On Gay Marriage.....

On August 4th a judge ruled that California's ban on same sex marriage was unconstitutional. "Proposition 8 fails to advance any rational basis in singling out gay men and lesbians for denial of a marriage license," wrote U.S. District Court Judge Vaughn Walker in a 136-page decision. "Indeed, the evidence shows Proposition 8 does nothing more than enshrine in the California Constitution the notion that opposite-sex couples are superior to same-sex couples.".........."Moral disapproval alone is an improper basis on which to deny rights to gay men and lesbians. The evidence shows conclusively that Proposition 8 enacts, without reason, a private moral view that same-sex couples are inferior to opposite-sex couples," wrote Judge Walker.

I could talk about how he had no right to overturn the votes of over 7 million state wide voters, how has a judge he made a legislative ruling which is NOT within his rights to do. I could talk about how as one of the few openly homosexual judges on the bench he should have recused himself from this decision because of an inability to be un-biased. If you think perhaps I am being unfair on his bias you should read more of his ruling.

" The ban on gay marriage, for example, "exists as an artifact of a time when the genders were seen as having distinct roles in society and in marriage." "That time," the court declared, "has passed." According to the court, "gender no longer forms an essential part of marriage; marriage under law is a union of equals." The plaintiffs in Perry "do not seek recognition of a new right," but instead simply the existing fundamental right of marriage.

So are ALL laws based on morality unconstitutional?

The voters should be allowed to make the decision, and those who don't like it can move to a state that satisfies their preferences. During the Constitution's ratification, Alexander Hamilton assured New Yorkers that the Constitution would never permit the federal government to "alter or abrogate" a state's "civil and criminal institutions [or] penetrate the recesses of domestic life, and control, in all respects, the private conduct of individuals." (insert your own LOL here!)

All that said that is not my main basis for being opposed to what the judge did. I am opposed to gay marriage whether it is handed to us by a judge over stepping his bounds or by a vote of the people. I am morally opposed to homosexuality and I think that the ramifications of it becoming mainstream are harmful to me and my family, and my children. Marriage is not a 'right' that we have to fight for, it's not a "social contract that we can re-negotiate based on changing social trends". It IS something set up and established by God, and to suggest that we can in any way change his laws is somewhat prideful of us. Gen 1:27 So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them." Matthew 19:4, Mark 10:6...Whenever Jesus was asked about marriage he went back to the passage defining it as between a man and a woman. Romans 1:26-27, 1 Cor 6:9-10, 1 Timothy 1:9-10.

There is more that I can say but part of why I felt compelled to write is because a lot of the response I am hearing from Christians is about how we are to be loving, and that how others live their lives shouldn't affect us at all. I agree COMPLETELY that we have to respond in love, only ever condemning the sin, always loving the sinner. However a quote in Martin Luther's biography got my attention and I couldn't shake it.

"If I profess with the loudest voice and clearest exposition every portion of the Word of God except precisely that little point which the world and the devil are at that moment attacking. I am not confessing Christ, however boldly I may be professing Him. Where the battle rages there the loyalty of the soldier is proved; and to be steady on all the battle front besides, is mere flight and disgrace if he flinches at that point."

WOW! So if the enemy has been revealed, perhaps it is time for us to reconsider where we pick our spiritual battles!

Books

I would be most content if my children grew up to be
the kind of people who think decorating
consists mostly of building enough bookshelves.
~ Anna Quindlen ~

I have always enjoyed reading to my kids. Ever since Kaity was born practically, she has never been more content than to be curled up in someone's lap having them read to her. She also picked favorites pretty early on. By the time she was not much older than two she had "Curious George goes to the Hospital" memorized word for word. Rodney took a little longer but the love of reading is in his blood and now he has come to enjoy a good book as well as the next one.

We get our books from all kinds of sources. Some have been passed down, some we borrow from the library, some we purchase from the Book Barn. Some become instant favorites like "Click Clack Moo, cows that type". Some only get read once and never looked at again. Others......

Well others give you the chance to share ......wow share what? Recently a child's version of "Anne of Green Gables" made it's way to our house! There are almost no words to describe what reading it to Kaity is like. For those of you who have never looked on a book as one of your closest friends you won't understand. But for those of you who are kindred spirits and "of the race that knows Joseph" I am sure you can relate.

Most of the Anne of Green Gable books I had read to me. I was older than Kaity is now, but after dinner in Ecuador we would all go into my mom's room and she would read the books out loud to us. We went through the whole series that way. Laughing at Anne's antics together, crying through Matthew's death, cheering with her through her joys and triumphs and feeling for her through her struggles. As I sat down to read the book to Kaity for the first time I could not believe how quickly I was transported back to that room, every detail in vivid memory in my head, I could see us all lying on the bed, I swear even the smell came back to me.

I LOVE the Anne of Green Gables books. In a way they really are part of my childhood and life in a way that a dear childhood friend would be. I LOVE being able to introduce that old dear wonderful friend to my daughter and start to see them have a relationship.

