Please accept with no obligation, implied or implicit, my best wishes for an environmentally conscious, socially responsible, low stress, non-addictive, gender neutral celebration of the summer solstice holiday, practiced within the most enjoyable traditions of the religious persuasion of your choice, or secular practices of your choice, with respect for the religious/secular persuasions and/or traditions of others, or their choice not to practice religious or secular traditions at all.

Also we wish you a fiscally successful, personally fulfilling, and medically uncomplicated recognition of the onset of the generally accepted calendar year 2010, but not without due respect for the calendars of choice of other cultures whose contributions to society have helped make the world a great place, and without regard to the race, creed, colour, age, physical ability, religious faith, or sexual preference of the wishee.

By accepting this greeting, you are accepting these terms: This greeting is subject to clarification or withdrawal. It is freely transferable with no alteration to the original greeting. It implies no promise by the wishor to actually implement any of the wishes for himself or others, and is void where prohibited by law, and is revocable at the sole discretion of the wishor.

This wish is warranted to perform as expected within the usual application of good tidings for a period of one year, or until the issuance of a subsequent holiday greeting, whichever comes first, and warranty is limited to replacement of this wish or issuance of a new wish at the sole discretion of the wishor…

Disclaimer:
No trees were harmed in the sending of this message, however, while a significant number of electrons were inconvenienced, no bits were lost.

Author: unknown. But sourced from a friend of a friend.

(I thought this was great! Merry Christmas to you – and best wishes – from me in Melbourne. Hope you have either a well-earned break or a few weeks of well-paid overtime, and get to spend time with those you love this Christmas!)

Here’s a shameless plug for my talented girlfriend, Lillian Yau: the ‘fun sized’ media chick who wants to impact the world…one stiletto heel at a time…

This showreel comes from Lil’s website – see her site for more examples of her work. To use Lil for your next production, contact Visions MCP.

It was an interesting experience, and a confronting one also, with my emotions being dragged all over the place. I went up the mountain praying for protection, because I didn’t know what was going to happen there. Danny and his team were mounting a spiritual attack against witches’ covens, so to me it was a possibility that that could cause some spiritual retaliation. So I went up being aware of this, but knowing I had to discover more about what Danny is doing and what’s behind it. (As an aside, an interesting situation with Christians mounting the spiritual attack – where are we called to go looking for trouble?).

When I got up there I found a large group of people gathered together at the highest point of the mountain. There were flags waving, horns blowing, drums sounding, and people praising, yelling in tongues and shouting words from the Bible.

There were also many people who were there to spectate (like me) or protest. Protesters were flying gay pride flags and banners, and in some cases trying to speak back in tongues to Danny and his team. Later on there was almost nudity, and they were laughing, watching, wondering and talking, but most of all they were enjoying it – this was their Saturday afternoon entertainment, watching the Christians make a fool of themselves.

At this point I started to get angry. The cause that I have given my life for was being turned into a show – into a ritual, a laughing stock. What was going through the minds of the spectators and protesters? “If this is what God does to people, I don’t want a bar of it, but it’s certainly quite amusing!”

Is this our response to a loving and just God, who put his Son through hell just so he could be with us for eternity? Is he calling us to make Him look like a fool so that those who don’t know Him – those who he created in his image, loves deeply, and desperately wants to be in communion with – decide they don’t want a bar of Him?

As Francis Chan puts it, “it’s crazy if you think about it. The God of the universe – the creator of nitrogen and pine needles, galaxies and e-minor – loves us with a radical, unconditional, self-sacrificing love. And what is our typical response? We go to church, sing songs, and try not to cuss.”

Francis continues, this from the blurb of his book Crazy Love: “Whether we’ve verbalised it yet or not… we all know something’s wrong.”

As teachers and leaders we are called to higher account (James 3:1) and that is why I’m not simply going to avoid speaking out about Danny directly. Danny’s supporters have said to me that they don’t like it how so many church leaders are against him. But when misinformation is being spread, and when people like Danny (who should know better) are encouraging Christians (who are leaving their brains at the door and blindly following anyone who is available), there needs to be speaking out against him.

People have said to me “Yeah, I heard about the Mt Ainslie prayer – what do you think about it?”. That is why I write this post. To give a public view on the issue. The people who asked me that were probably looking for an opinion to latch on to. Don’t do that, please. Take what I’ve said, take what others are saying, and use your brain to figure out what the answer is.

