Is It Still Fun If It's Lame?

 Can I hear a whoot, whoot, for random post number two! …..At all? ...No? ….Fine. I see how it is. That is totally fine guys. See if I care.You guys are no fun anyways. I will just get posting now. In the empty silence. About owning up to all those stupid things you do when no one is watching. *dejectedly reaches for keyboard*

So everyone has something they do for fun that they do not share with other people. Be it a stupid show, game, abstract pastime, dance, genetic experiment, you get the idea. They hide it because it seems childish or silly and they want to save face. But in all honesty, who cares if it is stupid? It is for fun people! Fun does not necessarily have to be cool fun. So what if you a play a game at 16 that was created for 5 year olds back in the day. So what if you make stupid crossovers or watch T.V. shows that should probably be banned for lowering the I.Q. of the viewer. It does not matter. The people who call this kind of thing stupid or dumb are really missing out. Take the expansion in World of Warcraft for instance. A lot of people have stopped playing the MMO because they felt it was more childish now. Yes ok it has Kung-Foo Panda rip offs now. But do they ever consider that maybe that was to appeal to more eastern audiences and NOT simply to pander to kids? And that maybe this new culture and area is interesting and well done? And yes ok they added what was basically a Pokemon engine for critter pets in the game. Yeah, that is kinda silly, but that does not make it not fun. I have had some pretty memorable battles with people that reminded me of the days when people just played Pokemon for fun. When it was not so much about building the god team that required the greatest stats ever and specific choices, and more about just fighting with your favorite non-godly Pokemon. It might be silly but it still creates memories and great stories. Finding stupid glitches, like having a stag ride a motorcycle while a bat winged warlock in a meteor rides it, (no I am not making that up.) is completely pointless yet totally rewarding. Who else can say they have done that? Who else can share the non-sensible stories you get when you and a friend try to top each other in a story? Who else can say they run from some all powerful enemy whenever they go jogging? Fun is a completely separate entity from everything else. It does not matter if it is cool, or lame, or “oh my god why did I do that on camera kill me now.” Fun is fun. And no one can take it away from you.

The point is you do not need to hide this stuff. Yeah some people might make fun of you, but you know what? It does not matter. Eventually they will get bored and forget about your awesome fun thing, and just go back to doing whatever it is they don't want you to know about. Because I can almost guarantee they have something too. Now, if you will excuse me, I am going to take my Kung-Foo Panda ripoff and her tiny magical winged rabbit off into the greatest battle of their lives against a sentient carnivorous box.

-BlackFox

(585)

Those Who Believe

“For those who believe, no proof is necessary. For those who do not believe, no proof is sufficient.” -Stuart Chase

I considered this quote when thinking about what to blog. And it led me think about that all too famous argument of “Well if God is real, then let him raise this table up in front of me. And then I will believe.” and when of course, nothing happens, they sit there and say “Yeah, I didn't think so.” Which got me to thinking.

IF the table actually did raise up, what would this person do? Would they drop to their knees and proclaim God's majesty? Would they convert on the spot? More than likely they would just have a brief reaction, such as surprise or fear, and then immediately try to figure how you did that. They would assume you used a machine or another person or something to lift that table. That entire room would be torn apart in the hope of finding out the secret. Failing that, you yourself would probably be interrogated. They would be completely focused on this. I mean clearly there is a non-God related reason, on account that God does not exist....right? The fulfillment of their demands would be pointless. It would change absolutely nothing. They would still not believe in God. Although, they would probably be impressed with your apparent ingenuity. It literally would not even cross their mind that God did that at all. Even if someone could scientifically produce a being as God, it would likely be considered a hoax. There is simply no way around it. People will demand evidence and then refuse to accept it when produced.

Christians on the other hand, do not need proof to believe in God. The Bible is our proof, and that is enough for us. We do not need a scientist to make a model of God in a lab or some reporter to conduct an interview. Faith is exactly that, faith. God does not need to perform parlor tricks. He does not need to come down and high five someone to prove he is real. That which he has revealed is enough for us. We do not need to test him, or demand more. Of course, to some this is naive, or foolish, or suspiciously close to people who believe in aliens. They look as us in the same way we look back. With a sense of “How can you really not see this?” And there will always be a chasm there to separate the two groups. Now this obviously is not to say evangelism is pointless, not by any means. Spreading the word of God is our duty after all. It is merely something to consider the next time you join in with a debate.

