Category: Politics

Why Christians Should take CRT Seriously-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

In this new life, it doesn’t matter if you are a Jew or a Gentile, circumcised or uncircumcised, barbaric, uncivilized, slave, or free. Christ is all that matters, and he lives in all of us~ Colossians 3:11 NLT

 Students at the annual Whiteness Forum (yes, it’s a thing) have come to the conclusion Veggie Tales is racist. 

Yes.

You read that correctly.

The cartoon featuring anthropomorphic vegetables who tell Bible stories to little children has been deemed “dangerous” for said children because the villainous vegetables shown are colored. For those not familiar with Veggie Tales, all the vegetables in the show really are colored. The protagonists, Bob (a tomato) and Larry (a cucumber) are red and green respectively.

Here’s the thing:

Red and green are colors. Colors are just colors, colors are neither good nor evil. People who believe colors are capable of being anything but colors are (in my humble opinion) irrational, ignorant, pinheads who probably also believe the earth is flat.  Moreover, ALL Bible stories are set in the Middle East (which is where the stories took place). Those native to the Middle East were and still are, not white.  

Veggie tales is not the only thing branded as racist these days. White women who wear hoop earrings are racist. The NFL is racist because most of the players are black and most of the team owners are white.  Math is racist because it “operates on whiteness” (whatever that means) as are farmers markets, black kids being friends with white kids, the Bible, Dr. Seuss and singing Jingle Bells.

I am not kidding. This is all real. God as my witness. 

It’s easy to dismiss the current hysteria as nothing more than cultural idiocy run amok (because it clearly is). However, it is dangerously short-sighted to simply write-off the ever-increasing lunacy as a passing fad (as I am tempted to do) or assume it is the next step in our cultural development (as many on the left are tempted to do). It’s more than that. 

It could easily be the undoing of our civilization (Mark 3:25).

Because people are fallen and sinful (Genesis 3, Jeremiah 17:9, Romans 3:23, 1st John 1:10), the veneer of civilization is thin even in first-world nations. When a sizable portion of a population adopts an erroneous viewpoint (like believing everyone and everything is racist) widespread suspicion results, which can cause the thin veneer of civilization to crack. When the veneer of civilization cracks all the sinful gunk and goo that simmers just below the surface of our humanness leaks out. When that happens, all hell breaks loose.  The Serbian-Bosnian war is a tragic  and very contemporary example of what happens when a first-world country begins to focus on entirely on differences between people.  

Western society is unique because it is uniquely multi-cultural. In other words, lots of different kinds of people with lots of different kinds of viewpoints and belief systems live in America and other Western countries.  Because of this, Western society (especially American society) has functioned for centuries under some mostly unwritten but critically important rules and assumptions.

Perhaps the most important unwritten rule that’s guided Western nations is the idea that tribalism is dangerous and should be avoided at all costs. Tribalism is when individuals choose to see themselves as belonging exclusively to a minority group (Native American, Muslim, African American, Latino, LGBTQ) rather than viewing themselves as part of the greater society. Tribalism leads to social turmoil because it causes individuals to become protective of the rights of their tribe.  In the past, Americans have avoided tribalism by focusing on what people have in common rather than what makes them different. Sadly, individuals have begun to dwell endlessly on gender, political opinions, sexual preferences and skin color which has led to deep division and intense tribalism which has led to widespread xenophobia (fear of those outside the tribe).  

The second unwritten rule that has protected Western culture from anarchy is the notion most people, even most stupid people mean well. This does not mean that most people are wise or thoughtful, or put others first. It simply means that in the past most people chose not to dwell on the stupid or thoughtless things others said or did.  That ship has officially sailed. We are now at a place where every word and facial expression is endlessly scrutinized, not only for intended offense but for unintentional offense as well. This has transformed our society into a horde of wounded crybabies.

In the not-so-distant-past it was simply expected that immigrants would cheerfully embrace the customs and language of their new country. This unwritten rule encouraged newcomers to assimilate into the culture. In recent years the gatekeepers of society (intellectuals, the entertainment industry, politicians, the news media) have concluded that immigrant assimilation is racist. Immigrants have been encouraged to hold tightly to their nationalistic zeal. This has created distinct and separate cultures within our society which has led to some immigrants mistrusting and sometimes even scorning their new homeland.

The loss of these core beliefs is wrecking havoc on our culture.

 I am not suggesting that racism is not real, it clearly is. Nor, am I suggesting that racism is ever acceptable, it never is. As a Christian I earnestly believe ALL people are made in the image of God (Genesis 1:27, Acts 17:24-28) and are all equal in the eyes of God (Galatians 3:28). I also believe all people will be held equally accountable for their actions and attitudes in this life including the sinful attitude of racism (Hebrews 4:13). That said, the notion that literally everything is racist is childish, absurd and counterproductive and it will cause our civilization to lose any civility we have left.  

When that happens, we all lose.  

How Politics Became the Fastest Growing Religion in the World-

Lisa M. Price2 Comments

They have been quick to turn away from what I commanded them and have made themselves an idol cast in the shape of a calf. They have bowed down to it and sacrificed to it and have said, “these are your gods, Israel, who brought you up out of Egypt” ~ Exodus 32:8 NIV

 We live in strange times.

