And many thanks to Rev. Anne Russ for her help with editing and her suggestions:

Shortly before this part of the story the Holy Spirit came down and radically transformed thousands of people, allowing them to speak different languages and communicate freely with foreigners. On Pentecost, there was a mass awakening of people and many of them came to be believers in Jesus Christ, after Peter convinced them that the people speaking in different tongues were not drunk.

The Holy Spirit energized the Apostles into action. They were led to go out on the road and convert as many people as they could through their words and deeds, hence the name of the book, Acts. It’s here that we find Peter and John shortly after they had gone to a temple, spreading the word of Christ. At the temple, they healed a cripple who was begging for money in the doorway. When all the people saw this, Peter explained that Jesus was, in fact, the Son of God and the Messiah. Here we enter the part of the story we heard today.

When the leaders of the community heard what Peter and John were saying, they arrested them because they felt threatened. Now, it should be noted that the authority in Jerusalem at this time was no fan of Jesus or the Apostles. They believed that if the word of Jesus Christ took hold in their community, then their way of life would essentially be destroyed. In fact, despite Pontius Pilate’s willingness to let Jesus go, the authorities urged the people to demand His death. Surely Peter and John wouldn’t think that going to the temple, at a time of worship, when everybody was there, would be beneficial to their physical well-being!  They knew that if they were overheard by the priests or captain of the temple that they would, at the very least, be confronted. They probably assumed that if the authorities overheard their proselytizing, they would be arrested. In fact, Peter and John probably expected long prison sentences or even death! But they went out there anyway, because the Holy Spirit moved them. They were radicals. They were going out into their community, in the face of their enemies and spreading the Word of God. They were helping the poor, healing the sick and making changes in the rules that the guys in charge didn’t like at all in the name of Christ.

The Apostles weren’t concerned with whatever consequences lay ahead of them. They were just out there to do what Christ had told them to do. So when Peter and John were arrested, they took it, in what seems to me to be, a rather light fashion. Instead of showing fear or uncertainty, they approached the situation with the confidence that the Holy Spirit had instilled in them. Peter talked defiantly to the panel and said, “Hey, if you have a problem with me curing a guy who is well over 40 years of age because I did so in the name of Jesus, whom you crucified and rejected, then let it be known throughout all of Israel. Because, obviously, this Jesus guy really is the Messiah, if I’m using His name to perform miracles and cure people that no one else can.”

Now, if I was sitting on that panel and was a true skeptic of Jesus and the Holy Spirit, that argument wouldn’t have convinced me at all. Putting myself in that situation, I would have thrown them in jail for whatever the prescribed time and washed my hands of their silliness. Instead, the panel debated about what Peter and John were doing, saying that using the name Jesus was the real bad thing here. They asked Peter and John not to do these things in the name of Christ or spread His teachings anymore. Peter and John simply refused, because they had seen the miracles of Jesus and were true believers. Then, something amazing, something miraculous, something totally unbelievable happened – the council just let them go. They simply let them go. Peter and John were free to go on their way and continue preaching the Gospel however they see fit. The two Apostles stood in front of a council that was clearly out to get them, blatantly defied said council and walked away, scot-free. That, my friends, is pretty radical.

So let’s think of some other radicals that we’ve seen throughout history. Some of the names that come to my mind are Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Jr., Nelson Mandela, and Mother Teresa. All of these people had a specific call in their lives that they pursued in a radical fashion.

Mohandas Gandhi, also known as Mahatma, which means “Great Soul,” pioneered the concept of civil disobedience through total nonviolence to free a nation from tyrannical rule. Gandhi saw the brutal repression of his people by the British time and time again. But instead of inspiring the people of India to fight fire with fire, he did the exact opposite. Gandhi gave his country freedom through love and peace.

The Rev. Dr. King became the leader of a movement that demanded civil rights for a class of people who had never known equality in the New World. Inspired by Gandhi, King used nonviolence to overcome obstacles and gain equality for himself and others. This culminated in the Civil Rights Act of 1964 that ended, for the most part, the rule of Jim Crowe in the South.