-BlackFox

(451)

Poles And People

 You may have heard of “See you at the pole.” It is basically a day for people to meet at their local High School flag pole and publicly pray. You would think that this would be a good thing yeah? Christians getting together out in the open professing their faith, it seems the perfect way to make a faith statement. Yet, is it really something so great?

“See you at the pole” looks great on paper, but in practice it does have some problems. I view it similarly to Youth Group in this manner. People do not go to the flag pole because they want to glorify God. People do not go there because of their faith. People go there so they can say “Look at me world! Look at what a great Christian I am!” They will stand and pray and be “good” Christians for the duration of the meet, and then go home and go on with their lives. There are people there who will proclaim their deep devotion and then live as if they didn't believe in God. They are too much like the Pharisees who pray and fast in public. They want the recognition and admiration of the viewer. That is why they choose to pray so strongly publicly, but not privately. It is not about God it is about them. Another thing they consider is if a friend is going to be there. It then becomes less of a worship demonstration and becomes a social gathering. A place to have fun with your friends and not really have to do anything much. That is why you can see groups of people who are clearly together there. It is not one big group of Christians, it is a bunch of little groups pushed together and yet still separated somehow. The focus very quickly becomes lost. I am sure there are people there who really do believe in God and want to worship him, but I also know that many people there are thinking of other things than just God at that meet. 

“See you at the pole” is not about having fun with friends. It is not about bragging rights. Or at the very least, it is not supposed to (nor should it) be about these things. The purpose of the event is to glorify God and to focus on him. Not about how great a Christian you are, but how great a God we serve. Not about who is gonna be there or what you are going to talk about, because quite frankly you should not go just because Cindy will be there and “Oh my gawd she just HAS to tell you about her new church!” But sadly it does end up being about these things. And it takes away from the congregational feel. It takes away from the purpose of worshiping God. And in the end, it just ends up sounding vapid and empty. I am a Christian myself, and have no problems sharing my views and faith. But when I heard the advertisement for this event it just sounded ridiculous. It sounded to me like a bunch of people going out there just to say they went. I even remember hoping people did not get the impression that we were all fake like that. A random listener would probably consider it to be some group thing that does not really mean anything. And obviously it is a lot more for some people, I am not saying everyone feels and acts this way. But sadly the above mentioned are the majority.

I do want to stress here that I am not bashing everyone who goes to this. There are some people that do go for the right reasons and more power to them. But they should be aware that this image is something they will have to deal with. “See you at the pole” could be a great thing. It could be meaningful and admirable and honestly encouraging. But as is, it is still an empty group of people standing there to build up themselves instead of God. So it stands and so it remains.

-BlackFox

(700)

A King's Pardon

People will ask the same thing over and over: “What do I have to do to get into heaven?” They want a neat little plan. Do x, y, and z, not a, b, and c. They want definitive answers as to what will get them onto that list of righteous people. Those specific actions that if they avoid or perform will gain them that little stamp that says “approved” when they stand at the pearly gates. Unfortunately for these people, no such list has ever existed or will ever exist.

People are sinful creatures. There is no way to get around this fact. Everything we do apart from God is selfish and tainted in sin. Even one sin, thought, act or otherwise, is enough to keep you from heaven. There is no balance sheet that says you did two more good deeds than bad ones, so in you go. God does not say “Well ok, I guess you did help the orphanage once. I can forget that little scuffle with your brother.” The gates of heaven open only for the righteous. A righteous man has never sinned, not even once. He does not say “Well, compared to THAT guy I am ok. I mean I never killed anyone or stole or something like that.” because he knows that we are judged by God's standard and not that of man. We are not judged based on our righteousness relative to other men. We are judged based on our righteousness compared to God. A test that everyone fails. There is no good deed that can be performed. No profession of faith that can be proclaimed. No action or thought that can rid us of sin and make us righteous again. Our debt of sin is immense and heavy. An impossible burden we cannot hope to even begin to pay. For what could we offer God in exchange for our souls? We are running on a treadmill and God is on the other side. On our own, we have no way to reach Him. No matter how hard or fast we run, our power is not enough.

