I Am Enough!

Luke 12:22-31 - And he said to his disciples, "Therefore I tell you, do not be anxious about your life, what you will eat, nor about your body, what you will put on. For life is more than food, and the body more than clothing. Consider the ravens: they neither sow nor reap, they have neither storehouse nor barn, and yet God feeds them. Of how much more value are you than the birds! And which of you by being anxious can add a single hour to his span of life? I then you are not able to do as small a thing as that, why are you anxious about the rest? Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. But if God so clothes the grass, which is alive in the field today, and tomorrow is thrown into the oven, how much more will he clothe you, O you of little faith! And do not seek what you are to eat and what you are to drink, nor be worried. For all the nations of the world seek after these things, and your Father knows that you need them. Instead, seek his kingdom, and these things will be added to you."

Luke 12:31 - But seek his kingdom, and these things will be given to you as well.

John 16:33 - "I have said these things to you, that in me you may have peace. In the world you will have tribulation. But take heart; I have overcome the world."

Dear God, I being You my worries today. I am worried because November is still so far away and there are still people who threaten to take away my insurance and my healthcare over there hatred for the president, and they claim to be Christians. Well, I do not need that. My family does not need that. We do not need DeMarco or someone else coming in and hurting us like that. For the first time in my life, I have REAL insurance that is actually doing what insurance is supposed to do and saving my family money on healthcare that I need. For the first time in a long time, it might be possible that my family might be able to pay off some debts so that we can move toward saving what we are able to in order to get hearing aids for me, make long overdue home repairs, and maybe even go on a long overdue vacation. And that is awesome. Second, people keep misusing the scripture in defense of trying to hurt people who need SNAP to help them buy food. They keep saying Jesus said the words or they keep misquoting it by saying that a person who does not work should not eat or worse they keep adding to it citing some quote about teaching a man to fish which is not even in the Bible! But what Your word say is if a man is not willing to work, he should not eat. Big difference there. Many SNAP recipients are elderly (too old to work), disabled (cannot mentally or physically handle work), veterans (already worked for this country), working poor (working but just cannot make ends meet because their jobs are not paying the living wage that minimum wage was designed to be), or active duty military families (already working the job the veterans did by serving the country). That being said, there might be a few individuals on SNAP who are just unwilling to work, but under all due circumstances, I highly doubt that. Now on to the next attack being made: the entitlement mentality. Some doctor from Stanford has decided that being poor and on SNAP means someone is obese and should not be able to buy soda or snacks. He is apparently very close-minded and has not actually made observations that are connected to reality. You see, I have evidence that the opposite is true as well. Here in Alabama, there are more fat rich people than there are poor fat people. How do I know? Because all I have to is go up the road a but and walk into Wal-mart. Obesity ranks high in Alabama, and being rich or poor is not a factor. What factors in for the state of Alabama is all the fried junk people eat as well as all the products containing high fructose corn syrup. Instead of attacking the poor like that doctor from Stanford did and instead of making a discriminatory restriction on them buying it every now and then, what needs to happen is a lowering of costs for healthy foods, a removal of tax on all groceries in all 50 states, and then a special tax levied on products containing high fructose corn syrup which has already been proposed as a measure to fight back against obesity. And yes, if that tax was imposed, people would be surprised to learn what all contains that ingredient that is making everyone, rich and poor, fat. Everything from the obvious soda, to salad dressing to BBQ sauce to some "juices," and even some canned fruit?! You see, I have seen things and I have observed things, and I know for a fact that a lot more than wealth and types of food or drink plays into obesity. Genetics, thyroid problems, metabolism issues, hormones, and even someone being depressed. Instead of targeting the poor, which is what discrimination does, target the ingredient that has been proven time and again to be the culprit. If a ban or restriction is good enough for one set of people, then it is good enough for 100% of the population. Better yet, why don't people learn how to just check themselves before judging others that they do not know? And some people are claiming they see the abuses, yet if they see it happening, then why they aren't reporting it? They are just as culpable as the abuser if they see it but fail to report it. Frankly, I am the person that I do not care what a person buys or what is in their shopping cart and I do not care how they pay for it because it is not my business to know any of that. How does a poor person have a Mercedes or a BMW? Maybe their clunker is the shop for the thousandth time and the rental place gave them that car. Or maybe a friend or family member loaned it to them. Who does a poor person have an iPhone or an iPad or an iPod? Maybe they got it as a gift or maybe they got it on sale (iPhones can be acquired for as little as $39 or $49 at Wal-mart on that pay as you go phone thing and for $99 with a 2-year agreement). How do they have Coach handbags? Thrift store, gift, yard sale? But they wear Nike! Gift, yard sale, thrift store, consignment shop? People are judging what they see, but they do not have the full story. They assume that all people of certain races are poor. Oh look, a black woman with three young ones just got a cart full of groceries using a card and just got into an expensive car outside of Wal-mart looking like luxury! For all we know she is married to a doctor or lawyer, she comes from a rich household, and that card she used was a standard VISA or MasterCard. Oh look, a white person just bought a cart full of stuff and got into a Mercedes after using a card! She was wearing a nice manicure and pedicure and nice clothing! She may be the wife of a doctor or prominent lawyer and her card was also a VISA or MasterCard! I do not know how many states still have actual food stamps, but I do know that most have switched to EBT cards in order to remove the stigmas and save time at the stores. And we cannot judge based on appearances. The last time I judged on appearances, I ended up with a movie I could not watch because there were too many curse words on it. Lesson learned. Now I am just judging whether clothing is appropriate to wear in public. And many things out there are not. And I am baffled as to why someone would buy something already destroyed. One last thought. The abbuse of the second amendment to justify guns in the hands of the general populace. The amendment starts by saying a well-regulated militia. It ends with the right to bear arms. Well-regulated means organized. A militia is an organized group of people with a single purpose in mind. And arms is weaponry, not to necessarily mean guns. The general populace is not organized. Therefore, the general populace is not supposed to bear arms. The arms they were writing about at the time the amendment was written were not high powered multi-shot guns. They were muskets that had to be reloaded a lot. Guns today are designed to kill. People with guns kill. Therefore, guns kill. I said my reasoning was due to autism. Someone corrected me and said it was due to being logical. Either way. Anyway God, I just wanted to lay out some thoughts that have troubled me and even angered me this week. And maybe if someone happens on these thoughts, they may even learn something important. Thank You. In Jesus' Name, Amen!