I spoke to Jason Golden, Danny’s right-hand-man, to find out whether what they were doing up there was considered successful. After hearing him talk, I think his heart is true. He honestly wants to see salvation come to people who don’t realise it’s there for them. He honestly wants to tell the world about the joy he has found since being saved from his own background of drinking, parties, drugs and sex.

But the problem is, although his heart may be in the right place, his head isn’t. And it’s a problem that many Christians have. It’s the “leaving the brain at the door of the church” syndrome. We’re happy to separate the physical from the spiritual, and elevate spiritual things to a whole new level because we believe it will stand up for itself there. Thoughts like “it’s spiritual warfare”, “we’re doing God’s work”, “the Holy Spirit will save them”, etc. etc. make the “head” part of the outpouring of our hearts completely redundant. We leave our brains and expect God to do the work.

Jason yells words from the Bible through a micro-megaphone and prays loudly in tongues for the salvation of the people protesting around him. I think he does deeply love these people and long for them to see the truth he proclaims. What Jason is doing seems ok to him because he knows where his heart is.

But let’s switch the camera angle around to these other people for a moment – the people Jason is praying for. The people holding up signs saying ‘keep religion out of politics’ and ‘I love my gay sister’. Their view of Jason is slightly different to his view of himself. To them, he looks like a crazy religious lunatic, drunk on the power that he gets from being closely associated with Danny and being allowed to use Danny’s micro-megaphone. He yells words from an out-of-date book that simply don’t make sense here and now. He’s talking about Israel, about it being God’s chosen land, yet here we are in Australia – never haven being to Israel and knowing only about the modern day turmoil there through the media.

Jason yells out babble – “la la la, uh la la la, ooh la” – which doesn’t mean a thing to these people. He’s crazy, he’s deluded, he doesn’t have a clue what he’s doing and they’re having an entertaining afternoon watching him. At the same time though, they’re saying to each other “what I just don’t get, is how he honestly believes he’s right – it just doesn’t make sense”. They’re still questioning. Not dismissing completely, but certainly not anywhere near thinking that these people are normal.

Unfortunately, there are still Christians who are blindly following Danny, Jason and their team. I saw five Christians who I know personally on top of the mountain yesterday, and they were loyal followers uninterested in considering any other options.

Although I haven’t been able to confirm this on the Internet, a source which I consider credible tells me that Danny Nalliah is no longer a pastor – he has been kicked out of the AOG church and is now simply a self proclaimed pastor and nothing else. There were other things about Danny that this source couldn’t tell me – apart from urging me to be very careful about him. Why are so many following him without asking questions?

I spoke to a pagan, some atheists and an agnostic on top of the mountain. They were especially friendly people – in fact all of them had approached me just to say hi or ask what I was doing with my camera and voice recorder. They weren’t trying to “convert” me, but simply wanted to enjoy a good chat. They said that they feel they know the Bible better than most Christians (and unfortunately, I agree with them). After introducing myself to Dave Garland, president of the Pagan Awareness Network and explaining that although I was a Christian, I don’t follow Danny Nalliah, he said “well, I’m from the other side, but you and I agree about Danny Nalliah!”. I felt more comfortable with the ‘other side’ up there than those who I am supposedly on the same side as!

Now, don’t get me wrong: I am a Christian, I love Jesus, I believe that I am a sinner and having accepted His sacrificial gift of salvation I know I am not going to be eternally punished for everything I have done wrong. I accept God’s grace and want desperately to love and live like Jesus lived. I want to see God’s Kingdom brought to Earth in all ways that it can and see people all over the world – including pagans, atheists and agnostics – explore the claims of Jesus, become aware of the presence of God, understand his story of the world, and ultimately have the courage to put their faith in Christ.

But I know that to achieve that, Christ followers have to actually be a bunch worth being a part of. We have to accept other people, and be willing to be their friend. Not to “convert” them, but because we genuinely want to be in community and friendship with those around us.

I’d encourage Christians to look into this more. Go to the next pagan full moon ritual. It’s on November 3. I’ll be there. These people are friendly and welcoming. They’re people, just like you and me, and I want to know more about them. Not because I want to believe what they believe, but because they’re people made in God’s image who God loves and in who I may well find great friends. Through relationship with them, and deep conversing over our views of the world, if they come to agree with who I say Jesus is – then fantastic.

