half-naked state. The beam alighted upon two specks of reflective, shiny blackness. To my horror and amazement, I saw looking back at me the two eyes of a raccoon the size of a medium-sized dog.

It's hands had the dimensions of a small child's.


Josh "oohed" and "aahed" and wished for a stick so that he would have the ability to beat the coon out of the tree. This reminded me of the two spears I had brought back from Uganda and I ordered Josh back into the house to grab them so that we could stab the raccoon and get it to leave the chicks alone. Soon, with spears and flashlights in hand, we began a systematic stabbing of the tree as we had lost sight of the animal. After spearing various branches, leaves and avocados I finally found the guy again and gave it a medium thrust to the belly (not a killing blow). Now terrified itself, and put in its proper place, the coon scampered away.

At the top of my lungs I bellowed a war cry that shivered the timbers of every tree and shriveled the lips of every marauding creature in the vicinity. I thrust my spear in the air and wiped the coons blood in swirling patterns upon my face. I erected a truly massive bonfire outside of my animal hide tent and watched my shadow dance with me late into the night. I poured smooth libations down my gullet in ever greater quantities as the gods looked down upon me in amazement. How can this not be the night when I became a man?

Darkness in Tehran by Joshua Muravchik on National Review Online

And the interrogator said . . . "Hah, you cannot tolerate a few lashes in this room? How can you tolerate the God's eternal punishment? In the next life you will be in hell." And they took her away.

Mohsen recalls, That really shocked me. I asked myself, "Who persuaded this interrogator that he is an agent of God? A person who believes he has a mission from God can easily torture, kill, or do anything."

Darkness in Tehran by Joshua Muravchik on National Review Online

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Senator Boxer vs. Doctor Evil

In light of one of my embarrassing state representatives (Barbara Boxer) I can't imagine the President humiliating a general for calling him "sir." Come to think of it, while in the Marines, if I had called an officer by their rank (such as Captain) I would have been corrected because it's customary for an enlisted man (or even a junior ranking officer) to call the officer one is addressing as "sir" or "ma'am." "Sir" and "ma'am" are words of courtesy and respect where as "Senator" is simply a word connotative of one's position. You should enjoy this YouTube video regardless of whether or not you agree with me (there is more to read after the video).

If I may take the liberty of expounding upon this point as to how a true public servant should act we can look to our Christ. Consider Philippians 2:5-11 for a moment:

⁵Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:
⁶Who, being in very nature God,
did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
⁷but made himself nothing,
taking the very nature of a servant,
being made in human likeness.
⁸And being found in appearance as a man,
he humbled himself
and became obedient to death—
even death on a cross!
⁹Therefore God exalted him to the highest place
and gave him the name that is above every name,
¹⁰that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
¹¹and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.

So we have a God who humbled Himself by coming to enjoy our life in the flesh with us (by experiencing temptation, illness, injury, and ultimately death) so that He would have the pleasure of our fellowship through forgiveness which could ultimately be bought only by the shedding of His blood. How does He prove to us His desire for such fellowship? It is written in John 15:13-15:

¹³Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends. ¹⁴You are my friends if you do what I command. ¹⁵I no longer call you servants, because a servant does not know his master's business. Instead, I have called you friends, for everything that I learned from my Father I have made known to you.

God, who is of a much higher estate than "Senator" Barbara Boxer, allows us to call on Him as our friend and never rubs His power in our face by demanding obeisance. God humbled Himself before us in accordance with His His nature to prove that, "...everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted."

Superhero/Messiah Obama!

For a truly enjoyable experience you really should watch the brilliant embedded video recently published by Jib Jab! Personally, I was happy to see this video not simply because it made fun of the Obamessiah, but because I have the ability to enjoy and support media that pokes fun at the most powerful man in the "free world" without facing repercussions. Meanwhile, my heart aches for the protesters in Iran and their desire to escape from an oppressive regime that allows for the unquestioned murder of its citizens for the purpose of keeping a theocratic government in power. I will not post specifics on the murder of Iranian protester Neda Agha-Sultan on my blog but you may read the condensed version of her life here: < http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-iran-neda23-2009jun23,0,6240992.story?track=rss >. My hope, apart from their obtaining salvation, is that they too would someday have the liberty to make fun of their government. With as bitter as I am towards mine at times I believe that, this side of heaven, humor is one of the most powerful tools used to dispel fear in the absence of God's grace and mercy. Wherever you stand, or sit, politically, or religiously, you will assuredly get a good respite from what concerns you when you watch this video!

Try JibJab Sendables® eCards today!

Home buying as opposed to home making.

I believe it was back in 2004 when I first looked into buying a house for myself. Humorously, I thought that it would be good to "prepare for marriage" by getting myself a house which would provide for the eventuality of a wife and kids. I thought I had a great setup. One of the men at my church was my broker so I trusted him implicitly. After all, he was a Christian!

