Spitting from the Podium and Contraceptive Deletives

Picture Of Ortho Tri-Cyclen oral contraceptives with Ortho Dialpak dispensers (photo taken by self). (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

I remember when a politician would no more say the word “contraceptive” than spit from the podium. I’m beginning to think that the sexual freedom climate, and the freedom to use words like “contraceptive” in public places is more than half-way down the slippery slope we all heard predicted in the 70’s and 80’s from fuddie-duddies and fundamentalists.

The sexual revolution produced an amazing array of sexually transmitted diseases. This means that the little monsters and body snatchers have come out with a vengeance like zombies in a low-budget horror flick. AIDS? Herpes? HPV? PID? HIV? LGV?

The sexual revolution created a massive devaluation of personhood! It cheapened a sacred and powerful God-given urge. I’ve said since High School that the greatest disease of the sexual revolution is hardening of the heart, i.e. an increasing inability to give your heart away. The hurt and calluses, scar tissue and numbness, not to mention the vast number of dumb relationships that form and vast numbers of children harmed by the lack of stable and loving homes, has hardened our hearts and made us less able to have sensitivity to others.

God tells us that if we have sex we become “one” with her (him). In other words, we give our hearts away. Sure, the heart can heal over time, but with increasing sexual activity outside of marriage the heart becomes less involved. The body becomes a machine, efficient, not giving away too much so it hurts much less when rejection strikes. Pandered words like:

• “contraception.”
• “It’s just a biological function.
• “It’s just sex.”
• “It’s just two people doing what is natural.”

remind us daily (hourly?) that sex isn’t anything that special.

Planned Parenthood gives these guidelines about sex:

• “Both people should want to have sex.”
• “Use birth control … “
• “Be clear with each other about what you do and don’t want to do”

– emotions? bonding? heartaches? honor? Planned Parenthood says nothing of these.

The sexual revolution demands a symbol, and it is “The Pill.” For the past fifty years the pill has split off thoughts of giving life from sex. A life-giving, sacramental activity, becomes nothing deeper than two junkyard cats howling in the night. Experts reassure us that superficial is OK, but superficial becomes old and wrinkly, the heart, callused and brittle, and love, artificial. Sex is about the moment. Who cares about the future? Take “the pill.” Lust warps our love without a concern for consequences or improving the lot of the other because “the pill” seems like a perfect “solution.”

The slippery slope is saying, “Give me your lusty, needy, lonely, downtrodden, and let them have sex to cover their pain.” We are more than half-way down it, and what astounds me is the gall to perpetuate sexual freedom myths without the balls to talk about the real problems.

I disagree somewhat with the Catholic church about contraceptives. I have no problem with insurance companies paying for contraceptives, but forcing them to go against their sacred beliefs about oneness, life-giving, sacramental and God-centered beliefs is astounding!  The core problem isn’t the prevention of babies, nor the prevention of STD’s, but the problem of fractured hearts and lonely, wrinkled, hopeless, non-sacramental people (what the Catholic Church’s sees happening because of the sexual revolution).

Isn’t the President giving the wrong side of “hope” here?

• I hope I don’t get pregnant?
• I hope I use the right contraceptive?
• I hope this prophylactic works? (Anybody still know what that is???)
• I hope somebody will pay for my sexual freedom?

The right side of sex is “I’m becoming a greater person with this person at my side! I’m helping him/her become more valuable, more loved, more whole! I’m committing my heart, soul, mind, AND body to him/her.

The problem with the contraception controversy is that the band-aid isn’t big enough. Paying for contraceptives to explore the dangerous world of sexual promiscuity without talking about the heart-breaking consequences tells us how far we’ve come down the slippery slope! Seems like we have a society whose heart is hardening. I’d rather see the President spit! 

Eph. 4:17-19 So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking. 18 They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts. 19 Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more.

OBAMA’s Education Speech

John Piper and Al Mohler give their evaluation of President Obama’s speech two weeks ago:

John Piper- “I’ve Read the President’s Speech: Amazing”

Al Mohler- “The Obama School Speech Controversy- What To Think?”

Love These Stats (and the Bailout)

I love statistics, maps, encyclopedias. I cried one Christmas when Rhonda gave me an unabridged dictionary! So, finding these stats that compare China to the USA was a gold mine. You can get the full wad and compare, compare, compare to your heart’s delight by clicking on this link to mint.com. Now, isn’t this so much more informative and useful than watching old reruns of “Britains Greatest Talent”?

