December 2007

Dr. Ron Paul
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Running through January 4th, AOL News currently features a Presidential campaign straw poll that you can take part in!

Currently in the lead by just over 5,000 votes is our future President, Dr. Ron Paul. Second place belongs to Mayor Giuliani. Those are among the Republican candidates, of course. On the Democratic side, Hilary Clinton is in a frightening overall lead with ~10,000 more votes than Dr. Paul. Obama is slightly behind Paul, trailing by a meager 100 votes or so.

I’m glad to see Dr. Paul continuing to enjoy great success in the online polls; whether that translates into success in the upcoming primaries and caucuses remains to be seen.

At the very least, what success he is enjoying is showing that there are a great many people in America who are ready for a change, a shift toward the America prescribed in the Constitution, of limited federal government — by, of, and for the people — and more authority being given back to local & state level governments where it belongs & where it will better represent the people it is being governed.

Go, vote. And when the primaries roll around, write Ron Paul in if you have to!

Hat tip: Justin

I still remember one of the things David emphasized the first time we hung out. It was that every human being is an image bearer (hence the name of his website), that within each of us is the likeness, the tselem of God.

An Image Bearer
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It is oftentimes so hard for me to remain conscious of that fact.

And it’s difficult to ignore the guilt welling up within me at that admission. It’s not like I spend the day around murderers, rapists, and the like.¹ Working with the public, albeit in a small town, five days a week, I interact with a beautiful mix of people. I often forget they are all image bearers, though, because what I often witness is a potent reflection of the human condition.

Teenagers get their kicks by being destructive with our property, walking away from the mess while giggling. Parents threaten their kids with leaving them behind or beating them, simply for having a case of the “I wants” (If you’re not willing, as a parent, to properly deal with your kids’ desires, why take them to a toy department?). And God forbid that an Invisible Woman action figure is not readily available on the shelf!

An Image Bearer
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I find myself at times concluding that far too many people are petty materialists who have little interest in things other than “self.” Okay, people are selfish; that’s hardly revelatory.

We are told in the Scriptures of a Son who willingly took sin upon Himself, dying in sinners’ stead, so that others may have a relationship with His Father. Selflessly was He beaten, selflessly was He pierced and poured out upon Golgotha.

Humanity bears His image, so much so that while we are given the freedom to kill & to eat cattle, fowl, and fish, we are told that the murderer of man must in turn be executed, so that He whose image we bear may exact proper judgment.²

An Image Bearer
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I’m writing this post as a reminder to myself and others, particularly during this time of year which is supposedly marked by “holly jolliness” and a “yuletide spirit,” that our attitudes toward others is going to reflect our attitude toward God. Jesus could boldly demand that we not only love God but also our neighbors because He knew that they were of unspeakable value. Not only do they bear the image of the Creator, but they are given life and sustainment by Him from whom all blessings flow!

Yes, sin mars the image, but it cannot wipe it out completely. If Christmas is about “peace on Earth and good will toward man,” then check yourself: are you loving others as much as you can? When you see others, are you reminded of the Divine? I added several pictures from Flickr to this post; I’m making no claims to the spirituality of the people presented, but I will state that your attitude toward those features may just reflect your own spiritual health.

An Image Bearer
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Jesus showed unspeakable compassion toward the so-called outcasts of His society; how do we treat those on the fringe of ours?

This Christmas, if you are more concerned with people who say “happy holidays” or “Merry Xmas”³ than with loving others, take a step back and spend some time in reflective thought: If you have interest in wishing people a merry celebration of Christ, may His attitude & outlook toward others merrily flow forth from your life!

In conforming our attitudes to His by treating everyone with the dignity due an image bearer of God, we are embracing being the light and salt of the world, and we are actively moving toward true peace on Earth and good will toward man. In obeying Christ, we further establish and show forth the kingdom of God on Earth!

1. Even then, that would be no excuse to forget that they too are image bearers. [↩]
2. Genesis 9:6. Capital punishment is inherent in the Noahic Covenant, which exists between Noah and his descendants (v. 9), including you and me. [↩]
3. Christians were the first to use “Xmas,” by the way. [↩]

Well, I’m still sick; though judging by my symptoms, I’m on the tail end of whatever it was I had. Alicia and I went out with our friends, the Sasses, and saw I Am Legend, the new Will Smith movie.

I must say, it wasn’t really at all what I expected, as I note in the brief review I gave at the above link. If you like post-apocalyptic, vampire, or Will Smith movies, you’ll likely really enjoy this movie. If you’ve read the book, don’t venture out to the theater expecting a faithful print-to-film translation!¹

A few days ago, we also had a Christmas party with the Sasses & most of the Sieberts, and that was a lot of fun as well. I’ve been told that Alicia is an excellent entertainer; perhaps that comes part & parcel with being an excellent wife? Either way, if you had seen what Alicia managed to do with our dining table and place settings… Wow!²

Currently the weather forecast is showing at most five inches of snow by Sunday, so there’s quite a bit of fervor around these parts about the impending snow. As always, it helps to remember that God sends the snow, and it obediently obeys — a lesson for believers, to be sure. Recognizing God’s hand in nature makes it incredibly difficult to complain about the situation, for when I do so, I am showing a lack of reverence to God. The just shall live by faith, the Lord has declared, and so I live in faith knowing that whatever the weather, God will be working all things out for good³ for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose, but also that Yahweh will be glorified!

