You Are My Child

Psalm 46:10 - "Be still and know that I am God. I will be exalted among the nations, I will be exalted in the earth!"

I John 3:2 - Beloved, we are God's children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is.

Dear God, in today's lesson, You said do not be like the Pharisees who made up their own rules and to just relax in Your peace. So basically Pharisees were legalists? And republicans and especially that extremist tea party are like Pharisees? They sure do make up a lot of rules that You did NOT make. They demand on having the right to carry guns while also being stupid and self-entitled by trying to take healthcare from those who are less fortunate. Well, frankly, if they get to keep their guns, then I get to keep my healthcare and my insurance so that when one them stupidly shoots off their gun, I have medical treatment that I will not lose my home over. Of course, then they would be sitting in jail for life for shooting me and almost killing me and they would be responsible for making sure those hospital bills are paid because it was their fault to start with and it would not be my fault if out of their hate for the president I lost my insurance after eight years of fighting to be able to have better insurance because I already knew my old plan was junk even before the media started calling those plans junk. I was just never allowed to get new and more comprehensive insurance or even dental insurance until the ACA came along because before the ACA came along, insurance companies were allowed to violate the ADA and discriminate against people with disabilities. Well, God, I know what I have to do tomorrow regarding the primaries, and my mom might do the same thing. I have prayed through Matthew 25 and Romans 13 and some of the other passages I have journeyed through, and I feel at peace with my decision. Just move through the hearts and minds of other evangelical Christians in the district and give them the wisdom and the insight to make the right decision in the best interest of the least of these as well. Thank You for Your peace. In Jesus' Name, Amen!

Autism, Down Syndrome, Disabilities, and Hobby Lobby

Follow me please.

Most of you already know that Hobby Lobby is trying to assert itself as having religious beliefs and is opposed to birth control or contraceptives now. They were not opposed before the Affordable Care Act and now they are. Oh, and how can a for profit company be allowed to violate any part of any law it dislikes? And for that matter, although the CEO and founder can have religious beliefs because they are people, how can a corporation hold religious beliefs? It is not a person. Only people can hold beliefs. 

Well, their approach is a slippery slope that is too dangerous to go down. Why? Because if Wal-mart decides they don't want to cover women's care, they might suddenly cry it goes against their religion? Where in the Bible is birth control wrong? It is not in there. It is a grey area and it is legalism. 

Hobby Lobby would have a better chance if it clarified what it means by contraception as being just those forms that they think cause abortion instead of the broad term of contraception they are using. 

Contraception:

Shots

Birth control pills taken on a daily basis for a variety of reasons - don't want babies, have iron anemia, acne, hormone imbalance, heavy bleeding, irregularities 

Plan B - a three day dose of birth control to be taken within 72 hours after failed contraceptives or rape - prevents implantation - does not cause abortion

IUD

Patches

These are contraceptions used to prevent pregnancy.

I gave a scenario though:

Hobby Lobby historically has been one of the few places known to hire people with autism and other special needs. Now here is the deal. The girl with cognitive dysfunction gets a job at Hobby Lobby. Hobby Lobby gives her insurance. The doctor says she needs birth control because she does not understand sex yet. It is for her safety and protection. Also because she cannot handle having menstrual cycles. They can be very stressful. Suddenly Hobby Lobby says no because it violates our religious beliefs. Now they have done something illegal. They have denied a disabled person something she needs in order to have that job. They have now discriminated against her. It is a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act and subject to lawsuit. 

If they are going to cover Viagra, they have to cover birth control. And because no single birth control is necessarily right for all women, they have to cover all of it. Otherwise, it is gender discrimination. 

If Hobby Lobby gets out of this portion of law, what will be next? No hiring special needs? No hiring women? No hiring someone of a different faith? No hiring a red head? No hiring a person who is not white? No paying what they are supposed to? Where does it end? Give an inch and they will take a mile.

Supposedly they are threatening a tantrum if they lose--close the stores. Fine. They chose to commit business suicide over the fact they are legalistic anyway.

Now I want to say something.

