Football fan's voter guide

With the SC primary tomorrow and since I'm a SC born-and-bred gal, I decided to help a few of my SC friends out by publishing a voter guide that my hubby helped come up with.  For those that need the extra help here, this is completely unofficial and absolutely reflects our own personal opinions.  At least he and I had a chuckle over it. 

Feel free to give me your best armchair quarterbacking on this big game in the comments. :)

Mitt = NE Patriots – He has had great success in the past – one part of his game is unmatched but he has serious flaws in another part of his game. Nobody is passionately for him and they either respect his successes or loathe him because of it.

Newt = NY Jets – Is a loud mouth and makes brash predictions about himself that on some days will smash you in the mouth and show you how good he really is, but the next moment make a complete fool of himself and show everybody that maybe he’s not as good as he thinks he is.

Paul = Denver Broncos – He came out of nowhere to offer a cooky, different way of playing the game and he takes bold stands that cause people to either love him or hate him. Will his unconventional style and solid defense of the Constitution result in a win?

Santorum = Detroit Lions – fresh upstart with a good foundation but just not good enough to really compete with the big boys and cries when things don’t go his way.

 

 

*********and although they've bowed out of the running at this point*********

Perry = Tampa Bay – came into the season with a lot of potential but found ways to lose that were embarrassing.

 

 

Herman Cain = Houston Texans – newcomer who rode a hot streak early but was fatally damaged by outside influences.

 

 

Huntsman = Indianapolis Colts – came in with a very respectable career but now in a new spotlight had many questions going in to the race and never was able to compete in any way, shape or form.

Religious discussion / conversation

Okay, so there's a "viral" video circulating that is seemingly stirring up some within the Church lately.  This is nothing new.  And, it's not exclusive of yours truly either.  I happened to have "liked" the video on facebook (the equivalent of my giving it a stamp of approval? or approving parts or basic notion behind it? - I'm not sure what level the "like" button actually indicates myself!) after seeing some reputable friends link it and of course viewing it.  But, there was a storm (or at least a heavy downpour) brewing around this video that I was unaware of.

I guess I was unaware of it - the storm / downpour - because I don't do my own homework anymore.  Blame it on the baby that is screaming because he is rebelling against naptime on the monitor.  It's hard to concentrate long enough for me to read one paragraph these days.  Speaking of the video in question I actually listened to it the first time through while flipping board book pages and hearing Ethan holler "BAH" to every animal he saw.  We're still working on getting words out of him.   However, AFTER I hit the like button others seemed to mount their own "likes" for articles that were deconstructing the content of the video I had just approved (still not sure if that's what I did by checking "like," remember?).  Hate that when that happens.  I don't like the feeling that others may be correcting my own move.  Although I know they really aren't making any comment on me or my action in truth, it still feels that way.  Note, I did say "feel" here, right?

Anywho, this video does spawn the convo within the church - or should we say bring it back to the surface - regarding how we balance truth and grace.  No doubt about it.  The concerns outlined by others are well warranted.  Noting the broad (a million and counting!) youtube audience viewing this viral video, words should definitely have been better chosen.  However, in giving a little grace to one that I do believe is a brother in Christ, do I let him have a bye when he's not a pastor? Do I honestly acknowledge that while truth IS absolute and in a large degree can very well be known through God's written Word in the Bible, that we as humans are going to inevitably screw that up? Sometimes tragically? I'm not giving him wiggle room for heresy here.  I'm just extending a little goodwill to understand that he - the author - is still strengthening his knowledge in the Lord.  I am too, by the way.  I don't have it perfect.  And, I'm still trying to find the bubble in the level as to where I am at almost every given moment to be 100% biblical in my truth/grace distribution.

Another point of contention growing in me...call it my own internal debate and attempt to discern - although I'm still working on where to locate the correct answers within the Bible (and I do believe they can be found there!) - is why has the Church become like the local secular must-be-politically-correct-at-all-times scene? Is it just me, or do you also feel the rub that everything - and I do mean EVERYthing - must be qualified with a Wayne Grudem Systematic Theology sized fine print beneath or behind it?  If I say, "God loves you, has called you, has saved you for His own glory" is that true? Yes.  Could it possibly be taken to an extrapolation that is unfair that means His love trumps all and somehow overcomes the necessary sacrifice?  I guess it could by I sure hope that others wouldn't put and add words onto mine (by the way, I can totally understand an inkling of why God told us NOT to do that very thing to His Word in Revelation now).

