Category Archives: Editorial

Limiting Gun Violence in America

Another day, another mass shooting. Depending upon when you read this, you’ll likely be aware of a recent shooting. As of the writing of this opinion 2829 persons have been murdered in 543 mass shootings. According to the database published by USA Today, a mass shooting is defined as the killing of four or more persons (excluding the killer) within a 24 hour period with any weapon Mass killing database: Revealing trends, details and anguish of every US event since 2006

What is the response? The Left, currently led by Joe Biden wants to ban “assault rifles,” and limit magazine capacity to 10 rounds on pistols. The Right upholds to the 2nd Amendment, or the interpretation of it, that all guns should be legal and accessible to law abiding citizens. The Left blames guns. The Right blames criminals who wield them. Is there a solution? I have an idea, but it will likely make neither side happy.

Guns don’t commit murder on their own. A killer does. In order to do this, the killer must obtain a gun (or other weapon). Thus, it makes sense that a sane society find ways to limit the availability of weapons to those who are most likely to commit violence. There are laws currently that, if properly enforced, will do exactly that. However, a criminal—by definition— doesn’t obey laws. So, what do we do? Wring our hands? Ban all guns? Before I offer my solution, let me ask a question. How many mass shootings have been committed by someone wielding a fully automatic machine gun? Answer: none. Why? A law-abiding citizen may legally own a machine gun, but it requires a special permit, and they are not readily available. Can you imagine the body count if a mass shooter used a fully automatic weapon?

The largest victim count in a mass shooting is 60 dead and 867 injured. This was perpetrated by Stephen Paddock from the 32nd floor of the Mandalay Bay hotel in Las Vegas, Nevada. He used semi-automatic AR-15 rifles equipped with “bump stocks.” A bump stock permits rapid fire, similar to the full auto function available on the military M-16. This resulted in a ban on bump stocks by the US Department of Justice. It is clear that higher capacity magazines and guns that may be fired rapidly permit mass shooters to kill more people.

So, here’s my solution. This will not stop people from killing, but it will limit who has access to firearms. The 2nd Amendment guarantees the right to keep and bear arms, but that doesn’t mean without limit or qualification. For example, it is illegal for a felon to own a firearm. We must find a way to remove guns from the hands of criminals, those with a history of violence and the mentally unstable. How? I propose a federal law that requires a citizen to obtain a license to own and carry any firearm. I am thinking of the Texas License to Carry permit as a model for this. In order to get an LTC in Texas, a law abiding citizen must take a class, qualify on the range with the pistol they intend to carry, get a background check, and be fingerprinted. If pulled over by police, the LTC holder should identify himself/herself by presenting both driver’s license and LTC permit (indicating where their firearm is located in the vehicle).

There are too many gun owners who have limited or no training and experience with their firearm. And watching John Wick movies or playing first person shooter video games doesn’t count. There should be a basic license that includes what the Texas LTC requires, and adds a basic psychological test. Then you must qualify with the firearm you intend to buy. If you want to an AR-15, then you must have the basic license and qualify with one on the range. You want a shotgun, hunting rifle or pistol? Qualify on the range with one. If you have no experience with that firearm, then take a class prior to qualification.

You have to have a driver’s license. If you want to ride a motorcycle, then you have to qualify. If you want to drive a bus, or an 18 wheeler, then you have to qualify. You have to have a pilot’s license to fly. It stands to reason that there be a license to own and operate a firearm.

In the same way that we license the availability of fully automatic weapons, we must with all guns. This will give police a tool to remove firearms from the hands of those who refuse or don’t qualify to own them. Further, it will ensure that those who are licensed are trained to use their firearms. If someone is licensed to own, then they are automatically licensed to carry, in any state. To stop an active shooter requires a good guy with a gun, who is trained and unafraid to use it. Ideally, that is law enforcement. However, too many times there is no LEO there to do the job.

Now, I understand the arguments from the Right in opposition to licensure. It permits the government to limit or remove firearms from citizens. In a situation where the government seeks to control citizens they will disarm them first. The reality is, we are in danger of that happening right now because of the gross misuse of firearms. All the AR-15s in America will not stop a military state from forcibly taking the guns of citizens. Elect people to office who respect the rights of citizens.

There is a way to help ensure that the federal (or state or local) government doesn’t abuse the licensing of firearms. Privatize training and qualification. There are experienced and well trained persons who could become licensed instructors. Again, I am thinking of the Texas model, wherein private citizens and organizations run the classes and range qualification. Further, the Second Amendment itself ensures that firearms may not be prohibited to law abiding citizens.

The days of the wild west are long gone. There was a time when fathers taught their sons and daughters how to shoot. Some schools even taught gun safety. Now? Go buy a gun at Wal-Mart and have at it. The last time I went to our local indoor gun range I determined I wouldn’t return. It seemed unsafe due to the recklessness of other shooters. We must take steps to change gun culture in our country. Guns are not toys. They must be respected as tools. They are potentially dangerous, but they are necessary in a world where there are bad people.

