Walking the Dogma

The Basis of Standards

2011-10-09T23:09:00.002-04:00

What is the basis of standards? Could it be that fear is the greatest barrier we could ever encounter? Is fear the primary basis of most standards that people try to enforce throughout the day?

A Whole Lot of Noise

2011-07-29T04:16:00.000-04:00

I am flying again! At times I still feel like I have cobwebs in my head, but it feels like finally waking up. Tonight was gunnery; flying at night and shooting on the range. I can't help but think of people trying to sleep while I am making little explosions happen. BOOM. BOOM. BOOM. Oops, sorry! :-D

Anchors Aweigh!

2011-05-23T10:33:00.001-04:00

I was listening to an NPR segment on a South African musician who commented that our past is what keeps us anchored to who we are. In many ways, our past keeps us anchored to things that are detrimental to us, especially when we become anchored to our failures and flaws, our past mistakes. There can be problems in defining ourselves by our past. The trite saying of, "Let go and let God," comes to mind. Mostly, it comes to mind with the understanding that very few of us find the ability within ourselves to let go, to give up our past to anyone, much less God. After all, it is ours.

The thought then struck me, that as long as we are anchored to that past, we can never escape it. If we were anchored somewhere else, our identity would no longer originate from that past. We could move on, and it would no longer drag behind us like, well...an anchor.

These Sufferings

2011-04-09T12:25:00.004-04:00

A few events in the course of the last several years have led me to seek counseling. What I do and experience is not normal for the human experience. As I believe I have said before, if not here then elsewhere, is that you can't go through these things and not be changed. A lot like you can't have a knowledge of grace and not be changed.

So, what is the diagnosis? Well, initially, I am diagnosed with Adjustment Disorder, which basically means that I don't know how to come back from the war yet. It has less to do with what actually happened in the way of events and is more about being used to experiencing life in a certain way that living at home is a shock, of sorts, to my system.

The elephant in the room for me, right now, is Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, which is basically saying that normal people have a problem with being shot at, shooting at other people, seeing people die, or even living with a "daily" occurrence of death. Believe me, it is more widespread in the military than many would believe. The thing is, many people can maintain a high level of function with PTSD, but you can't hide its effects 100%.

Now, I say "normal" because I think we have a common understanding of what we expect a "normal" life to be in the United States. Very rarely are we exposed to the amount of violence, destruction, and death that exists in a combat zone. Most likely it is this cycle of going from combat zone to normal has put me in this position of even dreading having to get used to "normal" because I know I will eventually go back to a combat zone.

Yesterday, a good friend, who I have known since I began as a military pilot, mentioned that he used me as an example of someone who has "chronic fatigue." Not to be mistaken for Chronic Fatigue Syndrome, chronic fatigue, in aeromedical parlance, is more of a chronic exposure to situations that create acute fatigue; the kind of fatigue you feel after a poor night's sleep. This friend was deployed to Iraq in the early stages, and he has seen many pilots who have been through multiple deployments. This last deployment to Afghanistan was his second deployment. He has identified that two deployments is somewhere around the limit. I say that would depend greatly on the experience during the deployments.

Adjustment Disorder, PTSD, chronic fatigue, put it all together, and the common thing is that I am tired. I feel tired. I am not unhappy, but I am worn. I have not written often or long, and that may be just as much a symptom of what is going on with me as anything else. My case facilitator, going through her own grief right now with a death in the family, encouraged me to share. So, I share here, as I share with the rest of my family, at work and at home, what is going on with me.

Just. Out. Of. Reach.

2011-03-14T12:13:00.004-04:00

Mary posted something on facebook the other day that had me picturing when you've lost something in an inaccessible place; like your car keys behind the sofa, or your change down the sidewalk grate, or your ring down the sink drain. You reach and stretch and try to wiggle yourself into position, doing everything in your power and will to retrieve that thing that you have lost.

It is these pictures we have of ourselves that we often use to correlate to other, similar-sounding situations. Only, they don't always have direct correlation. For instance, there is a popular physics discussion about jet aircraft and a treadmill runway. Everyone knows that a treadmill works when you propel yourself forward and that cars propel themselves forward on wheels, but the jet propels itself differently. The wheels aren't propelling anything. The problem is that we hinder our ability to view the problem through filters we create from our own experience.

In the case of our lost item, the obstacle is sometimes insurmountable without outside assistance or intervention. This experience then becomes a filter to how we view something having been lost. This concept of the lost item is often projected onto God. How does an omniscient God lose something? Didn't he know it would get lost? Why wouldn't he know where it was lost? Did he forget?

The outside assistance or intervention is oddly projected onto the lost item, us. Our action is required to bridge the gap of the obstacles sin and death. We are required to cry out to gain his attention. How did it come about that the omnipotent God needed our assistance? Somehow, when you take the limitation of the human searching for their lost possession out of the picture, God doesn't seem so helpless anymore. If God's condition in the situation is not what we deemed it to be through the filter of our experience, one must wonder how our perception of our own condition has been altered from reality.

Making Headway

2010-11-20T07:06:00.001-05:00

I finally have some time to transpose more of the archived articles to this blogger site. I've found the missing posts that were somehow lost from my last backup of the harrytick.com website. I've even taken the liberty of placing some multiple part articles near each other for a limited time. Eventually, I will start putting them back in their proper chronological order.

I suppose that I will search through the forum archives as well, because there were some great discussions with friends there. Thanks for the patience and enjoy reading through these while they are at the front of the blog. Soon they will go back to their original dates.

Love,
HarryTick™

Settling

2010-08-06T19:49:00.003-04:00

I remember those sermons that asked us if we were settling for things of lesser quality, "less than the best" of what God had for us in our lives. Those sermons were full of what I "should" be doing for God, implying that my choices separated me from Him and prevented Him from doing all that He could in my life. Just think about the idea presented, that your choices are able to render the omnipotent God impotent.

I now think that to accept the premise of such sermons is to settle for less than God has for us, less than Christ being our life. So, let's pose the original question but in this new context, "Are you settling for less than the best that God has for you in your life?"

Being Unique

2010-06-20T03:25:00.003-04:00

Oh, man! There are other people out there writing under the name of "HarryTick"! What shall I do? The panic wants to find a way in and settle down to make itself at home. But, what's in a name? Did I honestly think I was the only one who would or could come up with the pseudonym from the word heretic? Was I the first? Am I the most prolific? Will I be recognized as The One True Harry Tick™?!?

Chill.

There is no point in worrying about whether or not my thoughts will be diluted by someone who uses the same name on the web. It isn't about a name. A message is like a gift, it's the thought conveyed by it that counts. A rose by any other name would still smell as sweet. If it is only about me and any image I create, then there is no truth, it is all illusion.

Seasons Come and Seasons Go

2010-04-08T03:02:00.002-04:00

Funny how the Easter season is now past. Just as March Madness is also complete and not to return until next year. The Resurrection and its hope are so conveniently shelved along with the baskets, easter grass, and decorations. As a member of the institutional church, I used to rail against the commercialization that seemed to diminish the importance of the season. Invariably, I would shelve the season along with everyone else, only secure in my self-justifications that I was one of the few who understood and observed the season with proper reverence.

Now, I find no season able to contain the hope of the resurrection, no shelf able to remove it out of my thoughts until the season returns. Every moment of my life inexplicably joined, entwined, infused, with his resurrection life. I find that I no longer identify with the season as I did before.

Older posts

2010-04-07T21:37:00.001-04:00

As you can see, I don't have all of the old posts here on the site. I had planned on transcribing all those articles from the old database onto the blogger site by hand, since there is no program that will transfer from the Textpattern format to the Blogger format. Unfortunately, the database is not one of the files that I brought along with me. So, I'm gonna have to try and talk my wife through how to locate the file and send it to me through email. That should be fun! She just loves technology and computers and dealing with that stuff.

Anyways, once I have access to the database, I figure that I will start getting the old stuff up, and then just try and stay on track by day and month and post the older articles as current for a week or so and then have them drop back into their proper lineup. Maybe it will spark new thoughts or even comments. I hope to have it done by the end of the deployment.

Kung Fu Hustle

2010-02-28T21:51:00.002-05:00

I grew up watching Kung Fu movies on Saturdays with my brothers. So, I've totally enjoyed the recent string of martial arts movies we've seen; Shaolin Soccer, Crouching Tiger Hidden Dragon, Hero, and of course, Kung Fu Hustle. In Kung Fu Hustle, the main character, first seen as a young boy, is "hustled" by a homeless guy to buy a martial arts manual. He is told that he cannot escape his destiny because he, "...has the bone structure and chi flow of a kung fu master." The boy breaks his piggy bank, buys the manual, and studies diligently, only to find that his mastery of the Buddhist Palm technique is lacking.

Without giving away the whole story, he misinterprets events and circumstances and spends his time trying to become something he is not. No matter how much he tries to change, his actions remain true to who he really is. There is martial arts fighting and some cheesy effects, among some really cool ones, and even some campy hijinks, but there is also a story of grace and redemption from misinterpreting life's circumstances that makes the movie fun for me to watch.