 In 2017 a Republican lawmaker was nearly killed by a democrat. Left-leaning protesters routinely block traffic, harass old ladies, demolish property and menace anyone who disagrees with their politics and/or dubious methods of expediting change. Just when it feels safe to simply blame kooks on the left for all this lunacy, a kook on the right got caught mailing explosives to Democratic politicians. Sadly, bad behavior is common on both sides of the political aisle.

Literally everyone ought to lay awake at night and wonder why there are so many people in our society who become so utterly unhinged at the mere thought that an acquaintance, relative, neighbor or stranger on-line might disagree with their political opinions.

 Seriously, it’s weird.

 This problem is not exclusive to a small group of people on the outer fringes of both political parties.  According to the Pew Research Center forty-four percent of progressives and thirty-one percent of conservatives have confessed to blocking or unfriending someone on social media simply because they disagreed with their political views. That means that nearly eighty-percent of our population is so immature and pig-headed where politics are concerned that they will not allow themselves to be exposed to an opinion they think they MIGHT possibly disagree with. Before we do the trendy thing and blame Trump for the division we should remember those statistics were collected a full two years before the 2016 election (October 2014).

 Truth-be-told this whole loathsome mess is actually a spiritual problem rather than a political problem. Humans are spiritual beings (Genesis 1:27, Romans 1:19-20).  Every person has a God-sized hole inside their soul that must be filled with something. For eons humanity has filled that void with religious activity of one sort or another.  Recently our culture has wandered away from the religious and embraced the secular. As we have drifted away from belief in God a substantial number of those God-sized holes have been filled-up with political dogma. As a result, folks on both ends of the political spectrum are zealously embracing their political beliefs as absolute TRUTH. Those who have embraced politics as the answer to every problem believe that the only way we as a culture will be “saved” is through conformity to their particular brand of political dogma.

 We should all be alarmed by this turn of events because in the past, when nations have embraced politics in place of a God, the end result has always been the same. A strong political leader eventually stepped into the void and demanded that he be obeyed as if he were a god. This has always resulted in citizens being forced to obey the tyrannical leader or face the consequences (enslavement, imprisonment or death).

 As Christians we have a sacrosanct duty to our God and our culture to be a stabilizing and preserving influence (1st Timothy 2:1-3, Matthew 5:13). There are four ways to do this:

 Pray for revival-

 For the most part, individuals in our civilization are dreadfully unhappy. Those who embrace their political opinions as absolute truth tend to be more miserable than most. This is because politics can never really fill the space in our hearts that was intended to be occupied by a relationship with Jesus Christ. Pray for the salvation of those who are inflexible and militaristic in their political opinions.  When we see revival, we will also see the social change politics have been unable to bring about.   

 Be kind-

 We do have not have to kowtow to every outrageous thing crazy people say. In fact, I personally believe that we should be ready to explain why we believe what we believe about everything, at all times to all people, even crazy people. That being said, we do need to speak that truth kindly and with grace even to crazy people (Colossians 4:6, Ephesians 4:15, 1st Peter 3:15).

 Keep your priorities straight-

 Politics are critically important. Every Christian who is fortunate enough to live in a democracy should be politically mindful and active. At the very least Christians should make every effort to vote and to vote biblically. That being said, politics are not, nor should they ever be the end-all-be-all of life (especially for Christians). Even the best, most biblically astute political candidate in the world or the most well-crafted law will never save anyone from anything, only Jesus can do that.

 And finally:

Know who you are-

 If you are a believer in Jesus Christ you are a child of God. A believer’s identity is in Christ and Christ alone. Christians should never find their identity in a particular political party or partisan belief system. Anytime we do we have stepped over the line into the sin of idolatry.

Yikes.

Why Socialism will Never Work-

Lisa M. Price1 Comment

When we were with you, we gave you this rule: The one who is unwilling to work shall not eat~ 2nd Thessalonians 3:10 NIV

There are some theories and trends that seem to make a resurgence in popularity no matter how stupid the concept, movement, or trend originally was: tiny purses, flared pants, laissez-faire parenting and raw food diets are just a few of the stupid ideas we keep drifting back to.

Socialism is another.

There are reasons the idea of socialism refuses to die and not all of those reasons are bad. Most are just tragically misguided.

Some believe socialism is the answer to our economic woes simply because they lack a historic understanding of the movement. Others truly believe socialism is the only fair way to right the social and economic injustices that continue to vex most capitalistic societies.  The vast majority of people who embrace the idea do so because they lack a clear understanding of how humankind functions in the real-world (more on that later).

The distinctions between Socialism and Communism are trifling (more on that later).  Both can and will be lumped under the term “collectivism” for the purposes of this blogpost.

Collectivism was a logical, but ridiculously flawed response to the excesses and evils of the European ruling class who all claimed to be Christian.  Because collectivism began as a reaction to “Christian” rule it is anti-Christian and anti-God at its core. 

In an ideal world (untouched by sin) Socialism would work because people would be good. All those good people would work hard and willingly share what they produced equally with everyone else. In this lovely (but fictional) world everyone would have their physical needs met. This would free individuals up to discover themselves, cultivate their gifts, and do good for mankind.

Sadly, we do not live in that world, because people are not good (Jeremiah 17:9, Mark 10:18, Romans 3:2). Humanity’s inherent lack of goodness prevents collectivism from working in the real-world. It does not shock anyone who understands the Bible that everywhere collectivism has been tried it has produced nothing but scarceness, oppression and untold human suffering.  

