Dear Theophilus

Here are a few things Christians should consider before taking a stance on the gun control issue, in my opinion: Does God care if you have a gun if you are responsible? Probably not. Use it responsibly. Keep it locked up. Go hunting and be respectful in your hunts toward creation. Shoot clay pigeons all day (though Jesus might have something to say about how we spend our money here). You should be fine. Does God really care about your rights, constitutional or otherwise? It just seems to me that Jesus has a much bigger agenda, which expects something of his followers. Our job is to extend the Kingdom of God by being, first and foremost, good citizens of *that* Kingdom. "Jesus answered, ‘My kingdom is not from this world. If my kingdom were from this world, my followers would be fighting to keep me from being handed over to the Jews. But as it is, my kingdom is not from here.’ Pilate asked him, ‘So you are a king?’ Jesus answered, ‘You say that I am a king. For this I w...

Half-Handed Cloud with "Plant a little Fir Tree" Stationed out of Berkeley, CA. http://youtu.be/1e1tBJ-HtWA Lyrics: "If you plant a little fir tree then we'll all be gifts beneath it If you want to know you're special, now there's proof cause you've got the gift of Jesus. ????? came them from the east, those wise guys how did they know that it would snow If you plant a little fir tree then we'll all be gifts beneath it If you want to know you're special, now there's proof cause you've got the gift of Jesus. Wise men were sent from the east from China, Korea, Japan, each sent a wise man. He landed on the earth all wrapped in skin they're the only ones to find him. Shepherds got there first to worship him then later came the wise men ???? for swaddling what we rise from spice that was meant to preserve Gold, Frankincense, Myrrh. If you plant a little fir tree then we'll all be gifts beneath it...

Some thoughts on the DNC tonight as I watched the speeches... John Kerry Kerry gets right to business but in a very accusative and argumentative tone. He seems rushed. Not a good start. “ Despite what you heard in Tampa, an exceptional country does care about the rise of the oceans and the future of the planet. That is a responsibility from the Scriptures—and that too is a responsibility of the leader of the free world.” THANK YOU!!! This is important and Romney got it wrong. “ It took President Obama to restore our moral authority—and to ban torture.” – This is very important. A lot of Christians talk about what Christians should care about… this is definitely one of those issues and unfortunately we don’t. “ Ask Osama bin Laden if he is better off now than he was four years ago .” – Tacky and unnecessary. I don’t like this at all. Something about which I am VERY proud of our country and President - “ President Obama promised to work ...

Just my thoughts on some of the speeches at the DNC today. Sometimes I just listed quotes I found interesting and worthy of more thought. Summary : ~Rep. Cleaver's speech is a must see for Christians, even if you disagree, just to hear some preaching at the DNC. ~Sister Simone Cambell, a nun: it was good to hear a pro-life, person of faith take the stage. She ended her speech with a call to kindness... how Nun-like of her :) It was actually good. ~ Not a fan of Elizabeth Warren's speech. I probably just offended all my Dem. friends, but you probably deserve it :). Too sentimental and way too many cliches. Not polished enough for her time slot and too aggressive and accusative. ~Clinton was simple and really well-done. It is a must see. My Dem. friends watched the RNC, I hope my Rep. friends will at least watch this speech, if only to hear the heart of their neighbors around them who genuinely feel this way. Rep. Emanuel Cleaver The speaker’s opener is le...

My thoughts on the DNC tonight: Julian Castro A public school teacher??? That is awesome… DNC has better music J … but does this matter? Castro’s speech begins a little like a highschool graduation speech. “My family’s story isn’t special. What’s special is the America that makes our story possible. Ours is nation like no other… the chance for your children to do better than you did… ” – As I said with the RNC, I do not like this American exceptionalism and I do not like the promise of “more” for the future generations. The difference between the RNC and Castro’s speech here is that the RNC’s focus was privately directed, talking about people pulling their selves up by their bootstraps and making something out of their selves. Castro’s emphasis seems to be bit broader (but only a bit), about the people as a whole and not just individuals succeeding. Castro emphasized building bridges and fighting for rights. Of the two “this is what makes America great” speeches,...

As with all things, start with agreement and praise, then discuss disagreements. Clint Eastwood’s speech: I liked that he talked about Politicians being our employees. He is right on. Puts things into perspective. I liked that he talked about not voting for people just because they are nice guys. “Hot Doggin’ it”? Really?  Clint talks about 23 million unemployed as Obama’s fault… Unemployment has been lowering almost every month for the 2.5 years. It may not be as fast as one would want, but the job is getting done. This speech is awkward and a little embarrassing. Clint is literally making up things that Obama would never say, and by things I literally mean insulting and disgusting remarks. That isn’t funny. It looks like Clint is going to fall asleep at the podium. Eastwood also said that he doesn’t like lawyers as politicians because they always weigh both sides of the issue: I guess Clint and I disagree on what it means to be a good human bei...

Nijay Gupta talks about the upcoming Shane Claiborne/ Tony Campolo book and the endorsers... Ben Witherington talks about Mormonism and Christianity and why they are not the same. AMAZING Professor of Sociology at CSU Chico, Tony Waters, talks about why Chico State is awesome and Berkley sucks. John Hay inspires peace making as a norm for Christians with recollections of Vietnam.