I am getting a new roof!

Sometimes that face that projects on a house seem to be never ending can be a bit frustrating. Sometimes, I have to admit I find the projects exciting. This spring my house is getting quite the face lift because are getting a new roof! And not just any new roof a standing seam metal roof. It is apparently very green and eco-friendly which means we get a $1500 tax credit for installing it. It also lasts for 50 years which is roughly 3x longer than your average shingle roof. Other huge things that it had going in it's favor was that my husband can install it, AND we got most of the material for free. :-) Some of the things that it had NOT going in it's favor was that since we are installing it ourselves I have had to find myself on the top of a fairly high roof, leaning out over the edge in order to hold a piece of metal on while my husband attaches it. *shudders* that is not exactly my favorite but what are you going to do? I will keep posting pictures as more of the final picture emerges but here are some pictures of the first real day of roofing.

Beyond Belief

I pull up yahoo.com this morning in order the check my e-mail and the headline that is staring at me is " Evangelist's invitation stirs controversy" . A watchdog group is objecting to Franklin Graham coming to speak at the National Day of Prayer event at the pentagon because his past description of Islam as "evil" is offensive.

Sort of makes sense doesn't it? I mean we have a president who bows to the Saudi king, he shakes hands with Chavez. He has well documented ties to anti-american anti-Semitic terrorist like Rashid Khalidi, Ali Abunimah, Bill Ayers , Bernardine Dohrn, the Rev. Bill Wright. Also, lets not forget that when Netanyahu came to visit the white house the president would not allow them to be photographed together. I think we all know that while he might not say it out loud Obama is a little offended by the fact that someone like Franklin Graham has been invited to speak at the pentagon.

The story only gets scarier as you keep reading. Weinstein the head of the watchdog group that is objecting to Graham goes on to stay that he objects to the pentagon working with the National Day of Prayer task force. He said that he doesn't object to a national day of prayer he just doesn't want them to endorse the task force because they organize "Christian events" for the day and that is preferential treatment.

A federal judge in Wisconsin agrees. She called the National Day of Prayer unconstitutional because it "amounts to a call for religious action". She did postpone enforcement of the decision until all appeals are exhausted.

Phew *breathes sigh of relief*. Well I guess that last part is good news. I guess at least THIS year I can still gather at my local Christian school or church for a National Day of Prayer without being shut down. My church can hand out brochures about the day without being in fear of losing their tax-exempt status....for now.

You know in an attempt to be fair and balanced lets look at this from the other sides point of view for a minute. Imagine how relieved they are. I mean after all these years of being brow beaten and forced to participate in something that they didn't want to participate in, now they have been offered the religious freedom to do .......what they always had the right to do.

"As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."

part of the journey

I am taking a break from exercising. Starting this morning. When else would you start this kind of 'diet' if not on a Monday morning? My leg is not getting better. After finally going for an MRI it was diagnosed as a stress fracture. However, even as a stress fracture and not shin splints it should be almost completely healed by now and it's not. Since going to the Dr. almost two months ago I have for the most part done no running of any kind, but I've done the elliptical, and swimming, and biking, and weight training. I have honestly spent no less time exercising than I did before I've just avoided running (for the most part ;-) ). Did I mention the leg is not really showing many signs of healing?

I actually came to this conclusion Thursday night after talking to a close friend of mine. I was in a lot of pain, and very frustrated that this long after my original injury I was still dealing with this much pain so I realized I needed to do something more drastic, I was going to have to actually rest the leg. As if to verify my decision I woke up Friday morning to my leg actually in fairly painful spasms. Sooo I did what any rational person would do. I got up, put a phone call in to my physical therapist put on my sweats and tank top, laced up my sneakers and headed to the gym. Actually had to cut my work out short by about half an hour because after an hour on the elliptical, I was having a hard time putting any weight on my right leg during my upper body workout.

That night I mentioned to two of the people closest to me that I had come to the conclusion that this was a spiritual battle. God was trying to teach me something, there was a reason why He had taken running away from me and I was not going to learn it by replacing it with other exercises I was going to have to take a serious step back. That night the decision did not seem like a hard one as I laid in bed icing my leg with tears pouring down my face from the pain. So the next morning I did what any rational human being would do. I got up put, on my helmet and gloves, laced up my sneakers and headed off for a 20 mile bike ride. To be fair by that point I had decided that it made the most sense to start the 'fast' on Monday.

Yesterday morning on my bike ride (yes I biked again...but again I had decided to start on Monday so it really did make sense...honest). I spent most of the time trying to 'convince' God that I didn't really need the time off and if He would just heal my leg I was pretty certain that I could learn what it was He was trying to teach me while still exercising and running. He wasn't buying it.

I am planning to spend this time as a fast of sorts. The time that I would have spent working out I am going to focus on spending with God. I'll probably have more time to blog since I usually spend as much time at the gym as most people spend on a part time job. So lets see what He is trying to teach me!

