Untangling the Knots

Psalm 34:19 - Many are the afflictions of the righteous, but the Lord delivers him out of them all.

Isaiah 41:8-10 - But you, Israel, my servant, Jacob, whom I have chosen, the offspring of Abraham, my friend; you whom I took from the ends of the earth, and called from its farthest corners, saying to you, "You are my servant, I have chosen you and not cast you off"; fear not, for I am with you; be not dismayed, for it am your God; I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

Zephaniah 3:17 - The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; he will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you with by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.

Dear God, please untangle the knots that gather in my mind. The worries, the fears, the anxieties. My biggest worry right now being these republican candidates who are making me worried that I will lose my healthcare insurance. I thought that the worry would be over after the last election, but they just will not let go of their stupid hatefulness toward the president. They are being hateful so they are trying to hurt everyone because of it. They do not listen. There are a whole lot of people in Alabama who have already been helped because of the ACA. More would have been helped if the stupid governor would not have blocked the expansion, but he flat out made it known that he would not expand because he does not like the president. Most of them are rich and white, too. But the thing that really makes it messed up? They are all claiming to be good Christians. Right.... So let me get this straight. Six rich, white men vying for one position for the Republican Party and they are all such good Christians that they hate the president and hate the poor and hate the disabled enough to destroy their lives by taking away their healthcare insurance? Hmmm..... What would Jesus do? Jesus would separate them into the goats because they did not take care of the least of these. I fought hard for the past eight years to get changes to the insurance industry, to get rid of the discrimination, to get rid of the worry that I would lose my insurance if I got sick again. The law fixed that. When Romney was campaigning and threatening to take away the very thing he already implemented in his state, that's right the ACA is a republican concept to start with and they are just mad because they are not the ones who had their rich, white guy win in order to pass it, I prayed through Matthew 25:31-46 because it was so personal and relevant for my life. I prayed the following before elections: "God, which of these candidates best exemplifies what You are saying in this passage?" And it went like this (based on Bob Flayhart's S.W.O.O.P. sermon given October 2012): Does this candidate best exemplify what it means to take care of the a)hungry, b)thirsty, c)stranger, d)naked, e)sick, and f)imprisoned? The questions ran straight through what is listed exactly as listed in that passage. Now some people want to twist that and say, "what about the unborn?" Do you see the unborn in that passage? Although I agree to some extent that the baby is a baby at conception, I do not agree that a baby can be oppressed because a baby is not a separate human being until they are born. During the nine months in the womb, the baby is protected. Unless something happens to go wrong otherwise. The extent of oppression to a baby in the womb is if the mother cannot carry full term for a variety of reasons. Because it is not listed in this passage and really not actually mentioned in the Bible except by assuming that it could possibly be deemed murder, but then what is it considered if the woman miscarried or has stillbirth at full term, it might be considered a grey area that would be legalistic to assert. But the unborn are not considered to be one of the least of these. Jesus was addressing the oppression of people who are alive but being mistreated. So let us just immediately look back at the list and cross unborn off. Period. It is not in the list. We are not adding words to God's words. Period. That is not something we are allowed to do. Going back to the list: Do any of the six republican candidates for my district exemplify taking care of the hungry? They have not addressed their viewpoints regarding SNAP, but chances are if they are republican then they support the cuts that Paul Ryan proposed. These cuts affect not only the poor, but the disabled, the veterans, the elderly, the working families, and even active duty families. So no. Do any of the six republican candidates for my district exemplify taking care of the thirsty? Same logic. Do any of the six republican candidates for my district exemplify taking care of the stranger? No. I am a stranger and they are not taking care of me with their tired old rhetoric of hate. Do any of the republican candidates for my district exemplify taking care of the naked? Probably not. Do any of the republican candidates for my district exemplify taking care of the sick? Well, I have a solid answer for that. NO! They are threatening to repeal the ACA which helps the sick obtain, secure, and keep insurance which is their ticket to having the same affordable access to healthcare that another law says they have the right to. The Americans with Disabilities Act says that a person covered by the ADA has the right to the same affordable healthcare that their non-disabled peers have. Well, they do not have equal access when insurance is allowed to charge them more, drop them, or deny them. The ACA got rid of the inequality and now these candidates want to take that away. Again. Still. They do not exemplify taking care of the sick! Mathis, Brooks, DeMarco, etc. Insert whatever republican name here. Do the republican candidates for my district exemplify taking care of the imprisoned? Depends on exactly whom Jesus was referring to, but since the original text states "when I was in prison," I will assume an actual prisoner in jail and not someone who is imprisoned by their unbelief or their body. I truly do not know. At any rate, at the first solid no answer, I might not continue to the question because as soon as you get a solid no, it is pretty obvious the correct choice is anyone other than whom you are asking about. I asked these questions about Romney and got a solid no at the first question. But I went ahead and gave benefit of the doubt and asked each question about him. My results for Romney were: no, no, no, no, no, and no. Why? Because of his 48% comment which gave a clear enough picture that even evangelical pastors preached sermons stating that conservatives who held that attitude needed to repent. Do you know who falls in the 48% of people who do not pay taxes? 1. Veterans do not pay taxes on their benefits that they earned. But many of them are also on SNAP, SSDI or SSI, and some of them also work which is where they do pay taxes. 2. Elderly retired people. 3. Disabled people who either get SSI or SSDI after a lot of denials and attorneys and court cases in front of judges that may or may not understand their disabilities. But even some of these work at least part time and pay taxes. 4. Children. 5. Middle class people with children. 6. This who make less than $4000 a year. 7. College students. Some of them work though, so again, they pay taxes unless it is a workstudy job. 8. Contract labor. Unless they make over $4000 a year. 9. Rich people who hide their money in overseas bank accounts. 10. Rich people who can afford to give to all kinds of charities thereby effectually writing off their tax obligation. When I asked the same questions of Obama, I got: yes, yes, yes, yes, yes, and I don't know. Look, to each his or her own when it comes to elections, but I would want to caution anyone voting for a candidate that attains a solid no at any point about the guilt by association? Could you be pushed into the goatherd? If you support a candidate who might be sorted into the goats because they are not taking care of any one of the categories of the least of these, could you also be sorted into the goats? Frankly, that is not something I want to find out. So I will not support any of them. I think they are immoral, and I know they are unethical. So anyway, God, that is my biggest worry laid out with how I overcome some of the stress of it. But God, I need You to help me untangle the rest. Thank You. In Jesus' Name, Amen!

