God's Story

During our lives there are numerous times we call out to God with a prayer. Some do it out of a jest, most others do it out of earnestness especially when they are going through a difficulty they cannot overcome with out him. They pray for guidance and they pray for answers. Most followers of Christ know that God doesn't answer in the time we would like him to, but that His answers always have perfect timing whether we'd like to admit it, or not. Then we see the benefits of waiting, "But they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint." Isaiah 40:31  
     Occasionally there are impatient people that don't like to wait for God's answer and they make a decision out of frustration, which can cause unfortunate consequences. It is my belief that most Christians are guilty of this, heck I've done it myself more times than I care to count. We are human and as Tom Petty famously sang, "The Waiting is the hardest part", this especially applies to when we are hoping to get the answer we want. Or is it the hardest part?

About that...

It's no secret I'm a huge geek. I love science fiction, fantasy, comic book character, etc. When I was young, like a lot of other boys and girls, I fell in love with the original Star Wars trilogy. The story, the light sabers, the force, the toys, Princess Leia. Then nerds around the world got wind that the mighty George Lucas was finally going to make the prequel trilogy. Before we knew the Episode 1 hits theaters! Everyone was stoked, people camped out for tickets, dressed up in full costume at the premier, my brother in-law and sister brought my 9 months old niece to the theater, cats and dogs living together! Mass hysteria! Woo hoo! right? Right?.....Right.....? Anyone? (Audience is silent, man in back row coughs)

No, no, no, no, NO!

 

 

     This was NOT the movie I was looking for. This was not the answer I was looking for after waiting years for this to come out. This was not what I thought had been promised to me as a loyal fan. I thought I did everything right as a fan. I watched all the movies, bought the special edition films, played with the toys, pretend to be Luke Skywalker and Boba Fett and this is what I get? Jar Jar freaking Binks? What!?!

 

     I think you get the picture of what I'm trying to say. Sometimes we have to wait and we deal with it, we do what we think we're suppose to do. Go to church, sing songs, love your neighbors as yourselves, yada yadda yadda. Then God gives you an answer. An answer where you question if anything you did, or all the time you spent praying was even worth it. You may feel like Moses did while he was leading the Israelites through the desert, "If You are going to treat me like this, please kill me right now...[sic].” Numbers 11:15

Pretty rough right? Although, that had more to do with the fact that people were complaining so much to him about only eating Manna and basically asking "Where's the beef?" But still, we feel like that when we get an answer we don't like, or when we think God isn't listening. 

 

     Speaking of complain-y Israelites, that leads me to my next point. They spent a lot of time doing just that, forgetting the fact that God delivered them out of Slavery and had promised them a land that flows with milk and honey. Sometimes we can get blinded by our resentment that it transforms in to something ugly and we start to blame our problems on anything we can get our hands on even if it doesn't make sense. Sometimes we take it out on each other and blame each other for why we can't have the things we asked God for. I remember when the Phantom Menace was released and people were soooo ticked off. Overly ticked off. Yes, Jar Jar Binks was pretty lame, but people crossed the line when they started to blame the entire movie's failure on a 9 year old. Jake Lloyd got so much undue flak over the years just because he wasn't the best 9 year actor on the face of the planet. He was 9 for crying out loud! How about you realize the actual reason the movie stank, for example George Lucas' obsession with special effects and green screens!

 

    Do we have a right to complain about Star Wars? Who's story was is it after all? It was George Lucas' story. He made it they way he wanted to. He "wrote" it the way he wanted it to. We asked him for years to make another trilogy and he teased us for years about making another trilogy until after a long wait he finally did. We had all of these expectations and then we were let down by a lackluster story, but it was still George Lucas' story not ours and it was Just something we had to get over. So I ask again do we really have the right to complain over the prequel series? The short answer to this is yes. That is because you spent all this time, money and energy on waiting for a promise made by a man who people thought would take his fans into consideration and he ultimately didn't. He placed a higher value on what he could do with a computer instead of actors or a story. A story that showed promise 20-30 years ago.

