War and Religion

Today, Lacey posted a link to a newspaper article on the protesting happening at military funerals. I have to tell you how sickened I am. Not only because these people are protesting the war at military funerals, but because they call themselves Christians. These people from Westboro Baptist Church (located in Kansas) hold up signs saying "Thank God for Dead Soldiers," "You're Going to Hell," and "God Hates the USA."

I'm not kidding.

The absolute worst part of this is that these people call themselves Christians. Let me tell you this:

Under any circumstances, Christians DO NOT behave this way. Ever.

In the article, a woman said that "if you want them to stop dying, stop sinning." Well, geez. If it were that easy, don't you think people would have stopped sinning a long time ago?! It's not that easy!!!

What gets me is that this church is supposedly Baptist. Joe and I were both raised in Baptist churches. We were taught that Christians were NEVER supposed to act this way or say these things. EVER.

We believe that Jesus was born of a virgin, lived a perfect life and then gave His life for us on the cross. He gave His life so that we - sinners - could have a relationship with God. He died so that His blood would cover our sin. He died so that we wouldn't have to!

We do not believe that the death of soldiers is because of the sin of the world. War is a product of our sin nature. Since we live in an imperfect world where our enemy, Satan, is always at work, war is a necessary evil. God is NOT punishing our soldiers. Does God allow the evil to happen? Yes. Does God allow these men and women to die? Yes. But every single one of us will die in the flesh one day. That's just part of the world we live in. That's what happened when Adam and Eve sinned. They condemned us all to die of the flesh. But, we don't have to endure an eternal death, thanks to Jesus' sacrifice for us. (John 3:16, Romans 5:8-9)

It breaks God's heart when we sin. He doesn't want us to, but He knows that it's in our nature. He knows that we - unlike Him - are not perfect. He wants us to try to be like him. He wants us to strive to be like Him. The punishment for sin is death, indeed. (Romans 6:23) But the punishment doesn't come in this life here on earth. It comes after our death on earth. Personally, that's the one I'm more concerned with.

I will confidently say that God is severely disappointed in the members of Westboro Baptist Church. His heart is breaking for the families that these so-called Christians are ridiculing. If you want to be anti-war, that's one thing. Using the name of God in this way is despicable. Free speech aside, these attacks on military families are, for lack of a better word, cruel. God does not want us to be cruel. He wants us to hurt for these people, to comfort them! We are supposed to be their crying shoulder. People who do not believe in God will not reach out to people who criticize them day in and day out! They won't! People who don't believe in God will reach out to those they can trust. People who love them, care about them, and care about what they care about.

My heart breaks for the families who have had to endure their sons' and daughters' funerals through the picketing and protesting. The death of a service member, son, daughter, mother, father, sister, brother, aunt, uncle, etc. is hard enough without so-called Christians telling them that their loved ones wouldn't have died if they had just stopped sinning. It hurts them so much more. What if they don't believe in God? What if they were desperate for someone to reach out to, but now since you - the people of Westboro Church - have protested at the funeral of their loved one, they think that Christians are terrible people? What if they will never again reach out to God because of what YOU did? May God have mercy on you. Only you will be responsible for your actions in this life. We will all have to answer for our actions one day.

I pray that this church realizes this NOW and stops hurting these precious people. God loves these people. God loves every single person on this planet whether they know Him or not. He longs for a relationship with them. This is not the way to reach people. It is, however, a really good way to keep them away from God and, ultimately, to condemn them to Hell.

The One Where I Put It All Out There

...and probably lose a few followers. But that's ok. I feel like I need to get this out. God put me on this earth and into this blogging world for a reason, so I feel like I should do this.

Today, Hawaii's governor, Linda Lingle used her veto power to veto a very controversial bill - the Civil Union Bill. I, for one, was ecstatic. I believe that God created us male and female so that we could procreate - have children of our own. There's a very big reason why same sex couples can't have children without using a sperm donor, a surrogate, or adopting. A very big reason.