If you want another mint.com fantastic visual of what happened to GM click here.

For a visual of the financial bailout to simplify what all has happened click here.

I’m wondering why Obama doesn’t give the next $35 billion to build some oil production facilities out west where 1.5 Trillion barrels of oil are locked in shale.

or set up three new nuclear power plants.

or give the money to ten steel production companies.

or help the hard working guy who came to our house today because his wife is in pain and they have no money for meds.

or pay for the 25% increase in property taxes those of us in Washington County will experience next year!

Inaugural Heat: Remember Mogadishu!

(This Blog was written on January 20, 2009)

The inauguration was very cold. People were hot on Obama. Wonderful and disturbing. Four years ago, most people were wondering how this young upstart from Illinois became Senator. Obama who? A blip on the political radar. About eight people thought he was Presidential material. And now? Gloating and messianic fervor.

Just like in Jesus’ day people want a human savior. The herd is looking for a quick fix, money to buy the American dream and a continuation of power and comfort. The herd is running hard from the Bush years. I’m not quite sure what the crowd knows about their destination. The speech today was pure platitude, more like Clinton**, promising happy thoughts and brave hearts, and of course, change! Unlike Bush, who put his cards on the table, and tried to outline some definite agenda items, and bored me in the process, Obama sounds like he’s giving us hope, sounds so confident in the future, so sure of a positive outcome. He’s building my faith and at least a million shivering people in DC today. And he might be able to deliver, but first…

• I am praying that Obama unlike Bush gets a lot right in the first few months and no “9-11″ crisis disturbs the progress!
• I will pray that three massive hurricane seasons in a row will not derail his agenda.
• I will pray that the greed and avarice of trillions of trickle-down-economic dollars will not suck him into the power machine of Wall Street.
• I will pray that he understands leadership as the listening ear with a nerve to stand up to the whimpering and pandering of the power hungry, those who use money to oppress others and those who do not understand evil.
• I pray that his agenda includes the protection of the unborn and the dignity and honor of parenting and marriage.
• I pray that his inaugural plea for God’s grace means that he really plans to help ordinary, undeserving people with more than a token amount of the several trillion dollars needed over the next two years of government stimulus.

If Obama can lead this nation, he will have done it with nerve and a non-anxious presence, not with a Messiah’s zeal. Change comes with a price, lots of it, and time, lots of it.  All the answers are yet unkown. His bag of tricks, whatever they are, will be good for about six months, then a reckoning. Be careful what you undo. It may be your undoing, Mr. Obama! I believe you will lead well, you seem sincere and one whose aloofness comes across as a leader with a non-anxious presence. It just might work, but I still believe there is only one true Messiah!

**

Bill Clinton was a young, brilliant politician in ’92. He had amazing energy and ideas. Do you remember them? NAFTA, welfare reform, health care reform, and a balanced budget?  Yet, what do you remember about the Clinton era? An English lesson on the word “is” and a young female intern. Within a few years, Clinton and many former anti-Reaganites reversed their appraisal of Ronald Reagan to the point where he was seen as a new hero of the 20th century. I was one of them. Within months, Clinton’s ideas lost steam. Having won only  43% and 49% of the popular vote, and never having a friendly congress or senate, Clinton’s claim to fame is going to be his reputation as a womanizer and possibly his $500,000,000.00 (yes, 1/2 Billion!) presidential library containing happy thoughts and platitudes borrowed from a previous President.

Clinton built many bridges to Reagan and laissez faire economics and world politics. Yet, unlike Reagan, he entirely missed the threat of an evil world power, Al Quaeda, and the stubborn refusal of and evil Iraqi dictator to comply with EIGHTEEN U.N. resolutions against it. He defended himself by saying he boldly sent cruise missiles from the South China Sea into Afghanistan, but forgets that he  gave the Army Rangers a new rallying cry, “Remember Mogadishu!” (See another article here on Clinton’s ties to Reagan)

Obama and Clinton continue to praise Reagan even in 2008. Ronald Reagan is seen as a hero on many fronts. I don’t think Bush will deserve that glamorous position, but he will certainly receive much more praise as time wears on.