In spite of all that the movement has made a dramatic comeback in recent years with the advent of “European socialism” or “democratic socialism”.  Democratic socialism is ballyhooed as the latest and greatest in the collectivist model. Democratic socialism is peddled as socialism-lite with all of the benefits of socialism with none of the horrors of communism. In reality it’s just a rebranding of the communist model for a new generation. It will prove itself to suck just as much as the communism of the past for five reasons:

Communism is the killer of human creativity-

There are simply no socialist or communist countries that were (or are) known for their innovation, creativity or initiative.  This is because human beings respond to reward and socialism denies people reward for creativity and hard work. Collectivism eliminates (or greatly minimizes) reward (because rewarding one person rather than everyone is unfair) and treats all people (regardless of contribution) the same. The lack of reward built into any collectivist system inevitably leads to a whole lot of people who do not use their abilities to the greatest potential. This is not only sad, stupid and immoral it is also a waste of the provision God gives mankind in the form of human talent.  

Collectivism is theft-

Taking from one person and giving it to another is not justice. It a form of robbery that will never do what it promises to do (Proverbs 28:10, Isaiah 61:8, Isaiah 5:20). There are simply not enough rich people to make everyone wealthy. If all the money in the world was seized (as collectivists would like to do) and doled it out equally no one would be wealthy, in fact everyone would be poor. There simply aren’t that many rich people in the world. As a result socialist countries are forced to steal from everyone (rich, poor and in between) in order to make everyone the same level of poor.

Socialism breeds corruption at the highest levels-

Someone has to be responsible for dispensing the goods in a collectivist utopia. It is almost impossible for the people who get that job not to think that they got the job because they are better and smarter than the people that they are doling the goods out to. In the best situations this simply leads to arrogance and corruption among the ruling class. In the worst situations it leads to unspeakable forms evil and injustice (North Korea, Cuba, Russia).

Socialism is intended to be a gateway for communism-

Karl Marx understood that socialism is not a viable long-term economic strategy. In his writings, socialism was never more than a stopping off place to get the proletariat used to the reality of living in communist society.  Anytime a hard-core socialist says they don’t want socialism to morph into communism they are either ignorant of the subject or lying through their teeth. 

In collectivist countries government becomes God-

In nations that embrace socialism the government becomes the provider, giver-of-wisdom and final word on what’s right and wrong. This draws people away from God and it grants fallible human beings a level of power no human being should ever have.

What the Kavanaugh Hearings Say About our Culture-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

Buy the truth and do not sell it— wisdom, instruction and insight as well~ Proverbs 23:23 NIV

 My husband and I are not exactly world travelers.  In almost three decades of marriage we have left the continental U.S. exactly once (to build houses in Juarez, Mexico). This past week we broke with our pathetic tradition of staying put and made our first trip to Europe. We spent almost two weeks in Ireland and loved every minute of it.  We found the people of Ireland to be genuinely warm, good-natured and hysterically funny. They were quick to engage in conversation with anyone willing to learn about the history of their country.

  In the mornings we drank truly terrible coffee and watched the European news stations (BBC and Sky). The thing about European news is that it’s really short on actual news stories. There were quite a few biased views regarding Brexit and negative opinion pieces thinly disguised as actual news concerning the American president.  However, all the other stories tended to be focused on the environment, events that took place decades ago that have zero relevance to life in this decade and lifestyle pieces. Sadly, European news makes American news look downright illuminating.

 Sigh.

 The one relevant news event that managed to make it across the pond was the scandal brewing at the Brett Kavanaugh confirmation hearings. The newscasters in Europe went to great lengths to cover every salacious aspect of the story in grim detail. Most of them had a tough time hiding their glee at the prospect of this particular nominee going down in flames.  

 It goes without saying (but I will say it anyway) that I have no clue what exactly happened between Bret Kavanaugh and his accuser. No one does. It is the ultimate he-said she-said.  It is clearly evident that Ms. Ford sincerely believes something happened and has experienced pain and trauma. Whether or not it was at the hands of Bret Kavanaugh could not be less clear.  That aside, I believe that most of us are missing the bigger picture. This hearing is about bigger things than this hearing.  Sadly, how the Kavanaugh inquiry is being handled says a lot about where we might be headed as a culture. Following are four major concerns we should all have about this situation and how it’s being conducted.

 We are rapidly devolving into a people that believes that the hoped-for outcome of any given situation always justifies the means used to achieve that outcome-

 It is clear that the allegations leveled against Kavanaugh are absurdly partisan at their foundation. If this were not true the matter would have been handled quietly and Ms. Ford would not have become a public figure. It’s clear the Democrats desperately want to prevent Kavanaugh from being confirmed before the mid-term elections because they are hoping to gain enough seats in November to prevent the President from confirming more Justices during his remaining time office. If they succeed they will effectively prevent the President from transforming the political landscape for a generation or more. I do not agree with what the Dems are attempting to do but I do understand what’s motivating them. They believe that the direction the country is headed in under this administration is wrong. Rather than trust the process (as Republicans were forced to do) they have chosen to ruin the reputation of a man based on what can only be described as the thinnest of evidence just so they can get their desired outcome (a more liberal America). It’s a corrupt political move and ultimately it will hurt everyone including the Dems (Proverbs 28:10, Amos 5:14).  