Remember, don’t let your devotion to Christianity make you too different from the world [edit]unaware of what’s going on in the world around you[/edit]. Don’t let it blind you into being so weird that people don’t want to know you. Love others, and spend your time on things that are worthwhile – that bring change and good to the world, not that divide it.

What others are saying:

• Canberra Times journo Louis Andrews, who was walking around with his notepad throughout yesterday afternoon, describes the scene at the mountain as “stranger than fiction”: Culture Clash, Canberra Times, 18/10/2009
• Canberra pastor Brian Medway writes about why yesterday’s meeting was a waste of time: Witches Covens on Mt Ainslie, Grace Canberra, 06/09/2009
• Pagan Awareness Network president David Garland says that modern witchcraft doesn’t involve animal sacrifices: Danny Nalliah’s witch hunt is off the mark, Pagan Awareness Network, 15/10/2009
• Canberrans triumph in the battle for Mount Ainslie – RiotACT, 17/10/2009

This girl (Katie, presumably) is well aware that some Christians aren’t using their brains
Photo: Ella Wilkes – Source: Facebook

“Because of the high unemployment rate [in Kenya], wages are quite low, and we were able to afford a maid. Our kids were able to be looked after easier than [in Australia]. In Africa, as it is in Asia and South America, life is alot more family oriented – our children were involved in so many more activities.”

He says the benefits far outweigh the challenges.

“I had people come to me and suggest it was irresponsible to take a four and two year old to Africa. It was our pastor then who came to our defense and said that he would argue Australia was a more dangerous place than Kenya spiritually, because of the self-absorption and secularism in Australia.”

His youngest son Stephen realises that he misses out on a backyard swimming pool and a PS3, because his dad was called out of a potentially lucrative career as a GP and instead into the overseas mission field. But Dr Djoeandy says his kids are richer because of the multicultural experiences.

“It’s a privilege for me to serve in this role. Sure, I’m earning a lot less money, but money is not everything. A good friend of mine says happiness is not what you have, it’s what you appreciate.”

Dr Omar Djoeandy is speaking in Canberra this Saturday night on “living courageously”, as part of the Canberra Mission Marketplace. He will cover: fulfilling Christ’s mission to be involved in local, cross cultural and global mission; overcoming our fears; building relationships; serving within community; and more.

One of Dr Djoeandy’s core messages is the need to get over what he calls “analysis paralysis”: “We keep saying ‘I need to pray about it’ or ‘I need to get more training’ – well that’s all true, but at the same time we need to be careful that that doesn’t become our comfort zone. I’ve made lots of mistakes, but I’ve learnt from that, and I’m taking one step at a time – and just doing it.”

For more from Dr Omar Djoeandy on cross cultural mission, local mission, business as mission, hearing God’s call, as well as Omar’s personal story, you can listen to an interview conducted this week on Canberra’s 1WAY FM – download MP3 here (31:25).

• For more information about SIM Australia, see their website.
• For more information about the Canberra Mission Marketplace, see the Mission ACTion Network website.

Other interviews conducted recently by Tim:

• Alistair Coe MLA on his involvement with Operation Christmas Child (download MP3 – 3:01)
• Gordon Ramsey on Anti-Poverty Week in the ACT (download MP3 – 3:28)

There is so much I could write about, so much I’ve had the privilege of learning this year, and so many people who have been a part of it. But the biggest thing that has happened to me this year is meeting the beautiful Lillian Yau from Melbourne – and we’ve now decided that I’ll be moving to Melbourne soon so that we can be a little bit closer to each other!

This will mean leaving my job at 1WAY FM and searching for new work – hopefully within media or Christian ministry – in Melbourne. There’s a lot I can share about this so I will be doing so through this blog, Facebook, Twitter, and on air at 1WAY FM over the next month or so.

I look forward to conversing with you and sharing with you some of what I’ve learnt this year.

Tim

I’ve spent alot of that spare time on the Internet… doing what I love: discovering and learning new things. Lots of the time has been spent on social networking sites. I’ve started tweeting multiple times per day rather than once every six months, I’ve uploaded photos to TwitPic, I’ve joined Dopplr, I’ve updated my profile on various other sites, and I’ve been using Facebook every spare moment of the day (and have already uploaded to it over 300 photos of the trip – with more to come).

Why? Well, obviously I enjoy it and right now I have the time to do it. I hope I can still continue some of it when I get back home.