Cleansing

2010-01-24T12:11:00.001-05:00

I've tried to write, honest I have. I have thoughts but it seems I've lost the impetus to put the thoughts together. I want to blame my current job, which has me drafting and writing memorandums and emails for everything; responses to questions, proposals for lame-brained ideas in the name of "safety" that don't accomplish anything for the unit. The responsibilities are beginning to pile up. Perhaps I've become too concerned with my accomplishment, maybe I'm too caught up in the perception of my position. It is real-life promotion time again, as well. Time for me to find out if I've measured up.

I still have faith, I still love grace, but I think that everything I've been through lately has begun to pile up, back up, and stifle my expression of freedom. Maybe I've begun believing some of the behavior-based rat race dogma again. Well, suggesting it myself may mean it is closer to the truth than I'd like to believe. I have caught myself being indignant with others, along with the idea of being beside myself, looking back at me and asking, "Really? Really?!? Who do you think you are, asshole? Who died and made you God?"

I'm sure there is much more to it, but at least seeing that part is helping me already. There are a lot of times when I really care way too much about how others perceive me. Honestly, I've been down that road before (Matrix flashback). So, let me ramble about myself for this post and get it out of my system. Let me finally express something, anything, just for the sake of expressing and perhaps that can open the floodgates and let the thoughts flow to the keyboard. And let's just hope that it has a sembleance of coherent thought.

Not Of This World

2009-12-16T08:59:00.001-05:00

Every day, I awake or head to sleep and hear the call of the muezzin. It is a haunting call in the mysterious way of one looking at something he is not a part of. This is not my land, and those are not my people. But today there came carolers, the 82nd Airborne Division Band ensemble that visited our corner of the war, wearing santa hats, reindeer antlers, and their uniforms. They played Silent Night, Jingle Bells, We Wish You a Merry Christmas, Joy to the World, and O' Come all Ye Faithful. As I sat and listened, I was reminded of the holiday season back home, that you could hear those songs everywhere you go during this time of year. In that moment, I was reminded of who I am, of where I come from.

It is the same with the message of grace, in a moment it transports you, unbidden, to the place where you realize you are transformed. It is for this reason that Paul writes, "Let us not forget...," and "Remember,..." for it is not achievement or judgment we trust in to be changed, but love and grace.

The Second Rainbow.

2009-05-23T14:25:00.001-04:00

So, here I am again, evaluating myself and my actions against the concept of sin and righteousness. It is so easy to get sucked back in to the way I've thought in the past. And here comes the cavalry in the form of Calvary. No verbal voice, but the reassuring thought that it wasn't how well I performed before he saved me that saved me. What would be the purpose of caring for how well I did after the fact?

What was it that he changed in me? Was it that he only gave me some capacity to be better than I was? Then I should always be victim to this comparison game. Good news! I am changed because I now see how it was he saved me. Dead to the game of comparing, of needing to eke out some worthiness through trying to establish a positive balance on my performance ledger. That reassuring thought saying how much he loves me to be here in the midst of the recurring doubt, "You are worthy because I am here; my promise to you,"...the second covenant, the second rainbow.

Rainbows are glorious things. God said he put the bow in the sky, a promise that he would never revisit with a flood to destroy us. Christ, the second rainbow; the promise that he will never revisit with judgment to destroy us, for in Christ, we have been judged already.

Utter Foolishness, Part 2

2009-04-05T09:23:00.006-04:00

I can't let this thing go. I was doing another study technique, which is to look at the passages in different versions, because the way we translate things brings out different aspects of what is being said. In the Contemporary English version (CEV), the passage about the thorn has a different flavor.

"Of course, I am now referring to the wonderful things I saw. One of Satan's angels was sent to make me suffer terribly, so that I would not feel too proud. Three times I begged the Lord to make this suffering go away. But he replied, 'My kindness is all you need. My power is strongest when you are weak.' "

When I look at this passage in this version, it suggests that the "thorn" is also a vision of Paul's.

However, I think that when we equate our own suffering to Paul's "thorn", we're self-righteously suggesting that we've earned the suffering we endure. Which shows just how much we can remain in the performance trap. But perhaps, most importantly, what Paul is describing is that in response to our desire to be free of suffering, it is God's grace that turns our suffering into something powerful.

Utter Foolishness

2009-04-04T19:17:00.005-04:00

A recent discussion about Paul's thorn, which he discusses in 2 Corinthians 12, has sparked some thoughts in me. First, which I mentioned in that discussion, was that Paul was portraying foolishness. Foolishness that was intended to speak to the Corinthians about their situation and the bondage they had allowed themselves to be placed in...willingly. The passage also speaks to how much we may have read into the discussion by determining that Paul's mention of a thorn was something we needed to be on the alert for, and that we determined his discussion at that point to be seriously intending to portray that he was more qualified in the flesh than those who opposed him.

I can't pin down the statement on the thorn. On the one hand, the thorn is something that Paul is specifically commenting on, but is it part of his example of foolishness or a comment on that foolishness? On the other hand, I can't imagine that most of the things attributed to be Paul's thorn would fit this passage and its context in the flow of the letter.

When I isolate the foolish pattern of the speech, which is directly related to the boasting, "I repeat: Let no one take me for a fool. But if you do, then receive me just as you would a fool, so that I may do a little boasting. In this self-confident boasting I am not talking as the Lord would, but as a fool."

So, in the course of the next set of passages, Paul demonstrates how foolishly we build ourselves up. He builds himself up to say, at the point in question, that he's so great, that God has to take him down a notch to keep him from being conceited and prideful. This is the purpose of the thorn, "I'm so awesome, that God gave me this negative thing in my life to help me to not be conceited about how great I am."

Why, that's not conceited at all! I think Paul is pointing out the height of the false humility that the Corinthians welcomed into their midst from "pious" messengers. As Paul says, "...you even put up with anyone who enslaves you or exploits you or takes advantage of you or pushes himself forward or slaps you in the face."

(Scriptures referenced from 2 Cor 11:16-12:10, NIV)

Seeking Validation

2009-03-21T11:58:00.002-04:00

What we do in this life often amounts to nothing more than seeking to validate our own self-perceptions. Who I am is not the sum value of what I say and do, who I know, where I hang out, what my job is, what my hobbies are. But that is our perception, so we sometimes find ourselves lost when the things we "knew" about ourselves are no longer "true."

What we believe, where we worship, are very much the same thing; things we seek after to validate our own perceptions that we're good or worthy, that we're loved. In some cases, it is to feel that we're loved, or that we deserve to be loved. The only thing, again, is that Jesus didn't come to validate us.

Big Open-ended Questions

2009-03-09T14:07:00.004-04:00

I purchased the Total Transformation program for my family, because my middle son suffers from ADHD. It is supposed to equip parents to be able to deal with the behavioral problems, something that the medical community has yet to do for us, even though they've diagnosed him as having ADHD.

One of the situations the program discusses is to avoid questions that begin with "Why".

"Why did you make that mess?" or, "Why isn't your room cleaned up?"

The program explains that the question why gives the child an opening, an opportunity, a blank check, if you will, to blame someone or something else. It allows the child to deflect the focus from their own behavior and onto someone else's. It allows them to justify their behavior.

I think that, as adults, we've learned to take this and make it more effective by using the question why for ourselves, to distract others from addressing our perceptions; to justify feelings of self-pity.

"Why does this have to happen to me?"

"Why can't I be happy?"

Coming Soon

2008-06-01T19:52:00.000-04:00

It will take a while, but I'm going to be transcribing all of the Walking the Dogma blog over to blogger. I do not think that I will continue to host my own blog for much longer. Transcribing it will allow me to make individual files of each article/post as I transcribe and save it to another medium, a tedious task I have been loathe to accomplish. It will also allow the blog to exist longer than my hosting fees for webspace. Finally, it will allow me to post an article by email, since much of my work internet is restricted from blogs and forums and sites of that nature.

What a Girl Wants

2003-08-31T13:56:00.000-04:00

Watched this really cute movie last night with my daughter and her friends as they celebrated E's (my daughter) birthday. The premise of the movie is a girl grows up without the thing she wants most, her dad, and her journey to find him and herself.

Doing what I do, soldier in the Army, a pilot in helicopters, and the inherent risk with those things, makes me fearful of creating a similar situation. My only hope in the face of that fear is that I am not the person that completes my daughter's identity. My prayer is to teach her that, and while there may be a hole in this "life" of hers should the hazards of this job take their toll, the Life that is given to her by her Father can make her completely whole!

Previous Comments:

Hey, this is fantastic!!

Jim

Posted
by: the Shovel at August 31, 2003 04:08 PM

Oh this is a tough one. There are many times that I've
wondered - if for some reason I'm not here anymore for my child - how will they
know both my desire and hope for them that they establish for themselves a
relationship with Father?

I've even seriously considered making a video
tape of myself sharing my testimony and my journey with Him for the just in
case. Of course I have my writings - Approaching Glory Articles (as opposed to
the general blog - Approaching Glory)

Every girl wants to be affirmed
and unconditionally loved by Daddy. Daddy sets the pattern for so much emotional
and spiritual issues in a little girl's life. And when you don't have a healthy
example the scars can be tremendous. But we serve a good Father who - given the
chance - reveals Himself to be the perfect Father.

The fact that you
would even consider this lets me know you must be a pretty sharp Daddy. Your
little girl is blessed.