Your Amazing Mind

Genesis 1:26-27 - Then God said, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness. And let them have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over the livestock and over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth." So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.

Romans 8:6 - To set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.

Dear God, You created each and every one of us in Your image. That is why when someone, anyone, whether a Christian or not, abuses or bullies or hurts or mistreats someone else in any way, shape, or form, it is an assault on You. So when people disrespect the president, they disrespect You because You created him. When Tom and the leadership at his church abused and bullied me for having autism, they abused You. I gladly trade You any of the not good thoughts that lead to anger, doubt, and rebellion for the love, faith, and peace You offer. That is why I want to exercise a measure of grace beyond my human strength to seek reconciliation and restoration with Tom and maybe even with his church. Stir them for the good things ahead and teach them how to love as You love and show grace as You show grace. When You allowed Your Son to die on that cross, that was a HUGE amount of grace on display, God. And we should all be willing to do just that if called upon to do so. Otherwise, the world will never see Your goodness and Your kindness or experience Your love as today's "Christians" become more resentful and hateful and bitter and selfish. Today's "Chrisitans" are in favor of stripping people of their right to have affordable healthcare via insurance, SNAP so they have food to eat, disability benefits that they need if they are disabled and unable to hold jobs, veteran's healthcare, Medicaid for the poor and the disabled, WIC for the women and their children to have food and basic essentials for the babies they want to force the women to have, and Pell grants which help college age students afford college so they can learn marketable skills in order to hopefully get a job. Instead today's "Christians" are acting out of the LOVE of money which is the root of all evil. They have forgotten You and. Your Words in favor of "protecting the Constituiton." Wait a minute. The Tea Party extremists of the Republican Party are more interested in protecting the Constitution than in protecting and defending Your Word while they claim to be Christians? That is what is wrong with them! They have misplaced the priority. NOTHING IS MORE VALUABLE AND DESERVING OF PROTECTION THAN YOUR WORD-THE BIBLE. The Bible is a roadmap for life, an instruction manual for life. It was written by You through the hands of men whom You breathed Your words through. The Constitution was written by men as well, but it was not Your doing. Thank You God for giving me a mind that can think and reason. While I do not know what my furbabies think, and I know they do, I am appreciative of the stretched mind that You have given me. Autism and all. In Jesus' Name, Amen!