Seeking Perfection

Exodus 20:3 - You shall have no other gods before me.

Psalm 37:4 - Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart.

Dear God, no other gods. Money is a god for some people. I think it is a god for most republicans. They have it. Others don't. Because money has become their god, they treat those who don't like they are not even people but objects. That is what they do when they threaten to take healthcare from people or when they threaten to discriminate against people who receive SNAP by trying to dictate what they can and cannot eat or drink when the real culprit is one ingredient: high fructose corn syrup, and the reality is that there are more fat rich people than there are poor fat people. And in the south, it is more of a problem of the obsession with fried foods. But this belittling of the poor and judgment of the poor whether it comes to trying to dictate what they can and cannot buy because they assume there is "rampant" fraud - I am pretty sure that less than one percent fraud is nowhere near rampant because rampant means widespread and there is more fraud in congress than in SNAP or Social Security combined! - or whether it is trying to deny healthcare to people just because they are poor (congress keeps trying to repeal the ACA or Bentley is blocking Medicaid expansion which is forcing hospitals in rural communities to shut down in Alabama because they can no longer handle the financial burden of the uninsured poor) has become their god. Duck Dynasty guy was telling the republicans to get more godly, and now I understand what he means. The anti-abortion and anti-homosexuality fixation they have developed alongside the anti-poor and hate the president mentality they have has become their god. Money has become their god. They get paid $174,000 per year and yet they do nothing for the people anymore. They even shut down the government because of their sick obsession with trying to keep people from gaining access to affordable healthcare. They have it, so why shouldn't everyone else? Not every job provides insurance. And insurance used to illegally discriminate against people. Now they want government to discriminate against people who receive SNAP by dictating what they can and cannot buy when there are already restrictions in place. Discrimination - denying a group of people something others can have for some reason. Insurance used to deny people with pre-exciting conditions. Many places still discriminate against the disabled. Many of the pre-existing conditions can be disabling. Places used to discriminate against people of color and some places still do. If banning the purchase of soda is good enough for people who get SNAP, then they must ban purchase of soda for ALL of the people, or else it is called discrimination. Instead of a ban on purchasing it with SNAP, they need to ban HFCS which has banned in other countries already, is no longer needed, and is more directly tied to obesity and diabetes than anything else. Don't believe me? Do some research about when it became the main ingredient in sodas and when fast food restaurants began showing up on every corner. You also will find that that is around the time girls entered puberty earlier and earlier. Another thing to consider is that the cost of healthy foods needs to be brought down in price and grocery tax needs to be repealed in all states with the exception of the proposal to tax products containing HFCS. The ban of HFCS or the special grocery tax on products containing HFCS will go further and be more effective than dictating what SNAP recipients can and cannot buy which then has to be a sweeping restriction on all of the people to prevent illegal discrimination. Look, God, I know You already know these things, but Bentley and DeMarco and that Palmer guy they said will be in some runoff do not seem to get it. Another god? Guns. They are obsessed with guns to the extent that some idiot actually tried to carry his (more like flaunt it) into a church that was serving as a polling place. All the polling places are subject to federal guidelines which prohibit guns or any other weapon. The church does and maintains business on a daily basis and I believe offers childcare and it is private property. The man was disrespectful and arrogant. Now he is threatening to do it again, which I hope police will just take action at that point because if he wants to break the state law and the local law, then he should have to deal with the consequences. But they are so obsessed, I have seen people