 We have decided that past injustice towards a particular group validates present injustice towards a different group-

 It goes without saying that women have been treated unfairly by men in the past (Proverbs 22:8). Until recently women were not permitted to vote, own property or even decide the direction of their own futures. Additionally, women were seldom believed when they were raped or sexually harassed. Even when they were believed they were frequently blamed for the assault. That said, just because women have been treated badly in the past it does not make it okay to accuse men without evidence in the present (Psalm 5:5). Nor does past injustice towards women automatically make every present allegation against men true.

  We could easily be setting victims of sexual assault back a hundred years-

 Cultural pendulums tend to swing dramatically. So, if we as a society choose to simply believe (and act on) every accusation of sexual assault (no matter how flimsy the evidence). Sooner or later the pendulum is bound to swing back to a place where no one is believed. That will be a sad day for everyone.   

 We are becoming a people who lack moral insight and wisdom-  

 There has been endless dialog surrounding this investigation (Job 13:5) however, none of the talk has centered on the prevention of sexual assault or the prevention of false accusations of sexual assault. We need to get back to a place where we are teaching our boys as well as our girls that attending parties where drunkenness is the sought-after outcome is dangerous and could easily lead to traumatic, life-altering consequences for everyone involved (Proverbs 1:7, Psalm 119:104).

 Period.

 

 

The Truth about the Media-

Lisa M. Price4 Comments

 

Buy the truth, and do not sell it; Get wisdom and instruction and understanding~ Proverbs 23:23 AMP

 I have been burdened in this life with more than a few pet peeves. I loathe cheap socks and people who are mean to dogs. I get super cranky anytime I encounter a seemingly intelligent person who knows exactly what must be done to fix a situation and refuse to do it. It drives me insane when motorists refuse to get their egocentric selves into the middle lane so drivers can merge on to the freeway in a civilized fashion. If you really want to see me go a little crazy-town just leave an empty cereal box in the cupboard (an empty box is basically just a lie sitting in the pantry).

 I have one peeve that’s quickly becoming my most intense non-church peeve in the history of history.  I am sick to death of being manipulated and lied to by a group of people who are supposed to be unbiased reporters of the facts.

 For the record, I believe this mess is much bigger than our current president and his disputes with the media. Ultimately this issue is about truth and whether or not truth matters enough to fight for it. It has enormous spiritual, political and practical implications (more on that later).

 My frustration boiled over this past week when every news agency in the universe reported the Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested an illegal immigrant for the sole purpose of deportation.  According to the media, the poor man was simply minding his own business, driving his wife to the hospital to have their baby when ICE arrested him for no good reason.  If the story were true it would be legitimately awful, an enormous waste of tax dollars and clear evidence ICE needs to rethink how they prioritize arrests.  

However.

The story was factually incorrect on just about every level. It turns out the guy is not a squeaky-clean family man just trying to make a better life for himself and his family in America.   It is true that he was wanted in Mexico for murder. It is also true that ICE arrested him at the request of the Mexican government. Immigration enforcement chose a traffic stop because it was the best way to ensure the safety of other citizens.

 There is simply no way so many journalists (who are trained to uncover facts) could be so wrong about so many details. There is simply not that much stupid in the world. Facts were deliberately omitted in the hopes that no one would check them out.

 The situation at the Southern border is yet another example of deliberate deceitfulness. Hardly a day goes by when we are not reminded (usually a dozen times or more) that there are still children in custody who are separated from their parents. What we aren’t told is that those children share no DNA in common with the person claiming to be their parent. Those children have been traveling in the company of human traffickers who plan to sell them to perverts for sex. That’s the real outrage.  We are being purposefully misled in order to stir-up hatred and pit people against each other. 

 Refusing to report the facts is just one way we are being deceived. It has become all-too common for politicians to refuse to answer the question they have been asked. Instead they point out that the other party (or another politician) has done way worse things than they have done. Even “conservative” commentators allow politicians and pundits to get away with this childishness. This willful stupidity confuses the ill-informed and creates an atmosphere of laziness and excuse making among the political class (like we need more of that).

 The political, social, and spiritual implications of this situation are massive. Millions of people are being manipulated into thinking a certain way about issues (Deuteronomy 32:28).  I saw the results of this firsthand this past week when I visited my eighty-year-old father (a scientist with a college degree). Thanks to certain “news” networks he believes (among many other weird things) that the KKK is growing rapidly and that gangs of white people are roaming every city in America searching for victims to harass and terrorize.

 Insert eye roll here.

 This idiocy could easily lead to a civil war. If decent people really believe that what is being reported is happening they will at some point feel honor-bound to do something about it. At that point we will have a vicious revolution based on fabrications and deceit.

 On a spiritual level this situation is seriously troubling because Scripture clearly teaches  truth sets us free (John 8:32) and lies are something the devil delights in (John 8:44, Revelation 12:9). If enough people believe enough lies for long enough it shrivels their souls, hardens their hearts and could alter the landscape of our country permanently.

 We ought to be very wary of everything we read or see on the news these days. Christians need to get in the habit of going to sources to check facts and listening to both sides of every story and political issue. If something doesn’t make sense, question it until it does. Christians ought to be praying daily for wisdom and discernment when it comes to distinguishing truth from error (Psalm 119:25, 1stChronicles 12:32). 

