Wednesday, November 7, 2012
My Perspective on the next four years...
During this whole election process, I've had some very strong opinions about the fighting and bickering that's gone on between Democrats and Republicans. I've constantly tried to remind everyone that regardless of who is president, Christ is King. And I've deliberately kept my political opinions to myself, because I didn't want to contribute to the fighting going on. I didn't think it represented Christ well, and I wanted no part of it.
Now the election is over, and there are several people unhappy with the outcome. I have a very specific perspective on what needs to happen in the next four years, a perspective that I think (and prayerfully hope) will help others in their planning for the next several years. Unfortunately, I cannot share that perspective without also sharing my political opinions. So, before you read any further, I would like to point out that at no point in this election did I ever say anything derogatory towards either candidate. At no point did I disrespect any member of any political party. I showed no malice or hatred during the election, and even made every attempt to end the fighting and bickering where I could. I respectfully ask that you show that same respect to me. Please do not use my blog (or Facebook) as a forum for you to spew venom at those who have opposing views. I welcome friendly debate and healthy discussions, but I will not tolerate belittling or degrading remarks. If you cannot show that respect to me, you will be blocked from my Facebook and blog and your comments deleted. Please, for the sake of peace, keep things cordial.
Now that we've got that out of the way...
I voted for Mitt Romney. He wasn't my favorite choice, but given the alternative, I thought he was the best choice. In my humble opinion, President Obama's record is not satisfactory, and more important than that, he is pushing legislation that will essentially force me to support things that I, because of my faith, do not support. I do not think it is right for my tax dollars to help fund abortions if I believe abortions are morally wrong. I do not think it is right for me to face hate crime charges if I speak openly about my views on homosexuality. And I do not think it is right that a monument or spoken prayer that has stood for decades be removed because it offends people who go to these places and ceremonies of their own free choice. Say what you will about foreign policy, the economy, and the environment, but these are the issues that decided my vote.
So, obviously, I was disappointed in last night's results. And I am very concerned about the future of this country and where we are heading. But, in the end, I am an American citizen, and Barack Obama is my president. Even if I don't agree with the man, I must respect his office. Because he is president, I will pray for him everyday, that God will guide his decisions, and that he will be the leader that this country needs. I believe that the power of prayer is stronger than any threat we can face. I place this country in God's hands and trust that He will do whatever is necessary to glorify His name.
Now, about all those other things. Since I believe that abortion is wrong, that it is the murder of innocent children, and since my tax dollars are going to support it and there is apparently nothing I can do about it, I am going to try and be the change I want to see. Rather than waiting for Capitol Hill to pass legislation that I agree with, I am going to go out and find those single women, those pregnant teenagers, those women who honestly think that abortion is better than adoption or raising a child. I'm going to find them, and I'm going to help them. I'm going to help them find classes on how to care for their unborn children. I'm going to find loving families who are willing to take the child she can't afford to have. I'm going to talk with her about her fears and doubts and worries, and I am going to do everything I can to help calm those fears and ease those doubts and put to rest those worries. I am going to do everything I can to make sure these poor women who are scared and unsure feel like they have another choice they can make.
Since I believe that marriage should be defined between a man and a woman, I'm going to take the time to get to know the LGBT community. I'm going to befriend them and get to know them as people. I'm going to let them get to know me and know what my heart is and where I'm coming from. I'm going to get to a place where my care for them has nothing to do with their sexual orientation, where my friendship with them is iron clad and not easily shaken. They're going to get to know me, and they're going to realize I don't hate them, that I don't think they're sub-human or some new kind of evil. They're going to realize that I love them just as much as I would love anyone else. And once we're at that place, I'll be able to share my views, and they will listen. They may not agree, but they will listen, because now the words are coming from a friend, and not an enemy with an agenda.
Since I believe that my faith in Christ is under attack because of the consistent removal of monuments and prayers from public places, I'm going to show everyone just what exactly my faith in Christ is all about. I'm going to give myself away to helping the poor and needy, to showing the love of Christ to everyone I come in contact with. I am going to truly love my neighbors as much as I love myself, and see that their needs are met just as much if not more than mine. I am going to be such a loving, kind, gentle person that when people think of Jesus, they don't think of an oppressive religion that has been in power too long. They're going to think of a loving Savior who came to Earth to save us from sin. And then, Jesus won't be an offensive topic, because no one will be able to say that their lives are worsened by Him or His followers.