Nelson Mandela started his campaign for equality with violence. He was co-founder and leader of the African National Congress, which led several bombing campaigns and other such raids against major South African government and military facilities. Mandela was convicted by the government of conspiracy and sentenced to life in prison. Once Mandela was released after 27 years of his sentence, he was elected as president of South Africa and led his country towards reconciliation. Mandela’s administration granted amnesty to many of the people that raped and murdered people on a mass scale. If the people who committed these atrocities would only reveal secret location where victims were buried, so that families could lay their loved ones to rest, then the perpetrators of great violence were forgiven. Instead of focusing on the “eye for an eye” theory, Mandela focused on forgiving them. This radical act took South Africa in a direction that could bring about true reconciliation.

Mother Teresa was a Catholic nun and, for many, the symbol of what true mission work should be. Teresa started her career as a teacher at a prominent school in Darjeeling. She could have stayed in this school and continued to be a teacher, but when she saw the poverty that was brought on by the Bengal famine of 1943 and the intense violence between Hindus and Muslims in 1946, she decided that she could no longer stay behind safe walls. She knew that her true calling was one amongst the poorest of the poor. For the rest of her life, Mother Teresa dedicated herself to making life better for those that had virtually no chance in the real world.

Whether or not you agree with all of the actions of these people, it is important to see that they were all radicals that used ideas outside of the norm to change the world. And that, my friends, is what we must strive to do in our lives as well. We must be radical in order to free the oppressed, bring worlds together and help others in any way that we can. People have said it before, time and time again, but I’m going to say it at least once more: we have to think outside of the box to make a difference in the world. Jesus came to us and told us, as disciples, to change the world in order to bring God’s kingdom here. Therefore, sitting and watching things go on the way that they are is simply not an option any more.

This past Wednesday night at our weekly Bible study, we started with our discussion of some verses from the book of Revelation. In our conversation, we talked about who gets into Heaven and/or Hell and whether or not that whole process is “fair.” We talked about several individuals who, in our eyes, were not “deserving” of entry into Heaven. The fates of people such as Warren Jeffs and Adolf Hitler were discussed. As you can imagine, it was hard for a lot of people to accept the idea that such modern-day “monsters” would be in Heaven. As the discussion continued, I tried to bring some radical ideas to the table. I challenged the group to really think about the positions they were taking by using Alexander Pope’s quote, “To err is human to forgive divine.” By using this concept, we forced ourselves to really focus on whether God would forgive the people and actions that we consider evil. Ultimately, we don’t know whether or not God will forgive these things. We can only have faith in Jesus that all will be forgiven.

As Christians, in order to make the world the place God created it to be, we have to embrace the radical ideals presented here. It is our call to push for change by using aspects that others find unconventional and challenging. Peace instead of violence, sacrifice instead of the easy way out and forgiveness instead of revenge. None of these tasks are going to be easy for any of us to accomplish. It’s not easy to be different. It’s not easy to forgive someone when they’ve wronged you and it’s certainly not easy to give up things in your life to make things better for someone else. But all of these things are what we are called to do. Philippians 4:13 says, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” We should do as John and Peter did and put our faith in Christ, so that we may conquer any obstacles that come our way.

If you’ve heard of No Shave November, you’re probably aware that in the month of November, lots of guys just stop shaving. Maybe it’s for a reason, maybe not. However, a lot of guys that do this do it to raise awareness of Prostate Cancer. “What,” you might ask, “does not shaving have to do with prostate cancer?” Well, frankly, not that much; except we’re guys so we can grow beards and prostate cancer affects every guy.

When I say prostate cancer affects every guy, I mean it. Every prostate that is out there WILL get cancer, given that their owner lives long enough for it to develop. We gentlemen have an organ that is destined to get cancer. That sucks.

True, prostate cancer is rarely fatal and is very treatable if found early enough. However, it’s STILL CANCER! Plus, we’re guys. That means that we’re not going to go to the doctor enough to get a regular examination. AND, it’s not like we dudes want to get THAT examination ::shudder::. BUT, we need to raise awareness and get men of all ages involved in beating this disease.