Posted by: lillium at September 3, 2003 10:41 AM

Real vs. Fake

2003-08-31T12:54:00.001-04:00

How can I tell what is real? Is it what I see? A magician makes a living by making people see things that aren't there or not seeing things that are there. Kind of similar to special effects people who are expert at tricking the camera and the eye into seeing something that is fake as if it is real. The military has spent years, since WWII, trying to hide facilities, people, and vehicles from easy detection, even though those things might be in plain sight.

We even hide the real intended meaning of what we say by disguising it with a certain tone of voice, or using certain words or phrases that are often used in other ways. Or we hide what we're feeling by pretending other emotional expressions.

The thing is that what is often presented as reality is intended to hide what is really real because of fear. Fear that something will be found out or that the true intent will be misunderstood or even that the truth will cause a retaliation in kind because the truth isn't really all that lovely, nice, or even friendly.

Take manners, for instance. A behavioral code that is really designed to cover a multitude of "sins" regarding what is said and done in everyday life. Manners advocates may not openly admit to a standard of putting on a false face when something untowards is done to you or you are faced with a dish that is unpalatable, but it is the very construct that dictates specific behavior under certain circumstances which means that we have to hide what we really feel or think under the pretense of being a person of good manners; someone who treats everyone with a proper respect regardless of the circumstance.

The truth is the real me is often not very polite, loving, lovely, presentable, etc. But it is that real me that God knows and loves, the same me that I so desperately have desired to escape my entire life. That is the same me who finds Jesus going to the cross for him, not some pretend "me" that is perfect at acting like whatever someone thinks Jesus would act like today.

Previous Comments:

All very true and frustrating until you remember that you are a vessel made
for a noble purpose and that until He returns and sets ALL things in order, you
will be a work in progress. And as a work in progress, we will make those
inevitable blunders that will throw us off balance at times but the good news is
that He knows our hearts and the motives behind our actions or sometimes our
inactions. Reality is only found in Jesus Christ and His word says that we are
one in Him as He is One with the Father. I stopped worrying about what others
thought of me and put my focus on keeping my eyes on Jesus and what He was
saying to me. I find that with my focus on Jesus, I tend to be more tolerant of
others. Thank God because I sure need others to be tolerant of me a lot more
than the other way around! Relax and enjoy those that He has surrounded you with
and let Him "worry" about what's real or fake! Pleasure "talking" to you.

Posted by: Art at August 31, 2003 08:05 PM

Art,

For me this is more an issue of understanding that it isn't a
better me that Jesus loves and wants to be with. It is the same me that is ugly
sometimes and feels that he must somehow hide his "nakedness". It used to be
that this me felt like he was tossed out of the garden like Adam and Eve, but
now I can see that in spite of my actions, I am continually held in a wonderful
embrace by my God. So, my discussing the real vs. the fake isn't so much whining
about what people think of me, but more of an understanding that it is the human
nature in me that puts forward a fake appearance trying to hide the blemishes,
putting on fig leaves if you will, when the reality of the old dead "me" doesn't
even phase God.

Posted by: HarryTick at August 31, 2003 09:30 PM

The Obtusityness of Tickdom

2003-08-29T16:28:00.001-04:00

I suppose this entry will be nothing more than voicing my frustrations with the desire to measure myself by the response of others to the things I say. I'm continually voicing this opinion that the gospel isn't based in what we do or don't do, but I continually measure the worth of what I say by any positive response and have, many times, reacted against the negative responses.

I suppose that any obedience would be the very speaking out itself, that is, if the things I have to say are even motivated by the Spirit of Life at all. I acknowledge the fact that they might very well be just the opinions and thoughts that I have inside of my own head. I fear that it is even more likely that it is those thoughts that would be agreed with, rather than any spiritually revealed thoughts I might happen to share.

But, as I have shared before, many times, in these times of self-doubt, as real as that might seem at the time, I am continually buoyed up by a knowledge beyond mine that says we are not what we appear to be.

Posted by HarryTick at August 29, 2003 04:28 PM

Previous Comments :

Hey bro ... I don't think "Obtusityness" is a real word!! hehehe! This was a cool thought you shared here because I really do understand that flip-flopping tendency to rate my "insights" by the very thing I know can never truly rate anything!

Jim

Posted by: the Shovel at August 29, 2003 04:36 PM

'Obtusityness' is better than real, it is a Vinnie-word!!

Thanks, bro, for a most welcomed and encouraging response! The thought that we're the ONLY ones going through a thing can create a fear that stops us from sharing anything at all. I'm sure that others will blame you in the weeks and months to come for my continuing on and on...and on! :)

Posted by: HarryTick at August 29, 2003 05:40 PM

It's good to know that my abuse of the english language has at last been publicly memorialized, ha ha.

Keep sharing the thoughts, Harry. My life has been much busier than I like lately, but I always look forward to seeing what has been on Mr Tick's mind while I was away. I always enjoy them!

Posted by: Vinnie at September 2, 2003 04:41 PM

I enjoy your posts Harry. Like I said before - I may not agree with all of them (I'm sure this doesn't shock you - LOL) BUT I enjoy your journey with Him. It is fresh to see someone honestly attempt to express the experience. That in itself makes the effort worth it doesn't it?

Posted by: lillium at September 3, 2003 10:31 AM

Faith and Works

2003-08-25T21:31:00.000-04:00

James wrote,

"Show me your faith without works and I will show you my faith by my works."

The works we do as believers aren't to prove that we believe, they are the byproduct of believing. Your faith isn't believing the right words or doctrines, it is the evidence that an unseen God has joined himself to you and sparked a fire of Life within you. The works aren't things you learn to do, they are the living expression of God's love as he moves through you to touch others. Works aren't the result of your efforts, they are God's reminder to you of how much he loves you; so much so, that he is willing to share with you his experience as he loves others.

Resting vs. Working

2003-08-23T01:42:00.000-04:00

Somedays I just struggle to come up with something to share on this blog. Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy sharing thoughts and those days when I write something well, it just has that sound to the language that sings and the point just snaps into place like the last piece of a jigsaw puzzle. I really love those days. But those days don't always happen for me. All those empty days on the little calendar on the 'Walking the Dogma' home page, those are the not happening days.

Honestly, a good many of them I really worked to try to force something good to come out. I worked hard. I mean, I have 47 'articles' posted and I have probably deleted just as many attempts at articles. But the life of Christ cannot be forced out of a mold. It can't be extruded, pressed, or formed into a shape that you think it should take. It can only flow.

It saturates your whole being, not necessarily in a way you feel, but you really are entirely permeated with the spirit of the life-giving force of the universe. You are filled beyond any capacity to contain it, you have no choice but to overflow and the life starts a trickle and quickly grows to a rushing torrent....and all without you lifting a finger. And wherever the life flows it gives sprout to fruit; just to let you know who it is that has chosen to dwell with you, within you!

Previous Comments:

I finally got here and read your blog. I absolutely love it and haven't found a thing to disagree with yet. :) I would argue with you about the Christianity thing, but, it would only turn out to be about semantics and connotations and we would go round and round as usual until we realized we basically believe the same thing.

Posted by: Mom at August 23, 2003 03:01 AM

Hi, Mom!

Everybody, my mom. Mom, everybody.

I'm really glad you like it. Kind of feels like when I brought Pooch home that time. "Can I keep him?" :) I dunno why it reminds me of that time, it just does.

Posted by: HarryTick at August 23, 2003 03:59 AM

Hi, Mom!

Posted by: the Shovel at August 23, 2003 07:54 AM

This is really encouraging to me. Just broke through somethin', I don't know what. No more trying here...Thanks so much, Harry!

Posted by: mary at August 23, 2003 04:17 PM

Do It or Else!

2003-08-21T10:38:00.001-04:00

I know of a gentleman who claims that he doesn't believe in eternal punishments because he doesn't believe in hell as an eternal place of torture. However, if someone isn't obedient to God's Law, he says that they will just die and won't get to enjoy heaven. I guess it's some sort of partial annhiliationism, but he claims that it isn't a punishment.

When I grew up, and even as an adult, there have been plenty of times I have been threatened with the punishment of having something withheld from me. It is always given as some sort of incentive to perform the way someone else wants me to. The Christian twist on this is that ONLY those who are REALLY Christians will do the right things. ONLY THEY will treat others with the right attitude and respect, as evidence of their love for God. So, if you want to be a REAL® Christian, you should/need/have to do the right things! Which is always what I...err, I mean, Jesus says you should do.

The issue I have is that his message is no different from any other religious message. Messages that say that you have to do this in order to gain this reward. The implications of which, whether stated at any other time or not, are that not doing this results in a punishment (i.e. sin/disobedience brings punishment/absence of reward). The punishment could be as simple as no longer existing to as difficult a concept as eternal torture. The message is still the same, it remains a threat to coerce obedience "in the name of love".

Previous Comments:

Gosh Harry
Alwas easy to find differing opions on anything.
One guy thinks this the other thinks something else. To tiring for this resting person to care about--really.
Luv Yuh

Posted by: pharga at August 23, 2003 05:04 PM

Not sure what you are meaning, pharga, other than resting.