 Democracy is critical to Christianity. It’s the field where Christianity grows the healthiest. Democracy is entirely reliant on an unbiased press.  If we don’t figure out a way to restore an honest press, we might just lose democracy in this generation and freedom of religion along with it.  

 

 

                                      

 

 

 

 

        

 

 

 

 

 

Four Spiritual Realities the Immigration Mess Reveals-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

Where there is no revelation, people cast off restraint; but blessed is the one who heeds wisdom’s instruction~ Proverbs 29:18

 It’s been a long week. America has been busy making a spectacle of itself on the world stage.

 Again.

 Seriously, it’s difficult to know where to begin. Most of the madness has been a result of the flaming-hot-dumpster-fire of a mess on the Southern border. I am not (nor have I ever been) a fan of our modern immigration system. That being said, large groups of lefty’s seem to have forgotten that immigration has been handled almost exactly the same way as it is being handled right now for decades.

 Sigh.  

 The problems on the border have become an excuse. Not an excuse to demand laws that actually make sense, the border has become an excuse for chaos and mayhem. Elected officials are calling for the public shaming of other public officials and demanding that anyone who disagrees with them be punished immediately.  Sadly, this is yet another situation where feelings are prevailing over facts.

 The facts are fairly cut and dried.

 Immigration has been a problem in this country since the 1970’s. The current administration did not create the problems at the border. I know this to be true because our family lived in a border town for four years and we learned firsthand exactly how complex every aspect of this problem is.

 Take the family separation issue, it is far thornier than it appears to be on the surface. Most of the “families” who enter on the Southern border are not families at all. There are plenty of adults and children traveling together but most of the children are not biologically related to those adults (at one California checkpoint only 2000 of the 12000 children brought in were with a biological parent). Most of the adults are evil monsters known as coyotes who physically, emotionally and sexually abuse children they are traveling with. When the coyotes arrive at a checkpoint, they claim the children are their own and use them to gain entrance with little or no scrutiny (coyotes refer to minors as “golden tickets”). When the coyotes get to bigger cities in California, Arizona or Texas they sell the children to pimps and sex traffickers where they become sex slaves. Simply allowing every child to come into the country with the adult who brought them looks and feels like a compassionate response to a very real problem. In actuality, it just creates a new set of problems for the kids.

 That said. 

 The reaction many are having to the immigration mess highlights at least four problems that could easily be the beginning of the end of Western Civilization.

 First:

  Politics have become the new religion-

 Humans were created in the image of God to be religious beings (Genesis 1:27, Acts 17:24-31). Because many in the Western world have turned their backs on the whole notion of God politics has filled the void faith used to fill. Political ideology is a harsh and demanding god that requires unconditional loyalty and commitment to the cause. When conformity to a political ideology becomes a god, violence against those who refuse to conform to the dogma of that political philosophy suddenly makes sense to those who hold fast to those political views. Communist and fascist régimes of the past and present stand as both a graphic illustration and a warning of what happens when God is no longer welcome in a society.  

 We have lost all restraint- 

 For two thousand years Christianity has been a collective regulator of behavior in Western civilization (Proverbs 29:18). Unfortunately, most people ceased to be affected by or even exposed to Christian teaching around the middle of the last century. Anytime a society ceases to believe in a God who promises to judge them for what they do and don’t do hate, social upheaval and violence inevitably follows (Acts 17:31, Romans 2:12, Romans 2:16, Hebrews 13:4, 1stPeter 1:17, Revelation 20:12-13).

 We have forgotten how to think in a straight line-

 The Bible teaches that when a person willfully disregards the God of the universe and chooses to do life their way their thinking becomes muddled and they become less likely to apply logic to everyday situations (Romans 1:21). This inevitably leads to an inability see how one thing leads to another thing. Sadly, this is kind of where we are living right now.

 We don’t talk anymore-

 Somewhere in the not-so-distant-past we stopped sharing ideas and debating policies. Instead we have devolved into antagonism and arguing endlessly over the meaning of words (1st Timothy 6:4, 2nd Timothy 6:4). This has lead us to a place where we have become so sharply divided over issues that we see each other rather than the problems as the enemy.

 Because only God can change a human heart, the only real answer to our problems is revival.  The only path to revival is prayer and repentance (2nd Chronicles 7:14). It is incumbent on God’s people to get busy and begin praying.

 God knows we need it.

How to win the “Word Gotcha” Game-

Lisa M. Price3 Comments

 They have an unhealthy interest in controversies and quarrels about words that result in envy, strife, malicious talk and evil suspicions~ 1stTimothy 6:4 NIV

 I did something stupid this week.

I totally knew better, but for some reason I still don’t completely understand I did it anyway.

I engaged on social media. Sigh

 It began innocently enough (it always does). One of my friends posted an article about a Robert De Niro’s f-word infused anti-Trump harangue. I have been preoccupied with some writing and speaking projects lately and haven’t stayed on top of events like I usually do. As a result, I wasn’t even aware of the hullabaloo surrounding Mr. De Niro’s comments.  

 So, I was curious.