Using Matthew 25 in Election Years

So, I have a confession. And to make this confession, I have to rewind to when I first came of age to vote. When I came of age, I was eager to register to vote. Why not? It is a rite of passage. Only one problem! I was young and naive and had no clue about the issues or why it should matter. At that time, I was in a Southern Baptist church and I thought I had to vote republican because that is what the church believed. So I voted for Bush. And it turned out to be some of the worst years I have ever seen for this country and my family. Constant struggles. People losing jobs left and right. People losing homes. People going broke for lack of health insurance. Hospitals becoming profit-driven instead of charity-based. Healthcare becoming more of a business than a service. I wrote countless e-mails to the president. Response: We'll fix it. We'll fix it. By the time the elections in 2008 came around, things were at their worst yet and still nothing had been done to fix anything. 

In 2008, two main candidates came up: Senator John McCain and Senator Barack Obama. Well, here is my confession. 1. I voted for McCain. He proposed the Affordable Care Act which was the answer I was looking for regarding the mess of insurance. He was republican. And I was supposed to vote republican if I am a Christian, right? 2. I figured Obama couldn't win because Amerrica wasn't ready for a black president. 

Well, guess what? Obama won. And guess what else? He passed the very same Affordable Care Act that McCain promised he was going to pass! And guess what else? The republicans let me down big time. The uprising of the tea party whose main mission was to obstruct anything and everything the black man in the president's office tried to accomplish no matter how good or right for the country it is or was ruined the Republican Party for me once and for all.

Here is what I have observed about the tea party:

They tend to be hateful extremists and they do it in the name of Jesus. They have distorted what the Bible says and they have criminalizes the poor, the sick, the hungry, children, the elderly, the disabled, and even the veterans. Just today alone, I saw them asserting that if a person doesn't pay taxes, then they should have no rights. Well, here is my response: IF they truly believe that, then they need to leave America right now and take their ungrateful butts elsewhere because many veterans do not pay taxes because as soon as they are done serving our country, many of them end up with no jobs, no homes, and very little income at all which is why they do not pay taxes. And disabled people are the same way. Matter of fact, until the ABLE Act passes, disabled people are kept in a state of low income because the ones who are lucky enough to get a job can only work part time if they need their benefits. And on top of that, between benefits and work, they cannot exceed $4000 in assets a year. But by the logic of the tea party comments I saw today, the disabled people and the veterans should have NO rights because they don't pay taxes. Right? 

Do you know what is happening? I used to be republican until the tea party extremists came along. And when Romney came along spreading his venomous vitriol around, I heard a great sermon issued called SWOOP. In that sermon, it was stated that if Christians really believe that mess about the 48%, they need to repent. Because that attitude wasn't helping to further the kingdom of God. The passage was Matthew 25. And it was because of that sermon that I prayed through Matthew 25 going into elections in 2012. And as a result, Obama was the choice I made. 

So, here's something. Romans 13 outlines our responsibility to government. Matthew 25 outlines our responsibility to those who are the least of these. And either God is sovereign and therefore everything happening right now is part of His will including Obama and the Affordable Care Act, or God is not sovereign. But if you believe in the sovereignty of God, then you need to trust that EVERYTHING is in His will. 

So this year, how am I voting? I don't know for sure, but I do know I will not be voting for Chad Mathis. Why? 1. He opposes the ACA. 2. He comes from a medical specialist background - orthopedist. 3. I know him from when I was seeing an orthopedist. He treated my broken foot in 2007. In 2008, he suddenly quit seeing me. No letter, no call, nothing. He committed abandonment which is unethical. And the way I reason that is like this: If he cannot ethically dismiss a patient, how can he practice ethical politics?