Spring

I think that no matter how old or infirm I may become, I will always plant a large garden in the spring. Who can resist the feelings of hope and joy that one gets from participating in nature's rebirth? ~Edward Giobbi

Is there ANYTHING better than knowing that spring is here? Maybe actively participating in it by planting seeds and watching them grow! Or having kids old enough to 'help' you plant seeds and be as excited as you are to watch them pop up through the ground. WHen Rodney saw the first seedlings pop up his eyes got huge, his grin was even bigger and he said "daddy can we show everybody?" Or to be able to use the opportunity as a chance to share with them the wonder of God's creation and that He is soo generous to allow us to participate with Him in helping things grow.

While talking to Kaity it became on object lesson for myself. IF I didn't plan a garden would the world be any less beautiful? Does God need me to plant HIs flowers for Him? Clearly no. BUT oh the joy that He allows me to be a tiny part even of His creative process.

Sometimes having the kids participate is a rough definition of the term 'help'. It would be easier to do it by myself at some point when they were out of the room. BUT it would hold less joy, less significance then doing the task together, watching them learn, seeing their joy at being part of the larger process.

I couldn't help but think that God must feel the same way most of the time about letting us participate in His master plan. Oh it would probably be soo much easier for Him to do it all while we were 'out of the room'. Much like my kids I find that I don't have patience for doing EVERY part of His plan, I want to skip to the fun part, I get distracted half way through by something shiny, I take my eyes off the goal .

Sometimes I just want to play in the dirt.

I am grateful that His patience is greater than my own. I am grateful for the promise of spring!

Spring makes its own statement, so loud and clear that the gardener seems to be only one of the instruments, not the composer. ~Geoffrey B. Charlesworth

Paul Tanner

This is Paul Tanner. He is the closest thing to Indiana Jones you will ever meet. He was our tour guide when we were in Africa. We spent most of our time with Paul , learning what he does and doing what we could to help, which most of the time wasn't enough. His passport is several inches thick from extra pages he has to add from all his travels. He speaks several languages and can fake his way through even more. He is in charge of 'logistics' for TIMO teams in Africa. That means that when they are coming he sets up where they going to live, deals with the diplomatic relations with the towns where they are going to be, and sets up (and implements) contingency plans for getting them out in a moments notice if the need arise.

Paul spent pretty much all of his life in Africa. His parents were missionaries before him. He was raised on the mission field and then went back as an adult on his own. You don't have to know Paul very long before you realize how deep his roots are embedded in Africa and how much love he has for the country and it's people. He IS African. They are HIS people.

When you see Paul he is about 5 feet tall and looks fairly harmless. That is EXTREMELY deceiving. He is actually 10 feet tall and bullet proof. Over the course of the two weeks that we spent with him Tim and I both became convinced that there was not a situation that Paul couldn't talk and joke himself out of. On one trip from Tanzania into Kenya we were pulled over by the police. This is very common over there, although somewhat unsettling as an American as they are all heavily armed standing by the side of the road ready to wave you over. The common practice is to bribe them and go on your way. However, AIM has a policy that they will not bribe the police. What the police do is call you to the back of your vehicle so that you can show them what you are transporting. Then they say "and what do you have for me". That is the (subtle) hint at a bribe. Well Paul said : "I have for you the good news of Jesus Christ". The police officer instantly got irritated and said "go on go". But Paul insisted he asked "Do you know what the good news of the Gospel is, do you know what Jesus has done for you". By now the very exasperated police officer yelled "get in your car just go". And we were on our way!!

In another situation we were not going to be allowed back into Kenya from the Sudan because we had not gotten our yellow fever shots. Paul talked us out of that one. Then when there was no plane to fly us from Loki, Kenya to Nairobi Paul somehow talked them into using a cement carrying airplane to carry us to Nairobi!! We watched them as they put the seats in the plane. As we got on the plane the pilot was shaking his head. He wasn't even sure how he had been talked into this! And those are just a couple of examples.

This is a picture of Paul fixing my sandal. When we were visiting a town in the Sudan it rained. I was wearing flip flops. At one point my flip flop got stuck in the mud and the bottom became disconnected from the top. I did not know what I was going to do. We were in the middle of nowhere and I had no interest in walking around the town in the rain in bare-feet! Well Paul took my sandal and with a small piece of wire and a rubber band fixed it. When he couldn't talk himself out of something he just fixed it.

The Tanners are home on furlough so this afternoon on their way from Pennsylvania to New York they stopped by for lunch. We got to spend roughly 3 hours with them before it was time to say goodbye and send them on their way. I don't know when we will see them again. We talk about visiting Africa again, taking our kids back. We talk about keeping in touch, but reality is we live in Hawthorne, NJ and they live in Tanzania Africa.

My prayer is often "even so Lord Jesus come". Dealing with a sin sick world gets tiring, old. Eternity in Heaven is definitely something I anticipate more and more every day. These days one of the big draws is knowing that I will see Paul Tanner there. I do believe that his glorified body will be 10 feet tall, he IS a spiritual giant. And there we will not have to say goodbye.