 

    Now, do we have the right to complain about an answer to prayer that we get, which we don't particularly like? After all the time we spent praying, going to church, fasting, being a good person, as if all of those things will guarantee you'll get the answer you want? The answer is a resounding no. Here's why. Once you commit your life to God through Jesus Christ, you forfeit your own story for God's. God is using you to bring His kingdom to the world and His story is better than yours. His story is better than the plans you had for yourself and we need to remember that. We need to remember that God is perfect in all the things that He does, unlike George Lucas who is a human being and falls short just like the rest of us. “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,” declares the Lord  “As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts." Isaiah 55: 8-9

 

     Also people tend to forget that God isn't going to saddle you with an answer you can't handle. People tend to forget that hey, "I can ask God to help me deal with this answer", and that is something that He will definitely do. We complain anyways sometimes, even though the Bible tells us that we should do all things without grumbling. We grumbled so long about Star Wars and this is what George Lucas had to say about more Star Wars movies "Why would I make any more when everybody yells at you all the time and says what a terrible person you are?" , and then he went and sold it to a company people compare to the Empire. Disney.

 

     Could you imagine if we had a God who gave up on us because we complain too much? I don't know if I want to imagine something like that. Thankfully we have a God who gave us a new covenant through His son. Thankfully we have a God who always gives us what we need even if we can't see it at that time. Thankfully we have a God that can carry us through anything. It's difficult waiting sometimes, but just remember the reward. It's hard not to complain about an answer we don't like, but just remember God will give us the grace to handle it. "Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need" Heb 4:16

 

 





Your Scourge, The Casual Gamer.

insertcredit.com

What's that gaming companies? You want me to pay fifteen dollars for each DLC you put out after I paid sixty for the initial game? Please playa I've got bills to pay. Oh and EA/Bioware you want to make SWTOR free but make features super restrictive? Well I don't like you either so eat my shorts. Why am I not level 50 prestige on Black Ops 2? It's probably because I suck at first person shooters. Oh, you're mad that my rotation isn't cranking out the best DPS in this boss fight even though I'm always last to die in a wipe? Well I do have other things to do like spend time with my family so find another Death Knight.

     ^Bitter much? Nah, it's actually the fact that I have zero fudges to give about being a hardcore gamer. It is sublime being in the realm of casual gamer because I can actually do other stuff I deem more important first and then go play a video game if I feel like. Don't get me wrong, I love gaming, it's just not very high on my to-do list. I'm also very, very, picky about the games I do play and often times I pick the games I know I can play or have mechanics I am comfortable with. Why spend too much time trying to learn new mechanics while getting frustrated and dying 7 million times? An argument is that once a person gets the hang of it they can go back and replay. You can take that argument and throw it out the window because it's my sixty bucks and I want to enjoy it right away.

     Plus it's funny to watch leet gamers, and when I say funny I mean fricking hilarious, because often times they're prone to bursts of fury at other gamers, if it's online, or particularly hard levels i.e. "Oh yeah! Cuz that just happened!" It did sir, it did just happen and your anger is comical. Then there are those points in time where, if you are an online gamer, you have a bi-polar guild leader who will yell at everyone for not doing their jobs even though it's probably the leaders own fault, but hey they're the guild leader so why not? I'll tell you why not because casual gamers like myself are perfectly fine going off and farming for crafting, or getting achievements, or pvping. You think we want to spend 2-4 hours going through the Ice Crown Citadel? Nope, but we do it anyways because other members in the guild want the Kingslayer title and they are nice enough to ask(I haven't played since LK).  Anyways I couldn't tell you how much time I spent laughing while the raid leader was freaking out, I always made sure my mic was off though. Another thing I find funny is the looks that I get from some hardcore gamers when I tell them I'm not going get a certain game, or tell them I didn't like a certain game. They range of emotions shown on their faces go from confusion, disgust then to acceptance.
Dude: "Have you played Mass Effect 3 yet?"
Me: "Nope."
Dude: "Are you going to play it?"
Me: "Maybe, but probably not."
Dude: "You're missing a great game, like one of the best in a long time." shakes head.
Me: "That's nice, can I have Tomb Raider now please?"
 