claim that it is a "God-given right." When asked to point to where it says it is his God-given right in the Bible, he said it isn't in the Bible. So I said, well then it isn't your God-given right; it is a man-made right, and not even one intended for the general populace. But it is my God-given right to live and have food and healthcare if I am sick and to be treated with respect with dignity. After considering a lot of things from the past few days, I now know why Christians should not be involved in government. As congressmen or senators though. One of them is out on the radio saying if he wins, he will impose his religion and his beliefs on everyone. Well, that is a violation of the First Amendment. Little wonder why America is so messed up right now. They lost focus and their moral compass has shifted too far into legalism. And that is what the Pharisees did. When a pope who exemplifies what Jesus did while on earth actually commends the president for his efforts to help the poor in regards to access to food and healthcare, you know he must doing something right. When the pope actually criticizes what congress is doing, you know they are doing something wrong. I am not even catholic, but even I like what the pope is doing! By the way, if Bentley or DeMarco happen on this, I do not care how good a Christian you claim to be but if you block access or take away access to healthcare from someone because you hate the president so much, then you are not a Christian because a true Christian would not do that. Matthew 25:31-46 and Romans 13:1-7 guys. As long you disrespect the president, you disrespect God. And I do not support anyone who disrespects the president of the country my mother and my ancestors served. Furthermore, DeMarco, if you hate the president so much and have no intention of actually working with the president who will basically be your boss in D.C., then why are you even bothering to run? If I went to apply for a job with your attitude, I would not be hired. Period. God, five more months until November. Give me peace and comfort and most of all wisdom. I am now finally gaining understanding of what some of those lessons I have been taught actually mean! Now if Tom would just exemplify You and seek restoration with me like You say he is supposed to have done to start with. Sigh. God, thank. You for lessons learned and revelations of Yourself. In Jesus' Name, Amen!

Duck Dynasty and Other Religious Leaders Calling on Republicans to Stop the Immorality

I saw two articles just yesterday. Both struck me as quite interesting. One was headlined about the main guy fro Duck Dynasty calling on the republicans to get godly and the other was about some of the more evangelical pastors from a variety of places on a conference call during which they all said the same thing regarding the need to expand Medicaid and stop trying to repeal the ACA. I told my mother that things were getting interesting when those things happen because it means the moral compass of the republicans has gone off the wrong end. Look, just because they do not like abortiions or homosexuality, that should not be the reasons they need to hyperfocus and destroy America overall. As Kirk acameron said recently, churches are too hyperfocused on homosexuality and not focusing enough on the other types of sexual immorality, like adultery or premarital sex or divorce. And for that matter, some Christians are too hyperfocused on abortion. Do ACA compliant insurance policies allow abortion? In many cases, no, except when the life of the mother is endangered. Just the other day, I read an article about a Christian doctor who does perform abortions. Why? As he put it, some of the women coming to him are quite desperate. They are poor and young. And they feel they have no other choice. I shared the article and explained that people need to read it before they judge him. Here is why I have a problem with the hyperfocus on abortion:

1. Christians who hyperfocus on abortion are also judging women who seek abortions rather than taking in consideration the reasons why they seek abortions and addressing those problems. Until we address those problems, be it tightening up and increasing SNAP benefits or raising the minimum wage (1938 law established this to be a LIVING WAGE) or making sure the women have insurance which involves tightening up and strengthening the ACA rather than fighting against it, these women will continue to seek out abortions no matter how many laws the republicans pass trying to outlaw them again.