Oh, and at this point, if the only thing a candidate can say about the ACA is repeal, then they need to go home. Because by November, everyone who wants insurance and can get insurance will have insurance and will have already saved thousands of dollars on healthcare costs. No way will any of us want to ever regress! 

Do you know what happens to the money saved on healthcare costs? It goes into the economy. My own family has needed home repairs coming up. Long overdue. We have to buy goods that are needed to make the repairs and pay for services that are needed to make them. This means money is going back in the economy that didn't exist before because everything was being paid into healthcare. So the $300 saved in January because of more comprehensive insurance will pay down medical debt first. Then after that, it pays down other debts. Then it gets used to stimulate the economy. 

Who wouldn't want that?

What would Jesus do? Jesus would make sure that everyone is taken care of.

Is healthcare a right? If all men and women are created equal under God, and all men and women have the right to the pursuit of life, liberty, and justice, then yes, healthcare is a right. And if it takes insurance to make healthcare possible, then insurance is a right too. 

How do I figure? Because autism means I have a way of thinking literally and I am thinking literally right now. 

But Matthew 25 is how people should respond to the least of these! Government is comprised of people just like churches are comprised of people. So if Matthew 25 is about how people should respond to the least of these and government and churches are comprised of people, then government and churches are to follow Matthew 25. And when any sector of government or any church fails to respond according to Matthew 25, it brings the rest of them down. 

Want to win people over to the kingdom of God? Start following Matthew 25. And repent of your bad attitude toward the poor, the sick, the disabled, the hungry, the disenfranchised. Because not everyone on SNAP, SSI, SSDI, or even TANF (often called welfare) is a lazy, moocher. Many are veterans, retired, and disabled. Not all of them are drug users. Not all of them are gaming the system. Not all of them are takers. 

And if you have a problem with taxes helping people, then get off the roads, withdraw your children from public schools, and do not ever call 911 for anything because those are tax dollars helping people. 

Like I said, I use Matthew 25 when approaching elections, and I will continue to do so. And as long as any of the least of these are being attacked in any way whatsoever by any candidate, I will not vote for that person. At this point, that means that I cannot morally or biblically vote for any person who opposes the ACA because that is an attack on the sick and disabled (many disabilities are from sickness that went unchecked, untreated, or under treated). 

I am open to comments by the way. A healthy debate is always good. But bullying and harassment is never good.

1. Republicans don't own God and don't corner the market on Christianity.

2. Democrats can be Christians and Christians can be democrats.

3. Political leanings don't determine who a person is.

4. While I lean toward the democrat party right now, I am just as opposed to gay "marriage" and abortion as the next person who leans toward the republican party. The only difference is that my life experiences shaped my political beliefs in such a way that I have no choice but to consider those when I am choosing who gets my vote as opposed to just voting so generally. Because while republicans claim to be pro-life and spend all this time voting to make abortion illegal, they also keep voting to cut SNAP and SSI and SSDI and veterans benefits and they keep voting to repeal the ACA (50 times failed now), which makes them pro-birth and not pro-life because if you are going to force a woman to carry a baby, you must ensure that her healthcare and food is provided for as well as the baby's healthcare and food. Not everyone in any party believes 100% of the things that the party believes in. 

5. Right now the God the republicans, and mostly the tea party, is painting a picture of, is a God that contradicts the scriptures. While some democrats may not adhere to God as part of the party, the God I see through their actions is lining up more with scriptures each day. But perhaps, the reason that the democrats refuse to justify things by God is because you really cannot mix God and politics. Logically. So while the republicans are justifying hurting the least of these by misquoting scriptures and taking scriptures out of context, the democrats are not taking it there because things become too murky if they do. God is God. And all authority under heaven is appointed by God. But God is not to be mocked or contradicted. And if the republicans keep criminalizing the least of these, then they are no better than the democrats who don't mix politics and God at all. 

That is my honest opinion.