Christian apology for what?

You know, the last few days I have seen more words and photos of Caitlyn Jenner than I care to. But, why should any Christian apologize for anything said about “her”? Many people say that we are too bigoted to voice our opinions on matters like trans-gender people and their proclivities.

It is not my way to tell you that she/he is living in sin, although God looks at it that way. Why? Because He made Bruce Jenner as a MAN, and honestly if you can’t handle the way you are when you are born with it then go to a monastery or something! When Bruce/Caitlyn dies one day, guess which one is going to be standing in front of God? Bruce will stand before God,  because that is how he was sent to Earth by God, as a man. This creation or whatever you call it that is on the cover of magazines and TV, is man-made and will not last.

I know that some of you may go along with this and agree with what is happening today. But, God doesn’t. He loves Bruce just as he was and as he is, but the changes that the world can see are just sophisticated make-up and chemicals and maybe some surgical procedures mixed in.

How about if you went to a dealer and bought a Ferrari one day, all customized just the way that you wanted. Before it was delivered to you, they changed it into a Ford (on the outside), with the engine and everything of a Ferrari, how would you feel? Would you want your money back? It is still a Ferrari, but it doesn’t look like one.

The same is true when we think that we are or want to be something different. If I wanted some DNA from a leopard so I could have spots and fur, today technically it is possible to do that. But, what are you after the procedure? Are you human, leopard, hybrid? Taking enough hormones to make a male to female transformation is fine, in theory, but what happens when the medication doesn’t work anymore? If you get cancer because of it, can you reverse it? How would the treatment for cancer affect your transformation?

Much of our genetically modified organisms in the grocery market have been approved for human consumption, but what does that modification do to those who eat it later in their lives? What about all of the GMO corn or wheat or soy beans which have been planted in the world? What kind of damage will they inflict on us? Has anyone even tested this at all? At an independent lab that is not controlled by the chemical or seed company?

All of these changes, chemical, biological, or cosmetic in some ways are OK, but what about the long-term effects? What about the effect that it can have on our society as a whole? These are the questions that should be asked and answered before the procedures and the changes are done not as an afterthought later when the problems arise.

Should Christians apologize for comments made about Bruce Jenner’s transformation? That depends upon the comments. If they were hurtful and mean, then yes they should apologize. If they were pointing out how God would look on this and how it would be viewed from that standpoint then they don’t owe an apology to anyone. God’s viewpoint on things like this, even though it isn’t lined out in Scripture, would be that it shouldn’t be done. How do I know this?

Because God made us male and female for a reason, how you feel about your gender doesn’t and shouldn’t have any bearing on your life. Seek out God’s point of view by reading His Word and prayer and meditation. God doesn’t like sinful decisions whether they are concerning a lifestyle or a feeling that your body should have been another sex entirely. He created you the way that you are, the way that you were born to be.


Living well is possible

We are people who like to think that we know how to live, and live well, but can you explain it to someone else? Is it possible to tell someone how to do it and then expect them to be able to go and do it?

Believe it or not, it is possible to do this! The news about all of the people in the world, whether they are in Missouri or in Iraq, being upset about something which they want to fix even if it is none of their business and truly there is nothing that they or you can do to fix it!

Sounds like a crazy world doesn’t it? Well, it is and it is this way because of the time that we are living in. I am not speaking of the second decade of the twenty-first century, I am speaking of the time of trouble that is spoken about in the Bible.

Uh-oh, there he goes again talking about that book again. How is that supposed to help me live successfully? Because there is more business advice in this one Book, than most people learn in an MBA course of study! Getting angry and upset about things because they happened to someone else or because you think it was a slight against your religion is just plain stupid!

What are you accomplishing by doing this? We can live a successful life by following Jesus and His teachings because He said that our life is important to Him! If your life is important to Jesus and to God, and I am talking about each person out there, then don’t you think that you owe it to yourself to find out what God says about living your life? The only way that you can do this is by reading the Bible and praying your way through what you are reading.

God will show you what you need to know for your business and for your life when you do this. Then, be thankful that you have access to a Bible which has both the Old and the New Testament in it because one explains the other. Help yourself with God’s wisdom so you can be a help to someone else.