Church Is/Is Not Essential

Remember the pandemic? Of course you do. Remember when we all were commanded to “shelter inside”? Well, you could go outside if the government determined that what you were going to do what “essential.” Was your job deemed essential? What activities could you participate in during those dark days? Well, you could go to the store to get food; that was considered essential. You couldn’t go to a friend’s house if it meant there would be too many people (usually over 10). You could go to the liquor store; because, you know, alcohol is essential. In places like Colorado I believe the marijuana shops were open. You could go to Walmart, but in at least one state you couldn’t go to the garden section and buy seeds or tools to grow your own food. In fact, in my Walmart experience during the shutdowns, there were quite a few people who were meandering up and down the aisles—at least six feet apart, of course.

In many states churches were not considered essential and you couldn’t worship together. This lasted long after the official shutdowns. Church is just not essential, apparently. Better for us all to worship quietly in the safety of our homes. So, many churches learned to stream. Many people tuned in, kind of. In my observation of the statistics that Youtube provides, the average watch time for a 70 minute worship service was a little over 20 minutes. Yeah, church is really not essential, even to those who would say it is.

Now, we’re a good ways past shutdowns, masks, vaccinations, and church is still not essential to many people, even those who were once faithful participants in their respective local congregations. I’ve seen about one third of my congregation (or more!) who attend quite sporadically, or who have stopped coming altogether. Church is not essential to them.

Jesus thought church was essential, however. He established it. Let’s define church to understand exactly what Jesus intended. The Greek word translated “church” in the New Testament is ekklesia (yes, we get our English word “ecclesiatical” from it). Ekklesia could literally be translated “the called out.” God calls His people out of the world, and He calls them together to worship. Implicit in the idea of church is gathering together regularly. The people of Israel did this in the temple and in their local synagogues. From the beginning Christians gathered in the temple and in homes.
“They devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching, to the fellowship, to the breaking of bread, and to prayer.” (Acts 2:42, CSB)
“Every day they devoted themselves to meeting together in the temple, and broke bread from house to house. They ate their food with joyful and sincere hearts,” (Acts 2:46, CSB)
Yes, they did this more than just once a week. In fact, they gathered daily. Church was essential to them. God blessed these gatherings greatly. People were saved, healed, delivered from evil. They shared their worldly possessions. This essential church didn’t diminish but exploded with new members.
“Many signs and wonders were being done among the people through the hands of the apostles. They were all together in Solomon’s Colonnade. No one else dared to join them, but the people spoke well of them. Believers were added to the Lord in increasing numbers—multitudes of both men and women. As a result, they would carry the sick out into the streets and lay them on cots and mats so that when Peter came by, at least his shadow might fall on some of them. In addition, a multitude came together from the towns surrounding Jerusalem, bringing the sick and those who were tormented by unclean spirits, and they were all healed.” (Acts 5:12–16, CSB)
Church is still essential, regardless of what our godless government, and many faithless, consumer oriented Christians say or do. We are warned to continue meeting together, not for the sake of habit, but to worship and serve our Lord, and to encourage one another.
“And let us consider one another in order to provoke love and good works, not neglecting to gather together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging each other, and all the more as you see the day approaching.”
(Hebrews 10:24–25, CSB)
This is not possible when we are apart. It is not possible if you’re watching on your TV or computer or mobile device. We must gather. We must do this regularly. Church is essential. If you are a genuine believer in Jesus Christ, if Jesus is your Lord, you need to be involved in a local church weekly. Church is essential. If you neglect church, you’re simply living in disobedience to the Lord you claim to follow. Get back this week, participate, volunteer, and be consistent.

What a Waste

“And he said to them, ‘Pay attention to what you hear: with the measure you use, it will be measured to you, and still more will be added to you. For to the one who has, more will be given, and from the one who has not, even what he has will be taken away’”
-Jesus (Mark 4:24-25, ESV).

Week after week you have attended church. You recognize that illustration the preacher uses as on you’ve already heard. You’ve listened to the Scripture so many times that you might be able to quote a good bit of it if you tried. If you wanted to… Do you want to grow spiritually? To become more Christ-like? Or are you more concerned with other things? Does your attention perk up when the topic is methods and means of making money, or steps to living your best life now? You’ll go over and above for what you really want, friend? And maybe that’s not Jesus. Perhaps your problem is Christianity is part of your history, your culture. Is it an old habit, just a weak little practice without much practical use?

Have you forgotten what life used to look like when you loved and followed Jesus with your whole heart? Have you lost your first love? Or did you ever love anything or anyone other than yourself?