“Well, Cameron,” you might inquire of me, “what do you plan on doing about it?” I’ll tell you. Two years ago, I started a fundraiser to auction off my beard every November. Now, this isn’t an auction where I’m going to cut off my beard and donate the hair to someone or something, because that’s gross. Instead, if you win the auction that will last all the way through the month of November, you get to decide how I cut my beard and I have to wear it like that for a week. Last year, I had the beard design of the Rent Is Too Damn High candidate, which looks a bit like this: http://tinyurl.com/65t7nex . With that auction, I raised over twice as much as I had the previous year, something I’m very proud of. This year, I’m hoping to beat last year’s total and really raise some awareness.

So, if you want to bid on a design for my beard, here are the rules:

• You can make a bid on any social network that I’m on by commenting on one of my posts or sending me a message (you can find me on Facebook [Cameron Highsmith], Twitter [@cdizzle82] and Google +, or you can make a comment on posts found on this blog)
• The design has to be appropriate (I go to seminary and am actively involved in many congregations in the area, I can’t show up with a giant phallus on my face)
• My hair is mostly off-limits. I’ll allow my hair to be a part of certain designs, but they need to be pretty legit.
• This is a consistently run auction. I’ll be posting regularly about what the bid is up to. If you want to bid, you have to have the highest amount at 12:01 AM, December 1st.
• You don’t have to raise the money alone! You can get groups of people to up the ante!
• You make the donation yourself! I don’t want your money to come to me, because that’s bad karma. Just go to pcf.org and make the donation (feel free to do this even if you don’t win the auction)!
• Once the final design has been chosen and the auction is over, I’ll post pictures of my new beard on all the social networks and here on this blog

I hope that you’ll consider making a bid or two on this auction. And if not, just help spread the word about prostate cancer and maybe give a small donation to pcf.org.

Thank you!

Cameron

P.S. This is my beard at our Halloween Party this past Friday. As you can see, it’s pretty rad right now.

The main topic of that particular sermon had to do with meeting Jesus face to face. If given the opportunity, what would you ask from Jesus. More specifically, what do you want Jesus to do for you?

Think about that for a moment. It’s a tough question. Let’s narrow it down and ask a bit more of a specific question. What one thing would you ask Jesus for? If there were one thing in the world that you could have, what would it be?

Sure, we all tell ourselves that we would ask for something like world peace, or to end hunger. And of course, that’s what you’re going to tell your friends and family when discussing a topic of this nature. But look deep down in your heart. What do you really want? This is an opportunity to really dig down inside your faith and get some answers from yourself.

Your faith, ultimately, is only something that you can define. You’re given several different factors throughout your life that influence your faith (family, friends, empathy, apathy, etc.) but in the end game, only you can decide what you want to do with your beliefs and how to act on those beliefs.

This is why it is important to ask yourself these kind of questions. It’s important in a faith journey to really dig down deep and find out what we’re all about. Are you more superficial than you thought? Or are you as generous and loving as you portray yourself to be? What do you want from Jesus? What do you want from your faith?

Do you want to use your faith to become a better person? Do you think the most important thing about your faith is converting other people to see “The Light?” If you’re converting people, is it because you truly believe that there is only one true way? Or are you just trying to save yourself?

Do you honestly care about others? Are you trying to get that homeless man food and clothes and give him a new start? Or are you just preaching to him because someone told you that is what is needed to be done?

What is the point in your faith? Why do you believe the way you do? Ask yourself these questions. When you ask these questions, don’t just spend a minute on them and then blow them off. Take some time out of your day. Maybe use your allotted daily prayer time to pray about these questions. Take a walk around the block and just tune everything out except these questions. Really get down into your mind and heart and study yourself.

Faith is not about listening to others. It’s about listening to yourself, finding out who you are and then determining how that is going to make you act toward others. I’m not saying to ignore all the factors that determine your faith. But rather, use those factors and your feelings and your mind and your soul to find out what you truly believe. Just because someone has more degrees than you in a particular subject, does not mean that they know what is best for you. They might have studied the subject more, but they don’t know what your mind is churning around.

What is the ONE thing you would ask from Jesus?