Posted by: HarryTick at August 24, 2003 01:00 AM

Not Enough Time

2003-08-18T00:14:00.000-04:00

There just never seems to be enough time. How can I cram everything that is required of me into 24 measly hours? How can I be a good employee, a good husband, a good father, etc.? Something is bound to fall through the cracks, you can't possibly be the best at everything ALL the time.

It's okay. I have a secret to share with you. People who are the best at what they do, sacrifice something in order to achieve their goal. The thing they usually sacrifice is time. Now, you've all heard the pleas about how much time can you afford to give to God, to reading the Bible, to praying, in exchange for what God has done for you, right? Relax, I'm not going to lay one of those on you, I just wanted to remind you of them.

Consider this, that God didn't sacrifice Jesus on the cross in order to trade him for your time. He doesn't demand your time in exchange for his grace and mercy. The God of eternity isn't concerned with your hours and minutes and seconds in order to make sure that you have devoted enough time to let you into the gates of heaven. You are his, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week! How can minutes or hours spent devoted to him make you any more of his than you already are? There's not enough time in the world!

Previous Comments:

Thanks Bill! I really appreciated this!

Jim

Posted by:The Shovel at August 18, 2003 02:10 PM

Amen. Really neat, and true. Good stuff.

Posted by:Mary at August 18, 2003 08:50 PM

Hi Harry!
Good news you've shared here. We're his no matter what we do or don't do!! yeaaaa!

Posted by:Connie at August 19, 2003 10:04 AM

A Shot in the Arm, Part 4

2003-08-03T11:42:00.000-04:00

If I were to be judged before I died, I would be guilty and convicted for every wrong thing that I have done. But, if I die and come back to life as another person, how can I be punished as the person I was before?

The religious thinking that attempts to preserve my life and righteousness is the very thing that caused me to lose the eternal life that I was seeking. The more I fought to attain eternal life and to hold off death, the more the inevitability of death revealed itself. To the point that I've even lied to myself in order to feel "as if" I was alive and that others around me were dead, when I am really no different than they are. On the other hand it is the very death that I have sought to prevent, both spiritually and physically, that sets me free from this body of death and its slavery to sin.

In Jesus, I have experienced that death that is surely to come already in order that I might enjoy the newness of life, NOW. As Paul might say, "I am really dead and the real life I'm living, isn't me living but Jesus Christ living in me!"

Previous Comments:

Bill,

This post was a shot in the arm Dr. Harry Tick, thanks! Believers in Life Himself are not immune from feelings of fear. Fear of falling into sin, fear of death, etc. The reminder that we've already "experienced that death that is surely to come already in order that I might enjoy the newness of life, NOW" is better than a booster shot any day, bro. We be jommin'. :-)

agapealoha love dave c.

Posted by: Dave Cossaboon at August 4, 2003 03:54 PM

Sometimes

2003-08-02T17:11:00.000-04:00

Sometimes the asking of the question is more important than arriving at a "correct" answer.

Saving Private Ryan: Epilogue?

2003-08-02T14:45:00.000-04:00

In Jesus we see the one life that is worthy, sacrificed to save the lives of many. Everything about our human sense of justice tells us that this was not right. How could one so worthy take the place of those who have been deemed "not worth it"? Even in the movie, Private Ryan immediately sees the disparity in trading the lives of 6 men to rescue him from the hell of war. We could maybe agree with it if one man gave himself up for his squad or platoon, a fact that we recognize with awards for heroism, but we would seriously question a man giving his life to save the entire enemy army as well.

What could possibly be motivation enough for anyone to do such a thing?

Signs of Life

2003-08-01T23:10:00.000-04:00

Do you realize that babies are some of the most watched humans on the face of the earth? Just about everyone loves to watch a baby, to see them look up and smile into a face that is gazing intently, beaming, as it watches a new life demonstrate itself.

Some of the watching though, is based in fear. Fear that the new life has ended. A worried mother or father pauses in the doorway of the nursery and listens and watches intently to see that there is still a rise and fall of the chest, that the whisper of baby's breath continues, that there are still signs of life in the night.

In physical life we know that these fears are not totally unfounded, although perhaps a bit alarmic, and that a good majority of babies will grow and mature and become toddlers, and children, then teens, continuing to adulthood. This is the normal progression of life. It is to be expected, but what drags us away from that hopeful expectation is fear.

Opposite to this fear which destroys hope, is love. The love of God is upon us. Our spiritual development is secure because of the love of God in Jesus Christ. There is no need to watch for signs of life in others in order to determine the continued evidence of life or growth. Within the love of God, we see that the signs of life are given as signs to ourselves, that we are made truly alive by the one who gives life!

Saving Private Ryan

2003-08-01T23:01:00.000-04:00

I was watching the critically acclaimed movie, "Saving Private Ryan", about an impossible mission where six soldiers are sent to rescue the last of four brothers who joined the service to fight in WWII. It seems that there were some reservations by the men sent to save him as to whether or not one man was worth the lives of six.

REIBEN: "Well, sir, in purely arithmetic terms, since when does six equal one? What's the sense in risking six guys to save one?"

During the course of the whole movie, the worth of this one man is questioned over and over. Those soldiers sure didn't see Private James Ryan as being worthy of their sacrifice, and demanded that he redeem it in exchange for a life that meant something. In the end, as Ryan is saved from death, the leader of the expedition to find and save Private Ryan, Captain Miller, with his dying breath begs him, "Earn this....earn...it..."

To the contrary, we often think along the lines of "The needs of the many outweigh the needs of the few." (Spock, The Wrath of Khan) The question is, which one of us is it going to be? Which one of us is going to sacrifice themselves for the rest of us, and what are we going to require of the ones who might receive the benefit of the sacrifice? Are we going to require them to "earn it" in order to make sure that it wasn't "wasted"?

Previous Comments:

"The question is, which one of us is it going to be? Which one of us is going to sacrifice themselves for the rest of us, and what are we going to require of the ones who might receive the benefit of the sacrifice? Are we going to require them to "earn it" in order to make sure that it wasn't "wasted"?" -HarryTick

What could we possibly do to earn it? And it will be done by those who love. Makes me think of "The Measure of Man" song... because then we have to define measures life's success and that definition is different for everyone and subjective.

Likewise - we can't earn Jesus laying down His life for us - and we can't earn "worthiness" after we accept His sacrifice. We keep trying to measure Christ by His followers and too often judge His sacrifice was a waste when we measure the people by society's measurements. We fail to see the hearts as He does. IMHO it was Love that sought us and bought us and Love that keeps to that Day.

Posted by: at August 2, 2003 09:58 AM

Thanks for the good response. It's actually right up the alley of what I was getting at.

In the snippet you quoted, I was alluding to the fact that none of us are the One who is willing to sacrifice for "everyone else". Sure, we'll sacrifice for those we think are worth it, but the act of sacrificing for people regardless of their worth is the work of Christ. His sacrifice is totally independent of the worthiness of those he died for and their worth is determined not by what they did to deserve it, but by the One who sacrificed himself for them.

"You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us." - Paul (Romans 5:6-8)

Posted by: HarryTick at August 2, 2003 01:24 PM

A Shot in the Arm, Part 3

2003-07-31T23:51:00.000-04:00

"The same judgment that is tied to our ultimate physical fate; we're going to die."

Where was I going with this? Oh. Yeah. Tying our judgment to our physical fate. The writer of Hebrews said, "And inasmuch as it is appointed for men to die once and after this comes judgment, so Christ also, having been offered once to bear the sins of many, will appear a second time for salvation without reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him." Doesn't this sound as if he is making a comparison between the two, as if there is a similarity to point out?

(to be continued)

Posted by HarryTick at July 31, 2003 11:51 PM

A Shot in the Arm, Part 2

2003-07-27T22:24:00.000-04:00

Isn't it interesting how things like vaccinations, rules, and laws spring from the fear of death and judgment? How different is the contrast between the fear of sin and death and the gospel message which says that in Him we have all died. I look and know that I am not physically dead at this moment, and yet here is a message that tells me that I am dead already. And even though there is still physical life here in my body, I know that it certainly won't last forever.

That would seem kind of pointless, trying to hold onto something that will ultimately be lost or even trying to preserve something which is already gone, wouldn't it?

(to be continued)

A Shot in the Arm

2003-07-24T09:43:00.000-04:00

Today I received multiple vaccinations in the ongoing preparation to be ever ready for deployment. It's really an interesting concept, the injection of something that is bad for you into your body in order to trick it to be able to fight off any number of diseases. The idea is that a little bit of death is okay so long as it helps you stave off the big "D" (death) by helping protect you from "sickness". Now, vaccinations may serve to preserve our life in a specific instance and for a short while, but they can't save us from the ultimate fate that this physical body holds for us.

Rules and Laws are a lot like vaccinations. Adherence to them may protect us from different consequences, they may trick us into the thought that we're preserving our righteousness, but they can't stem the tide of the oncoming judgment. The same judgment that is tied to our ultimate physical fate; we're going to die.

(to be continued)

Previous Comments:

HT ... hey, I really like what you're doing with this one! :)

Jim

Posted by: the Shovel at July 25, 2003 02:07 PM

You raise an
interesting point regarding the inevitability of physical death. I would call
attention to the deposit guaranteeing our eternal life: the resident Holy
Spirit. He is the earnest deposit of our everlasting life with God. Do not look
within to see Him, but to the cross of Christ - an empirical fact of history.
Trust in Christ and His promises to all who believe in Him.