James says, “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves. For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like” (James 1:22-23). Sorry to be the one to say it, but if you’re like the person James speaks of here, then you’re a loser. You’re is losing your identity in Christ. You’re losing hope in Christ. You’ve lost your faith through natural erosion. Eventually, if not already, you’ll lose the truth you used to believe in.

Jesus said, “Pay attention to what you hear.” You will be blessed in direct correlation with how deeply and how completely you receive the Truth of God’s Word. When you measure out more time and attention to hearing and applying the Word, then God will add blessing to you. The blessing is His presence and more revelation, then all of the other (earthly) things will be added to you as well. “Seek firs the kingdom of God and all of these other things will be added to you as well” -Jesus (Matthew 6:33).

However, if you fail to listen, then even what you’ve previously heard will be taken from you. First, the Truth no longer has the depth of meaning it once did. Then you start doubt it. Then you forget it. Finally, you’ll be just like a lost person without the knowledge of the Truth. In the most extreme, and irreconcilable, case you’ll hear the Word of God and despise it. At that stage you’ll find that you have contempt for church and the Bible, and even Jesus (the Bible’s Jesus, at least, although some folks reinvent Jesus to agree with their views). Continue down this path and you will become incapable of repentance (Hebrews 6:4-8). You will begin to call good evil, bitter sweet, and darkness light. You redefine the concepts of good and right to match your worldly values. If you reach this point of rejected the Bible and the witness of the Holy Spirit, you will be lost forever, and ever.

Is this you? O, woman, o, man, make a change today! Don’t wait for the feeling to return. You’ve numbed and scarred yourself too much for feelings. If you’re reading this and can see yourself slipping, then you’re not beyond hope. If you can change your mind, do it today. Determine to follow the Truth. For if you continue to eschew wise counsel from godly people, if you continue to be unfaithful to Christ and his bride the church, there may well come a time when you no longer have any faith. If you have ears, pay attention. Act now.

“For him who has ears to hear, let him hear!”

Questions to Ask Before Following the Leader

Today, there are plenty of self-proclaimed apostles, prophets, bishops, pastors and teachers. Before you listen to or follow someone, pray and ask the following questions.

Is this person connected to the larger community of believers, or are they doing things on their own?
Does their teaching agree with historic Christian doctrine (ie. Nicene faith) or are they teaching novel doctrine and/or innovating theologically?
What is their theology? Do they teach the Bible or their own ideas, tips on various aspects of daily life, psychological insights, politics?
Do they confess that Jesus Christ is who the New Testament clearly teaches he is?
1. The unique Son of the one and only God (1 Timothy 2:5)
2. Lord, meaning God, one with the Father (John 8:58, 10:30, Romans 10:13).
3. God come in the flesh (Hebrews 4:15, 1 John 3:2-3, John 1:14).

“By this you know the Spirit of God: every spirit that confesses that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, and every spirit that does not confess Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you heard was coming and now is in the world already” (1 John 3:2-3).

Do they confess Jesus died on the cross and rose from the dead (1 Corinthians 15:3-4).

5) Jesus is God’s chosen one, the Christ, the Messiah

“Who is the liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? This is the antichrist, he who denies the Father and the Son” (1 John 2:22).

Do they teach that they represent the “true church” and state or insinuate that other denominations or churches are going to hell?
“They went out from us, but they were not of us; for if they had been of us, they would have continued with us. But they went out, that it might become plain that they are not of us” (1 John 2:19)

Do they have peers who recognize them as a leader?
Is the title they use appropriate? Did it originate from themselves or was it earned from or applied by a recognized group or entity?
1. “Bishop” for example is a term traditionally used in denominations with episcopal forms of church government. It refers to one who has authority over other ministers, usually over numerous individual churches.
2. “Apostle” is not a term that any established denomination has used until recently in some Pentecostal churches.
3. Those who apply exalted terms to themselves to garner respect should listen to the words of Jesus, “But you are not to be called rabbi, for you have one teacher, and you are all brothers. And call no man your father on earth, for you have one Father, who is in heaven. Neither be called instructors, for you have one instructor, the Christ. The greatest among you shall be your servant. Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted” (Matthew 23:8-12, ESV).
Do they cooperate with and/or contribute to other ministries?
Do they seek to steal members from other churches? Do they incite rebellion and division in other churches as a ploy to gain some of their members?
Do they discount and disrespect other ministers?
Are they accountable to a denomination or a recognized Christian organization beyond themselves and what they have established?
Were they active in a Gospel teaching, Bible believing church prior to stepping out as a leader. If so, did that church recognize their calling?
What is the fruit of their ministry? Do people who listen to them really follow Jesus?
Is their ministry focused on Jesus Christ? Or do they focus on themselves, or on you the consumer?
What kind of character do you observe in their followers/listeners? Is it Christ-like?
Do they charge for ministry? Books, CD/DVD, admission to events?
Do they expect or require followers to donate certain amounts or percentages in order to be considered worthy or acceptable?
Are they financially accountable?
Do they have a governing board or are they accountable to a group of people?
Are they moral and honorable? What about their staff?
Are they servants to people or do they treat followers like their servants?
Is their teaching filled with references to themselves?
Do they live a lavish lifestyle, flaunting wealth, rather than exemplifying sacrifice?
Are they personable, friendly and approachable, or distant and superior?
Are they honest and transparent, or unwilling to reveal details of their personal life?
Are they willing to admit to weaknesses?
Do they seem angry?
Are they ambitious and competitive?
Do they boast about themselves and/or their ministry?
Do they exemplify faithfulness and commitment to their church or ministry, or are they often absent due conferences, speaking engagements, vacations, or personal concerns?
Do they give as much or more than they expect others to give (this includes time as well as money)?
Are they above reproach sexually?