To put it simply, I'm going to stop waiting for Capitol Hill to force what I should have been encouraging all along. There's no need for abortions if women feel supported and taken care of when they get pregnant. There's no need for civil rights legislation if everyone is treated with kindness and respect from the start. There's no need for legal battles about Jesus Christ's place in public if everyone sees Christianity as a positive influence. There's no need for regulation on welfare if everyone is trying to meet everyone else's needs. I fully realize that, by myself, I'm not going to change the tide. But, for those few people I can actually come in contact with, the difference will be worth it.
So don't pack your bags and move to Canada. Don't start stockpiling on ammunition and nonperishable foods. Stop complaining that your favorite candidate isn't sitting in the White House now. Join me. Let's stop waiting for Capitol Hill to do our job. Let's get out there and do what we should have been doing in the beginning: Love God with everything, and love people as much as we love ourselves.
And if your candidate is sitting in the White House, join me anyway. Don't let the fact that legislation is going your way allow you to become complacent about the hurting and suffering around you. Don't wait for Capitol Hill to fix the problems you see around you. Become the solution yourself. Because, trust me, no matter who is president, Capitol Hill will take too long.
That's how I'm going to handle these next four years. And not a single bit of that has anything to do with who is President. It has everything to do with what I am going to do. I am going to take responsibility for what I have the power to change, and I am going to change it.
One more reminder: if you respond to this, keep it respectful and keep it cordial, or don't respond at all.
Keep Soaring,
B
Thursday, September 6, 2012
A double minded man...
I've been reading James 1 for the past few days, meditating on it and trying to apply it to myself. The following keeps sticking in my head:
5 If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God,who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. 6 But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7 That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. 8 Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.
There's a story of two farmers who both needed rain for their crops. One farmer prayed for rain and then turned and prepared his crops for a drought. The other prayed for rain and then turned and prepared his crops for rain. God sent rain to them both. The point of the story is that the second farmer was more faithful because he believed God. And the obvious rebuttle to that is the first farmer was being responsible and "a good steward" of what God had given him.
But after reading this in James, I have to wonder if the first farmer was being responsible, or just double-minded. Is he being shrewd as a serpeant, or is he just suffering from doubt? How many times do we ask God to provide for us, and then turn around and plan as though he won't act? How many times have we missed out on a great opportunity for testimony because we had to do things ourselves? Why do we even bother asking God if the second we leave His presence we act as though He won't come through for us?
I'm reminded of a scene close to the end The Grey. Liam Neeson's character is lying in the snow, calling out to God to come save him. And when God doesn't respond fast enough, he says, "@#%! it. I'll do it myself." If you've seen the movie, you know how well that turns out. Either way, He calls out to God for help, and then gets up from that spot and moves forward like there is no God to call on. His atheism makes that response expected, but the sad thing is that many times that's how I respond to. I pray and ask God for help, for provision, for wisdom and guidance. Then I turn around and start planning like its all on me, like I expect that God is not going to come through.
I act as though I doubt Him....
I don't want to be a double minded man. I don't want to be "responsible." I just want to be real. I want to have the kind of faith that when I cry out to God, I sit and wait for Him to answer.
13 I remain confident of this:
I will see the goodness of the Lord
in the land of the living.
14 Wait for the Lord;
be strong and take heart
and wait for the Lord.
--Psalm 27:13-14
5 If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God,who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you. 6 But when you ask, you must believe and not doubt, because the one who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. 7 That person should not expect to receive anything from the Lord. 8 Such a person is double-minded and unstable in all they do.
There's a story of two farmers who both needed rain for their crops. One farmer prayed for rain and then turned and prepared his crops for a drought. The other prayed for rain and then turned and prepared his crops for rain. God sent rain to them both. The point of the story is that the second farmer was more faithful because he believed God. And the obvious rebuttle to that is the first farmer was being responsible and "a good steward" of what God had given him.
But after reading this in James, I have to wonder if the first farmer was being responsible, or just double-minded. Is he being shrewd as a serpeant, or is he just suffering from doubt? How many times do we ask God to provide for us, and then turn around and plan as though he won't act? How many times have we missed out on a great opportunity for testimony because we had to do things ourselves? Why do we even bother asking God if the second we leave His presence we act as though He won't come through for us?
I'm reminded of a scene close to the end The Grey. Liam Neeson's character is lying in the snow, calling out to God to come save him. And when God doesn't respond fast enough, he says, "@#%! it. I'll do it myself." If you've seen the movie, you know how well that turns out. Either way, He calls out to God for help, and then gets up from that spot and moves forward like there is no God to call on. His atheism makes that response expected, but the sad thing is that many times that's how I respond to. I pray and ask God for help, for provision, for wisdom and guidance. Then I turn around and start planning like its all on me, like I expect that God is not going to come through.
I act as though I doubt Him....