Posted by:
Frank Marron at July 25, 2003 08:39 PM

Frank,

What is the
problem with the inevitability of physical death?

Posted by: HarryTick
at July 27, 2003 10:42 PM

Looking For Life In All the Wrong Places

2003-07-21T20:30:00.000-04:00

Do you remember that country song from the early '80s, "Looking for Love In All the Wrong Places"? The singer laments that everywhere he looked expecting to find love, he never found it in the places he thought he would. When he did find it, it came from a source he never expected. We never really learn how he meets his love, but we do understand that he did find her.

For the last several weeks I've been looking for "signs of life" in all the wrong places, expecting to see evidence or run into evidence of the life of Christ, on the OUTSIDE. Not really the outside of myself, but looking for those external signs that other people believe the same things or understand things the same way. Welcome to "Walking in the Flesh 101". When I try to determine what someone is or believes by their external actions or professions, I am looking to judge them by the spirit of the flesh. You know the one that says that believing this is good and believing that is bad and behaving this way is good and behaving this way is bad.

Just today, I woke up (almost literally) to the fact that I've even been looking at all. I re-realize that the Life of Jesus Christ lives within me and that this is the only evidence of life that I really need to be concerned with. Looking at other people through the crucified and resurrected Life of Jesus, I find there is no need to judge what they do or believe because there is nothing that they could do to make themselves any more alive by these things. And the only way to detect life in someone else is to have the witness of the One within me testify to His presence within another. Not some arbitrary fleshly judgment based on agreement, but the confirmation that there really is only one Way into Life that cannot be enacted by the effort of human will, free or otherwise!

Drafting Jesus

2003-07-20T09:21:00.000-04:00

I find it odd, the number of groups that attempt to draft Jesus to their own cause, to the exclusion of all others, in the attempt to validate their beliefs.

Previous Comments:

Hi Harry

I've linked here from your profile on the Ship of Fools.

Why do you think people try to claim Jesus to support them? And why does
it trouble you so?

Posted by: dls at July 23, 2003 08:22 AM

Hi,
dls.

I don't have a problem with people believing in Jesus. I have a
problem with people who claim that Jesus personally validates their code of
belief as THE system of belief in order to get into heaven. Until Jesus starts
doing commercial spots and magazine advertisements saying so, I don't think they
have a leg to stand on, no matter how much they justify their statements by
Scripture.

Posted by: HarryTick at July 23, 2003 09:48 AM

keep
this good work up.but dont concentrate too much on that and forget the weightier
matters.
God bless you. bye

Posted by: catangah at July 31, 2003
08:44 AM

Ummm, yeah, thanks.

Posted by: HarryTick at July 31,
2003 02:10 PM

Adding To or Taking Away, Part 2

2003-07-16T17:57:00.000-04:00

I ran errands during lunch, today. I had to make some personal phone calls and needed to take my car to the Saturn dealership to get my wipers looked at. On the way back from my errands, I hadn’t had a chance for lunch so I stopped at Burger King for a Whopper Jr. That was all I wanted, a cheap lunch that wasn’t going to impact me terribly in the calorie department. When the lady came on the loudspeaker to ask me for my order, I asked for a Whopper Jr. She asked me if I wanted cheese on that and I told her, “No, thank you.” She told me my total, a $1.06, which sounded right and I drove around to the window.

At the window, I was told that my total was $3.37 and the girl was trying to hand me a drink. I said that I had only ordered a Whopper Jr. and that was all that I wanted. She seemed very put out as she went to go “waste” the drink and restock the fries. Then she told me that my total would be $1.22. I was thinking that it seemed odd but I began thinking that maybe I had mistaken the total at the loudspeaker, since they had obviously misunderstood me. So, I paid my money and she handed me the tiny bag with my sandwich in it.

As I drove away I was thinking about that total and then the thought hit me. They had screwed the whole transaction up so badly that I bet they charged me for cheese on the hamburger. I unwrapped the burger and, sure enough, there was a melted slice of cheese cleaving the bun and patty together. Sigh. It really is just so hard to get people to listen to what it is you are really saying, I thought as I bit into my burger.

Thank You.

2003-07-16T05:00:00.000-04:00

I really appreciate all of you who have made the effort to decipher the gobbledy-gook that passes for my version of writing! A special thanks to all of you who take the time to comment, both here on the blog and “offline”, whether you agree with my thoughts or not. I know that this is really an editorial form of communication but the feedback helps to spur me on just by the fact that you all are checking it out.

(It also proves that advertising works!) hehehe

Seriously, thank you! I hope that you all keep on commenting and sharing.

Adding To or Taking Away

2003-07-13T07:51:00.002-04:00

Revelations ends with a dire warning:

I warn everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds anything to them, God will add to him the plagues described in this book. And if anyone takes words away from this book of prophecy, God will take away from him his share in the tree of life and in the holy city, which are described in this book. – Rev 22:18-19, NIV

I think we often add to or take away from the things people say and the questions that people ask. It’s kind of like that Intent to Misunderstand, it just works slightly different. We read into what someone says because we added some of what we think to what they were really saying. Or we take away those things we disagree with so that we can more easily formulate our answer or so we can continue to discuss without addressing things that are uncomfortable to us. Ever done this to someone? I have.

24 Hours

2003-07-10T12:04:00.000-04:00

I’m on duty again tonight. I was going to take a break, but after I went outside, just after 1am, I look over to the other parking lot where my car is only to see two military police vehicles parked behind it with their lights shining on it. I walk over to see what’s up and I get the whole flashlight-in-the-face, cautious-approach-with hands-on-pistols, ready-to-draw business.

“Can I help you?”

They want to know who I am, and if I have my ID card. I take it out and hand it to the nearest soldier. I did notice they got twitchy as I bent down to my bootleg pocket on my flight suit, so I moved r-e-a-l-l-y s-l-o-w. Once I got my identity establised (kinda, they call it in to be verified by their dispatch) they almost relax and want to know why I didn’t hear them knocking on doors and windows trying to get my attention. At the same time, I want to know why they didn’t see my very nicely, handwritten note taped to the main entrance to the hangar, explaining that if anybody desires entry they need to call one of two specific numbers in order to get a hold of me, since my office is on the second floor. I give them their explanation but get blank looks in answer to my questions (it’s okay, I post here on Xn. I’m used to it )

Anyways, it seems the problem is that a secure room used to store weapons systems for the aircraft was left “unsecured” since about closing time this afternoon. I check my watch, it’s about 1:10am and the thought runs through my head, ‘And you’re getting around to checking it now?’ Discretion being the better part of valor, because they have guns, I leave it unsaid and offer to take them into the building so they can see that I’m not lying and trying to steal any government equipment.

They’re nice kids. Just doing their job, even if they’re a little excitable. I open the other set of doors so that they can get back and forth to their squad cars easier, and so I can show them my note, right where I said it was with the information I said it had. Then I take the ring leader…err, I mean the shift supervisor into the hangar to show them the place where the evil, unsecured Arms Room is. As we walk back to wait for the real man of the hour, the Sergeant with the passkey to make the alarm annunciator shut up back at military police headquarters, the soldier I’m with mentions that they’re glad I walked out of the building, since they were just getting ready to send the K9 (dog) in.

I tell him how grateful I am, too. Especially since I hadn’t brought a spare uniform to change into after I’d have soiled the one I was wearing had that dog surprised me in my office. He thinks that was a funny thought, and I’m thinking that those military police are telepathic somehow because the other soldiers in the hallway were laughing about the same exact thing as we round the corner.

Finally, the Sergeant arrives and resets the alarm. I find out that I’m free to go. I get this impression that a couple of them want to say, “but we’re keeping an eye on you, Mister!” You know, big bad cop talk. But I’ve been a nice guy and I outrank them and even though they appreciate the break from the monotony of the night, this little adventure is more than their nerves can handle.

Yeah, mine too. Especially every time I think about that dog…

Dogma

2003-07-08T21:18:00.000-04:00

Dogma can take on many forms in religious life. One of the most consistent and popular forms is that the belief becomes its own truth simply by believing it. Regardless of facts or testimony to the contrary, a religious dogmatist will tout the party line until their dying day.

No Longer a Christian

2003-07-08T18:13:00.002-04:00

I’ve contemplated how to write this one out. It will be tough for many to stomach just the concept alone that a believer in Jesus Christ could just swear off Christianity. It will be even more surprising to some that I would be the person to go there. So, I’m going to describe my most concise depiction of Christian beliefs as near as I can gather.

Here’s how Christianity works:

1. If you don’t believe the right things (i.e. how I believe the bible/Jesus/God says you must believe), then you are either broken, sick, wrong, immature, deceived or on your way to hell.
2. You remain those things unless you come to believe what I believe, in which case you are instantly fixed, healed, right, “grown up”, had the truth revealed to you, and/or saved from hell.