2. Christians who hyperfocus on abortion are thing to add words to God's words. Where on Matthew 25:31-46 does it say that the least of these includes the unborn? Nowhere. Though I am unclear of ALL the reasons as to why that might be, I will say this as a warning. DO NOT ADD WORDS TO ANY PART OF THE BIBLE. If the words are not explicitly there, then they are not there. Adding to the Bible by twisting it to suit your own way of thinking is a sin. And it is often called legalism. Abortion might be classified as murder and that is already addressed in the Bible. But it still does not make it right for you to judge the woman who seeks out abortion or assume that the unborn are the least of these when the unborn are not included in that passage. But they hyperfocus on that so much they lose their compassion to those who are mentioned as evidenced by the fact that the republicans just cut benefits to veterans (while claiming they are patriotic) many of whom are sick and poor, they cut benefits to SNAP and have now even started requiring the poor to pee in cups before they can get help (many SNAP recipients are poor, hungry, disabled, elderly, and veterans and yes, even active duty military), they keep trying to take away insurance and access to healthcare (impacts the sick and the poor), and well, basically, their moral compass is off.

3. Christians who hyperfocus on either abortion or homosexuality tend to be small-minded and judgmental. Note: I said TEND TO BE. They also tend to always argue and start conflicts. 

So my stance going into the primaries this year is still on the premise of Matthew 25:31-46. In my district 6 which is hotly contested, Mathis, Brooks, DeMarco, and the rest of the republicans have failed the litmus test. Do they have the best interest of the sick in mind? No. They have each said they plan to fight Obama and repeal the ACA. They do not and will not represent me and they are being disobedient to God on this because they are hateful men. Romans 13 says we are to respect our elected leaders whom God appointed. And they have no respect whatsoever if all they are going to do is fight against the president when their job is supposed to be to work with the president in the first place. If they are not going to do the job they are supposed to do, then they should not even be running! That is like a teacher saying, okay, just give me a classroom but I will not teach the students anything or a brain surgeon saying, okay, give me an operating room, but I will not do surgery on the brain as I am supposed to, instead, I will do surgery on the foot. Same logic. When someone come a into wanting a job saying they are not going to do the job they are supposed to do, they do not get hired. When someone who has that mindset somehow gets the job anyway, but then does not do their job, they get fired. 

This is a call on all Alabama District 6, Shelby county residents. If you are seriously considering voting for any of the republican candidates but you are a Christian, you need to STOP! And think through everything I have said. If you fail, you not only let God down, but you assault Jesus, and you are equally guilty when someone who still needs insurance dies or when someone who has new insurance because of the ACA dies because they lose their insurance after all the fights to make sure they can get it and keep it. Do not make their fight futile because of your small-mindedness. 

1. I do not condone the homosexual lifestyle. I do consider it a sin along with adultery and premarital sex.

2. I do not like abortions. But it is not my place to judge the woman who seeks one. In our particular country, we have a party of old, rich, narcissistic, sexist pigs who keep trying to block access to birth control and access to food for the hungry and poor and access to healthcare. Some of these women cannot get healthcare because they have no resources to do so. Their pregnancies could have been prevented, but because they could not afford to see the doctor, they could not get birth control. Because they have no resources, they cannot feed the baby once it is born. And all those pigs care about is forcing the woman to carry a baby she cannot care for and did not plan on but then the baby and the mother will not have food or healthcare after it comes out anyway. Yet they say they are pro life when they are only pro birth. 

3. I hate guns. And yes, I know I did not mention this in this post before, but I have already written about the latest killing. I am not saying that they need to ban them, but they sure need tighter controls and restrictions on them. In the latest killing, that would not have prevented the knives, but limiting legal access to guns could have helped some. However, here is my trade off republicans: You can keep your guns, but only if I can keep my insurance and my healthcare (thank you ACA). Because here's the thing, all insurances under the ACA cover mental health treatment! Want to prevent another incident? Stop wasting tax dollars trying to repeal the ACA! Or maybe we need to have everyone who is trying to repeal it evaluated for mental illnesses? 

4. And if I ever go into politics myself, I will be cleaning up the entire system! No mudslinging, no lies, no pork in the budgets, no nonsense, and no whiny brats throwing temper tantrums that end up hurting veterans, elderly, disabled, sick or poor. Watch out America. I may end up being the first ever autistic president or vice president. And I will not take the nonsense.

--Signed a convert from republican who is still republican at heart, but cannot morally or biblically elect the new republicans because they violate too much of scripture