      I'll admit most of these interactions happen at gamestop or wherever I buy a game. Sometimes with an employee or sometimes with another customer. I also admit that I too can get angry with a game, but when I find myself about to reach the limit I just set the controller down and come back later. I couldn't imagine getting so riled up that I throw my controller and bust it to smithereens. Here's the thing, if you find that you have steam coming out of your ears and you are about to smash your third controller please take a deep breath, shut the system off, walk away, find a phone book, look up anger management therapy and promptly make an appointment because your butt has issues. I guess the best way to avoid issues like that is the difficulty mode. I can't speak for all casual gamers, but I always pick the easiest mode there is. Sure it partly has to do with the fact that I suck at playing video games, but at least I can have the best chance to enjoy the game while still playing poorly. Yay me.

     Lastly, the best part of being a casual gamer is sticking it to the man and not getting sucked into DLC. I don't think I have ever heard anything possitive come out of DLC except for Skyrim, good for Bethesda, so why do people keep spending 15 bucks for more game to play? Maybe the studio wanted to include the content in the original package, maybe they have to cover costs, but probably not. They most likely just want our money. Screw that, I'd rather pay the original 60 dollars for the base game than pay an addtional 15 each for 3-4 DLCs that always turn out medocre.

     So if you are a person that brags about your prestige level in your bro-shooter game or you brag about you how many games you have and you beat them all on the most difficult mode, or you're a hardcore raider that spends 3 hours a night raiding to get the best gear, here's what I have to say to you.

But please keep your cell phone turned up. I may need to call you so you can beat a hard part for me.
Cheers.

    
 

Justify My Love

http://www.tumblr.com/tagged/tomb%20raider%202012

     As a Christian we are suppose to be in the world, but not of it, and for me that is one of the hardest things that I struggle with daily. There are things in my everyday life that do not glorify God, or even come close to it. Some people wouldn't think of it, but it is somewhat difficult to be a nerd and a Christian at the same time. A lot of things in the nerd world conflict with the Christian worldview and could even be considered blasphemous.


http://captain-brushpen.deviantart.com/art/Early-experiments

     How do I tell other Christians that one of my favorite video games is one where you are trying to survive on an island while mercilessly killing off enemies who are part of a crazy cult? Did I mention that said cult practices human sacrifice? How do I tell other Christians that my favorite series of books is about private detective who is also a wizard that had a remnant of a demon riding along in his head for a a while? Should I mention that having that demon in his head made him capable of using magic that had a touch of brimstone to it? Or should I mention that his brother is a vampire who has incubus like powers and feeds off of women's "bedroom vibes"?



www.sodhead.com

And how in the world do I justify to other Christians that my favorite weekly television show is about two brothers that go around the country hunting supernatural predators including; Demons, vampires, changelings, ghosts, sometimes angels. Speaking of the angels in this show most of them are d-bags except for one. God is constantly absent and has left a mess basically. Not to mention if the brothers need to summon help or bind a supernatural foe they use occult spells that involve their blood and things that some might think unsavory. It's probably the most blasphemous show on network television in religious terms.

      I've mentioned before in at least two other blog entries that I grew up going to church all of my life and that in the 1980s there was a particular movement by churches to warn us about worldly influences. Church leaders criticized the music industry and Hollywood. Then of course there was the explosion of AIDS and church leaders were quick to say that these diagnoses were the result of living a worldly lifestyle. In part they may have been right back then, but the delivery of such a message was awful. What does that have to do with this blog entry? Well, I think people who started out in that era and have the same interests that I do might have a great sense of conflict within them as a result of past dogmas they've experienced.

