Within Reach!

Here is an excellent article on the topic. I have been looking for scriptural references, and the following quote sums everything up, I believe.

http://www.faithnet.org.uk/KS4/christianeuthanasia.htm

"...euthanasia is actually mentioned in the Bible in two places and both are in the Old Testament. The first is when Abimelech asks his armour-bearer to put him to death after he had been hit on the head by a millstone (Judges 9:52-55). In the second instance Saul, the first king of Israel, asked to be put to death after he had attempted suicide ('Stand over me and kill me! I am in the throes of death, but I am still alive. So I stood over him and killed him, because I knew that after he had fallen he could not survive.' (2 Samuel 1:9-10). The Amalekite who recounts this story, and who eventually killed Saul, is then put to death by David, Saul's successor. In both these instances the idea that euthanasia is an acceptable practice is not considered. In the first account Abimelech asks to be put to death so that he would not suffer the shame of being killed by a woman (who had dropped the stone on him), whilst the second records the final days of a king who had gone against God and lost his right to lead the people."

Former President Bill Clinton posts his daily dairy on the internet. He has a particular statement that I want to discuss today. You can read the entire article at http://billclintondailydiary.blogspot.com/2005/03/terri-schiavo-and-democratic-party.html

"By and large Americans are religious, but do not want others to force their (beliefs) on them."--Former U.S. President William J. Clinton

1. There is a difference between "religion" and "faith"

religion (rî-lîj´en) noun
1. a. Belief in and reverence for a supernatural power or powers regarded as creator and governor of the universe. b. A personal or institutionalized system grounded in such belief and worship.
2. The life or condition of a person in a religious order.
3. A set of beliefs, values, and practices based on the teachings of a spiritual leader.
4. A cause, a principle, or an activity pursued with zeal or conscientious devotion.

faith (fâth) noun
1. Confident belief in the truth, value, or trustworthiness of a person, an idea, or a thing.
2. Belief that does not rest on logical proof or material evidence. See synonyms at belief, trust.
3. Loyalty to a person or thing; allegiance: keeping faith with one's supporters.
4. Theology. The theological virtue defined as secure belief in God and a trusting acceptance of God's will.
5. The body of dogma of a religion: the Muslim faith.
6. A set of principles or beliefs.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Third Edition copyright © 1992 by Houghton Mifflin Company.

Notice from these two definitions that "religion" is all about "doing things" where faith is all about "believing things." I prefer not to talk about "religion" but much rather about faith. And while most Americans are "religious" in their lives, I find that fewer and fewer are "faithful" in their daily lives.

2. People Do Not Want Beleifs Forced Upon Them
This is the point that I want to make. And here is a list of "beliefs" that society has been working to forced upon the population:

1. A "fetus" is just a "fetus" and is not a person, so it's okay to "abort" it because it isn't really alive anyway
2. All life on earth "evolved" from one common ancestor
3. There is nothing wrong with open sexuality and sexual relations outside of wedlock
4. There is nothing wrong with homosexual behavior
5. When I close my eyes and give a silent prayer it interferes with the lives of others
6. It's okay to drink soft drinks at every meal
7. Everybody has credit card debt and there's nothing wrong with that

Dear Mr. President, it seems that there are many beliefs that society is desperately trying to impose on me and those of my faith. These are just some of them. And because my faith--our faith--is such a critical part of who we are, we must speak out against society forcing their beliefs on us.

Over the past several months I have been involved in an interview for a position at a company where I would like to work full time. During my interview process I was told that I was the "#1 candidate for the position" and that the hiring manager would "work to put together" a hiring package that would be right for me.

Time had passed and I checked in periodically. I was not given any indication that anything had changed. At one time I was told that I would be contacted within a week.

Unfortunately the next week we had a death in the family and I was not able to follow up on the issue, and the next week after that the hiring manager was on vacation.

After all this, I got a message on Monday that a person that they had an offer out to during my interview had accepted.

My first reaction was anger. "How could they lie to me like this?" I thought. "How could they tell me I'm the #1 for the job and then offer it to someone else?"

My second reaction was disappointment. I was on a short-term project and it was ending on Friday. Come Friday, we had no more income, and I had been putting off looking for work because I was waiting for the hiring manager to get back to me with the package he was preparing--expecting that it would come.

My third reaction was fear. I needed to find a new job and find it fast! We had some money saved up, enough to last a while if need be, but not enough to last forever. We'd have to change our budget and other plans as well.

My fourth reaction was joy. I was glad to find out in advance that I could not trust this person. "I don't want to work for someone that thinks that lying is the thing to do."

My fifth reaction, which came after much resting and thinking, was much different. I thought about how we could repair the trust that had been violated. I thought that maybe I was the #1 choice, but because of politics in the company I still was not given the offer. In any event, I determined that I did not have enough information, at least at this time, to really react the way I had previously. I should have reacted with curiosity.