Additionally, if I talk about God's holiness...how we do not and cannot and never will ever measure up to THAT standard...well, am I being too much the fundamentalist, legalist, don't get it is His grace sort of Christian? Again, extrapolation here based on the limited bit of info from me.  From a purely mathematical statistics standpoint (and I'm doing all I can to remember that college course here), that's not fair.  It's the same bogus practice that leads stupid "scientists" to take a hundred rings on a tree trunk and tell us we evolved from apes after all.

At the end of the day, my own best advice (whether you wanted it or not and regardless that I'm an expert on absolutely nothing - I can't even get my own child to take his naps when he's tired and I'd promise you he actually, deep-down in that little body, craves one!) is: BREATHE.  Remember...God is sovereign.  He WILL use man...as flawed as he/she is and as botched up of a job he/she does at giving the gospel and living the gospel...to further His kingdom (that means showing the gospel to be EFFECTIVE).  Wow.  How amazing is that?! How much can I just relax knowing that He WILL get it right?! Those that speak the grace with too little truth but with truth nonetheless.  Those that are gifted to see error and correct it with the heart of not misrepresenting our Lord and His Word and Work.  All of us.  All ends of the spectrum for those that are regenerate...no matter what we do, He WILL accomplish His work (in us, through us, and in spite of us).  Praise be to Him for that! That also gives us the boldness to continue following His command to give the gospel to others even though we may not have the time or means to follow through with the books upon books of fine print to be sure that our audience heard us correctly and biblically.

Now, I'm off...baby has screamed or talked or laughed at me long enough to succeed in making this mother give in.  So, you can take that in conjunction with my rant here, too.  Perhaps a Momma that can't get a baby to nap (when he's tired!) can't really talk about the Truth / Grace tightrope that we teeter on in this earthly life.

Pitiful

Hate it when the little man is under the weather.  Here he is coming down with the latest cold.  Thankfully, we haven’t dealt with sickness much since his birth.  He’s a tough little cookie (like his momma), but occasionally something gets him.  He did digress into a nasty cough and mild fever over the following 48hrs from this photo.  That made for a shorter fuse on just about anything and everything.  He’s a little too independent and short-tempered when he’s not himself rather than becoming a needy and clingy and cuddly baby.  Wonder where he gets that from?! Haha.

Thankfully, I’m happy to report he’s doing much better today.  And, I’m praying that’s the only sickness we see in 2012. :)

Let it Go!

A friend of mine very recently posted this as her mantra for 2012.   The essence of this mantra boils down to learning to be content in all things for this year.  Let go of everything from the clutter that has been sitting around on the counter to the cluttering expectations of oneself and others in the upcoming year.  I couldn’t help but reflect on my own “life verse” which I have to admit I rarely ever live up to.  The verse is this: 

Hebrews 13:5-6

Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you have,  for he has said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”  So, we can confidently say,

“The Lord is my helper;

I will not fear;

what can man do to me?”

There’s a lot packed into that scripture! There’s a lot for me to aim for.  There’s a lot for God to work out and through me in just this one area! 

For one, I struggle with the love of money.  I don’t act greedy about it and want lavish things, but I certainly don’t want to struggle.  I certainly don’t want the insecurity of paycheck-to-paycheck.  I like “cushion.” I love “savings.” I love taking pride in storing up earthly safety nets.  Wrong focus.  Wrong to put my trust in myself or earthly possessions.  Just plain wrong. Sin.

Second, I fear man.  Way too much.  I am constantly evaluating how I don’t measure up.  I give up on even diets and exercise because the expectations of achieving what “man says” I should be is way beyond grasp typically.  What I demand of myself in being a good mom is usually deeply rooted in what I have concocted as what others expect from a good mom.  I have anxiety over being able to juggle it all and and keep some appearance of being pulled together (even when I know in the back of my head that most “pulled together” folks are never really showing you their own reality).  All of it, though, admittedly doesn’t focus on what the Bible lovingly asks of me.  Instead, it stems from a man-centered worldly, and typically false, set of standards.  I need to stop and consider why I would even want to achieve what the world or mankind wants from me.   Again, terribly skewed focus.  Temporal and fickle versus the eternal and secure.  Worldly versus godly.  Elevating man above God.  Idolatry.  Sin.

So, in observing and reflecting on my friend’s aim for 2012, I also need to pause and examine my heart.  I need to FIRMLY place my trust in God alone.  I need to remember He alone is Whom I worship. I need a wholesome heart perspective.  I need to purge the sin of discontentment from my heart and the connecting sins that feed the discontent.

Christmas Morning 2011

Christmas morning happiness!
Can't wait to get it outside on our warmer days and in the basement for the colder ones. He loves it!