Two guys, one from Arkansas and the other from Texas, were taking a road trip together through the country. They were driving down the road and the Arkansan said, “Ya know, I believe we done ought to make a stop on up here and pick us up some vittles for the road.”

“That’s not a bad idea,” said the man from Texas. “We’ll do that at the store up here.”

They pull over at the grocery store and the man from Arkansas enters and walks up to the counter.

“I need me some ‘naners, ‘maters and ‘taters, please.”

The man behind the counter looks at the Arkansan and says, “You’re from Arkansas, aren’t you?”

“Well, yes’ir I sure am! How did you reckon that out?”

“Well, sir, I can tell by the way you talk. Your accent gives it away.”

“Gooooolllly! Hot dawg! That’s somefin’ ain’t it?” The Arkansas exclaims as he walks out the store with the food.

The two friends hit the road again and the Arkansan turns to the Texan and says, “Ya know, they be able to tell whur you’re from just by tha way ya talk ’round here!”

“I don’t believe you at all,” says the Texan. “We’ll pull over at the next stop and I’m going to test this little theory out.

So they pull into the next store and the Texan hops out of the car and rushes up to the counter inside the store.

“I need some potatoes, tomatoes and bananas, please!”

The clerk replied, “You’re from Texas, aren’t you?”

“Yes I am! How could you tell, by the way that I talk?”

“No sir,” replied the clerk, “… This is a hardware store…”

*Joke Drum Line*

First off, I’d like to talk about keeping a balanced register. Keeping a register of your bank account could be the single most important thing to do in order to make sure you don’t go negative. ALWAYS write down what you spend. ALWAYS write down your deposits and how much you withdraw TO THE PENNY! I know it’s hard to carry around a checkbook and register all the time, because they’re big and bulky, but at least keep one at home and don’t throw away your receipts until you write them down.

There are several things that can help an account holder with balancing a checkbook. First, if your bank offers it, sign up for the savings account that rounds up your purchase made with your debit card to the next dollar and puts the change in your savings. The two advantages to these accounts would be that it keeps every purchase you make at an even dollar amount, and it helps you save money with every purchase that adds pretty quick (more quickly than you may think). Just so I’m not confusing anyone, the way it works is when you make a purchase, say, for $24.50, the bank would round that purchase UP to $25 and take the $0.50 and put it into your savings account. So, if you make 4 purchases in one day of $23.25, $15.15, $6.10 and $5.75, $2.75 would be put into your savings account. You’re not losing the money, it’s just being transferred automatically to your savings account. It’s quite the handy little tool to have.

Secondly, when balancing your checkbook, VERY SELDOM trust the balance you receive from the ATM. ATM balances are deceiving. There are so many factors that you need to take into account when getting your balances from the bank, that it’s just better not to do so. When you get your balance from the bank, there are a lot of factors that come into play. First, have all of your transactions “hard-posted” yet? The term “hard-posted” means that the computers on both sides of the operation have finished communicating with each other and no more charges can be added to that particular transaction. When the computers are still in the process of communicating, and the initial charge has been deducted, but not finalized, that process is called “soft-posting.” This is when companies like gas stations, utility companies, or restaurants may put down a “pre-authorization” charge which could be different from the final and actual charge. This is just a process that ensures that they do get their money and it usually finishes clearing in a 24-hour period. Also, if you do have the rounding savings account, it usually takes about the same amount of time for the change to be switched between accounts. So, if you go to the bank to get a balance, go inside and ask the tellers if everything is done clearing from your account, and if not, make sure all the things clearing are what you remember purchasing. Don’t be afraid to ask the tellers questions either. They’re supposed to be nice and helpful, because that’s what they’re being paid to do. It’s possible you’ll catch them on a bad day or something, but we all have those at work sometimes.