Making the jump from religion to politics — though the two intersect quite often — many of you may have noticed the Ron Paul badge in the sidebar. That’s right, I’m publicly giving my support to Ron Paul. To be honest, I agree with pretty much his entire platform, believe that he best represents Constitution Party⁴ principles, and admire the strong stand he takes in honoring the U. S. Constitution. If a President is to “preserve, protect, and defend” it, it only makes sense that they should wholeheartedly abide by it as well!

I’m still relatively new to this whole “politics” thing and am constantly learning, but I admit to not knowing all too much. I know I like what I see on Ron Paul’s site,⁵ and insofar as his views line up with mine — and the Constitution, as I understand it — then he has my endorsement!

1. No, I haven’t read the book, but I did read a summary of the book prior to seeing the movie, and little of what seemed important from the summary showed up in the movie. [↩]
2. Unfortunately, I didn’t snap any pictures of the setup, or I’d post them for you. [↩]
3. That’s from His perspective, not necessarily our own, mind you. [↩]
4. My party of choice. [↩]
5. Which, incidentally, is one of the most nicely designed political sites I’ve ever come across. [↩]

I’ve been sick since Saturday evening, and I’m only just now feeling a tiny bit better. My voice has come close to vanishing due to the soreness of my throat, and I think I’ve a year’s worth of congestion fighting to get out of me.

Despite all of that, though, I’ve not had to miss work, and I’ve managed to get most of my Christmas shopping completed yesterday after clocking out for the day. Yes, I both work at Wal-mart and I do most of my shopping there. That’s just how I roll.

My amount of disposable income doesn’t really give me much choice anyway.

During my down time these past few days, I’ve been reading an interesting little book called Zero: The Biography of a Dangerous Idea by Charles Seife. So far, Genesis 1-2 has been referred to as the “Hebrew creation myth,” and John 1:1 has been translated, “In the beginning, there was the ratio, and the ratio was with God, and the ratio was God”; in a footnote, that translation is said to be “even more rational than the traditional one.”

More rational, perhaps, because it contains the word “ratio” once; however, for it to make sense, the God referenced would be nothing more than a, well, mathematical or logical construct, yet in the context God is far from that — He is an active, living person who is the Beginning and the Ending, the Alpha and the Omega.

Okay, that was a bit of a rabbit’s trail, but it bugged me so I had to say it. Regardless, Zero is proving to be an enjoyable read. Did you know that Pythagoras, despite being brilliant, was also a bit, hmm, strange? In fact, he died because he would sooner be murdered by those who would oppose him rather than flee from them by running through a bean field. Beans, beans, they’re good for your heart, but across them you shall never dart. Or something like that. Beans were taboo, and Pythagoras was very prideful.

Pythagoras Doin’ His Thang
(Sanzio, Rafaello. The School of Athens (detail). 1509. Stanza della Segnatura, Palazzi Pontifici, Vatican.)

Yet what we know him best for — the Pythagorean Theorem — has actually been known for centuries if not millennia before Pythagoras came along. I’m very disappointed I’m finding about this now rather than in 8^th grade geometry.

I guess what I’ve sometimes heard is true: you learn that which is truly interesting not through organized curriculum but through independent study.

Okay, I’ve not actually heard that; it’s an axiom I’ve come up with to justify my independent learning of the Scriptures over against going off to seminary. Call that a cleverly disguised lack of ambition if you want, but if the Word of God was meant to be arranged into a curriculum, you would think somewhere in its 66 books there would be some evidence of such an intention. The concept of mentoring seems far more biblical (see the relationship between Christ and the disciples or between Paul and Timothy, for examples).

Speaking of Paul, who instructed Timothy to add some wine to his diet to aid his ailing stomach, Alicia brought home a bottle of red wine today. Apparently it is for some spaghetti sauce she was preparing. A sip of it marks the second drink of an alcoholic beverage I’ve ever had.

I think that makes me an addict.

Actually, that makes me a double-addict; caffeine will always be my first and most beloved chemical dependency. Granted, I’ve not fallen into that miry cesspool as far as, say, espresso drinkers have, but I took a small tumble further in when, the other day, I purchased a tin of Ice Breakers^® Energy™ Peppermint Mints with Caffeine. Ten milligrams of caffeine per mint, actually. By comparison, the twelve ounce can of Coca-Cola^® to my right contains 34 milligrams.

What I find interesting is that the mints contain a warning that they are “Not recommended for children, pregnant women or people sensitive to caffeine.” I wonder why soda, which is consumed far more often than these mints are and in higher quantities, does not bear the warning?

The Hershey Company, maker of the mints, must care more than the Coca-Cola Company. Yep, that’s the only possible explanation.

And if you’ve ever wondered what the word “REXAM” refers to on a Coke can — it’s located near the bar code — they are a consumer packaging company.

And now you know.

And Knowing Is Half the Battle