But really, I’m thinking the underlying reason why I love social networking so much is because it allows me to be me, and to be unafraid of who I am, without the tense environment that I sometimes create for myself around people that I don’t know all too well (or if I’m having a particularly bad day, sometimes even people I do know!). It forces me to be honest about myself rather than wondering what someone will think of me if I act a particular way. It forces me to be the same person around everyone – and to not mold myself into being like each different group of people I might hang around. It forces me to operate my life – including outside of the online world – with more integrity of character.

And I think that’s why I love it so much.

1. What did you do in 2008 that you’d never done before?
Prayed much more specifically than I ever have before, and had those prayers answered.

2. Did you keep your new year’s resolutions, and will you make more for next year?
I don’t recall making any for 2008. I’ve never really been into NYR’s, but there are certainly things I would like to do for 09, such as read more, eat healthier, exercise more, pray more, give-up on things less, and pay more attention to friendships/relationships. Rather than making these resolutions though, I need to make a resolution to plan to achieve these wishes…Rodney Olsen explains well!

3. Did anyone close to you give birth?
Nope.

4. Did anyone close to you die?
No.

5. What countries/states did you visit?
Thailand. In Australia, Queensland and New South Wales. And Western Australia!

6. What would you like to have in 2009 that you lacked in 2008?
Wow. Um. Less laziness. The ability to get more things done, or to at least use my time wisely. More time with friends.

7. What dates from 2008 will remain etched upon your memory, and why?
I don’t recall anything big happening this year – just a number of smaller things. I imagine the dates and period of the year will fade over time.

8. What was your biggest achievement of the year?
Nothing that I feel was big – but there were many smaller achievements in getting over hurdles at work in order to realise our vision.

9. What was your biggest failure?
Allowing insecurities to get the best of me in too many circumstances.

10. Did you suffer illness or injury?
No.

11. What was the best thing you bought?
My iPhone

12. Whose behaviour merited celebration?
A few close friends.

13. Whose behaviour made you appalled and depressed?
Won’t mention it in this public space.
Although for people in public life, Robert Mugabe will easily take that cake.

14. Where did most of your money go?
That’s a good question… probably into rent, actually . Aside from that, I donated a lot to various causes.

15. What did you get really, really, really excited about?
Really, really, really excited about? I honestly don’t know… I don’t think I get that excited…

16. What song will always remind you of 2008?
I haven’t been that into music lately, and probably all that will remind me of the year is a song that came out this year. So it’d have to be something recent…. perhaps Gabriella Cilmi’s multi-Aria award winning Sweet About Me.

17. Compared to this time last year, are you:?
a) happier or sadder: about the same, maybe? And that’s because I think I’ve gone both ways. I know more now than I did last year, and some of it makes me expectantly happy, and some of it makes me sad at the state of some people.
b) thinner or fatter: probably a little fatter. Just a little.
c) richer or poorer: the same! but I need to save more.

18. What do you wish you’d done more of?
I touched on this in question 6. I wish I’d spent more time with friends and got to know people better. I also wish I’d done a few other things (such as cook a few more meals and read more). All in all, I wish I hadn’t wasted so much of my time being lazy!

19. What do you wish you’d done less of?
Wasted so much of my time being lazy!

20. How did you spend Christmas?
With family . In Samut Prakan, Thailand. Last Christmas together as an immediate family – in fact our last time together as an immediate family. Karis gets married in August 2009 and will have her own family as her husband-to-be brings in his foster son, and I likely won’t see Karis again until a week or so before the wedding!

21. Did you fall in love in 2008?
No.

22. How many one-night stands?
Hang on, just gotta count…. kidding. Zero!

23. What was your favourite TV program?
Gossip Girl probably takes it… others would be reruns on Comedy Channel such as The Wedge, The Late Shift, Yes Minister/Yes Prime Minister, and Are You Being Served?.

24. Did you make a friend with anyone that you didn’t know this time last year?
Yes, quite a few.

25. What was the best book you read?
Arhm….. probably the latest Neue Resources book (which I haven’t finished yet) from the guys at neueministry.com. There are many more lining my bookshelf which I’m sure would have been great if I did read them.

26. What was your greatest musical discovery?
Haha, didn’t make many discoveries I’m afraid.

27. What did you want and get?
Stop asking me questions!

28. What did you want and not get?
Many things. 10 million dollars, a house, a car…. ok, fine. Just getting sick of questions that I don’t know how to answer right away.