     I've come to an age now where I really want to explore my faith and grow in it. Doing so questions have arisen like "Are these interests helping me or hindering me?" and "Are people going to consider me a hypocrite for talking about God to them and finding out I like Harry Potter?" I admit that while searching for Bible verses to help me with this dilemma I didn't find what I hoped for initially. What I did find farther down the list was verses about loving your neighbor and treating them with kindness and showing Christ's love for them. I want to be a beacon for others to lead them to God, but I have to remember that too much piety is a downfall. Nobody likes someone with a "holier than thou" attitude, it is often a turn off. I also remembered that I in fact am a human being who is not perfect. So of course I want to be a beacon, but I also want to relate to others so that they can relate to me in a sense where I could possibly draw them in and share my faith with them.

www.thefilteredlens.com

     I also feel a strong sense of duty to fight against the stereotypes of Christians have been given(through no fault of our own sometimes) so that we can have a better chance to witness to others. I remember at the beginning of the new millennium everyone was nuts for Harry Potter and they were excited for the first film to come out. There were Christians that came out of the woodwork right away and condemned the film because of the subject of magic/witchcraft and I admit I was one of them. I was all Evil This and Evil That, but then one of my friends who also happened to be a Christian said that I should actually read the book or see the movie to at least give it a chance. I pretty much immediately fell in love with it. I was an idiot to judge it especially after reading the whole series and realizing that the magic is secondary to the actual story. That's when I realized using that kind of judgement while practicing Christianity can be a poison and can hurt your work with God. Oswald Chambers author of "My Utmost for His Highest" says that every way we serve God hurts him. Ouch! When I read that it shocked me. So you can imagine how much it hurts God by judging others when it is not our place.

     By then it was to late for me anyways. I was already a fan of Star Wars, Star Trek, The Sword of Truth Series by Terry Goodkind, The Lord of the Rings(of course), The Chronicles of Narnia, and a huge fan of Indiana Jones. They had cemented my interests in the nerd world and they had all given me stories and characters to love. So, I don't have to justify the fact that my favorite literary hero is a wizard P.I. with an unshakable moral center. I don't have to justify to others that my favorite weekly show is about how strong the bonds of family are between two brothers. Other's don't have to justify to me loving a masterfully written story about a boy wizard who does all he can to stop the forces of evil and to do the right thing, not just the proper thing. God gave us brains did he not? So why not use your imagination which is a result of having a brain. Another thing, I am an adult, I know how to separate reality from fantasy. In the eighties and nineties some preachers were worried about the effects some shows and books would have on our children, but if one is a parent it is that person's responsibility to teach the difference from what is fact and what is fiction.

    If you are a Christian and are feeling conflicted than maybe there is a deeper issue. Maybe the Holy Spirit is knocking at your door and asking where you have been. Are you seeking the Kingdom of God first? After all the Bible says that you cannot serve two masters. After you put God first, and fully commit to keep him first, than hopefully all of those tensions will ease. You'll remember there is only one Judge instead of worrying about what others might think. You'll remember that He has loved you with an everlasting love. You'll remember that God made you an individual. He gave you a soul, He gave you a brain and He gave you an imagination so don't be afraid to accept it. Live long and prosper!

 

    

    



 

Marriage Equality

Source: https://twitter.com/MEUSA

     I've been reading the Bible a lot lately and when I say a lot I mean it. As a Christian that is important to me just like it is to most Christians. There is something else that is important to me as a Christian and that is marriage.

     When my wife and I got married, almost 3 years ago, we had the ceremony outside and her Grandfather, who is a Pentecostal pastor, presided over it. We both believe that God is an important foundation to a marriage and we can stay strong as long as we keep him first. Even though it is a constant struggle to keep God first we are doing are best to make it happen.

     As an American and as a Christian I also hold the belief that the founding of this nation was built upon Christian principles inspired by God with through the Bible. There are other things though that the founding fathers did when drafting the Constitution/Bill of Rights to establish what kind of country we could have. After walking out of the last meeting a woman asked Benjamin Franklin what all those men in the meeting hall gave her, he was quoted to say "A Republic ma'am, if you can keep it." Contrary to popular belief the USA was founded as a Republic and not a Democracy like so many people shout these days. They are almost the same, but they are different in a big way.
    