Do you hear them speak in a cavalier way about sexual matters?
Do they laugh at sexually explicit humor?
Do they watch movies or TV programs with sexually explicit scenes?
Do they look at pornography, or read pornographic literature?
(viii) Do they show affection without giving any hint of sexual desire or impropriety?
If they are married, do they appear to be affectionate with their spouse?
Do they treat children appropriately?
Are they often alone with anyone other than their spouse?

Do they fulfill the Bible’s requirements for the office they hold?
1. 1 Timothy 3:1-15
2. Titus 1:5-9
3. Ephesians 4:12-16

Leftist Psychological Projection

“Projection is the process of displacing one’s feelings onto a different person, animal, or object. The term is most commonly used to describe defensive projection—attributing one’s own unacceptable urges to another.” https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/basics/projection

Projection is one of Freud’s Ego Defense Mechanisms. It may be a way to explain the plain hypocrisy we see coming from Leftists at the moment in regard to Elon Musk’s Twitter buyout. They accuse Musk of being “an evil billionaire,” who wants to promote harmful people and ideas, or who seeks to use Twitter to serve his own political interests (ie. not theirs). This is precisely what Twitter has, in fact, been doing for many years, and what Musk promises to free it from.

It is clear to anyone on the Right, or anyone who espouses biblical values that technology platforms like Twitter (formerly, I hope), Facebook, and YouTube regularly censor opinions with which the Left disagrees. They define the terms, with the result that those who are censored or banned are made to appear in the wrong. Terms like “community guidelines,” and “hate speech” are employed as the means of derogating disliked opinions and ideas. This, as opposed to presenting a competing idea, formulating a reasonable argument, or merely ignoring what they disagree with.

Elon Musk has probably done more to alleviate climate change than any other human alive. Millions of Teslas are on the streets emitting no carbon and using no fossil fuels. Climate Change (formerly Global Warming) is an area the Left feels very strongly about. Musk should be their hero (and he was for awhile). Wrong. He doesn’t tow the Leftist line in every area. He believes in free speech, free enterprise, and is more of a libertarian politically. Now, the man who should be lauded by the Left as a hero is called “evil.”

Maybe it’s not projection after all. Perhaps there is a more nefarious, Marxist agenda at work here. Marxists lie. They accuse their opponents of doing what they are actually doing. In the present case they accuse Musk (who has done nothing yet) of manipulating Twitter for his own purposes. And that is what they have in fact been doing all along. This kind of rhetoric shifts attention from what they are doing to what they want the public to believe their opponents (real or imagined) are doing. Leftists are significantly (some entirely) influenced by Marx. All they want is to achieve and maintain power. They seek to gain control over the population, and that starts by controlling the message, the narrative. Social media has become a formidable medium for thought control. Social media platforms censor, de-prioritize, ban and shadow ban. You think you’re seeing what others post, but the algorithms used by Facebook and Twitter favor certain ideas above others. In fact, Facebook has an AI that scours every post and actively censors what it has been programmed to consider outside the “community guidelines.”

I have a personal example of Facebook censorship. I rarely make political posts nowadays. However, I do like to joke around on occasion when replying to friends. So, there was a post getting passed around about a year ago that asked, “If someone broke into your house and looked on top of your refrigerator, what would they find?” I replied that the intruder would likely be shot! Well, that’s a possibility, but really I don’t shoot first and ask questions later. I was joking. There is no intruder. It’s a silly hypothetical to get people to reply, as I did, humorously. Facebook’s AI stepped in immediately and deleted my post, determining that I’d violated community guidelines. I was given a WARNING. Several months later a friend who is an actress posted a clip to Facebook from a movie she just made. Apparently the movie is a Western. In the scene my friend is in a cowboy slaps her character hard several times. It looked realistic. She’s a good actress! I replied to the posted clip with the statement: “Throat punch that cowboy!” Facebook AI stepped in again and removed the post. Then I was banned from posting on Facebook for 24 hours, banned from posting to any groups (even my own I believe) for three days. Further, the warning reminder has come up several times when I’ve loaded Facebook on my phone. This is like being in Junior High. The teacher overhears a comment, and without context jumps in and dishes out the consequences. Ridiculous. Childish. However, this is what is happening on these platforms regularly, and not just in regard to petty “offenses” like mine.