There are several different things that you need to be aware of if you are a customer and you use your debit card a lot. First, when you use your debit card at a gas station, it is very important that you run it as a credit card transaction. I know it’s technically a debit card, but this does work! Gas stations are trying to ensure that they get their money from their customers, which is completely understandable. There have been instances in the past where people have used debit cards to purchase amounts of gas that came out to more than what was actually in the checking account of that customer, so the transaction was declined and the gas stations got ripped off. So now, gas stations are putting a pre-authorization of anywhere from $50 to $100 dollars on debit cards. If the account doesn’t have that much money in it, then the transaction could be declined. Now, these pre-authorization amounts do fall off in that 24-hour period I mentioned earlier, but they’re still there for that period, which can be a major inconvenience for account holders. However, if you run your debit card as a credit card, you will only receive a pre-authorization amount of $1. I don’t know why gas companies only put $1 on a credit card and $100 on a debit card, but that’s what they do. This is just a trick I use to avoid being denied other for other purchases I may have to make later in the day.

Secondly, when you eat at a restaurant and you leave a tip on your card, the charge for that tip may not show up for several days. The restaurant runs your initial charge for the meal before they run the tip charge and the waiter/waitress/bartender has to turn that receipt in to the manager in order to get the tip. When the manager receives these receipts, they have to re-run your card in order to collect the tip. They don’t re-run the whole purchase, just the tip amount that you put on the receipt. All this depends on how quickly the manager gets around to it and how many other similar transactions they have to do. And, once again, this is another transaction that may take a day or so to clear, once it is entered into the system.

Finally, there is one more thing you need to know about debit cards. If you use your debit card to make a purchase and it seems to go through immediately, but is rejected at a later time, the retailer legally has the ability to run that transaction again up to 6 months later. Likewise, if that transaction doesn’t go through for one reason or another, the retailer still has the ability to wait to charge your card for that same 6 month period. Now, when you make the purchase, it’s very unlikely that the bank is actually going to deny it if it is just a small purchase. Odds are, they are going to put the transaction through and slap you with a nice NSF (NSF’s are a major source of income for any bank). And, since the computers are going to be communicating for that 24-hour period, the bank could have that amount of time to deny said purchase (this mostly happens on larger amounts, as a way to help the bank avoid going too much in the hole on your account).

Another thing to keep your eye on would be fees. Fees of any kind can do some damage to your bank account. I know they seem like the common sense thing to do, and since banks are required to notify you of them up front, most people think they have a handle on them. However, to many a person, they can be quite confusing. Take NSF’s for example. An NSF is typically charged to your account when you either go over your balance (that is going into the negative) or when you have money in your account, but not enough to cover the cost of a purchase or charge being applied to your account. For instance, if you have $15 in your account and a charge of $16 is trying to come through, it is up to the bank whether or not to clear the charge (make it go through), but you WILL be charged an NSF. Once that first NSF is applied (the range is anywhere from $25 to $35), anytime you keep going over your balance, more NSF’s will be applied. That is, if you take your account into the negative territory, every time you make another purchase, another NSF will be added. That’s what catches a lot of people. The NSF is not a single time charge. It is often times a multiple charge.

A lot of people that get into trouble with NSF’s have “Overdraft Protection” on their account. Be aware folks, this is NOT a free service. The overdraft protection is a service that is used to make sure that bills/purchases will be paid if they are more than your balance. It should only be used when it is absolutely necessary and you should keep in mind that Overdraft Protection is NOT EXTRA MONEY IN YOUR ACCOUNT!!! Every time that you use your Overdraft Protection to make a payment, purchase or withdrawal, you WILL be charged an NSF. This is a quick way to run your account into the negative. The Overdraft Protection pays the amount into the negative and THEN stacks the fees on top of that. Careful, I’ve seen a lot of bad done with this. If you’re good at keeping track of your expenses, then I would strongly suggest you request that Overdraft be taken off of your account.

These are just a few tips that can help keep your balance in the positive and to keep the bank from “screwing” you, as I’ve heard so many times before. And even though you may not understand all of the fees or processes the banks use to keep track of accounts, it’s technically all in the paperwork that you receive when you open your account. So be careful, because 99% of all errors are technically the cause of the customer, not the bank. Unless you have an extremely good case or know someone that works in the bank, you’re probably not going to get these fees refunded to you. So, good luck with your banking. It’s not as complicated as it seems, if you just keep that checkbook balanced!