I learned very well that week that "Christians" are still subject to the same sins of non-Christians. The man spent no time teaching me about the market risks even though I was a first time home buyer. He thrust me into the market and my first offer was made in days with no knowledge or wisdom gained by asking for time to think. On top of that (and perhaps more importantly) I had only recently come to a saving faith in my Savior, Jesus Christ. Upon that fact, I should have realized that I was woefully unprepared to even consider marriage and therefore my motivation for buying a house was one of ignorance!

This man gave me the line that "there is not a better time to buy." I totally agree with his statement now that I realize he stood to gain up to a 3% commission on a $365,000 offer for a 970 sq. ft. house on a piddly plot of land. It would have been a GREAT time for HIM were I to have bought that house! The only reason I didn't get it is that God is gracious and my original offer of the above amount was not enough. I dropped out of the house hunt at that point on the advice of a good friend of mine who showed me how I had been taken advantage of. Certainly, I would have been forced to stay in the Marines had I bought that house only to watch its value tumble to what is probably $225,000 today.

All things considered, I find it absurd that the buyer's broker is given a commission on the total sale of the home. With such a system, a dishonest broker's incentive is to obtain the greatest commission possible at the expense of the buyer he is representing. A writer named "Partyboy" on a San Diego real estate blog I read put it this way:

"...As a seller, someone must scratch their head wondering why they have to pay for someone whose job is to low-ball them and negotiate a lower sale price.

Can you imagine having to go to court and your defense attorney is being paid by the prosecution and the longer the sentence you receive, the more your defense attorney gets paid?"

As a more mature Christian today, I am thankful to see more clearly that the home I will have at the end of all days will be built by Him who paid the price to gain my entrance into that home. The promise is even better than that though because not only has the price for my home been paid, but I have also been given the commission for that transaction as Christ desires to represent Himself through me! My Lord Jesus has no hidden motives or agenda in His relationship with me and He proves it by telling me all truths and calling me "friend."

As James 1:17 states, "Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights, who does not change like shifting shadows."

We have another testimony in Ephesians 1:3 where Paul writes, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ..."

Christ simply gives and expects only that His gift of unconditional love and forgiveness will transform us into creatures that love others in the same fashion. With that heavenly-mindedness, we can bring a taste of what is to come to this sad and broken vessel we inhabit and earth that we currently call home. C.S. Lewis wrote of this long ago in his pondering of heaven and earth:

"Aim at Heaven and you will get Earth thrown in. Aim at Earth and you get neither."

Is church membership a sign of one's salvation?

I have many personal and biblical problems with church membership. I have ultimately come to see it as a way for elders to dominate and define the life of the body of believers who subject themselves to their "rule" and "authority." The result of this in my experience has been an attitude of arrogance on the part of those who have been appointed as over-shepherds as they see themselves as bearers of "the keys of the kingdom" (a convenient biblical misinterpretation) and are thus able to "bind and loose" the conscience of believers. Yet, Christ refused to do the same as we can see at the last supper when He gave to Judas His "body and blood." In the vein of Romans 14, I cannot subject myself to such a system and have thus received a letter, transcribed below, from a congregation I left a year and a half ago. I was a member then and have since asked them to erase my name from the rolls. Here is the letter:

Dear Evan:

We miss you here at Harvest and your expression of love to our Lord and fellow men among us. The purpose of this letter is to urge you to seriously consider your church membership status in the Church of the Lord Jesus Christ. As you know, it has been more than two years since you left Harvest and started attending New Live PCA, Escondido. During this time we have urged you to enter into full fellowship at New Life PCA where we could make the appropriate transfer or issue you a letter of standing. Although we have discussed this very important matter with you on several occasions, it appears that you are no closer to joining New life PCA than the last time we discussed the matter.

In Hebrews 10:24-25 we read, "And let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another; and all the more, as you see the day drawing near." This verse shows us that there is more to this than just attending a church. We are to give careful consideration and forethought to how we will stimulate others to love and good deeds when we meet with our brother and sisters in Christ in order that we might encourage them in their faith and you in your faith. This can only be done when one is committed to a local fellowship and the people in it. Scripture knows of no lone-ranger Christians. All of the Epistles are written to churches or to pastors of churches. In Revelation, Christ speaks directly to His churches -- not just to individuals. Christ loves His church! If we are to be Christ-like, we should too!

Do you want ot be in God's will? Then please be active in and join a local church (e.g. New Life PCA). Certain things in Scripture are clear. When we refuse to obey God in even the most fundamental of areas, we should not expect Him to bless us or guide our way in other less clear areas. Evan, we are afraid that this is where you are right now.

