What Are We Saying?

So, let's talk eternal security. Some Christians in favor of eternal security say it's proposterous that anyone once saved could ever become un-saved. They say if a Christian stops honoring the Lord and chooses to embrace sin, then they were probably not saved to begin with. Otherwise, the person's lifestyle would reflect their faith. Other Christians not in favor of eternal security say it's proposterous to assume that a Christian will always be saved simply because of a one-time deal. They believe that a person can willfully choose to walk away from the Lord. Otherwise, the person's lifestyle would reflect their faith.

Is it possible that we all believe the same thing, only looking at it from different sides of the same coin? (Of course, Christian interpretation sometimes seems to have as many sides as a Scattergories cube rather than the two of a coin.)

Something to Remember

I remembered something tonight that I doubt I'll ever forget. While driving home from the airport, the student with me said, "You know, I love doing things in the rain." All I could think about was the night in the rain. (If you're offended by mushy things, please move on to another post.)

Natasha and I went to my family's house for Easter weekend. We had been dating only a short period of time. Kissing and holding hands were still new between the two of us. (They still feel new.) We held hands, walking through the streets of Millsboro, Delaware. We passed houses, the school, a few churches. I wanted to show her Cupalo Park, a very nice area in the small town, when it started to rain. Our conversation had been very sweet, and as I looked over at her, she seemed to shine with beauty. The rain picked up, and there we were in Cupalo Park, in a downpour. The rain was warm and steady, and I had the urge to kiss Natasha. So I did. It was a Bethany-appropriate kiss, for those of you who actually buy the "I Kissed Dating Goodbye" bondage. Still, it was a perfect kiss. We just stood there for a moment, realizing that we just had a movie moment. I'll never forget how pure and romantic that evening was. I'll never forget how exhilirated I felt on our walk back to my parents' place.

The moral of this story: Remember. Your relationships will be better because of it.

Child Prodigy?

So, on my business trip to Maryland, Delaware, and Virginia I did a drive-by "Suprise! Happy Father's Day!" to my dad. He was shocked, as was the whole family. It was especially delightful to see my baby sister, Bailey, again. She looks a lot like me when I was a baby. (Hopefully the cute will last for her.) She is also a child prodigy like I was...okay, you're right, I wasn't. She, however, is seventeen (17) months old and counted out loud to ten while I held her on Saturday. Yeah...counted to ten. I even understood what she was saying. I know three year olds that can't even count to ten yet. Sheesh.

Before you are impressed to strongly to send your calculus assignments to this little prodigy, bear in mind that she won't walk. That's right, won't. She can; I saw her. She just prefers to crawl. In other words, she's smart enough to count, but she's not smart enough to realize that walking is faster and more efficient. Hmmm....prodigy?

Oh, yeah, for those of you that know me well enough to get this, she rocks in her (stationary) chair when she's excited or hears music.

When People Aren't People

I've been on the road most of the past three weeks. One of the things I do when I travel is listen to talk radio. Yes, I'm a talk radio junkie. I don't agree with everything I hear, but I'm a fan of people like Dr. Laura, Rush Limbaugh (really rubs me the wrong way), Lars Larson, and most anything from the BBC.

While listening to talk radio on my recent trips I realized that somewhere along the line our "tolerant" super-society has broken down what it means to be human. On Rush's show earlier today, a caller said about the terrorists against whom George Bush is fighting, "Why should we treat them like people? They're not people; they're terrorists. They don't deserve to be treated well." Really, caller? They aren't people?

Lars Larson held a discussion two weeks ago in which he asked the listeners whether or not they would allow doctors to alter their DNA if they could absolutely be sure to prevent a baby being born with something like Down's, Asberger's, or Lou Gherig's. The common consensus was, "Sure. After all, isn't it more cruel not to use our technology to prevent people from denegrating into those diseases that make us less than human? (I'm not exaggerating that word choice.)

When did people stop being people simply because they have evil in their hearts or because of disease? I thought being human meant having body, mind, will, emotions, and a soul. I thought being human had less to do with a particular character type than with who we "are." Clearly I'm off base here. It's scary that we live in a world in which we can call our enemies "unhuman." That certainly sets the stage for self-granted authoritarian cruelty in the name of humanity. It's scary that we can manipulate our genes so that we only have perfect babies. The last time someone tried to create a superior race of people (Milosovic), the US bombarded the Balkans. Yet, it's okay for us because we're not mean like Hitler, Polpot, or Milosovic. We're not committing genocide, so it's okay if we create a superior race.

Friends, especially Christians, this is no good. Being a person has nothing to do with meeting the North American standard of human living. God have mercy.