 After reading the article I scanned the comments section of the post (big mistake). In one of the comments a guy who I will call “Tom” compared Robert De Niro’s sweaty, wild-eyed, profanity-laced tirade to a comparatively rational speech given by Franklin Graham a while back where he stated (among other things) that our country is in a battle between good and evil and that the soul of our nation is at stake. “Tom” went on to say that Franklin Graham was essentially calling half the people in our country “evil” because half the country, give or take, is opposed to Trump. “Tom” inferred that Robert De Niro and Franklin Grahams speeches were more-or-less morally equivalent. He didn’t say it outright but he also implied that we all ought to slow the roll on judging Mr. De Niro.

 Sigh.

 Because I am a clueless doofus sometimes and because I genuinely believed in my heart-of-hearts this guy must be confused.  I politely explained to “Tom” that Franklin Graham was not saying half the people in America are evil. He was simply saying that some ideas are evil and that we are in a battle for the heart and soul of the country. Then I went on to say (like a clueless doofus) that saying someone believes an evil idea doesn’t necessarily make them irredeemable.

 Well.

 It turns out my words were not as calming or helpful as I had hoped they would be (Proverbs 10:19). “Tom” jumped all over the word “irredeemable” and things got really tense, really fast. He said that it sounded to him as if I was saying that anyone who didn’t share my beliefs were “irredeemable”. He then demanded I tell him what beliefs made a person irredeemable.

 I may not be the sharpest tool in the shed but at this point I was beginning to get an inkling that “Tom” was not seeking to understand or to be understood. He simply wanted to back me into corner and force me to call him evil. 

 I wasn’t in the mood to bite at that hook so I simply informed him he was wrong rather than evil and that there was a huge difference between being evil and wrong. This turned out not to be calming or helpful either (I already told you I’m a clueless doofus). Needless to say, things did not end well and “Tom” and I did not become “friends” on social media.

 Thanks to my conversation with “Tom”, I now know at least one reason  our country is so divided. We simply do not discuss ideas and beliefs anymore. We don’t debate good and evil or right and wrong. Nor do we deliberate the outcome of policies or philosophies anymore. Instead we play ridiculous games of word-gotcha where we scrutinize people’s words, look for a way to attack them based on their words and then fiercely debate the imagined meaning behind their words rather than the ideas, programs or philosophies in question. It’s destroying our ability to think rationally about anything meaningful (2nd Timothy 2:14, 1st Timothy 6:4).  

 My exchange with” Tom” is a textbook example. “Tom” jumped on one word I wrote and read a whole truckload of subtext into that one stupid word (irredeemable). He did not want to know what ideas I felt were evil. He certainly didn’t ask what I thought might be done to improve things in our country. He simply jumped directly to the notion that I was calling him evil. For the record, I wasn’t suggesting that “Tom” is evil. I was honestly attempting to clarify what Mr. Graham actually meant for “Tom”.

 Word-gotcha is a legitimate problem that rational people can do something about. If you find yourself engaging with someone who attempts to trap you into a debate over the “real” meaning of a word you used DO NOT let them do it and DO NOT engage in the game.

 Call them on it.

 Explain in very simple terms exactly what they are doing and then inform them respectfully that you refuse to engage in silly word games. Let them know (in a kind and loving tone) that you would love to discuss issues and ideas but you simply will not discuss what you really meant by a particular word. Be polite, be willing to engage on the actual issues, be willing to hear a viewpoint you don’t agree with, be loving, be Christ-like but be firm.

 Our civilization might actually depend on it.

 Seriously.

  

 

Seven Really Good Reasons Not to Legalize Drugs

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

Some became fools through their rebellious ways and suffered affliction because of their iniquities~ Psalm 107:17 NIV

 Over the course of my lifetime, societal attitudes toward drug use have evolved dramatically. Drug use has gone from something shameful that was done in secret to something many are attempting to normalize and legalize.  I, for one have never been able to get on board the whole legalization bandwagon for a whole variety of reasons that I will hit on later.

  I am well aware that my views on this issue are in the minority (even among some Christians).  It’s important to understand that am not opposed to drug legalization because I’m ignorant of the arguments for legalizing drugs. I understand that there are a variety of people advocating for drug legalization for vastly different reasons.

 Politicians who support drug legalization are (generally speaking) money-grubbing pragmatists. Politicians want to legalize drugs (especially marijuana) because they see drugs as a cash-cow of never-ending tax revenue for state and local governments.

 Libertarians tend to take a more philosophical approach to the issue. They connect drug use to personal freedom and believe that individuals ought to be free to decide for themselves what they do or don’t do with their own bodies.

 Humanitarians favor abolishing drug laws because it would relieve some of the burden on the prison system and remove the stigma associated with drug use. They believe this would make drug use safer, slow the spread of diseases associated with drug use, and make information regarding addiction more widely available to a greater number of people.

 Passionate arguments aside, there are plenty of really good reasons to not to legalize marijuana (and other drugs). The most basic and profound reason being that God designed people for far more than the emptiness that drug use ultimately leads to (John 10:10).

 Some other reasons are:

 A person’s “right” to do stupid stuff with their own body ends the moment the stupid stuff begins to hurt others (1stCorinthians 8:9)-

 I am not, nor have I ever been, a supporter of big government or making laws for the sake of making laws. That said, one truly legitimate function of government is to keep citizens from inflicting harm on one another (Romans 13:4). Contrary to popular belief, drugs harm innocent people all the time.  According to the Department of Justice most crimes (violent and non-violent) are committed by people who tested positive for drugs. Nearly all property crimes are committed by people on drugs so that they can get money to buy more drugs. Taxpayers spend millions financing a foster-care system that has become overburdened by parents who are too high to care for their own children.