I called out someone who inappropriately commented about someone's size by saying she looked like she had swallowed her last two children. It was rude and inappropriate. And I also pointed out that it was a milestone that I recognized it as a person with autism. Well, he then turned around and in response to the scenario said people with autism and special needs are pathetic.

Let me say this now:

It is autism awareness month and what we need now is autism acceptance. But when people hold that attitude, it is clear that people like me will never be accepted at church, school, work, or in the community. It is hateful. And this is the attitude of someone who probably calls himself a Christian. The Paul Ryan budget was just passed by the republicans. Yeah, the party of Christianity. Well, guess what? It is not reflective of Christian values. It is a violation of Matthew 25:31-46 and it makes the republicans goats. Those are the words Jesus used. 

Paul Ryan hit veterans by cutting healthcare and SNAP. Paul Ryan hit the elderly by cutting SNAP. Paul Ryan killed the disabled by cutting SNAP, SSI, SSDI, the Affordable Care Act, and Medicaid. Paul Ryan hit women by cutting WIC. He wants to force a woman to carry a baby she didn't plan on or want for a variety of reason and in the meantime he takes food and medicine away from her and the baby. So now we have a bunch of unwanted babies because they don't want us to be on birth control and refuse to give us healthcare and the babies are all starving because they don't want us to eat either. It is the Mitt Romney rhetoric of hate toward everyone less fortunate than them all over again, the rhetoric that caused them to lose and caused even the most evangelical pastors to cringe and say that if Christians held that attitude they needed to repent! The Paul Ryan budget is unethical, illegal, and is definitely against what Jesus stood for, the republicans just crucified Jesus all over again. And here's the thing, we are approaching Easter. A time to remember Jesus' life and ministry on earth and what he did for us on the cross. 

Autism awareness should lead to autism acceptance. And in some ways, although we have come a long way with regard to race, we have not moved forward with regard to disabilities. Dear church, what are you doing to effect a POSITIVE change? 

Observation

Most Republicans on Facebook hate facts. Hardcore facts. How do I know? Because when presented with facts, they call others names. Very hurtful and often unrepeatable names. And they often claim to be Christians. 

Here is a little known fact about new ACA plans: Many do not require consumers to meet any of the deductible before covering services. How do I know? Because I have one. And shh.... But it means that insurance is actually working now! YES! 

Also, I now understand exactly what the phrase JUNK PLAN means. I had a classic example of it this past week as I was at the doctor's office dehydrated and in need of an IV treatment. A junk plan is one that when an emergency strikes isn't really there at all. How do I figure? Let me break it down.

Under the pre-ACA plan, one of two things would have been required for me to receive that life-saving IV fluid. Option one: Pre-approval. In the meantime, I was so dehydrated, my brain was literally becoming unresponsive. Option two: ER and wait until they decide when to finally get me in. Either way, we are talking a bare minimum of $500 in charges if not more.

BUT, get this: Under the new ACA-compliant plan, the oncologist's office ran it through the insurance and found that the treatment was covered at 100% of the allowed amount. I paid my copay. And the deductible did not have to be met first. And here's the kicker: The ACA put the power of care back in the hands of the doctor and the patient and the patient's family! Yes, you read at right! 

By the way, it is almost April, and I have a $500 deductible with my new plan and still have not met it even though I have had a lot of medical care this year. So continues the life of a patient wih chronic health conditions. For the first time in my life as an insured person, I have insurance that actually works for me. 

Now if only my representatives would actually follow suit, everything might have a chance of looking up. Haha.

By the way, I do not consider myself democrat, but I do have more liberal leanings of late. However, I am also conservative in other areas. Stop boxing people in unless they come right out and say what they are. I am a progressive thinking Christian who sees life from a different perspective because of how my life experiences have shaped me. And I follow Matthew 25:31-46 in all my ways. I am a Christian revolutionary if you would. I am a young adult sick of organized religion that has become abusive to the least of these and corrupted by leaders who are selfish and arrogant and refuse to acknowledge their faults when they are pointed out and called to more. That is what I am. 

Anyway, those are my observations today.