I don't want to be a double minded man. I don't want to be "responsible." I just want to be real. I want to have the kind of faith that when I cry out to God, I sit and wait for Him to answer.
13 I remain confident of this:
I will see the goodness of the Lord
in the land of the living.
14 Wait for the Lord;
be strong and take heart
and wait for the Lord.
--Psalm 27:13-14
Saturday, August 11, 2012
To my LGBT brothers and sisters...
Enough is enough...
I used to not have anger issues (except maybe road rage), but between the upcoming election, Chic-Fil-A, and the overall hostile atmosphere on Facebook, I've noticed my blood pressure rise a lot more these days...
I see well meaning but misguided Christians attack the homosexual community. Yes, I said attack, not take a stand, and yes, there is a difference. It's one thing to make a public statement about your values like Dan Cathy did. It's one thing to eat chicken or buy bracelets or support a candidate to show your support for Christian values. But when you stoop so low as to insult and judge people, using the Bible as a battering ram to get your point across, you stop representing Christ. And in the end, all that fighting does more harm than good. Just because you can yell the loudest, that doesn't mean you're the most correct.
But then, the counterparts in the homosexual community take the actions of those misguided Christians and use it as ammunition. They misrepresent the Bible and what it says, they misrepresent the Apostles and make them look like uneducated, backwater rednecks, and worst of all, they misrepresent my Savior, the one who died on a cross to take away my sins and the sins of the world, gay and straight alike. And the man who first taught us that God is Love is made to look like anything but love.
It's gotten so bad that even when I try to clarify things, people get mad, because they misunderstand what I'm trying to do. I have the deleted Facebook post to prove it.
I'm sick of all this. I'm tired of being embarrassed at how some "Christians" handle themselves, and I'm tired of my faith being attacked because of it. It has to stop somewhere. So it's going to stop with me...
Dear LGBT Community,
Hi. My name is Branson Boykin. I've been a Christian since I was 7 years old. I don't always follow Christ the way I should, but I do my best, and I trust in His grace to make up for the times I fail Him.
I do support the Biblical definition of marriage. HOWEVER!!!! I believe that homosexuality is a sin. I DO NOT believe that it is somehow a worse sin than others. I DO NOT think I'm better than you because I'm straight. I believe that we're all broken people in need of a Savior. Whether we're gay, straight, drunk, sober, Republican, Democrat, non-smoker, smoker, straight-laced, crooked, or somewhere in between--we ALL need Jesus to save us from our sins. To paraphrase Scripture, I'm a firm believer in removing the plank from my own eye before I try to tell you about the speck of dust in yours.
I've been in two different work places where I have befriended openly gay people. I served as math tutor with one and taught school with another one. And their sexual orientation had no bearing on how much I cared for them and loved them. It wasn't that I was their friend despite their homosexuality. I was their friend, period. They just happen to also be homosexual. And they weren't projects. I didn't set out to convert them. I was honest about my beliefs when asked, but I didn't turn them into mission projects. They were just my friends, plain and simple.
I know that many of you have been beaten, ridiculed, mocked, spit on, ostracized, and embarrassed for who you are. I know that some of those acts have been done "in the name of Jesus" and "to stand up for Christian values." And I know how that taints your view of anyone who claims to be a Christian. I get it, I really do. Were I in your position, I would feel the exact same way. And I am so sorry that this has happened to you. No one should ever have to go through that for any reason. But hear me when I say that what you experienced isn't all of us. There are those of us who follow Christ and are motivated to love people, not judge them.
The reason I'm making this post is this: I want to offer my friendship to all of you. I want to be your friend. I want to laugh at all the things that you think are funny. I want to be moved to tears by the movies you can't watch without a box of kleenex. I want to sit down together in the same room so we can both cheer for our favorite team. I want us to share those hilarious, sarcastic ecards with each other on Facebook. I want to be there to comfort you when you're hurting, and I want to double your joy when you're happy. When you think of the people that are your nearest and dearest friends, I want to be one of the people you think of.
All I ask in return is that, if ever you have questions about Jesus Christ or Christians in general, don't look to the media. Don't look to the radicals plastered all over the news for your answers about who Jesus is. Don't look to the people who beat you up in the dead of night or picketed your funerals or spit on you as you walked by. Look to me. Ask me. If you're curious about it, let me show you the Bible as I read it. Let me introduce you to the Jesus I've known since I was 7 years old. I think you'll be surprised at just how different he is from the clear complected, blue eyed, brown haired, Anglo looking guy in the painting. ("My Jesus" by Todd Agnew...excellent song!!)