The “Christian Voice” of today seems to be vocalized by a very small percentage of the Christian population. We are stuck in a situation where there is about 10% of the Christian population that has a very loud presence in the world, and their thoughts and ideas overwhelm the thoughts and ideas of others. We have a small group of people who are shouting at the top of their lungs, trying to scare people into listening while the rest of us are trying to use reason and are talking in our “inside voices,” all the while being drowned out.

There seems to be an overwhelming thought that Christians today take radical stances on very controversial subjects. This thought is derived from that one side of the aisle speaking louder than anyone else. This side can quote the Bible for any reason, out of any book, to find verses that prove their point in a definitive matter. Their leaders have literally memorized the Bible in order to be able to pick and choose from it, so that they can lead their flock in a way that they deem fit.

Now, I’m not saying that the Bible can simply be discarded. For those of you who know me well, you know I’m a pretty devout Christian (just more in a spiritual sense, not the literal/strict-Biblical sense), and I do draw a lot from the Bible. It’s a great tool that tells the fantastic story of the world from the beginning all the way up to Jesus and a few years beyond. However, I believe that the Bible is more of a living document, instead of the Definitive Word, much like our Constitution.

Many of the rules that are being used today to make a stand on moral issues are derived from verses in the Old Testament. This is the perfect example of picking and choosing in order to make a point. Allow me to use one of my favorite examples. Many people who sit on the Conservative side of things quote Leviticus 18:22 in order to speak out against homosexuality. Which is fine. Absolutely OK. I honestly see nothing wrong with that as long as you follow the other rules in Leviticus as well as the rules in the other Books of Laws (Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy) that Moses wrote at the same time, by the commandment of God, in order to give the tribe of Israelites rules to follow.  Keep in mind that these people were being led through the desert with no continuous supplies of  food or water and had just been freed from thousands of years of tyranny and slavery. They had no idea how to act as freed peoples or how to act “civilly.” It’s no wonder that the Books of Laws had some pretty weird stuff in them. They probably needed some strict rules in order to keep those folks in line.

So let’s look at some of those rules, starting with Leviticus 18:22 which states: Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination (KJV). So there’s that rule in the most widely-used version of the English Bible. Plain and simple. It says you can’t be lie down with another man as you do with a woman, because that’s a bad thing. Now, let us look at some other verses from the Books of Laws.

Exodus 21:7 states that a man may sell his daughter into slavery: And if a man sell his daughter to be a maidservant, she shall not go out as the menservants do (KJV). Now, it doesn’t explicitly say that a man is allowed to sell his daughter into slavery, but rather, it says that if a man chooses to do so, then his daughter won’t be let out like a man-servant. I think that pretty much says it’s an OK thing to do, so long as it is agreed that the father wants to sell the daughter and she won’t be let out like a man servant.

Another few verses from Leviticus. Let’s go with Leviticus 15:19- 24:

¹⁹And if a woman have an issue, and her issue in her flesh be blood, she shall be put apart seven days: and whosoever toucheth her shall be unclean until the even. ²⁰And every thing that she lieth upon in her separation shall be unclean: every thing also that she sitteth upon shall be unclean. ²¹And whosoever toucheth her bed shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even. ²²And whosoever toucheth any thing that she sat upon shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even. ²³And if it be on her bed, or on any thing whereon she sitteth, when he toucheth it, he shall be unclean until the even (KJV).

For the modern society. This creates a whole mess of problems. Am I supposed to ask my female colleagues (many of whom could easily fire me on the spot) if they are in their “time of the month?” Would that be appropriate? Could I explain to them that I’m a God-fearing man and I’m simply trying to obey the rules of Yahweh?

Leviticus  25:44 states that we can own slaves: Both thy bondmen, and thy bondmaids, which thou shalt have, shall be of the heathen that are round about you; of them shall ye buy bondmen and bondmaids (KJV). Now, I know certain people around me are less educated than myself and maybe not as well-informed on many issues, but I have a hard time defining who among them is truly “heathen.” So, my question is, can I go to a local trailer park and pick out the family that doesn’t send their kids to school and doesn’t bathe as much as I do and simply enslave them? I think that could be defined as “heathen” in today’s age. So… that should be cool, right?