Facebook and Twitter have been also been censoring whatever they deem “misinformation.” They have teams of “independent fact checkers,” who review comments and label them. Who are these “fact checkers;” what is their education or qualification? They hide in the shadows and lay down the law. “YOU’RE WRONG! Independent Fact Checkers say so.” Remember COVID 19? Much of the so-called “misinformation” has proven to be factual, but we weren’t permitted to post anything that disagreed with Fauci and the WHO. This covers everything from the source of the virus to the effectiveness of masking and lockdowns. We the people must be able to discuss these important issues, debate them, and make up our own minds. We can think for ourselves, can’t we? Not according to the Leftist censors of Silicon Valley.

Now, Elon Musk has taken a great risk and spent a significant amount of his own money to set Twitter free, hopefully making it a genuine haven for discussion and debate without censorship. Musk posted: “Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated.” Let us hope and pray that Mr. Musk makes good on his word and commitment. He seems to be a principled person, which is more than may be said for the Leftist pundits who are projecting their own evil motives on the billionaire entrepreneur.

Free or Not Free?

There are two types of people in the world when it concerns the subject of human freedom: 1) those who believe it is an absolute God given right, and 2) those who believe freedom to be granted by the governing authorities. In the United States we have a Constitution, which guarantees what our Declaration of Independence states clearly. “All men (people) are created equal and are endowed by their Creator with certain inalienable (absolute and unchallengeable) rights. Among these are life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. In other words, choice number one above is guaranteed by God and the U.S. Constitution. Yet, increasing numbers of citizens have become convinced—many by a corrupt educational system—that our rights are not absolute. For these people, government is god, regardless of their personal profession to the contrary. The government has the right to force you to stay inside your home, to determine what form of employment is “necessary,” and what is not, to force you to wear a face mask, and now to force you to be vaccinated. Many have surrendered their absolute rights in favor of promises from the government that this is necessary for everyone’s safety. You are not permitted to make up your own mind; these people have made the decision for you. This is wrong. This is the reason the United States fought the Revolutionary War. A new revolution is under way, and it favors totalitarian lockdowns, forced vaccinations, and soon will determine every aspect of your personal freedom. Population control is the object of this “progressive” revolution. Travel will be limited and the means of transportation determined in the purported interest of climate change. Already we see freedom of expression (guaranteed in the U.S. Constitution) limited because the Leftist gatekeepers want to control the message. The rationale often given is: “That is hate speech.” Translation, we hate your free speech. You’ve contradicted our effort to brainwash the populous. We will shut you down. Recently Twitter suspended the press secretary for Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida because she called out the Associate Press for publishing a story with claims which DeSantis disagreed. So, we cannot make up our own minds about the AP story or DeSantis disagreement. Twitter has decreed disagreement with AP is cause for being silenced. This is what Marxist nations have done since the beginning of that monstrous movement: silence dissent. Disseminate disinformation. Punish critical thought. Push the narrative and broker no compromise.

There are two types of people in the world and they treat others according to their understanding of human freedom: 1) those who feel the need to control others, or tell others what to do and how to live, and 2) those who—although they may offer advice—choose to live and let live. These two types occupy both the Left and the Right on the political spectrum. The Left has one agenda and the Right another, but those who are of type one want to force you to do what they and their Tribe says you must. There is an editorial on CNN today (although, the case can be made that all CNN publishes is Progressive editorializing) the title of which is: No You Don’t Have a Constitutional Right to Refuse Vaccination. Really. I’d hazard a guess that the same Progressive who wrote this would stand up for abortion rights. So, the government should not be permitted to stop an abortion in favor of saving an unborn baby’s life—my body, my choice—but the government can force you to accept something in your body with which you disagree. Before you pin me to the anti-vax tribe, let me state clearly: I have been vaccinated and I strongly encourage adults to see their doctor and get the vaccine if their doctor agrees it is the healthy choice for them. So, vaccine good; please get it. However, I strongly disagree with the government forcing the matter. It..Is..Your..Choice. This is still the United States of America, a Constitutional Republic founded on the ideal of God given absolute freedom. The only time that freedom should be limited is when it can clearly be shown to inhibit the freedom of others or endanger the lives of others. Careful when and how you apply that. The present pandemic, although deadly for about 1.5% of those infected, disproportionately the elderly and those with co-morbidities doesn’t qualify as rationale to force people not to work, to limit their freedom to leave their homes, to enforce mask mandates across the board, or to enforce universal vaccination. Covid-19 is not Ebola, friends. Freedom is an amazing gift from God and it is your right. Your rights are not granted by government, rather government exists at the consent of the governed. Learn not to consent to the removal of your freedom for the hollow promise of a little safety.