I have no problem giving this up. I have no problem giving up the idea that the whole rest of the world has a problem because they don’t hold to my specific beliefs. If there is a God (and I do believe there is) I don’t think he would do something to rescue us from ourselves only to have us use it against one another. No, giving up those things that make me think I’m better than other people can’t make me better, but it sure makes me feel a lot better about all the rest of the people in the world. If there is a problem with people in the world, it is a problem we all have and none of us can claim exemption from it by believing certain things and doing certain things. The only one who can exempt us from the problems we have is God.

Pissing People Off

2003-07-08T17:07:00.000-04:00

I guess it is all your point of view as to what is allowable when you piss people off. If you agree with someone, then it is usually okay if you allow them to mistreat people, especially if you think the point they are trying to make is worthwhile. It’s another thing entirely when the person is someone who declares themselves as not part of your group.

Presuming to Speak For God

2003-07-04T03:10:00.000-04:00

I’ve seen lots of people do this. I’ve even done it myself; presume to have the wisdom of God revealed to me. And like millions of other people I have claimed to be moved by God to “share” these things with other people. I have also claimed that I conducted myself in love simply because I shared. It’s a load of crap!!!

I’m not saying that it isn’t possible for God to reveal things to us for sharing and edifying, it’s just that when we get a “Word”, we usually have someone specific in mind. Isn’t it just the slightest bit possible that our own opinion has inflicted itself upon us, portraying itself as a word from God directed to another? Paul talks about gifts being used to edify and lift up the BODY, not a single MEMBER. This seems especially odd, that we claim to be the messenger, because each individual has the SAME access to God to receive their own messages.

So, if somebody doesn’t ask you for your opinion, it would probably be better to keep your opinion to yourself.

Happy 4th of July

2003-07-03T17:29:00.000-04:00

I have duty tomorrow. I’ll spend 24 hours representing my commander, occupying his place at the headquarters while he enjoys some time off, away from the rigors of command. Some people would call it a “perk” but I think he’s probably pretty grateful for the time off. I don’t have to do it all the time, but for tomorrow my name came up. We all take turns (Officers and senior NCOs) so nobody has to have a really sucky life, it was just my turn in the queue that fell on July 4th.

Have fun, enjoy the picnics and enjoy the fireworks. I’m hoping that my commander will enjoy his, too!

Intent to Misunderstand

2003-07-02T16:02:00.001-04:00

We ALL have opinions. I’m sure you’ve heard the “old” adage, “Opinions are like assholes; everybody has one and they all stink!” Yep, we sure do…have opinions that is. What’s more is that we really get attached to them and we think that everyone should share ours. At the very least we think that everyone has the right and deserves the opportunity to hear ours. But we don’t necessarily believe that everyone else should get equal time. So, at some point in time of listening to someone else’s opinion we commit the crime of Listening with Intent to Misunderstand. We will find some point in their discussion that we can object to, whether that point we object to really exists or not, and begin to inject our own opinion as the only viable option for them to continue to exist as a “rational” human being.

Crimes of Listening with Intent to Misunderstand are on the rise. Coming soon to a discussion near you.

Where Is Heaven?

2003-07-01T11:55:00.001-04:00

The other night, my daughter was reading to my sons before bedtime. My wife went up to tuck the boys into bed afterwards. She came down and told me that my oldest son had asked her some peculiar questions. She said that he had asked where heaven was and said that he wanted to go there. She said that he seemed really upset.

So, up the stairs I went for damage control. I found out from my son that his questions had come from a page that my daughter had read to them out of a little children’s bible. I had him show me which page and it was an innocent re-telling of when Jesus stopped the disciples from keeping the children away from Him. Evidently, my daughter injected something in there that disturbed my son.

I told my boy that Jesus wants us all to be with Him. He asked me, “Where is heaven?” and I said, “It is being with Jesus!” I then told him how Jesus promised to be in our hearts because He loves us and that He would never leave us. Wouldn’t you know it, that boy’s fears of not making it to heaven just seemed to disappear and he got this really relieved smile on his face as he reached to hug me goodnight, and then he snuggled into his blanket and went to sleep.

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies,” – John 11:25, NASB

The Absurdity of the Obvious

2003-07-01T04:58:00.001-04:00

I was looking to participate in a conversation with some friends and my initial comment was ignored. So, I began commenting on my own remark but I was still ignored. Finally, I began to have a conversation with myself. And that is when I got looked at like I was the one with the problem. If I hadn’t been the one to point out the obvious by my absurd behavior, it seems that they would have never seen what was going on. Sometimes, it seems that unless we take things to the extreme of absurdity, some people will remain oblivious to that which might appear obvious to others.

Satire and sarcasm are like that. They distort the absurdity of things that should be obvious but that we’ve missed. People will often label satire and sarcasm as derogatory, and I’m sure that is often true, but what other recourse are people left with to gain the attention of those who refuse to pay attention? I don’t know. All I know is that elevating what is obvious to you into what is absurd to others, sure draws attention to you in relatively short order.

Balancing the Checkbook, Part 2

2003-06-20T13:00:00.000-04:00

Originally posted on 9 August 2003 at 08:10 AM.

Yesterday, my wife finally discovered the error in her accounting that caused our Checking balance discrepancy; she added some numbers wrong.

Just how many of our issues in life are because we've misread the numbers? At the time, I'm sure it seemed like the right answer, but time revealed that it wasn't. In fact, the more time went on the greater the disparity appeared to be, between what my wife believed our checking balance was and what the Bank said it actually was. The error became magnified in her own mind so much that she dedicated an excessive amount of time and effort trying to overcome it.

It was all to no avail. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't make the problem go away. It was only when she realized the truth, that the Bank keeps better records than she does, that she was able to see the mistake for what it was. When she did that, the problem simply disappeared. No more discrepancy, no more worry, no more doubt.

Previous Comments:

A very special thanks to my wife, who actually enjoys that I do something on the computer that involves her, even if indirectly. Thanks, honey, for being my "muse"!! :-)

Posted by: HarryTick at August 4, 2003 03:54 PM

Bro ... this is an excellent reality-check illustration!

Jim

Posted by: the Shovel at August 9, 2003 09:07 AM

Balancing the Checkbook

2003-06-19T10:48:00.000-04:00

Today, my wife is trying to balance the checkbook. Somehow she can’t make all the debits and credits match up to the value the bank says is in our account. “How can we have that much money when all my ledger shows is that we are in the red?” she asks.

You know, the bank promised to keep an accurate record of our account. I’m pretty sure that what they say we have (minus any outstanding checks) is true. My wife begins to worry about how we’re going to “make it” and what she’s going to have to change in able to “get by”. I trust the bank because I understand that they have a really strong motivation for keeping good records.

God keeps pretty accurate records, too. I’m never able to figure out how I could possibly have the value that He says I do. All the debits and credits in my life seem to never match up. If the two disagree, who should I believe? Me? I’m no good at keeping track of everything or properly balancing the ledger (if that is possible). But I trust Him because He too has a very strong motivation for keeping good records. He says that I am worth(y of) the love He has for me. I have to trust that! My only other option is to believe my record keeping which continually points out how short I’m falling.

My Kingdom For a Stick of Chewing Gum!

2003-06-16T22:21:00.000-04:00

I’ve learned something in the last few years of flying helicopters; I’m just no good without a stick of gum in my mouth. Some people will smile and just brush these things off as “superstition”, but I’m here to tell you it is the absolute truth and has been proven time and time again. I’m not very good when I’m focused on thinking through the motions it takes to fly, but I become an above average pilot the second I stick a piece of gum in my mouth. It’s not that I believe the gum makes me better, it is that the act of chewing distracts me enough to allow my less conscious, yet more capable self to take care of the more mechanical details of flying. I am then able to use my mental capacities to accomplish other things like talking on the radio, navigating, accomplishing mission tasks, etc.

If I am concentrating on making sure I don’t sin I am also distracted from living life, ministering to people, and expressing God’s love. The grace of God, the total forgiveness He has given me, allows me to accomplish the things that God has for me to do rather than being mired down in struggling to keep from repeating mistakes. This is the purpose that God has created me for; an unrestricted love relationship with Him and the opportunity to serve as an expression of His unbounded love!

Grace. It lasts a good long time!

The Replacements

2003-06-16T06:51:00.000-04:00

Movies….do you think there is a theme here? :)

In the movie “The Replacements”, a bunch of self-involved football players go on strike and quit playing until the owners agree to pay them what they’ve decided what they’re worth. And one team, the Washington Sentinels, is only four games (three wins) away from the playoffs. In their place is created a team who is untouched by the perception of playing for money, to whom winning is still the main goal.

Jesus is OUR replacement.

Hope vs. the Fear of Loss

2003-06-15T19:40:00.000-04:00

My family and I went to see Disney Pixar’s “Finding Nemo” today (Fathers Day). It’s a cute animated story about a father who loses almost everything that brings meaning to his life, and how he is left with one thing, his son, and has to learn to deal with the potential loss of Nemo as well. It is amazing how much of a fine line there is between the fear of loss and hope. Perhaps that is what Jesus meant?

“Large crowds were traveling with Jesus, and turning to them he said: “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his father and mother, his wife and children, his brothers and sisters—yes, even his own life—he cannot be my disciple. And anyone who does not carry his cross and follow me cannot be my disciple.” – Luke 14:25-27

Happy Birthday!