I have very strong convictions about this issue. While I have no problem with people who are homosexual, I do have a problem with their lifestyle. I've had some good friends who are homosexual. I love them. Honestly, I do. But, I don't have to like their lifestyle. They know this, too. They know that I'm a Christian - I don't hide that from anyone. I can love them - like Jesus does - and I can completely disagree with the way the live their life - like Jesus does.

God has despised sexual immorality from the fall of man. Let's start with Sodom and Gomorrah (Genesis 18:16-33 and chapter 19). In Gen. 19:5, men call out to Lot asking where the men who came with him where because they wanted to have sex with them. Now, this was not the only reason that God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, but you can bet your boots that it was a factor. Fast forward to Rome.

Rome was - and is - well-known for its orgies. Not to mention its mythology and general godlessness. One of my pastors did a series on the book of Romans right before Joe and I got married. I distinctly remember him mentioning a book in which the author listed the things that led up to the fall of Rome. {For the life of me, I can't remember the name of this book! I've googled and searched on Amazon and I still came up with nothing. Help?} One of the last things that occurred before Rome fell was the legalization of same-sex marriage. Are you shocked?

Romans 1:26-32
Because of this, God gave them over to shameful lusts. {Meaning He allowed them to keep doing so because they refused to listen to Him and turn from their ways.} Even their women exchanged natural relations for unnatural ones. {This is the really good part:} In the same way the men also abandoned natural relations with women and were inflamed with lust for one another. Men committed indecent acts with other men, and received in themselves the due penalty for their perversion. {Our pastor went on to question us if we'd ever thought about where AIDS and STDs came from/began. Serious food for thought.} Furthermore, since they did not think it worthwhile to retain the knowledge of God, he gave them over to a depraved mind, to do what ought not to be done. They have become filled with every kind of wickedness, evil, greed and depravity. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit and malice...(pick up in verse 32) Although they know God's righteous decree that those who do such things deserve death, they not only continue to do these very things but also approve of those who practice them.

So, according to the last verse there, Rome approved of homosexual acts: men lying with men and women lying with women. God allowed them to do this because they refused to acknowledge Him and His laws. When people started practicing homosexuality, notice that their society as a whole began to decline. Murder, greed, hatred, envy, etc.

Now, why did God allow them to keep doing as they were? I Corinthians 6:9-11:

Do you not know that the wicked will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived: Neither the sexually immoral not idolaters nor adulterers nor male prostitutes nor homosexual offenders nor thieves nor the greedy not drunkards nor slanderers nor swindlers will inherit the kingdom of God. And that is what some of you where. But you were washed, you were sanctified, you were justified in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and by the Spirit of our God.

There is more Biblical evidence to support my views, but I'm not going to go into that right now. I think it's clear from these verses how God feels about homosexuality. He despises it. As a Christian, I do too. Nothing bothers me more than people who claim to be Bible-believing Christians that are "okay" with homosexuality. Either you believe the whole Bible or you don't. You can't pick and choose what you want to believe. You can't take verses and make them say what you want them to say. It doesn't work like that.

All this to say that I believe that marriage is only for one man and one woman. God created us male and female, not male and male or female and female. Genesis 2:20-24 - ...But for Adam no suitable helper was found. So the Lord God caused the man to fall into a deep sleep;and while he was sleeping, ho took one of the man's ribs and closed up the place with flesh. Then the Lord God made a woman from the rib he had taken out of the man, and he brought her to the man. The man said, "This is not bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh; she shall be called 'woman,' for she was taken out of man." For this reason a man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife and they will become one flesh.

I'm sure there will be people who stop following me because of this, but I'm not going to apologize for my beliefs. I never have and I never will. I believe in God and His Word. I believe it is the inherit truth. I do not - and will not - alter it to sugar coat the truth to fit the world's views. It may not be popular, but it's the truth and I stand by it.