29. What was your favourite film of this year?
Australia was pretty good. But I also didn’t see many films.

30. What did you do on your birthday, and how old were you?
I turned 20 in January this year, and I went out to a quiet dinner with 4 friends.

31. What one thing would have made your year immeasurably more satisfying?
If you’ve read this far, you will be able to answer this from my previous answers.

32. How would you describe your personal fashion concept in 2008?
Hahaha hopefully it improved a bit. I’m trying to look modern and sophisticated. There’s a few more things I need to do… such as get new glasses.

33. What kept you sane?
Laughing during our crazy conversations at home.

34. Which celebrity/public figure did you fancy the most?
Paris Hilton? No, kidding. Really, probably no-one.

35. What political issue stirred you the most?
I’m not going to be able to boil this down to one, so: Robert Mugabe’s continuing control over Zimbabwe, the blocking of foreign aid after Burma’s Cyclone Nargis, and the crazy back-and-forth of pro and anti government protesters in Thailand.

36. Who did you miss?
My family in Thailand…

37. Who was the best new person you met?
Wow… it would have to be someone I met through my job, hard again to bring it down to one person but it would be Nathaniel Garvin.

38. Tell us a valuable life lesson you learned in 2008.
That sometimes, other people really are completely f**ked up and you really don’t have to comply with their demands as soon as you’ve figured that out!

39. Quote a song lyric that sums up your year.
Skipping this one because I’ll have to go off and find a song just to answer the question.

And that’s it… I’m really not a fan of these hot seat questions, but in a way it’s nice because it makes me analyze further what I have learned this year. To sum things up, I’ve become more secure in who I am and what I believe in, I’ve gotten to know myself a bit better, and I’ve learned to be more discerning of other people. I still have further to go though!

We’re going out tonight to Central World Bangkok for New Year’s Eve celebrations… and are trusting that the red shirt anti-government protesters (the more peaceful ones) don’t find reason to bomb the celebrations like it was rumored they did after the coup two years ago.

See you in 2009!

(posted 6:16pm Thailand time)

Today, Americans go to vote for the person to fill the most powerful office in the world. Much has been said about the Christian vote, and how if Christians are concerned about the direction America is heading they should be voting for John McCain. I’ve been getting many, many e-mails on this topic – from right-wing religious organisations, from concerned Christians, and from other people who thought I might be interested (and I am, but I don’t agree).

If you’ve been reading this blog for a little while you’ll know that I voted here in Australia for the Liberal Party – in both houses – at last year’s federal election and at this year’s ACT Legislative Assembly election (the Liberal Party in Australia being the conservative party).

But for this election – if I was eligible to vote – I would be voting for Barack Obama. Yes, it’s a bit of a shift to the left.

My politics aren’t yet set in stone (I say yet, because as soon as they are, I plan to join an appropriate political party). I still need to do a lot of research on the differences between left and right politics. Many times I find myself in the centre. Sometimes I lean to the right, and sometimes I lean to the left. When I lean, I more often find myself leaning to the right – especially disagreeing with much of what the Labor Party does in Australia based on their industrial relations (unionism) and economic policies.

But to me – and my limited-compared-to-real-political-pundits’-understanding of politics – there is one big issue at the US election:

John McCain is too old, out of touch with where America (and much of the world) wants to head, and has shown very bad judgment in his short-term-political-interest-protecting choosing of Sarah Palin as his running mate.

Barack Obama on the other hand is younger, has some experience, and exudes confidence when he talks. He has surrounded himself with people more experienced than him – such as Joe Biden – and has managed to capture the attention of many, many followers. His leadership begs following, and he is bringing about change which in part is exciting. He also knows how to use e-mail.

But there’s a bigger issue behind all this, which I want to focus on. The e-mails I referred to above have focussed solely on moral issues and the protection of the Christian religion. None of which, I believe, are what we have been Biblically mandated to do.

Let me explain.

One of the e-mails I received the other day started like this:

This is from an attorney in Cincinnati, Ohio. He has a very strong faith in the Lord. Please read this and pray!

Unfortunately this turned me off from the start. Because someone claims to have a strong faith in the Lord, I should trust everything he says? Of course I’m not questioning his faith, but if someone expects me to agree with whatever they say just because they are a Christian, I am probably not going to be agreeing with them.