So now I am curious about this situation. Could it be possible that I am the #1 choice but someone else was already given an offer? If so, why was that person (or persons) given several months to respond? Did the hiring manager indeed work with the company to put together a package for me? What will it be like if I encouter this person again?

The focus on my attention has turned to re-building the relationship with this hiring manger. I want to learn more about what happened, confront him with what appears to me to be incongruent statements, and determine if we really have a possibility for a business future together.

I also need to be prepared to forgive him if it turns out that he was lying to me, and to ask for his forgiveness for jumping to conclusions.

No matter what else happens, that is the right thing to do... and we all know it!

"Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances."

Why is school prayer illegal? I understand that "forcing" someone to pray is illegal and wrong (and I don't think God wants it that way anyway), but why is voluntary school prayer illegal?

I am told that it makes other people "uncomfortable" to experience others praying so school prayer is illegal.

So then Congress passed a law saying that school prayer is illegal--thus prohibiting the free exercise of religion.

We should all be free to exercise our religion. In fact, if you go around society today you find a welcoming of virtually every religion available--except Christianity.

If somoene wears a "pro-choice" t-shirt at a "pro-choice" rally, they get glorified on the news for speaking out. If someone prays for the baby being aborted, they are branded a lunatic.

We Christians are not supposed to exercise our faith in public. Others are protected from us celebrating our holidays publicly. Others are "protected" from hearing us pray aloud or watching us pray in silence. Yet we are not protected from sexually-oriented Super Bowl ads...

The problem is simple: our current society is slating the First Amendment towards those who oppose Christianity and away from Christianity. It is a frightening trend to prohibit the free exercise of religion--my religion--but to allow all others but mine.

In his book The Purpose-Driven Life, Rick Warren tells us clearly that life here is not about "us" but about God.

Have you ever heard people ask, "Why does God allow suffering?" or "I can't believe that if there is a God that He'd be so cruel." My personal favorite is "Why did God do this to me? I deserve better!"

Hey, make no mistake about it--Mother Teresa was considered by many to be a very good person. She cared for the poor, totally changed her life, lived in poverty--you name it. In fact, we could all pretty much agree that Mother Teresa was "better than all of us" on the "good" scale.

Yet Mother Teresa knew that she needed grace.

Y'see, if Mother Teresa is better than you or me, and Mother Teresa needed grace, what does that say about you and me?

God doesn't "have it out for you" and He's not trying to make our lives hard. The "why" may not be answered until we get to heaven! But I know this much... God did not create us so that He could serve us.

"Bear with each other and forgive whatever grievances you ma have against one another. Forgive as the Lord forgave you." -- Colossians 3:12

Let's face it--people are difficult sometimes. I haven't met a person (me included) who doesn't have specific quirks and issues. Sometimes issues that people have can rub against us like sandpaper. And sometimes these people don't even know that they are being abrasive or even have an issue!

Yet we are told to "Bear with each other" and to forgive. Out of all my experience with difficult people, I have only one real conclusion that I can come to--most of them don't even realize that they are being difficult and see themselves as victims and are just trying to be loved!

Think of three people in your life that are "difficult" people. How do you come up with that? Easy! Think of one of your favorite activities, and then think of the three people you would least like to show up! If you like golf, who do you not want to golf with? If you like fishing, who do you not want to fish with? If you like shopping, who do you not want to shop with?

Learning to bear with these people is the first step to letting them feel liked and even loved. Sure, maybe they have real behavioral issues to work out, but they will never get to them without first feeling accepted and loved.

God commands us to bear with each other--and if that wasn't reason enough, think of all the good that could follow from simple forgiveness!

I recently was in a discussion with someone at a breakfast, and we were going over our insights into a financial study we were doing through our church. The person I was speaking to had said that everything does belong to God, but it just seemed silly to dedicate smaller items to the Kingdom. He had no problems dedicating his house and finances to God, but he acted like God isn't interested in everything, just the big stuff.

My friend even gave examples of dedicating his house to God's work, as a place for people to gather and study. But he didn't think that God was all that interested in the couch or the chair or the jar of maple syrup because "it's just maple syrup."

Well, certainly, God is interested in the "big stuff" but I believe he's interested in the small stuff too. In fact, I have found that the "small stuff" tends to interfere with my relationship with Christ more than the "big stuff" ever will. I will even go so far as to say that it can be dangerous to think that God isn't interested in our full dedication to Him and that God has full ownership of everything in creation, the large and the small.

Deuteronomy 10:14 tells us "To the Lord your God belong the heavens, even the hightest of heaves, the earth and everything in it." To me, everything means everything, including the small stuff!

Within Reach! is my blog of my "essays" on understanding how God, the Bible, and Christianity affects our daily lives. Here I post editorials and questions to promote thought and personal study.