Addiction!

An addiction is anything that gets ahold of your “want to” and won’t let go. It will have increasingly destructive consequences, but you excuse or overlook them in favor of what you want. Examples are myriad: alcohol, gambling, porn, sex, eating, fasting, exercising, adrenaline. An addiction may be to something healthy or unhealthy.

When the addiction is to a healthy thing, it became an addiction when you couldn’t do without it, at the point when it got out of balance. Let’s take food for example. Obviously, we need to eat. However, when I self-medicate by eating, when I continue to eat too much and too often, when I cannot do without a meal, snack or drink without feeling deprived or uneasy, then I may well be addicted to eating. Relationships are healthy. We need to be connected to other people. However, when I cannot go a moment without someone, when I feel the constant need to know where they are and what they are doing, when I become jealous of other people who may take the person’s attention for any period of time, then I’ve got a problem. So does the person to whom I am addicted.

Then there are addictions to dangerous things. This is usually where we identify addiction. The physiological attachment to something that destroys health. Why would someone do heroin, a sober person asks? Well, they may have been tempted to try it, then it got ahold of them, caused chemical changes in their body and made them need it.

Interestingly, a chemical doesn’t have to be physiologically addictive to gain a hold on you. Many people enjoy marijuana, and they will tell you that it is not an addictive chemical. Yet, the telltale signs of addiction may still occur: constant need for the high, continuous use of the drug even when it is obvious to those who are sober that negative consequences are occurring, escalation of usage, and/or an unwillingness to cut back. I’ve watched people over the years who have brought negative consequences into their lives as the result of smoking weed, but they will not slow down or stop. As an example, several years ago a young adult I was seeking to mentor got into some trouble with the law and was given probation. As a condition of his probation he was prohibited from using any illegal drug. He was required to meet with his probation officer weekly, and would receive random drug tests. He loved smoking weed so much that he stopped meeting with his p. o. in order to avoid being tested. He tried to hide. He got busted and is now serving an extended sentence for the original crime. Why? He needed marijuana.

Alcohol is a well known addiction. Those who recognize that they are addicted may call themselves “alcoholic” and see it as a disease. In fact, that is the dominant model for alcohol addiction. However, it has the same characteristics and consequences as any addiction. What alcohol has in its favor is social acceptance (marijuana is catching up). My father was an alcoholic. It is believed by some that alcoholism is hereditary (again the disease model in effect). As the result of this, and coming to faith in a baptist church that opposed drinking, I didn’t touch alcohol until I was 37 years old. For many years after that I enjoyed an occasional glass of wine or beer, or perhaps a margarita. I could do with it or without it. Recently that has changed.

I don’t want to stop drinking alcohol. I’ve done a number of fasts over the past few years, but it has been difficult to give up alcohol for more than a few days. Drinking too much gives me a headache. You’d think that this would be enough to stop me. All it does is slow me down. I’m careful. But I don’t want to quit. I like the feeling it gives me, until I don’t. I’ve come to the conclusion that I’m addicted, if not to alcohol, then to the reward, the feeling I get as the result of drinking. So, I need to stop. Is it a disease? I don’t believe so (check out the book The Biology of Desire: Why Addiction Is Not a Disease by Marc Lewis). Is it an addiction? Yes, and I need to not need or want it, or I need to end it altogether.

The Bible teaches “All things are lawful for me, but not all things are helpful. All things are lawful for me, but I will not be mastered by anything” (1 Corinthians 6:12). That last phrase is very important. An addiction becomes the master of a person. I begin by enjoying something, but when it takes hold, it starts running my life—and ruining it. However, as a Christian, I have professed Jesus Christ as my Lord, which means I’ve given him control of my life. How dare I, or worse some chemical or thing, take control from Christ.

So, what to do? Well, during Lent I’ve been fasting alcohol, then my birthday came up and I started drinking occasionally again. Today is Monday of Holy Week and I’ve chosen to (following a fellow minster and friend) do a complete fast until Easter. No food. No alcohol. I want nothing in control of my desires but Christ.

I hope my little confession has helped you to evaluate your life, and maybe encouraged you to make some changes. I am not a clinician, psychologist or certified addiction counselor. You may need to get help from someone like that. I am a minster of the Gospel, and I will try to live up to that as well as I am able, with God’s help.

Science or Superstition?

Governor Greg Abbott of Texas just announced that he will be rescinding his executive order mandating the wearing of masks. This has reignited the ongoing debate concerning the wearing of these masks and their capability of restraining the virus. I would like to examine this and then apply it to our overall perspective on health and safety.

Let me ask you a series of questions.

1. Do you wear a mask when you are by yourself?

2. Do you wear a mask when you are out of doors?

3. Do you wear a mask when you’re in your car alone or with family members?

If you answered yes to any of those three questions, then why? Is your response scientific, or superstitious?