The e-mail continued:

I have never been one to read things circulated on the Internet, much less write them, so it is with no small reluctance that I do so now. However, the Lord has laid it heavily upon my heart to call His people to a day of prayer and fasting for the upcoming November 4 elections, and this provides an excellent medium to get the word out quickly to a large number of believers.

America stands at a crossroads, not just politically but also spiritually. The current election cycle is nothing less than a battle for the very soul of our country. The discerning among you already know this to be true. The deepening political polarization we have witnessed in the past few elections is merely a symptom of an ever-intensifying spiritual polarization, as the battle lines between the righteous and the wicked are drawn with increasing clarity. The stakes are enormous, whether politically, economically, morally or in terms of our physical security. We are about to step off in a direction that could very well lead to our destruction as a nation — and so many millions are blind to this reality.

As I observe popular attitudes and watch the public opinion polls , my heart grieves for our nation. We have abandoned the principles upon which our nation was founded, principles which in turn were anchored in the person and principles of God. The wicked grow ever more powerful and influential. Once respectable journalistic organizations have degenerated to little more than propaganda organs for the political left. Godly leaders who can rise up in defense of righteousness and our God-given liberties seem nowhere to be found. As a nation, we have cast God out of our thinking. The murder of the unborn is championed in the streets and in the courts. Homosexual “marriage” is trumpeted as a constitutional right and as the sign of a so-called progressive culture. Sexual immorality, drug abuse, violence, idolatry, pornography, and a host of other sins have overtaken us. As a nation we either justify these things or, at a minimum, turn a blind eye to them. And God’s people have certainly not been immune from these things.

Now we stand ready to reap the fruits of our national godlessness. God sometimes judges sin by giving people over to the very things they desire and allowing the natural consequences to play out. Generalizations are often dangerous, but I think it is safe to say that generally the sins I mentioned are associated with the political left. It is my sincere conviction, and I have often said to those who will listen, that the leaders of the American left represent the force of evil in our political arena. Admittedly there are wicked and corrupt people on the right as well, but experience has shown that a conservative political ideology finds its roots, to large extent, in scriptural truth. Consequently, conservative politicians are generally (but certainly not always or completely) aligned with the Word of God. However, as the wicked gain the upper hand in the halls of power, all of us of whatever political leaning will experience the predictable consequences.

So where does that leave us? Current polls indicate that the left is in position to seize decisive control of our entire political system, including all three branches of government. They stand to take the White House , both houses of Congress and, by inevitable extension, the courts as well. If that happens, they will take the country hard to the left in a way from which I do not believe we will ever recover. Socialism, moral libertinism, contempt for the sanctity of life, and increasing efforts to stifle political dissent (and I would add, to silence biblically based “hate speech”) are sure to follow in short order. If God severely judged Israel for her wickedness, who are we to expect differently?

“If the foundations are destroyed, what can the righteous do?”

What can we do to prevent the unmaking of America from happening right before ou r eyes?

We can call upon the name of the Lord, who is rich in mercy and mighty to deliver His people. We can pray along with the psalmist that the designs of the wicked and the oppressors would be thwarted by the hand of God . We can pray that God would lift the evident blindness that has gripped our nation, and that He would grant widespread repentance. We can pray that only the most godly men and women would be elected to lead this nation, and that they would lead in righteousness. We can pray that such righteousness would again exalt our nation as we return to the Lord in humility and repentance. We can pray that, regardless of what happens on November 4, the people of God will manifest “the swe et aroma of the knowledge of Christ” in ever increasing measure.

To that end, I am asking every believer in Jesus Christ to set aside Monday, November 3 as a day of fasting and prayer . I would urge you to review the prayer of Daniel on behalf of his people in Dan. 9:3-19, and to pray that way for our nation. And finally, I would ask you to distribute this call to prayer as widely as possible so that the greatest number of people would lay hold of the throne of grace all at once. It may be that God will show mercy to America, that He will shed His grace on her once again. Thank you for joining with me in this effort.

D. Johnson

That was the e-mail in its entirety. I have hundreds of problems with it, but I’ll highlight a few.

The first one is that this attorney – and alot of the religious right – seems to be missing the safe and comfortable Christianity that America was founded on (Australia also). Well, the world is going left, and by standing our ground as Christians way over on the right, we’re not exactly going to achieve much. Complaining that the wicked are too powerful doesn’t do a thing (evil triumphs when good men do nothing), apart from engendering an even greater dislike in the world for Christians – and through it, Jesus Christ.