But all is not lost. God will not abandon his beloved children. He stands at the other end of his child running on that conveyor and reaches out to them. He grabs their hand and pulls them to the other side. God forgives us our sin. He pardons our debt and lifts the weight from our shoulders. He makes us righteous again where we cannot. Out of love He sent His own son to live and die for us. To bear the pain and suffering in the lake of fire that should have been ours. To be rejected and cast down in our place, and then to rise again in victory over death. God did not leave us to our fate. He did not turn His back on us and reject us. He will not fail to reach one He chooses to save. To those whom He reaches out, He always holds close. And He will never cast down one once lifted. We may not be able to pay our debts. We may not be strong enough to vanquish the enemy. But God is stronger than any man, and He will pardon us our sin.

-BlackFox

(554)

"Real" Christians

On occasion, I will hear people say they are either not currently, or cannot become a "real" Christian because they do not have some deep mysterious relationship with God. They say that they have never had an amazing spiritual experience or a connection. They feel like they have no hope of measuring up to the "real" Christian who professes to hear God's voice, or speaks of some significant experience of salvation.

But this is not what Christianity is. It is not about having deep spiritual experiences that you can share with other people. It is about faith and commitment to God. Many Christians, such as myself, do not have a profound moment of conversion we can share. Not all of us suddenly had a moment where we just fell on our knees with the most amazing feeling ever. You do not have to be the woman in church who says she feels God with her everyday. Everyone has their own way of worshiping and connecting with God. Some people do feel like they have had an enlightening experience, and they want to share it. And that's ok. Some people simply believe because that is how they were taught. And that's ok. Others simply have come to believe on their own through Christ. And that's ok. It is ok that not everyone has an amazing faith statement. It is ok that you simply believe for your own reasons. You do not have to feel an amazing connection to be connected with God. God works in different ways for different people. Just because you do not see him with you does not mean he is not there. You are not a bad Christian just because you do not feel the need to drop to your knees every five seconds. In fact, doing so for the wrong reasons can actually be a bad thing, but that is another story.

You are a real Christian if you believe in the trinity and the resurrection. You are a real Christian if you believe in the Bible and what it teaches. You are a real Christian even if you do not have an amazing story for your moment of faith. That is not what matters. What matters is that you have faith in God. What matters is that you have commitment to the Word and the Church. That is what concerns God. He will not reject you because you do not feel some mysterious connection. He will not consider you a bad Christian because you fail to have an overwhelming sense of connection. What God wants is for you to have faith and to glorify him, and there are certainly many ways to accomplish this. Raising your children in faith is glorifying him. Following the commandments is glorifying him. Professing your faith is glorifying him. And I do not mean shouting it out loud in overwhelming emotion. (Though if that works for you then go for it!) It is good if you can scream it out to the masses, but simply sharing it with a co-worker or a friend would be just as well and certainly just as important. So relax, breathe, and know that God is always with you even if you do not feel him.

-BlackFox

(542)

But I Don't Have A Religion!

                This is something I sometimes hear from people such as Atheists and Buddhists, or people who are unsure of the existence of a God. “I don’t HAVE a religion!” They say. “I don’t believe in any sort of God. I don’t have any practices or rituals. I just don’t practice or believe in religion.” They define religion as based on a belief in God or gods, something that involves specific practices or duties to perform. So therefore they have no religion. Yet, are they really right?