The science of the spread of coronavirus indicates that the only way it spreads is via droplets coming from the mouth or nose of an infected person this explains the constant caution regarding social distancing. The virus may also spread, although less prevalent, when infected droplets land on a surface, with which you make contact, then touch your nose or mouth soon after. If you’re paying attention you will realize that wearing a mask outside wearing a mask by yourself wearing a mask inside your car does absolutely nothing to stop the spread of the virus or to keep you any healthier. In fact wearing a mask could make a someone falsely confident, which could, in turn, result in less consciousness of social distancing. Coming into close contact with an infected person regardless of wearing a mask, may result in infection. In fact a recent study indicated that the coronavirus may live for days on fabric, which means droplets landing on your mask could remain there throughout the day as you constantly breathe them in.

I am not opposed to masks. If in an environment where I may come in contact with strangers, I’d prefer we wear them until community immunity is reached. However, if I’m the only one wearing a cheap cloth mask, I’d likely be better off without it, my vigilence to remain six feet or more from others is heightened. If I’m seated somewhere and a stranger sits close by, I will move to facilitate distancing. My mask will not protect me.

Next let’s look at the vaccines.

1. Do you believe that a vaccine stops you from getting COVID-19?

2. If you’ve already had COVID-19 do you believe you should be vaccinated?

If you responded affirmatively either of those questions, why?

Let’s begin with how a vaccine works. If you have a healthy immune system, infection with a virus causes an immune response within your body, which will then result in you being able to fight off future infections of the same virus. We call this immunity. A vaccine does not stop you from getting an sick, your body does. A vaccine stimulates your body’s natural immune system, so that you will be able to fight off an infection. There are four approved vaccines for Covid-19 currently available. All do the same thing, prepare your immune system to fight the virus.

The healthiest thing you can do to avoid a debilitating infection with the coronavirus (or any other illness) is to be healthy. A vaccine is far less effective, and in fact may be ineffective, in a person with a weak immune system. So, eat a healthy diet, stop smoking, cut down on your alcohol, or eliminate it altogether, work out regularly. In short, be healthy and you are far more likely to experience a less severe infection of any virus or bacterial infection.

Be scientific and smart. Avoid close contact with those outside your family. Sanitize your hands. Don’t touch your face. Stop adjusting your mask. Get vaccinated if you haven’t already had Covid-19. Don’t fear and don’t stress. An unhealthy mental state may result in an unhealthy body.

Covid-19 may become endemic. In other words it may always be out there in some mutated form, just as influeza is. We will have to continue to be vigilant, smart and scientific, not superstitious.

Walking On the Right Path

“There is a difference between knowing the path, and walking the path.” -Morpheus (The Matrix).

I initiated a fat loss competition at my church on the first Sunday in January. The purpose was (and is) to motivate people who enter to become more healthy, not just by losing pounds, or even inches, but by losing excess(ive) body fat. According to the Diabesity Institute (diabesityinstitute.org) 60% of Americans suffer from a combination of obesity and type 2 diabetes. Diabesity is the major factor behind heart disease. According to Johns Hopkins Medicine people with type 2 diabetes are two to four times more likely to have a heart attack. Obesity has long been known to increase the risk of heart disease. Therefore, this is not merely an issue of looking better, or even feeling better, but of living healthier and longer. Our church is called Lifewell and our motto is Live Life Well, This fits our mission.

I haven’t lost any fat, in spite of the fact that I have the knowledge and experience to do so. I could be a trainer if I had time and inclination to get certified. However, as Morpheus says in the first Matrix movie, “There is a difference between knowing the path, and walking the path.” See, I decided to take a different route. I wanted to know if I could gain muscle at the same time as losing body fat. Others have done this, but I have not. I followed a six week weightlifting protocol known as German Volume Training. I gained muscle, and strength. However, the reason I didn’t lose body fat likely had more to do with my unwillingness to give up a daily craft beer reward, and being lax in keeping up with my daily food log. The result was too many calories, and a daily interference of alcohol in my liver. The latter inhibits the liver’s ability to burn fat (at least, while it is dealing with filtering the alcohol).

What to do? Be happy with my muscle gain? Buy bigger pants? Wear all of my shirts untucked to hide a burgeoning gut? No, I’m going to re-start. Turns out virtually everyone in our competition voted to do the same. The original plan was to weigh-out on Valentine’s Day. Yeah, there were very few people who left their houses that morning. We live in Texas. February 14th was the start of a very rough week of freezing temperatures and power outages. Prior to that we had folks dealing with Covid-19. It’s been a difficult 2021 so far. However, as the Bible promises, God’s grace is new every morning. God’s grace is my inspiration to start over, and over, and over. So, I’m not giving up, or giving in.