The list goes on and on. There are rules that govern what one can and cannot eat (don’t eat pork products or shell fish, both of which I myself find pretty damn tasty). What people can wear (did you know that if women don’t wear garments made from one cloth they can be burned at the stake?) and how to grow their crops so that God will be pleased.

The point is that you can’t pick and choose from the Old Testament. That’s not fair to anyone. From what I understand, and I’m a pretty bright bulb if I do say so myself, Christianity is based off of the teachings of Jesus Christ. Jesus came around in the New Testament. The Old Testament was a precursor to Jesus and explained how God treated our sins and our actions on Earth PRIOR TO giving us His only Son. When Jesus came into the world, He fulfilled the teachings and laws of the Old Testament. This didn’t make the Old Testament irrelevant, mind you, but rather, gave us new standards and rules to live under.

Jesus gave us two absolute commandments to live from, both of which were said in Leviticus, but the only two that He ever mentioned from the Old Testament and these were in Mark 12 : 30 – 31: ³⁰And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment. ³¹And the second is like, namely this, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. There is none other commandment greater than these (KJV, Italics are mine).

Sorry for making this such a long post today. But, it’s a topic that I love to talk about/discuss/argue. I know I went on and on, and by the end, I may have gotten off track a little bit. Either way, I really just wish that we could do as Jesus said to do and just start loving more and hating less. I don’t think when Jesus said to love one another, condemning someone because they have a different lifestyle or belief than you falls into that category. Jesus never turned anyone away when they were different. We all know the stories of how He talked to the prostitute at the well and ministered to the lepers when no one else would. He had conversations with tax collectors and thieves and saw the good in all of them. Just don’t be so quick to judge. Romans 12 (I’ll let you look this one up on your own) clearly states that there is a place for everyone, we’re all part of God’s creation and all vital to it. Leave the judgment and wrath up to God, that’s not our place, but rather, His alone.

For many Americans, it’s going to be a sad day. People are going to lament his loss because he was a Senator that seemed to never lose sight of his goals and ambitions. Senator Kennedy was a champion of social programs and reforms that, in many cases, were neither popular on the national stage, nor seen as needed. Like most of the Kennedy family, Kennedy  saw himself as an intellectual and a statesman. Just as the Senate dictates, he became the chair of many committees as he stacked term upon term.

Throughout the years, Kennedy served nine terms in the Senate and at the time of his death was the second most senior member of the Senate and the third ever longest serving Senator in the history of the United States Senate. Even though Senator Kennedy had many issues that became public from his personal life, it is fairly widely believed that he always put his public service in the government first.

Throughout the years, the good Senator passed many bills, controversial and not, and authored over 300 different bills that were passed into law. In more recent history, Senator Kennedy championed two causes: immigration reform and universal health care. No doubt the Senator was a tool for the Democratic party on all issues deemed controversial. He was known throughout Congress as someone that could negotiate between the parties and, at least in some cases, get the parties to come to an agreement or compromise.

Today, we’re also going to hear some things about Senator Kennedy that will be, shall we say, less than charming. We’ll hear people taking cheap shots at a man that is not able to defend himself anymore. We’ll hear things from many pundits criticizing his long stay in power. We’ll also hear things about his family that that are going to disgust us. Unfortunately, such is the way of the world right now. Pundits control the airwaves, and too many people listen.

Senator Kennedy was an American who believed he was doing right by the opportunities that were given to him and the gifts that were bestowed upon him. I know there are a lot of people that don’t understand what he did throughout his career and there are a lot of people that strongly disagreed. Just keep in mind that he was doing no different than other Senators on the other side of the aisle. They fought and still fight for their opinions, bills, and ideals; and that’s all that Senator Kennedy did as well. We all have the responsibility to change the world for what we see as a “better” world. That’s all Senator Ted Kennedy did. He tried to make the world a better place as he saw fit. That’s all I’m trying to do, that’s all you’re hopefully trying to do.

R.I.P Senator Ted Kennedy. Your legacy, whether agreed with or not, will live on and you will be missed.