2003-06-14T06:51:00.001-04:00

Yesterday, we had a birthday party for my son; he’s two years old. His birthday was actually Wednesday, but we were trying to have the party at the park so we could invite friends. He’s still not too sure about how this birthday thing works, but he knows that he likes parties with cake and ice cream and presents. Later on, he’ll become more aware of the correlation between that specific day and the party and presents and the cake, but it will still only be a reflection and a celebration of the truth that happened so many years ago.

Our life in Jesus is much the same. The reality of the event, our salvation, has already occured and it merely awaits our becoming aware of it in order for the celebration to begin. Perhaps you hear some christians remark on a certain day for their “Christian Birthday” when they were saved. The truth is, our birthday already happened some 2000 years ago, and the parties begin to occur when we realize the truth of it.

Happy Birthday!

"Top Gun" vs. "Q1"

2003-06-10T20:03:00.000-04:00

The esteemed designation of “Top Gun” is more than just the premise for a movie about Naval Aviation that showcases Tom Cruise. It is the epitome of the profession of arms, ranking right up there with ‘expert’ and ‘elite’, and so much more classy than “The Best of the Best” (also a hokie hollywod movie). The ‘Top Gun’ is the person (or crew) who has performed the best overall and has excelled in what becomes the measure of a pilot (or a tanker). It is bragging rights for at least another year, as the best shooter in the unit; the man or men who have proven that they can put the steel on target better than the rest.

And then there is the qualification ranks. For instance, second place goes to those crews who were slightly less stellar than the Top Gun but who also attained first time “GO” on enough engagements. To these men and women goes the mark of “Q1”. Suffer a setback or two, whether they are the result of weapon problems or slightly lesser abilities, and you could earn the less dubious honor of “Q2” (second time around), and further on down the queue.

I am ‘Q1’ in my endeavors for mastering gunnery this year. I’m not entirely pleased with my efforts because there are obvious errors that I failed to catch and mistakes that were just plain stupid. Regardless, I could still hold my head high knowing that I have demonstrated a high level of proficiency in the use of the weapons on my aircraft. However, I am sucked into a black hole of self-evaluation about what I could have done better. The comment was made that others were remarking on my ability to engage the targets with a certain type of rocket. My response was that the “Best MPSM Rocket Shot Award” ranked right below “Miss Congeniality for Gunnery 2003”.

I want to be better. There is something in me, some part of me that is driving me to be better at everything I do. I am not perfect, and I have PLENTY of failures, but this same ‘thing’, even in the midst of my failures, continues to tell me that I am not defined by them. Get up, keep trying.

Now, before anyone thinks I’m off the deep end (more than I already am), or trying to go off the other end, I’m not. God loves us infinitely more than we could hope to qualify for. I am not trying to be worthy with what I do, but God has made me someone who seeks to do a thing better the next time I do it. I am a perfectionist, and a procrastinator, and many other things. There are some things that are in me that I have blamed myself for making me into when they were really there all along. They are a blessing of my Father in Heaven and I am really enjoying getting to know these parts of me!

I will do better next time. Hopefully it won’t be a full year, but I am definitely looking forward for the opportunity to reach for a mark. It’s something worth “shooting” for!

Shot in the "Dark"

2003-06-06T01:35:00.000-04:00

Some days I just come up with a title and no idea what to put behind it. I came up with this one yesterday. I had gone out to shoot during aerial gunnery and the weather creeped in on us. Before the weather got too bad and we had to land and shutdown, I got to fire some rockets. I couldn’t see the targets with the naked eye, they were 3500 meters away with clouds drifting in front of them. And although the clouds weren’t dark, it was that thought of shooting the rockets into something I couldn’t see through that gave me the idea for the title.

The real shot in the dark came today when I was, once again, out on the range. This time I had completed my turn at the targets and was sitting at the base of the range tower watching my fellow pilots and soldiers taking their turns. I thought of who I could share that moment with, and I thought of one of my friends, Marc. Marc was never in the military, but he’s always enjoyed military aviation and we met on a online game. The shot in the dark was that what I was going to offer would be appreciated.

I dialed the cell phone number that I had for him and got a Verizon Wireless message that he no longer had that phone number. I dialed his home number and his answering machine picked up. What I had for my friend wasn’t a whole lot, just the sound of rockets screaming down the range. It didn’t quite turn out the way I wanted, the pilots took a bit longer than I thought they would between the shots and my phone didn’t quite capture the sound exactly. But the effect was perfect because a friend appreciated the opportunity to be included in my life because I do something that is unique. A shot in the dark….that hit the mark!

Eraser

2003-05-31T18:45:00.000-04:00

Watching the movie “Eraser”, I’m fascinated with this thought that Christ is our Eraser, erasing us from the world of sin, to live without the danger of condemnation, giving us a new life to live. “You have just been erased!”

Law of the Spirit

2003-05-27T19:48:00.000-04:00

Once it was asked, “Do we need to obey the Law at all?” (speaking of the Hebrew Law and Torah commonly referred to as the Old Testament of the Bible.) To which I responded:

Isn’t it more correctly asked, ‘Which law do we need to obey?’

“Which law were you thinking that we ‘need’ to obey?”

The “Law” of obedience through faith in Christ. Also known as the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus (Rom 8:2). They always need some law to obey, so I figure we give them one that’s based in scripture.

There are two types of laws, the first law, like human laws, is a set of rules that MUST be followed or else a consequence must be faced in punishment. As long as there is someone to enforce it, of course. The second type of law, is a natural condition that exists by nature of God’s creation. Adherence is natural, simply by being a part of this creation; gravity, motion, even the functions of our bodies can be considered to be part of the natural law. If we don’t breathe, we die of asphyxiation (lack of oxygen and overabundance of CO2). The first Law was like the first type of law. The second law is what I mean by quoting Paul from Romans. The law of the Spirit of Life in Christ Jesus, is a “natural” condition for us because we have been recreated (new creation, raised in Christ, etc.). We adhere to it simply by being part of Christ. Our belief in Him is like our breathing in this world, normal and necessary for life.

Now, when we try to readhere to the Law, it’s like trying to swim under water in this new world. You inhale a deep breath of grace and dive down into the murky waters of religion. You strain and strain to keep yourself under the water because you can’t pop up on top until you’re worthy. You finally rise to the top, gasping for breath, upset at yourself for not being good enough to make it. Your getting a breath again, is like reaffirming that grace has saved you. My question is, “Why do we dive down again?”

I’m done trying to swim under the water. I might get a mask and snorkel and stick my head in now and again, but I think I’ll stay on the surface. Maybe I’ll take a walk on the shore. I hear there’s some really neat people on the dry land and some great food. Maybe I’ll get some of that fruit from the Tree of Life.

If I have to talk to anyone about obedience to a law, it’s going to be one that is, to me, like breathing. Imagine how many people are floating on the surface, unconscious but alive from simply trying to swim underwater too much.

(this post in no way expresses the author’s true opinion of water sports of any kind. :) )

Maintaining Freedom

2003-05-26T18:23:00.000-04:00

Who maintains freedom?

More to come…

Freedom vs. the Symbols

2003-05-26T18:19:00.000-04:00

I had to travel down to North Carolina to drop my wife’s grandfather off at my sister-in-law’s house after he had spent a week or so visiting with us. While I’m there, I take the opportunity to visit the Festival of Flight airshow at Pope AFB. I’m an aviation buff and a pilot, so this kind of thing goes really well with my personality. And the key performers this year, for the Memorial Day weekend airshow, are the US Air Force Thunderbirds. While we’re watching the performance, with several thousand other people, I can’t help but notice, as do several other visitors, this gentleman in the bleachers nearby.

He’s probably in his late forties, early fifties, has had quite a few of the beverages from the beer stands, and is totally enjoying this demonstration flight by the Thunderbirds. He is hollering his approval at each maneuver. As the several-tonned weapon-chariots-turned-toys turn carbon-based fuel into speed and loud noise, this gentleman is cheering them on, chasing their afterburner-induced roars with fists raised in exultation and pumping them in victory. And as the music changes, from rhythmic and exciting to pensive and patriotic, I watch this man stumble through the words.

These were symbols to him, symbols of his freedom as an American. I know this freedom is not defined by the symbols, by the planes, the Armed Forces, the flag, the Anthem, or the songs, but that doesn’t change the meaning of these symbols for that man. I would never seek to strip the man of his symbols, but I would also never accept that man’s demand that I pledge allegiance to the flag, that I sing the Anthem, that I revere my fellow members of the Armed Forces in order to prove my love for my country or its freedoms, to him. Nor would I allow that man to demand it of any other.

The demand is the very antithesis of freedom.

Life is a Circus

2003-05-22T21:03:00.000-04:00

Took my wife and kids to the circus Saturday. It was a very small, three-ring setup, sponsored by the Shriners. We saw the Wild Animal trainer, there was a single clown, one elephant, an acrobatic troupe (no trapeze , though), a high-wire act, a hula hoop “juggler”, a family of trained dog handlers, and a husband and wife crossbow act (replacing the classic knife-throwing acts?). One of the interesting things to watch was how the action would move from ring to ring and while your attention was drawn to one, what you wouldn’t see were the “roadies” (or whatever they’re called in circuses) setting up the next act in one of the other rings.