The season of Lent is a time of fasting. Intermittent fasting is a great way to lose body fat. It’s also a time of self-denial. Many Christians give something up for Lent. This teaches us to say no to self and yes to God. Life is about seasons. our bodies are designed for intermittent feasting and fasting. The holiday season is for feasting. Lent is for fasting. My plan is to give up alcohol, and to fast periodically, particularly every Friday. This will help spiritually and physically. Health involves the whole person.

This re-start is an opportunity to walk the path I that know: keep a food log, count calories and keep them at around 1700 per day, avoid sugar, starch and generally keep carbs low (around 100gm/day), continue to lift weights, add cardio, and NO ALCOHOL. I’ve done this several times in the past decade and dropped my body fat below 10%, and sustained it for years.

Today is Day One… again. Easter is 40 days away, and that is our new weigh-out date for the fat loss competition at my church. My goal is to get back below 10% body fat. I am convinced I can do it, but only if I do what I know. That really applies to all of life.

Jesus said something to his followers that is the best summation: “You know these things, you will be blessed if you do them” (John 13:17). Do what you know to be right and true. If not, well, Jesus’ half-brother James said, “Remember, it is sin to know what you ought to do and then not do it” (James 4:17).

Do what is right, always: in health, in relationships, in your thinking, in life.

COVID-19 as Constitutional Crisis

My friends,

Could we be witnessing the attempted deconstruction of the United States as a Constitutional Republic, and destruction of democracy in the West, all under the guise of safety from the bogeyman COVID-19?

I ask you, where did this virus come from? How did it come about? Is it an accident? It came from Wuhan province in China. Evidence is mounting that it came from a laboratory there, which is near a wet market where the virus is believed to have first spread. This means it is engineered, which explains why it is a novel coronavirus (it is new, unprecedented). Now, the most important question: is its release an intentional act by the Chinese Communist Party as an experiment or outright effort in exercising control? The mechanism of control has been the World Health Organization. It is clear that the WHO is being manipulated, if not outright controlled by the CCP (Chinese Communist Party). Chinese Communists have lied and sown disinformation since the beginning regarding COVID-19, which the WHO simply accepted.

If what I am asserting here is in any wise accurate, we are witnessing an act of war by China on a global scale. If it is merely an accident that was covered up while millions of people left the Wuhan province and travelled around the world to spread the virus, then the Chinese Communist Party and the WHO are guilty of crimes against humanity. This action has caused death, sickness and loss of income for a large number of people. As of this writing there are over three million who have been infected (likely a very small percentage of the actual number, since a relative few have been tested), and 212,522 have died. The United States alone has gone at least two trillion dollars more in debt by sending stimulus payments to its citizens. The amount of lost income due to unemployment is a large and growing number.

Why are many of our elected officials in the United States refusing to hold China responsible for this? Why isn’t it being investigated? Why are Democrats more concerned about assigning blame to President Trump or their political opponents, than in protecting this country from further threats? Could they be complicit in an effort to deconstruct our democracy to fit their Socialist aims? Bare minimum they are opportunists who are using this to further their policy agenda. Nancy Pelosi has proven she will stuff every stimulus package with agenda items having nothing whatever to do with economic relief for workers. It is Democrat governors like Northam in Virginia and Whitmer of Michigan who have used their power in the both draconian and arbitrary ways.

In a recent video Dennis Prager observes that the current shutdown sets a dangerous precedent for the future, wherein Democrats may use a shutdown mandate to push policies like limiting climate change, if given power in the White House and both houses of Congress Democrats could simply make the case that we need to shut down or have government take over of certain industries to combat climate change. The idea of a government takeover of industry is a Socialist policy move already floated by some Democrats at the outset of the COVID-19 crisis.

I’m not a political analyst. I’m an observer. I’m asking questions that need answers. I am the pastor of a small church, and a citizen who appreciates deeply the freedom to live, work, speak freely, and worship my God openly. My congregation has not been permitted to meet together for over a month. We’ve made do with online services, certainly. However, I question the Constitutional authority of our government to do what they’ve done. The 1st Amendment is not superseded and should not get suspended by orders purportedly made to keep us safe. In fact, the 1st Amendment protections of freedom of speech are being assailed daily by the very platform we use to put our worship service online. As of last night YouTube removed two journalist interviews of doctors in California who factually and with great respect disagreed with our current mitigation protocols. YouTube cited the videos as being in violation of their “community guidelines”. I’ve seen terrible, disrespectful, tirades that YouTube has no problem with, but these videos were by experts who simply disagreed with the prevailing wisdom, which, I make the case here, is politically motivated manipulation from the Left. YouTube has proven to be an ally of the Left often.

Again, friends, what we are witnessing is a chilling violation of our Constitutional protections. I am not marching in protest, yet. However, I have fasted and prayed, and I will continue to pray and speak out. Will you join me?

Pastor Darryl Hall

Quid est veritas?