     Let's look at the definition of a republic: That form of government in which the powers of sovereignty are vested in the people and are exercised by the people, either directly, or through representatives chosen by the people, to whom those powers are specially delegated. [NOTE: The word "people" may be either plural or singular. In a republic the group only has advisory powers; the sovereign individual is free to reject the majority group-think. USA/exception: if 100% of a jury convicts, then the individual loses sovereignty and is subject to group-think as in a democracy.]
    
     Now let's look at the definition of a democracy: That form of government in which the sovereign power resides in and is exercised by the whole body of free citizens directly or indirectly through a system of representation, as distinguished from a monarchy, aristocracy, or oligarchy. [NOTE: In a pure democracy, 51% beats 49%. In other words, the minority has no rights. The minority only has those privileges granted by the dictatorship of the majority.](Sourced 1*)
        
      The founding fathers set up a republic to protect the rights of the minority along with the majority. If this were a true democracy than we wouldn't have very much freedom at all because we would base all decisions on mob rule. Thankfully we don't have that and thankfully we have a system of checks and balances, unless you're the media. Unfortunately it seems we haven't as a country come to terms with what we are. The LGBT community is protected by the laws our founding fathers set up whether those laws are inspired by God, or not.         

     This is difficult for some Christians to deal with because we have a Holy book that guides our morals, hearts and minds. To be frank there are some parts of the Bible that aren't kind to homosexuality, particularly in the Old Testament, but there are a few in the New Testament as well. The good thing about the New Testament is that God sent his only son Jesus to die for our sins. During the life of Jesus he taught us a lot of things, mostly about how to love one another and how to bring the Kingdom of God to the Earth. He also had some harsh things to say about judging others like this: "Judge not, that you be not judged. For with the judgment you pronounce you will be judged, and with the measure you use it will be measured to you. Why do you see the speck that is in your brother's eye, but do not notice the log that is in your own eye? Or how can you say to your brother, ‘Let me take the speck out of your eye,’ when there is the log in your own eye? You hypocrite, first take the log out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother's eye. ..." Matthew 7:1-6         
    
      There are still lots of Christians that still go around and do this anyway, we are not perfect, but we need to understand that not everyone is Christian in the United States and even if most of us are we still have laws that protect the minority even if it's protecting them from our beliefs. We get so concerned with running around and telling people how to live their lives that we forget that maybe we should show people how to live their lives. Actions speak louder than words after all. If you are worried about someones soul than by God pray for them and remember this: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life." John 3:16     

      If you come across someone who doesn't believe the same thing as you and you start to feel all judge-y than remember this "And just as it is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment," Hebrews 9:27.  It's not our true job to judge, but to spread the kingdom of God to others. I'm not not saying I agree or disagree with gay marriage, in fact I think that physical acts of love in homosexuality are icky, but that's their problem not mine. I guess what I'm trying to say is that if you believe it is wrong, than that's fine, but if you think that you can go out and condemn and try to support your belief based on your religion, in a legal manner, than you're going to have a bad time. That is because of our Republic and how it protects minority groups from mob rule. And as of late, no matter how important we Christians want to protect our way of marriage, we have been acting a lot like a mob. Especially when it comes to our anger or lack of understanding getting the better of us.

     This was difficult for me to write. You can't just pick and choose what you want to believe in the Bible, it's not a menu. I'm not coming out in support for anything or legally denying anything. I don't want to shove my beliefs down anyones throat, nor would I want someone to do the same to me. I know straight, gay, and bi-sexual and sometimes I don't agree with any of them on their lifestyles or choices. In the end it is between them and God and my duty is to offer them love, prayer, and the word of God if in private or when they ask. I'll continue to pray for God's will on this issue and our country, we cannot begin to know what it is, but we have to be accepting of it when His will is upon us.


Source 1: http://www.1215.org/lawnotes/lawnotes/repvsdem.htm