My mentality


Actually, I had put up this site and others for a witness for Jesus to draw in some who might otherwise choose not to read my other blogs. But, this has been so therapeutic for me in other ways until I can’t keep from changing the tone to one which points toward the mental health of everyone who may read this. I went through an illness in December of 2012 which permanently disabled me. Prior to this, I was able to go and do mostly what I wanted within reason and sanity.

During this time of illness, I had some dreams (for lack of a better way to describe them) which brought me to a point which, I believe, was like a stepping off place. One that would eventually take me to places that I really didn’t want to go, but it did whether I was willing or not.

My “mental state” has always been suspect (if you will allow me) since my parents divorced when I was very young. I have been and grew up being an angry young man, and but for the grace and prayers of my family I might not have survived through my teenage years. Because I was angry at my parents and at the world in general, I couldn’t or wouldn’t see my problem and I didn’t for a very long, long time.

All through 2013 I struggled with my state of mind because it seemed to point back to the fact that I couldn’t work and because I really didn’t know or understand what was happening to me. Why was I feeling this way? Only recently, within the past six weeks, have I finally come to understand that my mental state…my depression was at the root of my biggest problem. It was not my inner ear balance which was causing my anger and frustration, it was my “inner mind”.

I pray that the Physician of the Universe, our Creator will touch your lives and mine with His healing hands through this project and through, possibly, something that I have said or written or even something that other bloggers have written. God is an awesome God and He has created us in His image but sometimes our image becomes a bit blurred by the cares and consequences of this world. The most encouraging thing is that He loves you beyond anything that you can know or feel and will carry you through it if need be.

Regarding your success….

There are many things in life that can side-track our walk. Your walk and mine, we believe is toward a successful life with all of the connotations and rewards that go along with it. We want the money, the house and car that show that we are successful, some of us want a family to share the success and the excesses which come with it. All of this is normal, every person wants a life of meaning and purpose deep down, whether they admit it or not. But..can you arrive at your success and enjoy its rewards? Or do you become anxious about losing that which you think that you have gained?

Anxiety, fear, worry, doubt are all emotions which come as a result of not realizing the place and person that has rewarded you with your success. Isn’t it me, you may ask? Your hard work and education may have a factor in your successful life but are you being a good steward of that success? Are you using it to be like the rest of the world, just getting more stuff so you can win the race (the one with the most stuff wins!). Do you realize how many people wake up hungry and afraid every day? There are people like that in America and in many so-called developed countries.

I know that many who may read this will think, “So what, that is their problem not mine.” Is it really? What would happen if your success was taken away from you? If every dollar was worthless and your stuff is taken away because you can’t pay for it, what condition would you be in?

Success is relative to what you do with what you have, regardless of how much you may have.

We cannot and must not be selfish enough to think that our success has been given to us only for our reward. It is given to us, not by our individual strength or will, though many think that it is, by God Himself. Success in life, no matter what business that you may be in, is given as a reward to each of us so that we can be a blessing to someone else.

Whether that someone else is in your family or not it doesn’t matter, the point is that each person’s success is given to them by God so that you and I can be more successful at giving. Because when you give away that which was given to you, the value derived from it is far greater than the value that it had when you became the possessor of it. As life itself has meaning and purpose bound up in it, so does your success.

The meaning that we each have to grasp in regard to our success in life, regardless of the business that we may be in, is that your life and mine are temporary and so is the success that we may have. So, what will you do with what you have so that it lives on past its usefulness to you?

Success in life, necessary?

Is success really necessary in life? To many people in life and business and in any endeavor that they attempt, success is necessary. But, what do you do with it once you have attained it? Do you go out and buy some extravagant item that you couldn’t afford before just to show off? Or, do you take your success and the reward that you have gained from it and make sure that you never get into debt again? Will you help those less fortunate than you have been or will you just forget where you were a few short months or years ago and go on your merry way?