                Atheism is indeed a religion.  Religion is not defined as something involving God. Put simply, your religion is the set of beliefs (about things such as the origin of the world and the afterlife) which you hold common with other people. Atheists believe that there is no God. They believe in evolution.  They believe that the Bible holds no authority. These are all part of the set of beliefs that define an Atheist. They are not separate from a religion. They simply have one that rejects the idea of a God. It is not that they do not believe in my God.  It is that they do believe my God does not exist.  There is not an Atheist out there who can say that they believe in God, or that there might be a God. If they were to say this, they would not be an Atheist. To be an Atheist is to believe in certain truths and concepts. There are simply some things you simply cannot believe in. In fact Atheism itself basically means the belief in no God. The same is true for Christianity, there are certain beliefs you must hold to. There are some things you simply have to accept as true or false if you really believe what you profess to.  It is virtually impossible to not have a religion of some sort. There is not a man out there who believes in nothing at all. Everyone has an opinion on the creation of the world or the autonomy of man. Everyone can find a place to fit in among others who share their beliefs. Everyone can find others with which to agree and discuss the mysteries of the universe.

A Christian can lay down their beliefs about God and life easily. They have a specific set that is unique to them. The same goes for an Atheist, or a Buddhist, or a Utilitarian, or any other set of beliefs. We all have our own specific doctrine unique to us. It is true some groups may be larger than others, or more prevalent. And it is true that some have more tradition than others. But that does not mean that they do not belong to a religion. Each group has things only they believe. That is why we can debate and defend and discuss. If we did not know much about our own set of beliefs we could not make arguments for them. We could not make opinions or decisions on issues. And most importantly we could not defend them. We all have doctrine. We all have a religion or set of beliefs. And we all defend them and assert them as truth. So rather than denying your religion, accept it and learn about it. Become knowledgeable so you can crush the enemy, or at least withstand them, when they make an assault. But do not attempt to enter the fray if you do not acknowledge your own strategy.

-BlackFox

(580)

Atheism: A Luxury Of The Rich

 We have already discussed the implications presented by Atheism on the value of life. And I suspect many of you have the same response to my assertion. That life is given value by the experiences you have. That life is meaningful because of what you do in it. Which works perfectly fine if you can afford to have meaningful experiences. But what about those who barely scrape by day to day?

Consider a poor man living in the slums of a city. He has a low paying, long lasting, labor intensive job. He can barely keep his family from starving. His house is small and run down. He does not own a car nor a computer. His neighbors bear no sympathy because they suffer as well. He suffers from sickness and can do nothing about it. He watches his children cry from want and cannot help them. His wife looks upon their desolation and weeps, he has no way to console her. To him, he is a failure. Where then does the value of his life come from? This is not a heart warming success story. He is not going to claw his way up the ladder to happiness. He is going to die in poverty like the majority of his family and neighbors. To this man who lives in such conditions, Atheism is a horribly depressing concept. No one cares about his suffering. No one is going to help him in any useful sense. He is going to die and turn to dust and be forgotten. And then where will he be? Who will remember or care for his plight? The answer of course, is no one. So how then does his life have value? Where are the experiences to make it meaningful? His life is nothing but an endless cycle of failure and suffering. The rich man builds and travels and says “look what I have done! Look how I have made a meaningful contribution to be remembered! See how my life was not wasted!” The poor man barely exists from day to day. He sits in his drafty house and asks himself. “What have I done in my life? See how pointless and terrible it is! And in the end no one will remember it, or care.”

It is perfectly easy to say there is no God. It is perfectly easy to say life is what you make of it. It is perfectly easy to do all these things when you are comfortable and have money. But take away your prosperity. Take away what your fathers gave you and what you have that is your own. Sit in the desolation and despair of poverty with no hope of escape or sympathy. Exist in this way and then say that you have no need of God. Proclaim the value of your life as you have made it and the experiences of it have shown for you. The poor man turns to God because he understands that there his comfort lies. That there he is not forsaken and a failure. For it is only with the aid of God that he does not turn to bitterness and anger at the injustice of the world. Do not merely say that you would certainly feel the same regardless. Do not merely say that you would find something of value to be glad for. For you speak still from your comfort and prosperity. Only when you leave it behind and have no hope of its return can you say these things with authority. Then and only then can you reject the comfort of God. Only then can you denounce the one person in existence who remembers and cares for your suffering. And who gives you meaning when you can perceive none.

-BlackFox

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