 Gateway drugs are a real thing-

 Supporters of legalization tend to scoff at the whole notion of gateway drugs. Nonetheless, I have never known a heroin addict who started with heroin. Nearly all drug users start with marijuana and then move on to harder drugs. Legalizing marijuana allows more people easy access to a drug that will make them increasingly more comfortable experimenting with other drugs. Not every person who smokes pot will progress to harder drugs, but enough do to make marijuana a bad bet for any society that values stability.

 We are creating a disadvantaged class of people due entirely to prenatal drug exposure-

 Roughly fifteen percent of all children are born drug and/or alcohol affected (experts believe the number is much higher). These children are burdened with emotional and intellectual deficits they will never entirely overcome (short of a miracle). I predict that society will reap a bitter harvest when these kids reach adulthood.

 Drug use makes people passive and easy to manipulate-

 I am not normally prone to conspiracy theories and tin-foil hat notions. Nonetheless, it has occurred to me that if a government were looking to create a population of docile, submissive, and easy to control zombies, promoting drug use would be the simplest way to make that happen.

 Drugs have a negative spiritual impact on individuals making it harder to reach them with the gospel-

 I do not pretend to know everything there is to know about life, God or the spiritual world. But I do know that Christians are told to be very careful to avoid drunkenness and to only be controlled by the Holy Spirit (Ephesians 5:18, 1stCorinthians 5:11, Proverbs 20:9, Proverbs 31:4). I assume this is because a spirit of drunkenness (Ephesians 5:18) dulls our spiritual senses, making it harder to hear the voice of God. It only makes sense that drugs would have the same effect. 

 Drugs hurt kids-

 Our youngest child is not our biological child. She is the daughter of a relative and her story is not unique, there are literally millions of children just like her. Her parents believed passionately that they had the “right” to do whatever they wanted with their own bodies. The exercise of “their rights” robbed a little girl of her rights. Including the right to a childhood without fear, loss and insecurity. I know for a fact that her parents never intended to become addicted, they certainly never intended cause their child hurt or pain. They loved their daughter; but ultimately, addiction caused them to love drugs more.  Drugs do that to people. They rob us of the ability to think clearly and wisely. Then they steal our humanity and decency. Drugs rob us of the most basic of human instincts, including the instinct to protect the most vulnerable among us. 

 Anything that can do that is not a good thing.

 

 

 

 

 

Should the Young Lead?

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

Rehoboam rejected the advice the elders gave him and consulted the young men who had grown up with him and were serving him.  Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day~ 2nd Chronicles 10:8 and 2nd Chronicles 10:19

 A number of trends have taken root in recent years that I see as super weird and perhaps even dangerous. The “everyone deserves a trophy just for trying” trend has robbed an entire generation of experiencing the elation of a hard-won victory and the challenge of learning to lose with dignity and grace. The “feelings matter more than facts” trend is rapidly turning our populace into a horde of overly-sensitive feelers incapable of thinking their way through even the most rudimentary of fallacies. Then there is what can only be described as the flat-earth trend of ignoring science in favor of the ridiculous and patently false notion that gender is nothing more than a social construct.  

  As weird as all that obviously is, there is an even weirder trend taking root in many government organizations, churches, and universities. Older leaders have begun leaning heavily on young people to draft legislation, solve complex problems and cast vision for institutions, business and churches

 This trend has been underscored with (but is not unique to) the March for Our Lives Movement. Large numbers of young people (some of them not yet legal adults) have been marching in cities across America to end gun violence. News outlets and politicians have been lining-up to interview these young activists and ask them what they think we ought to do to solve the problem. The rightness or wrongness of their crusade aside, the more pressing issue (and the one no one is talking about) is whether or not young people should be enlisted to solve incredibly complex social problems. 

 Don’t get me wrong.   

 I sincerely value young people and what they bring to the table.  I do NOT believe that young people should automatically be excluded from leadership simply because they are young (1st Timothy 4:12).  I also believe that the passion, energy and determination to see justice done that is the embodiment of youth is a vital element of any healthy society (Proverbs 20:29). We would literally die-off as a race without the passion and energy of the young. Moreover, I have devoted a good portion of my life to teaching fourteen to twenty-five-year-olds the Bible because young people are the future and God calls His people to invest heavily in the future (Jeremiah 29:4-8, Psalm 102:18).

 That said.

 Does that automatically mean the young and untested should always be instrumental in the casting of vision or the drafting legislation? Does having passion around an issue make one an expert? Do the young always know more than the old?

 I think not.

 And not just because I fall neatly into the category of “older”. As a society, we ought to be cautious with this trend for at least four critical reasons.

 Young people tend to see life in terms of black and white-

 When I was young I was an idiot who saw life in extremely simplistic, black and white terms (1st Corinthians 13:11). I believed if people were poor or down on their luck, the government should give whatever they thought they needed, no questions asked. I also believed that if a person was a drug user local governments should provide clean needles for them to prevent the spread of disease. Near the end of my twenties it finally dawned on me that many of my ideas were stupid and would actually make problems worse, not better. I have since learned that problems (and their solutions) are rarely black and white and that the easy answer is seldom the right answer. No one comes to terms with that reality without life experience.  