And then of course, was the whole act of making things out to be more difficult than they really were. Sure, if you think about one man alone in a cage with 6-7 tigers, that might seem a bit dangerous. But when you consider that this is the man who has probably raised them since they were kittens, the man responsible for feeding them, all of a sudden it loses its mystique and sense of impending danger. Now, of course, my children didn’t notice at all. They are more intrigued with the more mundane aspects of, “How does he get those tigers to do what he wants.” And perhaps somewhere in their little heads, the gears are whirring away to figure out just exactly how they can get Mom and Dad to get a tiger cub for a pet.

My new job as a safety professional also gave me some interesting perspective on the circus. Each act DOES have some risk inherent with it. But the acts are constructed, planned, and rehearsed to the point where the risk is controlled extremely well, all the while presenting to the audience that there is every possibility that an accident could happen this very day. The tightrope troupe, for instance. I’m pretty sure, although the acting was very good, that several “missteps” were actually planned in order to draw the crowd’s attention more fully.

You Can't Teach an Old Dog New Tricks.

2003-05-21T04:13:00.000-04:00

We get so stuck in this rut of Law, with all the comparing, with all the judging. How could we ever possibly work our way out of something that we are continually working our way INTO! Our own judgment of others condemns us to those same people because we claim that our salvation is by grace, and yet we deny them that same grace and use it to pretend that we’re better somehow. Isn’t that the same old trick that I’ve been doing forever?

I don’t need a new trick….I need a new dog!

Love is a Choice?

2003-05-17T08:20:00.001-04:00

Everyday, I hear the references to choice. My dear friend Mickey, says that we constantly have choices to make, whether we love other people or not. I can understand that point of view. Love has its expression in both actions and words, but love itself is not the actions or the words. Some say that love is a commitment, and I suppose that this is yet another expression of love. But, by itself, commitment cannot fully express all that is love is.

God is love. And everything He has done has been a continual expression of Himself. We are creations of love, creatures designed to be a reflection of His nature and to bask in, and dwell in it. Love is more than a choice and more than a commitment and more than a feeling. It is the expression of God through His creation that creates a wholeness out of parts. Two or more are unified into one body. The expression of love creates a joining, a touch, a direct link into the person of God. Action, choice, commitment, and words are merely methods to the madness of God creating wholeness and oneness in the world!

The Fight Against Evil

2003-05-15T22:16:00.003-04:00

For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.—Ephesians 6:12, NIV

Oh yeah? Really? If it is, then why do we keep attacking and threatening those to whom this message of grace was intended? Why do we continually battle against those who disagree with us, and those whom we look down upon as being “evil” and “worldly”?

“There, but for the grace of God, go I.”

What a condemning, stuck up attitude that says, because I am not THAT person in their situation, I’m better than them. Don’t think that I’m talking in religious terms only, these problems go deeper than mere religion into the whole of humanity.

The Legalism of Grace

2003-05-13T19:45:00.001-04:00

It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery. —Galatians 5:1, NIV

At times I think we misunderstand what exactly this freedom is. This freedom is freedom from sin. It can’t touch us anymore, we will no longer be seen as sinners, we will no longer fall under its clutches because God refuses to let us be separated from Him anymore. You can still screw up, you can still make mistakes, but things that are lawful to you can no longer be construed as sin and be used as shackles to bind you.

That is the reality, but if we imagine that a thing is sinful, Paul says, that to us, it remains a sin and it will continue to corrupt the way we view ourselves and others, apart from the true reality of who we really are that has been given to us in Jesus Christ. And this is the danger of the legality of “Grace”, when the failure to say the right things or when we do things that have been redefined as “legalistic”, becomes sin to us.

No, grace was never meant to merely recreate another mindset on what is and isn’t sin, grace was meant to take the focus off of sin and place the focus on Jesus and God. God says, “Forget all that pretending that you’re better than you really are and come spend time with me because I AM going to make you better than you are!”

Hypocritical, Self-Righteous SOB!!!

2003-05-10T21:57:00.001-04:00

Who is the self-righteous SOB? Me. Yeah, I think I’m so good compared to everyone else. Sometimes the illusion continues in face of the stark reality that other people are better than me at something. And always the truth is right there in front of my face, just daring me to realize and see it.

For instance, driving in my car. I’m a really good driver and I pride myself upon my knowledge of the rules of the road. What does that do for me? Makes it really easy for me to see when the OTHER guy is not quite following the rules. Somehow, though, I seem to be almost totally blinded to my own failures to follow the rules. For instance, I speed, as a common practice, to make up for one of my other shortcomings, a failure to plan. Yet, I am so willing to overlook my own breaking of the rules in order to yell at a fellow driver whom I observe breaking the rules. What a hypocrite I am!

Luckily, our qualification to continue to drive isn’t decided by how well we obey all of the rules of the road (there ARE exceptions), much in the same way that God doesn’t decide to love us by how well we obey religious rules and regulations (there are NO exceptions). The understanding of the rules usually helps us to see violations, but doesn’t necessarily help us color inside the lines. Always we will find ourselves concerned with where the boundaries are and attempting to not cross them. Usually, those who think they’re always coloring inside the lines are too busy pointing out the mistakes of others who aren’t. But we are not identified by our mistakes, it’s the world that looks at it that way, not God.

Nothing New.

2003-05-09T01:54:00.001-04:00

I really wish I had something witty, inspiring, inciteful and refreshing to share with you all, but I don’t. Life keeps moving on and people keep doing the things that people do, good and bad. I’m really thankful in moments like this when I’m searching for the “thing” that will set me apart as different and special from everyone else, that the one thing that really does make me special has nothing at all to do with me. God’s love is what makes me special. Not better than you or anyone else, because that same unconditional, unrestricted love is what God has for all of us. So, I can’t end up being “better” but I can start seeing just how special you really are! Hey, just now, as I’m looking at you, I can see that you’re really worth loving too!!! That’s so cool!

Behavior Modification

2003-05-07T16:08:00.001-04:00

If you listen to some people the whole point of religion is to make sure you know how to act the “right” way. Now, I’m with the next guy that says we should all treat each other with kindness, love, and respect, so what gives religion the corner on behavior as proof that they are in favor with God. I’m in the Army. We have values and standards too, and who is to say that the guys that totally portray those values haven’t gotten it more right than the churches?

The problem I see is that the goal no longer becomes getting people acquainted with God but rather a program that strictly regulates how to behave and who to associate with. I mean, if God has cleansed us from all of our sins, how do we get ourselves “dirty” again? And that’s what churches have seemingly become consumed with, how to teach everyone not to get dirty again. I don’t get it, I thought that’s what Jesus died for. Well, evidently that point is up for debate among the denominations, which brings me to my other podium pounding problem. If Christians are so filled with love for one another and the rest of the world, why can’t they agree? They not only fight against the rest of the world to prove how right they are, they fight amongst each other to prove who is the rightest of the right. I’m sure someone will be along shortly to prove just how wrong I am about all of this. Of course, then I’ll be right.

I had said:

“Now, I’m with the next guy that says we should all treat each other with kindness, love, and respect, so what gives religion the corner on behavior as proof that they are in favor with God. I’m in the Army. We have values and standards too, and who is to say that the guys that totally portray those values haven’t gotten it more right than the churches?

The problem I see is that the goal no longer becomes getting people acquainted with God but rather a program that strictly regulates how to behave and who to associate with.”

Continuing that thought, isn’t it odd that this type of disciplined behavior can be replicated by people who are ‘without the truth’? After all, if the Army can do it, what claim do christians have to some supernatural assistance to behave that way? I think that the answer lies beyond us humans. That the Truth is out there and the Truth is getting around. The Truth is being witnessed of, testified about, and look around, not a single missionary or pastor or nary a christian to take the credit for leading these people along some path of “correct behavior”. Do you think that maybe God isn’t waiting on us, self-important humans, to get the word out about Himself?

I’ve always suspected He was doing it all on His own. You know, freelancing without consulting us, or asking our permission. He’s just out there winning hearts over to His way of unconditional love and He’s doing it without our help. Now, there’s a novel concept…a gospel of faith without works so that NO MAN can brag about how what he did made God owe him.

Sounds almost scriptural doesn’t it?

BREAKING THE LAW, BREAKING THE LAW!

2003-05-07T01:35:00.000-04:00

The Law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus [Rom 8:1] condemns you to eternal life!

When I was first considering this, I was thinking that I could somehow describe our liberation in Jesus Christ by pitting one set of laws against another. But, all you get when you pit law against law is…yep, you guessed it; law. So, why does the miraculous exchange between sinner and Savior, the transformation from sinner to saint, bear the same description of the holy tool used to condemn us? Who knows? Perhaps it is similar to our laws of the land, which are never actually erased or stricken from the books but instead are altered and amended by later statutes used to correct and redress errors. The Eighteenth Amendment to the Constitution outlawed alcohol in the United States during the period we call Prohibition. Yet, when it came time to remove the penalties of that law, it wasn’t removed as an amendment, it was changed; repealed by the Twenty-first Amendment. In the same way, Jesus has amended, by the legislation of His death and resurrection, the Law of Moses & the Ten Commandments, that instead of punishment we should be awarded eternal life, His life, as a token of His mercy and evidence of His grace.