I offer my hand in friendship, asking that you take the good and the bad. All the parts that you think make me noble, and all that parts that you think make me vile--every imperfect, human cell of me--I want to be your friend.
Feel free to comment or ask questions. I'm always here.
In Christ's Love,
Branson
I used to not have anger issues (except maybe road rage), but between the upcoming election, Chic-Fil-A, and the overall hostile atmosphere on Facebook, I've noticed my blood pressure rise a lot more these days...
I see well meaning but misguided Christians attack the homosexual community. Yes, I said attack, not take a stand, and yes, there is a difference. It's one thing to make a public statement about your values like Dan Cathy did. It's one thing to eat chicken or buy bracelets or support a candidate to show your support for Christian values. But when you stoop so low as to insult and judge people, using the Bible as a battering ram to get your point across, you stop representing Christ. And in the end, all that fighting does more harm than good. Just because you can yell the loudest, that doesn't mean you're the most correct.
But then, the counterparts in the homosexual community take the actions of those misguided Christians and use it as ammunition. They misrepresent the Bible and what it says, they misrepresent the Apostles and make them look like uneducated, backwater rednecks, and worst of all, they misrepresent my Savior, the one who died on a cross to take away my sins and the sins of the world, gay and straight alike. And the man who first taught us that God is Love is made to look like anything but love.
It's gotten so bad that even when I try to clarify things, people get mad, because they misunderstand what I'm trying to do. I have the deleted Facebook post to prove it.
I'm sick of all this. I'm tired of being embarrassed at how some "Christians" handle themselves, and I'm tired of my faith being attacked because of it. It has to stop somewhere. So it's going to stop with me...
Dear LGBT Community,
Hi. My name is Branson Boykin. I've been a Christian since I was 7 years old. I don't always follow Christ the way I should, but I do my best, and I trust in His grace to make up for the times I fail Him.
I do support the Biblical definition of marriage. HOWEVER!!!! I believe that homosexuality is a sin. I DO NOT believe that it is somehow a worse sin than others. I DO NOT think I'm better than you because I'm straight. I believe that we're all broken people in need of a Savior. Whether we're gay, straight, drunk, sober, Republican, Democrat, non-smoker, smoker, straight-laced, crooked, or somewhere in between--we ALL need Jesus to save us from our sins. To paraphrase Scripture, I'm a firm believer in removing the plank from my own eye before I try to tell you about the speck of dust in yours.
I've been in two different work places where I have befriended openly gay people. I served as math tutor with one and taught school with another one. And their sexual orientation had no bearing on how much I cared for them and loved them. It wasn't that I was their friend despite their homosexuality. I was their friend, period. They just happen to also be homosexual. And they weren't projects. I didn't set out to convert them. I was honest about my beliefs when asked, but I didn't turn them into mission projects. They were just my friends, plain and simple.
I know that many of you have been beaten, ridiculed, mocked, spit on, ostracized, and embarrassed for who you are. I know that some of those acts have been done "in the name of Jesus" and "to stand up for Christian values." And I know how that taints your view of anyone who claims to be a Christian. I get it, I really do. Were I in your position, I would feel the exact same way. And I am so sorry that this has happened to you. No one should ever have to go through that for any reason. But hear me when I say that what you experienced isn't all of us. There are those of us who follow Christ and are motivated to love people, not judge them.
The reason I'm making this post is this: I want to offer my friendship to all of you. I want to be your friend. I want to laugh at all the things that you think are funny. I want to be moved to tears by the movies you can't watch without a box of kleenex. I want to sit down together in the same room so we can both cheer for our favorite team. I want us to share those hilarious, sarcastic ecards with each other on Facebook. I want to be there to comfort you when you're hurting, and I want to double your joy when you're happy. When you think of the people that are your nearest and dearest friends, I want to be one of the people you think of.
All I ask in return is that, if ever you have questions about Jesus Christ or Christians in general, don't look to the media. Don't look to the radicals plastered all over the news for your answers about who Jesus is. Don't look to the people who beat you up in the dead of night or picketed your funerals or spit on you as you walked by. Look to me. Ask me. If you're curious about it, let me show you the Bible as I read it. Let me introduce you to the Jesus I've known since I was 7 years old. I think you'll be surprised at just how different he is from the clear complected, blue eyed, brown haired, Anglo looking guy in the painting. ("My Jesus" by Todd Agnew...excellent song!!)
I offer my hand in friendship, asking that you take the good and the bad. All the parts that you think make me noble, and all that parts that you think make me vile--every imperfect, human cell of me--I want to be your friend.
Feel free to comment or ask questions. I'm always here.
In Christ's Love,
Branson
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