The e-mail mentions that “godly leaders are nowhere to be found”. I probably don’t agree with his definition of “godly” in this sense, but in the sense he’s referring to, they’re probably nowhere to be found because they’re all writing e-mails like this and holding prayer vigils. I’ve mentioned before a great quote I saw somewhere: “Pray like it depends on God, but act like it depends on you.” What is this guy – and the others who are writing these e-mails – doing to actually bring about change? There’s no point standing up and saying “it should be this way instead”. You have to gain respect before you gain the right to influence.

By the way, in this e-mail, mention is made of the Democrats standing for drug abuse and violence – among other sins. Huh? No powerful political party in the western world is for the increase of either!

The e-mail also states that the right is generally more aligned with the Word of God. This is the only part of the e-mail that I agree with, but yet I only partly agree with it. Conservative politicians are generally better aligned with the moral side of the gospel, but liberal politicians are generally better aligned with the social side of the gospel (eg. feeding the hungry and looking after the sick). So that means Christians should really be trapped between left and right.

But – what is our Biblical mandate? See the parable of the sheep and the goats in Matthew 25:31-46. Or the great commission in Matthew 28:18-20. Remember also that Jesus gave wine to drunk people as his first miracle on Earth (John 2) – uh-oh, where were his morals? Also, consider Paul’s comments in 1 Corinthians 9.

Is our mandate to try to align the world with Christian morals (the agenda of the religious right)? Or is it to get to know the people around us, to meet their physical and spiritual needs, and show them who Jesus Christ really was and still is?

Even though I tend to go missing here sometimes, I know a break of just over four months probably isn’t characteristic of me. But the last four months have probably been the busiest of my work-life up until now. And as you’ll know – if you’ve read any other post on here – I’m a bit of a workaholic.

Suffice to say the busyness isn’t going to be over yet, and it’ll probably be the end of the year before I can settle down, take a look back and review the year gone, and actually process what I’ve learnt and put it into place for next year. I have notes and notes and notes of things I’ve learnt from conferences, discussions with mentors, books I’ve read, and magazines and websites I’ve explored… and I’ve been rushing through at such a fast pace that lots of it hasn’t even been put into practice yet. At least not consciously anyway.

I don’t actually have much to write. No actually, that’s a lie. I could write for ages. But I haven’t been able to sufficiently process everything to know that I want it to be out in cyberspace for ever. I’ve developed a few opinions this year which are probably quite controversial – at least amongst the circles I’ve grown up in. I need to be sure of myself before publicly talking about them.

I did an ego search tonight, and found this blog post. It’s super to know that what I’ve written here has been read and taken in by people. But it still scares me, how much people know about me when I realise they’ve been reading my blog! In that post I’ve linked to, the writer has printed out a copy of my testimony as used to appear on this site. I took it down some time ago now as I wanted to rewrite it to fit in the way I would now express myself – the previous ‘version’ was written several years ago (possibly 2004). It’s nice to know, in a weird sort of way and not through any of my own doing, that what I wrote has still survived online – but it reminds me that I might need to be careful of what I say.

In other news, an ACT election is being held this Saturday. I pre-poll voted so I could volunteer for a party on the day. If you want to know who I voted for, the foundations of my politics haven’t changed all that much since the federal election last year, so look back on my previous posts and you will find out. Given the frequency of my writing this year, they’ll probably be on page two.

I would imagine after four months not many people are regularly checking this site at the moment. But as I always say, I will be back…. soon! One day, in the not too distant future.

In my life I want to make a difference in those around me. William James said ‘The best use of life is to spend it for something that outlasts it’ – and investing into people is a great way to do that. The quote has even more significance if you’re old and wise and leading the young and not-so-wise (of which I am obviously currently in the latter bracket, learning off those in the other).

So my point is this. When a friend talks about the last two years of his life and states that you played a part in it, it is encouraging. Encouraging to know that, while you want to do good, partly now as a result of your doing good (which you wondered the whole time whether it was good or it was just an illusion that only you could see), someone else is now also doing good.

Investing into the people around you is going to make greater your own impact on this world. And it’s super encouraging, and keeps you going, to hear that you’re doing it well.

So thanks Adam. And the rest of this discussion, I shall continue with you in just a moment, but offline.