These questions and the answers that come into your mind will tell you something of the type of person that you are. The real you, not the one that everyone else sees at the office or at a bar or even at home. The answers that come into your mind while reading those questions in the first paragraph. The answers which come, without your conscious thoughts in the way. Those are the truthful answers but they are also the answers that many people ignore or push away. Because they don’t want to admit to being so cruel or hateful. Nobody wants to admit that, unless there has been a change in your life that truly changed your character, each of us is selfish and egotistical.

We are, each one of us, this way from birth and nothing that you or your parents can do will change that. It is a sad fact and a blight on our collective conscience. Oh, we can be good and decent folks when we want something or when we think that we will get something in return. But, what about the times when we need something and we can’t do or say anything which will provoke such an action from someone else? What happens when you may be hurting, physically or emotionally, and there is nothing that you can accomplish which might prompt someone to give you what you need or want at that particular point in time?

Your character and the influence that it gives you in circumstances which come up daily, is the deciding factor when it comes to your true success in life. How much you make in terms of money is not it, nor is your promotion at work or anything which you acquire because of monetary rewards. The person that you are inside, where your character is grown and nurtured and pruned is the most important factor in your success in life. How you grow to be that person is dependent upon the culture that you live in as a young person, growing up in the care of your parents or grandparents. Yes, I used the plural of parents/grandparents for a specific reason…because each of us needs both figures in our lives.

A mother and a father, both of whom are present during your growth and development. It has been the deciding factor in the culture that our country finds itself in today because there have been and still are too many families which don’t have one or the other and sometimes both. Children that grow up without the influence of parents who care for them aren’t successful in life. I know there are exceptions to every rule and some people who are will get up and say that it was because of such a fact that they determined to be successful.

Success according to the standard that we use is measured by how big your house is, how much money that you make, etc. In material possessions, stuff, there really aren’t very many successful people in the world. There are far more people who are very UN-successful in terms which most of the world recognizes as success because there are more people living in parts of the world where their life is successful if they can manage to eat a meal two or three times per week. Success is relative because of the nature of success, where you may live, the ability that you have to live and your own drive and character which influences how you live and what you have to do to survive.

God does have some influence in your success because He is the standard by which your character is judged. His influence in your life depends greatly upon whether you have heard His message through examples set by your peers or your parents or from messages through attending church or being ministered to by a missionary in a country where Christianity may be despised and hated. Your compass, moral or not, depends upon the influence of people who have been in your life from your youth and upon their character traits as well. Were they influenced by parents who were God-fearing or were they humanists? All of these things come into play later in life and you may brush them off as the rantings of some person on the Internet, but the point is this: Character builds up, lack of it will tear down. Consider this when trying to find your path through life, wherever it might lead you.

Making a living successfully

Can you make a living at something that you enjoy? Yes, you can but you have to find out what that is first.

Make a plan, work your plan, this is advice given by many coaches on sports fields and in business. So how can we do this? First, of course, is finding out what it is that you want to do or can do that you enjoy doing. Can this be something that you can make into a job that you love? I am not sure.

Many people like to do things which are not marketable as products or services so it is possible that they may not be made into a viable vocation. But, think about this for a minute, is there anything in your daily job that you enjoy doing. If it is, then do this in the best way that you can, treat your job or even your boss as someone that you are trying to impress. Many people do this anyway, but I am not speaking of “sucking up” to anyone. I am talking about treating your job and your boss as if they are the most important person in the world. Also, I am not talking about being a brown-nose (nasty term btw), but what I am speaking of is treating your job and the things that you do in it as the most important job in the world.

Why am I trying to get people to treat their job as the most important job that they may ever hold? In the times that we live in today, our job, whatever it is, just may be the most important one that we have. Although, if you are a parent or a teacher or maybe a pastor then your job is already very important. Because you hold the future of those in your care in your hands or in the words that you speak to them. They are learning from you regardless of the way you say the words, or the truth that you are teaching. Children, whether they are babes in Christ or your children or children in school, learn from what they hear and see you doing, so model the best behavior and morals that you can. They deserve it.

Plan your job, your life around what is most important to you. Work your plan to the best of your ability. Give your life to Christ and allow Him to successfully live through your life and your vocation, because if you decide that you are working for Him then you will do your best at anything and everything that you do!