 It goes against biblical principles-

 Contrary to popular opinion, the Bible clearly teaches that the old should teach the young and the young should show deference to the old (Proverbs 1:8, Proverbs 16:31, 1st Timothy 5:1-2, Titus 2). Even when leaders were chosen at very young ages (David, Joseph, Solomon, Jeremiah, Timothy, Titus) they were typically in their late twenties or thirties before they actually began leading. 

 Young people have a history of selecting bad leaders-  

 The nature of youth is such that young people tend to get caught-up in social movements led by powerful leaders with charismatic personalities. As a result, young people have been at the center of some of the most horrific political and social revolutions of our time. Adolph Hitler, Pol-pot, Joseph Stalin, Mao Zedong and Fidel Castro all rallied young people (quite successfully) to support their causes and carry-out their plans. This does not mean that every young person is easily led. It does mean that astute adults are guarded about jumping onto the political and social bandwagons of youth.

 When young people become leaders sometimes they stop growing-

 The single greatest danger in any kind of leadership is pride (Ecclesiastes 4:13). Sometimes when a person is placed in a position of leadership they begin to believe the lie that they are where they are because they have life figured out and there is nothing left for them to learn. This is tragic at any age but especially tragic when it happens to someone who is young. No one is ever done learning, and if they think they are then they are worthless to the rest of us.

Why Spiritual, Moral and Political Complacency Will Eventually Kill Us-

Lisa M. PriceLeave a comment

 When you have eaten and are satisfied, praise the Lord your God for the good land He has given you. Be careful that you do not forget the Lord your God, failing to observe His commands, His laws and His decrees that I am giving you this day~ Deuteronomy 8:10-11 NIV

 It is painfully evident that a moral and cultural sea change has taken place in Western civilization over the course of the last five decades. Some of the changes have been tremendously positive (civil rights for minorities and women, advances in communication, a decrease in hunger, etc.).

 Others not so much.

 The divorce rate has nearly doubled. Abortion has gone from being an infrequent and mostly prohibited event to legal and appallingly routine all over the country. Marijuana has become legal and normalized nearly everywhere. Our baffling obsession with the nonsensical political views of celebrities has grown while the health and wellbeing of the family has tanked. After a quick look at any newscast or social media feed it is difficult to believe that there was ever a time without reality television, school shootings, terrorist attacks or sexting. Or that there was ever a time when people knew what gender they were simply by looking at the box the doctor checked on their birth certificate.

 Sigh. 

 The real question (and the one that is seldom asked) is how did we get here? What caused this massive sea change in cultural norms?

 Finding people and things to blame for the societal madness is not difficult. Value-neutral public education, self-serving politicians, violent and sexually explicit entertainment, materialism, social media, and liberal churches are all convenient scapegoats for our rapidly declining standards of morality and good sense. As bad as all of those things are, they are simply unpleasant symptoms of a much bigger and more pernicious malady.

 The real problem is with the deep sense of complacency that has overcome the Western world. Complacency (according to dictionary.com) can defined as:

 A quiet feeling of security, while unaware of some potential danger.

 Complacency overtakes us when we forget that life is full of danger, especially from a spiritual perspective and begin to let things happen rather than make things happen. The nature of humanity is such that complacency is something that must be fought or it just naturally takes root in our lives. We must shake off our lethargy in the following four areas or we will lose the culture and the church in the next decade. The first is:

 Politics-

 I have never believed Christians are called to transform the world through political means. True and lasting transformation is a result of heart change. Heart change is something only God can make happen (Ezekiel 11:19, Ezekiel 23:36).  That being said, Christians are called to pray for those in political leadership.  (1st Timothy 2:1-3). God would never expect His people to pray for anything out of complete ignorance.  We are called to be informed and politically active on whatever level God allows. We can all vote.  Therefore, at the very least, Christians have an obligation to pray for political change and to work to vote out those opposed to the rule of law, who support evil or are who are openly anti-family.  

 Parenting-

 For all intents and purposes, Christian parents have lost the better part of a generation to secularism, humanism and hedonism. If this trend continues we will lose another generation to the same stupid stuff. The trend will change when parents get serious about God, discipline, marriage, and being grown-ups again. If you’re unsure about how to parent from a Christian perspective, read a Christian parenting book that was written by someone whose kids are actually grown or find an older person who raised their kids well and learn from them (Titus 2:4, (Deuteronomy 6:6-7, Matthew 5:19).    

 Education-

  Value-neutral education is devastating the moral fabric of the Western world. Christian parents must get actively involved in the education of their children. This means either removing our kids from the public system or doing the hard work of finding out what our kids are being taught and fighting the battles that need to be fought within the system. I have learned from personal experience that fighting these battles is never easy or fun, and it won’t make you popular. That said, it is the only way to make education better for all children.

 Our spiritual lives-

 Weak spirituality manifests itself in cheap grace and the belief that repentance is only something unsaved heathens need to do. We become spiritually strong by relentlessly assessing our own spiritual health, repenting when necessary and making God the center of every part of our lives.

 Sadly, because we have a Republican President, American Christians are becoming increasingly more complacent. We need to remember that there will not be a republican in office forever and this is not the time to give into complacency. This is the time to pray, repent, share our faith and seek the Lord before it’s too late and we can’t or don’t want to anymore.