Misplaced outrage

I'm supposed to be on vacation, not writing, but I just have to ask: Seriously ,what is wrong with society today? I like lions as much as the next guy; in an abstract way that is, I don't really know any lions personally. And in vague terms I thought “that's a shame” when I heard about Cecil the lion being shot in Zimbabwe. I may have even thought the hunter was a bit of a jerk. But then the shooting of poor Cecil started to trend and the social media lynch mobs armed themselves with metaphorical torches and pitchforks and demanded justice or retribution or something for Cecil. 

And I remembered the deafening silence that has followed the martyrdom of Christians in the Middle East by ISSI and realized the sad commentary that was about our society in general.

On the same day that Cecil was killed, people around the world were losing their lives, victims of violence and injustice. Yet instead of being outraged or saddened by the loss of human lives, society chose to ignore their plight to focus on the death of an animal…… a really large and majestic animal, but still an animal and I wonder what that says about society? Have a great week and remember: To see what is really possible, you will have to attempt the impossible.

Let the Sun Shine

Well, Cornerstone is producing electricity.  Our 11 KW array is now connected to the “grid” and any excess power that is produced in the run of a day is sold back to Nova Scotia Power.  And that is cool and confusing. 

I kind of understand how power is generated, in particular from turbines, you know: something that turns and creates electricity, we were taught about that in Jr High science class.  And there are all kinds of ways to make those turbines turn using hydro, wind or steam.  But solar modules don’t spin, they just take sunshine and turn it into electricity.  I don’t understand it and can’t explain, I asked Mr. Google and I still don’t understand it and still can’t explain it, but that doesn’t make it any less real.  Regardless of my understanding or lack of understanding, in a week our array produced almost a half a million watts of electricity.

There are things about my relationship with God and my walk as a Christian that I don’t understand and can’t explain but that doesn’t make them any less real.  It just proves the Bible’s definition of faith in Hebrews 11:1” Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”   Kind of like solar energy.

Have a great week and remember: To see what is really possible, you will have to attempt the impossible.

Who says it's right?

It is just a “U”, but it is the difference between something being right and something being wrong. Perhaps you know what I’m talking about. It’s the “U” that our neighbours to the south neglect to include in words like harbour, colour and saviour. Which is fine if you live south of the 49th, but on this side of the border it means you have spelled the word wrong.

 People object and maintain that, because it’s the proper spelling in the States, it should be okay in Canada. And because polygamy is acceptable in Saudi Arabia, should it also be okay in Canada?

That is just Denn venting, and in the big scheme of things the fact that people are too lazy to spell a word correctly probably won’t matter much, it just makes me cranky. However, when Christians begin to justify sinful behaviour simply because society accepts it, that will have eternal consequences. 

It doesn’t matter if television says it’s fine, and it doesn’t matter if everyone at work and school are doing it; if the Bible says the behaviour is wrong, the behaviour is wrong. The fact that others call it right doesn’t make it any less wrong. Have a great week and remember: To see what is really possible, you will have to attempt the impossible.

Words to live by. . . Or not.

Recently I have found myself immersed in a book of wisdom.  I’m sure Angela is growing tired of my constant interruptions as I regale her with yet another new discovery.  As I read I am constantly thinking:” Wow!” “Amazing” & ”I didn’t know that.” Stories of great achievements by folks with obscure names and stories of inspirations share the pages of this book and I want to share many of the things I have discovered with those around me.  Of course, you realize that I’m talking about Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader.

I have also discovered a few mistakes in my reading. Not major mistakes but enough that I tend to read the rest with a grain of salt.  Uncle John, I am sure, would remind me “To err is human, to forgive divine.” And then he would let me know that quote came from Alexander Pope in An Essay on Criticism that Pope wrote in 1709 but wasn’t published until 1711.   But I digress.

Too many people view the Bible the same way. It’s an interesting book that is full of neat things, but they aren’t sure they can trust it and it certainly isn’t life changing.  And it will never be life changing until we embrace it for what it is: the Word of God.  Have a great week and remember: To see what is really possible, you will have to attempt the impossible.