The elders of Harvest have determined to consider your membership status at the June 2009 session meeting. At that time, if we hvae determined that you still have proceeded no further in seeking to join New Life PCA (or another Bible-believing church), we will erase your name from the membership rolls. Evan, we love you and only want to see God's best for you, which we know to be faithful service in Christ's Church in submission to Christ's undershpherds.

Carrie Prejean in review.

I know this blog comes a little bit after the entire Miss USA fiasco about her gay marriage question but I found a really good interview by Miles McPherson of her done in front of The Rock church congregation here in San Diego. She attends the church and speaks very lovingly of homosexuals as though there sin is no worse than different sins of any other person. What is important to her is not that homosexuality is a sin, but rather taking a stand for the righteousness of God that can cleanse us of all our sin. Here is the interview:

http://www.therocksandiego.org/stories/misscalifornia/

How we treat others is a reflection of our relationship with God.

The picture is a painting by Elena Ray called "Healing Waters."

Deuteronomy 30:6
The Lord your God will circumcise your hearts and the hearts of your descendants, so that you may love him with all your heart and with all your soul, and live.

Luke 10:27
Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind'; and, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.'

Psalm 51:1
Have mercy on me, O God, according to your unfailing love; according to your great compassion blot out my transgressions.

The verse from Luke has had the most impact on me recently of all these verses from the Bible. I have to admit that this is mostly because I have not loved my neighbor as I love myself. I do not prove my love for myself by providing for my own needs; I prove it by trusting in God who has provided all things for me and providing for the needs of others in return. In truth, I am not loving God if I do not love my neighbor in such a way and I have been taught this again because of the love of Christ who necessarily came to serve me and not to be served by me.

I stated in my title that, "how we treat others is a reflection of our relationship with God." The practical application of this statement that gave me the wisdom to peer more deeply into Christ's sacrificial love was this: In the home I rent in, the owner (and amazing friend of mine) has many pets such as chickens that I love very much. My afternoon ritual after work has been to enter into their cage and pet them as they all run to congregate around me.

I have repeatedly stated my love for them to many people. But what does love entail when it comes to animals? Scripture gives insight in Proverbs 12:10 when it says to us that, "A righteous man cares for the needs of his animal, but the kindest acts of the wicked are cruel." So how have I provided for the needs of these animals that I often refer to as "ours"? Well, I've occasionally fed them and cleaned out their coop and gathered their eggs, but this has not been a very regular occurrence. When this was brought to my attention the response of my heart was to convince me that I should ignore the chickens when I got home and not visit them so that I would have an excuse not to care for them. The question God posed to me was whether this was a loving response towards creatures that cannot care for themselves. Of course, it was not.

Sin, being what it is, is about as useful as a darkened lighthouse and just as dangerous to those who depend on it to provide comfort. There is no safety in sin. It darkens the heart and leads every area of one's life astray. My response to the principle of loving those chickens was the same response I have been taking in much of my life recently. Instead of being a servant, I have become a taker. I have eaten the food provided for me without giving thanks, washed my laundry and took showers without a thought given to the water and soap costs, and enjoyed the fruit of the labor of my friend, all the while chalking my rent payment up as an equal exchange.

The exchange of money here is not, in itself, a righteous act even if the payment faithfully comes on time. It is the motive behind the exchange that matters. I had withdrawn myself from my friendship under the assumption that I would no longer be responsible for what came with maintaining it. In other words, my relationship with my friend, as with the chickens, had become one motivated not by love and compassion, but by duty and obligation.

While considering this outcome of my heart I began to realize that though I felt like my relationship with God was a good one, my actions were proving to show a completely different reality. Were my life to genuinely reflect the love God has shown to me through Christ I would have given of myself joyfully to care even for lowly creatures such as chickens, not to mention a friend who has repeatedly and happily sacrificed her own well-being at times to provide for my needs.

I'm happy to admit that, because God is a great God who blots out my transgressions and sins, I have again reformed and re prioritized my life to honor Him through my love towards others. Still, my heart is deceitful and though it as well as my thoughts have been illuminated by the light of the Holy Spirit the feeling of love is somewhat absent. This has been good for me however as I believe that God is desiring to show me that love is something that comes even in the absence of feelings. It is something absolutely knowable because it is able to shine even in those times when I don't want to give it. In other words, love is an action of letting go of my desires to bless others even when I don't want to.

God has brought me full circle in this reasoning. I was humbled before Him when He taught me that my feeling of love for Him was false because it was not backed by actions towards my neighbor (or friend in this instance). He is allowing me to understand His love in this moment by allowing the feelings of my heart to catch up with the actions of love that I am called to commit. This ability is not a natural act in the flesh but is only motivated out of thankfulness for the joy that has been set before me in Heaven through Christ who died for my sins. I hope that you also know of this life-giving love (or should I say "love-giving life?).